With Aaron’s training currently focused on the big picture training towards the Gold Coast Half Marathon in July, a challenge looms in the form of new Kenyan runner Kip Kemei. Kemei is fresh from a win at the Rotorua Half Marathon “I ran with him a few weeks ago up in Thames Hills and he’s a really good athlete so Huntly should be a really good race.” With similar personal best times, and Kemei also looking for a third win (after taking out both Rotorua and Wellington Round the Bays) the scene is set for a Waikato vs Kenya battle.

The Waikato region will be backing Pulford when he steps out at this month’s event “I really enjoy the Huntly Half course, it’s not a boring run like some courses, also, because I’m a local Waikato athlete I get some good support from spectators which is really great.”

So the good news  this week, is that I’ve managed to sought that out before my foot snapped off.  After another consultation with a podiatrist and performing some quality you tube viewing, I have discovered the joy of ‘taping’ to assist with injury support.  Here is a link demonstrating a simple and quick way to tape your lower leg to increase support and take the strain off the gastrocnemius, which is where the calf muscle and Achilles tendon connect.

Once again I would highly recommend consulting a sporting professional before embarking on any medical DIY. But once you have an understanding of what needs doing there are some amazing resources available on YouTube.

This simple method has worked wonders for my leg and I am now running pain  free and  have  managed to complete a 13, 15, and 17km run in the past week. If any one is keen Christopher Paki and I are going to have ago next weekend at running the 21k course through Huntly, so we know what to expect come race day.  Note to self: “ Tell Chris that I’ve volunteered him for a half marathon next Sunday”

Quote of the week: Pete Dawson (yelling triumphantly as we approach the end of our 17 km run): “IT’S THE LAST HILL CHRIS, IT’S THE LAST HILL!”

Christopher Paki: “…um actually we still have one more hill to go Pete”

Pete Dawson…..oh?….(still yelling triumphantly) IT’S THE SECOND TO LAST HILL CHRIS, IT’S THE SECOND TO LAST HILL!

Paki pre jog stretch

“Into the trees…” ( that’s a Cure reference which will be lost on any one born post ’78)

Thanks to four ladies with the  motivating horn tooting  Bless you and your  dinged  90′s sedan!

Are we there yet?

Chris, bridging the divide

Talented Archaeologist and all round good guy Warren G on his way to unearth an ancient civilisation on the outskirts of Dinsdale.

Poor cafe punter not appreciative of a sweaty jogger pointing  a camera in his face when he was trying to drink a double shot macchiato and eat a ham bun.

“Mr Bau Mau Shaboo” approving of my mizuno. ….”Get out of it you furry beast”

Check out that quality taping job . See this link for tips http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsUznz4Itv0&feature=related

Whoa check out that   blister! Its almost the size of 2 of the  those elusive Countdown super market stamps (only 2700 to go before I get a teaspoon!)

On my podiatrist’s advice I’ve included cycling and aqua jogging into my training regime , with the latter being quite novel. The benefits of aqua jogging are many fold. You get to partake in a vigorous cardiovascular activity while sustaining zero impact on your body. As well as giving you the opportunity to wear your speedo’s.

25 days to go!

Quote of the day: Christopher Paki “ I don’t like to use the term budgie smugglers I prefer to use the term ostrich smugglers”.  Touché my man!

Photo quote:  “Pete can you stop making up quotes from me and putting less than flattering photos of me in your blog” Touché my man!

Thanks also to Sarah for the, tapping  your feet to relieve the pain of shin splints, advice.

But if you fancy DIY, www.runnersworld.com is a good website with a fantastic selection of training videos for running.

If anyone has any magical cures for coping with the stress of running let me know.

Low light of the week: Having a double gammy leg.

Highlight of the week. Discovering I have a doppelganger who is a professional golfer. It turns out I’m the splitting image of Gerry Lester “Bubba” Watson, Jr. who recently won the 2012 masters tournament. Who would of thought?

Sunrises: the bonus of the early morning run

Bless the Germans and their precision engineering. Here is a random pic of sweet VW combi that I jogged past on Vercoe Rd.

“Is that Pete Dawson or the other guy”?

Ah Autumnal leaves

A random jogger blitzing past me on Waiere Dr

Bubba? is that you?

“Which way’s up?”

That’s Chris either stretching or about to be frisked by the police. I can’t remember which

*There actually was no harrowing experience on Harrowfield Dr but the two rhyme so damn well.

Ah progress is a fine thing. Since my last blog I have managed two OK  runs. Kicking off, as planned, in Sunny Nawton at the corner of Kentucky Cres and Grange Ave. I’ve been using an app called www.gmap-pedometer.com to plot our  suburban courses. This is an awesome application and I suggest checking it out. Not only does it allow you to plot a precise course down to the meter but you can also calculate the amount of calories burnt, whilst it reads your fortune.

