| Today was my return to racing. I decided to do this race because, well, I just wanted to, OK? Geesh, can't a guy run a race just because he wants to? I know I haven't been to a race in months but so what? Sometimes you really bother me... Anyhoo, it was really humid this morning. Remember how I LOVE humidity? Oh yea, right up there with liver and broccoli! There was a storm hovering just north of the race course but it didn't bother to hit until after the race. Thanks for that. Being that it was humid and I don't run well in the humidity I took it easy right? WRONG, first mile in 6:36. Oh you silly people, don't you know Willie by now! But it felt so good and easy. I was relaxed and my strides were painless. OK so I was running up with the front pack and should have known (actually I did know, Garmin was giving me a desperate look of shock and awe) that this was way to fast. As you can see from the split table, I ran the first 3 miles really well! To bad the race was a 10K. As you can also see from the table WILLIE DIED A HORRIBLE AND PAINFUL DEATH in the last 3 miles. Who the heck do I think I am going out that fast? I know better damn it. Oh and did I mention that they (wonderful race planners) put a hill at mile 4. Oh, oh, oh and did I mention that the hill was on an out-and-back part of the course so we got to run it at mile 4 and mile 5! Yea for us. I did get in a race to the finish though. I had followed this guy for the last few miles and was determined to beat him. Well he was determined to not be beat so we came to a dead sprint with 100 yards to go. It's funny how many thought can go through your head so quickly. Here is how my thoughts went over the span of about 5 seconds. "I can get him, go go go" "Oh crap he has another gear too" "Ok I can't get him let him go" "Hey he looks like he's slowing go get him" "Wow we got next to him! go go go" "Oh shit, he's going again" "Where'd he get that speed, Ok he's got me" "Oh where'd that come from, WOW another gear go Willie!" "Here comes the finish, push harder and you got him" "Damn this guy is fast, he's got me" "Oh WOW we're side-by-side" "Hey that's a narrow finish" "It's hot today" "I suppose leaning for the finish won't work since it's the chip that scores us. Maybe I can throw my leg out somehow!" "Last 5 feet, don't let up" "AGGGGG He beat me!" Yea, he beat me. Our times were identical but he was scored ahead of me. Oh well, it was fun to race like that again. I jogged a bit after the race and let Garmin run so there are some extra splits on the table. 16 mile long run tomorrow with the group. I hope it goes well. Now it's time to watch the BUCKEYES!!! Go Bucks! Beat those Trojans!! Thanks for listening LATE UPDATE (because Willie is stupid!) I should really check my stats more. I SET A PR! I ran a 44:59 today which I thought was just Ok but was actually a new PR for me! Took me all day to actually recognize it. Gotta go update the list.... Performance
Pace (min/mile) Splits
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Saturday, September 13, 2008
Race for Freedom 10K
Friday, September 12, 2008
Home again
Well I made it back into OKC last night. I was supposed to come home today but just couldn't take another day in NY. I changed my flights and made it home with no problems. I had some interesting experiences on the flight but we'll get to those in a minute. First, we should really discuss some running. It is the purpose of this blog after all!
Tuesday was my speedwork day and I met up with my buddy and we hit the Union Endicott track. It's a wonderful track with a rubberized surface and nice grand stands. We had football practice and a soccer game going on at the time of our workout so we had many screaming, cheering fans. The workout consisted of a 1200, 800, 400, 400, 800, 1200 ladder. I didn't have the goal times with me so I just decided to shoot for a
6 minute mile pace for all the steps. My times are below.
1200 - 4:44
800 - 3:03
400 - 1:24
400 - 1:27
800 - 3:09
1200 - 4:52
I'm pretty happy with those. It was a difficult workout and I was tired and sore by the time it was over.
Wednesday would normally be my day off but since I was in NY and had nothing better to do I hit the hills with my buddy. It didn't go well. My leg really hurt from the first step. My IT band felt like a piano string. I never found my stride and couldn't, no matter how hard I tried, get loosened up. Oh yea, and Garmin decided she didn't want to witness such a gross display of horrible running that she turned herself off blaming a dead battery. I had to stop 3 times to walk and stretch. By the time we got near the hotel I was praying for this run to end. The hills were still steep and long just in case you were wondering. We did 7 miles but it felt like 1000.
OK now for some funnies.
