Run for Life

I've mentioned Dr. John frequently on this blog. He and his wife are the de facto leaders of the CA Cruisers. They are instrumental in planning each week's running destination and taking pictures at each and every outing. We all get weekly emails letting us know where to meet each Saturday morning and another with pictures from the run the week before. They encourage us all to run the myriad of races and distances available to us in SoCal. They are also plan our yearly destination race. The CA Cruisers have been to Chicago, Washington DC, Big Sur and are planning to run the Redwoods this year, thanks to the Strands. Any one we happen to meet along the trail or at the race gets invited to join the group. The email list has grown quite large. I mentioned that at the Surf City Marathon we had well over 50 runners associated with the Cruisers to some extent. We even had our own tent in the organized group area.

John is my running hero and inspiration. John completed his 50th state, in his late 60's, during the time that I was training for my first. I thought the accomplishment was so cool I adopted it as my own goal. He has also run marathons on each of the seven continents, as well. His marathon total is currently over 110. His running has been chronicled in the local newspapers.

Now you can all read about Dr. John. His running exploits are part of a new book by Roy Wallack, Run For Life. Roy identifies his book as “the anti-aging, anti-injury, super-fitness plan to keep you running to 100”. It has a lot of interesting chapters, including one on John Strand. The book describes fitness plans and devotes a section on people who have distinguished themselves in athletics. Pages 204 through 209 cover the story of John Strand and his marathons.
This is John and Dorothy with Roy Wallack at the unveiling ceremony. Roy is the author of Run For Life. The book is available on amazon.com

I'm adding it my my amazon wish list. I may not meet the author but I intend on getting Dr. John's autograph somewhere on pages 204-209.

Happy Reading. Happy Running. Both good prescriptions for a long happy life.

Good Patient, Bad Patient

Good Patient:
Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday I did the complete compliment of stretches prescribed by the physical therapist. Based on the advice that I could run if the pain level was a 2 or better (from both the orthopedic doc and the PT), I ran three miles on Wednesday evening. I had my second PT appointment on Friday - more exercises and stretches, heat, ultrasound, massage and ice.

Bad Patient:
I had made the decision on my own to dial the mileage back just a bit for this week. My goal was 14 miles for the week, including an 8 mile long run on Saturday. When I first met the PT I told him I'd run 10 the weekend before. On Friday I told him I'd run 3 mid week. I noted improvement in the ITB and hip pain. I guess all that stretching did some good. When the PT was done massaging/torturing my ITB he told me I could run 3 miles over the weekend. What!! 3 miles?! I met my friend Terry at the Santa Ana River trail and ran the 8 miles I'd planned. I obviously still have an IT band, but I was able to run. The pain level was within the "2 or below" range so I made the decision that it was OK to run. We kept to the 4:1 run:walk. Our pace was around 10:00 minute miles.

Sunday, I walked my traditional 5 mile loop on the trails in Bonelli. The trails were a little muddy so I wore my Cascadias. After the walk I headed back to the car, changed my shoes and shirt, and put in 3 miles of running around the Picnic Loop +. Total weekly mileage was 14.

Good news about the orthotics and shoes. I wore my Brooks Adrenaline 7's with the orthotics to the appointment on Friday. Jeff likes these shoes better than the Trance and he gave my orthotics a "B" grade. He gave me the go ahead to stick with that combination for the time being.

Active Runner

This was written on my prescription to the physical therapist. The owner and PT is Jeff. I get a kick out of the description "active runner". That's me, pretty cool.

I had my first appointment with the PT on Monday. I was there for nearly three hours. Right off the bat he told me that if I'd ever had PT before that this was going to be completely different. I really liked my old PT that I saw last year after the stress fracture. But it didn't take long to figure out that he was right this place was different. That fact that Jeff is a runner made a huge difference. He knew what my shoes were at the first glance and had an obvious opinion about them. He also wants to see my orthotics (I hadn't thought to bring them). I went through a whole new regimen of stretches and strengthening exercises.

Some things are the same as before. I need to work on developing some better flexion in my ankle, I need to strengthen my gluteus behindus and I really, really, really need to stretch out my hip flexors. I got heat. I got ultrasound. I got ice and e-stem. I got it all!

I go back on Friday. Jeff will evaluate my orthotics. They've already checked my insurance and I can get another pair if needed. He will also likely make a shoe recommendation. He wanted to know if I was in love with my Brooks. I've worn Brooks Trance or Adrenaline pretty much exclusively since the beginning. I love my Brooks, but if it means running pain free then I'm open to try whatever he suggests. I just hope it won't be Nike. (I've got a thing against super giants like Nike.)

I'm allowed to run as long as the pain is no more than a 2. He described a pinch as a 2, a headache as a 5. So it looks like I will continue to run as planned for the week. Although no hills and no cement allowed.

I had planned on heading to the gym after the PT for an hour on the bike and some upper body work. Jeff suggested 20 minutes each on the bike, elliptical and stairmaster. So being the good patient that I am I did just that. I've never used the stairmaster before. He said it would help with the glute strengthening I need. If it works so be it.

Tonight I went back to the gym for another round of bike, elliptical and stairmaster followed by shoulder and bicep work. I followed that up with nearly and hour worth of prescribed stretching routine. So far so good.

I'm doing what I can to live up to my prescription description - Active Runner!

The Groundhog was Wrong

Wednesday's mid-day doctor appointment gave me the opportunity to take the day off. I headed over to Bonelli, of course, got some vitamin D exposure. I walked my usual 5 mile loop and then I ran 4.5 miles on the trail that heads north on the opposite side of the park. It is 2.25 miles of mostly down followed by 2.25 miles of mostly up. I was pleased that I did both directions within a minute of each other. The temperatures were in the low 80's and the sun was shining wonderfully bright. I got a little head start on my summer beach tan. I love that.

The next day, a cold winter storm rolled in from Alaska. It rained pretty steadily until Friday and has rained off and on through this afternoon. The weather heads say we'll get more tomorrow. On Tuesday I was pretty happy that the groundhog predicted 6 more weeks of winter. Our winter so far has been exactly like the day I described above. Who wouldn't want more of that. But winter decided to come a couple of days late. So much for the the groundhog.

There was a wonderful break in the rain during the Cruisers planned run on the 2 Parks-2 Loops course in Brea. I upped the ante to 4:1, nothing too drastic. After about the third cycle I fell in step with John, a 73 year old member of our group. He'd just had double hernia surgery 4 weeks ago and was back running. We ended up running the remaining 8 miles together. He walked when I walked. The pace pushed him a little but he was happy to have the company. He's got some great stories from a long life lived well, that's for sure. I ended my run after the second loop while he continued on for a couple more miles.

Today I headed out after one of our scattered showers and was able to get 3 miles of running followed by 3 miles of walking on the Picnic Loop at Bonelli. My legs were feeling a little tired so I decided to give the muddy wet trails a chance to dry out before I wandered them again.

I ended up with 17.5 miles for the week. A nice gradual increase from the 1 mile I got 6 weeks ago in Peters Canyon. The weekly progression has been 1 - 5 - 8 - 12.7 - 14.6 - 17.5. My legs were kind of tired and the ITB was singing pretty good on the 3 miler so I think I may scale things back a tad next week before heading on up towards 20. Right now I'm only running three days a week. Once I can run 20 for a couple of weeks comfortably I will try to add back in the fourth day. Ultimately I'd like to get back to being a 5 day, 40-50 mile a week runner like I was back in 2007. That may take until 2010 for all I know.

That doctors appointment I mentioned earlier went well. My wife has been seeing the same guy for her knee and we both had appointments within an hour of each other. In addition one of my wife's coworker's wife had a knee replacement done by this doc. According to the girls he is "easy on the eyes." Apparently he is one doctor's appointment they don't mind keeping. Anyway, my hip problem is just really bad IT Band Syndrome and bursitis. The doc is a runner so he understands that not running is not a good prescription for someone like me. He prescribed a regimen of Aleve and is sending me to a physical therapist for a couple of appointments. This guy is a runner as well so I am optimistic that I will be getting good care and advice and should come out the other end OK.

Meep, Meep

On each of my last two walks in Bonelli I've seen a road runner. It was doing exactly what you'd expect it to be doing. It was running across the road (fire road in this case). No coyote in chase though; that would have been awesome. I haven't seen a road runner in Bonelli in at least a couple of years.

This week I've stuck to the 3:1 run:walk. It seems to be working out for now. I upped the total weekly mileage to 14.6 in three runs. Saturday I joined the CA Cruisers on our home turf, the Santa Ana River Trail. Many were running short because they were running the Surf City Marathon on Sunday. We had about 60 members and friends signed up for either the full, half or 5K. I used to be one of the faster members of the group. Couple the short mileage for the rest with my current pace and run:walk strategy and I was one of the last ones out there. My pace over the 8 miles was 10:32. The days of 8:30's are a distant memory for now.

Besides the running, there was 105 minutes of bike riding and 10 miles of walking.

The end of the month calls for mileage totals. January 2009 was a whopping 37.7 miles. It has been a slow and steady climb on the weekly mileage since the beginning of the month after nearly 5 weeks off after St. Jude.

