It's all about Pace

Just Run

2012-02-09T10:15:00.000-05:00

It's a day at the beach

2012-02-06T16:06:00.002-05:00

This weekend we started a taper…

I'm not a big taper fan but…. Well you see Judi has a coach

This race that we have signed up for http://geminiadventures.com/new/?page_id=130 is long… basically a weeklong journey of Ultramarathons… Judi ~~has~~ had never even run an ultramarathon

I am not very scientific in my approach to training.

My philosophy is:

1. Trash your legs

2. Go easy to recover

3. Repeat

While I can live with wearing myself down to a nub… doing that to the one I love is not recommended

So we got her a coach… and well.. like all good coaches she interviewed Judi and asked about her race schedule. We had the Ironhorse 50 miler down on 19 February… well… sickness and injury in December stole our confidence and well.. we never got around to signing up… the race is now full and we are not in.. the training schedule Judi has is busy preparing her for the 50 miler.

We have had a very good January… and are in pretty good shape… and now Judi finds herself in Taper mode for a 50 miler we are not going to do.

I have a plan for how to handle this situation… more on that at a later date.

Back to this weekend.

Taper = 3ish hours. As both of my blog readers knows… I like to run in different and interesting places. A quick check of the Weather… another to the tide table… a measurement from gmaps and we had a plan.

Straight down the beach from the public parking at 16^th Ave South in Jax beach to Mickler's landing in Ponte Vedra was a 16 mile round trip.

Low tide was at 1118 so we got started around 9.

It's funny… that although I did not think of this at the time I planned the route this was the exact spot where we started our first ever run together almost two years ago.

About mile 2 I got a call about the bike I had listed on craigslist… it would sell in the afternoon.

It was a beautiful sunny February day on the beach…

When I would fall too far behind Judi would slow down and encourage me to catch back up.

It was hot tho… and while we negative split the run by a good bit I was feeling kinda wiped out at the end. I did not really expect to need to worry about electrolyte replacement on a 16 mile run in February. I was pretty well overheated by the time we finished.

I even got out in the water for a bit.

We got in a quick stretch

Sunday was a 90 minute run… 9.3 miles for me… another negative split run with 10s on the way out and 8:45s on the way back.

We had our own little Super Bowl party… for our dessert we made chocolate covered peanut butter chocolate chip cookie dough footballs

Touchdown!

Totals January 2012

2012-02-01T11:59:00.003-05:00

Run: 184 miles

Bike: 175 miles

Swim: 0

Strength/core: 370 minutes

Total # of workouts = 50

Run mileage is back up to where it needs to be.

I have a profound lack of speed… due to the lack of speedwork

But (pun as always intended)

Most importantly my glutes/back/hammies are better…

Adventure

2012-01-31T14:38:00.000-05:00

Another weekend another adventure…

This past weekend our adventure was to run the length of the Guana River Wildlife Management area

A meandering dirt road trek of 10.5ish miles…. Then run back… 21 miles total

Ya know a good thing about winter is that we her in the south do not have to get up at the buttcrack of dawn to train like we do in the summer…

We can sleep in a bit… and then enjoy almost perfect training weather

Saturday was no different.

The Northern entrance of the park was closed due to hunting season

We did not give up, however, and drove to the south entrance to the park.

We parked… took a quick photo… okay we took three pictures and this was the *least* goofy looking one

We were not at the height of photogenicity at 0900

We started shuffling up the road into the preserve anyway. About a mile later we came upon the ranger to whom all hunters were to report… and although we were unarmed… un trucked and un camouflaged… we still checked in.

Now at this point in the story I should explain… I wanted to take pictures of the hunters and of this ranger… only I have a rule… never shoot at anyone who is armed… even with a camera…. Lest I get shot at too

This ranger who looked for all the world like Slim Pickens and sounded a little like him too gave us passage but warned us sternly to stay on the road and out of the woods… He said it like 3 times… and while I enjoyed his drawl… once and a shotgun in a zipper case behind him were all the warning I needed.

A couple of bends in the road later we heard a smattering of gunfire… a mile or so further along we saw a few shells.

Not too much further along we saw some of the brave and hearty hunters… a pickup going 5 MPH with two fellas sitting in folding chairs in the back… and steely gazes… ready to gun down any rabbits or squirrels who got out of line… or better put who got in the line of fire.

I sure did want to take their picture but rules is rules

Being a long day out there… Judi fielded a few calls

In a bit over four hours we trekked 21 miles… mostly slow running… at times at a fast walk… at other times just walking.

We did see a dozen or so hunters… all of whom looked a bit displeased with us for invading their kill zone.

An absolutely fabulous day to be outside

And what do you buy your favorite little runner after a really long run?

That's right… a really big beer.

Oh yeah! I got one too… complete with wino bag

We followed up Saturday with a nice negative split 9 miler on Sunday.

I'm feeling like we are on track.

11 random things

2012-01-26T15:27:00.000-05:00

So… Peter over @ My Boring Triathlon Blog http://petertakeda.blogspot.com/

Tagged me on the 11 things

Yay! and Thanks!

I think I'm the last one to do it…

Here are the rules:

1. Post these rules

2. You must post 11 random things about yourself

3. Answer the questions set for you in their post

4. Create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer

I think everyone has done this now…

5. Go to their blog and tell them you've tagged them

6. No stuff in the tagging section about you are tagged if you are reading this. You legitimately have to tag 11 people!

11 random things about me:

1. I have had sole custody of my kids (now 18 and 16) for the past 10 years

2. I smoked for 10 years

3. Dipped Skoal for 15… Quitting Skoal was the hardest thing I've ever done

4. I have been a triathlete since 1997… I am still one of the slowest swimmers in every race I do…

5. I love peanut butter

6. I never cuss in front of my kids but do like a sailor around my friends

7. Was in the National Guard for 13 years. I quit when I got my kids full time. I had just made Captain.

8. I am a rule follower and have great respect for authority (yet I'm still not going to follow all the rules of this tagging J)

9. I competed as a "Clydesdale" for the first 10 years I did Triathlon. I'm nowhere near that weight now.

10. I am a chocoholic (my desk drawer @ work)

11. I do PT on myself in my office almost daily

11 questions for you to answer:

1. Why and how did you get into triathlons?

I wanted to do one since I seeing Thomas Magnum compete in Magnum, PI back in the 70s. I entered a Sprint Triathlon… did no swim training, bought a bike the day before the race… and had a blast.

2. Dark or white meat?

When it comes to turkey… Dark

3. Beer, wine or liquor?

Wine – Red Zin and blends are my favorites

4. Where did you grow up?

Chattahoochee, FL – home of the state mental institution

5. TT or road bike?

I have one of each. I rode the TT bike on the trainer this morning

6. Favorite vacation?

This one:

http://trizzlefoshizzle.blogspot.com/

I took my kids on a road trip to D.C., Philly, and NYC

7. What do you do now that your parents did (and hated) when you were growing up?

Correct my children's grammar

8. Your favorite sport (not including swimming, biking or running)?

Ultimate Frisbee

9. How many days per week do you spend on Slowtwitch?

10. How long ago was it since you've been hammered (drunk)?

A couple of years

11. $20,000. What would you buy with it?

A new car for my youngest kid…

The long road home

2012-01-25T11:14:00.000-05:00

When we last left our hero and heroine they were quite chippy…

17 miles into their 50k… whistling and having a jolly old time.

Miles 17-24 included a bit more walking… Judi was having some back issues… my "hot spot" was now two blisters on the outside of my left foot.

Remember that shoe on my table?

Yep… new Sauconys… I'd decided to not wear them because while comfortable for running… they are new and not quite so comfortable to walk in… instead I pulled out some 2 year old shoes that I've done literally over 1500 miles in… and these shoes are broken down… you guessed it… on the left side of the left shoe.

Check out the heel… or lack thereof on the left shoe. This caused my foot to roll out a bit more than usual and… blister.

Really… I could run better than I could walk… and would sometimes run ahead of Judi… then stand on one foot until she caught up…

Somewhere along here we passed the marathon distance

The last 7 miles was an exercise in us asking ourselves… as well as asking each other… "What are we doing out here?" "What is it we are trying to prove?"

