Ok, I haven't posted anything for a while, I know. Now though I have something fairly interesting to put up here... I'm writing this from Iten (pronounced like playing battleships "E:10"), Kenya. One of the best, if not THE best, running hotspots in the world.
Situated up at 2500m elevation in the Rift Valley region, with a great climate and hard-working Kenyan work ethic, it is a great place to come and train. The locals are very hospitable and friendly, with every child you run (or even walk) past turning with a wide smile and waving with a chirpy "How are you?" Any of the local runners (including up to the many elite athletes who reside here for months at a time) are very happy to invite an aspiring runner along for any of their runs or jogs... but once there its up to the invitee to try and STAY with the rest of the runners. Most train 2 if not 3 times per day (6am, 9am and 4pm) and just know its what they're here to do, there are no excuses.
When you are training and racing as a chance to earn money, as your occupation and provide for your family, the idea of risking injury on a muddy morning run (we all head onto the "All weather trail" for these times) or taking a rest day is a very hard notion to validate to yourself.
I'm up here with my fellow professional service providers from The Running Centre: Raf Baugh and Ben Green. We are also lucky enough to have Philo Saunders (Exercise Physiologist and consistent 1500m Australian National Finalist) come along for our 2 week trip, staying at the High Altitude Training Centre, set up by Lornah Kiplagat.
The air is thin, the training is hard but we rest just as hard between sessions. For many of the nights we have been here it has generally rained down hard somewhere between 5pm and 5am making the soft clay unsealed roads that surround Iten, very soft underfoot and you end up with an extra 1kg attached to each shoe by the end of an easy (well EASY up here isn't even easy) jog. And then by the same afternoon, if you head out for a second run, you'll be stomping along on baked-rock-hard clay.
The track session we did this morning (along with about 100 other Kenyan athletes spread across the field) was a 400m rep session. The hard dirt track is actually quite nice to run over, especially once "lane one" becomes a well worn path to follow.
Most of the athletes were doing 10-20 x 400m with around 1 - 2 min break. I opted for just 2 sets of 4, seeing as I've only been up here a week, while Philo pushed out 3, 2 and 1 with a break between but he was moving very well and was asked to lead out most of the reps with a simple gesture and "Muzungo, you lead... 62!" and then they'd all crowd behind him and push to run a 59 sec rep anyway!
I'll try to post a bit more of a story before we leave on the 18th Nov. Photos and video will be put up on The Running Centre and Front Runner Facebook pages over time.
Gotta run
:-) Marc
Wednesday, 14 November 2012
Thursday, 6 September 2012
NOT racing
Two very big races were on at the end of August - The National Cross Country championships and the Perth City to Surf. And I didn't race either...
Not due to injury, not due to lack of fitness, not even due to being far from the venue...
I was a manager for the WA State School Sport cross country team in Adelaide and so knew I'd be missing Perth's biggest race and probably wouldn't be able to race the national event either.
From my experience last year as a team manager I knew how long and tough race day could be - as a manager not a competitor. And with this knowledge I decided not to enter and to devote my time to helping the next generation of WA runners on their big day.
Being unable to find a registration page on the WA Aths website MAY have also played a part in my decision but mainly it was to concentrate on my 14/15 boys and the rest of team WA.
As it turned out I was extremely jealous of all the athletes coming in to the finishing shoot caked in mud from the brilliant South Australian course. However I managed to get a few good photos (Stuart Caufield 27th and Brandon Hargreaves 3rd in the Under 20s Men's 8km, to the right), lose my voice cheering on friends and freeze my fingers off clapping in athletes.
And then the next day had to endure the messages of great runs from the guys back home in Perth running the C2S. Last year I finished 6th (3rd West Aussie) and was hoping to run at least 30 seconds faster now that I know how to race the tough course... good thing there is always next year.
Now its just back to work and look for a few short races to keep me motivated until track season starts to wind up in December. Holding off injuries and maintaining the mileage is the goal for the Spring and then we're off to Kenya for an adventure in November.
I'll check in with you all again soon,
Thanks for reading.
Gotta run
:-) Marc
Not due to injury, not due to lack of fitness, not even due to being far from the venue...
I was a manager for the WA State School Sport cross country team in Adelaide and so knew I'd be missing Perth's biggest race and probably wouldn't be able to race the national event either.
From my experience last year as a team manager I knew how long and tough race day could be - as a manager not a competitor. And with this knowledge I decided not to enter and to devote my time to helping the next generation of WA runners on their big day.
As it turned out I was extremely jealous of all the athletes coming in to the finishing shoot caked in mud from the brilliant South Australian course. However I managed to get a few good photos (Stuart Caufield 27th and Brandon Hargreaves 3rd in the Under 20s Men's 8km, to the right), lose my voice cheering on friends and freeze my fingers off clapping in athletes.
And then the next day had to endure the messages of great runs from the guys back home in Perth running the C2S. Last year I finished 6th (3rd West Aussie) and was hoping to run at least 30 seconds faster now that I know how to race the tough course... good thing there is always next year.
Now its just back to work and look for a few short races to keep me motivated until track season starts to wind up in December. Holding off injuries and maintaining the mileage is the goal for the Spring and then we're off to Kenya for an adventure in November.
I'll check in with you all again soon,
Thanks for reading.
Gotta run
:-) Marc
Tuesday, 31 July 2012
Day in, day out...
The WA State 10km was a bit of a disappointment for me, I faded in the last 3km after making an attack uphill and blowing up. I finished 6th in 31:53 odd, only 10 seconds slower than last year.