I'm going to rely on my inner Wile E Coyote and keeping chasing that Road Runner towards the next marathon.

For now I'm off to partake in the national day of denial and escapism from the real world and watch the Super Bowl. I have no real interest in either team but its my civic duty. Come to think of it I'm supporting the Cards; dislike of the Steelers runs deep in this ex-Ohioan.

16 Days

Thanks to all who weighed in on the accounting issue. I've decided to pretty much continue what I've always done. If I'm on a training "run" it will count towards my mileage totals, no matter the run:walk ratio. If I'm simply walking or biking as an alternative to help maintain fitness, it gets written down for posterity, but not counted toward the lifetime mileage. Right now I'm writing down more activity than I'm adding to the total but that will change again someday.

Where do 16 days go? There's no way to capture the all the minutia of the last two weeks so I will try to hit the highlights.

Weather wise we've gone from temps in the 80's to chilly 40's, from sun to rain and back to sun.

I've been running very little, but running non-the-less. Even though my running isn't where I'd like it to be, I am active. I ride the bike and use the elliptical at the gym and I'm really enjoying lifting weights and working on improving my core strength. I haven't done a leg work out since a couple of weeks before St Jude, first in anticipation of the marathon and since due to the injury. Two weeks ago my trainer still wouldn't let me do a leg workout. In his words "It will only take one thing to go wrong and we won't work legs for a whole year." He was probably right. The following week he relented and I finally worked the legs with no apparent ill effects. My only rule was no jumping - white men don't jump! It was a pretty benign leg workout but my quads sure let me know they weren't used to moving that way.

The first week since my last post I covered 8 miles in two runs. I stuck to a 2:1 run:walk ratio. The hip and IT still let their presence be known. I also biked for about 2 hours and got one good 5 mile walk in Bonelli.

The second week, last week, I upped the running ante up a little to 12.7 miles in three runs. For the second two I upped the ratio to 3:1. That week also included the leg workout. By the end of the week the hip felt fine and the IT still creaked now and then. Besides lifting, I rode for about 90 minutes and walked 12 miles.

One of those runs last weekend was on Saturday morning. It was a misty morning. I had told myself I would stay on the roads to take it easy on the leg, i.e. no hills. But on the way back I couldn't help myself and ran about 2.5 miles on the muddy trails. While I was running a tune was playing in my head that included "misty morning" and "I come following you." I looked up lyrics and can only come up with Mr. Tambourine Man, but that's "jingle jangle morning..." The tune sounds right in my head but I don't know where misty morning fits in or if I'm confusing two different songs.

This weekend, Super Bowl Sunday, the first of my 2009 goal races will go un-run. I had hoped to run the Surf City Half Marathon. Admittedly, I was running it for the super cool medal and the chance to complete the California Dreaming Series. Alas, I run Huntington Beach all the time and as the the Cub's fans always say, "There's always next year!"

The appointment with the orthopedist, I scheduled back in December when my hip and ITB would not let me run and even walking was painful, is finally scheduled for next week. At this point I'm not sure I should keep it. The hip pain that I feared was serious is 98% gone and I know how to deal with the ITB. Part of me wants to save the deductible expense, but it took almost 6 weeks to get an appointment, part of me feels like I should keep it. Probably by the time I post again, you'll know what I decided to do.

Let's not wait 16 days to get together again, OK?

Running Accounting

Last week, while on vacation, I walked 39 miles. Of those 39 miles I ran about 1 of them in Peters Canyon. My running log shows a whopping 1 mile for the week 12/29 to 1/4. That got me thinking. What can I actually take credit for? What will I actually give myself credit for?

I'm a runner. I keep a running log. I keep track of the miles I run - or do I?

I ran/walked my first seven marathons. I've done plenty of long runs using the run a mile, walk a minute strategy. Most recently I ran Memphis with Joe using a 3:1 schedule. I did the rough math and figure I "ran" about 22.5 miles and "walked" the other 3.7 miles. My running log clearly shows 26.2 miles. I allowed myself credit for each of those miles.

In 2008, I was injured, and I wouldn't have even gotten to Memphis if I had insisted on running every step of the miles I had in my plan. I currently find my self injured again, so walking it is. I have absolutely nothing against the run/walk technique. It has served me and many others very well.

But last week my walk segment far outweighed my run segment. I don't feel right taking credit for those 38 walked miles, but I proudly wrote down the 1 mile I ran. My questions: Do miles covered when I only walked count? Why is it all right to count miles that are covered with a combination of run/walk? Should the Peters Canyon Run really count as 6 miles since I technically ran at least part of the planned route?

Silly questions maybe, but can you relate?

Since going back to work for a full week, my "movement" routine has been up in the air. I did use the elliptical on Monday for 15 minutes before my workout and made it back to the gym on Wednesday for 45 minutes on the bike. Friday, my wife lured me away from the gym with an invite to an Italian place we hadn't tried yet. (Our time together was fun, the food was mediocre).

Saturday I volunteered at the Boney Mountain 21K. I walked about 5 miles of the course. I ran this course last year.

Today while the Chargers were freezing their pattooties off and losing to the Steelers (I'm originally from N Ohio. There's no way I could ever root for the Steelers, NO WAY!), I was over in Bonelli. It was sunny and in the high 70's. I went around my 5 mile loop and used a 2:1 schedule. There was no problem with my right hip and quad. My right ITB squawked a little but not much. I made it home in time to see the second sad half of the game.

I had no problem recording the 5 miles in my running log when I got home.

2009 racing plans are on hold. I had things in mind but until I can run more consistently and pain free, I am wary of making any plans. If the plans were on paper I would push myself to get there with the risk of injury. Knowing that, I will hold off putting anything on paper or here until the time is right.

St. Peter(s Canyon)

I don't know if there is a patron saint of runners. But after today, I'm convinced that he is St. Peter.

As you know I haven't been running since Memphis. Over the holidays I took up serious walking as a substitute mental/physical boost. I've put in at least 5 miles a day for the last week, consistently. This morning the CA Cruisers were meeting in Orange County for a little trail running in Peter's Canyon. From the Alberton's on Jamboree, around the reservoir, up and over East Ridge View Trail and back Peters Canyon Road is a little over a 6 mile loop. For something different to do besides Bonelli, I decided to join the group and would walk the loop.

Our group today was quite large. We had runners from the Brea Snails Pace store joining us for a change of pace running venue. The group took off and I was surprised how quickly I was left behind. I knew I would be alone, so it wasn't a huge factor. I marched along, up and down the rolling hills of the East Ridge View Trail. There were several runners coming in the opposite direction as well as many people out for their morning walk, so I wasn't exactly alone. Peters Canyon is wedged between to fairly expensive housing developments, so many people take advantage of the park. Civilization is almost always in your peripheral view.

Once I made it too the far end of the park and began to head back on the flat Peters Canyon Road, I was feeling pretty good. I decided to give my leg a little test run. I set my watch for a one minute interval and off I jogged. There was some stiffness and a little weakness, but things held up. I followed that with a one minute walk segment. One minute later, the watch beeped again, and I was off and "running". I kept that up until I reached the end of the park and was back on the sidewalks. I think I ran at least ten 1-minute segments on the forgiving path for about 1 mile of running. I can't tell you how good it felt to even get that little bit of running in. It was a giant step forward.

I was all smiles when I met up with the Cruisers for some carbs, protein and coffee at the coffee shop where we'd parked. Then I was off to the gym back near my home. At the gym I rode the stationary bike for 60 minutes and then did some leg and core exercises. I've gleaned a lot of good tips from books I have, from the web and from fellow bloggers. I want to thank Wes and Nick for their ideas on how to beat the ITB and to strengthen the core.

And thanks to St. Peter for being kind to me today and letting me run, even a little bit, for the first time in 4 weeks.

2008 Ups and Downs

2008 could be called “The Year That Darrell’s Legs Gave Up”. 2008 was my lowest mileage year, 750.2, about half the 3 years preceding it. I had three months with less than 50 miles and two with big fat zeros.

2008 was the year of the stress fracture, the shin splints, and most recently the strained quad coupled with a super duper case of IT band syndrome that has kept me from running, not for lack of trying, since Memphis.

2008 was the year of my first ever DNS when I had to back out of the Catalina Marathon in March due to the stress fracture and then my second DNS at Big Sur in April. I didn’t even bother to sign up for the inaugural Big Bear Marathon in September and the Pasadena Marathon in November. I ultimately had to bow out of my first attempt at a 30K at Twin Peaks, rescheduled from February to December.

2008 was the year that I was only able to move 2% closer to my goal of 50 states by adding Tennessee to the list in December. I have gotten 4 states in previous years.

2008 was the year that all my race times were slower, well beyond anything nearing a PR, almost back to square one race times.

Even with all that, 2008 was a year full of incredible running experiences.

2008 was the year I started off on the trails. I ran the Boney Mountain 21K in January, rescheduled from October the prior year by wildfires. It was a tough 21K, but I love the trails.

