McRunning Through My Life

Competitor Running

2009-06-16T15:18:00.001-07:00

And another one bites the dust...

2009-05-26T16:37:00.000-07:00

Well as you may have figured this blog is going no where and I think it will be ending up in the same place as Mario's....

Unfortunately what has happened is that I do this full time now and there is no joy in just doing this on my time off. Everything I wish this blog would be is what the website I am working on is, which is nice. So I have decided to join Strands.com for my training logs and just work off that. I would recommend checking them out, it is a great website, and you can follow your friends, etc. etc.

Well that's all I have...so don't expect much of anything here...sorry to all my 3 loyal followers...

The Times They Are A Changin...

2009-05-01T15:50:00.000-07:00

Well as is usual, I had a good record as far as the blog goes for the past couple of months, but alas I have fallen off. Lots of things going on of note and I will hit on each really fast.

We went back to Boston to visit/watch the Marathon. It was a great time and as usual not long enough. Congrats to all that ran and solid showing by Americans with two podium finishes. I predict an American winner within 5 years.

I have a new job...yay! I am working for Competitor Group as the Running Web Content Editor. What is that you ask? Well in a nutshell I will be the person that making decisions on the content that goes up on the site. I will do all the aggregation of news, compiling of articles done by journalists, writing a few articles of my own, making videos, covering events, and the list goes on and on. I am really excited having now been at work for a week. It is going to be a great project and when we go live in June I will be sure to post a link here so you can make Competitor Running your new home page :).

I have some training I need to post up here as well, but some of it is in my Garmin which I don't have with me at the moment. I will try and get the past 3 weeks up over the weekend.

So going forward I would expect McRunning Through My Life to really just become my training and racing stuff. Not exciting but the fact is if you want to hear anything else I have to say just go to the website I'm working on for work!

Thanks for still actually coming to see how things are going with me and my running, I know I don't do a great job on this thing anymore. I would guess that considering my new job is to post content to websites, this blog will more or less die over time, if it hasn't already. I won't give up yet but, like I said don't expect anything than the mundane training and racing reports.

Training Summary: April 6 - 12

2009-04-14T11:19:00.000-07:00

Mon 4/6 - 10+mi, 68:25, solo on the bay.

Tue 4/7 - 9mi, no watch, easy with Darius on the bay.

Wed 4/8 - 10mi, no watch, easy solo 4 then 6 with the MS Wed Night Crew.

Thu 4/9 - 10+mi, 68:45, easy solo on the bay.

Fri 4/10 - 10mi, no time, easy with Di at Penasquitos Canyon.

Sat 4/11 - off.

Sun 4/12 - ~16mi, 1:48:20, 12 with Di and George and 4 solo at San Pasqual. Last ~10mi around 6:15 average, solid run.

Summary: 65mi, 6 days. Had a day off on Saturday that was a product of working all day at Movin Shoes and having little sleep from the night before. Other than that it was a decent week. Felt fairly flat from the race the previous weekend but bounced back with the day off and a solid long run on Sunday. Next week will be split between runs on both coasts as Di and I go back to Boston to visit and watch the Marathon. It will be a fun week and I hope to run about 75-80mi. Just plugging along...

Training Summary: March 30 - April 5

2009-04-09T13:48:00.000-07:00

Mon 3/30 - 10mi, 67:40, easy solo on the bay.

Tue 3/31 - 10mi, 68:30, with JLew around the bay. 10X1min on/off. Felt tired and cut the workout short to 10 pushes instead of 15. Hopefully the legs will bounce back for Sunday...

Wed 4/1 - 10mi, no watch, solo for first 4 and then the final 6 with Movin Shoes Wed Night Crew.

Thu 4/2 - 9mi, no watch, easy with Darius around the bay.

Fri 4/3 - 11mi, 1:24:45, easy with Di and George around Scrips Ranch.

Sat 4/4 - 7mi, 54:00, easy with Di at UCSD, 6X100 strides.

Sun 4/5 - 8mi total, RACE Carlsbad 5000, 15:35 (11th Place), Race Recap.

Summary: 65 miles, 7 days/runs. Overall I am happy with how the week went. The workout early in the week was fairly terrible and not a great confidence booster for the race. The race went about how I planned, although I fell short of the sub 5min pace goal. It was warm and I really didn't feel comfortable the entire race, so I think I can come away with the fact that I am in much better shape than this time last year and in a ton better shape than 2 years ago.

Now it's time to just get back training and look forward to a solid race at the Union Tribune 8k. As for long term goals, I am not sure but a slight possibility of a race on the track in June then focus back on XC and solid Dirt Dog campaign. With time on my hands, aka no full time work yet, it makes it easy to get these miles in. I have a few possibilities out there on the job front which I am really excited about. Di and I are heading back to Boston for a long weekend to visit and watch the Marathon, which we are really pumped about. After that it's back to San Diego to keep workin on the job hunt and figuring out the running plan for the summer. Until then I'll be pounding out the miles and looking forward to what lies ahead...

Race Report: Carlsbad 5000

2009-04-05T14:45:00.001-07:00

Results: 15:35, 11th Place (29 & Under Race)

Going in to this race I had only one workout (last week) that was timed and able to give me a remote idea what I may run. After that workout I figured I would aim to run under 5min pace. Well, I ran 5:01 pace and placed 11th in my race, which I would say was pretty good. I'm not jumping up and down but I'm also not upset with how the day went. I have done something like one workout every 10 days or so for the last 8 weeks, each with little-to-no planning or direction. Considering that I am happy with the result. Here is how it played out.

It was about 75 degrees, no clouds and very dry. These conditions don't usually bode well for me, so I tried my best to soak myself in water as we waited to start. If you don't know anything about Carlsbad, they call it the "World's Fastest 5k." I'm not sure how that happened, but the course is not very fast. I would argue there is less than half a mile that is actually flat and there is always a wind coming off the water. I have absolutely run on faster courses for 5k, however you are unlikely to find better fields than these most time of the year. It is definitely the people, not the course, that make this race "fast."

After holding us for over 15min at the start area/line they finally shot the gun. The race started insanely fast with a bunch of absolute goons taking off and putting me in somewhere around 30-40 as we took the uphill turn at about half a mile. The race began to sort out a bit more, and I hit the mile around 4:51, which was about where I thought I would be. Mile 2 includes a sharp 180deg turn that really breaks your rhythm, as the turn is right on a moderate downhill, sending you directly back uphill. Mile 2 went by in about 9:56 and I was still moving up through small packs. I caught a group of three at the other 180deg turn with about half a mile to go and picked off a few more before the turn to the finish. Unfortunately my lungs gave out on me about 3/4 of a mile before the finish and I was unable to kick down 10th place.

The good thing was that my legs felt amazing the entire race. If I hadn't gone in to oxygen debt at around 2.5mi I would have had a nice kick to the finish. Considering I don't do any VO2Max work I should expect to lose it around 2-2.5mi, so no complaints there. With a little work I think I could be back around 15:00 on the track by the end of Spring. I am debating a track race before the Spring is over so I may try and pull together some REAL workouts over the next month or two.

The goal now is to focus on running the Union Tribune 8k in May then possibly a track race in late May or June. I am still going to run the La Jolla Half but I am not planning on racing it. I think I will just make it a hard long run, but save myself for the 8k the next weekend. Overall I am feeling positive coming out of today and feel like things are looking up. Today was technically a 5k Road PR, although I am far from satisfied calling that my PR. Time to get back to work and hope for some good races later in the Spring!

Training Summary: March 23 - 29

2009-03-30T09:12:00.000-07:00

I need to preface this entry with a short note on me and days off. I usually plan days off, although sometimes life gets in the way or I have an injury. When I finally get in a rhythm with training I try and take very few days off, likely one every 3 -4 weeks, just to stay healthy. The absurd thing is that about 50% of the time I take these days off, the next day I get a nagging pain or injury. Never anything serious, but at times it can be annoying and interfere with training for a while. This week I had planned one day off as I had 2 weeks straight of solid running and wanted to take a day of rest. Low and behold the next day I had to miss my run because of an odd pain in my foot that was bad enough that I couldn't run. I guess there is a possibility that after long periods of activity, the one thing that may throw you off is actually taking some time of inactivity. I need to do some research on this but I just want to say it is annoying, and I don't like it. Sometimes I wonder if I should just never take another day off...

Mon 3/23 - off, planned off day.

Tue 3/24 - off, foot hurt, see comment above...

Wed 3/25 - 9mi, no watch, first 3 solo then 6 with Movin Shoes Wed Night crew, super easy run.

Thu 3/26 - ~14mi, WORKOUT, 5mi in 30:08 directly in to 3 miles of 5:14, 5:09, 5:08. 25min warmup and cooldown. Went out to Mirmar Lake to tag along with George and JLew through a workout. George planned on ~6min pace for 8mi so I decided to cruise for the first 5mi with them and then try to run the last 3mi progressively faster. I had no idea I would be able to pull of a progressive ~15:30 3miler, and it gave me lots of confidence for the Carlsbad 5000 next week.

Fri 3/27 - 10mi, 74:30, easy with George and Di on the bay.

Sat 3/28 - 10mi, 67:45, easy solo on the bay.

Sun 3/29 - 16.06mi, 1:54:03, at San Pasqual with Di, JLew and Darius for the first 12 then 4 solo. Really slow at the start but ended with a really easy feeling effort of 6:10ish pace for my solo 4mi.

Summary: 59mi, 5 days. Considering everything it was actually a decent week, sans the days off. Extremely happy with the workout on Wed and 16mi long runs are a cake walk now. This would have been close to 80mi if I had a full week and I should hit around 80 going from Thu to this coming Thu. The plan is to keep up the volume through Fri and then take a one day taper to hopefully feel fresh for Calrsbad 5000 on Sunday. Anything under 15:30 would make me happy, although I think there's a chance I may surprise myself. No matter what happens I just want to make it a solid effort and race it hard.

Training Summary: March 16 - 22

2009-03-23T22:59:00.000-07:00

Mon 3/16 - 9mi, 61:45, easy solo through La Jolla.

Tue 3/17 - 10+mi, 66:30, solo on the bay, 8X100 strides.

Wed 3/18 - 10mi, no watch, first 4 solo then final 6 with Movin Shoes Wed Night runners.

Thu 3/19 - 10mi, 69:40, 8 with Josh (including 4X800 ~5:40/mi) and final 2 solo on the bay.

Fri 3/20 - 10mi, 74:40, run in Tucson with Di and her Uncle through Sabino Canyon.

Sat 3/21 - 9mi, 67:10, easy with Di on the river trail in Tucson.

Sun 3/22 - 16mi, 1:53:56, easy long run at San Pasqual trail with Di, George, JLew and Darius for various parts of the run.

Summary: 74mi, 7 days/runs. A really great week for me and finally a full 7 days of running! Felt really good all week, although I didn't do much hard running so I should have felt good. Di and I had a great trip out to Tucson for a few days and got in some really scenic runs. Definitely a place to check out if you have never been there. I am excited to get in a workout or two this coming week and Carlsbad 5000 is just around the corner.

Training Summary: March 9 - 15

2009-03-15T21:49:00.001-07:00

Mon 3/9 - off

Tue 3/10 - 10+mi, 66:15, solo on the bay, 8X100 strides.

Wed 3/11 - 10mi, 1:12:15, 4mi solo and 6mi with the Movin Shoes Wed Night Run crew.

Thu 3/12 - Workout, progression run over Mt. Soledad, really focused on pushing the steep up and then down to mimic the LJ Half Marathon course, felt GREAT!
10mi, 61:25 (full minute faster than I have ever done before)

Fri 3/13 - 10mi, no watch, with Di and JLew at UCSD. JLew and I followed Di as she did a fartlek on the trails at UCSD, and she had a great workout which was a bonus!

Sat 3/14 - 9+mi, 61:20, easy solo through La Jolla.

Sun 3/15 - ~16mi, 1:52:50, at San Pasqual trail. Had company from lots of different people for various amounts of the run, including: Di, George, JLew, Darius and probably a few others I am forgetting.

Summary: 65mi, 6 days. Another good week, with the only thing stopping it from being great was the day off. I am very excited for the weeks to come and the workouts I have planned. I have been getting in some decent hours at Movin Shoes, which has been nice to help put some extra money in my pocket and keep me busy while on the job hunt. Other than that not much is new as I continue looking for a new job and just keep running the only other priority. Di and I are making a trip to Tucson for a few days to visit her Uncle while her Mom and Grandmother are there as well. Hopefully we get some nice trail runs in Arizona and the trip should be fun.

Training Summary: March 2 - 8

2009-03-14T07:36:00.000-07:00

Mon 3/2 - 9+mi, 62:45, easy through La Jolla.

Tue 3/3 - off

Wed 3/4 - 14mi, no time. Ran with JLew and helped pace him to a timed mile and then some pickups in the run. Didn't plan on running quite as much but it was a good longer day. Did the timed mile on grass in around 5:10 or so which felt super easy, which was nice.

Thu 3/5 - 10+mi, 66:35, easy solo on the bay.

Fri 3/6 - 10mi, 73:30, on San Pasqual trail with Di for 8mi and 2 solo.

