This week it has rained since Wednesday afternoon and earlier this week it looked like it was going to rain Saturday. I hoped that that would change.
When I checked Friday it looked like it would not rain today.
Decided that I would run my run from Christinehof to Kivik and if it would start raining I had to take a decision if I would cut the distance or not. Depending on the rain of course, if the temperature is high enough rain can cool me down in a positive way.
Also was not sure how those hilly intervals would affect my run
Temperature at start: 15oC (59F).
On the car ride to Christinehof it rained and I really really hoped it wouldn’t rain when I started and I was lucky.
So glad I brought my longsleeve which was on til I almost was at Haväng. It was cloudy most of the run but near Haväng the sun finally came out.
I thought it was raining from time to time but the creeks fooled me, their noise made me believe it was raining 🙂
Oops here a tree had fallen down on the path so I had to take an alternative way
Near Hallamölla, when I had run 5K, I felt the tiredness in my right calf so I had to walk from time to time during the run because of this tired calf, one more day rest would have been the best but it is good to run on tired legs since on the second lap on the race in November I will have tired legs.
It showed cleary today that it had been raining during the week, it was gooey and some puddles.
When I was on my way to the footpath there were a lot of horses that came running and when one of them saw me and came forward
The footpath was a bit gooey today
I was wondering if the heather would still be as beautiful as last time
That part still amazes me, I also saw a bird of prey
Then it was time to head back on the orange again, I was not sure if the horses would be back or not but they were and I also had to pass some cows, thought it would be good to walk slowly til I had gotten a good distance between them and me til I started running again
Then it was time to get out on the yellow marker to Haväng. On the yellow I had the pleasure of bond with these too curious foal
They almost attached my ultra backpack, it was hard getting away from them, when I started to walk to the stone wall the grey foal followed me 🙂
Nice to get to Haväng and see the ocean
On my way to Vitemölle it looked like it was raining close to Kivik and then it started to rain but great thing today was that I ran the whole beach path without walking, that was a major thing.
Also when I got on the side of the car road I ran a longer part, with tired legs and altra lonepeak trail shoes asphalt is not so funny
Had to take the mandatory swim in the ocean afterwards even if it was raining and the temperature was around 13oC (55.4F)
Then it was lunch at a new interesting place
Distance: 29.34K, time: 4.16.16 h (improvement with 4 minutes from last time), average heart rate: 133, average pace: 8.44 min/k, max pace: 5.13 min/k, cadence: 150, VO2 Max: 27 ml/kg/min
After two trail runs from Christinehof to Haväng it was time for a run on Kullaberg for the first time after the race last year in November.
This year I have decided to run the ”Double Death”, two laps, have run the ”Death Zone” which has been one lap. This year two laps will be an ultra, it will be at least 44K.
The original plan was to take the train from where I live 7.58 am to Helsingborg and then bus to Mölle, I would gotten up to Mölle 9.58 am, long ride but yesterday Fredrik from CKR informed on FB that he would drive and asked if anyone else wanted to join and we would leave the same time as the train but would get up earlier. So I was interested. Amanda also wanted to join us with her dog Irma. We three ran up there in October last year. Then Fredrik would leave later so then Amanda, Irma and I left 7.45 am this morning from my home.
Nice with company and I talked with Amanda about our run, last year Irma, the dog, was with us and when we came to Håkull she just froze, I am not moving one more mm, Håkull is no game for humans, loose soil, steep, you are basically crawling up trying to hold on to something.
It was suppose to rain after lunch but the first thing that happened when we stepped out of the car and got ready, I asked Amanda if we should try to find a place to get under and wait out the rain but then it stopped after a short time.
There are some hills that I have to mentally decide to run up, they are not short but today I walked up on some hills that I should be able to run up later, will be more hilly training this Fall.
Good that I can follow the route because the race follows the orange marker but then turn down in the woods and when I am training it is easy to run down to soon so it is better to stop sometimes to get down at the correct place, when the race is, it is wellmarked.
After a while you come down to the coast and have a very rocky part, it is just stone stone and loose stone and today it was very slippery, Irma, the dog was struggling.
When we got to Nimis we got confused, it must have had something, Nimis was burnt but it also seemed that the environment has changed, got too far to the left where Irma had a tough time but we find the right way later.
When I was going to run down to Håkull, Amanda and Irma would take another route since Irma would refuse to move up and I understand her fully. We said goodbye.
I continuned down to Håkull and had my worst fall ever, slipped on a stone, fell on my butt, hit my left elbow and right hand, swore but got up and was a bit crippled.
Håkull was tough today, wet, slippery and I could not use my right hand and had to depend on my left, you need to move up and try to grip something with your hands to not fall down and when it is slippery it is tougher. I finally made it up the first part and then you have to find a narrow path moving up the second part where the best thing is to walk up a bit and check if I am follow the path and adjust. Was on the right track but still got into the juniper part, got a bit off track but find where I would continue.
The worst part of this race is the rocky part which can be very slippery in November, up after Nimis and around Håkull, that can change every year but is very steep.
Got off track a couple of times.
When I was on my way to the lighthouse I passed Fredrik and Maria and said hi.
After the lighthouse there is a steep part you have to get down, not good being crippled, needed to use my right hand but could only use my left hand so I had to take it very easy.
Then you start to see Mölle, it is 4k left after the lighthouse and not so advanced.
Started with long sleeve, it got off because I had a hard time breathing and after the lighthouse I ran in my sportsbra to get more air.
Then I finally made it, Wille drove me to the beach so I could take a swim.
