Camp week 3

Dear mom and dad

Week 3 didnt go so well i got sick. This year overall is not looking so hot. Last year at this time i was knocking out two a days and doing a lot of long runs. I am a bit faster and hill workouts arent that hard, but i am nervous about the mileage. Coach is going to get me focused again and start building that mileage over the next four weeks.

Here is the week breakdown:

Mon 12 miles xt bike

Tues 7 miles road

Wed 4 miles track 6x600

Thurs 12 miles trail

Sat 8 miles road then 4 miles xt stairmaster

Some kids this week got to paddleboat, beach volleyball and tetherball. Now i am feeling fine i hope to participate in some activities is week.

Ps send fruit oranges and bkack cherries

Pss i learned more about dehyration from cytomax in a workshop this week; they are genius!

Camp Week 1

Dear mom & dad,

Well i made it to camp and looks like all my friends are back too. The first couple of days we had some light running. Sort of just enjoy the area kind of runs with some chatter.

Wednesday was the first track workout and coach had us doing a ladder set. Then afterwards up and down the bleachers. The heat index was 103F and that made it even harder. I held in there though and finished strong.

Thursday night was a group run for nine miles only anchor man went the distance. The rest of the campers got to do the easy five option.

Saturday morning i was feeling a bit beat up on the 15 miler and ended up slowing down not by chioce.

Sunday coach gave us a free day. So we headed to the beach for some fun. The sun was hiding so not a lot of fun to be had.

Well i am doing my chores around the cabin. Tomorrow looks like an arts and crafts day with a late afternoon run.

Take care

A weekend of trails

Saturday I hit the Holdridge trails for 20 miles of fun. Kai, Matt & Suann all were there to join in the fun.  The first miles had an occasional section of mud. Nothing to report about just the kind that adds some fun to the singletrack. Then we started hitting some standing water sections.  Each one got longer and deeper as we made our way through the woods. It wasn't the pace that had my heart rate so high it was all the fun I was having on run. 

On top of that we found a the skull of a raccoon, a tree that was burned by lightening and a frog. It was a great start to the weekend.

Then today I ran the trail at island lake.  Word was there was a lot of standing water around knee deep. Also a lot of areas with slippery mud. I set off to see what I could find. What I found first was that the temperature rose to 90F. In the non shaded sections it felt like an oven just running through the heat. Mile after mile there was an occasional spat of mud. Of course I made every effort to step in it too! The pace held even throughout the run. Then I approached mile marker 8.5 and knew I would be seeing the flooded area.  Coming out of the downhill and rounding the corner I saw the river had expanded and was covering the trail 100 meters wide. The cold river was flowing slow over the trail which felt refreshing. It was just under knee deep. Once through it only took a mile for my feet to start to dry out again.  A few miles later I finished at mill pond and waded in up to my shorts to cool off.

Overall, I covered 32 miles on the trails this weekend over those two runs. The second run I pushed a nice steady pace of 8:35. The two courses will see me a few more times before summer ends. Some good quality time will be spent here!

Putting it to bed

After several weeks of prep work  and one failed attempt in the mile PR I hit the goal.  Knowing I run faster the day after a run I waited until the afternoon to take a shot.

We got to the track I did a few strides to warm up, probably not enough to be truly ready. Then I got ready to go and the sky unleashed a heavy rainfall.  With that I set off in motion.  The first split was 1:20 followed up with another two more almost on point. 

In the end I closed out the run with a total time of 5:21. Beating my PR by seven seconds. All that matters to me is that I get a bit faster each year in May. 

I encourage everyone to take that try each year. I enjoy the feel of going all out against my own PR.

The Design

My good buddy Keith  designed a logo for our shirts this year to wear at Leadville. The attached picture is the front of the shirt. The peaks is elevation of the course, genius concept design!!

Strollering down the Interstate

Met up with Keith this morning for a short run at a relaxing pace. He takes his daughter out in the Stroller for runs now and asked me to join them.

Man I was surprised at how effortless he made it look pushing it.  We took the trail along the interstate for an out and back 25K run. The sun was out and such a beautiful day. The trail is a bike path with short rolling hill climbs. The kind that keep the run a little exciting.

The turnaround was a rest plaza that had vending machines and restrooms.  Ideal for run in my mind.

Next time you are in a race and a guy passes you pushing a baby better bet it is Keith and Kendall.

Two people sharing one goal

Tonight I sent a friend a thank you for sharing some wisdom with me. I met Roger in October '06. At that time my only 5K time was 24:39 that I had ran in August. I had just been running for year and knew very little.  Well Roger is a bit faster posting 10K's around 35 minutes. He is from Barbados and his voice reminds me of a Jedi master.

Fartlek, intervals, breathing, strides and a few other things he has taken the time to teach have continued to yield new PRs every year for me. Now reflecting back and seeing he has helped shave 5:30 off my 5K time leaves me speechless.