I was in NY for a professional (ha!) development class that my company says I needed to attend. It was a 2 day class that can best be described as death by PowerPoint. It would have been totally unbearable except for the fact that the instructor had many flaws in his verbal skills. He kept saying "Pacific" instead of specific. He even said "pacifications" instead of specifications! The people sitting at my table and I were in stitches by the end of the class. We also did most of our workshop activities WRONG! For some reason, could have been the non-stop giggling, we didn't understand any of the activities correctly and got all the answers wrong. After a couple times, it became humorous to us so we were intentionally getting it wrong and then coming up with ingenious excuses to justify it. Ok so this is only funny to geeky engineers. We have to find fun anyway we can.
So on the flight from D.C. to Oklahoma last night there were these guys sitting behind me who were returning from a European trip. I heard them telling another passenger that they were in Amsterdam for the Formula One races. All they could talk about was how much dope they had smoked!!!! OMG I think they may still have been high! They were laughing at everything and talking, very loudly, about how you can go to shops and get menus for dope. It sounded like they had been high for weeks! the funniest thing, though, was this guy they were talking to. He was trying so hard to be "cool" with these guys. He was a young businessman who probably had never had a drink, let alone a joint, and he was trying so hard to convince these guys he was an "experienced user". After about an hour of listening to this crap I was so tempted to turn around and tell this idiot to get a damn life and grow up. These guys were obviously out of his league and it was like listening to a young middle-schooler trying to fit in with the "in-crowd" except that this was a grown man. What a bunch of idiots. None of us wanted to hear about the drug exploits of Americans-gone-wild-in-Amsterdam let alone the desperate attempts of an obviously sheltered man to fit in with them.
I was able to drown them out with my Ipod UNTIL IT DIED! UUGHHH, now I had nothing to cover up the conversations of the middle-school mentality! Great. Eventually the dope-heads fell asleep and things got quiet. That's when the smells started. Oh yea, the smells you are thinking of! It was like breathing in the bowl of a toilet! Sorry for that. Let's just say it was gross and I am a disgusting guy who has a teenager at home!
But now I'm home and looking forward to a 10K tomorrow and a long run on Sunday. I'm also SSSOOOO excited for Calyx and RBR and their Pacific Grove Triathlon tomorrow! This is the race they have trained for all year. I know they are both going to kick ass and I can't wait to read the blog of their experiences.
GOOD LUCK GALS! YOU ARE ROCKSTARS!
Thanks for listening
Sunday, September 7, 2008
A dose of humility Today was supposed to be 15 miles at 8:11 pace. I set Garmin to yell at me for anything over 8:30. I was being conservative because I HATE it when Garmin gripes at me all the time. She is wonderful and I love her to death, couldn't run without her, BUT she can be a real nag on a bad day. I felt great. I started out slow (yes she was yelling) to make sure I got properly warmed up before trying to hit my target pace. It was really hot. This was my fault. I slept in a little too much and didn't make it out until about 11:30. Hey guess what Willie? It's F-ing hot at 11:30. No clouds either. I pushed on anyway and eventually was hitting my pace easily. I carried a bottle of Gatorade for the first 3 miles and I think this really helped. I stayed hydrated for most of the run. I took some short breaks to hit water fountains and porta-potties. I also slowed a few times to just take the edge off the pace a bit. I was more concerned with making the 15 miles than with hitting the pace goal so I was trying to stay relaxed and not fatigued. I stopped to rehydrate when I made it around to my car at the 10.3 mile mark. My plan was to head on around the dam for about 2.25 miles and turn around in order to get tsweat though!~ he full 15 miles. Well Willie had a bit of trouble getting going again after he stopped to drink. It was hot, the water was good, the car had air conditioning, my legs were enjoying the not-running. NO, I said, I will finish this run. I started jogging out across the dam and picked up my pace to get back in the groove. I never found the groove. I found a lot of pain and sweat though. As you can see from the numbers, I didn't make it to 15. I did walk enough to get the full 15 but I don't count that. So you may think that Willie is upset and will be depressed but I'm not. I had a great run and it was a quality run. I blame my failure on the heat, I really think I could have made it if I had gotten out earlier. Oh well, I needed a good quality run bad. I didn't get a long run last week and I paid the price in depression all week. So I'm starting this week off on the right foot. I'm off to NY tomorrow and will be there all week. BRING ON THE HILLS! I'll be sure to write. Thanks for listening Performance
