Le Hauteur

So... I mentioned that I was going over to the U to run an indoor race or two.  Here are the thrilling details -

finally running on the last lap

I have gotten used to things happening on time in road races.  8:00 a.m. gun fires, you start running.  At a track meet, you wait until the previous events on the program have completed - and you have to feel it out.  So there I stood, with my spikes on about half an hour before the race started.  I nervously jogged back and forth on the backstretch as the officials leisurely watched the heats of the 60 hurdles.  There seemed to be no urgency.  I was however becoming quite nervous, realizing how much younger and more prepared these kids were for a race this short.  My legs started to feel the 94 miles I'd run in the last five days.  Finally, we got called over to the starting line.  As we stepped to our marks, I could tell the guy on my outside intended to cut down right in front of me. So at least I still have some track instincts.  The gun fired and my right side neighbor jumped right in front.  I went straight to the back of the pack.  The pace felt so fast.  I felt like I was leaning at a ridiculous angle on the first two curves.  We hit the first 200 in 33.  Slow as crap and I felt like I was gunning it all out.  The next three laps weren't much better, as I stayed in last place.  after the half, I finally started to feel like a runner and started to pick people off.  It was way too late though.  By the time I had clawed my way into the race, the kick had started up front.  I was able to at least finish respectably, catching a few guys in the last lap, but I flapped across the finish line in 4:17, getting 7th place out of 13 runners.

I wasn't sure how to feel about this.

I did this race in the midst of a 133 mile week, almost exactly five years after the last time I ran a mile on a track.  almost five years since I'd even been on an indoor track.  Still,  I should be able to run faster than 4:17.  I split 4:06 on a relay in college after sitting out for two weeks with injury.  I could go on all day.


I was also supposed to run the 3000m, but decided to cut my losses and go for a longer cool down.

Something great happened though---

All I wanted to do after the race was go out and run as far as I could stand to.  I didn't do that, because I also wanted to watch some bad movies and drink beer at home.  But as I cooled down, I realized that terrible race had completely sucked out my will to compete.  It's February, I'm trying to run fast in April through June.  Right now, running miles is the only thing I need to do.  So I'm doing that and loving it, with only a glimmer of desire to race other people.  I'm sure I'll get that back in a couple months when it's more reasonable.

Last week:::::

| 133 miles - total (8 runs)
| 1 mile indoor track - 4:17.04
| long run - 25 mi 
| ~25 PowerBars consumed

A Heartbreaking Post of Staggering Genius

I've been cranking out the miles this week, which has given me lots of time to think about ground-breaking, mind-blowing, paradigm-shoving blog material.  Unfortunately those ideas sound much better halfway through a 20 mile run, when an insufficient amount of oxygen is squeaking its way into my brain.  I wonder if there are any long term effects of this...

...here are some things I might blog about if I can formulate a cogent few paragraphs

• crossfit/minimalism/ etc. fads in running and how they apply to elites/sort-of-elites
• "just doing this race as a workout" and the fury that statement kindles in my soul
• one/two workouts per day and how it affects recovery - no actual science allowed
• supplementary work to build strength - for economy and/or injury avoidance
• food

There were probably others that crossed my mind, but these are things I think about a lot while scooting down the bike paths in the usually grey Twin Cities morning.  I'd like to blog more about things that are discussable issues or at least something that just isn't me talking about a race I'm doing or whining about not running fast enough.

In that vein:

I'm going over to U of M tonight to run the Snowshoe Open indoor meet.  I haven't raced on the little oval in just over five years, so I decided to go over there and see what I've got for mile and a 3k.  I've been much faster over most distances in the last year, but I haven't run anything shorter than 5k, other than the Mag Mile, which doesn't really count.  I'm not going to Gate River this year, plane tickets were prohibitively expensive, and it's very unlikely I'll have a chance to win the price of my flight.  The next hurdle is to find an outdoor meet or two in which I can run a fast 10k to try to sneak in to the Olympic track trials.  Crazier things have happened.

USA Cross Country

To start -

WHO FREAKING CALLED IT!!??

"If I had to pick a winner, I'd pick the All-American boy, Bobby Mack.  That's not even because he's a friend of mine.  He's by far the strongest XC runner in the race."

I am quoting my own blog post from last week.  Bobby is the American Sergey Lebid.  Cross Country specialist, and best in crappy conditions on tough courses.

Enough about others, more about ME!

I was bib number 666 and placed 13th.  I guess it was cursed from the start.  

Trish and I left Minneapolis with a -20 degree wind chill and expected something better 9 hours south in St. Louis.  I guess it was better, but the sleet and 30mph wind that greeted us at the course was still not what I was hoping for.  On raceday, the sun came out, but the air temp was still in the low 20's with a single digit wind chill when we were starting the race.  The men's race was the sixth of the day, and coupled with the sun and melted snow from the night before, the ground became muddy and slippery, while still being cold as hell.

