Author Archive Bratwurst

#PreBlast – Green with Speed

Swift is going back to the Green – as in Cash, Moolah, Cheddar (not that one), DownPainment of Speed for the BRR and events beyond.  Here’s the plan:

  • 0500 – Optional pre-run launch from the Vine American Kitchen for <15 minutes of easy running.
  • 0515 – Leave again from the Vine for warm-up of the main event.   Easy 10min of running and 5min of warm-up drills that will have us ending at the Brixham Green in the Ballantyne Corporate park.  Location is close enough that you can bring a water bottle and drop it.  Here is the course and the Start / Finish of each interval https://connect.garmin.com/modern/course/13457389 .  Cones will also be marking every 200m
  • 0530 – Start the main event of Interval Pace (a.k.a. 2 mile race pace or “Hard” effort) intervals.  Find your 1 mile Interval pace here under “Training” – http://runsmartproject.com/calculator.  Recovery jog length is a minimum suggestion to allow regrouping with similar speed PAX.
    • 1600m (2 laps of the Green) with 5min recovery
    • 1200m with 4min recovery
    • 1000m with 3min recovery
    • 800 with 2min recovery
    • 400m with 1min recovery
    • then repeat 400m/1min and go back up depending on time

SYITG,

Bratwurst

Pyramid in Ruins

F3-Swift launched at 0515 on Tuesday morning into the surprisingly fresh and cool feeling dark morning.  Some PAX got in some extra work at 0458 (Bunker with his pre-warmup routine) and others started right at 0500 with some easy running.

The PreBlast:

The PreBlast Questions:

https://twitter.com/TigerRagF3/status/767911547540738048

The THANG:

  • 0500 – 1.3mi of Easy running on the normal Swift pre-run course.
  • 0515 – Disclaimer and then leave the lot with no indication (other than the Preblast) of where we’re headed.  Kobains to those that missed a turn and didn’t show up until later.  After 1.0mi of more Easy running that tracked most of our 0.8mi loop for the morning, we got in some warm-up exercises (sans B-skips, which are apparently in high demand these days) and reminded the PAX of the workout.
  • 0530 – Start our 35minute workout on the loop of “the power line cut” hill, Ballantyne Corp Pl, The Bull Ring, Rushmore Dr.:
    • 3min I-pace (2 mile race pace found at http://runsmartproject.com/calculator); 2min recovery (jog and regroup)
    • 4min I-pace; 3min recovery
    • 5min I-pace; 4min recovery
    • 5min I-pace; 4min recovery
    • 3min I-pace; 2min recovery (cut out the Bull Ring and head down Harney Dr)
  • 0605 – Head back to COT and maximize the recovery

The Moleskin:

  • Please give YHC some feedback on the course.  Wanted to keep it rolling to break up the stride, but never too penalizing to have the hills make too much of an impact in overall pace.  Long enough to not repeat it too much (kudos to Fahvra to making it too short by starting a 2nd loop several times), but short enough to keep everyone in contact.
  • When starting out, realized that Stump Hugger and Muppet were MIA.  Turns out they were following Cheddar (who had run by the lot at 0455 coming from CVS to the Bank ATM looking for more keys to put in his pocket) that was going on a Ballantyne Corp Park scavenger hunt looking for Strange Brew’s house key.  Eventually they found us.  The Strava Fly-by shows it all.
  • Apparently, Fahvra is pretty good at this running thing.  While he said his fastest years were behind him, he’s looking for a resurgence and these couple of months are getting him there.  Not only did lead the PAX on the intervals (stalking YHC only at the beginning to make sure he didn’t go out too fast), he gave a similar report that Gumbo and others have on this interval stuff.  Not only does it make the “other” running easier, you see your pace effortlessly start to come down on those runs as well.
  • MAF out the window – JRR Tolkien does still have the speed, and he was out to prove it for 10 minutes this morning.  Charging on the first 2, then going OYO-MAF-related on us, then coming back for the last interval, it’s lurking in there somewhere.  MAF apparently doesn’t make you slow ALL of the time, just keeps you slow MOST of the time.
  • What pace are we running?  Don’t read the PreBlast, don’t ask a question when the Q says “any questions”, just comment how easy the workout is and then realize you aren’t running hard enough.  Star pupil OneNiner had a mixup and realized that his “is this slower than 10K effort” was perhaps too easy.  Here’s how YHC explained Interval speed to OneNiner, Pebbles, and anyone else in ear shot:
    • All intervals have their place for different purposes: Running economy (i.e. speed), Develop the heart, lungs, lactate dissapation, but they are all based on running just hard enough for those purposes.  Those paces can relate to speed, HR (like MAF), or effort, but Jack Daniel’s excellent book “The Running Formula” basically lays them out like this.
    • The faster the interval, the more rest you need.
    • Repetition pace is 1mile race pace.  Recovery is at least the same distance of the interval.
    • Interval pace is 2mile race pace.  Recovery is slightly less time of the interval.
    • Threshold pace is about 15K race pace.  Recovery is usually 1minute per mile of the interval (for example, after a 1 mile interval at Threshold pace, recover for 1 minute.  For a 2 mile interval, recovery for 2 minutes).
  • Many PAX with solid efforts out there.  The group is staying closer and closer together, even after a 5minute interval.  A couple more weeks of these types of efforts, and then going back to Threshold Pace for some weeks.  All of these are geared toward the longer distances of the BRR, Fall Half- and Full-marathons.
  • Stay tuned to SOB Slack or Twitter for other Long Run, casual run, or one-off workouts.