2008 was the year that I was able to continue on the trails by finally running the Winter Trail Run Series put on by Baz in the mountains of the Cleveland National Forest. I ran the series with my running buddies Terry and Mike. Jim and Julie from the Cruisers were there as well. Even though this was the beginning of the stress fracture it was a hoot heading to those trails every other week for the four race series.

2008 was the year I ran the sloppy, muddy, rainy, windy, hilly, whole heck of a lot of fun Mission Gorge Trail 15K. Tyler volunteered at the finish line and was soaked through the bone as well. I’m still a little miffed that he didn’t save me a finisher’s medal (wink, wink).

2008 was the year that I cheered for runners at the finish line of Big Sur along with my friend Kitty, also on the DL. We rang some good cow bell out there. The night before the race I had an enjoyable dinner with Donald, Eric & Michelle, and Dori and her husband. Tyler ran the second leg of the marathon as part of 4 Cruisers relay teams. He went on to run leg 3 up Hurrican Point as well. It was a great weekend in a beautiful place.

2008 was the year I made my running comeback at the Surf City 5K on July 4th. The time was not stellar but I was glad to be running again.

2008 was the year I was able to run the last 2 races of the Summer Trail Series in Peter’s Canyon. It seemed only appropriate to balance the Winter Trail Series with the Summer Trail Series. I ran into to Jeff for the first time in a long time and was able to meet his wife and little guy, tc.

2008 was the year I got to spend the weekend with my wife in a cute little hotel in Crestline and I ran the Run Through the Pines Half Marathon. Four loops around Lake Gregory accompanied by half dozen or so of my Cruisers buddies.

2008 was the year I finally gave in and ran the Long Beach Half Marathon. Many locals use this as a precursor to Los Angeles Marathon in March. I paced my friend Terry for the first half and she went on to finish the full.

2008 was the year we made a trek to Temecula for a day of wine tasting that starting off with me setting my 10K PR of 55:45. This race was one week prior to my scheduled marathon. The quad pain that had been bothering me for a while was evident at the start but seemed to dissipate during the run. It seemed to grow worse as the week wore on. I hobbled through 3 miles two days after the race and didn’t run again until Memphis.

2008 was Year 3 of the December Blogger Reunion. I met Joe and David in Tennessee. Joe and I ran a very enjoyable 26.2 miles through Memphis, hitting Beale Street twice plus an extra trip for post race barbeque. I finally crossed the 13th marathon off the list.

In a nut shell my races were:
Boney Mountain - 21K
Winter Trail Run Series – 12K, 15K, 18K, & 21K
Mission Gorge Trail Run – 15K
Surf City 5K
Peters Canyon Summer Trails Series #2 & #3 – 5 Miles
Run Through The Pines – 13.1 Miles
Long Beach Half – 13.1 Miles
Temecula Turkey Trot – 10K
Memphis St. Jude Marathon – 26.2 Miles

Post Memphis I decided to give my self the luxury of a full week off. That stretched to two when it became apparent that running on my right leg was an impossibility. The pain with each impact radiated from my knee to my hip accompanied by a sense that the whole thing would collapse mid stride. On December 19, I tried to do a Christmas Light Fun Run with the Cruisers but I ended up having to walk 90% of the 2 mile loop.

Since then I have put all my efforts into riding the stationary bike at the gym and walking. Since I been on vacation for the last two weeks, I’ve taken at least a 5 mile walk everyday since Christmas with all but one of those being on my Bonelli 5 Mile loop. The hip doesn’t hurt while riding the bike and the pain is tolerable while walking.

2008 was a forgettable year and a memorable year, like most years I guess. Up next - my plans, hopes, wishes and dreams for 2009.

A Bonelli New Year

I've been on vacation for the last two weeks (partly planned, partly demanded by the economic slow down). I've spent a lot of time taking walks in my favorite place; favorite in that its close. My 2008 wrap up post will have to wait for another day. Instead I leave you with views of Bonelli on a 7.5 mile walk I took today. The temperature was in the low 70's, the sun was shining but there was a lot of haze. Enjoy the pictures and have a safe and fun Happy New Year's Eve. It looks like 2009 is going to be quite a ride. Stay calm, be diligent, plan for the future and keep running!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

December Next

There is certainly no resting on your laurels with this group. No sooner had I finished state 13 and written up the report along came the questions of what’s next in general and what’s up for next December, more specifically.

Truth be told, I really have no idea. The opportunities abound with 37 states remaining, but the choices at the beginning of December are becoming more limited year by year. With 50 weeks advance notice I’m putting out some ideas for December 2009.

Taking a look at marathonguide.com the following 15 races are on the marathon calendar:

Baton Rouge Beach Marathon, Baton Rouge, LA
Envirosports Death Valley Borax Marathon, Death Valley, CA
Kiawah Island Marathon, Kiawah Island, SC
St. Jude Memphis Marathon, Memphis, TN
Tecumseh Trail Marathon, Bloomington, IN
California International Marathon, Sacramento, CA
Zappos.com Las Vegas Marathon, Las Vegas, NV
Marathon of the Palm Beaches, West Palm Beach, FL
Holualoa Tucson Marathon, Oracle, AZ
Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon, Charlotte, NC
Rocket City Marathon, Hunstville, AL
Roxbury Marathon, Roxbury, CT
Nexbank Dallas White Rock Marathon, Dallas, TX
Honolulu Marathon, Honololu, HI
Otter Creek Trail Marathon, Brandenburg, KY

The list can get narrowed pretty quickly. In 2005 I ran Las Vegas. In 2006 I did Tecumseh and Otter Creek in back to back weekends. In 2007 I met up with Wes and Joe, along with David, Michele and Lana at Rocket City. Most recently Joe, David and I knocked off Memphis. That narrows the list to 11 choices.

Death Valley and CIM are off the list, too. NO MORE CA marathons! 10 options left.

Tucson is off the list, since I’ve already run Rock-n-Roll AZ in Phoenix. Roxbury is off too. I did Hartford in 2005. The list is getting a little sparse.

Baton Rouge Beach Marathon, Baton Rouge, LA
Kiawah Island Marathon, Kiawah Island, SC
Marathon of the Palm Beaches, West Palm Beach, FL
Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon, Charlotte, NC
Nexbank Dallas White Rock Marathon, Dallas, TX
Honolulu Marathon, Honololu, HI

As far as Texas goes, Dallas is definitely not my first choice there. Eric tells me that Dallas is a lot of concrete. My legs are not a fan of concrete. I would much rather run Austin or San Antonio. My choice for Hawaii is definitely Maui. Maui is run in September within days of our wedding anniversary, how can I pass that up – Maui on our anniversary – Honolulu doesn’t stand a chance. There are many choices in Florida as well and West Palm Beach wasn’t on my radar. I have relatives on the west coast. I was leaning towards the Gasparilla Marathon in Tampa in March or ideally the X-Country Marathon in November.

So for me that leaves only the following three states: Louisiana, South Carolina, and North Carolina.

Baton Rouge Beach Marathon, Baton Rouge, LA
Kiawah Island Marathon, Kiawah Island, SC
Charlotte's Thunder Road Marathon, Charlotte, NC

That was until I opened the January 2009 Runner’s World and read about the North Central Trail Marathon in Sparks, MD. It is run the last weekend of November, close enough to December for me. This is now high in my list for Maryland, competing with the B&A Trail Marathon in March.

Where do you want to go in 2009?
Louisiana? South Carolina? North Carolina? Maryland?

Twin Peaks Ultra

In my grand scheme for 2008, the Twin Peaks 50/50, was part of my plan to thumb my nose at the “No More California Marathons Rule” and to enjoy some of the challenges that I had my eye on in my home state. The stress fracture early in the year took me out of contention for the Catalina Marathon and the Big Sur Marathon. Twin Peaks had been postponed from its original date in February, but I was already well on the way to the stress fracture on the original race day. The race would likely have just hastened the process.

When the race was rescheduled for December 13, just one week after the St. Jude Memphis marathon and 6 months after returning to running I knew there was no way I’d be in shape to complete the 50K. I had to give precedence to my primary goal of 50 states over the ultra. Instead, I signed on to volunteer again.

This time I had the distinction of manning the finish line for the entire race. I was the time keeper. It was pretty neat to see the expressions of joy and relief as people finished. The day turned out to be a chilly and windy one. For you folks in the PNW and MN it probably qualified as a light winter or fall day but most of the SoCal folks just weren’t prepared for the conditions.

The rerouted course was more difficult than the 2008 course. The highest peak is about 5700 ft. with the total elevation gain somewhere around 13,000 ft. Up on top the temps were in the low 30's with heavy mist limiting visibility to a couple of feet and reports of horizontal snow at times. Many runners commented that they couldn’t feel their hands for several miles.

Keeping the times was complicated by the fact that there were two distances, each with up to three start times. There were starters at 4:00, 5:00 and 6:00 for the 50 miler and 6:30 and 7:30 for the 50K. I recorded the actual time as they crossed the finish line and then did the math to determine the elapsed time. The task was made easier in that the runners never came in more than a couple at a time. The task was made more difficult in that the actual starts were really something like 4:03, 5:05, 6:02, 6:33, etc. Doing the math was a challenge especially on those half hour starts. Never the less I made it through. I know the actual times were recorded accurately. Jessica, the RD, promised to double check the math before posting the official times.

