Al Shami is that handicapped child with a heart of gold. Deep in a Middle-Eastern brunch addiction, a good score needs a tasty feed married to either genuine innovation or ridiculous value. If Kepos (last week) is classy, modernised and almost pretentious, then AS is honest, cheap and unaesthetic. 9am Sunday - no long-waits on Crown Street behind hipsters in skinny jeans sipping a...
Consolidation day – joined Renee and Wongy for a trot to Centennial at 5:30s. Battled traffic and school kids the whole way. Wongy’s a repeat offender in the early drop-off. Today it was at 5km due to a ‘meeting’ – true to form, he later confess it’s the spring rolls from Hunter Arcade. Crunchy, cheap and cheerful. Run wise, very easy. CP is...
Battling the double team of a fever and tired legs from still from Sunday. Not sure why a humble 21.1km has been so destructive to my quads! Monday - Bay Run Rolled out very early (5:30am) and brought Molly for a tidy 15km around the Bay Run plus Five Dock Bay. Pace was 5 min/km. Suspect Molly struggled as much as I. Tuesday...
Running a half on tired legs (115km since Mon) has worked in the past and it was time to a repeat. SMC monthly races kick off Sep down in the sleepy burbs of Smithfield. Ran this same course 75:12 in June. Struggled with the 7am start but I promised the wife a breakfast. Good to see two friendlies: - Rob Cavrak - suicide...
I won't lie. Serious doubts heading out at 6am into the windy/rainy conditions. Nevertheless, after two weeks the weekly swim routine continues. 3km jogging around the grass flats of the nearby Rozelle Mental Hospital before the body warmed up. Then I ducked into the Aquatic Centre, knocked out some half-baked freestyle for 2km. Still struggling with the ice-cold 'heated' pool temp of 27...
Junk junk and more junk. Continuing the pile on the kms, legs permitting but not really deliberately. The commute is an easy way for base building. AM: 9km through USYD grounds in pissing down rain. I was simply too afraid to catch public transport. Legs felt as flat as yesterday. In my desperation for a feed, I backed it up with a healthy...
Secretly hoped I'd be right for speed #2 this week, but Tuesday DOMS has kept me cautious. Well that and the worst possible weather in recent months. Little interest in the HuRTS 20 min hills plus 5km tempo. Joined Colin and FJen for some relentless laps at Rushcutters. I figured running 450m circles on soft grass would do me a world of good;...
Decent but certainly far-from-debilitating leg fatigue from yesterday's 14x3 min. I think last week's easy week was well worth it. Good opportunities today to add junk without hampering recovery. AM; Bay run with Molly. 5:15 min/km pace over 10km. Tried the New Balance trails (10v2) and they felt ridiculously good. PM: Battled blistering gusts of wind through much of the 12km with the...
Kepos and I shared a whirlwind Winter romance (8/10) and just 3 weeks later, an expensive divorce is in order. It's not my fault. Now a Spring clipboard menu 'update' disguises a multi-dollar pricing step-up; four months after open! Taking a page from the Justin Bieber book of premature success, I'm of the (uninformed) view Kepos' owner(s) is stroking his own ego. Channel...
HuRTS 14 x 3 min intervals, easily the most humbling way to spend Tuesday lunch. Every time this comes around I fret for a good 24 hours before the session. Big turnout with a few regulars still recovering from Blackmores (Renee, Lambert, Gus, Macca). Extremely difficult in the outbound leg with horrid cross winds. Lucky to battle the sets with JFen and James,...
AM: A change in shoes (or 4) from Sunday has done the trick. Remarkable how the sole elasticity 'gives' after 500km; for me this means niggles, more niggles then injury. Cracking weather drew a modest crowd at lunch. Joining the squad was The Frenchman, Wongy, Craig, Andy and a few others. Pace quickly moved to 4:30s and with an easy last week, I...
Du Liban transpired into a self-awarded food archaeologist badge when I first unearthed this jewel, buried deep in the industrial Mines of Marrickville. Initial review 8/10. Glaring omission is a Shakshuka. This yardstick is well acquainted with my stomach. Also note hunger works magic to the food critique in me and a tidy 90m morning run helps. What I like? Heavy on the...
Some regrets not battling the CBD roads with the masses today in either the half or full. Sydney course does not appeal. I know the course too well (not fast) and perhaps it's one for 2016. Solid, albeit small company in CP today. Merry band included new guys Andy and Matt, as well as Craig, D Kane and another. We tried to maintain...
AM: Motivation is quite variable nowadays but today I felt better. Pondered an early swim at Leichardt but the consistent rain was a deterrent. First 2km at 7 min/km! Is it possible to run that slow? To be fair these included some high knee drills plus heel kicks. Continued such ad-hoc drills to 8km, then added 4x20 dips plus 4x20 push-ups to maintain...