Sunday 1^st April

The Nawton run went fairly well. We were able to traverse the cobbled streets of this bustling suburb in an 1 hour 32 minutes. Which was quite a mile stone as the last (and only) time I have ran 10km was at the Huntly half last year

My old nemesis the’ leg cramp’ stopped by to torment me briefly. I put this down to misjudging the topography (as it turns out Nawton is particularly hilly) and a worn pair of Adidas sneakers

I thought there was a special significance to kicking  off the days fitness regime at the corner of Kentucky. But the Col. Sanders reference was a bit too abstract for most

Scything through Nawton

The slick Marketing hoarding outside a dairy on Sunshine Ave offering a $2 Pie n Drink Combo. We were not enticed and jogged by… (we did, however, stop by on the way home but only purchased a 50c mix)

Ginger beer and fresh lime: the ultimate post race refreshment

Tuesday 3^rd April

Having invested $130 in a new pair of running shoes we decided to traverse another of Hamilton’s Northern ‘burbs: Rototuna.

Actually I can’t emphasize enough, how important a good pair of shoes is when you running. After feeling the pain  I made the sound move of buying a new pair of runners which proved to be a fantastic investment (unlike my equiticorp shares back in ’87).  Not only did it  increase the comfort level it also shaved minutes off my time  enabling me to complete 10ks in 1 hour 11 minutes. Roll on Easter

Double chin be gone!

Chris charging up Harrowfield Dr as the Day breaks (unphased by the “no through traffic sign”)

Crossroads

Training Tip of the week: Shoe Storage

The best way to store your shoes is in a  fridge set to  a medium temperature. This does not  actually serve a purpose from a shoe preservation/maintenance perspective but it is an awesome way to wind up the people you live with. See the comments below

Hey is there any Mizunos left over?……

Tracey: Why are you putting your shoes in the fridge?

Dawson’s Run: “Why are you not putting your shoes in the fridge” is more of a relevant question

Kathleen: Can you stop putting your shoes in the f**king fridge?

Dawson’s Run: I know you are but what am I?

Troy: Did you get the cat any food?

Dawsons Run: Yeah I got some of those meaty things she likes and some biscuits for her mid afternoon snacks

Troy: Did you get her the chicken and fish flavoured biscuits?

Dawsons Run: No I got her the Moroccan  lamb instead the other ones seem to give the little tiger wind.

Troy: Oh righto

So that last one is unrelated but you  get the general jist of the novelty of shoe in fridge.

Quote of the week award: Chris Paki “ …How about that, Cate Rd becomes Wentwoth Dr” ( conversation was a bit lean at 5:30 am)

Good Bastard of the year award: Chris Paki for giving me a Smiths Sport shoes voucher for my birthday. Cheers Chris, the new runners are cracker!

But Ive never been a student of stats so I’m not too phased. The scenery of this riverside run is spectacular and chance to run with bunch of good folk is awesome. The hills are bit more up and down than the lake making it more suitable for your intermediate runner, or the overly confident beginner runner.

According to our friend James, the best thing about the Tuesday night run at the Eastisde is the ‘vibe.’ “It’s like a “marathon-ette” he professes.  Thanks for that Jim.

Unfortunately that was the last of  the runs for this summer but keep an eye on Hamilton City Hawks’ website www.hamiltoncityhawks.co.nz as they a organise events throughout the year including a free 5K fun run and open Day this Sunday March 31st

‘Guys the best thing about this run is the “vibe” it’s like a marathon-ette’. Thanks Jim

Talented musician Nick Pheisst talking to talented musician Shane Dudfield about his recent sojourn to a DJ convention in Las Vegas. Well done Nick on releasing Mix Emergency 2.0

Wrong way Shane!

Oh the pain….but check out those trendy town houses

With the exception of the occasional low flying world war two fighter the run river run is quite tranquil

That’s an isotonic!

It’s a dogs life: Ziggy the pooooch looking on as the runners go by

Here is us at the lake last Sunday. Our buddy James (on the left) is a running guru and is faster than the proverbial snake up a drain pipe. Check out the next two pics where he departs, mid run, to use the toilet and is absent for 10 to 15 minutes and just when we are about to call search and rescue he miraculously reappears right behind us. Rumour has it, at last years Huntly Half he took a detour half way through the race to change shoes, managed to complete a tax return and make marmalade before returning to finish 8^th

Off for a pit stop

3, 2, 1 he is back

Unbeknownst to most, Chris actually likes to run and Sing Elvis Presly songs. “How I wish that there more than the 24 hours in the Day….”

… Viva, Viva Roto- Vegas!”