As with all races it was a good learning experience. I learnt to just follow the race plan for championship races and sit when feeling comfortable, not to jump the gun and go early. It was a good finish and win from young gun Brandon Hargreaves, as well as a second placing from my man-machine of a training partner Scott Tamblin and all round nice guy Neil Berry came in for a hard worked bronze.
After the race there was nothing to do but pencil it into the diary and then move on to the next week of training - after a well earned avo of backyard cricket and bad food and drink.
To give you an idea of my winter training, here is a snapshot of my last 2 weeks:
Mon: 60 min, 30 min
Tues: 35 min, 7 x 1km
Wed: 23km
Thurs: 45 min, 30min, drills, plyos, 4 x 150m sprints
Fri: 50 min, 30 min
Sat: 80 min Progressive Tempo, 20 min
Sun: 60 min
Total = 146km
Mon: 50 min,
Tues: 35 min, 3 x 2km, 2 x 500m
Wed: 23km
Thurs: rest, 30 min, drills, plyos, 6 x 80m sprints
Fri: 60 min, 35 min
Sat: 25 min Threshold, 35 min
Sun: 27km Helena run
Total = 139km
Only 2 major sessions per week, with the Saturday session alternating between a "hard threshold" effort and a longer "tempo" which winds up to a hard last 10min. The Thursday session has more of a sprint bias to maintain the leg turnover for Summer Track season, during high mileage right now in Winter mode.
Throw in 3 gym sessions per week, 2 x 1 hour massages, stretching/core/self massage each night and 32 hours of work... and the week starts to get busy.
Racing for the rest of the winter is a mixed bag of local races I can do or skip to continue a solid training block. I am heading across to Adelaide as one of the managers for the WA State Cross Country School team and may compete in the Open Men's 12km there. I raced on the same course as a student 7 years ago so it will be an interesting return. It is on the same time as the Perth City to Surf and so sadly I will have to miss it, after last year finishing 6th I believed I could have improved well on my time and placing this year.
But for now its the steady routine of sleep, eat, run, work, eat, run, eat, sleep... Day in and day out.
As with all races it was a good learning experience. I learnt to just follow the race plan for championship races and sit when feeling comfortable, not to jump the gun and go early. It was a good finish and win from young gun Brandon Hargreaves, as well as a second placing from my man-machine of a training partner Scott Tamblin and all round nice guy Neil Berry came in for a hard worked bronze.
After the race there was nothing to do but pencil it into the diary and then move on to the next week of training - after a well earned avo of backyard cricket and bad food and drink.
To give you an idea of my winter training, here is a snapshot of my last 2 weeks:
Mon: 60 min, 30 min
Tues: 35 min, 7 x 1km
Wed: 23km
Thurs: 45 min, 30min, drills, plyos, 4 x 150m sprints
Fri: 50 min, 30 min
Sat: 80 min Progressive Tempo, 20 min
Sun: 60 min
Total = 146km
Mon: 50 min,
Tues: 35 min, 3 x 2km, 2 x 500m
Wed: 23km
Thurs: rest, 30 min, drills, plyos, 6 x 80m sprints
Fri: 60 min, 35 min
Sat: 25 min Threshold, 35 min
Sun: 27km Helena run
Total = 139km
Only 2 major sessions per week, with the Saturday session alternating between a "hard threshold" effort and a longer "tempo" which winds up to a hard last 10min. The Thursday session has more of a sprint bias to maintain the leg turnover for Summer Track season, during high mileage right now in Winter mode.
Throw in 3 gym sessions per week, 2 x 1 hour massages, stretching/core/self massage each night and 32 hours of work... and the week starts to get busy.
Racing for the rest of the winter is a mixed bag of local races I can do or skip to continue a solid training block. I am heading across to Adelaide as one of the managers for the WA State Cross Country School team and may compete in the Open Men's 12km there. I raced on the same course as a student 7 years ago so it will be an interesting return. It is on the same time as the Perth City to Surf and so sadly I will have to miss it, after last year finishing 6th I believed I could have improved well on my time and placing this year.
But for now its the steady routine of sleep, eat, run, work, eat, run, eat, sleep... Day in and day out.
Wednesday, 11 July 2012
Winter in full swing
With the WA State 10km road racing champs coming up this Sunday, Winter training has gotten into full swing.
After the Leonora mile the Ks started building up, with June being one of the best months I've had to date, averaging 130km per week.
The next challenge was a nice little "weekend getaway" to the Gold Coast for a 10km race alongside major event of the Gold Coast marathon. With a side-bet with some of the WA boys back home I wanted the race to go very well. I felt in good shape and even pulled out the light-as-anything racing flats the Mizuno Wave Universe for the race... So far the furthest I'd raced in these shoes had been 4km on road and as quite a toey runner I knew my calves would be in for a tough fight ahead, but I wanted any advantage I could get to shave off valued seconds.
In the race were a couple of good young runners but none of the star sub-thirty-minute runners of previous years, so it was open to many to win it.
I took the first K easy, letting the pack go out with anxiety and just sticking to my own pace. With a 3:05 comfortably through the first 1km I was about 10 seconds down on the leader. By the 2km mark I was some 60m behind the lead four and 20m behind the chase pack. As we neared the 3km mark there was a long curve followed by a long but small hill. With the pack in front of me choosing NOT to take the racing line and running wide, I quickly caught them by the top of the hill and then proceeded to inject a 40m gap on them on the decline. For the remaining 7km I was between 60 and 100m from the leaders... in no man's land, with the chase pack 70m behind me.
In this position it was a mental battle to try and reel in the leaders but not push too hard too early and blow up before that ever-distant finishing line.
WA Triathlete and past training partner Kenji Nener made a break from the pack behind to try and catch me in the closing stages of the race. But a glance over my shoulder at the 2km mark ensured I kept up the tempo to keep him behind me all the way to the tape.
