Salomon: Nick Sharp

Lifeblog post

nicksharp — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 18:14:02 GMT

Out on holiday touring the alps and dolomites. Completed two races so far - 6000d in la plagne and camignada in auronzo. Very tired but hoping to do sierre zinal at the weekend.

Sore legs

nicksharp — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 13:20:39 GMT

Raced at the weekend at Skiddaw, Keswick. Very hard race - a fast 5 miles descent which has left me with extremely achy legs...I've had to take the last two days off!

Will take it easy through the week with plenty of cycling.

My summer holiday starts in just over a week - 6 weeks off!!! Looking forward to racing abroad.

Weekend approaching

nicksharp — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 16:00:30 GMT

As a teacher I find this time of year very tiring - the closer to the end of term we get the busier everything seems to become. Looking forward to the weekend although the forecast is for wet and windy weather...

Going to do Skiddaw Fell race. This race is often used for selection either for the Europeans or World trophy. A long steady climb up for 5 miles and an eye balls out descent. The legs are generally extremely sore afterwards!

Will also try and fit in some longer miles...it never ends.

Mid week race

nicksharp — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 10:46:29 GMT

Just completed a short 5 mile (flat) mid week race - 20 Barriers Challenge. Ran it on tired legs (lots of fast miles at the weekend).

Felt better than I did at the weekend but still not right...will try racing again at the weekend in Keswick.

I'm trying to substitute mid week races for speedwork at the moment to try and find some kind of race fitness.

Still putting in the miles for La Plagne (end of July)....

Bad race

nicksharp — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:01:24 GMT

Well we all have them...and this weekends race was no exception! It was the short 'British Championship' race at Blackstone Edge, Lancashire. I didn't feel good before the race, during the race was no better, and after the race was worse!

You have to put it behind you...remind yourself that you're not that unfit and look forward to the next race.

Shoes

nicksharp — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 11:31:11 GMT

I've been racing in the original Salomon Speedcross and I really like them. However, this morning I tried a pair of the Salomon Speedcross 2 for the first time...what a lovely shoe! Very comfortable, stable, snug fitting and good grip - it seems to be a great shoe.

I'll be racing in the shoe this weekend - the first real test!

Race results

nicksharp — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 13:36:26 GMT

Raced at the weekend at Ennerdale (in the Lake District). Managed joint 1st place - good to get some long miles into the legs. Should be good preparation for La Plagne in the summer.

Looking forward to some short midweek races - always good for the speed!

Long race

nicksharp — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 17:05:42 GMT

The longer European races are coming up soon and it's time to get some miles in. I've planned to do the Ennerdale Horseshoe race this weekend. This is one of the 'classic' long lakeland races (along with Wasdale, Borrowdale and Duddon). 23 miles and with 7500' of ascent it should provide a good long workout!!

Results and details to follow...

Hard race

nicksharp — Mon, 12 May 2008 16:12:42 GMT

Raced at the weekend - Buttermere Sailbeck. Only 9m but with 3800ft of ascent it's a tough little race.

Didn't feel great. A bit tired - possibly too many hard sessions during the week. Now looking towards the 2nd British Champs race this Saturday.

Feedback

nicksharp — Fri, 09 May 2008 15:48:05 GMT

Track session went well - in the end decided to do 16 x 400m reps @ 74s per rep with 100m recovery.

Not the most thrilling session but...

Thinking of racing at the weekend in Keswick. It's probably too long a race before Moel Elio (the next British championship race the following weekend) but you have to enjoy yourself once in a while!!!

Track sessions

nicksharp — Thu, 08 May 2008 14:26:09 GMT

Heading down to the track tonight - don't really enjoy the speedwork sessions but the are essential.
Target: Pyramid session

2 x 200m
2 x 400m
2 x 800m
2 x 1200m
2 x 800m
2 x 400m
2 x 200m

The are paired up because I try to run the 2nd rep faster than the 1st.

Speed sessions

nicksharp — Wed, 07 May 2008 13:59:01 GMT

With the racing season well under way it's time to focus on quality...not quantity.

I competed in a 10km road race at the weekend. These short races are fantastic for improving speed - especially for us slower mountain runners!

I would advise at least 1 short road race a month during the racing season - great for sharpness!

Injury

nicksharp — Wed, 07 May 2008 13:55:52 GMT

Just a quick update on the injury - it seems to have fully cleared up! The physio in the end diagnosed a back problem (even though I felt no pain in my back what-so-ever).

The physio gave me a really great selection of back exercises and they really helped.

Don't always assume the part that hurts is the part that is causing the pain!

World Long distance Mountain race

nicksharp — Wed, 07 May 2008 13:53:22 GMT

Oops...

Entered the 3 Peaks Race (World Long Distance Mountain running championships) a couple of weeks ago. I thought the start time was 11am - I turned up at 10am to find 900 runners all leaving the start!!! I very (very) quickly got my kit together, put on my racing shoes and dashed down to the start to register. Finally I set off, now some way behind the runners. The biggest pain was trying to get past all of the slower runners - I had to apologise many times!

The race was 24 miles so I had plenty of time to catch up. In the end I managed to get myself back up to 15 place - who knows where I would have finished if I started with everyone else.

Top Tip...Always, always check race details - you never know...

Recovery

nicksharp — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 11:21:16 GMT

Recovering from injury well, physio sessions were very beneficial. Still cycling and running (with a bit of swimming) to ensure the injury does not come back!

Looking forward to the 3 Peaks Race next weekend - should be an excellent turnout with a number of international runners. I'll spend this weekend looking at the course.