I realized at some point that our Garmins were set up to auto pause if we were going slower than a 20 minute mile pace… which we were at times.

And I'm just the kind of nerd to stop and fix that so I could get data from a 20:42 mile we clocked…

We did finish… and learned a bit about ourselves… what to do… and what not to do… and most of all gained mental toughness that only 6 plus hours of forward motion brings….

I'll leave you with a nice picture of my blisters on my ugly foot

A Kinda Perfect Day for a 50K

2012-01-24T16:18:00.002-05:00

Judi and Michael's 2012 Rails to Trails 50k

In order to be fully prepared for RATS I think that we need to do a few ultras… Especially seeing as how Judi has never done an ultra… has done but one Marathon and RATS is, by design, a series of four ultras in 6 days.

I wanted to do the first one in January… and since the Jetty to Jetty race I'd used to prepare in 2010 has been moved to May… and the fact that we could not find a 50k nearby in January… we decided to do our own… we even invited all of you..

http://allaboutpace.blogspot.com/2011/11/judi-and-michaels-rails-to-trails-50k.html

alas.. we were the only ones who showed.

I woke Jimmy up to see if he was interested…

It was far too early for our lazy dog…

We packed our packs

Yep… that's a running shoe on my kitchen table… and the precise shoe I *should* have worn (more on that later

We arrived at the trailhead just before dawn and headed out on the long out and back.

The trail is ~14.7 miles end to end. Since Judi had been having knee issues during long runs recently our tentative plans were as follows in an excerpt from an email I sent Judi on Friday

We run the first 9 miles ~1.5 hours together then do one of the following based on how you feel.
Option A:
Judi feels strong and want to keep running:
We finish running the 3.5 hours~ 18 miles… turning at the train station (12.5 miles) Then walk it in (7 miles)
Option B:
You are not feeling great separate at mile 9
Judi: out to train station and back = 7 miles = walk @ 15 mpm pace 105 minutes
Me: to end and back = 11 miles = run @10 mpm pace 110 minutes….

Will be hot on your heels by the time we get back to the 9 sign. We can then run/walk to the finish based on what we have left in the tank

So off we went packs on our backs in absolutely no hurry.

Until mile six… where my colon knew there was a restroom…By the time we got there I was in sphincter squeezin' penguin waddle mode but I made it…. Only to find that the door. Was. Locked.

All of the water was turned off too.. off to the woods..

Once back on the trail… less than a quarter mile along… two port-o-lets

GRRR!!!!

Okay… quickly put that ahem… behind me

The next 6 miles were just nice and steady…

we walked a few times to stretch and eat but in general just moseyed on

When we reached the train station at mile ~12.6 we found their restrooms open…

Here I am waiting on a woman

Here we had our first big ~~mistake~~ decision for the day. Our exchange went something like this:

Me: How do you feel baby?

Judi: fine

Me: do you want to turn around now?

Judi: no I want to keep going to the end.

Me: okay

Judi: How are you?

Me: I feel good… I have a hot spot

Judi: keep running you perv…

Me: no… I mean yes… I mean…

Judi: what?

Me: I have a hot spot on my foot

Judi: what does that mean

Me: it means my shoe is rubbing my foot in such a way that I may have a blister later

Judi: oh… are you going to be okay?

Me: yeah… I'll be fine.

So on we go. The miles are marked both by posts and markings on the road. We got a picture to send our friend Mark at the 14.5 mile marker since he was supposed to meet up with us and run part of the course.

He never did show… I think he went to yoga… and listened to his Coldplay albums instead.

On the way back we had another chat.

Judi: a 50k is 31 miles right?

Me: yes

Judi: so if we just run 2 more miles we will have an ultra

Me: yes

Judi: it would be a shame to be that close

Me: well… if you want to do it just say so

Judi: do it? Why do you always go there you perv?

Me: no… I mean yes… I mean… you went there.. I was..

Judi: what?

Me: so you want to do the whole 50k?

Judi: yes… it is what I have in my brain

Me: okay

At the next mile marker we came to we did a one-eighty… and went back a mile. And then there we stood… at the Mile 14 post… with our Garmins reading dead on 17 miles… with 14 miles in almost a straight line back to our car.

To be continued....

Two things I like

2012-01-18T14:19:00.001-05:00

Robert Frost's poetry and running

I've quoted these lines before... both to myself and aloud on many a run

Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening

By: Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Building base and getting better

2012-01-16T16:03:00.001-05:00

Over the weekend we:

Got an indication of how much sitting around over the holidays affected my weight:

186 is not "fighting weight"

BMI of 27… overweight http://www.bmi-calculator.net/

Checked out Mr. Peachy… my youngest daughter’s car… she wrecked it… We are going to try and fix it…

We. Shall. See.

Kendall removing the radiator

Somebody let Jimmy try the wine:

teetoally

On Saturday we did two spin classes and a half hour on the Stairmaster instead of riding outside… Judi has had a cough/cold so we stayed out of the weather.

Between classes

Had dinner with my parents on Saturday night… I am their “Geek squad” so… I fix it so there router needs reconfiguring… and get a free meal. Thanks mom!

Mommy

Gotta keep an eye out when you are making out on your parent’s couch:

Hot date

Oh yeah… running.

We had 16 on tap for Sunday…

Our course looked like this:

Yep.. a long lollipop right along the coast… we started at 0530 and it was pretty cold… 38F or so. Did 17 miles in around 3 hours… the last 4 at about 9:30 pace. I felt great for the first half… but the old Piriformis pain was back for the closing miles… no longer is my pain debilitating but it is still there… I’m definitely getting better while I’m building base… I could not ask for more than that….

That reminds me…. Where is that Lacrosse ball?

Remember lesson Balance

2012-01-14T15:49:00.005-05:00

So... while I would love to just run and ride for an hour each every day... I've come to the conclusion that for the long-term ability to do them at all I must do a few more things to keep my self in balance.

THis stuff is not nearly as fun... and the scenery has a way of not changing...

But doing it I am...

1. Weights has become a featured part of my routine for the first time in a decade or better... and that combined with a little added mobility has brought some strength plateaus that I've thought were all in the past.

2. Im beginning to enjoy and really appreciate stretching... both for the long term affects as well as feeling as if I *need* to stretch after I exercise.

3. But the mobility stuff is the best... massage ball... the stick... the foam roller and the lacrosse ball have enabled me to run without much pain again...

so... three cheers for balance

and as Mr Miyagi says "Balance not only lesson Karate, balance lesson all of life"

I felt like a runner

2012-01-12T15:34:00.000-05:00

With the Piriformis issues I’ve had lately running has been scant… and slow… and painful

I’ve been emphatically told by everyone from my mom to one of my Helpdesk techs “well… stop running!”

But… I don’t think laying off running entirely is going to fix my problem.

As outlined in a post last week… I’m working on some mobility exercises… stretching and deep tissue manipulation…

And… I am better… just a bit. But… I have been working at it…

Working while I’m at work too…

As a manager in a company with offices all over the country I spend an awful lot of time on the phone… conference calls… Webex… etc.

I try to use my time wisely and multitask… lately that has included:

The massage ball:

The stick:

And of course stretching:

After three hours of conference calls yesterday during which I worked in some mobility… My lunchtime run was pretty smooth and not overly painful…

5 9:30s has seldom made me as happy

I know that I have more work ahead of me but… I feel like I’m making a bit of progress.

It didn’t hurt that it was sunny and 72F out there… a bit windy but shirtless in January… I’ll take it.

Doing a standing pigeon… cooling down in the locker room:

Make Yourself

2012-01-10T15:36:00.002-05:00

2012 Focus and Goals

2012-01-05T16:06:00.001-05:00

Things I would like to focus on

1. Suppleness

2. Flexibility

4. Swim for exercise… not to be a fast swimmer or competitive triathlete

5. Bike – find a way to ride outside more… might play into moving and where we move

6. Yoga – make it part of the routine – at least once a week

7. Try to average 5 posts a week… it’s the only life I have… why not chronicle it?

8. Be in shape and ready for Cross season… that means some power and threshold work in the fall when I’m normally a runner and tapering for triathlons

9. Ride that bike trainer… like I have in years past… it’s good training… it’s good base.. and good therapy mental and physical.