I got out well and dangled at the back of the lead pack for the first few k. For style points, I forgot that I had my awesome Merino Wool Buff around my neck when I shed clothes to race, so I was looking pretty awesome until I threw it off, carefully in a place that I could come back and get it later.  I'm not hollywood enough to just buy another one. Perhaps this isn't the best thing to be worrying about in a championship race.

 

I've known since college that real cross country racing is not my strongest skill.  I'm not coordinated on slippery mud while trying to run fast.  I'm not that good on short, steep hills, and for some reason, I'm just kind of a puss in XC races.  I was trying to prove to myself that I could do better, and I probably did.  I was able to split faster through 8k that I ever finished a college 8k race.  Still, the slipping in the mud thing did me in. I faded back from the lead pack, but held a solid gap pretty much alone.  A few runners died off and I picked them off.  Unfortunately I was run down by an Air Force guy (that has happened to me in XC a number of times) and a University of Colorado runner (that has also happened a lot)  I floundered around trying to kick down some guys and get in the top 10, but I just kept knocking my knees together and flailing around.  Today, I actually have bruises on the insides of both knees from hitting them together so much and with such force.  What a pansy!

Meanwhile, (well, about a minute earlier) Bobby was manhandling the front of the field, pushing hard in the last k to get the win.  It was really cool to be there to see a friend get a national championship and get the cred he deserves.

Now my XC season is over.  I think I may have a 1-2 race indoor track season this month, then get back on the roads once they are more thoroughly thawed throughout the country.  Right now I'll (probably) be racing the Iowa State last chance meet, the Gate River Run, and any early outdoor meets that will have me.

Also, a big thanks to Craft, who gives me clothing.  The nordic ski inspired stuff may have saved my life while standing around in the freezing cold.  I very nearly ran the race in the fleece-lined tights and wind shell jacket.

No Worlds

'Tis another week of long distance running training.


I've really only had three workouts between the Trials marathon and the USAXC race.  I figure that's ok, since the 26.2 mile threshold probably gave me some good fitness.

Last Friday I went over to Lake Harriet to do a threshold run.  The lake is about 3 miles around, so I planned to speed up each time around, going 16:00/15:30/15:00.  This was a little too ambitious, as the previous four days averaging 21 miles a pop caught up to me.  I went 16:00/15:37/15:37.  I didn't overwork the run, I was just pooped and had to settle into 5:12s to keep up a manageable pace.

Tuesday I got up and it was 8 degrees with a -4 windchill.  I slogged down to the lakes to gut out a fartlek, but decided to bail and come back in the evening with another workout at the Metrodome.  I decided to do 8x640 (1 lap) with a 640 jog in between.  my goal pace was about 2:08 800m pace.  I managed to hit just a little under that.  I felt pretty quick and smooth, even while slipping around a little on the shiny concourse floor.  I've had good workouts at the dome, but sometimes I feel like I'm pushing my luck.

Blerrrrrrrrr

The creative juices aren't really flowing today.  It doesn't happen very often anyway, so, just like a terrible workout, sometimes you have to know when to throw in the towel.

Or when to push on to embarrassing failure!  O Fortuna!

So, we're driving down to St. Louis for the cross race tomorrow.  This race is so weird.  None of the "big" names are there this year.  And nobody seems to be that interested in the race since there's no World Champs this year.  The race is also in a location that has real February weather, so that scares a lot of people away too. 

If I had to pick a winner, I'd pick the All-American boy, Bobby Mack.  That's not even because he's a friend of mine.  He's by far the strongest XC runner in the race.  So, the odds are pretty good that we'll leave St. Louis in decent spirits.

Of myself?  I don't know.  My last few workouts have led me to believe that I'm in great shape.  Recently I've done better translating good workouts into good races, so maybe I have a shot.  They take 5 to Trinidad for NACAC, and some people probably will decline to run, so if I can sneak in somewhere in the top 10, I'd have a shot.  But this is cross country.  I could have an amazing day and get 5th.  Or I could have an average day and get 40th.  I don't know where I, or anyone else stands right now. 

Big River Running Company will undoubtedly put together a good race.  You can watch it on Runnerspace on Saturday afternoon. 

stuffstuffstuffstuff

Some things have happened.

Not necessarily enough things to warrant a blog post, but I've got the time.

So, The MDRA somehow worked it out to get the Metrodome open in the evenings for people to run on its 640m to the lap upper concourse.  Since I don't have any connections here and can't get on an indoor track, I figured this is my next best bet.
I live about a mile and a half from the dome (which you can see from everywhere, it's like a huge pillow in the landscape) So I ran over there Tuesday night to see what was the deal.