I never caught the lead pack and finished in the position I was in at the 3km point... 4th. However it was a new PB of 31:14 (30 seconds shaved off my previous road 10km time) and a good guage of where the fitness is at.
Talking to the coach on the phone that afternoon, my simple response to the question "how did you feel?" was... "now I know how to threshold a 10km".
Overall it was a great trip and experience:
Flying from Perth to the Gold Coast on the midnight flight,
landing and then racing 24 hours later when my body clock still thought it was 4:30am,
in a race distance I'd only done three times before (the last being 11months ago),
with no taper.
THIS IS WINTER... THIS IS WHERE THE WORK IS DONE
After the Leonora mile the Ks started building up, with June being one of the best months I've had to date, averaging 130km per week.
The next challenge was a nice little "weekend getaway" to the Gold Coast for a 10km race alongside major event of the Gold Coast marathon. With a side-bet with some of the WA boys back home I wanted the race to go very well. I felt in good shape and even pulled out the light-as-anything racing flats the Mizuno Wave Universe for the race... So far the furthest I'd raced in these shoes had been 4km on road and as quite a toey runner I knew my calves would be in for a tough fight ahead, but I wanted any advantage I could get to shave off valued seconds.
In the race were a couple of good young runners but none of the star sub-thirty-minute runners of previous years, so it was open to many to win it.
I took the first K easy, letting the pack go out with anxiety and just sticking to my own pace. With a 3:05 comfortably through the first 1km I was about 10 seconds down on the leader. By the 2km mark I was some 60m behind the lead four and 20m behind the chase pack. As we neared the 3km mark there was a long curve followed by a long but small hill. With the pack in front of me choosing NOT to take the racing line and running wide, I quickly caught them by the top of the hill and then proceeded to inject a 40m gap on them on the decline. For the remaining 7km I was between 60 and 100m from the leaders... in no man's land, with the chase pack 70m behind me.
In this position it was a mental battle to try and reel in the leaders but not push too hard too early and blow up before that ever-distant finishing line.
WA Triathlete and past training partner Kenji Nener made a break from the pack behind to try and catch me in the closing stages of the race. But a glance over my shoulder at the 2km mark ensured I kept up the tempo to keep him behind me all the way to the tape.
I never caught the lead pack and finished in the position I was in at the 3km point... 4th. However it was a new PB of 31:14 (30 seconds shaved off my previous road 10km time) and a good guage of where the fitness is at.
Talking to the coach on the phone that afternoon, my simple response to the question "how did you feel?" was... "now I know how to threshold a 10km".
Overall it was a great trip and experience:
Flying from Perth to the Gold Coast on the midnight flight,
landing and then racing 24 hours later when my body clock still thought it was 4:30am,
in a race distance I'd only done three times before (the last being 11months ago),
with no taper.
THIS IS WINTER... THIS IS WHERE THE WORK IS DONE
Monday, 11 June 2012
Going for gold
The first weekend of June saw a small WA Goldfields town play host to Australia's richest mile. Leonora, 60 minute plane ride inland from Perth, has held the event for the past 9 years and has attracted some of the highest calibre athletes in Aus with the prospect of winning gold. The winner each years earns $6000 and a one-ounce gold nugget, with all places through to 8th in the final (my finishing spot for the past 2 years) winning around $250. In other words, its quite a handy weekend's worth of work.
This year heading out to Leonora there was a slightly lesser field than in previous times - not that it was a slouch field by any reckoning, however it was missing a few of the bigger names of previous years.
With a few more K's under my belt than previous years I was hopeful of finishing higher up the ladder. Although a lack of lactic-tolerance work since the national champs would also make the final 400m tough.
Runnerstribe.com.au has helped organise the event for the past few years and get elite runners over from the eastern states to participate in the event and local council has helped make the mile race a centrepiece of their Foundation day long weekend.
Once all the elite athletes had landed out in the red-dirt mining town the few first-timers were a little awe-struck with just WHERE we were racing. The mile race is 3 laps of a 530-odd metre lap of the main street of town, from one hairpin turn back to another. The fast pace, quick turns and close proximity for the crowd makes for exciting racing - both for competitors and spectators alike. As we all warmed up the locals would all shout out encouragement and joke with us - not quite as cynical as when you jog the streets in the city.
I managed to get through the heat ok on the Saturday night. Nine men were only split down to 8 for the final the next day and the heats were more a good hit out for the legs than really taxing the body. We all slept in our dongas that night to the sounds of "Run to Paradise" by the Choirboys.
The Sunday final was a much more anxious affair. With serious cash on the line, no one had come out just for fun. This was work time. With middle distance running not being the most lucrative of endeavours, a high paying race is one you want to peak for.
We all lined up - Jeff Riseley (the current 1500m Australian champion, 3rd fastest Aussie of all time over the 1500m distance and 2nd fastest for the 800m), Philo Saunders (10 times Australian championship finalist), Malcolm Hicks (the New Zealand Mile champion all the way over here just to race), Chris Discombe (2011 Whelsh 5000m champion), Josh Wright and Josh Johnson (very fast young middle distance proteges), Tom O'Shaughnessy (training partner of Jeff Riseley)... and me... the "local favourite... and five-time reigning WA 1500m champion... Marc See!" as co-founder of the event, commentator and also my boss, Raf Baugh, put it.