Next time you get the chance; think about someone that has helped your running success and let them know. I feel like the PR is more of Roger's than mine.

5X5K on the XC Course

Great weekend run with Keith. Basically, ran in his shadows the entire day. As the hills came and I thought walk breaks sounded good he said those are inclines and we should run the inclines with a chuckle.

Kept the day easy and took some photos at the end to try and capture some of the hills. Pictures never seem to show the inclines through the wooded areas very well.

Ran into Ed Barton pre run and talked about training plans and all our goals for 2011.  Even shared a few memories of Leadville.

Northville Road Runners 5K

Tonight I heard there was a 5K race being hosted by the NRR group. Since I have been feeling rather good lately in training for my mile PR I thought why not give it a try.

Once we were all gathering around the club director took me on a .1 mile jog. As we warmed up he explained that it is an out back all down hill out and all uphill on the back. I thought wow great breaking my PR of 19:35 will be tough. So let me just do my best.

Toeing the line I had some nervousness in running the race with no garmin for the first time. Running on feel is my plan so currently I am using a basic ironman Timex with a chrono.

The starter yelled ready, set, go and a quick tap of the watch and I was in motion. Rounded the first corner and taking off in first I began to worry if I was faster than I should be so as the next runner approached me and I could hear his breathing I settled in with him.

We hit the first mile in 5:57 just seconds apart and sticking close. I kept listening to him and wondering if I could hold on that fast. This was faster than I have ever ran a 5k. Moments later we hit the turnaround and clocked in at 9:27. I shouted a strong hello to Dick West, the amazing ultra runner, then realized my breathing was not to labored. I then made my move to regain the lead. Every stride I was gradually pulling away. I eclipsed the second mile at 12:13. Feeling good I held in there.

Coming into the last mile I looked back and noticed I had grown the lead and no one was directly on my heels. I felt so lucky to be in this spot. For me to lead a race is not an everyday thing so I just hoped I could not screw it up. Mile three passed at 18:36. Now I knew I had not only a chance to win but also the chance to achieve a new PR.

The biker pacing me said I will race you in and my heart filled with excitement with those words. I pushed that last .1 mile hill climb to the finish in 33 seconds and crossed not only first overall but with a new PR of 19:09!!

I am so happy more with the PR because any given race it just comes down to who shows up. Today just happened to be my lucky day.

In addition, to winning the plaque I received a bottle of wine. Great day all around.

Streak in the night

http://www.solesportsrunning.com/Pearl-Izumi-Streak-2-men-p922.html

Suann got me a birthday gift today that was truly enjoyable!! I unwrapped the new Pearl Izumi Streak 2 and headed to the track. I am building for a new mile PR in the next week or so.

Tonight i got my crew set at the track ready to crank off an 800M. My 11 year old blew the track whistle every 20 seconds so I knew my pace. My 16 year old sat at the 200M & 600M mark to yell the splits. With a goal of 20 seconds per 100M with a steady pace was the goal.

The whistle blew and boom from a dead stop the world was in motion. I hit 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700 all on the mark then I jumped the pace up and turned in 14 seconds in the last 100M. Finalized the workout in 2:34:54 with some in the tank.  My 8 year old son came over and said, "wow!! It looked like a cheetah was chasing you." That's the best way to walk away from a track session.

If you are looking for a comfortable and fast shoe.  Check this one out.

Inspiring....makes you want to find a mountain ASAP

 Watch "Kilian's Quest Season 3 teaser" on YouTube 

In the heat of the moment

This morning I joined a group of Texan runners for run on the trails of the North Shore. First loop was a 12 mile loop on the easier loop. We covered the it in 2:08. The heat was slowly overtaking me. I started the run sweating mildly and by mile 6 I had ceased to sweat. By mile 10 I had cleared the entire 20 ounce bottle. My skin was dry and only urinated out 5 ounces.

Knowing I had another loop planned I slowed the pace to conserve my energy. Once we reached the trailhead I consumed another 20 ounces then soaked my buff bandana to cool my neck and head.

We headed out for a light two mile loop. Feeling good I but still dry I decided to run the technical loop with Michelle. The loop was amazing and challenging. At three miles I had finished almost all of my Cytomax and mentioned we needed to turn back. Within a mile of the turn around I finished the bottle. I stopped at a stream soaked my buff again and cooled my body. With a two mile push back I knew better than push it. I ran the downs, jogged the flats and power walked the ups. Figuring cramping was soon to occur I held back enough in case I missed a turn and ended up lost for additional miles.

Once back I knew my day was over it had been almost three hours since I had produced any sweat and a total of maybe ten ounces of urine. 

Its always better to back off and come back the next day to have a more productive run. My run in Michigan on Thursday was in the upper 40's; today in Texas it was near 90 with the humidity.

