Southland Harriers eNewsletter

A huge shout out to Dwight Grieve, who took out the win at the Emersons Marathon. A outstanding result Dwight, I hope there was a beer waiting for you at the finish line, we are very proud of you and your efforts. Follow this link for a fantastic Tribune article, covering off some top of results from Southland Athletes at the Emerson Marathon.

https://southlandtribune.substack.com/p/old-fashioned-stubbornness-carries

Congratulations to all the NZ Mile Champs across the age groups. James Webbers stellar run in to first place in the Under 20's was a little bit of magic, in a time of 4:23. If you competed and are looking for some photos from the day Hill Citiy Athletics Facebook page has some excellent shots of the day. https://www.facebook.com/HillCityUniversity/photos

Thanks Ian Densie, for not only a NZ Mile Champs race report but a season report. Ian's report is a great example of what the season offers to runners, if your up for it. A progressive season of running with plenty of events to test your training plan on.

A Good Season, A Few PBs and Plenty Learned Along the Way - by Ian Densie

It’s been a pretty satisfying few months of running for me, with a season that didn’t always go exactly to plan, but ended up delivering some great results, a couple of PBs, a medal, and plenty of lessons to take into the next season.

My main goal for the season was to improve my 5km, and the first big target came at the Teretonga 10K, where I lined up for the 5km race. After a solid block of training, I managed to run 18:31, taking a new 5km PB.

That gave me a lot of confidence heading into the next part of the season. I’d been doing plenty of work around threshold pace, hills and longer efforts, while also trying to keep some speed in the legs, and it felt like the training was starting to come together.

The next target was the St Pauls Street Mile at Ascot Park. I went into that race with much less pressure on myself than I probably normally would. The aim was simply to race it well and enjoy it.

That approach seemed to work.

I finished in 5:25, another PB, and probably one of my better-executed races of the season. It was a great feeling to see the 5km fitness translating into a faster mile, while still being able to race rather than simply hang on.

Then, unfortunately, the body decided it wanted a little break.

A couple of weeks of illness interrupted the training, which wasn't ideal with the ASB George Street Mile in Dunedin coming up. I was able to get back into some running before the race, but it certainly wasn't the perfect build-up. The Garmin numbers weren't exactly screaming "peak fitness" either!

Still, the trip to Dunedin was always going to be about more than just the time.

The ASB George Street Mile had a fantastic atmosphere, with the kids and community races creating a huge crowd around the Octagon before the Masters, U20 and Elite races. There were only 14 Masters men in the field, with many runners saving themselves for the Dunedin Marathon, Half Marathon and 10km the following day.

The course was advertised as mostly flat.

Let's just say I have a slightly different opinion of that description now!

There was a decent downhill start, followed by some gradual climbing, a section through the cobbled streets with constantly changing surfaces, a turnaround, and then the final climb back towards the Octagon. That last section certainly felt considerably longer than it looked on the map!

I made one of the classic mile mistakes and went out too hard.

The downhill start was fast and I found myself sitting in fourth place. I knew it was quick, but didn't think it was ridiculously quick. When I glanced at my watch and saw a pace of 2:50/km, I backed off — but clearly not enough, and not early enough.

The first 400m was around 1:10, and I was still producing plenty of power into the second 400m. I managed to hold things together reasonably well through the middle of the race, despite the changing surfaces and the wind, but by the time I reached the final 400m the early enthusiasm had well and truly come back to haunt me.

That final climb into the Octagon was a killer!

The legs were getting shorter, the ground contact time was getting longer, the power was dropping, and I was very definitely looking forward to seeing that finish line.

I eventually crossed in 5:32, finishing 6th overall and, more importantly, taking Silver in the M45–49 age group.

So, was it my best-executed race? No. Was I disappointed? Not at all. I had a fantastic day in Dunedin, enjoyed the atmosphere, caught up with friends, came away with a medal and, most importantly, learned a lot.

The biggest lesson was pretty simple: you can't bank time in the first 400m of a mile and expect it to be free later.

I run using a power-pod, my average power for the race was around 441 watts, actually higher than my St Pauls Street Mile, but the distribution was very different. I spent too much of that effort early, and when the course got harder towards the finish, I didn't have enough left to respond. That's something I'll take into future races.

Looking back, the season has been a really good one. A 5km PB of 18:31, a mile PB of 5:25, a Masters silver medal in Dunedin, and plenty of good training and racing along the way.

I also think I've learned something about racing without putting unnecessary pressure on myself. The St Pauls race was probably my best example of that. I took the pressure off, raced the course in front of me and ended up with a PB.

The George Street race reminded me that being fitter doesn't necessarily mean you need to go faster from the gun!

Now the focus starts to change.

After spending much of this season developing my 5km and mile fitness, I'm looking forward to getting stuck back into the track and putting more emphasis on the 200m and 400m. I've got a good aerobic base behind me now, and it will be interesting to see what I can do with some more specific speed and speed-endurance work.

Next winter I'll also move up into the M50–54 age group, which brings a slightly different set of opportunities and challenges, including a shorter age-group XC distance, hopefully a fast 5km at Kartsport early in the season, the NZ 10km Championships in Invercargill, and maybe another NZ Road Mile in Dunedin if the event returns.

But for now, I'm pretty happy with how this season has gone.

A couple of PBs, a medal, some great races, a few setbacks, plenty learned — and, most importantly, a lot of fun along the way.

Bring on the next one!

Thanks everyone.

Ian Densie