The attrition rate on the 50 miler was near 50%. The first place male came in at 9:30 hrs. while the first place female (out of two) came in at 12:00 hrs. The first place male in the 50K was somewhere near 5:38. The first runners started at 4:00 a.m. and the last guy off the mountain came through around 8:30 p.m. That's a long day. My day's duties started at 11:00 a.m.

I was glad to have been able to lend a hand as these hard core runners tested themselves at Twin Peaks. My own foray into the ultra world will have to wait for another day.

St. Jude Marathon

It has been a long road from Huntsville, Alabama to Memphis, Tennessee. Three hundred sixty four days from the Rocket City Marathon to the St. Jude Marathon.

It was a great experience. I feel like I'm back in the game and glad to have gotten the thirteenth state done and over with. My shin held up just fine. On the other hand my right quad had potential to be deal breaker. For the last couple of weeks it has been tender and sore, possibly a pull or strain. It has hurt periodically during my recent runs. I held up OK during the 10K's last weekend but on my easy run on Monday it was extremely painful. I hobbled through those 3 miles like Quasimoto. I decided not to run another step until Saturday. I was aware of it always, especially the first few steps after getting up from sitting down.

The fun started even before the race. Joe and I were roomies for the third time. We stopped by the Autozone Park to scope out the finish line. Joe is really in his element there on the ball field. Later we shared a great dinner with David and his wife, sharing stories of our kids, careers and "just a little bit" of running stuff. And it was COLD, at least for me; somewhere in the 30's as we walked back up Main Street to our hotel.

By the time race morning came around I had pretty much decided on my race strategy. With the uncertainty of the quad situation, I decided to run along with Joe. We'd each spent 8 hours or so getting there; me by plane, Joe by car; so why spend the 4 or more hours of the marathon running alone when I could share it a fellow blogger and good friend. I had some concerns about walking every 3 minutes; I'm used to 7 minutes on my long runs; but I needn't have worried. It was really never an issue.

The wave start worked wonderfully well. It was about 20 minutes after the start that we crossed the starting line and the pursuit of state 13 had begun. From the get go my right quad was in pain. It felt weak and almost like it would collapse at any minute. I tried not to hobble so as not to worry Joe. The first mile went slower than Joe had planned mostly due to the crowds but I feared that my hobbling had effected us as well. Joe was concerned for me. I kept going, the quad didn't get any worse. A couple of miles in Joe checked on me again. I told him it was still there and that I was just going to keep going. I think we were back on track by mile 3. As we ticked off the miles the discomfort grew less and we ticked off the miles running 3 minutes and walking 1 minute. Joe kept track of everything. I walked when he told me to walk. I ran when he told me to run. He kept me up to date on our progress to the goal, 4:40, at every mile marker. I think we were always at least a few seconds ahead of schedule from mile 3 on.

We even synchronized our bathroom break. I'd been feeling like I could stop but wasn't in panic mode yet and didn't want to upset the rhythm. When Joe mentioned that he needed to stop I jumped on the chance to take care of business. The break cost us about 90 seconds which we made up fairly quickly by skipping the next scheduled walk break. We even got smart somewhere along the way and postponed or expedited the walk break on the uphills (which were really more like inclines) and the got right back on schedule the next time the watch beeped. It worked incredibly well.

It is just a hoot running along with Joe. He high fived the kids, stopped to pet a beautiful golden retriever, thanked every police officer on the route, belted out some Elvis tunes, heckled the mime, and did a great English Lit prof imitation. Joe meets a friend everywhere. We met Maniacs, Fifty Stater's, Army, National Guard, Team Weber, and St Jude Heroes. It was way more fun than gutting out 26.2 miles alone. There was no doubt I'd made the right decision.

We both felt pretty good right up to about mile 22. Around then it took me a little longer to coax my legs to start running after the minute walk. Around mile 23 my right IT band starting letting me know it was there. A mile later Joe's left IT band "started barking" at him. Very near the end it really seized up and he urged me onward. About a half mile from the finish there was a sharp U-turn to the right up a ramp. My right leg nearly collapsed on me then. I hung on and ended up crossing the finish line in 4:36:15 (official). Joe was about 30 seconds behind.

I was pleased to have completed marathon 16, state 13. I wasn't back full strength but I was back. I owe a deep debt of gratitude to my wife for taking the risk on me back in July and planning this trip. And a huge Thank You to Joe for meeting up for the third December in a row and allowing me to run along with him. The St. Jude Marathon was quite the experience.

Swim To The Beach

With two weeks to go before Memphis the plan called for a pretty easy week of 19 miles. Since I was on vacation and it was a holiday week I mixed things up a bit.

Monday I ran 4 miles in Bonelli in the morning. I didn’t realize until later that I had overshot the planned 3 miles. Tuesday morning in anticipation of rain forecasted for later in the week, I ran 3 more miles in Bonelli. I took a trail, Lakeview, which I hadn’t run before. It was short but sweet. Thursday morning before the turkey feast, I headed over to Bonelli once again. Tyler joined me for 3 miles on my Sunday loop. We did the 1.5 mile out & back. This was Tyler’s first time on this trail. He “complained” that the trail was one continuous hill, one way or the other. I’ve done it so many times it doesn’t seem that bad to me.

When it comes to Turkey Trots, I’m a purist. To me the only true Turkey Trot is actually run on Thanksgiving morning. In SoCal we have no less than 11 options for a Turkey Trot from the Sunday before to the Sunday after, with 8 of the choices actually on Thanksgiving Day. In the past I’ve run the Dana Point 5K, the grand daddy of them all and the Run for the Hungry twice, once with the younger son and once with the older. This year I broke my Turkey Trot Purity Vow.

Saturday morning, Lisa and I headed down to Temecula to combine two of our favorite past times into one (well at least two of mine and one of hers). The Turkey Trot was a fund raising event for a school in Arusha, Tanzania. The race was unique for me because I was running a Trot on a day other than Thanksgiving and it was a 10K. With over 5 years of running on the logs, I’ve never raced a 10K before.

The race started at the Cougar Winery and headed out onto the back roads of Temecula. It was an out and back course on gently rolling, mostly dirt roads. It wasn’t a huge race and we fell into our paces and places within the first half a mile. I maintained my position pretty well. The first three miles ticked off in 8:33, 8:42, and 8:32. After the first mile I only remember being passed by one person, a lady running with her two dogs. After the turn around I was slowly able to pick off three or four people in front of me. Mile 4 was done in 8:32. For the next 2.2 miles I didn’t lose or gain any ground. I was surprised to see Mile 5 come in at 9:40. The finish was up hill back to the tasting room. I covered the last 1.2 in 11:55 (9:56 pace). I was very happy with the 8:30 early miles and a little perplexed about the drastic slow down in the end. I didn’t feel like I was slowing and based on those around me I wasn’t losing any ground. My official time was 55:45, my new 10K PR.

on the way up the hill to the finish line, me in orange with my usual head lean to the left

After the race we spent the rest of the day in Temecula. We visited a couple of new wineries, Cougar and Frangipani, and a couple of our favorites, Robert Renzoni and Keyways. In between we enjoyed a wonderful lunch at the Smokehouse Restaurant on the grounds of the Ponte Winery.

A nice view of the rolling countryside in Temecula

We are cute, aren't we? (see the Happy Place post)

The next day offered an opportunity to run yet another Turkey Trot. This one a 10K as well in none other than my favorite park; Bonelli. Tyler had planned to run this one with me. When we checked the details of the race we realized that the run was on the roads and parking lots of Bonelli. The race description had mentioned trails and roads, but in reality the trails were only about a half mile of the 6.2. Tyler was none too thrilled with the 7:30 race start and truthfully I wasn’t overjoyed about paying to run where I run for free all the time. I was enamored with the idea of back to back 10K’s though. Before we called it a night we decided to skip the race and just run our own 10K later in the morning.

We got to Bonelli around 8:30. The 10K race was pretty much done, but the Turkey Tri was still going on. We put in a lot more time on the dirt, got to see the bikes go by and the last of the people finishing up the swim. We even wound our way through the finishing area. Tyler hadn’t run this far in a while and because I am technically tapering we used the run:walk method starting with 7:1 and moving to 5:1 as Tyler lost momentum. We had a great run together and saved about $80.00. I’d call that a win-win.

The week that was supposed to be 3-3-10-3, ended up being 4-3-3-6.2-6.2 for a total of 22.4 miles. Next week’s plan is a whopping 5 miles before race day. It will be a short week at work and then off to Tennessee.

(The post title was just to see if you were paying attention)

Predicting the End

With one week to go before Memphis it is time to make some predictions about finishing times. I mentioned this before but with the one year break between marathons, in many ways I feel like I'm doing this for the first time. Since the first one back in January of 2004, I gained a ton of experience and the confidence to know that I can cover 26.2 miles. This time around, although I put in a full 6 months of training, I go into Memphis with the lowest mileage base of any marathon. Since June I've covered just over 500 miles. For my first I covered 650 miles.