SYITG,

Bratwurst

#PreBlast – Speed Pyramid 3-4-5

Swift will launch at 0515 from the Vine Restaurant in Ballantyne on Tuesday.  Come at 0500 for some extra warm-up.

The THANG:

  • 0500 – early birds get the extra warm-up
  • 0515 – leave from the Vine lot and continue warm-up with Easy running and stretching.  Stay in Ballantyne Corp Park
  • 0530 – start on Rushmore Dr (course is rolling, but hills are not as aggressive as Bagpipe Hill), for the following VO2Max / Interval pace intervals (click this link to get a personalized pace)
    • 3min Interval / 2min jog recovery
    • 4min Interval / 3min jog recovery
    • 5min Interval / 4min jog recovery
    • 5min Interval / 4min jog recovery
    • 3min Interval / 2min jog recovery
  • 0605 – continue cooldown and head back to COT
  • 0615 – COT done

#PreBlast – Rolling for 4

Swift will launch at 0515 from the Vine Restaurant in Ballantyne.  Come at 0500 for some early extra easy running.

The THANG:

  • 0500 – early bird option for about 1.25mi of easy running and extra warm-up
  • 0515 – about a 10min easy run and 5min of dynamic warm-up drills
  • 0530 – Last week, we got re-introduced to the 4min “Interval Pace (I)” interval with 3min rest.  There will be no need to change the watch this week, for we’ll be on the same set.  The difference this week will be an intentional introduction of elevation changes (a.k.a. HILLS), but we’ll be staying in the Ballantyne Corporate Park.  Check below for what the “I Pace” is for you.  Last week was 5 rounds, so we’ll probably push for 6 rounds this week.
  • 0610 – Head back to COT.
  • 0615 – COT

Get an idea of what your Interval Pace should be at http://runsmartproject.com/calculator.  Input a Goal / Target, Calculate, Training tab, “Interval Pace” per mile is under the “1 mile” column.

#PreBlast – More Speed, Less Time, More Rest

#F3Swift will launch at 0515 from the Vine restaurant parking lot in Ballantyne.  Come early at 0500 for some extra easy running warm-up.

The THANG:

  • Be familiar with “Interval” pace from the Daniel’s VDOT Calculator at http://runsmartproject.com/calculator
    • Enter a race result (or goal) > Calculate
    • Click Training > go to line Interval > and get the pace value under 1 Mile.
    • This is the minutes per mile of pace that you’ll be running tomorrow.
  • After a warm-up over to North Community House Rd, and after some drills, we’ll be starting the following intervals at Interval pace
    • 4 minutes Interval pace
    • 3 minutes jog recovery to the 6
    • Repeato for a total of 5 intervals
  • Head back to COT

This is the first of 18 Tuesdays before the Kiawah Half Marathon and Marathon.  YHC will be at Brazwell’s SoB HDHH this Wednesday to answer any training questions about the Training Plans that have been published for this event.  While most of the Half Marathon plans don’t start until 12 weeks out (6 weeks from now), we’ll be following variants of the Kiawah Marathon plan for the next 18 weeks.

 

The Brixham Green 500

The Brickyard, Watkins Glen, Talladega, and Darlington.  All famous tracks on the NASCAR circuit.  This week at #F3Swift, 22 PAX got to experience the newest track on the circuit, the Brixham Green.

Here is the Strava Fly-by to prove it.

The PreBlast: (posted again for Fire Hazard’s benefit since he purposefully never reads it):

http://f3nation.com/2016/08/01/preblast-brixham-green-take-2/

The THANG:

  • Warm-up 1.3mi (optional)
  • Bring your water bottles (optional) to drop off at the workout’s start/finish area
  • Warm-up 10min with easy running with the full PAX
  • Warm-up drills for 5min (heels, toes, high knees, butt kicks, and stride)
  • Review the PreBlast that FireHazard didn’t read.  Answer questions about “T-pace” and “Comfortably Hard” and “how much rest” and “what’s the course” and then Bunker takes off…
  • Start the iPad timer at the start / finish / 0.5mi lap point, and “3, 2, 1, let’s go”.
  • Workout:
    • 1mi (about 2 laps around the Brixham Green) at Threshold Pace
    • Pitstop for a minimum of 60sec or a maximum of 90sec to gather some PAX in front or behind you before starting next 1mi interval.
    • Repeat until 0605.
    • Somewhere between 4 and 5 intervals were completed by most of the PAX.
  • Cooldown back to COT.

