Weekly Recap-Race Week Kingwood

Sunday.
Kingwood Marathon

Saturday
Pre- race off

Friday
Pre- race off

Thursday..
Pre- race off.

Wednesday.
Quick 5 on mill.

Tuesday.
Off-feeling really stiff

Had to loosen belt a loop. Have put on 4 lbs or so with all the junk I've eaten.

Monday
Met Mike for easy 6 at 5:30am

Weekly Recap-2 Weeks Until Kingwood

Sunday.
Christmas morning 5:30 am.

Met Mike for an easy 6 this morning. Walked another 3 on mill.

During lunch, fast 6 on mill with 6 X 200 meter strides.

Saturday
14 on mill in am. Walked one more.

Wanted more due to lots of Christmas eve dinner calories.

Friday
Off-Mucho busy at work. Too bad lots of junk food.

Thursday..
Met Mike for easy 4 in am. Walked / jogged 4 more on mill later.

Walked / jogged 4 more on mill at lunch.

Wednesday.
Met Jeff , Jamie, Mike for 8 at 5:30 am. Did some light intervals in last two miles.

Ran fast 5 on mill after work. Wanted to do more at night, but ran out of time.

Tuesday.
Walked / jogged six.

Monday
Met Jeff, Jamie, and Mike for easy 6 at 5:30 am.

Got on mill and jogged / walked another 3.

Walked 4 during lunch.

San Antonio Roadrunner's 5 / 10 miler (made it 15)

The cycle I've done all my long run in races. If I can find a 18-20 mile race, great. But usually I find a half marathon and extended it. It's really the best way to do a LR. All week you just dread the lonely 2 1/2 - 3 hour 18-20 mile long run. But with a race, even if not running full speed, the first 10-13 fly by. Then it's just an hour or 75 minutes till you're done. Also, the quality of run is usually better.

This was my last exertion run of the cycle, before a full taper. I had already done 17 on the mill Monday, and a total of 51 miles by Friday evening. I arrived in SA late, about 9:00 pm. And immediately ran 4 on the hotel treadmill as I ate a dozen cookies at the girl's school Christmas party. I had already done 6 in the pre-dawn morning, and 5 after work.

When I arrived at Schnabel Park for the 7:30 am start, the weather was perfect, chilly. I wore my heavy trainer shoes, and wasn't even concerned about time. In fact, I didn't even pickup a timing chip. The course was a 5 or 10 miler, which I assumed would be 5 mile laps. But it turned out to be out and back, with the five milers turning early.

There were only about 150 so runners, which is about a 1/3rd of what I expected. The gun fired and we were off. I didn't even turn on my watch and just cruised.

The course was great. A path through the park, which was somewhat wooded (not to thick). I thought it would be a great place to train.

The path was completely paved and ranged from 3-10 feet in width. The course also had rolling hills. All pretty small, but enough that you could feel it in your legs. The only downside was much of the path was hard hard hard concrete. My weight is quite light, but I still felt the pounding on the body.

For the 10, I ran mostly at an easy pace, but picked it up a little in some sections just to break it up. When I finished, the race timing clock read 1:14, which is about 7:30 / mile. I immediately turned around and started back to the 5 mile turnaround point. However, I slowed because this section was the most hilly, and had the most concrete, and I was already feeling the strain.

As I finished my extra 5, the awards were underway. I just went immediately to my car as we have Christmas prep at home. By 12:30 I was back doing family and house chores.

Weekly Recap-3 Weeks Until Kingwood

Sunday.
7 on mill at night.

Saturday
15 in the San Antonio RoadRunner 10 miler (I kept going).

Wanted to get in 5 when I returned home, but no time.

Friday
Met Jamie at 6:00 am for easy 6.

5 on mill after work

4 on mill before bed, needed to burn off about 15 Christmas cookies

Thursday..
Met mike for easy 6 at a conversational pace at 5:30am.

4 on mill during lunch. Walked 1 more.

Wanted to get some more in at night but ran out of time.

Wednesday.
Went to meet running mate at 5:30; he couldn't make it. Ran a lonely 10.

Walked / jogged another 8 throughout day.

Tuesday.
Off-wanted to get in 5-7, but not enough time.

Monday
Solid 17 during lunch, another fast 4 when I got home. Wanted to do 4 more at night, but ran out of time.

American Bank Half Marathon 2011

I've written before that this is a great event for many reasons, the two best being it brings out the top local runners, and the course is flat and has the potential to be fast.  Well, it can be fast if the weather cooperates.

Five days out the forecast was for light north winds and perfect temperatures (mid 40s).  But the night before, the cold front had yet to arrive and it was still warm (mid 60s at midnight).  About 4:00 a.m., I heard the cool-front blowing through.  The wind was strong and the gusts howled around the house.  I knew the wind would be a problem, but at least it would cool down a little.

As we queued for the 7:00 a.m. gun, it was still a little warm (high 50s), but directly in the windchill it was a little cold.  The sky was quite overcast.  I wore a tank top, light arm warmers, and a light beanie.  The wind was really blowing with flags flapping and trees swaying.  My original goal was to run a PR in 1:28 or better, but now with the weather not optimal, I just didn't know.  Well as Susan would say, it was time to shut-up and run.

