Lunch spin

Feeling better in my right calf, though not ready to go running just yet, I took Stålhästen out for a ride in the sunshine. Following one of Strava’s suggested routes, I got to ride along beautiful Landvettersjön for a few kilometres before taking on a wild climb up to Kåsjön, making me wish for a bike with gears. Yet, Stålhästen surely has a charm of its own and, as I got closer to Furulund, the Gotaleden signs put a big smile on my face.

Despite a busy autumn schedule, I hope to go for a few more rides with Stålhästen in the coming months. Unfortunately, I have had to put my long-time dream of riding to Halmstad on hold as I cannot really risk coming late to work, and so many things can potentially go wrong over those 130+ kilometres. However, an autumn Gran Fondo on a Saturday or a Sunday may perhaps still be within reach.

After working a couple of hours in the afternoon while Anna had a beer with her childhood friend Anki (the one who had the loveliest winter wedding last December), I made another chanterelle toast on the veranda thinking that, in less than 36 hours, I will be on a commuter train and that I better make the most of these last moments of freedom. According to Strava, I have done 51 hours of exercise in August (down from a whopping 66 hours in July). Given all the commuting I have coming up, I think I shall be happy if I even manage to rack up 30 hours in September.

Last breakfast

With August coming to an end, I got to eat one last breakfast at Grand Fitness today before my free trial membership ends and I no longer have access. As expected, the additional value over my regular Nordic Wellness membership has been fairly marginal and I have thus decided to stick with my previous gym plan, as much as I happen to like free smoothies ;-)

Given my calf injury, I otherwise limited my gym activities to one hour on the elliptical followed by some strength training. As I was done training, Språkskolan in Umeå called to tell me that, after half a decade of waiting, there was finally space for the kids to start next semester. Considering that we now live in Gothenburg, I could only thank them and ask them to have the kids removed from the list, but not without feeling quite a bit of nostalgia, just as I did when seeing that next Saturday, the 10k-race Umemilen is coming up, a race that I did twice when living in Umeå with my best time being 44 minutes and 24 seconds in 2019. So, for all those racing, good luck!

Sayur

Today, I had lunch with my colleague Tomas at the Indonesian vegetarian restaurant Sayur on Olivedalsgatan. The food immediately brought me back half a decade to the streets of Jakarta so I would give the restaurant a 10 out of 10 for authenticity.

Otherwise, with all running on pause after pulling my calf yesterday, I started the day with 1,000 meters in the pool at Valhallabadet before returning to Powerpoint. While I am coming up with new slides on research methodology, Germany is busy burning yet more coal, with record imports of thermal coal from Colombia now used to replace Russian gas, and the electricity carbon intensity still more than tenfold that of nuclear-powered Sweden. As if the irony of the Energiewende was not enough, the creativity of the anti-nuclear crowd reached a new peak when Arne Kaijser, in a recent article in Svenska Dagbladet, argued that building new nuclear in Sweden may risk causing an “enormous overproduction” of low-carbon electricity and that it would therefore be better to wait 10-15 years until any decisions are made… funny, last time I checked, we had increasingly interconnected Europeans grid and a climate emergency to deal with... 

The Speed Project

When strange relay runs in the French Alps started appearing in my Strava feed, I naturally got curious and, after a bit of research, it appears that I have been missing out on the latest trend in ultra running, namely The Speed Project. Done in teams of six people, originally running the 340 miles from the Santa Monica Pier to the Las Vegas welcome sign, The Speed Project has now expanded to other locations around the world even as the events have remained entirely improvised and unofficial with no road closures etc. Though I have no illusions of being invited, I have to say that the thought of applying is a bit tempting.

This week, Anna is starting her new job at Dalarna University so I am alone with the boys, something that naturally limits how much time I can spend running. Yet, in a daring escape from Powerpoint, I attempted a 12k lunch run only to find myself pulling my right calf about three kilometres into the run. Considering that this is the third time I have done this (last time was in July a year ago), I knew that I had to stop running right there. After all, with only ten days left until Helsingborg Half Marathon, I have to take this quite seriously if I am to be able to race. As such, I jumped on an e-scooter and went for a pseudo-Korean sandwich at The Joint Streetfood, thinking that I will probably limit myself to gym training and swimming for the remainder of this week.

