Ryan Gregson blogs from Falls Creek

I’m at Falls Creek at the moment. On the way down here my iPod broke so I was listening to Michael Buble and Dixie Chicks CD’s. My Dad is a huge fan of the Dixie Chicks and I have a soft spot for them on the odd occasion. Musically, I’m pretty diverse, but lately I’ve had a huge obsession with Rihanna, for obvious reasons.

Falls actually isn’t that far from Wollongong. I left at 8am and by 4pm, I had driven here, had a petrol stop, a few toilet breaks, a grocery shop, and unpacked and settled into the apartment. So I reckon the actual driving time is around 6 and a half hours, which isn’t too bad. 

Running wise, things are going alright. I had a couple of setbacks with my foot but now it seems that it’s going to be okay. I’m up here with Brett Robinson, ‘Cracker’ Jack Bolas and Craig ‘Rowdy’ Miller. Cracker and Rowdy are Americans who joined the Melbourne Track Club last year and have both fitted in well. Brett has come up to Wollongong from Canberra before and trained with me and we work well together and seem to have a few tussles in training. Rowdy is an easy going and laid-back customer which is why he received a fitting nickname. Cracker is a bit of a hulk and spends most of his time working on his party muscles, but most of the time they’re all pretty good company. 

I can’t say I really do much in my spare time when I’m training at altitude. I’m not someone that needs to be out doing things. I’m quite happy just laying low and watching movies and TV shows on my hard drive. I’ve been getting through ‘Breaking Bad’ which was recommended to me by Adrian Blincoe. It’s a good series so far and I can’t believe how hectic everything gets toward the end of season two. 

I’ve got to a decent level in my training but I won’t race this Australian season as I’d probably struggle to beat the girls. My first race will be the 1200m leg of the distance medley relay at the Penn Relays in late April. After that I will head up to Mt. Laguna, just up from San Diego in California to do a month of altitude training. From there that will bring us to June and my coach Nic Bideau will make a choice as to what happens from there. The main thing I have to do though is get to that point with no interruptions so I can give myself the opportunity to qualify for the World Championships. 

Cracker is going to come to mine for a little bit after the Sydney Track Classic to see Wollongong and get some training done. I told him that he will scare the kids away with his monstrous chest but as we speak he has got his head phones in and pumping out some incline bench. Be well.