Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Trail run this Saturday
I'm looking forward to my first trail run since mid December. I stayed off the trials while I was getting ready for Shoreline and recovering and my first trail run will be this Saterday at Aliso Woods with OCTR. Those kooks wanted to start at 6:30 but I convinced them to hold back until 7:30.
Friday, February 23, 2007
Twenty One
For my oldest daughter on her recent birthday.
Twenty One
On this day that you turn twenty plus one
A third of your life under California sun
My wish for you is a life free of toil
With love in abundance in a home filled with joy
Chorus
When feelings get hurt
And we fall out of touch
Remember we still love
Our daughters very much
The lessons I’ve learned are many from you
How to take on a challenge and see a job through
To look at myself and try not to place fault
Every dish tastes just fine if you add enough salt
Bridge
Will it all turn out fine
Or all be for naught
I can’t read your mind
To get at your thoughts
They say time is a teacher who makes us wait to know
Its lesson is in the stillness after a strong wind has blown
And they say time can heal wounds from the past
And the future is coming, it’s coming on fast
Chorus
When feelings get hurt
And we fall out of touch
Remember we still love
Our daughters very much
JsR 2-20-07
Twenty One
On this day that you turn twenty plus one
A third of your life under California sun
My wish for you is a life free of toil
With love in abundance in a home filled with joy
Chorus
When feelings get hurt
And we fall out of touch
Remember we still love
Our daughters very much
The lessons I’ve learned are many from you
How to take on a challenge and see a job through
To look at myself and try not to place fault
Every dish tastes just fine if you add enough salt
Bridge
Will it all turn out fine
Or all be for naught
I can’t read your mind
To get at your thoughts
They say time is a teacher who makes us wait to know
Its lesson is in the stillness after a strong wind has blown
And they say time can heal wounds from the past
And the future is coming, it’s coming on fast
Chorus
When feelings get hurt
And we fall out of touch
Remember we still love
Our daughters very much
JsR 2-20-07
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Tired
After driving out six hours out to Scottsdale on Sunday and seven hours back on Monday I fell asleep by 9:30 last night- Tuesday. I did sneak in a 4.5 miler after work. It seems like it's staying light out later which is nice. We change the clocks on March 11 and then it will be light till around 7pm. I can't wait to go home and relax and hit the sack early again tonight. Yet I'm also getting antsy to get back into training. I expect to run only 20 miles this week and 25 next week.
Friday, February 16, 2007
Running log thingie has been added to this blog
I figured out how to get the running log on the blog. It comes off another website called www.breakingthetape.com. Now I can track my mileage in five places rather then four. I ran an easy 4.5 last night and I felt great at the start but my heart rate quickly rose above 145 at a moderate 9 mpm pace. I slowed on the return 2.25 to 9:40 pace to get it down to my usual 135. My calves also get really sore after 2 miles. I've had a problem with sore calves in the past but never after only two miles. I guess I need more time for recovery from the marathon. Next weeekend's 18k trail run looks doubtful unless I walk the whole way which still might be fun.
Monday, February 12, 2007
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Bored at work
It's a rainy Sunday and I'm trying to catch up on my work. My current distraction is deciding what matarthon to run in December. The Rocket City Marthon in Huntsville, Al looks like a winner. It's a small race of about 1,000 runners and the price $45 and cheap hotel $75 make is a bargain. The course is flat, cool to cold weather and the reviews on marathonguide.com are all 5 star. I can use my free United miles and my old significant cost is a rental car. I can even fly in to Atlanta and visit cousin Nathan. The hostel hotel, and Embassy Suites is across the street from the start and unlike the Huntington Beach at $250 a night was only $119 in 2006. I've never visited the South and this would be a fun way to see a new part of the country.
Monday, February 5, 2007
Shoreline Marathon Recap
I started my day by waking up at 4:47. I checked my alarm and realized that I had set it for 5:45. Had I slept until my alarm went off I would likely have missed the start. Yikes. Instead I pulled into the parking lot at Beach Boulevard at 5:30 and started readying myself for the start.
My game plan was to shoot for a 1:38 split by running roughly 7:40 for miles 1-4 and then run 7:25 pace. I ran the first mile at 7:46 and mile two at 7:29 and I decided to stay at the 7:29 pace rather than slow down for two miles and try to speed up again. Miles 3 through 8 were uneventful and I ran alone enjoying the crisp morning air. At mile 9 I started following a two runners (Karen K. form Phoenix & her male friend) and at mile 10 three more runners pulled in front of us and led the way until we exited Bolsa Chica Park. The three pack had been stopped and stretching when they rejoined the race and they provided even pacing for us for miles 10 through 13. We lost Karen’s friend and left the park in a tight group of five.