Sat 3/7 - 9mi, 64:30, easy on the bay with James for ~5mi.

Sun 3/8 - 16.1mi, 1:56:18, easy long run with Dianna and George at San Pasqual for most of the run. Finished up the last 3mi under 6min pace to add a little effort in to the end.

Summary: ~68mi, 6 days. Not a bad week with a day off. The goal is to continue adding in a second longer day, but I'm not sure it will always be as close to the full long run. I am feeling really good about where I am at and I think, come the fall, I will really be back in some respectable racing shape. Good things to come as I am now at around a month before the Carlsbad 5000, which should be a good gauge as to my fitness.

Training Summary: February 23 - March 1

2009-03-01T19:56:00.000-08:00

Mon 2/23 - 9+mi, 61:50, easy solo through La Jolla.

Tue 2/24 - 10+mi, 68:45, solo on the bay.

Wed 2/25 - ~10mi, 1:12:10, with JLew and his dog Aubie in Rancho Santa Fe.

Thu 2/26 - Workout, 10mi, 63:15, 5 X "short fartlek" (2min hard, 1min easy, 1min hard, 30sec easy, 30sec hard, 2min easy), felt amazing!

Fri 2/27 - 10mi, 1:15:30, easy at San Pasqual trail with George and Di.

Sat 2/28 - 10+mi, 64:30, solo on the bay, 6X100 strides.

Sun 3/1 - 15.29, 1:51:13, easy long run at San Pasqual trail with George, Jason and Nazario (and even Di for a few miles!)

Summary: ~74mi, 7 days. Fantastic week of running. A few slower days but it really made the harder days feel better. I am really excited about the next few weeks as I continue to add in workouts and slowly increase the mileage a bit more. Nothing else new out here but training so it looks like running will keep a front seat for now!

DON'T CALL IT A COMEBACK

2009-03-01T18:30:00.000-08:00

CONGRATS KEITH!

Training Summary: February 16 - 22

2009-02-23T01:12:00.000-08:00

Mon 2/16 - 9mi, 65:30, on the bay with some company from Campbell for the middle 4mi.

Tue 2/17 - 9+mi, 59:50, solo through La Jolla.

Wed 2/18 - off, under the weather.

Thu 2/19 - 10+mi, 65:30, Mt. Soledad loop, hard to the top but unable to finish push back down due to residual issues from day before, overall a good first "workout." Plan is to do this every other week as a progression run in prep for La Jolla Half.

Fri 2/20 - 9+mi, 60:25, solo through La Jolla.

Sat 2/21 - 10mi, 71:10, first 8 with Di then final 2 solo out at San Pasqual Trail.

Sun 2/22 - 14.1mi, 1:30:46, solo on the bay, same loop as last week but a minute faster, felt great!

Summary: ~61mi, 6 days. Solid week with an unplanned day off due to some stomach issues on Wed. If I did my normal 9-10mi on Wed it wold have been the 70ish mile week I had planned. With Carlsbad 5000 coming in just about a month I am going to hold the mileage around where it is but add in some new hard days. I have a plan sort of laid out for the next 6+ weeks which will hopefully set me up to run a road PR for the 5k, not that it would take much (15:3?) and then race well at La Jolla.

Big shout out to my boy Kelrock for really taking a huge step back to his old self in running an amazing 5k on the road and following it up with an equally impressive XC race back on the Emerald Isle. Great to see Keith with such a positive attitude for running because it definitely rubs off.

Training Summary: February 9 - 15

2009-02-16T23:02:00.000-08:00

Mon 2/9 - 7mi, no time, easy in some crazy wind and rain with JLew and the Mizuno Run With Us guys Brian and Joe up in Del Mar

Tue 2/10 - 10mi, 71:00, easy around Mission and Pacific Beaches with the Mizuno crew.

Wed 2/11 - 8mi, 60:00, easy around Balboa Park with the Mizuno crew.

Thu 2/12 - off, no good reason.

Fri 2/13 - 10mi, 74:30, out at San Pasqual trails with Di for 8 and then 2 solo.

Sat 2/14 - 9mi, 59:00, easy morning run around La Jolla.

Sun 2/15 - 14.1mi, 1:31:49, solid long run solo around the bay. Felt like 7min pace but held 6:30ish pace the entire run, super fantastic day!

Summary: 58mi, 6 days. I had a few really easy days and an off day but the long run was solid and felt insanely easy. As long as I don't take a day off I should hit 70+mi next week which is right where I want to be. I think I may begin throwing in a mid-run workout this coming week which I will use as my other hard day, besides my long run, for the time being. I have decided I am going to run the Carlsbad 5000 and the La Jolla Half Marathon, both in April. I am excited to get in a solid 5000 on the road and hopefully pull off a good time. The LJ Half is more about getting a really hard effort in, as it is a very difficult course, but I am excited to finally do it.

Training Summary: January 26 - February 8

2009-02-08T18:57:00.000-08:00

Jan 26 - Feb 1

Mon 1/26 - 8mi, 56:00, easy solo on the bay, a little sore from the race but felt decent.

Tue 1/27 - off

Wed 1/28 - 9mi, no watch, easy solo on the Bay.

Thu 1/29 - 10mi, 71:30 with JLew and George around the Bay.

Fri 1/30 - 8mi, 53:45, easy solo on the Bay

Sat 1/31 - 8mi, with Di around the trails Bonita.

Sun 2/1 - off, Super Bowl Sunday activities take precedent on my down week.

Summary: 43mi, 5 days. Easy week following the half-marathon. No plan to do that much over this and possibly next week, then back to building up for a race TBD.

Feb 2-8

Mon 2/2 - 10mi, easy with JLew in Del Mar.

Tue 2/3 - off

Wed 2/4 - 9mi, 59:30, easy solo on the Bay.

Thu 2/5 - 9+mi, 62:00, easy solo through La Jolla.

Fri 2/6 - 10mi, easy with JLew and George in Scrips Ranch around the Lake.

Sat 2/7 - 9mi, 68:15, 8mi super easy with Di through La Jolla then solo for the last mile.

Sun 2/8 - 10+mi, 63:40, solo on the Bay.

Summary: 57mi, 6 days. Decent week with one day off. Nothing great yet but next week should be good with a Long Run added in. Other than that nothing much going on, a few job prospects which I hope will work out, but more on that later.

Training Summary: January 19 - 25

2009-01-26T22:23:00.000-08:00

Monday 1/19 - ~9mi, 60:11, easy with JLew and Aubie the dog, around Carlsbad.

Tuesday 1/20 - 10+mi, 63:30, felt easy but solid little effort solo on the bay.

Wednesday 1/21 - ~9mi, 60:40, easy with JLew in Del Mar.

Thursday 1/22 - 10+mi, 66:30, easy solo on the bay.

Friday 1/23 - ~6mi, 44:45, w/JLew, Matt Baum (Mizuno rep from Chicago) and Aubie the dog, in San Marcos.

Saturday 1/24 - 6mi, no watch solo on the bay, 4X100 easy strides on grass.

Sunday 1/25 - ~15mi total, Race Carlsbad 1/2 Marathon 1:11:29, ~2mi warmup/cooldown.

Total: 65mi, 7 runs. Very happy with the week. This was my first "full" week of running in about a month and a half. I had a good effort at the Carlsbad 1/2 which I am happy with. I am really excited about this week because it gave me a little bench mark to start from for the year. The goal is going to continue the trend of PR's as the year rolls on. I'm not sure what the next race is or the plan but I will figure that out in the next few weeks. For now I expect to just get back around 70-80mi over the next few weeks and get my long run back on track. Thanks to everyone for the congrats on the race, but there is far more to come!

Race Report: Carlsbad 1/2 Marathon

2009-01-25T15:18:00.001-08:00

Result: 1:11:29, 13th place

I came in to this race not really sure of what type of shape I was in. I had this whole plan figured out for workouts, high mileage, etc. etc., but that didn't work out (see blog entries for Dec-Jan as reference). I thought on my best day I was in shape to run 1:12 or there about. I thought 5:30 pace would be tough but if I ran really well I could pull it off. Well, it was amazing weather, I felt great and I pulled a 2min PR our of my rear-end and finished 30+sec ahead of my goal. Here's how it played out.

The race is kind of odd in that I am fairly positive that the first 2 miles are WAY off. I have run this race 3 times and each year my first mile is slower than I think and second mile is almost laughable when you look down at the watch. I will post the splits below but I pretty much went out sub-5:30 pace from the gun and never looked back. I made my way from pack to pack and eventually wound up running most of the race with the eventual women's winner and a guy named Dima that is from Europe somewhere but lives in San Diego. Once we shook the other people off we ran some solid miles around 5:20 and nothing slower than 5:31. Keeping in mind that the miles are very different as the course rolls up and down mile to mile. Finally with about 3/4 of a mile to go my legs just had nothing left and Dima and a guy from Nike RunLA, that we caught at 11 1/2, pulled away from me and left me to pasture. Even still, I averaged 5:20 pace for the final 5k (16:34) which I am pumped about.

What makes me happy about this race is two fold: 1) I ran a PR which, although I am still not content with this as my PR, you can never take for granted. 2) I RACED the entire 13.1mi and never gave up. No matter how many time a pack would surge I surged harder, which really gives me confidence for the future.

I know I am capable of a sub 1:10 half, but that will have to wait for another day. The PR was great to get and I know all the miles last fall are paying off. Now it is time to get building back the miles and decide what 2009 will mean to me as far as races.

Splits:
5:50
4:58 (10:48)
5:37 (16:25)
5:21 (21:47)
5:36 (27:23)
5:25 (32:48)
5:33 (38:22)
5:29 (43:51)
5:30 (49:22)
5:31 (54:54)
5:24 (60:18)
5:21 (65:40)
5:49=5:17/mi for last 1.1
FINAL- 1:11:29 - 5:28/mi

Also, one of my best friends Matt Mills ran a great race today in the full Marathon at Carlsbad and ran a PR of 3:23:16! Great times had by all, including good ole' James Campbell, who got up at 4am to drive up and watch us run and proceeded to fall asleep in my car and missed my finish! CLASSIC!

New Beginnings...

2009-01-20T22:14:00.000-08:00

Wow...so much as happened since the last time I posted I'm not sure where to start. Let's start with running, mainly because it is not great but more positive than other news, and who wants to start a post off in a depressing mood...especially when the posts don't come that often!

Running has been ok. After three weeks what a great summation! But truly, that is all it has been, just ok. I've still been taking a day or two off a week with life/work/non-work getting in the way a bit. As usual I'm not going to sit here and make excuses for my laziness on the running front. I am still in decent aerobic shape but I am a bit worried about anything else. The race on Sunday should be interesting.

Here is what the past 3 weeks have looked like as far as my pathetic attempt at training:

December 29 - January 4
Mon: 9 easy in Millbury.
Tues: 10 easy in Millbury.
Wed: off, stupid snow, but sad to be leaving home...
Thu: 10mi, easy on the Bay, back in SD.
Fri: 9mi, easy on the Bay.
Sat: 9mi, easy on the Bay.
Sun: 10mi, decent effort on the Bay.
Total: 57mi, 6 days.

January 5 - 11
Mon: off, traveling with Kevin all day.
Tues: ~10mi, about 25min with Kevin then the remainder solo in SLO.
Wed: ~9mi, easy with JLew and Mike Kail in Solana Beach.
Thu: 9mi, easy on the Bay.
Fri: 10mi, easy on the Bay.
Sat: off, too many beverages on Friday night with Mikey in town...
Sun: 9, easy on the bay.
Total - 47mi, 5 days.

January 12 - 18
Mon: 10, easy on the Bay.
Tues: 9, easy on the Bay.
Wed: off, getting laid off sucks.
Thu: off, still kinda out of it from the whole job thing, not even in the mood to run...
Fri: 9mi, solid pace through La Jolla.
Sat: 10mi, 63:30, fairly quick but felt amazing, getting mad when running makes it fun!
Sun: 9mi, 59:10, attempted to go slow but it was still faster than usual.
Total - 47mi, 5 days.

So, on to other news. If you are actually reading this you must be a good friend because I think I have lost all random onlookers with my lack of posts. In addition you are probably also, then, aware of the fact that I had a abrupt, shocking end to my employment with Reebok. Last Wednesday all of the Running reps were told that we were going to be let go. Therefore, after 3 year, 5 months and 14 days of employment with Reebok I was cast aside. To call it simply employment is an understatement. As my other fellow reps ate, slept and lived Reebok each day. I challenge you to find a more dedicated group of men, but alas the dream is over. It is very odd and hard to grasp such an quick end to our tenure together. The only thing I could compare it to was when I left college and said to myself, "I will never find a group of friends like my teammates." Well, I am going to say again that, I will never find a group of colleagues like my fellow Running reps at Reebok. We were like a family and I will always remember the good, and bad, times we had together at Reebok. To Kevin, Ted, Lee, Keith, Chris, Mark, Andy and Keith, thanks guys (sorry Kevin and Lee, I really tried to find something for you guys but I failed!).

Well here I go, on to bigger and better things. I could sit here and discuss my feelings on my situation but I won't. Obviously I am upset and have plenty to say, but if you want to hear my opinions I'd be happy to do it off the record on the phone or in person, so, as Forrest says, that's all I have to say about that.