I decided to do a 6x1280m (2 laps) workout.  The concourse was divided in two parts to allow faster runners an alley.  Unfortunately the faster runners have to run on the inside, making the turns tighter.  There really isn't any way to avoid this, since the entrances are from the outside and people would have to be darting out in front of me to get to their alley.  Beggars can't be choosers.  I got started and was way under my intended pace.  In fact, I stayed under that pace quite a bit the whole way.  I was really encouraged to still be in ok shape.  This gives me a lot more confidence going to USAXC.

In other news, I joined PowerBar Team Elite, which is pretty awesome.  Now all the money I blow on PowerBars I can save to blow on something stupid.  This is a good deal especially because PowerBar makes tons of different stuff.  Should be sweet.

Also, I've been logging all my miles in my new Karhu shoes, and have done enough to give an accurate analysis of three models

Flow - my favorite shoe by Karhu.  It's super light for a trainer and very responsive.  I don't understand how their patented "fulcrum" technology works, but I like it.

Fast - A lightweight neutral trainer.  It's a little stiffer than the Flow and a little more like a a normal shoe.  The heel seems cut back a little to try to get you from heel-striking, which is probably good.  I like the hardness of the fulcrum and midsole, but some might not.  You might want to try the Forward.

Racer - I love these flats.  They are similar to the Flow but lighter.  I wore them for my Metrodome workout and they offered a good responsive feel with enough cushion and low-to-the-groundedness to keep me safe on the tight turns on the concrete of the concourse.

So there are some plugs.  I don't normally like trying to sell stuff on my blog, but I can salvage some integrity by promising that I use all of this stuff and like it.  Karhu is a pretty small company in the U.S. so I feel good about promoting them in this word-of-mouth kind of way.  They make good stuff, dammit.  PowerBar makes a lot of good stuff and they invest in athletes.  Even though they are a big company, they do a lot to support athletes like me.  They deserve praise for that especially.

collar::color

For some reason, I feel the need to talk about myself again.

Listen.

We all want attention.  Some people want it in greater quantities than others, and some just get it by being outstanding in some way.  The rest of us troll for it in blogs, facebook, etc.  Sometimes that bothers me. The need to be considered.  Sometimes (presently) I don't mind.  LOOK AT ME.

So I have been thinking a lot about collars.  An unnecessary part of a upper body covering that seems to mean a lot to many folks.  The White/Blue/No collar thing at its most recognized.  For some reason this is applied to a certain type of person.  I won't explain that, because, we're all Americans here.  We understand how to arbitrarily group ourselves so as not to have to think outside the box.

This is applied on Letsrun.com, which is also where all your dreams become reality.  There is frequently a debate between "blue collar" and "white collar" runners and training groups.  I don't think this is unfair for a second.  Honestly, the debate is quite interesting, and really a lot of great conversations happen on letsrun, interspersed with narcissism, racism, misogyny and some latent homosexual comments.

Often, the Hansons training crew down in Michigan is the prototypical blue collar group.  I'd agree with that.  They all work at a running store and train in crappy weather in a crappy town.  Occasionally a story comes along about the next blue collar tough guy who works full time and trains full time and kicks ass and also takes names.

The groups training in Oregon can be generalized as white collared - with the money flowing like a river from Nike.  They might have a better financial situation and lots of equipment, but I don't see a real reason to bash them since they are the ones that always wind up on our olympic teams.

So what is the point of blogging about this???

I did start the post by pointing out that this is all about me-

So, where do I fit in?


What sort of collar am I running in?  As a fully human person I'd really like to be able to classify myself.  Type A/B, Myers Briggs, etc.  I have to lean toward the blue collar side, obviously because of my lack of wealth, and the fact that 2 of the 3 places I've lived as a serious runner were freaking terrible training environments, weather-wise, and concerning access to good racing. (props to NC).  But none of this is a choice of mine.  Blue collar running gets the respect on forums, but white collar gets the medals. 


I'm not really complaining.  I kind of enjoy the minimalist, grungy running lifestyle.  If running is my major pursuit though, I'd like to accomplish more.  That is what I'd really like to figure out.


So, I haven't earned a collar yet.  I train and race hard and occasionally have a small breakthrough.  I also don't work that hard at anything else.  My wife is a genius and will always be able to cover for the fact that I bring very little to the table financially or otherwise.  Training hard saps my will to do much else, it always has, that's why it took me 5 years to get a mostly useless college degree.  I'm not sure if I'm in pursuit of a particular collar color, or if there is a need for one at all.  I mean, I'm wearing a permanently stinky race t-shirt right now.  The collar is kind of a gross brownish-yellow.

upper/downer

I obviously just discovered instamatic
 

This kind of looks like a frame from the Zapruder film

So now that my face is down to a manageable size, I'm back out on da streetz.  Unfortunately those streetz are covered in snow and it's colder here than I have experienced previously. EVER.  I have a wool neck gaiter that I pull over my face when it's cold enough.  The thing froze solid on Saturday.  Trish just told me that the Metrodome is open in the evenings to run laps.  I think I should do that, mostly because I want to go in there before they blow it up.  Apparently it's more economical to have four separate arenas all over the place for your sports teams instead of having all of them in one huge, central location with a nice big roof on top.  I'm sure this was all negotiated by the likes of our past and present political all-stars such as - Jesse Ventura, Al Franken and Michelle
Bachman. 