So what am I hoping to see on the clock when I cross the finish line? I've got several options and points of reference.

First, since this feels like the first one again, I would really like to better the time from that very first marathon, Rock-n-Roll Arizona. My time there was 4:34.

Based on the 20 miler I did 5 weeks ago, the predicting calculators give me a 4:26. If I could keep the pace just below the 10:00 per mile mark I could even eke out a 4:20.

The 22 miler a couple of weeks ago in the unseasonable hot and windy weather gives me a predicted finishing time of 4:48. I'm not really happy about that. The marathons where I've exceeded that time were all special circumstances; LA with heat in the 90's, NYC after 2 days of walking the city, and two trails marathons on muddy hills. Memphis won't fit any of these extenuating circumstances so I think I can do better than 4:48.

I have yet a third option. Memphis will mark the third year in a row that Joe and I have gotten together to run a marathon during the beginning of December. Last year we had great time with Wes, David, Lana and Michele as well. Memphis marks the end of Joe's three fall marathon challenge. Usually on race day its every man for himself. I've given serious consideration to running along with Joe, step for step, following his 3:1 run:walk plan. Joe is predicting a 4:40 finishing time. That keeps me safely below the 4:48 I dread and about equally beyond my conservatively acceptable time of 4:34. No matter the final time I will have achieved my real goal of simply moving one state closer to 50.

We'll have to see what the weather brings our way and how we each are feeling on race day. I may not make the final decision until the gun fires. Your thoughts?

Ride To The Beach

I completely missed it but November 19 was the third anniversary of fivedown.blogspot.com, currently known as Twelve Down – Training for Tennessee. In a couple of weeks that will be changing yet again for the eighth time in three years to something like Thirteen Down – Destination Unknown.

This past weekend I flip flopped my scheduled runs to 4 on Saturday and 10 on Sunday. The reason for the flop was a bike ride with friends. We started deep in the San Gabriel Valley and headed to the beach again. Do you see a trend here? We rode down a different river trail than I ran last week. The weather was much different as well. We started on the Rio Hondo Trail in Arcadia and connected eventually with the San Gabriel River Trail and rode to PCH then took PCH over to the opposite end of Huntington Beach from last weekend.

We try to do these long rides at least once a year. This one was 33 miles total. Let me tell you it is not a great idea to go out 33 miles after not really riding the bike all summer long. 20 to 40 minutes on the stationary bike at the gym just doesn’t cut it as training for a 33 miler.

Since our group varies in age from teens to near retirees, the event becomes what I like to call a weakest link ride. This is as it should be. The pace overall is dictated by the slowest rider, which changes as the day progresses. We are in no hurry to get the ride done so it is a pretty easy effort. It was a much cooler day, maybe in the middle 70’s with a light on shore breeze, totally opposite of last weekend’s Santa Ana’s.

I had planned on running 4 miles when I got to the beach. I realize that I get some measure of exercise out of the 33 mile ride, but I define myself as a runner, not a cyclist. So when it comes to the end of the day, I feel this tremendous need to put a number in my log book that matches up with the plan.

But as the ride wore on, the lack of bike riding caught up to me and I reached the beach spent, thirsty and hungry (the trend continues). Not nearly as spent as last week but I still decided to trash the run. I will come to terms with the big ZERO somehow.

Now that I’ve run and ridden to the beach on consecutive weekends, does that mean I have to swim there next weekend? There's not really much water in our rivers so this could be a real challenge.

The following day I headed over to the opposite end of the San Gabriel River Trail for my 10 miler. I stretched it to 12. I have no idea how long I was out there. I kept to the 7:1 intervals as usual and enjoyed the day. I wore the shin support and had to stop at least three times during the first couple of miles to adjust it before I finally got it in a position that it would stay put and still be doing some good.

I’m sitting here at home today. I used the short work week as a chance to take a much needed vacation. As I type away, I look outside to see the beautiful day and am thinking we waste far too many of these kinds of days sitting at work, but such is the necessity of life. I’ve got no specific plans for the three days other than getting in a run or two. There are still baseboards and door trim to paint and a never ending hedge to trim. Plus I have about a week’s worth of blogs to catch up on so I think I’ll find ways to pass the time.

The excitement mounts for the St. Jude Marathon in Tennessee. I can hardly believe that it will be 364 days since my last marathon. This is the longest gap in my short running career. I’ve already been giving some serious thought to 2009. Possible states are Idaho, South Dakota and North Carolina. I’m contemplating an ultra in Ohio as well. I need to blog about it soon.

My Happy Place

Catching up on blogs this morning I found that I’ve been tagged by Anne from Run DMZ. I thank you, Anne, for choosing my blog as “Kreativ”. I usually mull these things over for awhile and never quite get to them. I think I still owe someone the list of 6 random things. I decided to give this one some thought right away and commit it to paper.

I found it kind of ironic that I had been chosen to list six things that make me happy and to pass it along to six others. I used to consider myself to be a pretty happy go lucky guy but lately I’ve become more of a grumpy old man. I could easily think of things that make me unhappy, I was going to have to dig a little deeper right now to recall those things that do make me happy.

A couple of years ago I took a new position at work that requires much inter-departmental interaction and government regulation and oversight to get done. I find navigating all the red tape very frustrating. It seems as though no one really wants the position but they all want to tell you how to do it. Our youngest son has decided to take a path in life that is contrary to many of the things we tried to impress upon him in his youth. While we are not super rich, we have been able to provide our sons with certain advantages that the youngest one has seemed to squander away. Most recently he totaled a car we’d only made two payments on within days of getting a speeding ticket. Just recently I made the decision to leave a small group Bible study we’ve belonged to for four years after enduring one too many discussions that spiraled into hard headed non-negotiables. Then there have been layoffs and the threat of layoffs, my stress fracture, the huge losses in my 401k, the election, the whole economic mess, ad infinitum. Needless to say I haven’t been dealing well.

Before I get any further into this downward spiral I will change gears. I do realize that I have much to be thankful for and probably just need and deserve a swift kick in the pants to get moving again. Now on to the list:

Six things that make me HAPPY

1. My wife and I together. Through everything else she’s the one constant. She takes care of all the stuff I don’t/won’t/can’t. She is my biggest supporter and fan. Besides that we take really cute pictures together. I have them hanging in my cube at work and can’t help but smile when I look at them.

2. Seeing my kids succeed. They sometimes fail but when they pick themselves up and make wise decisions for themselves it is satisfying. They sometimes surprise me with their acts of generosity and brilliance.

3. Worship music. I love music in general but it is very difficult to be anything but happy when listening to and belting out my favorite church songs, old and new.

4. Comfort food. There’s just something about a plate of meat loaf and mash potatoes, a bowl of chili, Italian escarole soup, hot chocolate, chocolate chip cookies, even a good PB&J. The list is long. Nothing beats hearty soul satisfying food.

5. Natural beauty. I love to be outside taking in the grandeur of the landscape and the details of a leaf, a flower, or a rock. I enjoy a warm sunny day and a cool cloudy day equally.

6. Running. Of course. Running is my “me time”, my time away from all the other concerns. It also encompasses all the other things on the list. Running and the pursuit of 50 states marathons has allowed Lisa and I to get away and share some great times together exploring this nation of ours. I’ve gotten to share runs with each of my boys. Although I’ve only recently added the ipod to my runs, a song is almost always running through my head as I pound the road or the trail. As for food, comfort food, isn’t that 99% of the reason to run. Everything tastes better after a long run. And lastly running gets me out there in the middle of shoulder high mustard plants, bunnies, hawks, turkey vultures, autumn leaves, the smell of eucalyptus trees, cloudless skies, foggy skies, rolling hills, mud, live oak groves, sand and ocean waves and so much more.

Thank you Anne for giving me the opportunity to search out the happy thoughts. If you haven’t been tagged already, feel free to take the opportunity to explore your soul and create your list of happy thoughts.

Sneaking a Peak

Memphis, TN

Saturday, December 6, 2008

Average Temperatures: High 55°F; Low 37°F
Record Temperatures: High 76°F; Low 15°F

I couldn't help myself. I had to look. The average temps look like perfect marathon running weather.

Run To The Beach

The last long run before the marathon is complete and I am thankful for that. It was one of the toughest runs in memory. But runner’s memories can’t really be counted on when it comes to recalling the toughness of a run or race. It’s sort of like a women and childbirth.

We did something Saturday that we’ve talked about for a couple of years but just never got done. We ran to the beach. The group today was Terry, Mike, Carol and me. Many of the CA Cruisers were running the inaugural Pasadena Marathon on Sunday.

Typically I drive to the beach and run my long runs along the bike paths that parallel the beach. On many occasions I do my runs on the bike paths that parallel the drainage canals, aka rivers, in LA/OC as out and backs. Saturday we parked our cars in Yorba Linda where I first started training years ago. We hopped on the Santa Ana River Trail at the usual spot, mile marker 22.5, and headed toward the beach.