The final went like most middle distance races... slow first third, slowly picked up the pace and then was on for all money (which in this case was quite a bit) after the bell. The hairpin turns kept us all bunched up for the first 2 laps but once we rounded the third last hairpin the pace quickened. Jeff Riseley (the obvious favourite) lead the pace until this point and was not looking like giving up the lead any time soon. His effortless stride seemed to just lengthen and push him further ahead (or thats what I was feeling at the time 10 metres behind him in 5th). Along the long back straight Josh Wright challenged Riseley and Philo Saunders ensured the pace was still hot through to the final turn. As we rounded the last corner I was just in touch with the leaders (the hairpins have never been a favourite of mine and I slipped over on the 2nd last corner in the rain last year) but as we all accelerated out of the turn I didn't have the same emphasis that the four in front of me did.
Men’s final results were as follows:
This year heading out to Leonora there was a slightly lesser field than in previous times - not that it was a slouch field by any reckoning, however it was missing a few of the bigger names of previous years.
With a few more K's under my belt than previous years I was hopeful of finishing higher up the ladder. Although a lack of lactic-tolerance work since the national champs would also make the final 400m tough.
Runnerstribe.com.au has helped organise the event for the past few years and get elite runners over from the eastern states to participate in the event and local council has helped make the mile race a centrepiece of their Foundation day long weekend.
Once all the elite athletes had landed out in the red-dirt mining town the few first-timers were a little awe-struck with just WHERE we were racing. The mile race is 3 laps of a 530-odd metre lap of the main street of town, from one hairpin turn back to another. The fast pace, quick turns and close proximity for the crowd makes for exciting racing - both for competitors and spectators alike. As we all warmed up the locals would all shout out encouragement and joke with us - not quite as cynical as when you jog the streets in the city.
I managed to get through the heat ok on the Saturday night. Nine men were only split down to 8 for the final the next day and the heats were more a good hit out for the legs than really taxing the body. We all slept in our dongas that night to the sounds of "Run to Paradise" by the Choirboys.
The Sunday final was a much more anxious affair. With serious cash on the line, no one had come out just for fun. This was work time. With middle distance running not being the most lucrative of endeavours, a high paying race is one you want to peak for.
We all lined up - Jeff Riseley (the current 1500m Australian champion, 3rd fastest Aussie of all time over the 1500m distance and 2nd fastest for the 800m), Philo Saunders (10 times Australian championship finalist), Malcolm Hicks (the New Zealand Mile champion all the way over here just to race), Chris Discombe (2011 Whelsh 5000m champion), Josh Wright and Josh Johnson (very fast young middle distance proteges), Tom O'Shaughnessy (training partner of Jeff Riseley)... and me... the "local favourite... and five-time reigning WA 1500m champion... Marc See!" as co-founder of the event, commentator and also my boss, Raf Baugh, put it.
The final went like most middle distance races... slow first third, slowly picked up the pace and then was on for all money (which in this case was quite a bit) after the bell. The hairpin turns kept us all bunched up for the first 2 laps but once we rounded the third last hairpin the pace quickened. Jeff Riseley (the obvious favourite) lead the pace until this point and was not looking like giving up the lead any time soon. His effortless stride seemed to just lengthen and push him further ahead (or thats what I was feeling at the time 10 metres behind him in 5th). Along the long back straight Josh Wright challenged Riseley and Philo Saunders ensured the pace was still hot through to the final turn. As we rounded the last corner I was just in touch with the leaders (the hairpins have never been a favourite of mine and I slipped over on the 2nd last corner in the rain last year) but as we all accelerated out of the turn I didn't have the same emphasis that the four in front of me did.
1. Jeff Riseley: 4:17.06
2. Josh Wright: 4:18.01
3. Philo Saunders: 4:18.47
4. Malcolm Hicks: 4:18.59
5. Marc See: 4:20.58
6. Joshua Johnson: 4:23.92
7. Chris Discombe: 4:24.42
8. Tom O’Shaughnessy: 4:37.97
and the link to the video is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StLS391MJHs
It was another good year out in rural WA and I look forward to next year, going back and fighting again to get to that golden first place.
The week after Leonora has been one of my biggest so far in 2012, I ran 135km with a couple of good sessions in there. The coming weeks I am looking to maintain around 140km/week and more importantly maintain the body at this level of effort. The Gold Coast Marathon is on at the start of July and I am running the 10km event along side this with many of the Front Runner athletes we are taking over to compete. Hopefully a PB (sub 31:43) or even sub 31minutes is on the cards but really its all about Summer...
Happy running to you all and thanks for reading,
Happy running to you all and thanks for reading,
- Marc
Friday, 1 June 2012
Road racing
The Winter season has begun. Last weekend was the first race I've done since the national champs in mid-April: The perth HBF Run for a Reason 4km. I opted for the shorter distance race as I am also racing the Leonora Golden Mile this weekend (flying out tomorrow morning) and the 14km race would have set the energy reserves back a bit too much to back up well against the boys coming over from the East to race Leonora.
HBF went well, the game plan was to not make any unnecessary moves until the last kilometre of the race. However, after 2km when a few tactical moves were made in the lead pack (namely from Kenji Nener and Gerry Hill) I had to react and ended up covering the attacks & then making a break with 1500m to run. I ended up winning by 20 seconds with a time of roughly 11:28, ten seconds faster than last year and it felt pretty good for only a month's worth of training.
After a 50minute cool down to pick up more Ks for the week I performed 7 massages that afternoon on the sore bodies of some of my mates who had run the further race distance that morning. No rest for the wikid, or in my case a Physio who has friends who like to take make use of that fact.
Leonora this weekend should be a good race. I've headed up there for the past 2 years and finished last (8th) in the final of the elite mile. This year with some of the big names absent and some better form from myself I am hoping to finish much higher up the ladder.
I'll try to check back in with an update after the weekend.
