On a Quest - Gear Review On Cloudflow trainers

Since the spring in 2006 I started a quest to find the perfect footwear. By chance I also started a new hobby at that time called running.

 I started with a shoemaker called Brooks who had a trader within the walled city of Chester. For three years I fraternised with Brooks' arsonal of models. I thought I found the right one but it wasn't perfect. I enjoyed it's support and cushioning but it was too heavy. Then I switched alliances to Mizuno because a family member worked on the inside. I started with Mizuno's racing flats called Mushas which were the perfect 5-10K shoe for over pronators. Mizuno decided to keep upgrading the Mushas with version 4 getting a narrower toe box which didn't suit me. Then eventually they got replaced with Mizuno Hitogamis. I went through, probably 20 pairs of the Wave Hitogami trainers trying to decide whether or not I liked them. I did like them but I knew that they were too narrow. Every now and again I would buy another pair of shoes on my quest for a shoe to support me on the flat roads I travelled on but to also be light and with a wide toe box and be near to a natural running form.

 One of those purchases was the Altra Escalante. I've have two pairs of these. They are great for my fussy requirements but my history of running with the Mizuno's means I am finding it hard to adjust to the zero drop (how much taller the heel is than the forefoot). Another great feature of the Escalantes is that they have a super wide toe box. The first Altra shoemakers must have had me in mind when designing their trainers. Perfect for me but I need time to adjust and I may never get there (a zero drop runner). A couple of months ago I decided to purchase another pair of Mizuno Hitogamis as mine had worn out and I needed time to adjust to the Altra Escalantes. However I quickly realised Mizuno had stopped making them. And everyone but me must have realised and therefore bought up the old stock.

 So I got got technical in finding my next trainer. I wanted it to be in between the Escalantes and the Hitogamis in terms of weight, heal drop, support and toe box width. I searched all over the lands and wrote comparison tables and... (actually I'm romanticising, I spent two hours staring at a screen www.runrepeat.com).

 I came up with On Cloudflow. I've now ran about 100 miles in them and I love them. I may have completed my quest but I'm not 100% sure yet. I'll be sure after going through a couple of pairs, I don't like to jump to conclusions. My impressions of them so far are that they are responsive. They return a bit a energy, a small spring or stiffness which my beloved Hitogamis had in the Wave plate. The toe box is wide, and I hope On don't narrow it in later versions. In a perfect world I'd like the toe box to be even wider. The drop in the CloudFlows is 6mm, the Hitogamis were 9mm.

 This article relates to my road running which is mostly done at around 6:40 per mile pace. Some faster some slower.  I am on another quest to find trainers for different type of running: track, trail, cross country.  I’m beginning to think that this quest will go on and on as ultimately my foot isn’t designed to have a trainer on it.  Some would argue that the best way to run is barefoot and I would agree but I’ve tried it and it's too messy and cold and feels silly.

Cold Running Clothes Selection ❄️

"There's no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing" quote

This quote is mostly true but annoying when someone quotes it to you when you're soaked through and cold!

I've had 10 years of running in winter in North Wales, running almost everyday so I've decided write down some tips for others or to remind myself after a long summer. I'm not going to cover shoe choice, training or nutrition because it'll be too long.

"Athletes are made in the winter".

Firstly, maybe the biggest problem with running in the cold is that it takes 10 minutes to warm up. If you start off wrapped up then you will be too warm for most of the run. So, if you are unable to drop off clothes on the run it's best to start cold so that you don't have to worry about carrying your extra top tied up around your waist. If you're prepared to run by your house after 10 minutes then perfect, you can drop off your extra gear.

Here's a handy guide in a table: 

Gear
Temperature control
In my opinion, overrated. Yes it might regulate your temperature but only a tiny bit and certainly not enough to justify the cost. Also these garments often have complicated washing instructions.

Waterproofs
A jacket can be good but only in certain situations and it has to be light and breathable. Through trial and error I've found that a waterproof jacket is a good choice when it's raining and under 10°C (proud of finding the ° on my mobile text!). Any warmer than 10°C and you'll be wet on the skin from sweat. I spent ages researching (not testing) a good jacket and found the OMM Kamleika Race Smock II with great reviews. Check out my review of it here.
Waterproof trousers are only required for slow running in very cold environments, rarely used. Compulsory kit for some races.

Gloves
There are lots of choices! Have a range but notes that mittens are much warmer especially when you don't use the thumb and make a good fist.

Wirral Ultra 2017 1st place

haven't been writing many blogs lately because I don't think I have anything original or interesting to say but here it goes! 

After a disappointing 100km time at the National Championships in May I entered the Wirral Ultra and I'm glad I did because I did well there. 

I won in a time of 4h08m for a distance of 36 miles. Pleased with the pace considering four wee stops (toilet) and other stops to navigate. The best thing was how I felt; strong throughout and was able to pick up the pace. 