Once we merged into PCH our groups struggled to stay together. We had a really tough time bobbing and weaving through the back of the half marathoners who were running at 9 to 10 min pace. They pretty much blocked off the whole road. I decided at that point to follow Karen onto the shoulder and our three wind blockers went their own way.
Karen and I stayed on pace until mile 16 climbing the gradual hill to the before the turn onto Seacliff when we faded to 7:36 pace. Mile 17 and 18 at 7:33 and 7:38 felt better and as the course flattened out but our times were still off pace. One of our missing three pack runners came from behind us at the 18 mile mark and I got a second wind and decided to run with him as Karen fell behind. In retrospect, I made a big mistake. We ran 7:21 for 19 and I felt like I could sustain that pace until the finish. Wrong. I dropped back a bit but kept my chugging along and ran 7:38 for mile 20 and then I hit the wall, splattered like a bug on a windshield at the 21 mile mark. At mile 20 I was still on pace to run 3:17 and possibly faster if I had something for the last few miles. However, I was toast as I exited the Central Park at mile 21 and turned to run up the Edwards Street hill. I had to stop and walk twice on the hill and still managed an 8:04 but I slowed to 8:37 on mile 22. Somehow I managed a third wind or should I say a last gasp on mile twenty three running 8:05 before giving up the ghost. I was heard muttering “ I want my mommy” as I plodded on towards the final turn back onto PCH. Suddenly my legs, particularly my right leg turned into concrete and I slowed to a crawl, covering mile 24 in 8:49 and mile 25 in 8:54. The last three miles were the most difficult I’ve run or shall we say jogged in a very long time. Even my i-pod shuffle couldn’t give me a lift. Mike Friedl, bless his heart, joined me the last mile and a half and I ran mile 26 in 8:36 for a 3:23:38 finish.
Lessons learned.
1) Drink more water on a warm day. I was overly concerned about the likelihood of having to stop for a bathroom break so I didn’t drink enough water. I only drank at every other water station and I did made it through the race without stopping but it would have been better to lose one minute rather than the almost five minutes I lost in the last three miles. Even though I didn’t feel the heat affecting me my heart rate monitor says it did.
2) If you wear a heart monitor, look at it. I wore the monitor but I didn’t look at my heart rate during the race. I ran based on my plan to stay at or under 7:30’s for as long as I could. If I had checked my heart rate, I might have adjusted my goal to 3:20 and pulled back to 7:40 pace earlier and not slowed so much over the least three miles. I was afraid that if I looked at it I would get psyched out since I ran my half marathon averaging 172 when I didn't think I could sustain more than 165 for that distance.
My marathon heart rate, even on a warmer date should have been under 165 until mile 20, but I was at 166 by mile 6 and over 170 by mile 10. My heart rate continued to climb every mile peaking at 180 on mile 20. No wonder I hit the wall. My heart rate would normally be under 180 until the last mile of a 10k so I was way really pushing my luck. I was fortunate that I was able to back off enough to finish. At the time, I really didn’t feel winded or out of breath just depleted.
3) Run more marathon pace miles in training. Based on how incredibly sore I am now after the race (the cane has made an appearance), I believe that I was not adequately prepared to run at 7:30 pace. Most of my training was either at under 7:15 pace or over 8:15 pace. I could have used some longer marathon pace runs but I never could fit them in to my schedule. My training certainly had me in shape for a great 10k PR and probably a 3:20 marathon but not a 3:15 marathon even on a cooler day.
4) Always double check your alarm clock. Nuff said on that topic.
5) Be grateful for small things. The Boston Athletic Assoc. has eased the qualifying times over the years so I re-qualified to run at Boston which I plan to do in 2008.
My game plan was to shoot for a 1:38 split by running roughly 7:40 for miles 1-4 and then run 7:25 pace. I ran the first mile at 7:46 and mile two at 7:29 and I decided to stay at the 7:29 pace rather than slow down for two miles and try to speed up again. Miles 3 through 8 were uneventful and I ran alone enjoying the crisp morning air. At mile 9 I started following a two runners (Karen K. form Phoenix & her male friend) and at mile 10 three more runners pulled in front of us and led the way until we exited Bolsa Chica Park. The three pack had been stopped and stretching when they rejoined the race and they provided even pacing for us for miles 10 through 13. We lost Karen’s friend and left the park in a tight group of five.
Once we merged into PCH our groups struggled to stay together. We had a really tough time bobbing and weaving through the back of the half marathoners who were running at 9 to 10 min pace. They pretty much blocked off the whole road. I decided at that point to follow Karen onto the shoulder and our three wind blockers went their own way.