Gotta run
:-) Marc
HBF went well, the game plan was to not make any unnecessary moves until the last kilometre of the race. However, after 2km when a few tactical moves were made in the lead pack (namely from Kenji Nener and Gerry Hill) I had to react and ended up covering the attacks & then making a break with 1500m to run. I ended up winning by 20 seconds with a time of roughly 11:28, ten seconds faster than last year and it felt pretty good for only a month's worth of training.
After a 50minute cool down to pick up more Ks for the week I performed 7 massages that afternoon on the sore bodies of some of my mates who had run the further race distance that morning. No rest for the wikid, or in my case a Physio who has friends who like to take make use of that fact.
Leonora this weekend should be a good race. I've headed up there for the past 2 years and finished last (8th) in the final of the elite mile. This year with some of the big names absent and some better form from myself I am hoping to finish much higher up the ladder.
I'll try to check back in with an update after the weekend.
Gotta run
:-) Marc
Monday, 23 April 2012
Nationals 2012
And the season is DONE!
Eight days ago the 2011/2012 season wound down. Well it didn't exactly "wind down" it finished with the 90th Australian National Track and Field Championships in Melbourne.
I flew out from Perth Thursday and had the 1500m heat on Saturday. Thirty odd runners were split across 2 heats, I was in the second. Jeremy Roff took out the first heat in a modest 3:47, the first 4 from each heat automatically qualified for the final and then the next 4 fastest non-automatic times qualified. So for me to make it to the final I needed to either cross the finishline as one of the first 4 runners of my heat or run faster than the 5th-8th placed runners in the first heat.
Our heat went out s - l - o - w - l - y.
Runners were packed 3 wide for the first 600m with no one making a move to get the pace rolling. With the chance of beating the time of the runners in the first heat virtually gone I had to try and finish in the top 4. Not an easy task with the reigning National champion Jeff Risely in the race as well as reigning 800m champion James Kaan and many other fast finishers.
I was sitting back in the pack for the first 600m and wanted to position myself better for the inevitable kick down that was going to happen at some point. I made my way up to the front of the pack with 2 laps to go. I was going to just slot into the front and sit for a while longer but as no one really reacted to me moving up in the pack I decided to stride out for the next bend and see if anyone made a move to cover me. No one did so my repositioning attempt ended up being a drive to the finish as I kept on working the pace and gapped the main field behind me. I didn't "break the pack", the leaders of the group simply allowed me to go, knowing fully well that the top 4 automatically qualified and that if I kept going and took the first spot there were still 3 others they could comfortably take.
I ended up winning the heat by a second, time trialling the last 800m while the pack behind me made a frantic dash over the final 300m to qualify.
Cool down done I grabbed some ice on the walk home, had an ice bath and then settled in for as much rest and recovery as I could get to make ready for the final the next day.
The final was run pretty similar to the heats. Slow for the first 800m with the pace building 600m from home and the real attacks coming at the bell. I positioned myself FAR to far back in the pack and by the bell I was 2.5 seconds down from the leaders with too much work to do over the final lap. I finished up 6th and a little unhappy with the result but it was another learning chance and a good race to remember for the future.
I am now in the middle of a 2 week break from training before hitting the winter base-building stage of the yearly cycle. The mental rest is much more needed than the physical & it has been good to put in a few more physio hours at work.
I'll post something agian once training kicks up again.
As always, thanks for giving this a browse.
- Marc
Youtube video of the final:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZIYl9hnIds
Full results of the final:
Men 1500 metres Open Final
1, Jeffrey Riseley, VIS, 3:47.78.
2, James Kaan, NSWIS, 3:48.00.
3, Jeremy Roff, NSWIS, 3:49.40.
4, Mitchel Brown, VIC, 3:50.01.
5, Philo Saunders, ACT, 3:50.18.
6, Marc See, WA, 3:50.64.
7, Daniel Clark, VIC, 3:51.62.
8, James Connor, NSW, 3:52.59.
9, Mark Blicavs, VIC, 3:53.29.
10, Rhys Jones, SA, 3:55.24.
11, Sam Fergusson, TAS, 3:55.27.
12, Matthew Ferber, SA, 3:58.01.
Eight days ago the 2011/2012 season wound down. Well it didn't exactly "wind down" it finished with the 90th Australian National Track and Field Championships in Melbourne.
I flew out from Perth Thursday and had the 1500m heat on Saturday. Thirty odd runners were split across 2 heats, I was in the second. Jeremy Roff took out the first heat in a modest 3:47, the first 4 from each heat automatically qualified for the final and then the next 4 fastest non-automatic times qualified. So for me to make it to the final I needed to either cross the finishline as one of the first 4 runners of my heat or run faster than the 5th-8th placed runners in the first heat.
Our heat went out s - l - o - w - l - y.
Runners were packed 3 wide for the first 600m with no one making a move to get the pace rolling. With the chance of beating the time of the runners in the first heat virtually gone I had to try and finish in the top 4. Not an easy task with the reigning National champion Jeff Risely in the race as well as reigning 800m champion James Kaan and many other fast finishers.
I was sitting back in the pack for the first 600m and wanted to position myself better for the inevitable kick down that was going to happen at some point. I made my way up to the front of the pack with 2 laps to go. I was going to just slot into the front and sit for a while longer but as no one really reacted to me moving up in the pack I decided to stride out for the next bend and see if anyone made a move to cover me. No one did so my repositioning attempt ended up being a drive to the finish as I kept on working the pace and gapped the main field behind me. I didn't "break the pack", the leaders of the group simply allowed me to go, knowing fully well that the top 4 automatically qualified and that if I kept going and took the first spot there were still 3 others they could comfortably take.