10. Read more books

Goals:

1. For Judi and I to both finish RATS

2. Sub 5 at the ACT ½ IM

3. Do the local cross series w/o getting lapped

Stiffness kills

2012-01-03T15:50:00.001-05:00

I got a tip from a friend and multisport coach

Coach Debi – http://ucandoitcoach.com/

Her advice

1. Do you sit a lot in your job?

2. Do you ever stretch/roll, etc. your quads?

3. If you lay on the floor, does your lower back arch up, or can it lay flat without forcing it?

If you answer yes to all of the above? Go to: http://mobilitywod.blogspot.com/ as today they have a great segment that you can use to help floss the hamstring/groin region.

In fact this should be a bookmarked web page for all athletes. He's got some great stuff, and you can learn a ton as you go along.

Well.. On New Year’s Day… Judi had some work to get caught up on… and I’m not a huge football fan… so I spent 3 hours or so researching how-to, experimenting with and eventually purchasing some products to make me more supple.

my Tools:

Tube, lacrosse ball, massage ball

Things I tried:

hip flossing 101: http://www.mobilitywod.com/2011/12/episode-347365-new-anterior-hip-flossing-tweaks.html

I used a 26x2.25 innertube strip ripped up the seam looped and secured to a fence post in the back yard. Looking for all the world like a first rate fool. I really need something longer but even with all of the stops and starts and having too short a band…. When I got it in there… good things happened.

http://www.mobilitywod.com/2011/12/episode-348365-restoring-knee-motion-after-a-tweak.html

- for knee tracking

this was the most surprising… I’ve had knee issues in my right knee for years… I could feel a difference after just a couple of minutes. This one needs to go into the regular rotation.

Superflossing - http://www.mobilitywod.com/2011/12/episode-354365-make-your-own-super-flosshigh-hamstring-hip-gnar-gnar.html

Once again… really good stuff… I’ve done this a few times now… I need to do these before I run.

a little flossing for the "runners knee"

http://www.mobilitywod.com/2011/11/episode-344365-compression-tack-and-floss-the-knee.html

the most painful… scar tissue from where I tore my quad back in March 2011

So... I ordered one of these:

http://www.jumpstretch.com/osc/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=36&products_id=113

the work… and experimentation will continue.

2011 a final look

2012-01-03T15:31:00.001-05:00

The Tally:

Swim -- 112,900 yards

Bike -- 4,539 miles

Run -- 1507 miles

Strength/core -- 78 hours

1. What one word describes your 2011?

Enlightenment

2. What one word comes to mind when you think about 2012?

RATS

3. What was your best fitness, athletic or race performance for the year?

Had to look hard to find something... I guess getting hardware in the one sprint tri I entered

4. What was your biggest disappointment this year (fitness or race version)?

Well I had a DNF, a DFL, and a DNS in three of my biggest tests this year take your pick

5. What are you fitness/race goals for 2012?

Be healthy and fit... not like I am now... I can move in a straight line pretty well but struggle to pick up something off the floor.. that's my main goal for 2012.

2011

2012-01-03T11:44:00.000-05:00

THE YEAR OF…

I could call it the year of failure…

I failed to

1. Finish my 1^st “A” race this year

2. I failed to improve my swimming AT ALL!!!

3. I failed to PR even one race

4. I failed to even start 2 of my “A” races GFT and the Jax Marathon.

5. Came in last by over 30 minutes at an open water swimming race

But upon further reflection… sport does not define me… support me or quantify me… it is my hobby… plain and simple

Instead of the year of failure I think I’ll call it a year of enjoying… the year of exploring… and a year of self-discovery…. A year of awakening and enlightenment.

1. This year Judi and I had 52 weekends of training together… that is precious time and timeless memories. Most weekends it’s more than training it’s some kind of adventure we devise.

Mayport Ferry

2. Judi ran her first marathon

After 20 something miles I'm not very funny

3. We discovered new trails

4. We experienced dozens of sunrises

5. I recovered from an injury that knocked me out from running for almost a month

6. Rode over 120 hilly miles on a hot August day and followed that up with a little run

7. Discovered cyclocross

that's right my kid does cross too

I have learned that my body is not a diesel engine that just needs fuel and ignition… it is much more like a precision automobile.. that need routine maintenance (strength and stretching)

I have become more cognizant of what I put in my body… striving to eat whole live raw food, almost no red meat, drastically reduced the amount of processed food I eat.

As I take a final glance over my shoulder at 2011… and turn to embrace 2012… I whisper to myself…. “yeah… let's go”

Well.... We're in

2011-12-30T15:02:00.001-05:00

I’ll be heading back to Utah this June to run 148 miles on the Kokopelli Trail. This time Judi is coming too.

http://geminiadventures.com/new/?page_id=130

Tallahassee

2011-12-29T21:55:00.000-05:00

Today we visited my old stomping grounds

On the way we stopped at the classiest convenience store in Lake County and got this nice photo op:

Judi had a 3 hour meeting…

And after we planned to ride here:

http://www.dep.state.fl.us/gwt/guide/regions/panhandleeast/trails/tallahassee_stmarks.htm
a nice rail trail from Tallahassee to St Marks on the Gulf coast.

Since I was going to be bored for a few hours Judi conveniently forgot to pack bike shorts…

At 0930 she was off to her meeting and I was off on a shopping mission.

A couple of hours and a few dollars later I had purchased what amounted to be passable attire for her and went off in search of the YMCA.

To say Tallahassee hasn’t changed since I left there 20ish years ago is like saying David Banner is basically the same guy when he gets mad.

Well 20 minutes or so after I set out my blackberry and I found the YMCA.

Ad a nice quick circuit… then back to pick up Judi.

Judi’s new pants… and yes she still has a number on her bike from a ½ IM in Oct (don’t judge) J

And no she does not always ride on her aerobars like that

The trail was nice…

My attempt at artsy

The best part of the ride was the stop in St Marks…

Beer and fries at some dumpy bar and grill…

Our view:

Us:

Just one of the funny posters on the wall:

All finished and cleaned up:

http://www.dep.state.fl.us/gwt/guide/regions/panhandleeast/trails/tallahassee_stmarks.htm

I don't wear their shoes... But I'm a Nike fan

2011-12-28T14:41:00.000-05:00

Grounded

2011-12-27T15:04:00.001-05:00

Not like this:

Or like this:

The Competition

2011-12-22T14:42:00.003-05:00

Anecdotes and/or antidotes welcome

2011-12-20T10:59:00.001-05:00

Over the past week I have been doing a bit of research…

Research that is not in and of itself a pain in the arss but is in fact research on a pain in the arss

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piriformis_syndrome

http://orthopedics.about.com/cs/sprainsstrains/a/piriformis.htm

it seems.. that Judi and I both are suffering with Piriformis syndrome…

It started for Judi about a year ago… and for me 6 months or so ago. When it started I thought it was just normal soreness… a slight hamstring issue due to a change in my running gait.. I just ignored it like I do for most of my aches and pains but… this time it did not just go away

And now…for me it has gotten to the point of debilitation

Running = Pain from my buttcheeks radiating down to my calf in both legs… I can’t generate much power… I have to keep a short stride… and the speed is just not there

Sitting = discomfort in the area as well… I have even contemplated a standing type desk.

And picking stuff up off of the floor… oh, that has been difficult for quite some time now… and makes me feel like an old man

I’ve started doing research/rehab and treatment as I, once again, try and fix up this old body… but all that said..

Anecdotes and/or antidotes welcome…

I’d love to hear some success stories

The Stay at Home Tourists

2011-12-14T16:19:00.001-05:00

this story actually took place almost 2 weeks ago...

Ribault's monument and my Lemond

For most endurance sports is an activity, for many it is a chore… and they call it “Cardio”. The purists, and the “racers” it is training… Serious and regimented.

At times I’m sure that I am all of these… but on the weekends.. we are first and foremost adventurers. We don’t ride the same group ride… or run the same routes each weekend… but at the same time… we are parents of teenagers… have jobs houses dogs etc…

We still find time for adventure… and often find it not too far from home.’

This past weekend was a good example.

