Gaelforce on the Horizon

Been tipping away at the running, quiet enough, just enough to keep fitness levels ok, prob 10-15 miles average a week since the last post. Have also signed up to do an adventure race up in Mayo called Gaelforce West www.gaelforceevents.com I’ve heard nothing but great things about this race from guys that did it last year. There’s a bunch of  20 of us from the local running club going up to Mayo in August. Should be good craic.

The race breakdown very quickly is as follows approx

 On foot:    21km        Cycling:   45km          Kayaking:  1km

Part of the running/walking part is going up and down Croagh Patrick and 3 miles running through bog which I prefer not to think about.

A time of under 5 hours is considered pretty good so I will aim for that. So far I’ve done a couple of long cycles and a “brick” session which means a bike ride followed straight after with a run. It’s quite a funny sensation of getting off a bike and trying to run straight away, your legs just want to keep the circular motion and feels like you you are running on a bouncy castle, it took about 2 miles to feel right again. Got a pair of cycling shorts from Lidl and it’s like trying to run with a nappy, not right at all, I’ve invested in a pair of Tri shorts off ebay which should help.

Will keep doing a few brick sessions here and there and some long runs will be needed along with a couple of hills. This will all be great for overall fitness, strength and endurance needed for Dublin Marathon this year. If I invest in the process of training well, then that 4 hour marker will be easier to break.