The Moleskin:

  • We had a nice misty sprinkler wetting the PAX as we came around one of the corners.
  • Having the water bottles available was key.  Don’t know how much hydration helped, but it was a comfort and an assistance to making sure we slowed down and took the rest of 1:00-1:30 between intervals.
  • Running in groups keeps like-speeds together, but still strings us out a little.  Certainly the challenge of running past others and getting passed makes you keep the effort high (unless you are JRR Tolkien and nothing but your high HR makes you change your speed).
  • 1st mi should have felt good.  Then it got real.  It was all about trying to hang on to keeping the rest interval honest and keeping the pace even on the laps.  Some accomplished the even pace better than others.  You statisticians will have to tell YHC if this is a good measurement to track that – the average of how much did each interval deviate from the average of all your intervals. I.e. intervals of 7:50, 7:55, 8:00, 8:05, and 8:10 would be a 6 second spread based on an average of 8:00.
    • Gumbo – 17 second spread
    • Citgo – 4s – and also holds Brixham Green lap record (someone oddly named this segment Brixham Hill) at 2:47 (5:44/mi pace).
    • FireHazard – 14s
    • Bunker – 2s
    • Honeybee – 9s (from Garmin connect)
    • Mario – 9s
    • JRR Tolkien – MAF-ish
    • Tiger Rag – 4s
    • The Mouth – inconclusive – learn to use the LAP button…
    • Bratwurst – 2s
    • Outback – inconclusive – learn to use the LAP button…
    • Longhaul – 24s (or 7s without the last one)
    • OneNiner – 28s (or 9s without the last one)
    • Geronimo – 18s
    • If you weren’t listed on this analysis, then it’s because you 1) didn’t use a GPS measuring device OR didn’t submit your certified results from your Timex or Mickey Mouse watch in writing to Bratwurst by the time of this posting; 2) your GPS device isn’t connected to Strava or Garmin Connect; or 3) YHC doesn’t like you and didn’t want to help you get faster and more consistent.  NOTE: If you want some advice or guidance with any of the first two, see Bratwurst.  If you want some advice with the 3rd one, fill out a comment card and drop it in the box!
  • What won’t show up in the results on Strava are Fahvra pushing Citgo all morning (don’t worry TR, Fahvra can’t fill in on your BRR team – he’s “busy”).   Swift FNG Snookie fighting through some nasty sinus stuff to keep moving the whole morning.  And the rest of the PAX that just said to heck with the heat, humidity, darkness, dampness, early hour, and these insane intervals (even Honeybee said “ouch”) to push themselves and get better.
  • This was a fun one gents!  Thanks for the opportunity to lead.

-Bratwurst

Announcements:

  • it’s not too late to sign up for a $55 entry to the Kiawah Island 13.1 or 26.2 that takes place about 18 weeks from now on December 10, 2016.  Check out the Preblast and follow the instructions – http://f3nation.com/2016/02/29/preblast-2016-kiawah-marathon/
  • Look out for an addition soon on that PreBlast for training plan ideas.  One 26.2 plan (that starts next week) and one 13.1 plan (12 weeks long) can be “subscribed” to from your smartphone calendar.

#PreBlast – Brixham Green – Take 2

Swift will be launching from the Vine Restaurant parking area in Ballantyne on Tuesday morning at 0515.  Come early at 0500 for some extra sweaty 2ndF warm-up.

The THANG:

  • 0515 – 15 minute warm-up consisting of easy jogging, drills, and #MumbleChatter about such drills.
  • 0530 – 1 mile (2 laps) Threshold Pace around Brixham Green (Buildings 1 and 2 on http://www.bissellleasing.com/content/uploads/2016/04/ballantyne-corporate-park-map.pdf ).
  • 1:00 to 1:30 rest: There should be enough PAX that you’ll form groups to start each mile segment with another PAX.  1 minute is MINIMUM rest, and 1:30 is recommended MAXIMUM rest to get other PAX to start another interval.  Suggestions will be given at the beginning to form pace groups for 6:00-6:30, 6:30-7:00, 7:00-7:30, etc.
  • Repeat until 0610.  Mosey back to COT.  Extended cooldown will need to be OYO (on your own).
  • Find your Threshold Pace at http://runsmartproject.com/calculator:
    • Input a recent Race result (or “realistic” race goal).
    • Click “Calculate”
    • Click tab “Training”
    • Use the “Threshold” 1 Mile as the Pace you’ll be running on Tuesday.  The course we have is just about .5 mile around, so you can even get a good measure if you’re relying on your stopwatch alone.