Rituals

Though I am generally more into variation than repetition, for the last few weeks, I have kept my routine of combining my morning run with a swim in Härlanda Tjärn. As the forest is getting darker by the day, I am grateful for having my small Petzl headlamp along even if there are plenty of lights as long as one sticks to the pike paths. In any case, the lamp does make for cooler pictures (as the one above).

After spending all day in front of the computer, I decided to stick to the early autumn theme by making a chanterelle pasta with pancetta and thyme but, for now, I am afraid that it is back to Powerpoint.

Parkrun volunteer

For the second time, I volunteered at Parkrun Skatås this morning, cheering on the 100+ runners of all abilities and ages, and directing them up the hill on the red trail. It is funny how many people who start talking to you when you wear a high-visibility vest, including one British lady who was heading out along Gotaleden for a three-day hike.

Since I was volunteering, I started the morning with 16 km of running on my own just as the sun was rising, stopping only for a quick swim in Härlanda Tjärn and to say hello to a very friendly cat. Having taken three days off with the running this week, I still have some catching up to do so after working a couple of hours, I plan to go for a second run later this afternoon.

Seasalter

After commuting back and forth for two days with high-speed trains, it is finally Friday night. Thanks to this summer’s Mediterraneo magazine and an outstanding Sauvignon Blanc from the Western Cape, I have already forgotten how soaked I got when walking to the station in Halmstad, and instead I am back dreaming of places in the sun.

With exactly 40 days left until departure, and SAS leaving Star Alliance in a week from tomorrow, Anna’s and my autumn award trip to Argentina is hanging by a thin thread in case there are any last-minute schedule changes. But, if all goes according to plan, we will first fly to Istanbul, then across the Atlantic to Bogotá before continuing all the way down to Buenos Aires. With Montevideo being located a short ferry ride across the Rio de la Plata (Taube anyone?), we are of course planning to include the Uruguayan capital as well before returning to Europe on one of Lufthansa’s few remaining 747-8s. All in all, an epic adventure which I really hope I will be able take you all along for here on Rawls & Me.

First commute of the semester

Treadmill Half

With a little more than two weeks left until Helsingborg Half Marathon, I followed the kids to their new school in Krokslätt this morning before stepping on the treadmill at the nearby Nordic Wellness gym. As the rain kept falling outside, I pushed myself as hard as I could with my heart rate climbing up to 170 bpm for 21 full kilometres. Equipped only with a bottle of Vitamin Well Prepare, it was a wild run that left me completely exhausted yet hopeful that I might have a chance of setting a new PR in Helsingborg.

Otherwise, I am mostly spending the day constructing Powerpoint slides on topics such as how to identify research-worthy problems, as well as preparing for the coming two days of kick off activities in Halmstad.

Venice polo

Back in 2019, I picked up a long-sleeved, rugby-styled polo from Magnoli Clothiers in New Zeeland, thought to imitate the one Bond wears in Venice. While I have been dreaming of swinging by Venice and running a trail ultra in the Julian Alps now in September, reality does have its constraints. Yet, as the mornings are starting to get colder, I have found good use of my blue polo, for instance on our family excursion to Styrsö three days ago.

Today, I am about to have lunch with my long-time friend Sofie after some café working in the morning. With the fall semester just around the corner, things remain rather busy, but at least I can look back on a beautiful summer under open skies. Sadly, the Swedish Railways (SJ) just announced that they will discontinue the night train from Gothenburg so, for next summer’s mountain adventures, we will have one less travel option.

Styrsö x 3

Strategy rethink

Yesterday, I sold my registration for Kullamannen 100k in November as well as returned the extra Silva Cross Trail headlamp that I had bought specifically for the race. The main reason behind my decision was that I now have my schedule for November, and that I will be teaching from 8 am to 5 pm on 1 November, meaning that I would have to get up at 4.30 am on race day and then work all day before starting at 10 pm in Höganäs.

After being forced to DNF 66 kilometres into Halland Ultra-Beach (although that was mostly due to the food poisoning), it feels like I have a better appreciation of my limits, and even if I would be able to complete those 103 kilometres between Höganäs and Båstad, I am not sure if it would help me in my long-term development as an ultra runner. Having completed my first 100k race in January this year (and a 94k one in May), I am also less motivated to do it just for the sake of doing it.