I ended up winning the heat by a second, time trialling the last 800m while the pack behind me made a frantic dash over the final 300m to qualify.
Cool down done I grabbed some ice on the walk home, had an ice bath and then settled in for as much rest and recovery as I could get to make ready for the final the next day.
The final was run pretty similar to the heats. Slow for the first 800m with the pace building 600m from home and the real attacks coming at the bell. I positioned myself FAR to far back in the pack and by the bell I was 2.5 seconds down from the leaders with too much work to do over the final lap. I finished up 6th and a little unhappy with the result but it was another learning chance and a good race to remember for the future.
I am now in the middle of a 2 week break from training before hitting the winter base-building stage of the yearly cycle. The mental rest is much more needed than the physical & it has been good to put in a few more physio hours at work.
I'll post something agian once training kicks up again.
As always, thanks for giving this a browse.
- Marc
Youtube video of the final:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZIYl9hnIds
Full results of the final:
Men 1500 metres Open Final
1, Jeffrey Riseley, VIS, 3:47.78.
2, James Kaan, NSWIS, 3:48.00.
3, Jeremy Roff, NSWIS, 3:49.40.
4, Mitchel Brown, VIC, 3:50.01.
5, Philo Saunders, ACT, 3:50.18.
6, Marc See, WA, 3:50.64.
7, Daniel Clark, VIC, 3:51.62.
8, James Connor, NSW, 3:52.59.
9, Mark Blicavs, VIC, 3:53.29.
10, Rhys Jones, SA, 3:55.24.
11, Sam Fergusson, TAS, 3:55.27.
12, Matthew Ferber, SA, 3:58.01.
Monday, 9 April 2012
States, Nationals & the pointy end of the season
Its finally come down to it... the last week of the domestic track season.
The 7 month season has flown by under a new coach, new group and many new experiences. State Champs in WA wound up last weekend with the 800m. This is the first year WA Athletics has trialled putting the championships over three separate weekends instead of the traditional three consecutive days. How successful this venture was - next year's timetable will tell.
I competed in the 1500m & 800m championship races this year, forgoing the 5km to get another good training week in prior to the 1500m race. Neil Berry took out the 5000m event ahead of Brandon Hargreaves & Thomas Bruins. The three put in as good a race over the distance as we've seen in years but I couldn't help sitting on the sidelines and thinking what I could have done if I was in the mix.
The 1500m race was a great feeling. Sitting pretty for the first 1100m with the junior boys doing most of the pace work, moving along at just sub 4 minute 1500m pace, I felt very comfortable in 5th. My coach gave me instructions to not hit the lead until the bell, to see what closing speed I had. Heading into the home straight for the 2nd last time I stretched out the legs & made my way up alongside the leaders. By the bell I could finally let myself kick up a couple of gears and do some damage. I didn't realise I could kick down to a 54 second last lap. It was a great confidence booster 3 weeks out from Nationals. I put 3 seconds into 2nd placed Josh Tedesco.
3:51 isn't a great time on the Aussie stage but for WA and for the way the race was run it was a good time on the night.
The race also held special significance for me, personally. It was my 5th straight 1500m Open state title and resonated with me the fact that I have come a long way & have done my fair share to stay at the top of WA's middle distance scene.
The 800m was a much more hotly contested event. Jace Collingrige was the man to beat, but had umpired an AFL game the night before, James Boden with his 400m speed & strength was a big threat as was the relatively new kid on the block - Tom Beard. After making it comfortably through the heat (& hoping that the 400m/800m runners would have a little sting taken out of their legs from the effort) we toed the line for the final a couple of hours later.
The final started off slow and then kicked up in the final 400m as I tried to come around the bend and sit tight behind Jace, then Boden kicked for home with 300m to go, Beard got around me at the 250m mark & all fought it out to finish in that order: Collingrige, Boden, Beard, See.
I was happy with the effort & took some tactical experience away from the race. My coach Jaiemo had me finish off the morning with a long cooldown including a tempo effort. The half hour jog that evening had me finish the week on 123km. Considering that is probably double of what 6 of the 7 other guys in the race would've run (excluding Josh Tedesco) that week, I was happy with how I ran considering the bit of fatigue in my legs.
And now I'm winding down and tuning up for Melbourne. I fly out on Thursday for a Saturday heat and Sunday final, racing the 1500m. Some of the bigger names are missing from the startlist as the European season is starting up & many athletes have already left Aus for the Northern hemisphere.
Main goals for Melbourne are:
a) Make the final, after narrowly missing it last year.
b) Finish top 5
c) Feel confident in my ability to race with (& that I belong beside) the faster runners in the field.
d) Get home without injury to enjoy a cruisey 2 week break before building up the winter mileage.
Thanks for reading,
Gotta run
:-) Marc
The 7 month season has flown by under a new coach, new group and many new experiences. State Champs in WA wound up last weekend with the 800m. This is the first year WA Athletics has trialled putting the championships over three separate weekends instead of the traditional three consecutive days. How successful this venture was - next year's timetable will tell.
I competed in the 1500m & 800m championship races this year, forgoing the 5km to get another good training week in prior to the 1500m race. Neil Berry took out the 5000m event ahead of Brandon Hargreaves & Thomas Bruins. The three put in as good a race over the distance as we've seen in years but I couldn't help sitting on the sidelines and thinking what I could have done if I was in the mix.