The gun fired and we were off.  Over the first mile I felt the strong wind push at my back; my pace seemed fast.  However, all I could really think was, "This is going to be a nightmare to run back against!"

At the beginning of mile three the course bent to the southeast and the wind was just about perpendicular as it blew from the northeast.  The push was so strong I felt myself leaning about 5 degrees to the left just to fight the resistance.  A few times a strong gust literally moved me right a few inches.  Though mainly perpendicular, the wind at times also seemed to push a little from behind or a little from the front as the course slightly turned east or west.  Again, all I could really think was, "How am I going to run back against this?"

At mile four I was getting hot and pulled my arm warmers to my wrist, and tucked my beanie in my shorts.  About a half mile from the midpoint turnaround I had yet to look at my watch.  I had paced myself  just on stride / leg turnover but felt I would probably hit the midpoint in 43-44 minutes.  When I finally turned to head back, my watch read 45:15.

I was really disappointed.  I was also dreading the return and assumed I would lose a good five minutes on the up-wind leg.  However, as I started back the wind didn't seem as bad as I feared.  Again it was mostly perpendicular and actually felt like it was a bit behind me.  I guess the wind was more from the east than northeast in the first leg and that's why I was a minute or two behind pace.

For the next two miles I held my pace as we were running northwest;  I believed that I might finish in 1:30 or so.  However, about mile 10 the course began to bend back directly north and the wind resistance increased.  With about a mile and half to go, we turned due north and I slowed significantly fighting to run directly into the wind.

With half a mile remaining, I assumed I could still be on a 1:30-1:31 pace and gave it everything I had.  With 30 yards remaining, I saw the finish clock at 1:31:50.  I pushed hard to go sub 1:32, but came up just short.

I crossed the finish in 1:32:01 placing 1st in my division and 12th overall out of 149 half marathon finishers, and 18th out of 198 counting the 49 relay teams.

Well, I'm ambivalent about the results.  I was quite sure pre-race I would at least go sub 1:30.  I was quite disappointed with my 1:32.  But after giving it some thought, the weather probably cost me a good 10 seconds a mile.  Also, I hadn't tapered at all; the previous week I log a 20 miler, a 10 mile hill workout, and lots and lots and lots of general miles.

So I'm forgetting about this one and staying with the delusion I'm still able to go sub 3:00 in Kingwood in three weeks.  I'll need to lose 3-4 pounds and get in a good taper, but it's still possible if not probable.

1st in my division, Giancarlo 3rd

"One, Two, Three, CLEAR"

After the American Bank Half Marathon a running friend handed me his camera and requested a picture.  I said that I couldn't; I had no feeling in my fingers.  I stretched out my hand to show him.

The tips of my fingers were blueish-purple dark.  I explained that with all the training I've done that my resting heart-rate was down to the low 40s, and my blood pressure was on the low side also.  Post hard / long runs, it gets worse as my circulation is further reduced by dehydration.

The friend said, "You better put that information on the back of your bib as race instructions recommended."  I replied that it was no big deal and I didn't worry about it.

The friend explained, "My brother is the one who actually told me to do it; he's a Doctor and marathoner.  My brother told me that when a runner goes down, for any reason, the paramedics are usually called.  The medics, not knowing that runners have naturally low heart-rates / blood-pressure, freak-out.  On more than one occasion, they've whipped-out the defibrillator and shocked the runner."  

I guess I better fill out the reverse-side of the bib with some notes on my other extraordinary physical attribute, or the medics might think I'm suffering from a head-injury induced priapism and rush me in for a $ 5,000 MRI brain scan.

Oprah, Marathoning, and Kool-aid

I hit the road at 5:30am with a running buddy. We were casually jogging and just talking. He mentioned another running mate whose wife doesn't really support his marathoning. This guy told his wife, "I'm out doing my training when you're asleep in bed. By the time you wake-up, I'm back home, dressed, and ready to get the kids out the door and head off to work. Now explain again to me why you have a problem with my running?"

Then my running buddy said the funniest thing, "Hey, most wives not only don't get it, they think there's something wrong with what we're doing. Hell, the only way they would support our marathoning is if Oprah told them they should. Oprah, I just don't get it! Her minion will buy, support, or do anything she says. She's like Jim Jones. All she would have to do is look out at her audience and say, 'It's time to drink the Kool-aid,' and they would gulp it down."

Pringles and Sex

A buddy of mine has been on a strict diet preparing for a marathon.  The last ten days he cut out all carbs.   Today he began "carbing up" which frees him up to eat just about everything he wants.

Today he sent me a text, "Just ate an entire can of Pringles.  It was five times better, and ten times more satisfying, then the best sex I've ever had."

Weekly Recap 4 Weeks Until Kingwood

Sunday.
Off, with family activities and work, just took much to do.

Saturday
American Bank Half Marathon. Jogged another 6 throughout afternoon.

Friday
Off.

Thursday..
Up at 5:00am for easy 6 with mike. Walked / jogged another 8 throughout day.

Wednesday.
Jogged 5, walked another 5.

Tuesday.
Met Mike and Jamie at 5:30am for 8 along Oso Parkway. Weather cold, and group chatting good. Nice run.

When I got home I knocked out another fast 5 on the mill, then walked one more.

Walked another 8 at night.

Monday
Ate a ton of junk food, then took running day off. Gotta make up the calories now. Lots of miles to do.