Instead, I am thinking of using the autumn for steady aerobic base building, maintaining my 10k-per-day routine while also trying to run fast at least once per week as those faster runs really seem to be paying off, most recently today at Parkrun, where I was able to set a new course PR by running 30 seconds faster than last Saturday,

Harbour Mist

Last year, I ran 932 kilometres in my blue Clifton 8 until they were completely worn out. This year, I have spent a fair amount of time looking for a replacement for those long asphalt runs but with the Clifton 9 selling for 2,000 SEK or more, I have been hesitant. Luckily, I found a pair in the Harbour Mist/Black colourway in size 48 for a fraction of that from a slightly shady German reseller, and today DHL delivered them to Gothenburg.

Taking them out for seven kilometres around town, the midsole cushioning felt thicker and more energetic than in the previous iteration while the shoe seemed much better at handling faster paces, now I only wish the same was true for me as I struggled in the afternoon heat.

Smoke on the water

Jogging up to Härlanda Tjärn shortly before seven, a layer of mist was hovering over the lake. Obviously, I had to jump in for a swim at the far end of the lake where I could be all alone. Compared to the cold morning air, the water was incredibly warm, and it felt like I could stay in forever. Luckily, I did not as I have tons of work to do this week, including planning a course on research design, so I am afraid there will be less blogging than usual.

Personal best

Barely a week after my 66k coastal ultra-adventure, I was able to run faster than ever at the Skatås Parkrun this morning with an official time of 21:51. Feeling strong throughout in my Salomon Pulsar Trail Pro 2, I am hopeful that further improvements may yet be possible, especially if I throw in more speedwork in my training.

Otherwise, I have spent much of the day in front of the computer marking exams but now all grades have been uploaded to Ladok and I have one thing less on my list before the semester starts.

Back to the grind

This week, I am officially back to work after the vacation. Yet, considering that I worked a fair bit during the vacation, I am not feeling that guilty about taking a slow start but today I nevertheless started planning my lectures in September. And tomorrow evening, I will get the first batch of make-up exams to mark.

As for “back to the grind”, I did six kilometres of indoor rowing and then six faster kilometres on the treadmill at NW Örgryte this morning, still feeling disappointed about Sunday's race even as I remain certain that it was the right decision to DNF given the circumstances. However, in an old Runner’s World article, I found that Courtney Dauwalter also battled temporary blindness during the final 12 miles of her 2017 Run Rabbit Run yet still managed to win so, clearly, there are people much tougher than me out there. With my next ultra race being first in November, I will put a bit more emphasis on speed in the coming weeks as I prepare for Helsingborg Half Marathon on 7 September.

Cykelfiket

After falling victim to a bit of a scam at our local Sportson bike shop, this morning restored my faith in humanity in the most Monoclesque way possible as William got his bike fixed at Cykelfiket which is a combined café and bike repair shop at Heden here in Gothenburg. All in all, we ended up paying less than €20 for both the “fika” and the bike.

Running back and forth next to William biking, I then took the other kiddo up to Delsjön for some canoeing, so by lunch time, I felt like I already had my day of activities. Yet, after a Californian omelette with extra everything, the whole family was off to Alingsås to see Ann-Kristin again.

 

Finally resolving my Gotaleden traumas of being lost in Alingsås, Ann-Kristin was the perfect cicerone, starting the tour with ice cream in an Italian Renaissance Revival style building, followed by a longer swim at Playa Mjörn, and a delicious dinner at Cyrano.

Rapid recovery

Considering how miserable I felt when checking in at Scandic Hallandia on Sunday, I have been surprised by how fast I have recovered since. Not only have I slept 10+ hours per night but, when not answering student e-mails or working on my grant application, I have been able to squeeze in a 45-kilometre (!) recovery ride with the kids across town yesterday and a 14-kilometre jog with Anna this morning around Delsjön (which of course featured a swim at Brattklevs Udde).

Apparently, this summer’s mix of rain and sunshine has been very favourable for mushrooms and, as such, COOP has been selling chantarelles much cheaper than usual. When living in Umeå, chantarelle toasts were kind of a symbol that summer was coming to an end but hopefully, down here in Gothenburg, that will not be the case.

Tracking south

With nothing but GPX-files on our watches to guide us, me and about fifty other runners left Olofsbo camping just after midnight to take on the hundred kilometres down to Båstad. After a few kilometres on easy trails, it was time for the first water passage. Heading out on slippery stones with our headlamps, I was super careful not to fall. After being sick all Friday, I knew going in that completing the race would be nearly impossible and I also had quite a bit of stomach pain throughout, still I felt excited and happy for not just ending up as a “DNS” on the race list.