We had an hour run and an hour ride on tap for Saturday… So where to go?

We have been meaning to run the trails at the Timucuan Preserve … and since this is the only part of our fair city that has anything close to a hill we decided to do our ride in this area too.

With only two hours of training (marathon taper) we had a rare Saturday when we went about the business of getting up and getting ready in a leisurely way…. Including coffee, breakfast and a bit of a stab at the crossword puzzle in the paper.

But wait… I’m getting a bit ahead of myself… the story actually starts on Friday… We met at lunch for a quick circuit. I decided to do a couple of sets of deep squats… yeah… getting strong and flexible I thought… that’s what I get for thinking.

Delicioso

By the time we built our homemade Pizza for supper I had already started getting a bit sore and when I swung my feet of the side of the bed the next morning it was confirmed… my legs were in a great deal of pain and no amount of movement or stretching was going to help anytime soon.

No matter fresh trails awaited at the Timucuan Preserve.

So we loaded up the bike… put on our trail shoes and headed out.

The trails did not disappoint.. gnarly and rooty, plenty of ups and downs, and scenic views of the marshlands too…

We ran for an hour or so…

Then grabbed our bikes and went for the hilliest bike ride I’ve ever done in Jacksonville, Florida (which is to say that we rode up 4 “hills”)

On our way back to the car I asked if we could go a bit further down the road “just to see where it goes” a mile further on we happened upon a historic site - the Ribault Monument (link for details)

http://www.nps.gov/timu/historyculture/foca_ribaultmonument.htm

pretty cool site, monument and view.

Judi Claims the lands across the marsh as her new kingdom

All in all a fun day… exercise and education

EPA estimate

2011-12-08T16:41:00.001-05:00

November Totals

2011-12-02T09:51:00.001-05:00

Swim: currently disenchanted with swimming... considering retirement

Bike: 967 minutes

Run: 209 mi

Strength/core: 390 minutes

Major run focus until RATS

What is RATS you ask?

http://geminiadventures.com/new/?page_id=130

Finishing the Turkey Day race

4 day weekend

2011-11-28T16:49:00.001-05:00

If Judi knoew how much Peanutbutter Jimmy and I ate while she was in Deleware we would both be in big trouble

Wow!

I think if every weekend was four days long I might just, as my Granny used to say, wear myself down to a nub…

The crew

the ugly shirt

Thursday:

We all did the local Turkey Trot… specifically… I did the Subaru Distance Classic ½ Marathon while my kids, along with my oldest daughter’s boyfriend did the 6K.

I knew that I just didn’t have the speed in my legs that I had last year http://allaboutpace.blogspot.com/2010/11/race-report-outback-12-marathon-2010.html

With that knowledge I had a bit of a hard time motivating myself…. I’d probably have skipped the race had it not been for the kids and the tradition… Since I love them both… my kids and the fact that a couple of teenage girls would want to get up on Thanksgiving morning to go do a race with their old dad… we signed up and got the T-shirt.

Just after the national anthem (man I have a real hard time with folks who mill about while our anthem is being played) I tossed my shirt over a tree branch and started to slip up the line as close to the front as I could get… I didn’t get too far before the cannon boomed…

The race itself was, for me, more like a tempo run… I tried to stay relaxed in the early miles… with the plan being to turn it up a notch and finish strong… which is the exact opposite of the way I tend to race. The plan worked… nice and smooth for the first handful of miles… knocking off 7:4x… funny thing tho…. As I tried to pick up the pace… I began to tire… my head said go 7:30 pace… my legs said 8… we compromised at 7:45.

End result was a 1:42 half… no too bad.

Even passed a guy in one of the ugly race shirts in the final turn.

Looking like a cooked turkey

After the race we drove home and packed the car for our trip to Grandma’s house… our part was Broccoli casserole that I cooked the night before and frying the turkey (yes we fry everything here in the South)

Once packed I hopped on my mountain bike and rode the 16 miles over to their house… my daughter followed later in the car. I had the rare experience of a whole ride with a tailwind and made it there in less than an hour… even with tired legs.

Friday:

Rode 45 or so… about half of which with one of the local groups…

Saturday:

I got to Hannah Park about the time they opened the gate and 2 hours later I had ridden most of the trails there crashed 5 times including one endo! And run 3 miles.

In the woods

At noon we picked up Judi from the airport (the highlight of the weekend)

Sunday: (long run day)

Got a bit of a late start but as Judi put it:

“I have 20 miles in my brain and that’s what I want to do”

in action self portrait

So we ran… From Jax beach… South to Mickler’s landing in St Johns County… back north through Sawgrass… then North for a couple of miles… and finally a quick out and back to even it off at 20. Not pretty but well done. Judi had cramping issues but fought through like a champ.

Monday:

I’m kinda happy to be sitting back at my desk

Would you?

2011-11-22T10:32:00.001-05:00

Judi and Michael's Rails to Trails 50k

2011-11-16T16:16:00.001-05:00

What: Judi and I are going to run the Jax-Baldwin Rails to Trails plus a little extra to make the run 50k

Where: We will Start and finish at the Imeson Road trailhead in Jacksonville, FL

http://www.dep.state.fl.us/gwt/guide/regions/north/trails/jacksonville_baldwin.htm

When: January 21^st 2012 at 0700

How: Basically a self-supported run. There are facilities (restrooms and water fountains) along the way roughly at 6, 12, 14, 18, and 25 miles. You will be responsible for not getting lost and keeping up with your time.

Who: all are welcome. Let us know if you plan to attend

Why: Because it's there... and it's 28.sonething miles round trip... why make it 50k? Well... Judi has yet to do an ultra. We couldn't find one nearby in January so we made up our own.

Notes From the Feild

2011-11-16T11:58:00.001-05:00

1. Started the weekend with a spin class followed by core and stretching before going out to dinner… A good idea but I think that after 15 years of spin classes I’m just getting sick of it… We have bikes in our gym where you can basically give yourself a spin class… I’m liking that option more and more.

2. Reverse Brick last Saturday… 10 mi run @ Steady endurance pace followed by a 35 mi ride. It was a really good idea but for the fact that we did the return leg of the ride into a 25mph headwind….

3. 17 mile run on Sunday… with the last 4 progressively faster

4. I ran with my youngest Monday after work… we just jogged 2.5ish miles and talked… I dig that kid

5. Really bumping up the run mileage this month… over 100 already. Hopefully will pay dividends later.

6. A final thought:

Doing what I love and lovin what I do...

2011-11-08T11:52:00.002-05:00

Yesterday I was reading this post from Big Daddy Diesel…

I know where he’s coming from

http://tridiesel.blogspot.com/2011/11/be-happy.html

and while I do get up… make lunch for my kids… and do the 9-5 M-F corporate grind… it’s just a small part of my life…

the rest is illustrated by this past weekend.

Judi and I got in a nice 7 miler at lunchtime on Friday just to get a jumpstart on the weekend.

Somewhere near Lake Butler, FL

We followed that up with a 3 mile run on the site of our Next Ultramarathon (more to come on that later). We had planned to run 6 but had a challenge or two getting out the door… . then had a planned meet-up with a few of my old work buddies from Winn-Dixie for a 75 mile ride.

The ride was heckawindy… and the forecast of sunny and 72 by noon was way off… it was barely 55 when we finished... but we did and had a good time catching up with some of the old WD IT crew.

Sunday morning we ran 16 in even higher winds than the day before… despite that we nailed our planned pace and felt strong at the end.

Post Sunday morning run

In between all this training we also cooked (and ate) some really good food… watched a couple of good movies, some parenting, and did some mindless chores around the house…

Took the girls out to lunch

And loved every minute of it…

Jimmy did zero training this weekend

Bike race or cult

2011-11-04T11:35:00.000-04:00

As Judi and I headed to the car last night after cross an older gentleman who had been playing tennis stopped to ask us what the ruckus around the park was about. We explained the basics of cyclocross, the course etc… as we were leaving he said “I really was not sure if it was a bike race or a cult”

I assured him that it was probably equal parts of both.

My friend Mark joined us last night as well… I think he had a good time… hopefully he will blog about it… he is much more entertaining than I am.