What is going on in this freaking place? Has our cerebrospinal fluid frozen from living here?

Ok, I'm getting somewhat off-topic here.  Have I mentioned that I have a B.A. in Print Journalism? 

So, without anyone to tell me not to, I've signed up to run the US Cross Country Championships next month in St. Louis.  I usually have pretty good luck racing shortly after marathons, so why not push my luck?  The only downside is the recovery time I've had to endure from toothmaggedon and the meds I had to take to keep my face from getting more infected. I'm completely convinced the anti-inflammatories I took kept my quads from healing up quickly enough, but, 9 days later, I'm pretty sure I'm back to fighting condition.  If I can get a few decent workouts in and not get stabbed here in the 'hood, I think I'll be ready to go.

The real plan is to see if I can sneak in the top 10 or 15 (who knows?) and maybe get to go to NACAC.  Nobody seems to want to go to that race, but I DO.  I'm also banking on not a lot of people doing XC, since it's an Olympic year and everyone is afraid to do any sort of race without at least 8 months to recover. 

The Olympic Trials

Full disclosure:  I am currently high as crap on Vicodin.  I'll explain that at the end.

So - I wandered down to the start a little early and decided to go outside to warm up, which was nice because nobody else was out there.  I happened to find my parents setting up camp, I'm sure my dad decided they should get there extra early and find the perfect spot.  I was remarkably calm, even though I had no delusions of making the Olympic team, and no serious race plan.  I felt limber, light, quick.  I got back to the staging area and changed shoes, did some drills, and headed down to the start flanked by scores of other hyper skinny white kids with bad haircuts.  After the nervous strides and standing around shivering from nerves more than cold - we jogged to the start, and then, like every other race, they shot a gun (well, Frank Shorter shot a gun) and we all started to run.  I started in the back, but kind of got up into the middle of the pack in the first mile and hung with some of the Hanson's guys, and a few others that I recognized, putting seed times and names together, guessing who I should run with.  I felt like I was jogging along, hoping the first mile to be really slow.  Unfortunately it was a 5:16, so I had started on pace more or less.  8 miles later we were running about the same pace.  At this point I passed my father, who told me to "run my own race".  I never take his running advice.  For some reason I was sure he was right.  I slowed down a little.  The group ahead pulled away.  I would see most of them again.  So I found myself alone.  Just like most of my recent races.  I had a peaceful feeling for several miles.  I'm so used to running alone.  I reached halfway in 1:07:50, much faster than I've gone through a first half of a marathon before.  I still felt smooth and untired.  Shortly thereafter I notice that the runners ahead of me were coming closer.  People were dying off already.  for the next several miles I picking people off.  Many whom I recognized as much faster runners.   This kept me charging along.  I started to feel the first signs of a slowdown at around 19 miles.  I was feeling fine, but my quads were starting to solidify and my IT bands were slowly hardening.   I knew though that I wouldn't bonk.  I knew I'd get there, and I'd still run a decent time.  Even as I slowed, I was still catching runners.  I got back into downtown and through the 26 mile mark and knew that I'd at least run a PR.  A guy came out of nowhere in the last 100 meters or so, but I had no intention of racing anymore.  We looked at each other and congratulated one another on a solid race.  I crossed the line in 2:20:31 getting 56th place.  I walked around and realized this was the least terrible I'd felt after a marathon.  I was encouraged that I'd made another step in figuring out how to run a marathon.  That maybe I'll be able to keep progressing and work my way into faster and more prestigious races.

Later that day my knees swelled up huge.  I hobbled down to the elite hospitality room and grabbed some terrible pizza and a coke.  Halfway through the can of coke my back tooth started aching.  This happens to me all the time since I haven't had dental insurance or much money since I was a dependent.  This time it didn't just go away after a few minutes.  I didn't sleep more than an hour or so that night.  Sunday was a long day.  I wasn't able to eat anything either.  I was so tired.  The pain became excruciating. Finally this morning I got to an ER (everything else was closed for MLK day) and got some antibiotics and some pretty potent pain relievers.  All I can think about now is getting out and training.  The Vicodin is only helping a little bit, and I was able to suck down some soup.  All I want to do is get out and run.  The high temp tomorrow is 9 degrees and I can hardly speak from the pain killers, all I want to do is get out and run - just to move and let everything else sit still.