For the time being I am just going to focus on getting some solid training in and finding a new place of employment. I can only hope wherever I end up will be just as rewarding and fun as where I have been. I have my first pair on non-Reebok running shoes in 3 1/2 years, and I am ready to put plenty of miles on them. I'm not sure where Di and I will end up in the next few months, but no doubt it will be another chapter in the already amazing adventure we are on. There's a chance we stay in San Diego for some time but there's also a chance we end up packing up and heading the 3000+ miles back to good ole' Massachusetts. I will be sure to keep you all updated and I thank you all for your kind sentiments in a tough time.

Keep on keepin on and I hope with all the extra time on my hands I can keep this thing updated!

Worst Blog EVER/Merry Christmas

2008-12-30T13:09:00.000-08:00

I would like to begin by apologizing to anyone who, and I don't know why you do, still looks for updates on this blog. It has been 3 weeks since I updated and I am very pathetic for not having done this for so long. As a matter of respect to my fantastic manager Kevin Adams I have come home from a quick visit to the Rbk HQ and decided to throw an update out there!

So, the question is, what have I been doing the past 3 weeks that is so important I can't do my pathetic little training log that I do? Well 3 weeks ago I got a little injured which always delays my training log entries because the are embarrassing. 2 weeks ago I split between San Diego and Millbury, slowing progress of running and again sending my log into a low mileage state. The fact that I had no bag for the first 2 days really hurt as well because I had to spend all day waiting for them to deliver my bag as I was the only home to sign for it. Lastly I spent last week catching up with old friends and seeing the family and put running on the back burner. So, although I will throw down some numbers below, the hope of hitting in the 90's while I was home was a far cry from what I actually did. With excuses abound I plead for forgiveness.

The training for the Carlsbad 1/2 has definitely not gone quite the way I had anticipated and I have definitely had to begin adjusting my goals accordingly. Having sort of bagged the training for this event I may look to another spring event, yet to be decided (Boston?), to train for. This is probably a better idea as I have put in some decent mileage the second half of 2008 and a long race sometime in the spring may work well. I still plan on running hard at Calrsbad, but I think something in the 71:30-72:30 time range looks more realistic.

So here is a quick look at the past 3 weeks and I am making a New Year's resolution to keep up with the blog and try and post my training every Sunday night and at least one entry mid week to keep you all frothing at the mouth wanting more...

DECEMBER 8-14:
M - 9mi
Tu - 10mi, right foot hurt bad after run, couldn't walk on it at night
W - off, right foot hurts fairly bad still
Th - 80min pool workout w/Di, 3X10min hard, 10min of 1 on/1 off
F - 6mi, foot feels a bit better
Sa - 9mi, foot better
Su - 10mi
Total - 44mi, 5 runs, one solid pool workout

DECEMBER 15-21:
M - 10mi
Tu - 9mi
W - 9mi
Th - 8mi, left for the motherland to an awaiting snow storm
F - 8mi, barely made it through that much during a big snow storm
Sa - off, snow bound and waiting for lost luggage
Su - off, same as previous day...
Total - 44mi, 5 days

DECEMBER 22-28:
M - 9mi, w/Mario
Tu - 10mi
W - off
Th - 9mi, Annual Worcester Christmas Morning Run through Worcester, this years participants included Mario, Katie Gwyther and Mark Discroll. Usual participant Erin Dromgoole was dealing with a slight injury but we did stop by and pull her out into the cold wind so she gets a shout out for that.
F - 10mi, did an old school Millbury High-esque hill workout at the Shaw School, did 30min of non-stop running up the hill, around the school and down (~1mi per loop) using the downhill has active recovery
Sa - off
Su - 8mi, solo on the streets of Hamilton and Ipswich while visiting at Di's house
Total - 46mi, 5 days

That's all I have for now. Poor month of December training, but it has really motivated me to get off my ass and training in January. I'll probably make a decision in the next few weeks on what I will do as far as a big Spring race, truthfully I'm thinking anything from a 10k on the track to a Marathon, so we'll see what gets spit out the other end when I am done coming up with the plan.

Happy Holiday's to everyone out there and best of luck in 2009!

Training Summary: Dec 1 - 7

2008-12-10T13:23:00.000-08:00

Note: I forgot my Garmin on my trip and therefore have just guesses as far as distance for most of the runs early in the week, not a big deal because anything prior to about 3 years ago were all guesses so it was nice to go "old school" for once, haha.

Mon 1/1 - 7+mi, 54:30, easy with Millsy in Beverly Hills (how fancy!)

Tue 12/2 - off, long travel day, 2 appointments, poor excuses...

Wed 12/3 - AM 8.5(?)mi, 59:30, solo, hilly, windy run in SLO.
PM - 4.5(?)mi, no watch, easy with Millsy in Beverly Hills (fancy again!)

Thu 12/4 - 9mi, 63:25, easy solo run in the dark on the bay.

Fri 12/5 - 10mi, 62:20, hard up and over Mt. Soledad, getting a bit run down and caught I cold on my trip...boooo.

Sat 12/6 - 9mi, 64:00, solo on the bay, felt terrible.

Sun 12/7 - ~15mi (same loop as last week), 1:35:22, easy/moderate pace for about 5.5mi then tempo run on the big Fiesta Island loop, ~4.3mi, then easy/moderate for the remainder of the run. The "tempo" was more like a bunch of surges for 4+mi because the wind was just crazy on Fiesta Island. I did the loop in 24:17 which is something in the mid 5:30's but I would say there were points I was under 5:00 and others where I was probably over 6:00 because of the winds. It was a good run though, and I averaged 6:20 or so for the entire run so I'm happy with that.

Summary: 63mi, 7 runs, 6 days. Pretty easy beginning of the week and finished it up with a solid long run on Sunday. I got a little run down on my sales trip early in the week and also caught a cold which made a few days feel hard that weren't. With a full week next week I should be in the high 70's for sure. I will try and put together at least one work out next week and another hard long run. I'd say things are looking decent so far and the plan is getting finalized as to key workout over the next 4-5 weeks before I need to start to rest up for the Half.

Training Summary: Nov 24 - 30

2008-12-02T20:45:00.000-08:00

Monday 11/24 - 10.5mi, 1:15:39, easy with JLew in Rancho Santa Fe.

Tuesday 11/25 - 10mi, 67:20, solo through La Jolla.

Wednesday 11/26 - 10mi, 69:20, solo run up and over Mt. Soldedad.

Thursday 11/27 - 9 mi, 62:20 solo through La Jolla.

Friday 11/28 - 9mi, 59:45, easy with JLew around Del Mar.

Saturday 11/29 - 10mi, 68:40, easy solo on the bay.

Sunday 11/30 - ~15mi, 1:39:30, solo on the bay, easy to start and slowly picked it up, felt great.

Summary - 73mi, 7 runs. Great full week of running and on one-a-days which is great. No workouts specifically but Soledad runs are always hard and the long run was harder near the end. The plan is one more week of fairly easy days except for the long run, which I tend make a progression run. Possibly a day off next week with all the travel for work I have planned but that will likely be my last day off until 2009. I still think getting in the 80's is only two weeks off and I definitely want a week in the 90's when I am home for Christmas.

Happy NCAA XC Monday

2008-11-25T07:17:00.000-08:00

So I probably should have posted this yesterday but I didn't. Great times yesterday watching the NCAA Championships while talking on the phone with various other fans and following it up with another great run (10.5mi) with JLew out in Rancho Santa Fe. So without further adu a few thoughts of mine that came from the NCAA's:

Galen Rupp is the real deal. I know there are tons of haters out there but the fact of the matter is that he is our guy and we need to get enthusiastic about it. If he didn't go to UofO he would have gone pro but the fact of the matter is Nike is able to skirt around NCAA rules and allow Rupp to train like a pro but still get to experience the fun and excitement of the NCAA. Hell, that's the way it is in all the other NCAA sports, why not ours?

The University of Washington, I guess now referred to simply as UDub, is the perfect example of how amazing recruiting can turn a program in to a national champion. There was no reason for those girls to chose UW except that were told that if they went they would be national champions. I think other programs are starting to take that same outlook, OK State for men for example, and prove that all you need is some great recruiting and you can build a championship caliber team.

CBS needs to do a little research on how to broadcast a running event. I thought it was GREAT that they decided to not only stream it live on the Internet but also show it live on TV on their CBS College Sports. However, they did a poor job following anything but the leaders in the two races. If they could just throw a few cameras on the ATVs that are following the lead packs we could have had some great/easy shots of the other runners and the team competition, which they make a big deal of but don't follow visually while it is unfolding. Maybe they should hire the FloTrack guys as consultants or something because, although their production/editing/presentation are not CBS quality, they certainly understand the way to cover a race better than anyone else out there.

Well that's all I have for now. Now I need to get a run in and get some work done.

Training Summary: November 17 - 23

2008-11-23T22:57:00.000-08:00

Monday 11/17 - 9mi, 62:30, easy solo on the bay.

Tuesday 11/18 - 9 mi, 62:00, easy solo through La Jolla.

Wednesday 11/19 - 11.3 mi, 1:19:22, with JLew through Rancho Santa Fe. Started out slow but picked it up mid-run, all on really soft woodchips which were good for the legs but not for the pace.

Thursday 11/20 - off

Friday 11/21 -10mi, 1:10:35, fairly easy with George, JLew and Mark through La Jolla.

Saturday 11/22 - 8mi, 57:00, easy with JLew on the bay.

Sunday 11/23 - 13.5 mi, 1:27:25, felt amazing, started out the first half super easy around 6:40's and worked it down to 6:00 with the last two uphill miles clocking in at 5:50 and 5:36. The early miles felt like a walk and even the faster final miles just felt like an easy pickup, good stuff!

Summary - 61mi, 6 days. Felt really good all week but I did miss a day mid-week with life/work getting the best of the day's effort. Solid "long" run on Sunday and I am feeling really good. Looks like moving back up into 75-85mpw should be easy.

I have a little travel to LA early next week and then hopefully a fun and relaxing Thanksgiving "weekend". I should be able to get into the mid 70's next week and back around 80 by December. Really looking forward to catching the NCAA Championships tomorrow. I think both the men's and women's races should be really exciting, especially on the team side. It's great to see coverage of all the NCAA divisions online now and increased exposure for the sport. Stonehill men and women ran on Saturday and came in 19th and 21st respectively. Definitely not what we thought they would do this year but with a decent showing from some underclassman hopefully we'll finally see a top 8 place in the next few years and an individual finally crack the top 20.

Updates Galore

2008-11-18T15:15:00.001-08:00

I just put up the race report from the Dirt Dog Final, so be sure to check that out. Here is a quick look at my last two weeks:

Nov 3-9:
Monday- Friday: 8mi easy each day, 6X100 strides on Friday.
Saturday: SD USATF Championship, 14th overall (9th SD), 21:44, 10mi total.
Sunday: Travel to Dallas for The Running Event, no running
Total: 6 days, 50mi
Summary: Good week but really just kept the days easy so that I could be ready for the race on Saturday. The race was good, not great. Missed Sunday when I was traveling all day, but it was a decent week overall.

Nov 10-16 (In Dallas Mon-Thur):
Monday: ~9mi with the Reebok crew but ran the second half at a nice clip with Keith
Tuesday: ~8mi with the entire conference over to Luke's Locker and back
Wednesday: ~8mi, over to the "Indie 5k" ran the "race" (16:28) and ran back. Felt really crappy, probably a mix of lack of sleep, residual jet lag, slight hangover and wussing out all mixed together. I did run the last mile in around 5min which was good, but overall, in the words of Mr. Keith Kelly, an embarassing effort and result.
Thursday: No run. Slept about 3.5hrs, went to work and then to the airport, that was my entire day.
Friday: 7mi easy on the bay.
Saturday: 9 miles easy on the hilly La Jolla loop.
Sunday: 10mi on the bay. Did a little progression run, with the last 3mi all at or under 6min.
Total: ~51mi, 6 days.
Summary: Not a bad week considering I had planned on making it an off week. It was great getting out to run with the other Reebok guys for once, considering I hadn't seen any of them since April.

Here is the plan for the next few months:
I am going to build up the mileage over the next month so that I am back up around 80-90 a week. I am tentatively planning on getting up around 100mi for a week around the beginning of January if possible, but if it doesn't happen I'm not worried. I am going to shoot to run the Carlsbad Half-Marathon in late January. The goal there will be: 1) Run a PR, which shouldn't be hard because I have never actually trained for one specifically; 2) Specifically run somewhere between 70-71min; 3) Stay healthy while training and set myself up for a potential marathon in the fall.

Well that's all I got for now. Hopefully I can write about something besides my running over the next few weeks, but for now I'll stick to running because that's all I have time for.

Delayed Race Report: SD USATF Championship 4-Mile

2008-11-18T14:54:00.000-08:00

I apologize for the delay, I am probably the worst blogger right now...