If anyone is thinking about doing this event then I would definitely recommend recce ing the route beforehand. I did and it helped. I only recced it once and wished I had done it more. Even when I was going the right way I was looking at the map in places to make sure I was on course, this slows you down. The last 8 miles are the hardest to navigate. But don't let this put you off because it's not hard to navigate, it's just that I'm not good at following signs (I run too fast!).

Nutrition 
Leading up to the race my diet was ok. Low sugar but, as always, a bit too much cereal. A funny thing is that I ate pizza and chip shop Fish n Chips the day before, but in my defense not a lot. 
On race day I had cereal and coffee for breakfast. 
On route I stuck to Tailwind mixed in with my water, it worked out well, no stomach problems at all. I was too hydrated which made me wee four times on the run. I was worried about the temperature getting hot but it stayed cool. 

I started the race going about 20 seconds per mile too slow for about 13 miles but I had good company and was enjoying the chat. It would have been boring to have run alone all the way and I wasn't really looking for a particular time. Partly why I wanted to do this race was to fall in love with Ultra running again after putting too much pressure on myself at the nationals and it worked. I also just wanted to see if I could do the distance without my hamstrings being weak which they had been in the last couple of races. 

I have had the pleasure of having Zach Bitter coaching me this spring and he gave me a great plan between the 100km and the Wirral Ultra. We recognized that my weak hamstrings were probably the result of doing too much MAF (Maximum Aerobic Function) at one pace so Zach had a bit more variety in the last four weeks to give that muscle group a chance to recover. It worked out well.

Me "I'll come home earlier if my heart rate is high" Dad "but what would you do in a race?"

Me "I'll come home earlier if my heart rate is high"
Dad "but what would you do in a race?"

This was a conversation I had with my Dad just before a long Sunday run. He was a runner in the 80s and a good runner too.

This reply from my Dad made me smile to begin with because I imagined a silly scenario of looking at my heart rate in a race and giving up due to seeing a number on a device. It just wouldn't happen, for me, so I initially thought.

My Dad and I then chatted a bit about it. He didn't have technology in the 80s and in some ways that was an advantage; he knew how to listen to his body. But in other ways it was a disadvantage, e.g. he didn't always know what his body was saying.

I told him about my last race which was 4 miles. I wore my heart rate monitor and my HR was 195+ most of the time. I didn't look at it in the race but had I what would I have done? Probably nothing because the race was short.

What about an Ultra race of 7 hours, should I let my heart rate influence me? I would say yes, but only a little bit. I don't have all the answers but I'm enjoying the lessons.

Thanks for reading. Let me know your thoughts.

Maximum Aerobic Function (MAF) Training Update part 4

http://zachbitter.com/blog/

Check out the above link for Zach's blog post on coaching me.

The training is going well. Still building up the MAF miles. MAF is best explained on Doctor Phil Maffetone's website here:
https://philmaffetone.com/want-speed-slow-down/

I'm now up to about 75 miles per week at a MAF effort. I'm hoping to put in two weeks of 80 miles but I'll see how it goes. It's great having Zach to coach me. I've not had a coach before and previously I would have done a lot more slow / recovery miles. That's the beauty of MAF training. It doesn't hammer the body too much and so the "recovery" runs are reduced. I listen to my body and take a recovery run when needed. I like the expression Zach told me for my run yesterday:

"take what the body gives you".

Last weekend I raced a short distance (for an Ultra runner), it was five miles on the road. Considering I hadn't done any interval /speed work I still managed a pace of 5m22s per mile for 5miles. That was a confidence boost because my marathon I did a month ago was a bit slower than I expected (2h37m).

Thank you for reading yet another running blog!

Keep running.

Daniel

Zach Bitter coaching blog 1

http://zachbitter.com/blog/2017/03/behind-the-curtain-introduction.html

Guidance on running at the Center Parcs: Sherwood Forest

Here is some guidance on running at the Center Parcs: Sherwood Forest.

The first thing to say is that the place is completely fenced in so expect to do loops. You can do a 5k without repeating a road.  Here's a copy of a map of the place.

If you get time before going familiarise yourself with the map. Otherwise schedule your first run as a slower paced run to get to know the area. 

The best time to go is between 7am and 9am as later on there are too many cyclists.  Don't worry about vehicle traffic as cars are not allowed on site during the week.  

Mainly the terrain is undulating (gentle hills) on tarmac.  If you want a bit of off road then there is about a mile's worth running along the top (north) side.  The full trail is not shown on the map but the nature trail shown in the far right top corner (as a loop) is one end of the mile.  To get onto the loop you need to go right to the end of the road that has chalets in the high 880s on. 

If you want to do intervals there are a couple of nice half mile sections that also have Strava segments on. Here's a copy of the segments for you Strava lovers: 

Note that the best 1/2 mile reps I found were around the East side of the camp.