By all accounts it should have been a fairly easy run, except for the 22 mile part. The rivers all run to the beach. Rivers don’t run uphill so the whole thing was downhill, a very gradual downhill, but downhill none the less. When we arrived the Santa Ana winds were kicking up something fierce. The good thing is that the winds would be at our backs the entire way. Couple that with the downhill aspect and we had all the advantages in our favor.

The wind was actually more of a negative. The Santa Ana’s are accompanied by warmer than normal temperatures and bone dry humidity. It was already in the mid 60’s when we got started at 6:00 a.m. with projected highs for the day into the 90’s. The super arid air made proper hydration a key issue of the day. As nice as a downhill trail along a river sounds, in LA it means being fully exposed to the sun the entire time with a huge cement culvert on one side. An advantage of this type of trail is that it is nearly impossible to get lost.

The four of us are all planning on marathons the first week of December. I’m off the Tennessee of course, Terry is off to Sacramento for the California International Marathon, while Mike and Carol are off to Tuscon. Carol’s pace is slower so she had started 30 minutes ahead of the three of us. We wondered when and if we would ever catch her.

The run started uneventfully except for the wind. The three of us just marched along following Mike’s run/walk schedule of 5:30/0:45. At drank something at almost every walk break. It was so dry out there. By mile 14 I started to lag behind Mike and Terry a little bit. The mother in Terry came out to make sure I was doing all right. My shin was fine, I was just “pooped”. I’ve been pretty tired on all my runs since the 20 miler three weeks ago. I gave them permission to go on without me. I planned on finishing the 22 miles but I was going to have to slow down.

Soon afterward, Mike admitted that he too would not be able to keep up with Terry. He fell back a few yards with me. He stopped to adjust his watch timer for shorter run segments. I expected him to catch me but he never did. He kept fading further and further back.

At this point, around mile 15 or so, I had that currently familiar thought about how nice it would be to just do half marathons. I had to chuckle to myself over that. The last 6 miles we were four people running alone. Terry had continued on feeling strong, I continued to plod along, while Mike faded further. Carol was up there somewhere still to be caught. Once on my own, I set my watch to 5:1 and soon adjusted that to 4:2.

With 5 miles to go, I saw a female runner up ahead. She was walking and running as well. During my run segments I gained very little on her, but didn’t loose much ground during the walk segments. It took me a mile and half to catch her. It turned out to be Carol. I haven’t run with her often and didn’t recognize her silhouette.

With 2 miles to go, I was completely out of fluids. I had been sucking on ClifBlocks for several miles just to keep my mouth moist. About a mile from the beach I could see the ocean waves crashing under the bridge at PCH and knew I was going to make it. My pace at this point was roughly 12 to 13:00 per mile. I got to the 0 mile marker on the trail just completely spent, thirsty and hungry.

My final time was right at 4:00 for a 10:55 pace overall. I think we were around 9:30 for the first 10 to 12 miles, but I don’t really know since I wasn’t tracking mile splits. The first thing I did was wash my face at the restroom at Huntington Beach. I tried to drink some water, but at first I felt like I was going to lose it. I sat down and tried to recover. I returned to the drinking fountain and was able to get some water down. We waited a few minutes for our ride back. Terry had arranged with her daughter to pick us up and drive us back to Yorba Linda.

I told Terry that I was never running that one again! Yet I know that I likely will. The weather was just not what any of us would expect. It is the middle of November for goodness sakes and yet we are still having summer like weather in the 90’s. I’m counting on cooler weather in Tennessee.

Final mileage for the week was 33.7. Let the taper begin.

Always There

Another week in the books. One week closer to that next long awaited state. Four weeks from today I will be on a plane on my way back home from Tennessee. While not guaranteed, I am feeling pretty confident about crossing the finish line in AutoZone Park. Finishing the St. Jude Marathon will be a triumph over injury and one state closer to my goal. For that I am thankful.

This week, Week 23, consisting of 4 runs for 23 miles looked just like last week give or take a half mile moved from one day to another. I’ve come to realize that most of my mileage has been what many would classify as “junk”; just enough to get by. Reading blogs, like David, Charlie, Burger, Joe and Juls, I realize that you’ve all got a more focused training plan with speed work, tempo runs, and LT runs, while I just cover the ground.

Even with the talk of running dangerously in my last post, I’ve really been running pretty safely. I’m afraid to push it. The injury earlier this year is one reason. I frequently feel like I’m one wrong step, one pulled muscle, one pushed pace away from disaster.

I mentioned to Jeff a couple of years back that I am always keenly aware of my legs. Do you know the feeling? We’ve got a multitude of parts to our bodies. On a daily basis we are not aware of most of them. Take the spleen for example, you know it is there, but unless its causing you pain you don’t really think about it. On the other hand my legs always have some kind of twinge here or there. On any given day my quads are sore, the IT flares, my Achilles ache, etc, etc. My legs are always “there.” Before I was a runner my legs were just another part of my body. They were not constantly reminding me of their presence. Don’t get me wrong, I like that feeling of “there-ness”, but I fear that all those little pains will become bigger pains if I push beyond my comfortable pace and plan.

Besides the 50 State goal I have other goals – a sub 4:00 marathon and a Boston Qualifier, currently at 3:30 for me. A couple of years into running I was able to achieve that sub 4:00 at SEAFAIR with increased experience and mileage. I even pulled off a 3:40 with the help of a net downhill at St. George. Since then things have gone in the other direction. The BQ is going to take a more focused effort.

For now I’m going to stay the course through 2008, but 2009 is time for re-evaluation. Let’s hope this body can take the heat and even more that I will have the mental fortitude to do what needs to be done.

photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/memphisphotorepository/2839390187/

Filling Holes and Painting Doors

Finishing the painting of the doors was the official reason I gave for taking the day off on Monday. I had an extra company paid personal holiday left to take along with over 6 weeks of vacation in the bank and a huge hole in my work calender that needed filling.

But a day off can't be all work and no play. A day off during the week is a day to run, a day to run free, to run wild, to run a little dangerously.

Before I donned the old painted shorts and t-shirt, before I gathered the blue tape and the brush, I donned my trusty running gear and headed out to Bonelli.

I had the whole day in front of me. I decided that I'd played it safe long enough. I've run in Bonelli all summer but only on the flattest, easiest paths. Monday was different.

I had plenty of reasons not to run dangerously. I'd come so far from not running at all in the spring. I was only 5 weeks out from my one and only marathon in 2008. Now was not a good time to blow it. But there are no guarantees, so I headed out.

I strapped on my trail shoes for the first time since the Winter Trail Series back in February. I did put in the orthotics. The Cascadias felt good. I planned to run my beloved Sunday Morning 5 Mile Loop for the first time in months. I was excited.

The trail was in perfect condition. The light rains that we'd had over the weekend had knocked down all the dust but not soaked the clay soil to the point that it clumped mercilessly to my shoes. I started the run under cloudy skies with an ever so slight mist. It was a perfect re-entry, energizing run.

During the rehab process I've run this trail up to the 2 mile mark but have always turned around and retraced my steps. Today I cruised right on by that mark and kept going intent on finishing the entire loop.

As a nod to sanity and prudence, I stuck to the 5 minute run/1 minute walk routine. I thoroughly enjoyed running the back part of the loop. I'd missed it. The big hills at the end were still steep but I has thrilled to be moving up them. By the time I hit the 4.5 miles the sun was shining brightly; perfectly reflecting my mood.

Post run, all seems to be well. I indulged my running inner child and still got the doors painted. I think I'll check my work calendar for some more holes.

picture credit: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blast/showcase/art/digital_art/35909/

The Other Chino Hills

Same town, different route.

Usually when I run in Chino Hills it means Chino Hills State Park. The park is a haven for mountain bikers, hikers and of course trail runners. Next to Bonelli it is one of my favorite local places to run. I haven't been in the park since the beginning of the year. I still haven't. Today I met Terry and Mike near the entrance of the park but instead of going into the park we ran a 9.5 mile route through the streets and neighborhoods. It was a nice morning for a run. The weather forecast had called for intermittent showers but they didn't materialize until the afternoon.

The rest of the week went well. Last Sunday I found out how my legs really felt after running 20 miles for the first time in 8 months. All day Saturday and even up until the point that I started running Sunday afternoon my legs felt really pretty good. Once I started running I realized how tired and worn out they were. I made it through a meandering 33 minute run in Bonelli and called it 3 miles. I put off Monday's 5 miler until Wednesday to give my legs a couple of extra days to recuperate.

Wednesday, I headed over to Bonelli after work for the 5 miler and finished just before 7 o'clock. I finally came to the realization that "that" time of the year was here again; the time when it's just too dark to run in the park after work. I made it to within days of the time change so I can't complain too much.

On Thursday I was able to leave work about an hour early. I took advantage of the time and ran on the trails in Bonelli. About 3/4 of the way through my shin was whining just a little. I realized I had forgotten my brace and was wearing my oldest shoes. The miles on these shoes had probably reached the point of early retirement.

