An Afternoon at the Track, and an Award.Today was back at the track for week 4 of Athletics Victoria...

An Afternoon at the Track, and an Award.

Today was back at the track for week 4 of Athletics Victoria Shield competition. My first event was the 200 metres. Unlike 2 weeks ago, I was well rested before competition. Conditions were interesting, and good for me, with a headwind on the bend, and a slight tail wind on the straight. Started well and ran a good bend, though my lack of speed endurance work in the last few weeks showed in the final part. Finished with a time of 27.39.

Next up was triple jump. Got better with each jump, finishing with a jump of 7.90 metres.

The 100m sprint followed, after a break. Got a reasonable start and felt good, but the time seemed a bit slow at 13.48.

Straight after the 100m was discus. First throw was a wobbly 10 metre effort, and the next was a fairly ordinary throw around 13m. Last throw was the best at 15.76 metres, less than a metre off my PB.

Final event was the 4x200m relay. Had a perfect change and realised early on that this was going to be a serious contest, so I kept up the pressure. Handed to our next runner with another good change. Our team won the event.

Had to leave fairly quickly, as I had the fire brigade annual presentation dinner. At the dinner, I was awarded runner of the year for our “C” team for the previous summer.

- Tony via Tumblr http://ift.tt/2gLvOYr

Tacking Into the Wind.This week’s track meet was conducted in cool and windy conditions. The...

Tacking Into the Wind.

This week’s track meet was conducted in cool and windy conditions. The conditions did cause a few issues with my tight hamstring, making it difficult to keep warm.

First up was the 100 metres. Got off to a slow start, but was able to take full advantage of my power into the stiff headwind to make up ground and finish with the bulk of the field.

In the long jump, I struggled to get my run up right, due to the gusty tailwind and the cool conditions. Best jump was 3.67m.

After the long jump was the 4x100m relay. I ran the final leg, into the wind. Unfortunately, a mishap during the change led to a dropped baton, which cost a lot of time. My run into the wind went well.

I decided against running the 400m, to reduce stress on my legs in the cool conditions, and finished the day throwing the javelin. My final throw was a PB, which was a good way to finish the day.

Have a few issues to work on, to get my times back to where they were late last season.

- Tony via Tumblr http://ift.tt/2zuowiO

A Challenging DayToday was the second week of track and field. However, today was also the fire...

A Challenging Day

Today was the second week of track and field. However, today was also the fire brigade’s annual preseason training day. This started early in the morning, and consisted of several km of running and walking, along with various physically challenging activities, over a period of 4 ½ hours. I won’t go into details, but to say that I did hold up pretty well, due to my fitness. Despite being the oldest in the team this year, I showed that age is not a limitation.

After the training challenges were over, we had a BBQ lunch, then I had to make a quick trip across town to the athletics track. Yes, despite the tough start to the day, I decided to go through with competing. I arrived just in time to sign into my events, then did a shortened warmup, due to lack of time and energy.

First up was the 200m. It was immediately obvious that the morning’s activities had taken their toll. I finished with a slow 28.33 seconds, but not bad under the conditions!

Next was the triple jump. On the first attempt, one of my feet collapsed, and I wasn’t sure if I would continue. However, my second jump was fine, and I was confident to continue. Finished with a distance of 7.66m.

Then on to the 100m. With my fatigued state, I wasn’t expecting miracles. But I got off to a reasonable start, and managed 13.86 in a field that was slow overall.

My final event was the discus. Had 2 good throws in the 14m range, the best being 14.91m.

I decided not to make myself available for the 4x400m relay, because my speed endurance was severely limited, without having to consider the rigours of the 400m distance.

Anyway, looking forward to being able to go all out next week.

- Tony via Tumblr http://ift.tt/2ynqUuf

Start Of A New SeasonToday was the start of the 2017-2018 track and field season. There was a...

Start Of A New Season

Today was the start of the 2017-2018 track and field season. There was a preseason meet last Sunday, but due to last minute car issues, I didn’t make it.

Today, I entered the 100 and 400m sprints, as well as the long jump and javelin. I also ran the 4x100m relay.

Up first was the 100 metres. Ran a bit slow at 13.41 seconds. A tight left hamstring didn’t help, and for some reason, I felt “disconnected” from my body, lacking the ability I had built up to monitor and tweak my performance. Hopefully, that’s something that will come with training and competition.

Next was long jump. Again, I had that same lack of connectedness, but I still managed 4.05 metres, which was reasonably good, given my overall performance, and better than this time last year.

This year, the 4x100m relay has been moved to the middle of the program, to encourage participation. I ran the third leg for our open men’s team. Had a rough change at the start of my leg, which slowed me a little, but I rapidly got to top speed, once settled. My second change was near perfect and performed at top speed. This was my best run of the day, and we finished a close second.

After the relay was the 400 metres. Wind conditions were tough in the back straight, and I finished with a time of 1:05.55.

Final event was the javelin. My first throw was the best of the 3 at 14.41 metres. Not bad, given my lack of practice.

Overall, it wasn’t one of my best days. Need to get that hamstring sorted, and have to reconnect to my body, so I can improve my performance. My 100m and long jump felt like they were on auto pilot, rather than me being in the zone.

Anyway, back again next week. Its good to be back on the track.

- Tony via Tumblr http://ift.tt/2gk0qQZ

Ready for the new track season.

Ready for the new track season.

- Tony via Tumblr http://ift.tt/2wDDgea