Mark, Judi, me

It's Simple

2011-11-02T14:26:00.001-04:00

Go Run

2011-10-27T10:41:00.002-04:00

Cross Baby!

2011-10-21T16:19:00.000-04:00

Went out to cross again last night… Great course… much more rideable than last week… I still went down 3 times… once pretty hard on the paved path thru the park.

And to answer some questions from last week… yes Mountain bikes are allowed but… all obstacles must be dismounted for.

The coolest thing about this week is that my kid wanted to give it a try… Judi gave up her bike… and basically her whole setup.

My baby girl did us proud tho… she kept at it for the entire hour.

She did, however, pass out exhausted as soon as we got in the car.

Man this sport is fun!

Closer

2011-10-18T11:29:00.002-04:00

It is a wonderful life....

2011-10-17T14:44:00.003-04:00

CX

2011-10-14T14:39:00.002-04:00

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cyclo-cross (sometimes cyclocross, CX, CCX, cyclo-X or 'cross') is a form of bicycle racing. Races typically take place in the autumn and winter, and consists of many laps of a short (2.5–3.5 km or 1.5–2 mile) course featuring pavement, wooded trails, grass, steep hills and obstacles requiring the rider to quickly dismount, carry the bike whilst navigating the obstruction and remount

The above is a pretty good definition… but they left out MUD

I have a few friends that do cross in other parts of the country… they keep telling me how fun it is… so… when I heard that a cross series was being organized in my hometown… I decided that I had to try it…

And since I was so excited about it…. Judi decided to give it a whirl too… being the little honey badger that she is.

Well we got there… had a beer… got signed up.. ($15 each) pinned on a #... then rode a loop of the course.

It was basically the cycling version of a goofy golf course

Not the actual course (of course)

Got a little muddy… broke a sweat… we were ready to start.

We seeded ourselves towards the back and without fanfare the RD shouted GO!

And here’s how it went…

PedalPedalPedal…turndon’tfall PedalPedalPedal PedalPedalPedalMUD PedalPedalPedal FlashSplashGurgleWhatTheFu… (I have my first non-pedaling or bike handling thought of the race) that guy just went off the side of the bridge and is now underwater with his bike on top of him

We stop for just a second… I hear the guy thrashing in the water… someone behind us yells “Keep going” so I do…

PedalPedalPedal…turndon’tfall PedalPedalPedal PedalPedalPedalMUD PedalPedalPedal… DismountJumpthe DitchRunupthehill… remount PedalPedalPedal turndon’tfall PedalPedalPedal PedalPedalPedalMUD PedalPedalPedal…

DismountJumptheBarriers remount PedalPedalPedal turndon’tfall PedalPedalPedal PedalPedalPedalMUD PedalPedalPedal… DismountJumptheBarriers remount PedalPedalPedal turndon’tfall PedalPedalPedal PedalPedalPedalMUD PedalPedalPedal… DismountJumptheBarriers remount fishtailthoughtheMUDpit

PedalPedalPedal turndon’tfall PedalPedalPedal PedalPedalPedalMUD PedalPedalPedal… DismountJumptheBarriers remount PedalPedalPedal FlashSplashGurgleWhatTheFu… (I have my second non-pedaling or bike handling thought of the race)

Another guy ran off the bridge hit the far bank and rolled sown into the stream… I didn’t stop this time

PedalPedalPedal… DismountJumptheBarriers remount PedalPedalPedal turndon’tfall PedalPedalPedal PedalPedalPedalMUD PedalPedalPedal… DismountJumptheBarriers remount PedalPedalPedal turndon’tfall PedalPedalPedal PedalPedalPedalMUD PedalPedalPedal… DismountJumptheBarriers remount fishtailthoughtheMUDpit PedalPedalPedal turndon’tfall PedalPedalPedal PedalPedalPedalMUD PedalPedalPedal… DismountJumptheBarriers remount

And so it went… 45 minutes… a blur… no thought of pace… average speed… What lap I was on… where I was in the field… just go go go… and keep me and my bike upright and moving forward.
I went down once… washed out in a corner…

I heard lots of bells but never realized there was a “bell lap”. I stopped when the dude counting laps said “Stop”

Found Judi… then found more beer.

I cannot recall when I have had more fun on a Thursday night… we will definitely be back next week.

Get it!

2011-10-13T13:43:00.001-04:00

Judi's Side of the story

2011-10-12T11:53:00.000-04:00

You often read here my side of the story when Judi and I train and race. Follow the link below to her side of the story about what happened last weekend.

http://thebluebandana.wordpress.com/2011/10/12/the-road-less-travelled/

Run

2011-10-12T09:59:00.002-04:00

The mile

2011-10-11T10:47:00.001-04:00

150

2011-10-04T16:41:00.001-04:00

With racing goals kind of up in the air throughout September… school back, more responsibilities and such… I had a simple goal for September.

Make it my best running month so far in 2011… in order to do so I needed 150 miles. I hit 151.

Bike and swim were a bit down… but so was my weight by a pound or 2.

The numbers:

Run: 151 miles

Bike: 797 minutes

Swim: 220 minutes plus a w/e of Total immersion

Strength: 235 minutes

Total: 2699 minutes

on again off again Ironman

2011-10-03T16:52:00.001-04:00

One of our goals this year (Yes… Judi and I train together 90% of the time and race together 95% of the time) was to do an Ironman distance race.

In this case it was more of my goal.. Judi was just along for the ride… Just as she had been in 2010 when she grabbed an AG 2^nd place at a ½ IM.

We contemplated IMFL last November. That, however, was just too much money to spend that far out.

Next up… Beach to Battleship.

Open late

Swimming with a current

Nice venue

We kinda stuck that out there as a goal for a couple of months (yet did not register)

Perfect!

Well except that it fell on the weekend of an important conference…

Switch gears… GFT is harder but… yeah! Let’s do it! We have a score to settle there anyway… and that was the plan… for a few months.

Training went well… until we had a bit of a setback:

http://allaboutpace.blogspot.com/2011/08/feeling-kinda-bla-ggy.html

the untold story there was that Judi DNFed… needless to say our confidence waned.

Then… September came… training was going well… I did a weekend at the Total immersion seminar… Judi remembered that she was part honey badger… Race on… Bring on GFT!

We sat down last Monday to register… pulled up the website and realized that we had yet another scheduling conflict.

So it’s off…. Not a huge deal really… We’ll just take another shot at the ACT 1/2

Maybe I can break 5 hours this year.

Honeybadger

2011-09-23T08:25:00.002-04:00

Who's gonna be a honey-badger this weekend?

7 Links

2011-09-15T15:51:00.000-04:00

7 Links

B.o.B.. over at Discom-BOB-ulated Running decided to nominate me to participate in a post that brings some of my older posts.

It’s kind of a greatest hits kind of thing… in my case… nearest misses perhaps

Here are the rules:

1. Blogger is nominated to take part

2. Blogger publishes his/her 7 links on his/her blog – 1 link for each category

3. Blogger nominates up to 5 more bloggers to take part.

4. These bloggers publish their 7 links and nominate another 5 more bloggers

I’m a rule follower… really I am but… this blog is mostly a collection of race reports and training recaps… with some really bad poetry thrown in every once in a while…

My most beautiful post well.. I don’t know if that is the word but…. http://allaboutpace.blogspot.com/2010/12/easy-like-sunday-morning.html

Kinda defines what my life is like.. I mean… every week pretty much…. and I am happy… and that, my friends is beautiful

us... being us

My most popular post was this ONE http://allaboutpace.blogspot.com/2010/02/ironhorse-race-report-like-sidecar.html I think more from people googling race info but… it’s got the most hits so… that is that.

My most controversial post was this POST http://allaboutpace.blogspot.com/2010/12/pilates.html

I had a number of back channel remarks both backing up and calling into question my take on Pilates.

My most helpful post was this http://allaboutpace.blogspot.com/2008/11/my-kendall-story.html I cry every time I read it… and it never fails to help me… try and be a better person (Kendall turns 16 this month)

A post whose success surprised me was this ONE (9/29/2009). ONE http://allaboutpace.blogspot.com/2009/08/inauspicious-beginning-my-foray-into.html

If you have looked online… you can attest to the dearth of information on bike racing… compared to triathlons and running how to get into the sport… and what it is like are not widely known… which I guess is why my blog gets hits from folks searching for information about this race.