Back to Saturday – Mike and Terry had met earlier for about 5 miles. I joined them at 7:00. We used Mike’s run/walk schedule of 5:15 run/0:45 walk. He likes this better than a minute walk break as he finds he stiffens up too much after a minute especially during the last miles of a marathon. About a mile before the finish Terry split off for some extra mileage. The final score was Darrell 9.5, Mike 15, and Terry 18. We met afterwards at Peet’s for coffee. There is a significant running community in Chino Hills. During the run we must have seen close to 50 other runners, as singles and in groups of up to 10, pretty cool. I’ve run all over Covina and never come across more than a single runner at a time and rather infrequently at that.

I awoke this morning a little after 6:00/7:00 depending on if you go by body time or clock time. I did the green thing and headed straight out the door for a familiar 4.5 mile loop. I decided to run the entire thing and actually time it. Other than the long runs I haven’t been timing myself on the come back trail. I’ve only been using the watch to keep track of run/walk intervals. The 4.5 miles took me 42:38 for 9:29 pace. I think I’ll go back to not timing myself for a little longer.

Now some accounting:

October – 103.5 miles – easily the highest mileage month of 2008, aided by the 20 miler. That same week of the 20 miler was my highest mileage week of the year by 0.1 of a mile at 32.4.

This week was an easy week at 23 miles. Next week will be the same. The following week will include the last long run before Tennessee.

Five weeks to the big day.

While the Miles Roll Away

I remember the days when getting a run in was a simple affair. Yesterday morning I felt like a pack mule as I gathered all my necessities for the long run. I had water bottles (half water, half Gatorade G2), a couple a gels, the belt to hold them, sweat cloth, ipod and earphones, Body Glide, shin support, medical tape, and a banana. Plus my keys, wallet and cell phone. I stuck all that in a grocery bag just to carry it to the car. I also had a small cooler to keep my new favorite recovery drink, chocolate milk, cold.

I had originally agreed to meet Mike at 6:00 a.m. I normally start my runs at a reasonable 7:00, he likes to get going by 5:00; we split the difference. Mike called on Thursday with a work committment that was going to preclude his run. I could have joined the Cruisers at 7:00 but decided to stick to the 6:00 plan since I had already scheduled the rest of my day around that time.

Than plan had originally called for a 22 miler today. When my shin began acting up again, I scaled it back to a 20 miler. This would be my first of two for Tennessee and my first since February 16. Eight months between long runs. I felt like I had to prove to myself that I could actually cover the distance again.

Finishing was my primary goal. Pace and time were secondary. I had set a loose expectation of staying below 10 minute pace. I set my watch for the 7:1 run:walk intervals that I've been using. I also started the chrono but didn't really monitor it. I started off in the dark on a street so I kept the ipod off. Once I hit the beach path and the sun began to rise I turned on the tunes. I've only recently began running the long runs to music and I am actually enjoying it.

I took sips from my bottles at most of my walk breaks. I hit the 10 mile turn around point right at 1:39:21, as close to 10:00 pace as I could hope for. I just hoped I could maintain that, since I hadn't given myself any leeway, but I reminded myself of goal number one to finish.

Once I hit about 13 miles I stared questioning marathons. The half distance is so much easier to do. I wondered (not seriously) if I could adjust my goal to half marathons in half the states. The music became a dominant force in the run during the second half. My playlist had mostly Christian pop/rock but I had added Jackson Browne's Running on Empty as well. The album showed up around mile 13. I hoped the title was not prophetic. I was still feeling pretty good at that point. "You Love the Thunder" has a great beat to run to. A couple of songs later these words in "Load Out/Stay" rang true - we've got the time to think of the one's we love while the miles roll away.

A couple of songs later during mile 15 or so the lyrics were - I'm tired of putting one foot in front of the other. The song "A Breath or Two" by Jimmy Needham is more about the status quo and self centeredness but was appropriate at the time.

Mile 16, my new favorite song came on, "Today is The Day" by Lincoln Brewster. I know I picked up the pace pretty significantly during this one. I debated for a second about keeping it looping but doubted I could keep up the pace for four more miles. It was one of the best four and a half minutes of the run. Although this isn't a subject I normally breach on this blog, I thought I would include a video of the song here.



Along the way I had taken half a packet of gel at mile 10, 13, 15 and 17. Although I was getting pretty tired I stuck to my 7:1 schedule and was pleased beyond pleased at my final time of 3:20:42, a 10:02 pace overall. Darn good after an eight month hiatus. After the banana and the chocolate milk I drove home to start the rest of my day.

Tennessee is lookin' better all the time.

PA in Pix

Clock near the rail station in Lititz, PA



Rolling vistas



Autumn Mosaic



Lisa and her Dad at Longwood Gardens



View from a treehouse window, Longwood Gardens



Caboose



Lisa and me at the Harrisburg Airport - Where else do they have country rockers at an airport?

LOL in Blogland

I've been reading Nick's blog for a little while now. About a week or so ago I discovered that we had both run the NYC marathon in 2005. One day last week Nick put up a short synopsis of his marathons. The NYC marathon account included a run in with Sponge Bob Square Pants. Nick suffered an abrasion from Sponge Bob. I felt compelled to tell Nick of my own experience with the Sponge Bob sponge as a comment which I will copy below:

"Sponge Bob suffered a bad fate with me in NYC. Somewhere after picking up the sponge, I needed to use the john. There was no toilet paper so poor Sponge Bob was pressed into service. Needless to say that was one souvenir I did not bring home."

A few days later, while I watch catching up on blogs I came across this on Nick's site. I was in PA for the weekend and my mother-in-law was right there when I busted out laughing. I just couldn't bring myself to reveal the whole sordid details to her, but it was a funny moment.

Thanks for the laugh Nick!

The rest of my running week went like this. I did the 5 mile in Bonelli on Monday before the doctor appointment. Monday night I did a leg workout with the trainer at the gym. My legs were killing me until Thursday. The next time I got out there was on Thursday evening. I headed over to Bonelli for 4 miles. I took it pretty easy.

Twelve hours later, I was back out on the road at 6:00 for a 10.5 miler from home. I got the run in before we left for PA. My wife and I were going there to celebrate my in-laws 25th wedding anniversary. The weather took a turn toward chilly when we arrived after having been near 80 earlier in the week. I had planned not to run on Saturday, but skipped the run Sunday since it was only in the 30's when I had the time to go around 7:00 a.m. The rest of the day we were gone. We had a great day at Longwood Gardens.

When I got up Monday morning it was 27 degrees at 7:30 in the morning. I waited until almost 11:00 for the temps to finally break 40 before I went out for about 4 miles on the country lanes in PA. The vistas are beautiful. You can see a long way on the gently rolling terrain of south central PA.

We arrived back in SoCal at midnight last night. After a day a work today, I am off to take a test in Marketing. Never a dull moment.

Un-Remarkable

The doctors appointment scheduled for the middle of the morning allowed me to get in my run first thing. I got up at my normal time and headed over to Bonelli for 5 miles over the dam onto Cottontail Trail. I did feel a little guilty taking a parking space in the Park&Ride lot during the morning rush, but felt better when I got back and there were still empty spaces.

The sun wasn't quite up when I got started. The weather has definitely taken a turn towards cooler. It was interesting to feel the different areas of cool and warm air that collected in the valleys and rose up from the lake. During the run I actually saw two other runners at different times going in the opposite direction. I came across both of them during a walk break. I hate when that happens. I did see the one guy on the return trip and this time I was running - redeemed.

I went to the appointment with the orthopedist. I described the pain and my history of diagnosis, treatment, physical therapy and release, mileage build up and return of the pain. He had a look at my orthotics and my old x-rays. They took new ones for comparison.

Thankfully I liked what he had to say and what he didn't say. He didn't tell me to stop running. He did pronounce my case to be unremarkable - classic shin splints. Treatment includes doing the things I'm already doing, albeit on a more regular basis. Stretching, ice, OTC anti inflammatory meds and the shin support. He suggested a source of OTC inserts when my current expensive prescription ones wear out. He also gave me his email and told me to use it if I had any questions in the future. He answers all his own email.

I was impressed with him and relieved that my "condition" is not more serious. Shin splints are annoying but ultimately dealt with. I will stay the course and keep to the plan for Memphis and then try to ramp things up ever so slowly to the levels of 2007 and see where I go from there.

I've got to plan a marathon someday in Idaho to meet up with Eric, Michelle, Rob and whoever else wants to join us. And there's always the fourth annual blogger reunion to plan sometime at the end of 2009. [Note to Joe - we are running out of choices the first week or two of December, what do you think about OBX in North Carolina on Veterans Day weekend in 2009? Just a thought. ] Anybody else have a good ideas.

Movin' forward and lookin' ahead - Remarkable!

Thirty Percent More....

…at no extra charge.

The scheduled long run this week was 10 miles. Back in June when I first put this plan on paper, I penciled in many of the local races to see where they would fit it. Back in August I ran the Run through the Pines half on a weekend that called for a 12 miler. That race went well. A couple of weeks later I faced the choice of adding other races to the schedule and I added the Long Beach Half Marathon to the plan. I sent in my registration on 8/29 before the price increase. This was a Friday. No sooner had I done that than my shin started hurting again (at the end of week 13, training for my 13th state, hmmmm). I also had to make a critical decision. That day was the last day to send in my early entry for Big Sur in 2009. As much as I really want to run that one, I just couldn’t send in that check for $108 and risk not running it for the second time.