SYITG,

Bratwurst

Fast Finish Hills

#Cobains on the Delay for this Backblast of #F3Swift last week on July 26, 2016.

The THANG:

  • 0500 – several PAX in for the early crew.  Strava results showed these PAX got in almost 8miles on a Tuesday.
  • 0514 – Full disclaimer (we do that at Swift?) and then we followed the Preblast for this workout very closely.  The only updates were that we got in 4 total rounds.  Here was the Preblast:

http://f3nation.com/2016/07/25/preblast-fast-finish-hills/

 

The Moleskin:

  • YHC ripped off modified this workout off somewhere from the Internet on Runner’s World, Competitor.com, or something like that.  It was unique from what we have done before for hill work (for there are few hills in our area that have a nice “flat” in the start), but it was fit into a common 200, 200, 400 workout that we have done before.
  • In all, seems like a workout that we can repeat with great location with minimal traffic, close-by, the gradual and straight hill, wide course, well-lit, and the “moderate” hill.  Perhaps having a steeper hill would be nice, for example Ben Nevis or the Bagpipe hill, but we would need some planning to make those fit the 50/50 flat/hill experience.
  • Welcome to Site FNG Doc McStuffins who YHC chases around at most Bootcamp workouts (and not only because those are YHC’s “off” days…), and Kotters to Dasher who was out for his second Swift (but may not come back for another year now).  Doc was bringing it early on, for YHC did say it was all about “effort”, but he quickly found out what a 35 minute workout entails as far as continuing that same “speed” through the end of the workout.  Perhaps
  • Mr. Bean had his normal “horse-whispering” going on to encourage and motivate the PAX on the hill, and YHC certainly knows that he would be worried if he was on the same BRR team and Mr. Bean’s van came by with YHC walking…  Somehow, Mr. Bean would make us want to run harder, either to catch up at the next exchange zone and smack him, or to get a fist bump for helping through the pain zone.
  • Apparently, One Niner was the teacher’s pet at school.  He listens to the instructions, doesn’t rush to turn in his test too early because everyone else is, and quietly moves up the class rankings nailing A’s all the way.
  • Pebbles won about half of the intervals.  Though they were all on the recovery half.  Apparently he doesn’t need to recover as slowly as the rest of us.  He still kept it going strong on the other half of the intervals.  Impressive for this relatively new “Swifter”.

Your “Running” Public Service Announcements for the week:

#PreBlast – Fast Finish Hills

The weekly speed-fest known as Swift will launch from the Vine parking lot in the Ballantyne AO on Tuesday morning at 0515.  Come early at 0500 for some slow running and 2nd F.

The THANG:

  • 0500 – warm-up and setting up cones along Rushmore Dr. Back to Vine lot by 0515.
  • 0515 – warm-up 1mile, drills along Rushmore Dr
  • 0530 – start the rounds of the workout:
    • 200m: 1st 100m is 5K race pace effort, last 100m is up a Hill at 1mile race pace effort.  Recover down
    • 200m: repeat
    • 400m: 1st 200m is a 5K race pace effort, last 200m is up a Hill at 1mile race pace effort. Recover back to start.
    • That was Round 1.  Continue until 0605.
  • 0605 – mosey back to COT

Woke more neighbors than Normal

Preblast that we followed:

http://f3nation.com/2016/07/18/preblast-wake-the-neighbors-with-a-2130/

#sobCounts:

 

The THANG:

Moleskin:

  • The PAX took 19 men into the Country Club to try and wake as many neighbors as possible.  Thought each 3,2,1,start was muted, passing through the stretched out pack of PAX that time was up can be challenging.  HoneyBee was once again worried that we would get kicked out, but alas, we must have caught the BCC private security force in a shift change or between “Hot Now” runs.
  • This was likely the first time that we accomplished the full outer loop of BCC within the hour, and Outback didn’t think it was possible (he’d have to PR to make that happen today).  Speaks to the PAX being able to stay grouped, coordinated, and pointed straight ahead.  The 2minute intervals always seemed to involve elevation change.  Wait, all of BCC are elevation changes!  It might be curious to do this on a flat course sometime, but that will have to wait until after the Blue Ridge Relay.
  • What’s not recorded in the FlyBy is a sneaky fast newer PAX named Fahvra.  He was right on the heels of Frasier and ThinMint all morning.  Could this be him – https://www.athlinks.com/search?term=andrew+peternel.  If so, explains a lot…

 

 

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