Oxford Half 2024

2024-10-13 - Oxford


Race went surprisingly well. Chip time was 1:33:30, which is
amazing given how much training I did (not much) and how fit I am
(not particularly). I suppose it’s reasonable to say that this
is my baseline pace. I pinky promise to do more events—and
training—next year!

Strava:  https://www.strava.com/activities/12644194219

 Notes


Efficient morning pre-race after not-quite enough sleep. Dressed,
banana, porridge, coffee, bathroom, out at 8.


I had decided on a three gel strategy using SIS Dual Fuel
gels. One 5 mins before the starting, another at 7km, and the
last one at 14km. I think it worked out pretty well.


At the event, we did bag drop and went straight to the starting
pens. Didn’t use the portaloos, and regretted it after 30 mins
standing in the starting pen. With ~20 mins to go, I jumped the
fence and ran to the public bathrooms at the Covered Market.
Felt MUCH BETTER OMG, and managed to get back in the pen fine. I
also discovered that I hadn’t tightened my drawer-strings,
and that the tops of my gels were poking me in the small of the
back. I tied a neat bow, and turned the gels upside-down in the
back pockets.


I felt pretty decent during the run. I saw Becca and Rachel
spectating at a couple of points. Rachel even got a few photos!

I went off a tiny bit hard while my heart rate was coming up,
but once in the 170s I modulated pace based on HR readings,
aiming for low 170s in the first third, high 170s in the middle,
and at 15km consciously pushed into the low 180s in order to
catch the 1:35 flag runner. I think I let HR sag a bit through
kms 5-12. In terms of pace, I didn’t manage negative splits. I
ended up with basically flat splits throughout the race, with a
slight sag at the end that was not solely because I was running
through University Parks.

Comparing with previous attempts, I noticed that heart rates
averaged about the same as last year, maybe a beat lower*. However
according to Strava, I spent significantly more time in Z3, and
half as much time in Z5. Probably my heart-rate zone cut-offs
are for me when I’m much fitter: The 173 bpm transition from
Z3 tempo to Z4 threshold is too low; I was certainly at or just
above the top of threshold for the run, and that was at 172-174
bpm for the first two-thirds of the race. Threshold HR being
lower can likely be explained by my reduced fitness.


 *direct comparison is hard because I didn’t stop the run
 until after a couple mins of recovery, oops.


 Trip


Quick summary: this time we organized the trip such that there
were four solid days on the boat before the run. Which worked
out really well, and enabled a contiguous trip to Aynho rather
than just to Thrupp. We could have gone further if the Cherwell
valley weren’t over-full of water, and if a number of other
things hadn’t happened!

 Next year


What we could do to make it better next year:-


 * Do canal Saturday-Saturday, with race after the first
 night. We’d only lose a little under a day of cruising to
 the half marathon, and we could be more debaucherous *after*
 the race!

 * Being fitter and a lot lighter. I could stand to lose 10kg!

 * Weight training during winter.

 * Base training. A lot of Z2 runs/pelotons/bike rides. Richard
 noted that he did this for the first time this year and it
 made a huge difference, lowering both race times, *and* average
 heart rates.




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