Meanwhile this weekend, my friend Terry was running the full at Long Beach and many of the CA Cruisers were running the half. Terry asked me to pace her for the first 11 miles before the half and full split up. She was using LB as a training run for a shot at a BQ at the California International Marathon the same weekend I’m scheduled for Tennessee.

After some traffic snarl ups we made it to the race start with only a couple of minutes to spare. I had no official time goal but was hoping for something less than 2:10. Terry was shooting for a 4:15 – 4:20 marathon. We were trying to keep the pace between 9:30 and 10:00, hopefully toward the longer side while we were together and then Terry would kick it up later as necessary to meet the goal.

Our first few miles were on the faster end of the desired pace.

Mile 1 – 9:35
Mile 2 – 9:22
Mile 3 – 9:21

I pulled back a little and told Terry to set the pace. I joked with her that I didn’t want to be blamed for the end of the race falling apart because we’d gone too fast at the start.

Mile 4 – 9:32
Mile 5 – 9:30
Mile 6 – 10:01

We’d finally slowed down a little. At this point, as seems to be the case with me a lot lately, my gut needed to take a break. I’d even taken care of business before the race started. I had to let Terry go on without me at the next set of port-o-johns.

Mile 7 – 10:48 including the bathroom stop

I tried like crazy to catch up to Terry before she reached the mile 11 cut off to the full.

Mile 8 – 9:27

I passed quite a few people but didn’t really gain any ground. I shortened my walk breaks. We had been using 7:1 up to that point. In my attempt to catch Terry I missed a couple of mile markers before 11.

Mile 9, 10, 11 – 27:35 (9:12 pace)

There was no hope of catching Terry. At this point I reminded myself that this was just a training run and tried to settle into a more leisurely pace. As I ran along, I felt good and continued to pass people.

Mile 12 – 8:48 the fastest mile so far

Mile 13.1 – 9:34

I ended up finishing the race faster than I started it. That was pretty cool. The clock read 2:04:45 when I crossed the finish line. My watch had 2:03:33 (9:25 pace). The official results will be posted later this evening.

I hung around after the finish and got to see many of the Cruisers coming in. I was at the finish line when the first marathoner crossed the finish. It is amazing that he just ran a marathon in about 15 minutes longer than it took me to run the half. I also got to see a guy with a fairly good sized cheering section get to announce that “I’m going to Boston!!” He’d qualified with 30 seconds to spare somewhere in the 3:15 time frame.

I decided to head up the course to wait for Terry. I picked her up with about a mile to go and ran her in to the finish. She came in at 4:12, faster than planned but at least I wasn’t on the hook for the fast early pace.

It was a beautiful day for a race. Besides the parking hassles due to the fact that there is only one freeway that dumps you into Long Beach and the number of walkers on the course that is on a 12 foot wide bike part for part of the time, the rest of the event is well organized. The half marathon course is pretty interesting I think and before I knew it I was done. I would consider doing this one again if it fit into the schedule again as nicely as it did this year.

Burger, another LA blogger was there as well, gunning for a PR effort at the half. I hope he was able to achieve his goal and look forward to reading his take on the race.

Tomorrow I have an appointment with an orthopedic doctor that I made the Monday after Black Week 13. Since then my shin has felt so much better. I’ve run an 18 miler, another speedy run earlier this week and the half today with no apparent ill effects, but I’m going to keep the appointment anyway since it took a month get in. I’ll let you know what he has to say.

A Little Taste of the Old Me

Until today running has sucked this week. Pretty much everything has sucked this week. The economy has resulted in some of my coworkers losing their jobs or corporately speaking "their positions were eliminated"; whatever. My (and your) 401k took a huge dive. On the home front I am finding it increasingly more difficult to deal with the 18 year old who seems to have no motivation or direction. Even the shortest contact with him ends with me being pissed off. Life!

I didn't run on Monday, although I can't remember exactly why. The initial plan was to run Wednesday and Thursday. Tuesday I had class - Intro to Marketing, so no running. Wednesday I'm blaming on the kid, but in reality it was my reaction to the kid that kept me from running.

Today I finally got out there and it felt G-O-O-D! I headed over to the San Gabriel River Trail right after work. It was just like old times. Brian, Celeste, Terry and I used to have a standing 5 miler every Thursday right after work. Today it was just me but the trail was familiar.

I got started right behind another guy. I fell in behind him as he slowly crept further and further ahead of me. I took note of the time at a mile marker and realized my chasing had me running nearly 8:00 pace. Just before the 2 mile mark my rabbit turned back. I ended up doing that mile in 8:20. It has been a long time since I'd done that. My heart and lungs felt nearly ready to burst out of my chest. At that point I took a 30 second walk break to catch my breath and then kept on going without my rabbit to spur me on.

I tried to keep the pace under control. I had no need to run fast. I've found though that once I've started a pace I have a hard time changing it up. The next mile came in at 8:40 which included the 30 second walk break. The next mile was 8:06. I was huffing and sucking in as much air as I could but I couldn't slow down. It was during mile 4 that I realized that I was running the whole time. For some reason I didn't even think to take walk breaks. I've been using 5:1 on shorter runs pretty routinely lately. I guess I was enjoying the trail and the little burst of speed too much. I took another 30 second walk break at mile 4.5 and tried really hard to take easy into the finish.

My final time was 42:03 for an 8:25 pace overall. Like I said it felt really GOOD. I'm not sure where the little burst of speed came from but it was fun while it lasted and for 42:03 life didn't suck quite so badly.

Its Fall Y'All

Its Fall Y’all – sign at a nursery/garden store near the start of my long run.

The last minute trip to Toronto changed the running plans a little, maybe even for the better. I was able to get a 5 miler in on Monday morning before my flight at noon. It was very nice to run in the morning on a weekday with no big rush to be anywhere. Just before I left, we had a short rain shower. It was the kind with the great big drops, that if one hit you you’d be drenched. The shower didn’t last and I was rewarded with a beautiful rainbow in the western sky. The 5 mile run was more of an effort than I expected. It was my third run in three days, which is something I don’t do too often anymore.

The trip to Toronto went well. The weather was alternately gloomy, raining and then clear; typical for the region. I was able to spend a short amount of time downtown. There is a beautiful running path right on Lake Ontario that I would like to take advantage of if I ever get another chance to visit Toronto. I also was able to see Niagara Falls before one of the customer visits. It is just magnificent. I didn’t run a step in Toronto.

I was back home and at work on Friday and planned my 18 miler for Saturday. The CA Cruisers were mostly running a local 5K, so I was pretty much on my own for the 18. Thankfully, Terry my old running buddy from work was looking for a partner for 10 miles. So I headed out to the river trail in Yorba Linda and put in 8 miles beginning at 7:00. It was a perfect day for a long run. The forecast had called for scattered light showers. They never materialized; they rarely do around here, but the cloud cover, cool temps and light breeze made for great day. I used my shin guard and stuck to my 7:1 run:walk routine.

The first 8 miles ticked off pretty easily. Terry was there to meet me and I never missed a beat on my way for the second part of the run. We continued the 7:1 schedule. Terry was up for an easy run since she is running the Long Beach Marathon next weekend. She lamented the fact that the weather would have been great for the marathon this weekend, while next weekend is forecast for 78 degrees. I made it to the turnaround point, 13 miles so far, feeling pretty good. By the time we hit mile 16 I was relishing the walking breaks. I struggled a little to get the last 2 miles done. I felt better if I paid attention to my posture, but my hips and knees were definitely feeling the effects of the 18 miles. We finished up just seconds shy of 3 hours for a nice round 10:00 pace. I’d be ecstatic if I could keep that up for Memphis, but it doesn’t seem realistic considering the struggle to get to 18.

The shin felt really good so I’m feeling pretty good about getting to Memphis. Right after the run Lisa and I left for Laughlin, Nevada. Laughlin is a 4 hour drive. We were going to catch Journey in the last stop of their 2008 Revelation Tour. Journey was the first concert we ever saw together way back when we were dating so it was going to be a nice way to celebrate our 24 wedding anniversary. Fiscal year end inventory at her work and my flight to Toronto on the actual day prohibited celebrating any sooner. The concert was a lot of fun, but it sure is odd to see all those grey haired, pot bellied folks at a rock show. I just don’t see myself that way. A lot of people were there as families with their teens which was kind of cool and the new lead singer who is from the Philippines drew a significant number of Filipinos.

I did get in a short 2.5 mile run on Sunday morning, but the previous days run and the bone dry conditions in Laughlin made it a difficult run. I called it quits at 2.5 and planned on finishing up the run on the treadmill at the hotel but then didn’t want to pay the $5 usage fee, as if the casino/hotel isn’t profitable enough.

I ended the week with 25.5 miles. Between the flight, the long run and the drive to and from Laughlin, I’m worn out. Good thing this week is a step back week, but then again is it????