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Reports on Brian
Waldie's latest races - Italian Season 2006 |
RAMPA Cima Paganella
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2,000 metres continuous climb over 12 Km to Paganella, a peak overlooking
Trento. Another new race in the calendar and the last of the season. Enough climb for a Sky Race but starts too low at 200 m. Caught near the back of the 156 strong field due to the start being 2 minutes early so again a scramble past sticks on the first and steepest part up a narrow zig- zag path. Then a great ding -dong with the tall guy in the photo who used a fast walking technique most of the way. Finally dropped him on the last steep part when the top ski station appeared out of the clouds. Nods as we passed and re-passed each other but never a word spoken, then found at the finish that he’d spent 3 years at Stephenson learning English!. Sunday breakfast of croissants and tea in the clouds then jog down the ski slopes in the sun to a great meal with a full screen video of the actual race. I could get used to this type of hill running !. Time 1:50:40. for 78th place, exactly halfway . First over 60. The winner, Antonio Molinari in 1:19 , was 4th at the World Champs at Holyrood and won the next year at Telfs. He now has a sports shop and was showing the full range of Innov shoes and promoting snow shoe racing for those who don’t find hill running hard enough. |
| Verona Marathon
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After Paganella I said to Linda it was a pity
there weren’t any
more races as I seemed to be getting back to some form. The response, somewhat
sarcastic, was why not do a marathon. Fortunately I could say there weren’t
any at this time of year. Unfortunately I mentioned this to an Italian
friend the next week who reckoned there was a .whole series in Italy through
to mid December. He insisted on scanning the web to prove it . The nearest
was in Verona in two days time. Not wanting to travel further nor to face
two weeks of road training before the following one near Bologna I bit
the bullet and got in a late entry to Verona. A three hour drive on the morning to the start at the Roman Arena in the mist. First 6 Km round the historic sites of Verona before heading out NW to the Valpolicello wine area and sunshine . Feeling reasonable till 16 Km then the inevitable effects of no road training set in. Reached halfway in 1;40 then took nearly 2 hrs to get back, the last 8 Km along the picturesque river bank being agony. Stumbled over the historic brick bridge back into the city and finished in 3:39:40, a PW but better than targetof 3:45. Surprised to find later that I was 1st over 65 by 6 minutes. Sitting against the Arena wall mopping up the sun and the copious refreshments I recalled having to leave early from a show in the Arena in July due to the pain in my glute. Never would have believed then that I could do a marathon 3 months later whatever the time. Won by a local in 2:14, for once in front of a string of Kenyans. |
| Riva di Garda Half Marathon | In entering this classic I somehow managed to suppress the agonies of
the Verona marathon on the grounds that it should have served as good road
training. Started in Arco, a famous rock climbing centre, and finished in Riva, the last 5 Km being along the side of Lake Garda. Beautiful sunny autumn morning and a fairly flat twisty course on minor roads and cycle tracks. Felt at times that I was actually racing ,especially in the last 5 Km, rather than just trying to survive as in the marathon. Time 1:32:59 for 715th out of 2,490. Won by an Ethiopian in 1:04 despite him stopping for a “pi pi”. First over 65, the prize included wine, a 1Kg Modena stuffed pigs trotter and a set of four snow tyres for a car! |