Results: 21:44, 14th place

Overall it was a pretty decent end to the season. It was fairly warm and extremely dry out. I had a few minor injury things over the weeks before the race so I am glad I was able to shut that out of my mind and just run. I went out "slow" and sat back a little. I tried to make a move around 2 miles and shake off a group of guys, but I was only slightly successful, as 2 of the guys ended up putting in a huge surge around 2.5mi and left me behind. In the end I think I ran fairly well, as the course does run up and over a really tough hill twice.

I ended 9th of the San Diego finishers which was pretty much spot on for how I was all season. I also finished 9th in the final Dirt Dog Series standings. At the start of the "season" I thought I had a good chance for top 5 but everyone really came out this year ready to run. Considering I really trained through the races and had my eyes set on just getting back to normal mileage I think it was pretty successful.

The team ended up folding in the finals, as only 5 guys could make it. We missed 3 of our top 5 guys which really hurt us. We finished 3 of 3 overall and in the final. Hopefully next year we can pick up a few more guys and get more consistent participation from the guys. It was fun to have a team and in the end it didn't really matter because we had fun.

Final Standings:
Individual Standings
Team Standings

Where the hell have I been?

2008-11-07T08:46:00.001-08:00

Ok, well yesterday I got mocked about my blog by a work mate on the phone and it has made me make an update to this blog. Here are my quick excuses for the lack of posting: 2 of the past 4 weeks included minor injuries that killed my great streak of good weeks of running, I have been busy with work, I am lazy, I am easily distracted and generally apathetic about my blog. That is about to change! I am back on track here and I will either keep up with this thing or just delete it. I am giving myself until the end of the year to keep it going, which I know I can.

So here is a very small snippet of what I have been up to:

Weeks over 80mi: 1
Weeks under 60mi: 3
Number of injuries from running: 1
Number of injuries from pool running: 1 (who does that?!)
Days missed from said injuries: 6
Races Run: 1 (CSUSM Cougar Challenge 8k - 25:58 - 16th overall)

I am going to compile the actual weeks and post them up when I am flying this weekend. The reason I can't now is that I have lots of work to get done before the weekend and we have Dianna's parents here so I am pretty much busy 24/7.

This week will be around 60mi but I am healthy. Just keeping the miles low so I don't shock my legs before the SD USATF XC Champs this weekend. I am currently sitting in 11th place for the season and top 10 get $$$ so I need to run my ass off and beat a few guys that I really shouldn't be losing to anyways.

I hope I have made every one's week so wonderful by updating my blog, even though it is a sad update. I promise a full race recap this weekend, updated logs and other such things that I will have time to do on my flight to Dallas on Sunday.

Until then best of luck to the both men's and women's Stonehill Cross Country teams at regionals this weekend. Both teams are going to be fighting hard to make nationals, especially the women who I believe are ranked out of the top 2 going in to regionals for the first time since something like 2000. The men look good after their 2nd place finish at conference but will have a real battle with U-Lowell and Southern CT for those two spots. Keep your eye on U-Lowell standout Ruben Sanca, this kid is something special and is going to make some noise on the national level.

Best of luck to all!

Super Happy Fun Long Awaited Update

2008-10-27T10:23:00.000-07:00

Is coming later today...I SWEAR!

Editors Note: I clearly lied here and appologize for my terrible job at blogging over the last month. I have been very busy with work and other things, but should have updated by now. I will do my best to get something put together that recaps my last 4 weeks. Sorry to all my loyal readers...although I don't really there are any left!

Race Report: Ursula Rains Balboa Boogie 5k

2008-10-08T16:24:00.000-07:00

Results: 8th place, 15:46.

I really didn't know what to think about this race so I went in to it attempting to run a fast time for once. I didn't wear a watch and didn't hear any splits but ended up hitting a decent time by simply racing. From all accounts my splits looked something like 4:52, 10:15. That is probably the fastest mile I have run in about 2-3 years and the same goes for the 2 mile time, so I have to be happy that I was able to handle it and still finish well. That also means I was sub 5min for the final mile as well, which is great.

As far as the race itself I was happy and disappointed at the same time. I ran about where I should have, however I only came in 8th which means that it was a fairly stacked race. Unfortunately at least a couple of the top guys weren't even there, meaning that the championship race in November should be a tough battle for the top 10.

The team was 2nd, which gives us 2 first places and a second place. That ties us for first currently, meaning no matter what really happens the winner of the series will be the winner of the championship race.

In other news Dianna won, although her foot is still bothering her. Hopefully she can get that fixed because she has a perfect 300 points (3 wins) and leads the series. It was also excited this week because Jeff and Matt came down and ran, although Jeff only ran it as a workout, and on top Mario was here to cheer and take pictures!

The series is actually fairly deep this year. Here are the updated Dirt Dog Series Standings:

Individual Standings

Team Standings

Training Summary: September 29 - October 5

2008-10-08T16:03:00.000-07:00

Monday 9/29 - 9mi, 63:40, easy solo through La Jolla.

Tuesday 9/30 - 9mi, 61:20, with Garrett on the bay.

Wednesday 10/1 - AM 4+mi, with the Mizuno guys in San Luis Obispo

PM 7mi, easy on the bay with the Wednesday Movin Shoes group

Thursday 10/2 - 10+mi, 68:50, easy solo on the bay.

Friday 10/3 - 10+mi, 69:45, easy solo on the bay with 6X100 strides.

Saturday 10/4 - 3mi warmup, Balboa Boogie 5k race, 4mi cooldown. See race recap.

Sunday 10/5 - 16mi, 1:54:15, easy on the bay with Mills and then 6mi through La Jolla to finish. With about 3mi to go I got one of the worst side stitches ever and it made the run very rough to finish.

Summary: 75mi, 7 days. Much better week than last. Unfortunately no "workouts" but I got in a great race on Saturday. I was pretty happy with this week and I think I can bump up next week back to 80mi again. I think the decision is to race twice more for Cross Country (Cougar Challenge 8k and the San Diego USATF Championship). After that I am going to bump the mileage up again through the New Year and give a run at a Half Marathon in January, most likely the Carlsbad Half-Marathon. Until then, time to keep the mileage up and keep getting stronger.

Training Summary: September 22 - 28

2008-10-08T15:48:00.000-07:00

Monday 9/22 - 9mi easy, tired from the race/long run.

Tuesday 9/23 - off, planned day off although my right ankle is sore.

Wednesday 9/24 - off, ankle still hurts, not too worried but an additional precautionary day off.

Thursday 9/25 - 6mi, easy test run to see how the leg felt. Looks like I should be good to go from now on.

Friday 9/26 - 10+mi, 69:35, easy solo on the bay.

Saturday 9/27 - 10mi, 67:25 easy solo on the bay.

Sunday 9/28 - 16.2mi, 1:48:55, felt pretty decent but not great. Legs are a little thrown off from taking the low days this week.

Summary: ~51mi, 5 days. It was a pretty crappy week with having to take the two days off. I think what happened was that I tweaked my foot at the race on some of the tight turns. It felt fine by the end of the week and still averaged over 10mi for the 5 days that I ran. Hopefully next week will be better. Legs definitely got a little messed up with the days off and the were sore after the long run.

Busy Busy

2008-10-07T12:44:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in about 2 weeks, but it has been a really busy time. Since my last post I have been traveling for work, running, hanging out with Mario on his visit here and watching some great Boston sports! I plan on updating tonight with a race recap from this past weekend and a recap of the last 2 weeks training. Until then...

Training Summary: September 15 - 21

2008-09-22T11:34:00.000-07:00

Monday 9/15 - 10+mi, 68:37, easy solo on the bay.

Tuesday 9/16 - 10.03mi, 65:29, workout up Mt. Soledad, solo. Solid effort, tough run.

Wednesday 9/17 - 13mi, 7mi solo and then right in to a 6mi at the Movin Shoes Run. I did my run and met the Movin Shoes group and just continued in to that run. It was a good way to get in a longer day without doubling.

Thursday 9/18 - 10mi, solo on the bay. I threw in 10 X 1min on/off. Good effort during the run with the pushes which are always harder than I remember!

Friday 9/19 - 9mi, 8mi with Di and the last solo, 6X100 strides.

Saturday 9/20 - 12mi total, ~3mi warmup, ~10k race, ~4mi cooldown. See race recap.

Sunday 9/21 - 17.01mi, 1:57:23, solo through La Jolla to start and then down to the bay. Started out slow and picked it up later. Fairly tired from the race.

Summary: ~81 miles, 7 days. I would say it was a very solid week for me. I got in 80+ miles again, and this time it was on single runs, except for the race day. I had a hard long run last Sunday, a solid hard hill run on Tuesday, pickups on Thursday, race Saturday with a less intense long run on Sunday. So, counting long runs as hard days, I had 5 "hard" days in 8 days, which is great. This coming week I will probably get in 2 workouts of some sort but I'll likely take a day off or a VERY easy day. I am scheduled for a low week, I think, so it will work out well. Things are looking up!

Race Recap: City College Invitational 10k

2008-09-22T11:14:00.000-07:00

Result: 34:58, 5th place.

Well the time wasn't too flashy, although all reports point to the course being about 6.5mi, but my place was decent and that's all I was looking for. The plan today was to try and snag a decent place to pick up a few extra points for the individual standings. We didn't field a team so it was really just on me to do this for myself.

The course is on very uneven grass, wood chips, over little toy train tracks and on some nice dirt paths. It is a loop course in which you do 4 "2.5k" loops. Each loop starts out flat on very uneven grass, runs up a steep wood chip hill, around a sharp turn and back down the hill, then through a few sharp turns on wood chips, and then fairly flat for the remainder of the loop on dirt/grass and some interesting maneuvering over some toy train tracks.

The race plan was to run up with the "leaders" for about a lap and then see what happens. I was probably 5 seconds off the leaders through the first loop, which was good. This was good practice at running up with some of the guys I feel as though I should be running with once my form actually comes around. This also put in well in the top 5 and I already had a clear 10-15sec over the next pack. From there on out I just tried to maintain my pace as best as I could, push the tough, wood chip laden hill and accelerate on the downhills. I think I probably lost a little time on the 3rd lap but regained composure and increased my lead to around 20sec over 6th place by the final half mile or so.

So I think I'd say I was happy with my place but I wish I could have stayed in contact with the leaders for a bit longer. I had a relatively tough week of training, although i did take it easy the day before the race in hopes that it would lead to a good effort. It was a good workout for sure and I can't complain. I picked up a 5th place, which is my best so far this series, which helped me leap over a competitor or two in the standings and set me up well for the individual standings.

Next up is a 5k at Morley Field, home of the Footlocker XC Championships.

Mt. Soledad

2008-09-16T23:44:00.000-07:00

The View From the Top during my Run

I did a "workout" up Mt. Soledad tonight and it went fairly well. I never really know how this run goes but I always know it hurts! The idea is to warm up for the first few miles and then pretty much run until it is uncomfortable to the top. I wore my Garmin today to get a measure on a new loop from our apartment and it measured 10.07 which is perfect. I use a program called SportTracks to keep track of mileage. I have been REALLY bad about keeping my log going on days that I don't use the Garmin, which is most days. I only wear it on runs I don't know, runs I want to know pace for and most long runs. Luckily keeping this blog has given me a place to go back to later and re-record my miles in to my SportTracks file. SportTracks is a shareware type deal and I think it is really great if you have a Garmin or similar piece of equipment because you can get all cool types of charts, maps, etc. with it. I have tried out a few different programs for keeping GPS info in and this is by far my favorite, so I'd check it out if you don't already use it.

Anyways, to give you an idea of what my workout was like I thought I'd post a chart of the run up on the blog. This chart shows elevation and pace. I think the elevation may be slightly off because the top of Mt. Soledad is supposedly 822ft. and my Garmin only read it as 777ft, so who knows. Well here goes, I think it is fun to see this kind of stuff and I'll try and show other runs at some point as well. Enjoy!

Training Summary: September 8 - 14

2008-09-16T10:16:00.000-07:00

Monday 9/8 - 10+mi, 64:53. Ended up turning the day in to a progression run on the bay. Felt good so I let my legs move as I went along. 8X100 strides.

Tuesday 9/9 - AM 7mi, 47:35. Solo through La Jolla.

PM 6mi, around UCLA, including a mile on the track, with Millsy.

Wednesday 9/10 - 10+mi, 65:15. Workout: 15min warmup/cooldown, 3X10min w/3min rest. Each interval was progressively harder. The "efforts" were as followed (be sure to read "effort" as just that, I did this completely off feel): marathon-ish pace, tempo-ish pace, 10k-ish pace. Felt really good and still getting used to doing workouts completely off feel. This is a variation of a Robert Gary (Ohio State) workout that I really like, however his is done a bit more uptempo and on a measured 2mile loop. I would like to get to the point where I can use this workout as a benchmark type workout that I can get on a measured loop.

Thursday 9/11 - 10mi, 73:45. Easy 8 with Di and last 2 solo.

Friday 9/12 - AM 7mi, 47:15, easy through La Jolla and back.

PM 5mi, 34:35, easy on the bay. 6X100 strides.

Saturday 9/13 - 2mi warmup, Aztec Invite 5k, 4mi cooldown. See race recap.