Karen and I stayed on pace until mile 16 climbing the gradual hill to the before the turn onto Seacliff when we faded to 7:36 pace. Mile 17 and 18 at 7:33 and 7:38 felt better and as the course flattened out but our times were still off pace. One of our missing three pack runners came from behind us at the 18 mile mark and I got a second wind and decided to run with him as Karen fell behind. In retrospect, I made a big mistake. We ran 7:21 for 19 and I felt like I could sustain that pace until the finish. Wrong. I dropped back a bit but kept my chugging along and ran 7:38 for mile 20 and then I hit the wall, splattered like a bug on a windshield at the 21 mile mark. At mile 20 I was still on pace to run 3:17 and possibly faster if I had something for the last few miles. However, I was toast as I exited the Central Park at mile 21 and turned to run up the Edwards Street hill. I had to stop and walk twice on the hill and still managed an 8:04 but I slowed to 8:37 on mile 22. Somehow I managed a third wind or should I say a last gasp on mile twenty three running 8:05 before giving up the ghost. I was heard muttering “ I want my mommy” as I plodded on towards the final turn back onto PCH. Suddenly my legs, particularly my right leg turned into concrete and I slowed to a crawl, covering mile 24 in 8:49 and mile 25 in 8:54. The last three miles were the most difficult I’ve run or shall we say jogged in a very long time. Even my i-pod shuffle couldn’t give me a lift. Mike Friedl, bless his heart, joined me the last mile and a half and I ran mile 26 in 8:36 for a 3:23:38 finish.
Lessons learned.
1) Drink more water on a warm day. I was overly concerned about the likelihood of having to stop for a bathroom break so I didn’t drink enough water. I only drank at every other water station and I did made it through the race without stopping but it would have been better to lose one minute rather than the almost five minutes I lost in the last three miles. Even though I didn’t feel the heat affecting me my heart rate monitor says it did.
2) If you wear a heart monitor, look at it. I wore the monitor but I didn’t look at my heart rate during the race. I ran based on my plan to stay at or under 7:30’s for as long as I could. If I had checked my heart rate, I might have adjusted my goal to 3:20 and pulled back to 7:40 pace earlier and not slowed so much over the least three miles. I was afraid that if I looked at it I would get psyched out since I ran my half marathon averaging 172 when I didn't think I could sustain more than 165 for that distance.
My marathon heart rate, even on a warmer date should have been under 165 until mile 20, but I was at 166 by mile 6 and over 170 by mile 10. My heart rate continued to climb every mile peaking at 180 on mile 20. No wonder I hit the wall. My heart rate would normally be under 180 until the last mile of a 10k so I was way really pushing my luck. I was fortunate that I was able to back off enough to finish. At the time, I really didn’t feel winded or out of breath just depleted.
3) Run more marathon pace miles in training. Based on how incredibly sore I am now after the race (the cane has made an appearance), I believe that I was not adequately prepared to run at 7:30 pace. Most of my training was either at under 7:15 pace or over 8:15 pace. I could have used some longer marathon pace runs but I never could fit them in to my schedule. My training certainly had me in shape for a great 10k PR and probably a 3:20 marathon but not a 3:15 marathon even on a cooler day.
4) Always double check your alarm clock. Nuff said on that topic.
5) Be grateful for small things. The Boston Athletic Assoc. has eased the qualifying times over the years so I re-qualified to run at Boston which I plan to do in 2008.
Saturday, February 3, 2007
Tomorrow's Marathon Day
I'm just about on my way to the expo. My hamstring feels good so I printed out a 3:15 wristband for the race. Looks to be warmer than I like but hopefully it will be cool for the first 2 hours. It's supposed to reach 73 degrees in the afternoon in HB. I slept pretty well last night in spite of the various rashes that are covering my body. I'm auditioning for the itchy and scratchy show.
Here's Jessica demonstrating some special pre-race stretching techniques that she perfected during her racing years. She's been talking about putting together a class and earning some money towards biscuits.
Thursday, February 1, 2007
My confidence is shot
I ran my 3 mile test at the Woodbridge track again last night. It was the 45th time that I've done the test going back 5 years. I run 3 miles at a steady 140 heart rate. On Jan 3, 2007, I had my PR time of 24:36 and last night I ran 25:20, only my 7th best. I was shocked to lose 44 seconds in less than four weeks since I'm supposed to get fast over the taper. Wasn't it just 18 days ago that I broke 40 minutes in a 10k? Now I'm thinking I'm in worse shape than Dec. 2004 when I ran 3:27 because I ran a 25:05 test the week before that marathon. Can I really run a 3:15 marathon now?
Sunday's forecast is Sunny with a projected high of 70 at the beach. Hopefully, it will stay cool in the morning and I expect to be finished before 10:30.
Sunday's forecast is Sunny with a projected high of 70 at the beach. Hopefully, it will stay cool in the morning and I expect to be finished before 10:30.
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