Obligatory pre-olympic trials blog post

I'm not going to get too saccharin-pollyanna with this post, but everyone seems to be bloggin' about the trials race coming up, and I can't help but jump off the bridge right after them.

It is nice to realize that other runners (faster ones, too) suffer the same psycho-physio-bizzaro thing that I do when in the waning stage of marathon training.  People get so introspective, and their true nature comes out in online rambling.  Kind of like this.

So.

The training is going great/My coach thinks I'm in the best shape ever/I'm wishing everyone out there the best

Actually,

my training is ok - I'm probably much more rested than usual before a marathon/ I am my coach, and I've probably been in better shape before, but maybe overtrained/ I hope everyone else out there does terrible so I can go to the olympics.  I mean really, we can't all have the best race of our lives. 

In summation - I AM excited about this race.  I DO want to run very fast and place very high.  Right now though, I have succumbed the taper-doldrums.  Luckily the race is only a few days away, and nothing that is going on now will matter Saturday morning.

So, chapeau! to everyone running the trials race.  It's taken a lot of work and self-control to get here for most of us.  Be proud of that.

Truncated Training

I've been challenged as a self-coached runner (not by choice, being self coached - that is) by my recent training situation.  I ran two half-marathons in less than a week, the latter one coming about five weeks before the Olympic Trials marathon.  Deciding how to walk the tightrope between trying to do too much and not getting in the best shape possible has been the dilemma.  I think I've done it well though, but of course, the only way to find out is to run the race.  That happens in about two and a half weeks.

I've been hitting between 80-90 miles a week in 6 day weeks, which is lower than usual, but I am getting in the same runs, just taking afternoons off and letting my parts heal up.  I've done a few long fartleks and a nice 24 miler starting slow and then hitting around 5:30s for the middle ten miles or so.  I think I'll be prepared and relaxed going into the race.  My number one goal is running a respectable PR.  I'd really like to get under 2:18.  2:17:xx just looks faster, plus it will give me a little confidence going into the next trials when the standards look like they'll get dropped again.  The second goal is making the olympic team.  You have to have things prioritized you know.  (this is sarcasm for anyone going straight to LetsRun after reading this)

Lets watch this video to get pumped up:



Watch more videos on Flotrack

Manning Up -or- Surprising Oneself

The last week has been totally nuts.

I went to Vegas for the RnR half there last Sunday (12/4).  The race was a complete and total disaster.  The course and wind sucked.  The race organization and information sucked.  And I ran poorly and like a wuss.  Getting to the start was an adventure in itself, but we made it there, and eventually found the VIP area to get our mess together and get ready to race.  Once the thing finally started, I went out way too fast.  The leaders went out super hard and the 1:05 guys went out super safe.  I was alone and there were 44,000 people in the race.  I had planned to have lots of dudes to race with.  Anyway, I managed to ease back the right amount and keep on the right pace until about 10 miles.  At that point the course kicked uphill, albeit slightly and a stiff wind (it FELT stiff) hit us in the face.  All I needed to do was to run my last 5k in 15:30, but I couldn't.  I started vomiting with about a mile to go, and really let fly in the last couple minutes.  At the line I just dejectedly walked across, dry heaving at this point.  I had a decent time in Vegas after that.  I lost an entire $1.76 on slots and helped my friends stage a fake wedding that freaked a lot of people out on Facebook. 

When I got home though, I still felt like I had unfinished business.  I knew I could run much faster, and should have at Vegas.  I began to scour the internet for races, knowing that I had another weekend to get in.  I found a small half in Point Clear, Alabama, (on 12/10) which is where my wife's brother and his wife live.  Jackpot.  Flat course, good weather, cheap entry fee, free lodging.  I took most of the week off or easy and hopped right back on a plane to give it another go.

The Holiday Half Marathon is conducted by the Port City Pacers out of Mobile.  They put on the Azalea Trail Run, so they know their stuff, and the course is certified.  I took out on pace from the gun, running alone as usual.  I was hovering between 4:56 and 5:00 pace most of the way, at least letting myself stay close.  I hit 10 miles in 49:45 and decided that I wanted it THAT bad.  I gave every little bit I had and got to the line in 1:04:58, winning by seven and a half minutes and getting my OTQ finally. 

Now my plan is to decide how to train for this OT race.  I was doing high mileage a while ago and had tapered slightly for Vegas, and have now had a really low week of recovery.  I suppose I'll keep mileage low and make sure to get in solid long runs the next couple weeks.  As far as the OT race - I'm very happy just to get in, but I want to do well there.  I plan to go out slow and try to negative split, hopefully picking off a lot of guys along the way.  I think a good placing there would help get me a little pub, and help me to continue to train and race and not grow all the way up.

Changes, bro. Changes.