Sunday 9/14 - 17.07 mi, 1:52:42. SOLID long run mostly solo on the bay. Started out the first mile with Di and ran in to Garrett for about 10min early on as well. Went through 8mi in 56:25 and then the miles started to melt away as follows: 6:24, 6:16, 6:08, 6:07, 6:03, 5:59, 6:05, 6:17 (UP), 6:27 (UP). The final 9mi was 55:48 which is pretty solid I think, especially at the end of an 80mi week and the day after a race.

Summary: 80mi, 9 runs. Overall a good week with some good efforts mixed in. I would like to have done the 80 in 8 runs, but some travel for work made me split the run on Tuesday. However, having the chance to run on the UCLA track is always fun and it gave me an Mills some quality Patriot's discussion time. The workout went well, although I feel as though I could have gone a bit harder on the initial intervals and saved too much for the final one, but it was my first time doing the workout and it was really an experiment more than anything else. The race went pretty well and I look forward to moving up to a 10k next week.

Race Report: Aztec Invitational "People's Race" 5k

2008-09-13T13:19:00.000-07:00

Results: 8th place, 16:22.

Well I have mixed feelings about how this race went. When I finished I felt as though I had raced pretty well and mixed it up early on, trying to hang with the lead pack through the mile. The course is actually pretty tough, all in the 2nd mile, which really kills your momentum. I passed a few people just after the mile mark (5:0?) and from there I stayed in 8th place, briefly took over 7th on the switchbacks and then later got passed again by the same guy and finished in 8th. It was my teammate Jeremy Brown, aka "7ft. Marine", that I passed and was then got passed by. We worked together during the 3rd mile which is slightly downhill for the first half before you turn around for a slightly uphill finish.

Now, the results confuse me a bit because 7ft. made a move on me with 600m to go and I wimped out and let him go, but according to the results he beat me by 11 seconds, which seems like too much. Also, the guy behind me is listed as 1 second behind me and, after Jeremy made his move, I looked back and saw I had about 5sec+ cushion. I did let up about 200m to go knowing I had 8th in the bag and he could have caught me a little but I don't think Jeremy put 11sec on me in the last 600m. The reason I am rambling is that it sort of depresses me if he put that much on me and I just didn't notice and that Fernando caught me by so much. Granted I pulled up at the finish and I guess that's what I get for not running through the line and giving less than 100% effort to finish. Therefore, I should not bitch about it and take it for what it was.

Preliminary team results put us in 3rd, our first loss of the season. We only fielded 5 guys and we were missing 2 of our top 5. Adidas/Movin Shoes showed up with a full squad which we knew was going to be trouble even if we had a full team. The other good team, BSK/Running Center, my old team, looks to have edged us as well. Not the greatest moment in Lost Boys history but we will rebound and pick up that important 3rd win before the championship.

Knowing the season is still another 8 weeks before the championship in November and the fact that I want to do well next week in the 10k, I think the choice in this week's effort was a good idea. I really pushed the start, cruised solo through the middle of the race, ran hard up with switchbacks and had a good go at it with 7ft. before we took the turn for home where I sorta shut it down. Hopefully saving that effort will reflect next weekend. I look forward to running double the distance of this week and seeing what I can do over a 10k that is on all grass with hills, sharp turns, a gap to jump...AKA REAL XC!

Updated standings:

Individual

Team

Mt. Laguna

2008-09-11T10:29:00.001-07:00

Considering I have posting on a less consistent basis I am going to try and make sure I get in at least one post besides a race report or training summary. I though as a nice "almost end of the week" I would post up some amazing pictures from our trip to Mt. Laguna last weekend. Before that I will give you a quick low-down on the area. Mt. Laguna, and the surrounding area, is located about 50mi east of the City of San Diego, but in San Diego County. Please keep in mind, all you East Coast readers, that this state is so vast that even though it is really about an hour away from any city type buildings some people would actually refer to this as "in San Diego," it is a much different concept than I am used to. Mt. Laguna itself is technically an unincorporated town with a population hovering around 90 people. It sits at it's highest point around 6200' (mainly floating around 5600-6000') above sea level, making it a really great place for training.

About 8 years ago there was a Fila sponsored training group that lived up here in preparation for the Olympics. Greats like Sonia O'Sullivan and Craig "Buster" Mottram have been known to frequent the area to get in some altitude training. It is a great area, very quiet and definitely keeps you focused on your training...mainly because there is nothing else to do!

Without further ado...here are some photos and captions for you to enjoy:

Me with Cleveland National Forrest in the Background (notice the burned remains from the 2002 (?) fires and the equally "HOT" pose by me!)

Looking down at the Anza Borego Desert with the Salton Sea in the distance (hard to see in this picture)...For a perspective we were standing at +5900' (Garnet Peak) and Salton Sea is -220' !

Di at Laguna Meadow

Jill Gaitenby Signed New England Runner at the Mt. Laguna store, no matter where we go New England follows! (Sonia O'Sullivan signed Irish Runner can be seen next to it.)

Training Summary: September 1 - 7

2008-09-08T22:27:00.000-07:00

Monday 9/1 - 10+mi, 69:20, solo on the bay.

Tuesday 9/2 - 10mi, 9 with Di and the last solo. Did strides but had to stop after 4 because I had some pain in my back. It felt better over the final 2 miles after the strides but I will watch it tomorrow.

Wednesday 9/3 - 12mi, 6.5 solo and then 5.5 with Wednesday Night Movin Shoes Run. Fairly easy around 7:15ish pace for most of the run.

Thursday 9/4 - off, ended up really doing tons of stuff all day getting things done so we could leave by noon on Friday to go to Mt. Laguna!

Friday 9/5 - 10mi, easy 8 with Di and the last 2 solo.

Saturday 9/6 - 8mi, 64min @ 6000+feet. Did a really amazing easy run at Mt. Laguna with Di. Only my second run ever at altitude. It was just beautiful scenery and that was part of the reason why we went so slow. A bit short and slow but worth it!

Sunday 9/7 - 16.2mi, 1:56:55. Easy long run with Di on the Bay, great run for her!

Summary - 66mi, 6 days, 7 runs. Not an amazing week following my big week last week but it had a few reasons. First life got in the way and I ended up having to take a day off. Secondly we went camping for 2 nights in Mt. Laguna and between our 2 amazing hikes we did I was only able to squeak out an 8miler out there, granted it was at 6000+ feet! Di and I actually went on 3 hikes this week (one in La Mesa on Labor Day and 2 up at altitude in Mt. Laguna) which was really fun. Next week will be back around 80mi or so and we have a race as well which should be great. I will likely still take a scheduled down week the week after which will help with the race the following week.

Finally caught up on blog entries, YES!

Training Summary: August 25 - 31

2008-09-08T22:03:00.000-07:00

Monday 8/25 - 16.2mi, 1:46:55. Long Run solo on the bay. Felt really good and pushed my way through the second half of the run, sub 6:30 pace for the last 75min.

Tuesday 8/26 - 10+mi, 71:15, with Di around the bay. Tagged along with Di while she did her workout of some "short fartlek."

Wednesday 8/27 - 12mi

Workout: ~3mi warmup, 3X5min at 5k pace, 5X1min quick, cooldown remainder of the run. Felt good and definitely got a solid workout!

Thursday 8/28 - 11+mi, 1:15:35, with JLew through La Jolla. Longer than planned but felt decent, hot and humid! Happy 25th to me!

Friday 8/29 - AM 7mi, 50min, easy with Di on the Bay

PM 4mi 28:00, easy on the bay with 4X100 strides

Saturday 8/30 - 12mi, 2mi warmup, Balboa 4 Miler race, 6mi cooldown, see race report.

Sunday 8/31 -16.2mi, 1:51:25, first 45min with Di and then solo. Felt a little tired but not too bad.

Summary - 88mi, 7 days, 8 runs. Wow what a crazy unexpected week! Did not plan to run over 80, let alone almost 90! I felt pretty good coming out of it all and got in a solid workout and a good race. Plan to take it a little easier next week but still pretty strong. We have a week off from races next weekend so that will be a nice break. I am happy with the week and I just hope it wasn't too big of a jump, but so far, so good.

Race Report: Balboa 4 Miler

2008-09-08T21:48:00.000-07:00

Results: 8th place, 22:08.

This is race #2 of the Dirt Dog Series and I would say I was happy coming out of it. The Balboa 4 Mile is a San Diego tradition and it is definitely a tough course. It is a relatively flat first mile, steep up and down 2nd mile, rolling 3rd mile and steep up and down again for the 4th mile. To put it in perspective I have been told in the 44 years of it's existence only about half a dozen people of broken 20min.

As for my race I went out harder than last weeks 5k, going through the relatively flat first mile in 5:10ish and through 2 miles around 10:45. It is a tough 2nd and 4th mile with some very tough footing and sand areas in the canyon, not to mention the very steep down and up you encounter. I hung in around 10-12th through 2 miles and then moved up through the back half. I ran a good last mile, even though I got out kicked by the same 18 year old that out kicked me in the Balboa 8 Mile just about a month ago! I beat a few guys I wanted to catch up to and considering much more competition showed up this week I was still able to come in 8th overall and 7th as far as Dirt Dog Series runners go.

The Lost Boys of San Diego, my team, grabbed our second win in two races and took the early lead in the series. We added a few team members this week and we should have a solid team all year. A few runners form adidas/Movin Shoes are still yet to show up to a race so we know it will be a tough fight for the series championship.

Next up is the Aztec Invite 5k back at Balboa Park.

Here are the current standing for Dirt Dog through 2 races (very early on and lots will change!):

Individual Standings

Team Standings

Update Tonight

2008-09-07T16:40:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the long time between posts. I will update with 2 weeks of running and a race report tonight...I swear!

Edit: Insanely tired and not feeling so hot after a long run will postpone the update to tomorrow.

Training Summary: August 18-24

2008-08-25T10:10:00.000-07:00

Monday 8/18 - off, first day off in a month or so, very needed!

Tuesday 8/19 - 10+mi, 72:00, hilly run up and over Mt. Soledad with Di. She did a workout and I tagged along to keep her company.

Wednesday 8/20 - 10+mi, did about 5mi or so on my own and then met up with the Movin Shoes run for their 5.5mi run. Right hamstring is a little off from the day before.

Thursday 8/21 - 10+mi, 65:30, solo on the bay. Unintentional progression run. Probably clicked a few miles off around 6min. Right hamstring is a bit off still.

Friday 8/22 - AM 8mi, 59:30, easy with Di. Hamstring a little better not great.
PM 4mi, 28:00, easy solo on the bay. Threw on the XC flats for 6X100 strides on the grass which felt good. I wanted to test out the hamstring and it faired well enough to run the race on Saturday.

Saturday 8/23 - 2.5mi warmup, Wild Duck 5k race, 3.5mi cooldown. See race recap.

Sunday 8/24 - 10+mi, 69:00. Easy solo on the bay in the evening. Felt good post-race. Decided to hold off until Monday for the Long run.

Summary - ~61mi, 6 days, no long run. With a day off and no long run I'd say it was still a solid week. I hadn't taken a day off in about a month so I needed it. Hamstring is just feeling odd and I may get it looked at if it keeps up bothering me this week, although it felt better after the race. The race went fairly well which was good and I know that I will be in some pretty good shape com the end of the year. I was running on tired legs from the 12mi the day before so I'm happy. This coming week is all about catching up on sleep (no more Olympics...), catching up on work, running in the high 70's and racing well again on Saturday at the very challenging Balboa 4mi.

Race Report: Wild Duck 5k

2008-08-25T09:39:00.000-07:00

Results- 6th place, 16:19.

So the race this weekend was the first in the Dirt Dog XC Series. Dirt Dog, for those that don't know, is a pretty competitive XC "Grand Prix" type series here in San Diego. There are 8 races and a Championship race. Each race is scored for individuals 100-90-81-73-66...3-2-1 and the championship race is worth double points. Team scoring is 20-14-10-7-5...2-1. You need to run a minimum of 2 regular races and the championship, but they count your best three scores plus the championship to decide the final standings. It is a good series and pretty much all the best runners in San Diego take part.

So the first race is up in Oceanside which is in North County and it is the furthest race away from where we live. This is true for most people living outside of North County, so it was a good chance to steal some points with some guys not showing up. The course wasn't hard but not flat either. The toughest part was very uneven footing and lots of patches of sand on the trails that really hurt your momentum. I was in the pack through the pedestrian first mile (5:20ish) and then it strung out. I should have made the move to stay in contact with 4-5 but I didn't and settled in like and idiot. We probably ran a 5:00 somewhere in the middle of the second two miles, so we were cruising ok enough. I ended up finishing just 3sec behind 5th, which was disappointing. Overall I felt strong but never had another gear to switch to over the last mile. That is something that needs serious work in the coming weeks.

We were able to piece together 5 guys to score but we didn't have our true top 5 out there. adidas/Movin Shoes didn't bring a full team so we were able to grab some decent team points, but with more guys coming on board we should really be a threat come mid-season.

Overall it was a good start to the series. It was my first 5k since the 2007 Carlsbad 5000 so the pace was brisk to say the least. Good rust buster and I think I should really round in to shape come the end of the season, as should "The Lost Boys" of San Diego (yes that is our team name!).

On a side note Dianna won the women's race which was a great first race for her! Things are looking up for us!