Lox, Stock & Barrel just lost a Good Food Hat and with that, credibility in the cancerous mouths of SMH's dwindling subscriber base. On the plus side, I'm awarding this beach-side wholefoods institution a Blogger Sock and reconfirm must-try status. 9/10. War-mongering cafe copycats will continue to bleed wallet share to LS&B's clean, crisp flavours that still motivates diners away from boring staples. Some nearby organic...
Almost considered a Milson's Point swim but the sunshine was too alluring. Joined Charlie's warriors crew for a standard run out to Cremorne Point. I felt lethargic before and after the run. The hills failed to wake me up but at the very least, views were incredible. 12km in 65 min. Took this nice little photo along Blackwattle Bay on a run. Magic....
Smallish turnout for the Rushcutters 7x400m plus 3km tempo. No surprise with Sunday's race (Blackmores). Once again, we were forced from RB Oval to across the canal. A light 3km jog alongside Charlie, Lambert, Steve Ellis and Champ before we kicked off the set on 150s cycles. My strat was to hold near the back, working at 10k pace whilst others (JFen et...
AM: left the bike at work so broke my initial aspirations of single-runs only this week. 7km along Blackwattle Bay, dodging dogs and walkers alike. PM: late morning meeting ran over. Annoyed to miss the usual Wed 'recovery' which starts at 12:20pm. Thus it was lonely days to Farm Cove. Then lo and behold, out pops Timmy, Tom and new guy Andis in...
Sunday's 26km took a lot more out of me than anticipated. I'm also at the tail of a solid 4 weeks. With no forthcoming racing, I'd be remiss not to ease back and revert to (i) no speed, and (ii) fewer double runs. Monday - recovery Started with the crew at Bent Street and quickly drifted back at 4:45s. Lucky Dave Kane and...
Kepos Street Kitchen is diarised as a recurring weekend appointment, replacing the legacy Sunday church routine. The spicy, home-style cooking and excellent food-to-plate ratio empowers the humble $20 note. Two reviews to date, Feb (8) and June (7.5). Are the chefs in a score tailspin? Apparently not. Visit #3 recovers to 8.5/10. Today, a triple team of brioche, bacon and oozing egg yolk line the arteries with supreme...
If yesterday's 20k plod was a warning sign to take-it-easy, today's 26km progressive run was a reminder what hydration, good sleep and a week of light speed can do. First 4km a sleepy 5:30s, before the engine started to warm. Come 12km, my pace was 4:30s and I adjoined the back of a large HuRTS Centennial crew that included Timmy, JFen, CT, DK,...
Battled a strangely lethargic over the whole 20km covered with Molly. In fact, she was dragging me along. Could be successive (four) weeks of heavy mileage and very broken sleep this week? Endless water views of from Iron Cove, Drummoyne Park and the Bay Run in a giant CCW direction kept me sane. Apathetic legs to say the least. Stopped at the oval...
Truly a recovery run. With this sunshine, t-shirt/singlet tan is becoming a looming risk. Met Sammy and Sonya at Slip Inn on Sussex, before we tracked Barangaroo, Hickson Wharves and back around Farm Cove. Finished up at the Stone Pillars to make it 13km. 13km bang on 5:30s. Felt better but off a very low base. Training plan for the weekend (not that...
Yep, still struggling with the throat and energy levels. Also the Rushcutters session was moved to the adjacent footy field as the oval was out of bounds. A quick 400m circuit was marked out with a shoe and a bag (no Timmy = no cones). Session is 8x800m off 5 min cycles. Upfront was Barts, Quentin and CT with another five odd on...
12:30pm call out by Conway. How could anyone resist an easy, 13km style recovery offering the best views on Sydney (CQ, Hickson Wharves, Barangaroo). So surprise to see a good turnaround. Group fractured around Farm Cove, leaving Conway, Steve E, JW, Crossy, Lambert and a few others. Today's chat included: - Coastal Classic war stories - the need to cross-train (I've been doing...
Waking up to a suspected case of early-stage flu suggests an easy week is in order. Decided to ease into the dreaded 45 min tempo with concerns over a sore throat and low energy. 1km warm-up with Crossy, a quick stretch with the gang before we were off. First 24 min had me head out to the start of Hickson wharves with Renee....
Need to remind myself the foundation for this blog was initially running/training (not food). Sunday Skipped the HuRTS Centennial option for a catch up with Renee. What better way than the Bay Run and surrounds. Knocked out 10km before a 7am meet at Rodd Point. Good catch up all round and by 30km, we parted ways. R is pretty set for a solid...
Bench's attempt at a B&E roll displaces the Spit Road speed camera as the primary reason to never again venture across the Spit Bridge from the south side. Ever. Caged eggs, stale bread and small serves. Clumsy kitchen has stolen a menu off a school sports BBQ then added poached pear porridge to trap south-of-the-Spit tourists. 'Best B&E offer this side of the...