A post that I feel didn't get the attention it deserved is http://allaboutpace.blogspot.com/2009/01/thursday-temp-run-on-road-of-silence.html just a goofy poem I wrote about a tempo run… back when my blog was just a place I saved my thoughts for myself.

The post I'm most proud of is this ONE: http://allaboutpace.blogspot.com/2009/12/jacksonville-marathon-lot-of-road.html I shattered a 12 year old PR

So… there you have it… the sevens. Thanks BoB… it was actually kinda fun going back and reading my own blog…. I did cringe a few times at stupid stuff I have posted over the years… but fun

Now for the lucky five…

1. Matthew Smith

2. Big Daddy Diesel

3. DRog

4. Captain Nuts

5. Lesser is More

I'm a runner

2011-09-14T16:17:00.000-04:00

I’m often asked/told…

“Why do you run so much?”

“I wish I could run but I have (insert malady here)”

“I’m not a natural runner like you”

“My body is just not made for that”

“running is easy for people like you”

Etc…

I normally just reply with something like

“you can do it too if you want to”

I normally leave it at that.

If any of them ever stop and ask… and act like they really want to know.

I could tell them all the reasons I shouldn’t be a runner:

1. I have asthma

2. And a leaky heart valve

3. Flat feet

4. I’m a single parent

5. I have a busy job

I could go on to tell them why… and how I do run

How the world looks passing by at 6 miles per hour

Starting a run in the dark… then seeing feeling… hearing… and smelling the world wake up around me

How cool it is to be moving in rhythm to a killer song on the iPod

All of the crazy/cool/interesting things I’ve seen and found while running

Or how it feels to bonk… when the mind wills the body forward… and the body lifts it’s middle finger but otherwise does not respond.

The seemingly trivial challenges (run the next mile in 7:30 or less) that I attempt and how those make my mind and body stronger whether they be failure or success

How it feels to run fast… faster than you ever thought possible for a given distance… and do… no become what you thought was impossible

I might even feel comfortable enough to tell them that even now… after all the marathons, ultra-marathons, years of running, thousands of miles… I often doubt myself… and am unsure if I can complete my run for the day… but in the end I always put on my shoes and head out the door anyway.

But… it doesn’t matter…. I don’t think they really want to hear any of that anyway.

August totals

2011-09-14T16:12:00.001-04:00

Swim: 9,500 yds

Bike: 520 mi

Run: 114.7 mi

Strength: 397 minutes

feeling kinda bla-ggy

2011-08-30T11:33:00.000-04:00

Not much to post.

Ambition is on holiday I believe.

A few interesting events have occurred:

1. Lost a Spinergy wheel… it flew off my roof rack while I was going about 70…

My expression as the realization of my stupidity sinks in

2. School is back in

3. Have broken the century mark cycling numerous times this summer

I think Judi is into it for the tanning opportunities

4. My youngest kid has been sick

5. Came in DFL by 30 minutes… that’s no typo… 30 minutes!!! In a 2.5 mile open water swimming race

6. Rode 120 miles in and around the town where I grew up… talk about your long ride down memory lane

Gadsden County Florida

At this point I’m not sure if I’m finished with triathlons for the year or not…

Can’t decide if I want to race again… or simply aim at the fall running races

Jax sprint #3

2011-08-11T16:19:00.000-04:00

I’m pretty sure that I’ve done at least one sprint tri per year since 1997…

Last weekend was my token sprint for 2011… and I might not have done one at all… but… Judi won an entry and I tagged along.

¼ mile swim – 16 mile bike – 3 mile run

Since it was “just a sprint” we decided to make things a bit more interesting and have our kids drop us off at the race in Fernandina Beach ~40 miles away so that we could bike home…

I decided to geek out a bit equipment wise too… aero helmet and disc wheel

Swim (9:04) - I must be improving because I swam with the guys in my wave the whole time

Bike (38:16) – I really like the 25.1 mph average on the website but… I think the course is short… had a good ride tho… definitely touched 30mph with a tailwind on the way back in.

Run (22:36) – gotta get a bit faster here… this is where I suffered physically, mentally, and against my competition. I think I need to be able to turn 7s to be near the top in my AG.

All in all a fun well directed race… good venue…

And a stupidcrazyfreakinhot ride home

On the Mayport Ferry Headed home

I'm going to do a Marathon... and not bother to taper

2011-08-10T16:01:00.000-04:00

For those that know me well…. The mere fact that I’m signing up for a swimming race is I’m sure amusing…

But… with a 2.4 mi swim coming up at GFT… Our tri club’s annual open water swimming race should be good practice…. Especially followed up by a 4 hour ride.

The deets:
Saturday, August 13, 2011
8:00 am
Registration and Finish: 5th Avenue North, Jacksonville Beach, FL

1.25 Mile Swim   or     2.5 Mile Swim

RULES
1. Each swimmer must wear a swim cap. These will be provided.
2. Swimmers may not touch the ocean bottom.
3. No swim aids (fins, paddles, etc.) will be allowed.
AWARDS
Top Male and Female finisher in both races will receive an overall awards. Top Male Masters and Female Masters in both races will receive an overall award. Awards will be given to the top Male and Female finisher in each age group of each race.
Age groups: 15 & under, 16-18, 19-24, 25-29, 30-34, etc. to 60 & over.
       NOTES
1. Direction of the race will be determined morning of the swim, taking into account the current. Busses will take the swimmers to the starting point of the swim.
2. We will be exiting either to the north or south of the fishing pier- we will NOT swim through it!
3. Lifeguards and kayakers will be on the course, however this is an open water swim!
This is not the time to test your open water skills for the first time!
Click here to register online: http://www.active.com/event_detail.cfm?event_id=1961295
Or you can download a paper application here: Online HOM Application

I'm totally gonna win

Feel free to come along for the fun!

July

2011-08-04T16:22:00.000-04:00

Hard to believe it’s over…. And well over as this is a bit late…

A good month though. The best Tour de France I’ve seen in a while… Training volume is up. Health is good

The numbers:

Swim: 13700 yds

Lots of drills this month. I’m on lesson 4 of the ”Perpetual Motion Freestyle in 10 Lessons”... I still kinda suck but now with even more ease and balance!

Bike: 644 mi

Quantity and quality here with 2 100+ mile rides and lots of hills to boot.

Run: 121 mi

Even started to integrate a little speedwork in again.

Strength: 6 hrs

I’ve put on some muscle I think… not too sure I’m crazy about that…

Total: 4218 minutes or 70.3 hours

In non-training news….

Chris @ Maggie Roses Bike Shop

http://maggieroses.com/

finished restoring my 2001 Lemond Zurich

So I sold my Specialized Allez

We’ve ridden to some interesting places…

Hit some intersting watering holes...

Met some nice folks too..

See ya out on the road!

98.6 - Sounds Normal to me

2011-07-21T15:58:00.000-04:00

Just for grins I decided to take a look at the weather for my lunchtime run.

Yep 98.6 with a heat index of 112F

Pretty much par for the course here for July… I’ve heard a bunch of my friends from the North complain about the heat… I think it’s cute… probably in the same way they laugh at me when I turn on my seat heaters in my car when the temp dips below 65… they kinda remind me of Eugene Morris Jerome in Biloxi Blues

"Man it's hot. It's like Africa hot. Tarzan couldn't take this kind of hot."

Well I had a tempo run on the training schedule for today 7 mi with 5 @ sub 9 pace. I have purposely planned easier than normal tempo runs for two reasons.

1. I’m training for IM distance
2. I’m really focusing on swimming right now
3. It’s really hot
4. I have a tendency to be overzealous with my run training at the expense of everything else

So off I went armed with a liter of water. It really didn’t feel too hot at first. Legs felt surprisingly good. Warm-up mile passed easily in 10:31.

At the mile mark I sat the water in the shade… oh yea… like that’s going to keep it cool… and picked it up to tempo pace. A quick peek at my garmin showed me that I was on pace and I just loped along for a couple of miles enjoying the day.