After the swim we shared a shrimp sandwich before we drove home
Distance: 21.21K, time: ,4.47.38.8 h, average heart beat: 137, average pace: 13.33 min/k, max pace: 5.26 min/k, cadence: 142, VO2 Max: 26 ml/kg/min
Sunday last week when I checked the trains to Tjörnarp I realized that, due to train rails work, the first bus (was replacing the trains) was going to come to Tjörnarp at 8.07 am and the race would start at 8.30 but then there was a saviour, Maria, who was in the same car as me to Dödens Zon Nov 5th, who would drive and asked if I wanted a ride. And of course I wanted to have a ride.
So I woke up 5 am to eat breakfast, fix the last things and then Maria would pick me up at 7 am and then we were picking up Fredrik, who I ran with at Kullen before Dödens Zon in November.
Friday evening it started to rain and it rained during the night. I really hoped it would stop before the race. The goal to finish with 7h could be a problem but I would do my best.
We got to the school and changed and had a chance to talk to some other runners, Malin showed up, she and I ran on the 6h treadmill battle, and we talked with her.
From the beginning I had compression tights, long sleeve, fleece and windstopper, gloves and hat.
Time to walk to the start where we were going to fetch our GPS tracker (read more about it at Live tracker)
I had heard that around 152 runners would run Tjörnarparen – 50K or 100K
The raining stopped, thank gosh. I do not like to run in the rain for a whole day and get smakintryck wet.
In the beginning it was a bit cloggy and some places and when I tried to get my windstopper off (had problems with my breating) one of my salomon soft flasks fell to the ground so I decided to stop and get off the windstopper, then I got some space, which I like.
When I got to the loop I had caught up with a girl who I passed and noticed that Lars had changed part of the loop, now we didn’t run up in the forest but stayed down on the right side and when I got out from the loop I saw this magnificent view
At around 9K it was very wet but I managed to not get any wet feet and then at 11K I got to the first fuel station where I got a hug from Petra.
Continued my running. When I got to Frostavallen there were some dog walkers and two guys who were fishing.
I also fell flat faced on the ground.
At around 22K is the second fuel station where you can eat cheese and coffee but even if I love cheese I do not date eating it to avoid getting an upset stomach and just passed the fuel station, took a walk and ran and then I turn to the right on a dirt roads with smaller stones, there are some uphill parts where I walked. Started to get tired legs. It was very gooey, slippery and wet part of the route.
When I got on the blue marker and you get down to Dagtorpssjön the blue marker has followed the lake on the right but then last year when it rained most of the Fall they redirected the blue marker (was black earlier) I couldn’t see any yellow stripes and took the route to the right but when I have been running for a while, other runners showed up at the left.
Then I heard a runner behind me who turned out to be Maria (who drove the car), she had been out on a longer detour, she was a head of me, we talked for a while but then I had to start walking again and she continued running.
After a while we turn to the right, walk over a fence and then there is a longer footbridge that might be very slippery, it was just fine this time but another interesting person was in front of me, since last year a guy is running this race barefoot in sandals. I finally got up to him and passed him close to the third fuel station where 3 of the Hektor family was and we talked and I ate salt cucumber for the first time (turned out to be a big mistake later). Here last year I was on my way to throw in the towel but Ola Örnberg lended his knee pad to me but threw in the towel 3K later.
This time I continued and finally got to the toughest hill on this race, Djuralidsbacken, very steep and wet, you have to walk sideways part of the hill and then you have another steep shorter hill close after that but the worst is over.
It got a bit more windier so I put the windstopper back on
15K left. First I had very tired calves and then some pain in the right knee that disappeared and then I got issues with my left knee that forced me to walk from time to time. I could still walk and didn’t have any severe knee pain during my walks. Maria showed up again behind me, had another detour. I got to the fourh fuel station and got a hug from Petra again and Conny another runner was there, I asked him about his running, he ran into knee issues last year and take small small steps getting back running longer and longer.
I found out that 3 runners were behind me.
It was a bit groovy passing the 100K ultra runners who had headed out on their second lap. I cheered them on and they pepped me that it was not so far now from the finish line. I was glad that I didn’t run 100K.
When I had 6K left it started to get a bit darker so I put on my headlight and when I got to the tricket (snårskogen) I walked because it is a more technical part where I didn’t want to fall and injure myself. Realized that the batteries was a bit weak so when it was 3K left, I stopped and changed to new batteries. Put the hat back on, which also got off when I got a bit warm on my head. The headlight is sitting better on over a hat then directly on my head. Great to have better light but walked on the more technical parts. Ran on the dirt roads and walked in the forest parts and then I got to the clear-cut and the finish line is getting closer. Now my left knee was bothering me, I could not run on it and decided to rest so I could run on the last part before the finish line. Then it is only 1.5K left, what a great feeling. Saw the finish long sleeve shirt in front of me, did not vare about the gooey parts anymore, didn’t try to avoid them anymore.
And then I saw the train trek, up the stairs and ran to the finish line and over it. Oh my gosh what a relief.
It was tough this year, worse time than the first year but I am really satisfied I didn’t have to throw in the towel. Got my goodie bag and went to the school to change and then head back to get the good ”fika” before it was time to head home
Here are Maria, me and Malin who had fika together, before Maria and I headed home, Malin was staying to wait for Henrik who was running 100K
Distance: 51.37K, time: 8.13.07.7h, average heart rate: 137, average pace: 9.31 min/k, max pace: 5.51 min/k, cadence: 152, V02 Max: 30 ml/kg/min
The trail shoes were a bit dirty after Dödens Zon in November but after this race they looke like this