The 1500m race was a great feeling. Sitting pretty for the first 1100m with the junior boys doing most of the pace work, moving along at just sub 4 minute 1500m pace, I felt very comfortable in 5th. My coach gave me instructions to not hit the lead until the bell, to see what closing speed I had. Heading into the home straight for the 2nd last time I stretched out the legs & made my way up alongside the leaders. By the bell I could finally let myself kick up a couple of gears and do some damage. I didn't realise I could kick down to a 54 second last lap. It was a great confidence booster 3 weeks out from Nationals. I put 3 seconds into 2nd placed Josh Tedesco.
3:51 isn't a great time on the Aussie stage but for WA and for the way the race was run it was a good time on the night.
The race also held special significance for me, personally. It was my 5th straight 1500m Open state title and resonated with me the fact that I have come a long way & have done my fair share to stay at the top of WA's middle distance scene.
The 800m was a much more hotly contested event. Jace Collingrige was the man to beat, but had umpired an AFL game the night before, James Boden with his 400m speed & strength was a big threat as was the relatively new kid on the block - Tom Beard. After making it comfortably through the heat (& hoping that the 400m/800m runners would have a little sting taken out of their legs from the effort) we toed the line for the final a couple of hours later.
The final started off slow and then kicked up in the final 400m as I tried to come around the bend and sit tight behind Jace, then Boden kicked for home with 300m to go, Beard got around me at the 250m mark & all fought it out to finish in that order: Collingrige, Boden, Beard, See.
I was happy with the effort & took some tactical experience away from the race. My coach Jaiemo had me finish off the morning with a long cooldown including a tempo effort. The half hour jog that evening had me finish the week on 123km. Considering that is probably double of what 6 of the 7 other guys in the race would've run (excluding Josh Tedesco) that week, I was happy with how I ran considering the bit of fatigue in my legs.
And now I'm winding down and tuning up for Melbourne. I fly out on Thursday for a Saturday heat and Sunday final, racing the 1500m. Some of the bigger names are missing from the startlist as the European season is starting up & many athletes have already left Aus for the Northern hemisphere.
Main goals for Melbourne are:
a) Make the final, after narrowly missing it last year.
b) Finish top 5
c) Feel confident in my ability to race with (& that I belong beside) the faster runners in the field.
d) Get home without injury to enjoy a cruisey 2 week break before building up the winter mileage.
Thanks for reading,
Gotta run
:-) Marc
Wednesday, 29 February 2012
Big time racing.
I got into the Sydney race, my performances so far over the summer & a bit of a push from my coach lead to my late acceptance to the race. The Sydney Track Classic is generally one of the fastest 1500m races of the Australian domestic season and this year was no exception. With a winning time of 3:35 it is far and away the fastest race I have ever been in. It was a great experience.
The pace was on from the gun, with the pack being spread out into single file by the end of the first lap. I wasn't able to hold my position in the middle of the pack and got spat out the back the back of the line.
By the last lap I was far from the front and had twelve strong athletes ahead of me. In the end I was only 0.5sec slower than my time the weekend prior at home in Perth. I got pulled around for my second fastest time ever but crossed the line feeling like I could've gone 2 seconds quicker.
Now I am staying in Perth until the National champs in mid April, getting a good block of training under my belt and will watch the Melbourne Olympic Trials with much anticipation to see how well they guys run.
The results of the Sydney race are all below.
1500 Metres Open Men
1, Torrence, David, USA, 3:35.66. 2, Birmingham, Collis, VIC, 3:35.74. 3,
Rowe, Brenton, AUT, 3:38.68. 4, Robinson, Brett, ACT, 3:38.94. 5, Leer, Will,
USA, 3:39.94. 6, Mottram, Craig, VIC, 3:40.04. 7, Foster, Ryan, TIS, 3:40.39.
8, Robinson, Paul, IRL, 3:40.50. 9, McCormick, Nick, GBR, 3:40.97. 10, Wright,
Joshua, NSW, 3:41.68. 11, Carson, Hamish, NZL, 3:43.41. 12, See, Marc, WA,
3:43.75. 13, Saunders, Philo, ACT, 3:44.05. 14, Toohey, Nicholas, QLD,
3:46.81. --, Rotich, Andrew, KEN, DNF.
Video also here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUEFwXQfp18
The pace was on from the gun, with the pack being spread out into single file by the end of the first lap. I wasn't able to hold my position in the middle of the pack and got spat out the back the back of the line.
By the last lap I was far from the front and had twelve strong athletes ahead of me. In the end I was only 0.5sec slower than my time the weekend prior at home in Perth. I got pulled around for my second fastest time ever but crossed the line feeling like I could've gone 2 seconds quicker.
Now I am staying in Perth until the National champs in mid April, getting a good block of training under my belt and will watch the Melbourne Olympic Trials with much anticipation to see how well they guys run.
The results of the Sydney race are all below.
1500 Metres Open Men
1, Torrence, David, USA, 3:35.66. 2, Birmingham, Collis, VIC, 3:35.74. 3,
Rowe, Brenton, AUT, 3:38.68. 4, Robinson, Brett, ACT, 3:38.94. 5, Leer, Will,
USA, 3:39.94. 6, Mottram, Craig, VIC, 3:40.04. 7, Foster, Ryan, TIS, 3:40.39.
8, Robinson, Paul, IRL, 3:40.50. 9, McCormick, Nick, GBR, 3:40.97. 10, Wright,
Joshua, NSW, 3:41.68. 11, Carson, Hamish, NZL, 3:43.41. 12, See, Marc, WA,
3:43.75. 13, Saunders, Philo, ACT, 3:44.05. 14, Toohey, Nicholas, QLD,
3:46.81. --, Rotich, Andrew, KEN, DNF.
Video also here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUEFwXQfp18
Tuesday, 14 February 2012
Racing in the South, racing in the West.