I took another crack at a trials qualifier last Sunday.  I ran 1:05:14 to win, but obviously missed the standard.  It wasn't actually as close as it looked. Here's the thrilling recap:

It was kind of cold at the start.  I decided to be extra fashionable by wearing my awesome Saucony AMPPRO half tights as well as my disgusting looking stained white compression socks.  Luckily it warmed up enough before the start that I didn't need my bright green and purple armwarmers.  So anyway, I'm standing there on the line, trying to figure out my primary goals here.  I want to run a trials time, but this course is hard.  I also want to win the race and get the cash money.  I glanced up to a monitor positioned above the line.  It was flashing people's names randomly (MAYBE NOT!!!) and I saw Ricky Flynn, 24, Lynchburg.  This happened about 5 seconds before the gun.  Immediately I was elated that a 1:04:15 guy was going to be there to race.  Then my true human nature came through as I was worried I'd lose a fair amount of money when he dropped me, but I might hang on for a fast time.  So we started out on pace, 4:56 through the first mile.  I kind of zoned out and missed the signs for mile 2 and 3, but realized at mile 4 at 20:04 we were way off.  I decided I need to sack up.  I hit 5 miles in 24:56, and was nearly back on pace.  In the process I built a good lead.  All of the hills on the course were from mile 2-8, so I need to keep it close.  I managed to dance around 5:00 pace hitting 9 in 45:00, 10 in 50:00 and 11 in 55:00.  I could not put the hammer down.  As I hit 12 in 60:00:00, I decided I would do everything possible to drop a 4:30 to get it.  I ran 4:44 instead.  A legit course, a good time, but not good enough.

Oh yeah, two days later I drove a U-Haul to Minneapolis, which is where I live now.  Trish got a job at UMN as a resident genius.  So I'm back to training all alone.  It's kind of sad, knowing how long it takes me to make friends, and how much I improved just from being around a group. I'll see what I can find around here, and see if I can learn how to run on a treadmill.

The Bankofamericachicagomarathon

Well, it's been about a week since the Chicago Marathon.  And I'll blog (verb form) the highlights so you have to wait until the thrilling conclusion - if you didn't already know how it went.

so-

Thanks to the TAF travel fund, I got a room at the Hyatt, only about half a mile from the start line.  That was a very good idea.  I got up at around 5:00 (as opposed to like 3:45 last year) and had a leisurely ProBar and coffee breakfast.  Then I lubed up my boy parts and headed out the door.  I finally found the Elite Development tent and dropped off my stuff and it was about time to go.  I ran into Tim Surface at the line, and started with him and a few other folks I kind of knew.  It kind of kept the nerves at bay.  So the gun sounded and we took off.  Hope Solo had a head start and held us off for nearly a quarter mile.  after a while we formed our little sort-of-elite pack with the lead women, and were clicking off 5:15-5:18 from the gun.  Unfortunately our actual pacer took off like a maniac, and the guys that went with him all died a horrible death later.  We were solid through the half, feeling like I was out for a nice tempo run, and right on pace at 1:09:2something. At around 15 the lead female (Liliya Shobukhova) picked it up a little, and we all went along.  Everything is still going great here.  at about 20 I realized we were still under pace and I was still feeling fine.  THIS IS GREAT. at about 22 I was started to feel crappy, but it wasn't really a problem.  At 23 I hit the wall hard.  Suddenly my legs were heavy and I couldn't see straight.  I kept blinking and shaking my head.  I felt like I had been in a centrifuge.  I was crying out from within "don't do it!"  "you're too close"  but shortly thereafter I accepted my fate.  My body had given up even though I had told it not to.  Other bodily functions to a backseat to maintaining consciousness, as I weaved down the street.  For some reason, in the last half mile, I couldn't hear anything.  I got to the line in 2:21:50.  Roughly on 2:19 pace for 24 miles.  At the finish I stood ghost faced (I saw the pictures) and defeated.  The medical personnel kept asking me if I was ok.  I kept trying to tell them I was as fine as you could be or something more smart-assy, but I could only get out the first word of a sentence I had put together in my mind "yeah, yeah, yeah" I kept saying over and over.  I got a little scared, but a minute or so after the finish I was at least with it again.  By the time I got out of the finish chute (the thing is at least half a mile long) I was pretty much ok.

So where do we go from here?

I guess the plan is to get a sub 65 half in ASAP.  As it stands, 8 days later, I'm pretty much back to normal training.  It's hard to get over being that close and losing it, and then finishing 3 minutes of pace, but luckily as a true American, I have a very short memory and a desire to go out and make my dreams come true - no matter how pointless they are.  This is kind of depressing, but seriously, the race sucked and I'm not going to force myself to look on the bright side.  I'm going to go out and try to rip a fast half and forget about it.  You're only as good (or bad) as your last race.