Approaching Falkenberg, the GPX-track took an unexpected turn to the left across the grass and onto an asphalt road which felt strange so I misread it and thought that there would be a trail somewhere in the forest instead, giving me plenty of nettle burns and making my legs all pricked by thorns before I was able to get back up where I should be. Then, a few kilometres later, I suddenly found myself surrounded by the nightlife of Falkenberg which always feels kind of surreal when you seem to be the only one running. Having never been to the city of Falkenberg, I must say that it looked really nice, and I made a mental note to return under different circumstances.

With the only aid station of the race being located at the halfway point in Tylösand, I spent some time trying to replenish my water bottles at Skrea Strand but the promised public showers and toilets were all locked. Luckily, I did find water a few kilometres later at Hansagård Camping. 

When entering Grimsholmen Nature Reserve, I found myself running next to a girl from Nybro called Emma, and it felt good to have company as the second and much longer water passage was coming up. Yet, wading out into the sea to where the water was less deep, we forded the river mouth of Suseån without much difficulty, and then we chatted all the way past Ugglarp and into the dawn along “Steningekusten”, making the kilometres go much faster than they would otherwise have. About 45 kilometres into the run, we were finally among “trolltallarna” in Haverdal Nature Reserve, one of my favourite spots along the coast where I even got to take Anna and the kids back in July. 

With the rain coming and going through the night, with plenty of thunder in the background, the real downpour started only a few hundred meters from the checkpoint in Tylösand, making me completely soaked and grateful for having packed a new merino running shirt and my Salomon Bonatti rain jacket in the drop bag. After a few waffles at the checkpoint, I left in high spirits, talked a bit to Anna on the phone as I walked back onto the beach, feeling excited about the remaining 48 kilometres to Båstad. Yet, deep down, I knew that my body was already beyond exhaustion, and in retrospect it would have been much better had I simply taken my drop bag and returned with the bus to Gothenburg. 

Running the ten kilometres along “Prins Bertils stig” into Halmstad, I gradually began to realize that finishing would just not be possible. With constant cramps in my stomach, and my energy levels critically low, I finally made the difficult but necessary decision to quit the race. Stumbling two hundred meters in ten minutes to the bus stop, I could also feel how cold I was, and with my eyesight almost disappearing once I got on the bus, I realized that I had pushed myself far beyond what is advisable. Getting off the bus at Stora Torg, I decided to get a room at Scandic Hallandia so that I could shower and get warm. Talking to Anna on the phone, she got extremely concerned when I could not answer simple questions, and as a true heroine, she thus jumped on the train to help me get home. 

While Anna went down to Båstad to pick up my dropbag, I took a long warm shower at the hotel, slept for maybe thirty minutes, and ate a bit, with the pain in my stomach gradually fading. And now, after sleeping eleven more hours, I am ready to go swimming with the kids. So, all in all, I got to spend a dreamlike night along the coast, learnt something about my true limits, and feel incredibly fortunate for having the best wife in the world.

Doubtful

While I seem to have stayed clear of Eddie’s cold, I woke up during the wee hours on Friday night feeling absolutely miserable in my stomach, forcing me to spend the whole day in bed, barely being able to go to the fridge to get some Proviva. Yet, almost eleven hours of solid sleep later, I felt much better this morning and ready to volunteer at Parkrun as promised.

After an afternoon swim with the kids in Aspen, I thus decided to go ahead with the race as originally planned, crazy as it may be. As such, and with the help of the neighbour’s cat, I laid out all my gear and began packing my new drybags. With the race starting in less than six hours, I must admit that I am indeed nervous as this challenge will be different from any that I have undertaken in the past. Having barely recovered and with the forecast now projecting twice as much rain, I can only hope that the adrenaline makes up for my lack of sleep.

Smitten

After last summer’s near-catastrophic accident at Smithska Udden, it felt particularly important to reclaim one of Gothenburg’s most cherished spots for saltwater swimming that has existed since the 1940’s. Checking out both the naturist and the textile cliffs, it was an afternoon of swimming to remember.

Otherwise, I am getting quite nervous about Halland Ultra-Beach which will start in a little more than 48 hours north of Falkenberg. Not only is Eddie sick again but the weather forecast looks increasingly rainy with more than 10 mm of precipitation expected overnight when I will be out running. Obviously, if I feel any cold symptoms, I will not start. As for the rain, I try to think of it is as a net positive as it will help me mentally prepare for future and more demanding ultra races.