The Grind

I know it's not that much of a mountain, and I've certainly climbed a fair few that were significantly higher, but Killiney Hill does look a bit scary when you turn the corner in Dalkey and suddenly see it rising up right ahead of you, especially so if you've already got well over 10 miles in your legs and they had not felt all that great to start with.

I had not fancied the climb to Kilternan yet again, so I came up with a different route that brought me through the swankier parts of South Dublin instead, not that I ever will be able to afford to live there. The views from top of Killiney sure look rather impressive, and maybe you'd even get invited to Bono's birthday party, but I guess that life is not for me.

So back to Bray I went, and by the time I hit the last climb on the way back home the legs were pretty much fried. Last week's run had gone better.

I hadn't even done a time trial on Saturday. The reason for that being that I had run home from work on Friday evening and 12 hours rest between runs just isn't doing it any more, I can always feel it in the hamstrings, and that sure isn't the best way to head into a workout. So I skipped the time trial and did a few strides and sprints along the way instead, and it was actually good to get the legs spinning at speed. It was a wet and windy day, so even on fresh legs probably not ideal for a time trial anyway.

The amount of rain this week has been unreal, I think the Kerry weather has caught up with me again. One problem is that the paths through the parks I tend to run through are not in great shape and there are always sections that are waterlogged, and I can assure you, that water is f***ing freezing!

It's also damn dark! It's already pitch dark by the time I leave work and now it's dark in the mornings as well. Of course the days will still be getting shorter for another 4 weeks, so there is no end of that in sight yet. I just hope I'll avoid tumbling over some uneven pavement and injuring myself in the process this time - I sure don't want to miss out on Donadea yet again.

It's just the time of the year when you have to grind through it. Remember, spring races are won in winter (not that I'm under any illusions of actually winning anything - you know what I mean).