Breaking/Re-Discovering the Mold

2008-08-20T10:17:00.001-07:00

Olympic Bronze Medalist Nick Willis (NZ) and his coach Ron Warhurst
(Note fellow Reebok employees Todd Klein and Jennifer Thomas to the Left of Warhurst)

The most amazing moments of the Olympics for me have come during moments in which you look at what happened and it gives you a feeling as though maybe things aren't as clear cut as they seem. By this I mean you look at Larry Bird and see a quiet, white guy from Indiana can be one of the greatest players in NBA history or Liu Xiang can prove that it is not just Westerners that can dominate the high hurdles. These guys broke a mold that was being set. Bird came in the the NBA during a time when African American players were showing they were clearly more dominant than their Caucasian counterparts.

In recent memory we have seen people like Paula Radcliffe capture the World Record in the Marathon, Deena Kastor take a medal in Athens in the Marathon and even Kara Goucher take a medal last year in the 10k at the world championships. I really believe I am colorblind and that is especially true for sports. If the best basketball players are usually African American then that is totally fine with me and if the best Tennis players are usually Caucasian then that is fine as well. It is when the mold is broken that I really find we see the true reason why we "run the race" or "play the game." Last night watching Nick Willis take a Bronze medal made me feel as though the mold broke again.

Nick Willis did something we thought we may never see again. Nick gave a new breath to a nation that was once one of the greatest 1500 powerhouses. He came to the US to run and drank the "Kool-Aid" that Ron Warhurst gave him. Nick watched Alan Webb leave the Wolverines to become a professional. Where was Webb in that 1500 final? Willis stuck with his intentions, stuck with his coach, stuck with his goals and in the end he has truly won. Nick Willis has given hope to all those little Kiwi kids that grow up hearing about Snell and Dixon but having no hero to call their own. Nick broke the mold of the current standing of the 1500 proving a guy doesn't need to be from Norther/Eastern Africa or on drugs to be a contender. Nick did good for his fellow Wolverine Kevin Sullivan who came so close in 2000 to that podium out kicked by a group of drugged up fools.

So I just want to say Congratulations to Nick Willis. You did the University of Michigan, Reebok and most importantly New Zealand very proud! You know Lydiard is smiling from above.

NBC...I hate thee...

2008-08-20T02:35:00.000-07:00

I would just like to post that it is just past 2:30am and I just saw the men's 1500m final. I understand there wasn't an American in the race, but to show one of the premier events of the Olympic Games at this time of day is truly terrible. I have always really enjoyed the NBC coverage in the past but this really destroys it all for me. I really hope NBC doesn't get the 2016 coverage, but until then we have to deal with the terrible coverage of NBC again in Vancouver and then in London.

NBC should truthfully be ashamed.

Olympics Continue...Just Not Live!

2008-08-20T00:11:00.001-07:00

I know that I probably should be posting about the Olympics but I have been so consumed by them and losing so much sleep over them that I barely have enough time in the day to work, run, eat and sleep in between all the events.

Here is my one comment...

Living on the West Coast has been a great experience and the weather couldn't be nicer here. The thing that has probably made this experience the worst is the fact that there is a tape delay out here for everything BUT LIVE SPORTS. The one thing we can always count on is the live sports to actually be on TV live. As was the case with the Olympic Trials (again I refer to this post) the West Coast is getting completely screwed with the Olympics. GIVE ME A BREAK! I have had so many people from the East Coast call me or try and tell me something in some way that I am just getting sick of avoiding all outside communication at night. Now correct me if I am wrong, but the sport of Gymnastics is probably one of the most watched sports of all the Olympics. NBC says that they aired the Women's All-Around in "Primetime" so that the most people could watch, but...wait a minute...since when is something starting at 11pm and ending at 1am considered "Primetime"? How about this...if they actually showed the event live on the West Coast it would have been from 8pm-10pm which, as far as I know, IS PRIMETIME! Believe me I could keep naming other events that went on at some obscene hour for the East Coast but would have actually worked out fine on the West Coast...but no NBC is, in my opinion, simply being too lazy to re-work their programing and show the Olympics live for the entire country.

I love the Olympics...I just wish we could watch them like everyone else! I'm just going to move to another country for the next Olympics so I can actually watch everything live...

Training Summary: August 11-17

2008-08-19T23:49:00.000-07:00

Monday 8/11 - 9mi, 63:30, easy solo on the bay.

Tuesday 8/12 - 10+mi, with Di on the bay, kept her company on her fartlek.

Wednesday 8/13 - 10+mi, 64:30, same as yesterday but alone and at my own pace. Did 5X "Long Fartlek", as we called it in college. Long fartlek was simply 4min hard / 3min rest. The workout was always a feel based workout for me and I would say I graduated from 10k-ish pace for the first few and ended around 5k-ish pace for the last few. Good workout and went much better than I thought it would.

Thursday 8/14 - 9mi, 62:30, easy, solo on the bay.

Friday 8/15 - 12mi, 1:26:20, easy, first 4 solo and last 8 with Di on the bay. Just wanted to be on my feet for a long time so this worked out very well. Added 8X100 strides with Di. Felt really good.

Saturday 8/16 - 9mi, 66:59, easy, mostly with Di on the bay.

Sunday 8/17 - 16.3mi, 1:55:09, fairly easy on the bay with Garret. Felt perfectly good the entire run, but we did go pretty easy the entire run so I should expect to feel that way.

Totals: ~75mi, 7 days, 7 runs. Felt really good the entire week with a few aches popping up here and there, but that is expected with the addition of miles and workouts. Overall a really good week and we have the first XC race this coming week. Plan on a day off this coming week to keep the body healthy, but will stay pace for a similar mileage (~65 with a day off). Hopefully I'll have a good race report from Saturday and things will be looking good for our team - The Lost Boys (of San Diego).

Training Summary: August 4th - 10th

2008-08-11T08:30:00.000-07:00

Monday 8/4 - 9mi, 62:30 easy solo on the bay.

Tuesday 8/5- 10mi, 1:12:55, ran with Dianna on the bay while she did a fartlek, she had a good workout and it was a good way for me to open my legs up a few times in the run

Wednesday 8/6- 9+, for the second we in a row I did the Movin Shoes run, which is about 5.5mi, and preceded it with 30min on my own which I figure makes it anywhere from 9.5-10mi but an easy day anyway

Thursday 8/7- 10-11(?), 1:20:15, did a crazy hilly run in San Marcos with JLew and G$ (that being Jason Lewis and Garrett Ince) as a bit of a workout, we climbed what had to have been well over 1000ft over the run and descended the same amount, I should have worn my Garmin so we could figure out how long it was but we guessed anything from 10-11mi, my guess more than 10.5mi no more than 11.5mi

Friday 8/8- 9+mi, 68:30, easy with Dianna on the bay

Saturday 8/9- 9mi, 64:01, easy solo on the bay after an early wake up call in Chino and long drive home, very tired...

Sunday 8/10- 15mi, 1:40:23, solo on the bay and Fiesta Island, felt much better than last week but still not a great long run, the sun was KILLER and really baked me out there, it is amazing that it was only 72 degrees out but the sun was so strong I sweat like it was about 90 degrees, I was still able to hold at or just under 6:30 pace after the 4mi mark which is a small win

Summary - ~72mi, 7 days, good week overall, got a little workout in with the hill climbing on Thursday and had a better, although not great, long run on Sunday. Things are looking up heading in to the first race in a couple of weeks. I'm not expecting anything different out of this week except possibly adding a longer day in somewhere so that the mileage lands at or around 75mi for this coming week. Most likely add a mile to the long run and possibly a double but we'll see as the week goes on.

8-8-08

2008-08-08T10:02:00.000-07:00

So the Olympics have really, officially, totally, absolutely, begun with the closing of the Opening Ceremonies this morning in the US. We won't be able to watch it until tonight on television but the Games have begun! I am not planning on taking on some crazy task, again, like doing a daily recap but I will comment when I have time. I plan on waiting on seeing things instead of cheating and finding out what happens before hand. It is WAY more exciting to see it happen then to read about it and see a still shot of the finish line or of a scoreboard. If anyone tries to contact me previous to an event airing with results I will never speak to you again. Now I know most of you will do what I am doing and wait but I know a few people who will cheat and look ahead...yea I'm talking to you Mills! I know you and your sneaky call the East Coast ways during reality show season to find out what happens before it airs on the West Coast!

Well I hope you all enjoy the Games as they truly begin for the Western World tonight and the first medals are awarded starting pretty much as the Opening Ceremonies air for us. As a little help to get you started here are my the "events to watch" this weekend (I will not write times because they may air differently on networks that have both High and Low Definition):

Saturday:
Cycling - Men's Road Race Final
Basketball - Women's USA v. Czech Republic
Shooting - Women's 10m Air Rifle (the first medal to be given out and China is the favorite...get used to that)
Swimming - Lots of prelims.

Sunday:
Basketball - Men's USA v. China (talk about pressure of the world for the first game!)
Gymnastics - Women's Qualification Stages
Swimming - Finals Galore! Men's and Women's 400 IM, Men's 400 Free, Women's 4X100 Free Relay (lots of potential USA medals and the first tests for Mr. Phelps)
Football - Men's USA v. Netherlands (huge test for USA, if they squeak out a draw it could mean a place in the Quarterfinals where anything can happen)

Don't forget to watch some of the other events as they broadcast on the 9 NBC channels (not including HD) that will be showing non stop sport for the next few weeks. How sad would it be if you couldn't tell your children you saw Lin Dan win a gold in badminton in front of his home crowd or France really take it to Angola in Women's Handball? I would say truly sad!

Enjoy!

Olympics Begin!

2008-08-07T09:45:00.000-07:00

Lopez Lamong, USA Olympian and 2008 USA Olympic Flag Bearer receiving USA Citizenship in July 2007

So the Olympics have technically begun although the traditional/ceremonial beginning will be tomorrow at the Opening Ceremonies. Men's and Women's Football (Soccer to all you maladjusted Westerners!) started yesterday and it has been fairly exciting so far. I won't go on about results or anything but something I think is just amazing is that yesterday my cable service added 4 additional HD channels that will broadcast only Olympic coverage! There is an additional USA-HD and CNBC-HD along with two other that will carry Football and Basketball exclusively! I am so excited that all channels will be in HD this year, it will truly make it a different experience in watching the Olympics.

In other Olympic/T&F news Lopez Lamong, the Lost Boy of Sudan turned USA citizen, turned USA Olympian has been named the flag bearer for the USA contingent for the Opening Ceremonies. I think that it was a great choice on the part of the USOC and I think truly embodies the spirit of the Olympics. Congrats to Lopez and I am really excited to see the Opening Ceremonies tomorrow!

Have I mentioned I love the Olympics?

Training Summary: July 28th - August 3rd

2008-08-03T15:29:00.000-07:00

Ok, so here is my attempt at returning to a weekly training update. I know I said I would do one for last week but it never happened. Last week I did take a day off so I'd rather start again on a week of 7 days!

As far as new runs from the new apartment, we have begun doing a nice hilly run through La Jolla. I would say there is less than a mile total that is flat, making it a fairly tough run, which is hard to come by when you live on a bay. The run in actually 8.25mi (according to my Garmin) and I add an full mile in at the end up to Kate Sessions and back making my normal distance for the new La Jolla route about 9.25mi.

Monday 7/28 - 9+mi, 63:40, solo effort on the hills of La Jolla.

Tuesday 7/29 - 5.5mi, 40min, ran with James when he arrived from Vegas. I made this my shorter easy day of the week.

Wednesday 7/30 - 9+mi, did the first 30min (4+mi) alone and met up with the PB Movin Shoes for a relaxed last 5.5mi. I plan on doing the Movin Shoes run every Wednesday, which will make it a good day to double or get in a workout in the morning. The run is usually very easy and Dianna is in charge of making it "great again". It has been going on for over 22 years now without missing a Wednesday, I'd say that is pretty good.

Thursday 7/31 - 9+mi, 63:15, strong solo effort on a hilly run in La Jolla.

Friday 8/1 - 9+mi, 68:30, easy with Dianna on the La Jolla run.

Saturday 8/2 - 11mi. Decided about 9:30pm the night before to go and run the Balboa 8mi race. I didn't warm up and ended up running 46:43 on a difficult course that was about 50% road and 50% dirt/grass. Ended up running a really hard last mile battle with an 18 year old who out kicked me, but I did end up running 5:12 for that last up and down mile. It was a really hilly course and I'd say one of the tougher courses I have run in recent memory (although still easier than this beast). Wished I could have run with the guys up front but hopefully I'll be up with them come the end of XC season.

Sunday 8/3 - 15mi, 1:41:43. Made it a pretty strong effort even though I ran hard yesterday. It was pretty hot in the sun and I waited until mid-day which was a bad idea. Kinda wished I was done around mile 10 but gutted out for the full 15. Run around 6:30 pace for most of the middle of the run which felt fairly good considering the effort yesterday.