I'm tapering for a marathon.  I hate tapering very much.  For some reason things start hurting when you go from 135 miles a week to 120 miles, to 100, to 85.  Average intelligence might guide you to think this would make a runner feel awesome.  My shin splints and twingy hamstrings are evidence to the contrary.

I feel slightly better, having gotten my entry info for Chicago in the mail the other day.  I'm bib no. 62 if anyone's following it online or watching on TV.  I probably won't be too noticeable in a black singlet and grey shorts (yes, I picked out my race wardrobe already). 

The real taper obstacle is probably coming this week.  In my experiment of one, (SCIENCE!) I've noticed that the last two weeks are as follows:


2 weeks out: excitement, nervousness, slight training related pains that cause mild anxiety
1 week out: lethargy, depression

Perhaps I give the marathon too much credit.  Maybe I give it more of lofty training goal position than it deserves.  If I happen to pull one off without a monumental collapse at the end I will gladly come back to my blog and gloat about it.

If you happen to be in the Chicagoland area, stop by and see the race.  If you're a runner and desperately seeking a place to stay the night before the race, let me know - I can hook you up - no money involved, only running related items for barter.  I keep it old school.

My last race before Chicago was the Magnificent Mile in downtown Raleigh. 

I was actually pretty nervous for this one.  I realized I hadn't really raced a mile in about 4 years, and I hadn't done a second of speed training.  But greed and convenience got the best of me (I live a mile away from the start, and the prize money was good for a small race) and I toed the line.  There was a pretty big elite field, so I wasn't sure what was going to happen.  At the gun, we went out really slow, and I was confused.  I didn't push it though, because I knew I stood the best chance off of a really slow pace.  We hit the 400 in 70 seconds, really slow.  Then a few legit contenders moved up to the front and I snuck up with them.  We came through 800 in 2:13, back to a 63.  Then, for some reason, we slowed back down again and hit the 1200 in 3:21, dropping a 68.  By now it was down to me and Devin Swann for the win.  I knew we have both been training for longer races, but I wasn't sure who would have the best finish.  I started to move hard right at the 1200 mark, but then I realized I didn't have that long of a surge in my legs.  I backed back down until about 100-150 from the line and threw in what I had left.  Luckily it was enough and I won the thing in somewhere around 4:20 (this chip timing system is notorious for adding seconds)  So I at least closed in under 60.  the course had 6 90 degree turns, so I'll take the time and not complain too much.

Now I'm about two weeks out from the marathon and feeling good about my chances.  I've toyed with a lot of race plans, but I'm not much of a risk-taker, and I really don't want to risk much in a marathon.  So my race plan is to run a 5:18 mile 26.2 times.  I'd thought about going out slow and hammering the last half, but I just don't trust my body to handle that.  Hopefully I can cruise through 23 or so miles at pace and then step it down the last few, or at least grind it out and stay on pace for at least 2:18:59. 

Unsolicited Advice

 I've been inspired by people with good blogs to try to make mine good as well.  I don't expect to succeed, but I'm an expert at trying anyway - (post-collegiate distance runner).

I seem to only update when I've run a race.  Some people are interested in what I do other that race.  I foresee bored readers - but will tell you stuff.  How about a training week!

Monday - a.m. 14 miles - p.m. 7 miles
Tuesday - a.m. 12 miles - p.m. 8 miles
Wednesday - 8x80sec. hills then 15 miles (total of 20 miles)
Thursday - a.m. 12 miles - p.m 6 miles
Friday - a.m. 14 miles
Saturday - 24 miles (last 4 under marathon pace)
Sunday - 13 miles

I'm pretty sure that's what I did last week.  I've been told my training is way to vague.  Well fine.  I do not disagree - but go run a marathon and tell me how easy that is to micromanage.  You have to be in shape to run for a freaking long time and be bored as crap most of the way.  I'm good at being bored and being boring.  Let's change the subject....


I'm going to plug for a race I just ran.  I hope to make a sound argument.

So - the Chicago Marathon takes place this year on Oct. 9.  The Charleston Distance Run 15 miler happened on Sept. 3.  Many reputable marathon training plans recommend a half-marathon race 4-6 weeks prior to your intended marathon.  The race in Charleston falls very much within that timeframe and also offers a few unique training and marathon preparation opportunities.

• A distance that is slightly longer than a half-marathon.  It is my experience that more is almost always better when it comes to marathon training.  You aren't going to find many races between marathon and half marathon, so 15 miles at or under marathon pace is a good plan and indicator of your fitness.
• a mostly flat course.  probably half of the course is completely flat.  The Chicago course is 100% flat.  The last 6 miles of CDR is through a mostly crowdless, flat, boring part of town.  Chicago is the same way.  There are a lot of similarities, plus Chicago can get hot toward the end, so can CDR.
• The parts of the course that are not flat are SUPER hilly.  This offers you the added training benefit of running up hills, working on strength and economy.

