January ctc - 5000m straight

[Paul Victory]

Well done to everyone who has completed this challenge so far. =D> =D> =D> We already have 16 times recorded after only 5 days. And great to see that Kirstin and Jon have both taken the plunge - particular congratulations and a warm welcome to you both.

Paul V

[strider77]

I'd like to echo Paul's comments especially well done to Kirstin and Jon =D> =D>

[Kirstin]

Thanks, all.

Looks like we only need one more to get the fourth boat floated.

[CamiCrew]

Booked a second 5k attempt online this a.m. Three people joined, all of whom were faster than me, but it was still motivational to pretend I was just about to catch 'em [-o<

Result: a PB by 4.3 seconds over previous 20:31.9 done Feb 2014. Last year's best was a 20:46.3, done in Aug 2015, frivolous summer & all.

01-14-2016 5000m 2:02.7 20:27.6 01-01-2016 5000m 2:03.7 20:37.7

[gregsmith01748]

Nice!!!!

[sander]

I am going to have to row this in the week of January 25th. If there are other Free Spirits, we could do an online session on one of the following dates:

Monday 25/1 after 1800 GMT
Friday 29/1 any time between 9AM GMT and 4PM GMT
Saturday 30/1 any time between 10AM GMT and 3PM GMT
Sunday 31/1 any time between 10AM GMT and 3PM GMT

If we can get a session planned now, I can work my schedule around that Let me know

[Jill]

Booked a second 5k attempt online this a.m. Three people joined, all of whom were faster than me, but it was still motivational to pretend I was just about to catch 'em

Result: a PB by 4.3 seconds over previous 20:31.9 done Feb 2014. Last year's best was a 20:46.3, done in Aug 2015, frivolous summer & all.

01-14-2016 5000m 2:02.7 20:27.6
01-01-2016 5000m 2:03.7 20:37.7

Your three fellow onliners, would have seen you as motivational … “ Hey, we’re going to have to row, and I mean really row, to keep ahead of Barbara.

Nothing frivolous about your new PB - a well deserved and impressive result. =D>

[Draggon]

Hello FS-CTC'ers. Just wanted to pop in and announce that I entered my first time in the January CTC (5K) and ended up in a boat with some awesome people (I'm sure): Free Spirits Boat V featuring Ron Pollard (H), Jon Esau (H), Lee Cantey (H), Jon P Taylor (L), and Jill Underwood (F). =D>

Curious - do people generally have a go at this kind of thing more than once to try to edge up in the standings? As a relative newbie, I suspect I have potential to improve my time by the end of the month.

[plummy]

Multiple efforts are more than welcome. Of course if latter efforts don't go as well as the earlier ones you don't have to enter the slower result

Often a first effort is just used as a marker and you can (with experience) begin to judge whether you've max'd out or not and therefore whether more attempts are worth it. Sometimes it's a bit of friendly rivalry that spurs you on to another go for example if you are just a couple of seconds/metres behind someone else there is a nice feeling of slightly smug satisfaction in booting someone out of one boat into lower placed one (I should know, it happens to me all the time )

Plummy

[Kirstin]

I'm a newbie myself, but plan on posting an improved score by the end of the month. I know Jon Esau already has updated his score - he's my husband.

Did you join the virtual team challenge as well?

[Draggon]

I'm a newbie myself, but plan on posting an improved score by the end of the month. I know Jon Esau already has updated his score - he's my husband.

Funny, he didn't mention that over virtual beers after our virtual row in our virtual boat that never happened....

Did you join the virtual team challenge as well?

I did. I think I finally figured out where all the right buttons are to push to "be involved"....

[Draggon]

Multiple efforts are more than welcome. Of course if latter efforts don't go as well as the earlier ones you don't have to enter the slower result

Heh... I'll keep that in mind!

Often a first effort is just used as a marker and you can (with experience) begin to judge whether you've max'd out or not and therefore whether more attempts are worth it. Sometimes it's a bit of friendly rivalry that spurs you on to another go for example if you are just a couple of seconds/metres behind someone else there is a nice feeling of slightly smug satisfaction in booting someone out of one boat into lower placed one

Makes sense - thanks for the feedback.

booting someone out of one boat into lower placed one (I should know, it happens to me all the time )

LoL - I imagine I'll get used to that feeling as well.

[lcantey]

Hello FS-CTC'ers. Just wanted to pop in and announce that I entered my first time in the January CTC (5K) and ended up in a boat with some awesome people (I'm sure): Free Spirits Boat V featuring Ron Pollard (H), Jon Esau (H), Lee Cantey (H), Jon P Taylor (L), and Jill Underwood (F). =D>

Curious - do people generally have a go at this kind of thing more than once to try to edge up in the standings? As a relative newbie, I suspect I have potential to improve my time by the end of the month.

So you're the who rocked the boat so hard I almost fell out

I also just joined recently and am in my first CTC. I decided to try and vary my rowing a bit more and try to turn up my intensity a bit. All of the I've been around had been great and I already used some of their utilities so I found my way here.

Welcome and it looks like we may be bumping into each other out there

[Kirstin]

I'm a newbie myself, but plan on posting an improved score by the end of the month. I know Jon Esau already has updated his score - he's my husband.

Funny, he didn't mention that over virtual beers after our virtual row in our virtual boat that never happened....

:

Hmph. He didn't bring me a beer. Oh, wait, I'm not a beer drinker.