Still enjoyed the beauty of trails and companionship of the runners.

The attached picture is an actual section of the trail that was a short bamboo forest. An amazing section! 

Dynamics of the group run

Tonight I got a chance to run with a new group of runners. Ironically, about one mile from my house.

I find it interesting each time I run with a new group. One the route is unknown. So you are at the mercy of the other runners to find your way back. Secondly, you have no idea what the pace will be each mile.

Well tonight I was told that they like to push the last half of the seven mile around 6:45. To me that sounded good. At mile two I noticed the 7:15 pace was very conversational and easy for them. Mile four the speed picked up and I picked one of them to follow. As the distance past the pace quickened and soon it was only us two. Now I realized hang in there for three miles, just three more.  Entering the sixth mile I felt it was going to be a challenge. The last mile we clocked a 6:10 pace.

This group was definitely was a speed workout. I will for sure be back to run with them again.

Arboretum

Hit the training grounds for the local high school xc teams. A nice all hill 3 mile loop.

Met up with Keith at 8 am for an easy four loops.  Gradually building my runs back up to avoid any unnecessary time off for injuries.

Each loop was about the same 30 minutes. Leaving my legs feeling like I could do another. Next week I will be hitting a 20 miler then two weeks later doing a 50 miler fat ass run. At that point start doing the back the back longs. 

Today was just about enjoying the trails with some good company.

The attached photo was taken by me using branches to make a homemade tripod. Not too shabby. 

Test Track

Took it to the track today for some practice 400m. Looking to see if I can PR in the mile next month. Last year I was able to hit a 5:28 mile.

So today I got out an old whistle, stopwatch and my 11 year old coach. She sounded the whistle at 18 seconds, 36 seconds and 60 seconds. Two out of the four laps I cleared 200m in 36 seconds. The final corner heading into the headwind eliminated my chances of flat 70 seconds everytime.

In the end I logged 74, 80, 77 & 78 for a total of 5:09. Between each lap was a two minute jog.

Next week I will do a final practice then the first week of May put my feet to the test.

Identity Crisis

The last several months I just haven't felt the desire to run. Part was because of injury and part was me being lazy.

I think once I got behind the 8 Ball of not running I started to lose my identity. People who barely know me would ask "are you still running?"  I would answer yes without referencing my last run then walk away like "wow I haven't ran in x amount of days." When my response to the question would normally be" yesterday or this morning." Instead of running I let the downwhirl spiral continue.

Tonight on the run I was taking in the surroundings and realized that I enjoy running and it is who I am. All those people asking where signs for me to step up and be me.

I am going to bring back the runner in me and make the most out of the remaining part of 2011. I know there is only one race on the books but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy all the training runs. 

Hi my name is Steve and I like to run daily & far. Want to join me?

Raining on the trails

April is my turning out to be my month to build my base back up. Today was a day of trail running at Maybury S.P. with all the rain the ground was muddy. I logged only nine miles today bringing my month to date mileage to 60 miles. Building it up slowly this month so next month I can increase even more and get some speed sessions too. Best part was being covered in mud from mid thighs to ankle. The kind when you take your socks off there is a huge noticeable difference plus the mud caked into the toenails.

Going to rest the next two days then hit several more runs next week. A good mix of trail, dirt roads and some roads too. In May I plan to try for a new mile PR....that will be interesting.

The feel of the Earth

Tonight took out the new Montrail Rogue Racers for a short six mile trail run. Very nimble shoe which gave a soft but stable feel of the Earth with every footstrike. The thick mud surrendered to the grip the shoe and keep me pushing through. Hills gave way to a rapid turnover and the straightaways were just fun. This year I am sure I will have many enjoyable trail runs with these shoes!

Living on 34th Street

Got home from my trail run tonight and on my porch was a new pair of Montrail Rogue Racer. Thank you Montrail for the shoes!!! Nothing like a new pair of shoes in the spring season of trail running. They feel great and will have another after my first run in them. Plus a quick write-up.

New month....new me

March is here and so am I.  Took most of Feb off to recover from some Achilles tendinitis and closed out the month with a new 50k PR. Then took a week to ensure a little more recovery.

Now I feeling ready to run again. Tonight I reunited with a friend and flowed through nine miles in an hour and twelve minutes.  The effort felt minimal and the conversation was inspiring. I enjoy how catching up with someone can make miles fly by so nicely.

Tomorrow I have another run planned. Another run with some friends and knocking out seven miles. 

Thoughts of a short St. Patty's race might happen with so many races this weekend and the weather improving.  It makes one want to run and take it all in again.

I am keeping March a run by feel month to avoid some over training and listening to body. By month end I will have a solid idea for the next quarter of running.

So far this year I have achieved one of my 2011 goals. Which goal will be next??