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Thursday, September 4, 2008
7 Mile Tempo Run
I felt tired all day today. I was looking forward to this run tonight because I have grown to like tempo runs. I was supposed to do 1 mile easy, 5 miles at 7:26 pace, and then 1 mile easy. I made the 1 mile easy part with no problem. I got about 2 miles into the tempo portion and hit the wall. I had to stop! I was having flashbacks to Sunday when I totally lost it on my long run. Frustration set in again. I just didn't seem to have it AGAIN! I rested for a bit and decided I would try another mile at the 7:26 pace so I started running again. I made it almost exactly 1 mile and stopped again. Dead tired. Rested and then did another mile. Dead tired. Rested. This time I walked for a good distance before I started running my last mile at tempo pace. I made it to the end of the tempo portion and heard Garmin give that lovely beep-beep-beep that signaled the beginning of my last easy mile! I was able to jog that last mile but I was completely spent when I got back home. I must not be sleeping enough. I can't seem to figure out what is causing this horrible fatigue. I am hoping it's just my body adjusting to the additional mileage and the change in the weather. Whatever it is it freakin stinks and I hate it! On a much brighter note, my son has his first Cross Country meet tomorrow! OMG I am so excited for him. This is a momentous occasion in a runner's life. The day his offspring actually start doing something he can relate to. I have spent the last few years suffering through agonizing hours of Soccer, T-ball, Football, even Chess. I see tomorrow as my reward for all those long hours of suffering. Not am I eager to get watch this sport I can actually DO IT! This was sadly not the case with the other sports. I knew absolutely nothing about Soccer, very little about T-ball and Football and Chess. I may have actually come to that part of fatherhood where I feel I have something to contribute to my son's life! Up to now I have just tried to not be a BAD example for him, let alone actually contribute to his improvement. That was for my wonderfully perfect wife to do. I was like that horrible thing that everyone knew was there but tried to ignore. Not so now! I can actually teach my son something! Willie gets impart some knowledge his offspring that doesn't involve something illegal, immoral, or disgusting. Of course I know he won't listen to a word I say. I know this because I didn't listen to a word my father told me! That's OK, that just tells me he is MY son and I'm damn proud of that. Thanks for listening Activity
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Wednesday, September 3, 2008
The weather changed today and it was COLD! OK so it was only in the 50-60's but it felt freezing compared to what we have been having. Today was my rest day but I just couldn't pass up such good running weather so I went out for an easy 4 miles. I have been wanting to get my weekly mileage up in the 30-40 range anyway so I thought this might be a good way to start. I felt good, a little pain the leg but I think it was just tightness. I stretched it really good afterwards and it seems better. Tomorrow I'm back on the Boston plan with a 7 mile tempo run. Thanks for listening Activity
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Tuesday, September 2, 2008
4th 800m
| So this post got broken up into 5 parts, sorry for that. One of these days I'll figure out how to get all the workouts posted together. Today was a good day for Willie! I got up early and hit the track with my speed work partner to do 4 x 800 meters with a 2 minute rest between. I was supposed to hit 2:58 for each 800 but knew I couldn't do that. I set my goal at 3:15 per and also mandated that we abide by the 2 minute rest period (we cheated last week on the mile repeats and rested longer). So my buddy took off as he normally does and left me in the dust on the first 800. I hit 3:11, he hit 2:45. My right leg felt really tight so it wasn't smooth but I hit my time goal. The 2 minutes flew by and before I knew it I was being left in the dust again. This time I hit 3:10, he hit 2:50. By now I was warmed up and felt a little better. I stopped asking him for his time after the 3rd 800 but I kept my pace and hit 3:09 and 3:10 for my last two. We jogged back to the gym and did some core work (Pilates) to finish up. All in all a great morning. When I left work today I had an awesome sky full of big puffy clouds. I wanted to get a picture but we are not allowed to have cameras so I will have to keep it in my head for now. I thought it was Gustav but learned later that it was just a cold front moving through. YEA Cold Front! Gustav won't be here until tomorrow. Performance
Pace (min/mile) Splits
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3rd 800m
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Pace (min/mile) Splits
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2nd 800m
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1st 800m
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Warmup
Performance
Pace (min/mile) Splits
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