[plummy]

Second attempt for me today and managed to take 10.3s off my previous time. There was quite a mental battle going on to not back off but managed to keep the demons at bay. Only 3s away from a seasons best (and that was set at a race meet)

19:10.4

[millie]

The only time I love a 5k is when it is over

I've taken over planning the training program for the group of OTW masters rowers I train with so I have been programming in an erg session that just so happens to be the CTC for the month . Still doing most of my erging on the Rowperfect in my garage but getting on the concept 2 more regularly now than I was before, especially given some torrential rain we've had recently.

Did the 5k this morning, annoyingly my headphones fell out during the first km so I had to row 4k with no music but made it to the end and pleasantly surprised to see was *just* a PB beating my previous one set a few years ago by just over 2 seconds. So not a huge PB but I'll take it

I know theoretically constant pace is the more efficient way to do a 5k but I seem to get best results negatively splitting, especially given I rarely do a 5k TT so unsure of pace I can hold:

1k 2:03.4 25spm
2k 2:02.8 26spm
3k 2:01.7 28spm
4k 2:00.6 29spm
5k 1:57.9 31spm
Average 2:01.3 27spm 20:13.1

Well done to everyone who has done the 5k so far, mentally I think it is a very hard distance to do!

[plummy]

Very nice 5k millie and congrats on the PB - =D> =D>

[Paul Victory]

Congratulations Amanda. =D> =D> =D> That's a great 5k and a very nice negative split.

Paul V

[JonT]

Ah the wonder of real and virtual competition!

I've been having a miserable time with this 5k. I picked up a virus over Christmas and have been struggling with bouts of extreme dizziness and being constantly exausted. I've been plugging away but couldn't manage anything better than 20:14.6 which is 34 seconds worse than my SB

Feeling a bit better today, I turned to my trusty competitive streak and lined up a Rowpro starting line with my previous CTC 5k row and with a pace boat manned by a virtual Jan Haveman who is ahead of me in Free Spirits IV on the C2CTC board. Sorry Jan , but I needed a target and Plummy, who I usually chase through the competition is streets ahead of me this month. Great row by the way Plummy =D> =D> =D>

This did the trick and I managed to make a 34 second improvement to finish in 19:40.5.

This was despite forgetting to take my hoodie off before starting (I warmed up in it because it's freezing in the garage), but I did have one of Plummy's mega-sweatbands on to help mop up the consequences.

I'm tempted to have another crack at this with a virtual Trevor Taylor sitting alongside me on the start line to see if I can squeeze into Free Spirits III. But that would be a big leap given how little rowing I have managed lately.

[jhaveman]

Hi Jon,

Glad to have been of assistance (although only virtual) - and well done for that row, I can't take all the credit
Hope that Trevor will be able to push you further up the rankings.

Since you've now pushed me out of my boat I might have to do another attempt this afternoon. I've been struggling a bit with this CTC, a few attempts but so far none better than my initial one. Maybe clearing the snow this morning has warmed me up for it.

Good luck everybody!

Jan

[Draggon]

Hello FS-CTC'ers. Just wanted to pop in and announce that I entered my first time in the January CTC (5K) and ended up in a boat with some awesome people (I'm sure): Free Spirits Boat V featuring Ron Pollard (H), Jon Esau (H), Lee Cantey (H), Jon P Taylor (L), and Jill Underwood (F). =D>

You folks are quite agile boat-jumpers! Looks like we're going to have to separate Jon (E. not P.) & Kirstin within Boat V or we're never going to get anywhere!

[JonT]

Since you've now pushed me out of my boat I might have to do another attempt this afternoon. I've been struggling a bit with this CTC, a few attempts but so far none better than my initial one. Maybe clearing the snow this morning has warmed me up for it.

Welcome back to boat IV Jan. Looking at you in Rowpro earlier today I knew you had it in you =D>

[jhaveman]

You folks are quite agile boat-jumpers!

I did manage to jump, but wouldn't call it agile
Went out on a pace just under 20 minutes, had my usual dip between 3k and 3.5k, and then speeded up again for an end spurt in the last 500m - so mission accomplished

I think my problem with this challenge was that I had the misconception that once you've improved your PB, you should be able to get at least close to that time on demand. This is clearly not the case, especially when Jill has banned the doughnuts

Thanks for the encouragement Jon, will try again to get closer to my PB before the end of the month ...

Jan

[Jill]

I think my problem with this challenge was that I had the misconception that once you've improved your PB, you should be able to get at least close to that time on demand. This is clearly not the case, especially when Jill has banned the doughnuts

Jan, I'm simply saving you from yourself, so that I can save all the doughnuts for myself.

Second attempt for me today and managed to take 10.3s off my previous time. There was quite a mental battle going on to not back off but managed to keep the demons at bay. Only 3s away from a seasons best (and that was set at a race meet)

19:10.4

=D>

Great going and great effort everyone. =D>

[Kirstin]

Hello FS-CTC'ers. Just wanted to pop in and announce that I entered my first time in the January CTC (5K) and ended up in a boat with some awesome people (I'm sure): Free Spirits Boat V featuring Ron Pollard (H), Jon Esau (H), Lee Cantey (H), Jon P Taylor (L), and Jill Underwood (F). =D>

You folks are quite agile boat-jumpers! Looks like we're going to have to separate Jon (E. not P.) & Kirstin within Boat V or we're never going to get anywhere!

Are you implying something?