The actual Dawson’s Run

Whoa 9 minutes quicker you say!

Training tip of the week:

I find running the same circuit day in/day out can get a bit drab, so to mix things up a bit. I have chosen a different segment of Hamilton suburbia to toddle around each week. This will not only cure the boredom, as I jog through unfamiliar surrounds, but it will also gives me a new appreciation for our fair river side city. As I live in Beerescourt (which is actually pronounced Beers-court). I decided to do a 50 minute run north up Sandwich Rd (mmmm sandwich) before cutting west along Mahana and heading back home south down Te Rapa straight.
Quote of the day is courtesy of a woman leaning on a green fence on Mahana Rd who yelled ”buddy you are too white to be running in this sun I hope you are wearing sunscreen” Touche! She actually makes quite a good point as New Zealand has some of the harshest sun in the world so make sure you apply SPF2500 before heading out. Next week I will traverse the sunny streets of Nawton. I hope to see you there.

The highlight of the week: Getting the cast off my wrist and seeing some tangible progress in my fitness.

Going…

going…

…gone!

The low light of the week: Adding time to my Eastside run and just about getting killed by a bus driver who is not familiar with the new give way rules. (Remember the saying is Top of the’T’ goes before me” not “you are at the bottom of the ‘Y’ so whoops you’re going to die”).

A keen runner Caleb decided to enter the record books the only way he knew how “I could never set a world record running in normal clothes – all the normal running world records are far too quick for me.” Caleb joins a competitive field up against Hamilton City Hawks’ speedster Aaron Pulford who is returning to the Huntly Half Marathon to make it a possible three wins in a row.

The 32nd Solid Energy Huntly Half Marathon is a 21.5k running event taking place in Huntly on Sunday 20th May. The event has a prize pool of $15,000 and decorated titles for the winners of the four event taking place on the day including the 2XU 10k, 10k Relay (5kx5k) and Kids 2k events. All events are open to walkers as well as runners.

“This year’s record attempt will be my third Huntly Half, I had a terrible run in 2010 running 2 hours 10min then I ran 1 hour 31min last year” he explains. Caleb runs with the Hamilton City Hawks running club and the noted enthusiast has the club’s logo tattooed on his arm. Caleb adds he is no stranger when it comes to entertaining himself while he runs “I have raced with my son on quite a few occasions pushing him in the stroller, including winning two races with him.”

We wish Caleb, Aaron and all entrants the best of luck in the upcoming event. Entries are currently open so go ahead and register!

Also I have decided to take by trusty digital camera with me on my fitness excursions to document my progress and prove to the folks back home I’m not writing fiction.

Here’s me about 15 minutes into the first lap of the lake. I’m looking quietly confident (don’t be fooled by my pensive look.)

I’m starting to gasp by now (about 16 minutes into the first lap of the lake). Note the blue cast on my wrist which will be with me for another week as I recover from a dislocated thumb. The cast is proving to be a mild burden for a variety of reasons and seems to increase with weight with each step I take. Meanwhile Chris takes in the view.

By this stage I’m starting to regret two laps and I’m my old friend ‘the chafe’ has arrived….possibly too much information

Here is both Chris and I being lapped by a girl (not that matters of course!)

The old reverse shot over the head. Note Chis looking casual as i slowly turn red …mind you I am in front!

Feeling like my lungs have tendered their resignation and left for a more tranquil climate, I manage to complete two laps (7.44kms) in 54 minutes and I’m quite impressed with my effort. Chris was a bit quicker…I can’t remember the time…. sorry Chris!

Do you want to make something of it Mr?!

So with that milestone completed its time to step up my training regime. Check out next entry in Dawson’s Run where i chance my arm (the one not in a cast) at the Eastside 5kms run organized by Hamilton’s running club, the Hamilton Hawks.

This is a weekly event which has been running over summer and next Tuesday (27 March) is the final run of the season. I would highly recommend having a go as it is a chance to test your mettle against a sum of Hamilton’s finest runners and all round good guys. For the princely sum of $6 you get a pint and a chance to win some great spot prizes and an official timing which is a great way to monitor your training progress. The run gets under way at 6:00 pm at the Eastside Tavern on Grey St.

Self doubt aside, I’m actually looking forward to the Half Marathon as I’ve always been a nostalgic fan of Huntly. I learned to jump a BMX on Rosser Street in the late 80′s with my mate Ben Thomas and a fair amount of my knee skin is engrained in her sidewalks, giving me a special affinity with this sleepy mining town. Speaking of mates, I’m just about to depart for my first official training run (two laps of Hamilton lake… hopefully) with Chris Paki and Shane Dudfield, my good friends and jogging comrades, who will be participating with me in the  Huntly Half this year. I will let you know how we get on.