Summary - 68mi, 7 days. I would say it was a good week and had a long run and hard effort back-to-back. The "race" really gave me a good backhand into reality and reminded me I need to do some more "fast" running. The 5:12 felt good at the end of the race but the pace felt like 4:30 pace. I need to add in strides a few times a week and make sure that my mid-week effort is not always a tempo but rather a quicker fartlek or actual structured workout including some faster efforts. I think I will be a bit behind going in to the first few races of Dirt Dogs but looking at all the time I have before the end of the season I think I could really make it in to a good little racing season. Thinking back I am not far off my pace of the summer before Junior year in college as far as mileage and working out so that shows I should be good come October/November and championship season.

A Long Time Coming

2008-07-25T19:49:00.000-07:00

Ok so finally things have settled down, orders are in (sort of) and I can take a deep breath...not to mention drink a few beers! It is nice to have a deadline pass and it amazing me that I we are all done book January 2009! Truthfully I never thought I would be living in CA this long but it is fun and definitely worth every moment. So without further ado...what I have been up to in classic Sean-esque bullet point format!

Olympic Trials

So we went to the Olympic Trials which can be sort of seen by my feeble attempt at reporting on it when I was there. It was an absolutely amazing experience and I am so glad we went. We saw some incredible races, spent July 4th at Hayward Field, walked about 6 miles a day, had amazing runs and hung out with some great people. I am not really going to go in to everything but I have to thank Villard St. Pub for some great nights. Dianna and I will definitely remember this trip for a long time.

Work

So work has been really busy. As I mentioned we just passed our first big deadline for 2009. This means we had a new line of shoes and apparel to show and I had to get out to all my accounts which means driving in total around 2000 miles and flying even more. After a long stretch of hotel rooms, living out of the Matrix and a suitcase I am glad to be done. Not that the travel ever ends, but the bulk of the summer travel is over and that is a nice feeling. Overall the new line has been really well received and I am pumped for Reebok Running. We are really going to make a leap in 2009, mark my word!

Running

So running has been fairly consistent, but not as exceptional as I had hoped. I have averaged 6 days a week since the trials which is pretty good. I've had a week with only 5 days and stretches of up to 14 days in a row of running in there as well. The main thing is that over the past 5 weeks every day I have run I have run over an hour, with the exception of 2 days, one of which I did 5mi and the other I did two shorter runs. That is definitely positive because I have also had a few "long" runs of 12-14 mixed in as well. So when I am getting 7 days in a row I am getting close to 70mi a week, so I am happy. I have had one up tempo day a week as well so I would say training for Dirt Dog XC is going good, not great, but good. It should be fun. More on Dirt Dog and our team in a coming blog.

New Apartment

On top of all of this we moved! I guess I already mentioned this but it is worth mentioning again because it is just another reason my blog has been so dormant. We are now in a 2 bed/2 bath place in "North Pacific Beach" which is a big upgrade from our old 1 bed/1 bath in South PB. We have a little view of the bay which is great for the nightly Sea World fireworks and we have a "private" balcony which has my sweet new grill on it! The second bedroom is my office which really helps keep me on task and keeps the other parts of the apartment clean of Reebok crap. Overall a great move and nice to have a big place.

So that is pretty much all I have for now. Things are going well overall. Looking forward to racing in a month or so and getting back to XC. I will start posting a weekly training log again starting this Sunday which I plan to keep updated (but you know me...).

Sorry...to all 1 of you...

2008-07-23T22:13:00.000-07:00

So I know not many people are probably even checking this blog anymore, and therefore not reading this, but I apologize for my absence. My excuses range from work to laziness but here is my vow:

I will post an update tomorrow night.

Why tomorrow night? Well tomorrow is a big deadline at work and once 5pm is past I can take a bit of a deep breath and think about something other than work.

So until tomorrow please get some sleep, don't stay up all night thinking about what I could write about, but rather sleep well knowing your favorite blog will have a great new post tomorrow!

I have a blog?

2008-07-13T11:35:00.001-07:00

Oh right I have blog...more on that later.

Track Town USA

2008-07-06T13:27:00.000-07:00

Alright so I haven't posted much over the past few days...but I have been busy so I will use that as a good excuse. We have been here in Eugene since Thursday morning and we have seen some amazing races. Sitting in the stands at Hayward Field watching the best in the country and some of the best in the world compete for a spot at the Olympic Games is pretty much a dream come true. I can only think of a few things I have wanted to do more in my life, one being go to the actual Olympics, and it is a great time.

Lots of things to talk about and no time to do it. I have posted a picture that sort of sums up out times here in Eugene. We are about 2mi from Hayward Field and we walk every day. This is not an easy walk with the hills that surround the area between us and the track. On top of it all we have walked all over town and we are on our feet fairly late each night having a good time on Villard Street with pretty much everyone in Eugene. If you know what it is like at Rosie O'Grady's in New York during the week of a meet or the NYC Marathon that is what is like at Villard Street Pub this week.

Good times all around and today should be some of the most exciting events yet. Just looking at the lists for the 1500 and 200 I can see virtually anyone making this team, although you have to assume Lagat is a lock.

I doesn't look like I will continue with my daily recap but I will have a recap of the entire Trials next week.

Well we are off to the festival and then it's day 8 of the Trials...this will be amazing.

Olympic Trials - Days 3-4

2008-07-03T10:04:00.000-07:00

Ok lots of things have been going on between traveling, running, and lot of other more important things that have consumed me for the past few days. It has been a tough stretch the past few days with the loss of a very close friends mother and I would like to express my deepest condolences again. I think if you read my blog you probably know this already but it is a really tough circumstance and when it happens to someone that is so close to you it really takes a while to get your head around it.

Well here is my combined Day 3-4 recap of the Trials. Lots of very exciting action and really great story lines over the past few days.

Recap:
This is going to be tough to recap 2 full days of competition. I will sum it all up using descriptive phrases rather than calling out lots of names, times and places. There was a new OT Record, and near American Record, in the Men's Decathlon. Extremely exciting Men's 800m final with nothing less than a actual dive across the finish line in order to make the team. A somewhat predictable yet still exciting Men's 5000 final. A men's 100m final that showed the dominance of one man and the resurgence of another. A pole vault that saw the American Record holder almost miss his spot and a former, now 40+, vaulter see his Olympic dreams realized one last time. Lastly, although not chronologically, a great 400m final for both Men and Women that saw potential medalists punch their tickets as well as look on with the agony of knowing their medal is likely waiting for them in London in 2012.

Day 3-4 Olympians:
Women's Triple Jump - Shani Marks and Erica McLain
Men's Pole Vault - Derek Miles, Jeff Hartwig(!), and Brad Walker
Women's Discus - Aretha Thurmond, Suzy Powell-Roos, and Stephanie Brown Trafton
Men's Long Jump - Trevell Quinley, Brian Johnson, and Miguel Pate
Women's 400m Hurdles - Tiffany Ross-Williams, Sheena Tosta, and Queen Harrison
Men's 400m Hurdles - Bershawn Jackson, Kerron Clement, and Angelo Taylor
Men's 100m - Tyson Gay, Walter Dix, and Darvis Patton
Women's 800m - Hazel Clark, Alice Schmidt, and Nicole Teter
Men's 800m - Nick Symmonds, Andrew Wheating, and Christian Smith
Men's Decathlon - Bryan Clay, Trey Hardee, and Tom Pappas
Men's 5000m - Bernard Lagat, Matt Tegenkamp, and Ian Dobson
PHEW...

Highs:
3. Andrew Wheating/Christian Smith - Men's 800m - Final - 2nd /3rd Place - 1:45.03/1:45:47
I have tried my hardest not to combine athletes but they both deserve a nod here. Wheating was a little known boy from Vermont that has just exploded on the scene and is a great story to follow. Smith is a former NCAA champ who was in a hospital bed for 2 months no more than 15 months ago wondering if he would ever run again. Smith was the final athlete accepted as #30 on the declared list, the only runner in the final without the Olympic "A" standard, and a complete and utter surprise to everyone except himself and his training partner, and fellow Olympian, Symmonds. Great stuff going on in the Men's 800m, with a man who could be considered one of the best in the world being left off the team.

2. Rebecca Donaghue - Women's 5000m - Semi-Final Heat #2 - 5th Place - 15:38.95
So here is a true random decision and very biased by the fact that she runs for a Boston based team and her story is just really good. Donaghue has battled through injuries and really worked on getting healthy and staying that way. She qualified running solo at a Boston High Performance meet a few weeks back in which she ran a PR. In her Semi-Final here she PR'd by over 15 seconds and looked damn good doing it. Now she won't make the Olympics but I think she deserves a nod here for the incredible accomplishment and the sentimental value I have for someone that runs on a team from Boston.

1. Bershawn Jackson - Men's 400m Hurdles - Final - 1st Place - 48.17
Alright a great race and a great place for a truly great runner (did I say great enough times there?). Now again biased I am to another athlete, this time because he ran at a DII school (St. Aug's) and I had the opportunity to see him race a few times before he was "known." Biased thoughts aside, you have to feel good for Jackson who missed the 2004 Olympics after stumbling over the final hurdle and being out leaned to lose his chance at an almost guaranteed medal in Athens. Jackson will go in to Beijing as a favorite the gold but it wasn't with a little drama again. Once again going in to the final 50m Jackson stumbled and looked like he may lose it, but was able to really gut it out after 10th and final hurdle to get the win and have his first shot at Olympic glory.

Lows:
3. Khadevis Robinson - Men's 800m - Final - 4th Place - 1:45.53
Unbelievably KD is on my list for a second time and neither time was good. Although I can't blame him for not making the team it is really disappointing to think he won't be at the Olympics. I am really happy for Wheating and Smith but they have little to no chance on the international level just yet. Robinson is a true competitor that would have had a decent shot at the Olympic final had the races worked in his favor. Unfortunately he'll have to wait another 4 years to prove it.

2. Lashinda Demus- Women's 400m Hurdles - 4th Place - 54.76
The world leader will not be heading to Beijing and that is a shame. Althogh the US has an exceptional crew heading to the Olympics in the event it will be without, with debate, their best shot at the Gold. A sad state of affairs, but that is how it works at the US Olympic Trials.

1. USATF

Ok, so here goes a bit of a rant on the USATF. Now feel free to go on any running website and you will find all you need to know about the controversy surrounding the Men's 10,000m final on Friday night. The long and short of it is that the bumbling fools at the USATF office have allowed Adam Goucher in to the final on a special exemption even though he was sitting 8th on the provisional list. This means that by allowing Goucher in to the final 7 athletes with faster times may have to sit and watch the final while Goucher gets in. Why can this happen you ask? Well there are lots of theories. I will go with a mix of the following:

Alberto Salazar - The man with the plan. Salazar could probably get the USATF to let him on the Olympic team if he wanted. He has more pull and who knows why...not me. He was a great runner who coaches great athletes, but it doesn't mean he should get to bend the rules.
Nike - Huge corporate sponsor of the OT and happens to also sponsor Goucher. Now this is maybe sounding like a Nike hater talking but there is likely truth to this hating. Nike is the puppet master to much of what goes on at USATF and they virtually own the town of Eugene.
Poor Decisions - A major issue the USATF has dealt with is just making poor decisions. This is simply unfair and not well thought out. A resolution has to be made or I guarantee a lawsuit will follow.

Well that's all I got for ya. Here is a link to all the info on the 10k insanity so it can be followed: Amby Burfoot Takes on USATF.

The next time a write it will be from Eugene...Happy Trials watching to everyone it is going to be a great next 4 days!

Delay

2008-07-02T15:56:00.001-07:00

I have a little delay on my recap of Day 3-4. Things got a little crazy around here yesterday and I need to sort a few things out...I'll try and get the recap up soon. We take off for Eugene tomorrow and have a really long layover in San Fran so I will get my recaps for all my 5 blog readers during the day tomorrow. I hope to have some sweet pictures to post over the next 4 days when we are at the trials.

That's all I got for now...next time I post I should be in Eugene!

Olympic Trials - Day 2

2008-06-29T14:01:00.000-07:00

A quick note on my "highs" and "lows" of the day. They are not meant to be disrespectful, but rather, notes of exciting, unexpected and curious results that occur each day. "High" doesn't necessarily mean that I found it the best , nor does "low" denote worst, performance/s of the day, but instead grouping of things I feel as though pointing out, sometimes for my own personal reasons, other times because I think they are just results that need to be highlighted that may have been missed by the "naked" eye. So here goes with Day #2!

Recap:
Day 2 was mainly quarter/semi finals with Finals in the hotly contested Women's Heptathlon, Men's Shot Put and Women's 100m. In the end I would say the favorites made it on the the next round in nearly every event, with no super surprises. The one main surprise probably came from the Women's 100m where Allyson Felix placed 5th, having gone in to the event as a odds on favorite to make the team, although she has to be a shoe-in for the 4X100 pool. Most important to mention was the absolutely insane men's 100 Quarterfinals, which had 7 men run 10.00 or faster and the following records set: American/OT Record (Tyson Gay), Collegiate Record (Travis Padgett) and World/American U-20 Record (Jeffrey Demps)...just un-real considering there are still 2 rounds to go!