But then I got to thinking… that I wanted to be really tired tonight… today is the biggest Tour de France stage in the Alps… and I can’t wait to see Frank Schleck put in one of his “baby attacks” where he rides hard for 50 meters then sits up and tries to get someone to come through…. Or see Andy pout because Fabian won’t let him ride on his handlebars for the scary descents…. And if there’s anything better than watching a good bike race on tv… it’s watching with completely cooked legs.

So I decided to stretch the tempo part out to 6 miles… *and* run the last two at a sub 8 pace… splendid idea! (I’m an idiot)

Miles 4 and 5 I still felt pretty good but I was a.) getting a little tired… and #2 holding back just a wee bit knowing that I had to pick up the pace soon.

Mile 6 – increased turnover led to more speed… I worked hard to stay relaxed (I just re-read that and it sounds kinda dumb) and managed to clock a 7:59.

There was nothing relaxed about the beginning of the last “tempo” mile… I decided straightaway that I was going to have to use leg strength to keep up the pace…. The first glance at the Garmin showed 8:21… Now I had already decided to do a little write-up about this run… and right then I was just fine with my story ending with failing to hit my goal… I was okay with it really but then… I mumbled to myself… “I like a happy ending” and tried to pick it up… surprisingly I did… as I ran along I thought “you are just running this hard so that you can post a lower number on the internet”… so on I ran checking my Garmin often… to see how fast… and how much further… another thought that popped into my head was “you are a slave to the machine on your wrist” I inwardly nodded yes… and added “and to the machine pumping the Neon Trees – ‘Animal’ into my head”. www.youtube.com/watch?v=gM7Hlg75Mlo

So I pushed… with a 5k type effort… heart pumping… legs churning and until the wrist machine said “7 miles”

the split read 7:50

I slowed and walked to where I had stashed my water… feeling pretty good

Splits

And ya know… for me.. that’s what it’s all about… there was no medal, no NBC announcers at Ironman Hawaii, no Boston Marathon Jacket, no coffee mug… nothing wrong with any of that stuff… and yes I aspire to some of them myself

I just went out and did more with my body than my mind thought I could do… and now I’m tired… and I can watch the Tour stage tonight with my legs still twitching from today’s effort… and though I am far from a world class athlete… I’ll be able to identify a bit with their suffering and enjoy it all the more.

Riding to Buddy Boys

2011-07-19T16:21:00.001-04:00

Well.. got the Road ID last week. Figured I should be ready for when Bob Roll shows up at my house at 0330 some morning…

With the younger kids away at camp last week we had ample opportunity to train… and train we did. 17 hours total.

I got in 4 good sessions of TI drills last week… I’m beginning to feel better balance…. Not just when doing the drills but even when I swim a lap or 2. I’m cautiously optimistic at this point, eager to continue, determined to succeed.

We had a solid week of weights and core… pretty important stuff IMHO… but often the first to go when time gets shorter.

Only 4 runs last week but with a solid tempo, a nice hour long trail run, a good brick after a hundy, and a 12 mile long run I can definitely say that they were all of good quality.

4 spin classes last week and the aforementioned century on Saturday wrapped up a nice week on the bike.

Now… a bit more about the ride on Saturday. We basically have 2 routes that we ride. From Jax Beach south to St Augustine, or out through rural St John’s county. As I planned last weekend’s route I had the great idea… since we need 100 miles maybe I could combine the two. I figured a route that would take us to Buddy Boys a little country store right by the St John’s river at the apex of our loop.

We left home well before dawn and put foot to pedal in the grey mist of dawn. The grey mist worried me… visibility was poor and our stealth was pretty high. We stopped 3 miles in and purchased a couple of batteries for our blinky light. That taken care of we pedaled along to Buddy Boys with only a quick potty/water stop on the way.

Buddy Boys Storefront

Buddy Boys… our oasis… in the middle of BFE… this place is pretty country… more than kinda redneck… yet the classier of the two stores we frequent in the vacininty… this is a billboard out front.

Yes… the life of a redneck girl right there… fresh pack of smokes to take her beyond last call…

That was not the funniest part of our visit tho… the guy who drove up on his lawn tractor… filled it up with gas…. Then walked into the store with his cell phone hanging from his rubber boots who then paid for his gas with all change… then wanted to swap another pile of assorted coins for dollar bills… he was funnier. He grinned at Judi with all three of his teeth and asked her how far we were riding. Judi said 100 miles and he performed the most literal double take I’ve seen.

We reluctantly left Buddy Boys and the lifestyle it has to offer and pedaled home in the intermittent rain… our average was almost 2 mph slower than last week but hydration/nutrition was way better. We got off the bike feeling pretty good and banged out 4 progressively faster miles of running/fueling/hydrating… all in all a very good day of training.

We put in another yeoman like 12 miler on Sunday too nice even pace finished feeling like we could have run further.

You knew the plan...

2011-07-13T11:58:00.000-04:00

Like the phrase goes:

"The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry"

I've been studying the Total Immersion books/videos… and trying to get in the water as often as possible.

With that in mind… we stopped by the YMCA Friday evening… for Judi to get in a quick swim and for me to do "Superman Glides", "superman Flutters" and a a bunch of other balance drills that make feel dorkier than normal in the pool. Dorkiness aside I am committed to doing my utmost to improve my swimming so… Happy Hour Friday finds us at the pool…

Idiot boy here left the car doors unlocked and while I'm fluttering and rolling… this dude stops by and lifts our laptops

It's hard to describe the emotion that follows… anger at myself… regret… feeling violated… feeling like I let Judi down… worrying how this will affect our jobs.

Friday night was full of all of those… Judi.. being Judi… was un-accusing and calm as usual despite the fact she was dealing with similar emotions. We got a police report and started planning how to put things back together.

The first 2 casualties were the planned century (trimmed to 80) and the brick (trimmed altogether)

The 80 was good… the planned route just looped 10 miles sooner. Which got us finished in time (and with enough energy) to go laptop shopping.

Sunday we had a nice long run planned for the early morning. Dawn found us a couple of miles in… and completely soaked in sweat… it was humid to the Nth degree and about 80F already. We ran from the house to the UNF trails… ran the 3 mile loop twice and ran home… despite getting water along the way I was down 10 lbs post run…. Yikes! And felt kinda sluggish the rest of the day.

And as old Paul Harvey used to say… "Now you know…. The rest of the story"

Our weekend...

Plan for tomorrow

2011-07-08T16:37:00.000-04:00

Ride on Sat:

http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=4630511

start at 0630

ride easy… really easy

pack well

· Food

· Electrolytes

· Sunscreen

· Money

· Tubes/inflators

Ride easy

Stop only 2x (MJ and buddy boys)

Concentrate more on fueling, hydrating, electrolytes

Ride easy

Run 3 @ 9:30 (eat a gel on the run – for practice)

Finish feeling not dead – like we could do more

Independence Weekend

2011-07-05T16:53:00.000-04:00

I hope that everyone had a fine Independence Day weekend.

I’m not sure why but I have a problem with calling it the 4^th of July… We don’t call Christmas the 25^th of December… but I digress

Saturday

Judi, her daughter, and my two daughters were all registered for the ~~Cherry Picker~~ Big Bang 5k in Ponte Vedra Beach

We got to the race site in plenty of time yet managed to get to the start line with *literally* 5 seconds to spare.

I love the 5k… really I do. I have a 3.1 sticker on the back of my car.

I don’t, however, train for the distance and thusly pay for the effort when I do one (roughly once a year). The race is basically a loop with an out and back section in the middle. At the turnaround I was in 5^th. While I had 1-4 in sight most of the time… and had delusions of a scorching 3^rd mile where I would go all Mark Cavendish on ‘em and speed to victory… in reality I simply held on to 5^th… while watching the leader slip to 4^th. My time of 21:22 was about 30 seconds off my time from last year which surprised me not at all.

Judi finished a couple of minutes later and after grabbing a bottle of water we headed back out on the course in search of our children… We found them a ½ mile back out on the course and each ran in with our respective offspring.