So there's the plug.  I didn't get a huge payout or the star treatment for running or winning the race, I just think the course and timing is a great pre-Chicago test.

Yesterday I ran the Charleston Distance Run in Charleston, WV. It went like this:

I woke up in the morning with my hip feeling tight after sitting in a funny position during the car ride up from Raleigh. I slapped some KT tape on it, and it seemed to help. I stepped outside in my shorty shorts and goofy socks and was immediately met with mid-July morning humidity. It's been really nice in Raleigh the last couple of weeks. I really didn't want to deal with this. We drove down to the state capitol building (near the top of my list of cool looking state capitals, second only to the great green dome of KS) near the Kanawah river. They started us out and a group of probably 4 guys took to the lead. My plan (not considering the plan of anyone else) was to run 5:19s most of the way and then speed up the last few miles. Arrogantly I didn't actively seek out a course map, someone had told me it was mostly flat with one big hill early in the race, so I went with that. We went out dropping 5:12 then 5:00. A Kenyan started pushing the pace, and I was happy to lurk, planning to let him run as hard as wanted, then jump him when he got tired. He got tired when we started to head up the "Capital Punishment" hill. I didn't think it was really that bad. We went so slow that it didn't take much out of me. At the top of the hill, we turned into some steep switchbacky hills. It was a really pretty area. My only real trouble came as we came back down the steep hills. I was feeling the hills from last week as I stumbled down them behind Bryan Morseman (2:2o marathoner) Luckily by 8 miles we were back on level ground. I pushed a little in an effort to get back on pace, I clicked off a few around 5:10 and got a big lead and managed to hold it to the line.

I've had a couple of really good races the last couple of weeks.

First, I had the chance to run at the Edmonton Marathon in Canada. We were supposed to run on a USA team against a Canada team, but apparently that didn't materialize. Whatever...I got to run in a USA uniform, so I'm happy. The race itself went very well too, as I placed third overall in 1:05:26. A big PR. I had a lot of crazy travel the day before with flights getting cancelled, but somehow things came together.

This weekend I headed out to Laurel Springs, NC for the U.S. 10k trail championship race. Bobby won it last year, so I thought I'd go out and try to pick up a few bucks. The course was one of the hardest things I've ever run on. you can check it out at www.continentaldividetrailrace.com. Somehow I wound up right behind Ryan Woods on the last climb (it was an actual climb, using hands) and then I had an open shot to out kick him to the finish. It's pretty cool to have won a National Championship - even if it is a relatively obscure type of race. There were some serious trail types there, and it was a tough, tough fight. I'm kind of in a hurry, so I think I'll edit this post later and add in some more interesting info.

I ran my last race of the "season"...hopefully...this weekend. This was the NCUSATF 5k championship race at the Beat the Heat 5k in Winston-Salem. I have to say, for a reasonably small race, this was one of the best organized and all-around awesome little races I've ever run. Mostly because of all the post-race food and free beer. W-S is Bobby's hometown, and he was there to defend his title and shoot for the course record bonus. For some reason they provided us with a rabbit - W-S native Jack Anderson, who runs at William and Mary. The plan was to take Bobby through the mile in 4:30, and my plan was to hang on for dear life. The first quarter mile or so was mostly uphill, and then took a pretty quick nose dive to the mile mark. We hit it in exactly 4:30. I wasn't feeling great, but I felt better than I thought I would. The second mile was almost entirely uphill, and Bobby pushed pretty hard to try to stay on pace, I faded quite a bit, and hit 2 miles in 9:20. Luckily the last probably half mile was an smooth downhill, and I was able to at least press my pace back down some into the finish. I was second to Bobby in 14:37, and he got the course record in 14:14. Devin from RRO was next in 14:58, and luckly (for me, not him) Ryan Woods from Boone did something to his calf and didn't finish - though he was coming pretty hard in the last mile. The next race I plan on doing is the state and national championship for 10k trail race in Laurel Springs at the end of August. It should be fun as long as I don't break my ankle or anything. I'm sure I'll also learn a lesson or two about what it takes to race on trails.

Peachtree was yesterday morning.

I didn't run very well.

I was kind of out of it from the beginning. I'm not sure exactly why I ran poorly, and honestly it's kind of getting exhausting trying to find a reason (excuse) for not doing well. Everybody is quick to come up with good reasons for why things were bad. The weather was bad, the course was hilly, something hurt, training has been less than ideal, blah, blah. Some of those things might have been the problem, but I just didn't compete, and wasn't willing to hurt enough. There's of course a bright side - realizing that I really don't belong (and can't) with runners of that caliber keeps my ever-swaying ego in check for the time being. Keeping that balance between useful confidence and baneful arrogance is good. Now that I'm feeling mostly uninjured, I can do some more serious training and rely on that to try to do something worthwhile in the fall. This sport, I tell ya - It makes you crazy.