Saturday, April 24, 2010

FTW (For The Win)

2010 Sakai City Marathon (10K)





This coming Thursday, a National holiday here, I'll be running the Sakai City marathon a 10K race in my local area. This was the 2nd race I ever entered and I always enjoy running here not the least because this day usually heralds the start of the warm weather. I suppose come August I'll be sick of the heat but it has been a long cold winter and I've had a gut full of winter weather. Bring on the heat!

I enter this race, this year, as a "Master," 45 years and over, and as I'm running well I have a chance to be among the first 3 place getter's and even win this outright. While I don't know if there are other new Masters runners coming, I do know that the winning time for this race in the past few years has been around 33~34 minutes and I'm ready to run this sort of time this year. Of course it won't be easy, the guy who won it last year has a PB of 32mins for 10K and if he is on it this year I will struggle to keep up.

Still, you never know. The beauty about racing is that it enables you to lift to heights you could never achieve in training. My plan is to run with the leaders for the first 3kms, building a rhythm, but if any of them go I will not let them get away, I might even try an early surge myself. I feel fit enough to hold the pace and I know I can run well, especially fast, if I can be within 2K of the finish line and hear someone is on my tail. Somehow I find it more difficult to chase people to the end. I've always preferred being chased than chasing, perhaps that explains why I've had so few girlfriends too, but I digress.

Anyway, I'll do my best and I'm excited to see what I've got ;)

The photos are of the Master's race last year here and a few of Emperor Nintoku's Tomb where it will be run around. This is an interesting area, a 3rd Century grave that is still guarded and under the protection of the Royal Imperial Household. I've heard nobody has set foot on the Island for 1600 years. Good place to walk around, but still a better place to run around with your heart pumping out your chest, I reckon!

I don't know a lot but I know that good racing is "bloody marvelous" and not too logical!!!



Yes, the drummer with the short hair is "Ringo".

16 comments:

  1. Have a masterful run Scott, I know you can do it.

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  2. Hope it's a nice day, but whether it is or not, go for it!

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  3. Yeah, run like Merga or Cheruiyot, not like Ryan Hall!

    I love your digressions Scott. Your wife must be a very fast runner, as well as a masterful cook ;)

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  4. She is neither Ewen but thanks for your thoughts ;)

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  5. Hi Scott - you may not remember me, but we met at Wakayama 10k last year. Good luck at Sakai - I'll be down there too, but not in the Masters, and a good few minutes behind your time!!

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  6. Hey Paul of course I remember you.

    I'll be watching your race after mine and after that why don't you join us we are having a picnic there with hot Cheese Chilli dogs and cold beer!

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  7. Sounds good to me - especially the cold beer! See you Thursday!

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  8. Scott check this out;
    http://www.loving-it-raw.com/eating-raw-food.html
    Is this guy a Wacky racer or a red hot chilli peper?

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  9. and check out this video
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioWTv6nGxXw

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  10. Sure he has a point but sort of comes off as smug. Still that would be a side-effect of eating too many raw fruits ;)

    Wouldn't kill the guy to have a chicken leg now and then ;) He might even be able to go sub 2:20 with a diet like that.

    That's the trouble with experiments of one, they can't truely be shown to work against another cause you simply can't live the same life twice!

    He seems to think he's on to something but that thinking might just be making it so!!!

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  11. All the best on Thursday, Scott!

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  12. Good point Scott.
    think when he says he should not be improving at his age [33] and it's just the fruit diet making him faster is not quite right, he should talk to Geb who set the marathon record at an older age!
    Having said that I did find cutting out a lot of processed foods and eating more fruit and veg got my weight down, I've still got a way to go to get down to 6% fat!
    Have a good 10K race and remember 'PAIN IS GOOD'

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  13. Maybe this is the natural way to race and eat?
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=826HMLoiE_o

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  14. I'm with you Scott. Regular roast lamb dinners + Pavlova for desert and he would have run 2:15 years ago!

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  15. That's "dessert". Some witchetty grubs from the desert and he would have been giving Kebede curry.

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  16. Geez, I might just pop over for a couple hot Cheese Chilli dogs too!

    I reckon that a 2:20 isn't worth the pain of eliminating good food from your diet!

    Have fun on Thursday!

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