In the end we all got awards (it’s a pretty small race)

After the race we got changed and headed out on our bikes…. And by the time we hit the road it was near 10:00 and getting hotter by the minute. In a word I felt crappy… from the first pedal revolution. The plan was to ride our normal 65 mile loop. I successfully lobbied for a 50ish mile out and back so that we would encounter “less traffic”. I pulled all the way to the turnaround into a head/cross wind but it was nothing smooth, easy or fast. Judi even commented once that I could kick it up a MPH or 2 if I wanted… in my head Scotty from Star Trek answered her “I caan’t go any faster Captain, we don’t have the po’er”.

On the way back we traded pulls and I was really happy that there was no transition run to do. We stopped with just a couple of miles to go and bought lunch which I stuffed into my jersey pockets.

Beach and beer afterwards with aforementioned lunch… My core temp and the outside temp were both so high that the sea breeze did nothing to cool me down…. But the beer helped.

Sunday

Ended up with just 6 miles… ran the trails at UNF with our friend Mark… nothing much better than running in the woods just after dawn… even saw a fat Raccoon.

Monday

Got up early to try and get back and out of the way of holiday traffic… almost did too. 62/3 brick… nothing spectacular but the run did feel good.

June - a good time to have an off month

2011-07-01T11:19:00.000-04:00

The beginning of June found me in taper mode for our first triathlon of 2011…

After the race I did something I’ve not done in a few years…. I did not run a step for a week… barely trained at all. Then we did the Hammer Jammer see report here: http://allaboutpace.blogspot.com/2011/06/hammer-jammer.html

Which is basically a mock race. I felt pretty good there. Sitting on the beach afterwards beer in hand I got a call from my sister that my dad was sick and being admitted to the hospital.

That combined with the fact that my mom is still recovering from back surgery… and with my kids sick to boot… another 5 days passed w/o a single entry in my training log.

Everyone is now much better and training is back to normal… and just in time too…. GFT is in 15 weeks

Time to tighten up and get with the program!

June totals:

Swim: 7.3k

Bike: 329

Run: 88.1

Strength: 170 minutes

Hammer Jammer

2011-06-21T15:13:00.000-04:00

Our local triathlon club puts together a mock triathlon/multisport workout a few times a year… since our club is called the Hammerhead Triathlon Cub…. The workout is called the Hammer Jammer… goofy name, I know

Well.. after an easy recovery week from the ½ IM DNF we showed up Saturday morning to hang out with the club and get a solid 2.5 hours or so of training in.

It works like this….

We got to the site and set up transition pretty much like a race except for the fact that Judi and I had an entire rack to ourselves.

The swim was fairly quick, easy and uneventful… I was almost able to keep up with Judi by swimming in a straight line as she zigzagged between the beach and the Gulfstream

Transition was pretty low-key… we basically walked to the bikes with some club mates and soon I had fiddled around long enough to have gotten left so I hopped on and took off

I caught Judi and a couple other folks within the first mile or two then plowed ahead on my own. We had mostly a crosswind on the way down. I just stayed in the aerobars and tried to keep the effort constant. At 45 minutes I had almost reached the Vilano bridge… so I decided to ride to the top and try and make up the difference on the way back. Although I made up some time with a slight tailwind on the way back the ride portion still took 93 minutes which put me behind everyone once again on the run.

My plan for the run was to run steady on the way out… then once I saw Judi on the way back I would give her a minute or 2 head start and try and catch up. The plan worked great… I caught Judi right at 4 miles. Then we jogged the last ½ mile together…

Super workout with some fun folks… and we were finished with our workout… sitting on the beach with beer in hand by 1030.

Florida Challenge Aftermath....

2011-06-15T16:32:00.000-04:00

Linae from over at
A Most Peculiar Gray
http://linae.blogspot.com/

sent me the below in an email regarding my DNF... and subsequent ponderings in my previous post "hopefully I can learn to swim, hydrate, electrolyte balance, fuel, and pace myself over the next 4 months"

Have you thought about how to work it out? You've already said you prefer to train with very minimal nutrition, however, it didn't work the same way on race day?

Well...
I have been thinking about it... here are some of my thoughts...

1. I seem to be fine and dandy on glycogen stores for 4-5 hours (less in the heat)
2. I have gotten quite comfortable training and racing on that since I have mostly done races in that timeframe in the past few years.
3. I am trying to go fast
4. if I keep my heartrate under 125 I can eat pretty much whatever I want.
5. I'm not incredibly speedy at a 125 HR (19mph on the flats on the bike 10 min mile run)

What am I gonna do?
1. Do more 5+ hour training sessions
2. Practice/experiment with nutrition strategies
3. Not let a DNF bother me

Thanks for asking Linae

Florida Challenge Race Report

2011-06-13T14:45:00.000-04:00

Packing up the car

This racecourse has soundly beaten me twice in the past

After yesterday:

Pre race

Florida Challenge Triathlon - 3

MC - 0

Swim: DFL in my AG almost DFL O/A

Tranistion spot

Bike: went all Leroy Jenkins on the bike course… partially out of anger/embarrassment at my swim time

Run: started well enough with a couple of 8:30s but overheated and went downhill from there… after mile 11 taking me almost 20 minutes to complete I dropped at the aid station.

Yep, that’s right I DNFed with less than 2 miles to go.

Could I have finished? Yes

Could I have pulled myself and my stuff together to make the 3 hour trip home after spending the better part of another hour in the 95F blazing sunshine… probably not

I’ll be back in October for the full… hopefully I can learn to swim, hydrate, electrolyte balance, fuel, and pace myself over the next 4 months

temp per my car as I drove home

Trails

2011-06-10T14:38:00.000-04:00

Judi and I are quite accomplished trail runners… but yesterday we took on a beast of a run…

Okay so we were just running the goofy 3 mile nature trail at the local university and…

I tried to find a way to cut through from one trail to another… and in so doing got roughed up by some palmettos…

Judi was done in my a leaping root that caught her foot

We are dorks

Questions... I got Questions....

2011-06-09T10:38:00.000-04:00

Yeah I’m singing that Jack Johnson song in my head as I ponder the Florida Challenge ½ IM coming up this weekend…

www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7IUgCEsZYc

Will it be too hot to wear my aero helmet? How hot is too hot for the aero increase to be less than the increase in melon temperature?

What about a tri top? What skinsuit is more aero than… skin?

Why didn’t I come up with some kind of nutrition plan? Why is it that I never practice this? We ride 40-90 miles every Saturday… most of the time I just eat either a pack of peanutbutter crackers or a Payday bar (okay sometimes both) we follow the ride up with a 3-10 mile brick (where more often than not I consume nothing)

Sunday long runs of 7-16 miles… nothing… just some water… once again… why didn’t I at least try some gels?

Why do I hate to taper? Nevermind… stupid question.

What has happened to SommerSports? I have done many of their races in the past… in fact my 1^st triathlon in 1997 was put on by them… they have always put on top notch races in the past… now it seems as if they can barely muster the energy to change a date here and a logo there on their site… I hope it’s just poor web admin.

Case in point:

http://floridachallenge.com/Details/GeneralEventInformation/LongCourseTriathlon/tabid/216/Default.aspx

Did I register to use my own ChampionChip? BTW where is my chip/strap?

Did I really do a 7:57 on this course in 2003? Yikes! Maybe I can better that….

Where did the school year go? My kids finished 9^th and 11^th grades at 0935 this morning….

Who brought in the donuts?

I'm a Weiner uh... I mean Winner

2011-06-03T15:35:00.001-04:00

Had a nice surprise this morning…

A package on my front porch

I’d almost forgotten that I’d won a drawing over at

http://lesserismore.blogspot.com/

Thanks Adam!

Not only is he a nice guy who gives away cool stuff... he's got some good insight on training and racing that he shares for free too.. :-)

Back to my FREE STUFF

I carefully opened the box

Behold my new gadget…

And now to get this sucker playing music….

May Totals

2011-06-01T11:37:00.000-04:00

Not the most consistent month….

A couple of weekends in there where life got a bit in the way…

The good news is that I feel pretty good… the bad news is that my weight is a few pounds over where I want it…

The reality is that my 1^st “A” race of the year is in 11 days… I guess we shall see

Swim: 15.5 k

Bike: 407 mi

Run: 141 mi

Weights: 244 minutes