In the past few weeks I have competed in 1500m races in Adelaide and at home in Perth. And the two races could not have played out more differently from each other. Adelaide was a tactical "sit and kick" race controlled by the faster athletes coming back from injury. Perth was a paced race with a PB pretty much guarenteed from the get go.
The Perth GP meet was amazing, great to see so many locals fronting up to watch some of the best Australain athletes put on a show. And personally I was very luck to have a great support crew there to cheer me on - the community from The Running Centre banded together to will me towards a 5th place finish and 1.5sec PB.
Having two very different races, two weeks apart made for great racing experience and is part of the continual learning process that is developing as a middle distance runner in Australia.
I'm off Sydney this weekend to compete in another 1500m race there, one looking to produce many fast times.
The Perth GP meet was amazing, great to see so many locals fronting up to watch some of the best Australain athletes put on a show. And personally I was very luck to have a great support crew there to cheer me on - the community from The Running Centre banded together to will me towards a 5th place finish and 1.5sec PB.
Having two very different races, two weeks apart made for great racing experience and is part of the continual learning process that is developing as a middle distance runner in Australia.
I'm off Sydney this weekend to compete in another 1500m race there, one looking to produce many fast times.
Saturday, 21 January 2012
Falls Creek
I have recently completed a 16 day altitude training stint up at Falls Creek, Victoria, followed by a hitout in the Victorian Milers Club meet in Melbourne on the 17th of Jan.
This was my first trip across to Falls and for those of you who are (as I was) unaware of what goes on up there, an average day up on the mountain would go as follows:
Wake at 8am, get out for the morning run or Tues/Thurs/Sat session at 9:30.
The hard morning session is generally followed by an ice bath in the aqua duct at the foot of the village and home by 11:30am.
Then its time for a healthy lunch, movies, video games, possible afternoon nap and relaxing in our apartments until the afternoon run or gym session at 5:30.
Post avo session it is prep for and then dinner, together in the apartments, another movie or disc of a TV series, possibly a trip to the local pub for a game of pool, then bed. Day trips to the local towns below – which were much warmer than Falls (it actually snowed up there on my last day), fishing in the dam, meeting friends for coffee and hitting up some of the more experienced runners for advice were other ways to pass the time.
As a physio amongst athletes I also spent some time treating sore bodies each day.
The 3 sessions a week and many easy runs (in groups of up to 80 runners) with lots of down time made for great training and I will definitely be back for many years to come.
I made it off the mountain without any injuries or training myself into the ground and ran well at the VMC race 5 days later, managing to snag a win in the 1500m race.
I now have a week at home before flying out to race another 1500m in Adelaide as part of the Australian Athletics Tour. I’m hoping for a fast field and to knock down my 3:44 PB to something a little closer to the 3:40 barrier.
Thanks for reading,
Gotta run
:-) Marc
The race, so far.
For those of you who have stumbled across this page, hi. I am Marc See, a 22 year old middle distance runner from Perth, Western Australia.
When not training, I work part time as a Physiotherapist at The Running Centre in West Perth - WA's leading running specialist store and health services provider. I have been coached by Sarah Jamieson since mid 2011 and for the 8 years before that I owe my development as an athlete to Margaret Saunders.
Yes, I am a runner. And to many people in my local suburb of Morley - that is an oddity. Running those streets for the past 15 years (any time from 5am to midnight) has raised many eyebrows as well as voices. I have been competing at a national level since 2002 - in cross country and track events. And am currently focusing on the 1500m race distance, an event I have claimed the last 4 WA state titles for (my current personal best stands at 3:44.16).
In my work as a physio I have the great fortune of working with runners each day - whether to help heal or prevent injuries or to improve their running performance. People varying from walking and running to lose weight, to professional athletes competing all over the world. Work hours pass seemlessly when the subject is something you are passionate about.
As 2012 starts I am entering into the competition phase of the year. With the majority of the hard races being over east, it means flying back and forth across the country at least once a month. The Olympic trails in early March is something I have targeted, to get into that race with all the guys racing hard and to see how I fare. I'm not at the point yet to seriously contend for a spot in the Australian team but with each experience and each test I learn a little more about myself, my limits and what it takes to expand them.
Well, I think that is enough of an into. Thank you for taking the time to read & I wish you well in whatever ventures you tackle yourself.
Gotta run
:-) Marc
When not training, I work part time as a Physiotherapist at The Running Centre in West Perth - WA's leading running specialist store and health services provider. I have been coached by Sarah Jamieson since mid 2011 and for the 8 years before that I owe my development as an athlete to Margaret Saunders.
Yes, I am a runner. And to many people in my local suburb of Morley - that is an oddity. Running those streets for the past 15 years (any time from 5am to midnight) has raised many eyebrows as well as voices. I have been competing at a national level since 2002 - in cross country and track events. And am currently focusing on the 1500m race distance, an event I have claimed the last 4 WA state titles for (my current personal best stands at 3:44.16).
In my work as a physio I have the great fortune of working with runners each day - whether to help heal or prevent injuries or to improve their running performance. People varying from walking and running to lose weight, to professional athletes competing all over the world. Work hours pass seemlessly when the subject is something you are passionate about.
As 2012 starts I am entering into the competition phase of the year. With the majority of the hard races being over east, it means flying back and forth across the country at least once a month. The Olympic trails in early March is something I have targeted, to get into that race with all the guys racing hard and to see how I fare. I'm not at the point yet to seriously contend for a spot in the Australian team but with each experience and each test I learn a little more about myself, my limits and what it takes to expand them.
Well, I think that is enough of an into. Thank you for taking the time to read & I wish you well in whatever ventures you tackle yourself.
Gotta run
:-) Marc
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