Like last week, I decided to run a lap of Centennial Park at a faster pace than normal today. I think I’ll do this regularly now, as a way to develop more speed. This morning I ran the lap in 18:30, compared to last week’s 19:45. Although faster, it’s still not fast – only about 4:50 per km, but that’s faster than the pace to which I’ve become accustomed. Amazingly, this is almost exactly the pace the world’s greatest ultra runner, Yiannis Kouros, managed to hold for an entire 24 hours when he set his amazing world record of 303 km run in a single day. While I wasn’t stressed at all by today’s pace for less than 4 km, I can’t imagine how Yiannis must have felt toward the end of his 24 hour effort after keeping up the same pace all day long.

After the low heart rate of a few days ago, I decided to take my pulse immediately upon finishing my 4:50 per km effort. It was 104 bpm – a nice comfortable heart rate. I’ve never worn a heart monitor or taken my pulse during or after exercise in the past so, to be honest, I’m not sure whether that’s a high, low, or normal rate. As I write, about half an hour after finishing, my heart rate has dropped to 54.

Anyhow, I won’t overdo my weekly lap of Centennial Park. It will be quite a while before I get it down to the 14:00 I ran just before I tore my Achilles, and I’m sure I’ll never again get it below my PB of 12:50, set decades ago.

If you’re interested, the Seven Marathons on Seven Continents in Seven Days starts this weekend. Just Google it and you’ll find the appropriate sites to by which to follow the event. The first marathon is in Antarctica.

On This Day

Jan 16, 2015

Distance today = 56.45 km; Total distance = 822.93 km; Location = 4 km east of Greta Valley, NZ –  42 57.262′ S, 173 00.672′ E; Start time = 0850, Finish time = 1658

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/142138917

A bit of a slog at the office today. The next 300 km are along the main highway in NZ, so it’s not the most enjoyable running. Still, I got through a decent distance, similar to what I have to do each day this week in order to make Wellington by Saturday.

I had a nice lunch with the support crew at the Waipara Springs Winery, followed by a 22 km afternoon run into the wind. I can’t complain.

For those following the Garmin data closely, it seems I didn’t turn off my watch when I stopped. It was 56.45 km when I stopped. After getting into the support vehicle for the drive back to the hotel, I noticed the distance ticking up rapidly as we headed off. I quickly turned off the watch, but not before it was reading 57.31 km. Therefore, I have subtracted the extra 0.86 km from the Garmin reading. The official distance for the day is 56.45 km. Don’t be fooled by the high speed shown at the end of the data. It doesn’t count.

Finally, I would like to thank the Waipara Hotel for the accommodation tonight. Once again, great Kiwi hospitality.