Today's Olympians:
Men's Shot Put - Reese Hoffa, Christian Cantwell and Adam Nelson
Women's 100m - Muna Lee, Torri Edwards and Lauryn Williams
Women's Heptathlon - Hyleas Fountain, Jacquelyn Johnson, and Diana Pickler

Highs:
3. Christian Cantwell - Men's Shot Put - Final - 2nd Place - 71'-2.75"
Cantwell didn't throw his best but really shook off the demons of the past to make the Olympic team. In the previous 2 Olympic Trials Cantwell, a former World Champion, had fouled 10 of 12 throws. Cantwell not only managed 4 legal throws, but let his last throw stretch him out over 71' which really has to have given him some confidence. Up next Beijing where he, Hoffa and Nelson have a real "shot" at sweeping the medal stand...sorry that was a really terrible pun.

2. Diana Pickler - Women's Heptathlon - 800m - 2:16.59
Pickler made her first Olympic team running a really gutsy race in the 800m, which is the final event. She needed be within Gi Gi Johnson 1.5 seconds in order to score enough points to take the final qualifying spot, and did it. She ran an 800m PR in the process and made her first Olympic team by a mere 10 points, which can be equated to about .1 seconds in the 200m or 2-3in in the long jump. Over the course of 7 events it really shows that every little extra effort can mean the difference between a trip to Beijing or sitting at home.

1. Tyson Gay - Men's 100m - Quarterfinals Heat #1 - 1st Place - 9.77 (AR)
Well Gay was just about to land his place on the top of my list for Lows for the entire Trials with his near fatal mistake in the 100 Qualifying rounds earlier in the day. Thinking he had the win, Gay slowed down with about 10m to go, was passed by virtually the entire field and was able to rally in the last 2m and lean to make the Quarterfinals. Sporting a "throwback" 1936 Jesse Owens Olympic replica uniform (see image below), Gay exploded out of the blocks in his Quarterfinal and set an American record while still pulling up again with about 8m to go. Had to run through the line I think he would have run damn close to a world record. If Gay is still getting warmed up I truthfully see him running sub 9.70 at the Olympics.

Lows:
3. Jacob Hernandez - Men's 800m Semi-Finals Heat #2 - 5th Place - 1:46.16
Reigning NCAA 800m champion Hernandez failed to make his first Olympic Trials final, as he was edged out of the final by .14sec. Hernandez is young and has tons of potential in the future. He had a great shot at making the team, but with such a stacked field, a few big names were bound to fall before the final. Joining Hernandez in the "did not qualify" group in the same heat was another former NCAA champ, Sam Burley. A tough result, but there is plenty more to come from Hernandez in the future.

2. Virginia "Gi Gi" Johnson - Women's Heptathalon - 800m - 1st Place - 2:15.88
Gi Gi merely had to beat Diana Pickler by 1.5 seconds and she would have been on the Olympic team. Looking at the results you ask yourself, how could she had done any better, she won the event and clearly did all she could...WRONG. With about 10m to go Johnson threw her hands in the air, unintentionally slowing down in the process, most likely costing her a spot on the Olympic team. Johnson ended up only beating Pickler by about .8sec, however watching Johnson accelerate down the final stretch I really think she could have won by the 1.5sec margin had she focused more on running through the final 10m rather than frivolously celebrating her way off the Olympic team.

1. Allyson Felix - Women's 100m - Finals - 5th Place - 10.96
Granted Felix will make the team, and likely win the Gold Medal, at the 200m, but it is disappointing not to have her in the 100m as well. Felix is one of the most talented sprinters in the world and I think everyone expected her to contend for medals in the 100m and 200m in Beijing. There is little doubt in my mind she will be selected for the 4X100m relay pool, which may give her the chance for 2 Gold medals in Beijing after all.

Olympic Trials - Day 1

2008-06-28T13:33:00.000-07:00

So here goes on my first post on the Olympic Trials, it will one of a 9 part series of posts. I will do one for each day and then a final recap. The format is going to be simple: intro, list of newly named Olympians from the days finals, 3 "highs" and 3 "lows." We will be in Eugene for the last 4 days so those posts will include (hopefully) pictures and other fun insights from our adventures. Without further ado...Day 1:

Recap:
Today was pretty short and simple. Lots of prelims, a few quarter/semi-finals, and the Women's 10k final.

Today's Olympians:
Womens 10k - Shalane Flanagan (yay Massachusetts!), Kara Goucher and Amy Begley

Highs:

3. Laura Roesler - Womens 800 Prelims - Heat 1 - 4th Place - 2:04.03
Ok so you look at it and say "why does he pick this totally random result as a top performer." How about we start with the fact that she has rarely raced outside of her home state of North Dakota so running in front of 20k+ at Hayward Field had to have shook her nerves. And why has she never raced much outside her home state...well that's because she is still in High School...a SOPHOMORE in High School! Unbelievable, this girl won the 100, 200, 400 AND 800 at her state meet the past 3 years, that's right ever since she was in 8th grade! Watch out for this girl come the 2012 Olympics, I am rooting for her to make the final.

2. Hyleas Fountain - Womens Heptathalon - Leader After Day 1
Again a bit random, but an amazing day for Hyleas. Most impressive was that she, please try and follow, broke the American record for the 100m Hurdles during a Heptathlon. Now that may seem like a little obscure but just remember that Jackie Joyner Kersey held the record...enough said. Hyleas is holding a 200+ point lead into Day 2 and is primed to make it to Beijing.

1. Amy Begley - Womens 10k - Final - 3rd Place - 31:43.60
So topping off my female only top 3 is Amy Begley who ran an AMAZING race to qualify for the Olympics by 1.4 seconds. Going in to the final Begley didn't have the necessary "A" standard of 31:45, so she had to place in the top 3 AND run the "A" standard. She pulled it off in almost unbelievable fashion. Going through the first 5k around 16:10 (32:20 pace, hard math I know) she proceeded to run a mere 10sec off her 5k PR for the second half of the race having run a 15:33 second 5k. Keep in mind with all of this that it was 80+ degrees and humid, not the conditions you expect someone to run fast. Truly a great performance.

Lows:

3. Khadevis Robinson - Mens 800 - Quarterfinal #1 - 6th Place - 1:48.04
Khadevis is not only an Olympic hopeful but is a long shot for a medal in Beijing. However, he ran a terrible race in the Quarterfinal and luckily qualified for the Semi-Finals on time. Khadevis is a great runner and it would be a huge disappointment if he didn't make the team, hopefully he can rebound...

2. Chanelle Price - Womens 800 - Quarterfinal #2 - 6th Place - 2:05.93
Chanelle is another High Schooler, but she had hoped to, at the very least, break the HS National Record this week. Well that is out the window along with her hopes to make her first Olympic Team. She was ranked 7th going in to the meet, however many thought she may have the fight to make it in a tactical final. We'll have to wait 4 years to see her in the Olympics, which she will make.

1. Katie McGregor - Womens 10k - Final - 4th Place - 32:29.82
So this has a little personal/professional meaning to it for me. Katie runs for Reebok and I have had the chance to spend a little time around her and feel a little connection there. She is probably one of the down-right coolest girls you will ever meet and a great competitor. It looked like she had the Olympic birth handed to her as the pace went out so slow and she was one of only 4 women with the "A" standard. All she had to do was hold off Molly Huddle, the other "A" qualifier, and she would be on the team. Everyone, including the TV announcers, discounted that anyone could hit the standard last night because of the mix of heat, humidity and slow early pace. However, Amy Begley ran the race of her life leaving Katie in 4th for the second straight Olympic Trials. I stood shocked at the end of the race for about 5 minutes not knowing what to think when I saw Katie missed it again by one place...again...she is resilient and I know she will give it one more shot in 2012.

Here is a video of Katie post-race, gotta respect her:

(video from Letsrun.com )

Trials Coverage

2008-06-28T09:52:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I may not be LetsRun, FloTrack or RunnersSpace but I am going to do my own coverage of the trials. I will likely link to some content on those, and other, sites but I wouldn't mind giving my own take on each day. So I will recap the days events the following day, so for example today I will recap Day 1, which was yesterday. Why a day late you ask? For one, I am removing myself from all running/sport related websites once the meet starts each day because I have to watch it on a tape delay because I want to see if happen rather than hear about it. This is thanks to NBC and their terrible decision to not show the Trials live on the West Coast and pretty much making it impossible to watch it online (please see my rant below). Also, when I get to Eugene I will likely not have the chance to come back and type up a recap each night, mainly because I want to enjoy myself at night and I would rather do it when we are bored in the hotel in the morning.

So check back later today for my recap of a VERY exciting Day 1!

West Coast Delay

2008-06-28T09:41:00.001-07:00

So for whatever reason, one of the largest media outlets in the world is showing a live event on tape delay for 1/3 of the country. In order for me to watch the Olympic Trials I need to wait 3 hours until it is over and then it will be on TV on the West Coast. Now, I understand T&F isn't the most popular sport, however I have watched at least a dozen meets on ESPN/ABC/VS, etc. this year that were LIVE and not on tape delay. How does it make sense that suddenly now, when it is probably the 2nd most important meet (the Olympics being #1) in the world they cannot seem to get it live for the entire country. Keep in mind that the meet is taking place in Eugene on the West Coast! So...if you worked for Nike, a MAJOR sponsor of the trials, and you wanted to watch the meet from you home just outside Beaverton you will have to watch it on tape delay, how messed up is that? I hope Nike throws it's weight around, or anyone for that matter, and they convince NBC to make sure that these trials are live for the entire country. Oh yes, and to top it off if you want to watch online GOODLUCK because you need to have Windows Vista, which I think something like 10% of all PC users have...what CRAP!

Thankfully I am going to be at the trials next week so I won't care anymore...but for the next few days I will bitch about it until the cows come home!

Also...be sure to check every day on FloTrack for some great coverage of the meet. They are a great group of guys and they do an amazing job making T&F fun and exciting. I will definitely be stopping by the set a few times when I'm up in Eugene next week.

Quick Recap

2008-06-26T17:58:00.000-07:00

OK so lots have changed/occurred over the past 2.5 week since I really gave an update as to my running/life. Here is a quick set up bullet points on what is going on to better justify my absence in the blogsphere, as well as an excuse to another short entry here...

WE MOVED! Ok maybe not a big deal because it is only a mile away but it has an additional bedroom, now my "office", another bathroom and in a bit of a nicer neighborhood.
Sell In for Spring/Summer 2009 has begun, which pretty much takes 6-8 weeks total. Most people probably don't know, but when you sell athletic gear you actually sell it about 6 months in advance...so every 6 months or so I work about a million hours a week, and that time is now.
Running has de-railed just a bit, I will post a full recap of running over the past 2-3 weeks soon. Overall I have cut out the long run and core but pretty much get in an hour 5-6 days a week, which is actually good for now.
Plans for the fall, running wise, have sort of changed a little. I would still like to run a good half if possible but for now I am planning on gearing up for the Dirt Dog XC Series in San Diego. It is a solid competition and good time. A team is in the works, which should work out well...more on that when the details are ironed out.

Ok that's all I got for now. More soon...I hope.

Long Time Coming

2008-06-24T13:15:00.000-07:00

I have so many things to update on this blog it is stupid. I know I haven't posted training for 2 weeks or anything else for that matter. I will have a full re-cap of my crazy life over the past few weeks as soon as a get a free moment...

Amazing Crazy Super Fun Happy Sports Time

2008-06-13T11:38:00.000-07:00

So this is probably one of the best summer of sports I can think of ever. Over the past few weeks in the world of track and field we have seen multiple world records, amazing finishes, and incredible individual performances...too many to even mention here (see pictures above). On top of that the Celtics are playing the Lakers in the NBA Finals (currently winning 3-1), the US Open is this weekend at Torrey Pines (tickets in hand for Saturday and Sunday!), we are in the midst of the always exciting UEFA Euro Cup, and the Red Sox are playing well when they aren't kicking the crap out of each other. Let's see what else...oh right the Olympics start in a mere 55 days!

To think that this year couldn't get any better for me as a sports fan my favorite sporting event of them all occurs this year. Let's see Red Sox win World Series, Patriots go undefeated (although lose Super Bowl which we shall no never talk about again) and the Celtics...well let's just say have a bettors chance to win their 17th NBA Championship. On top of it all here come the creme de la creme...the Olympic Games.

The Olympics have sort of been an obsession of mine since 1992 when I was old enough to understand exactly what was happening in Barcelona. Since then I have been known to stay up to ungodly hours to catch anything from the Opening Ceremonies to the qualifying rounds of Badminton. Truthfully, I could care less what sport it is, there is just something about the Olympics that absolutely captivates me and sends me in to a state of virtual retardation to all that is not related to the Games.

Oh did I mention Dianna and I are going to the Olympic Trials! Yes I was lucky enough to snag tickets a few weeks ago when they sold off the remaining single day tickets. We have tickets for July 3rd-5th and hope to snag a few for the final day when we are there. It should be amazing, especially the 4th when we will see the Women's 5k final followed by the Men's 10k final followed by a 4th of July celebration at Hayward Field...I can't think of anything better than that...

Training Summary: June 2 - June 8

2008-06-08T15:52:00.000-07:00

I had planned on posting a few blog entries this week but never got around to it. I don't really plan only posting my training every week but that is what seems to be happening. I will be on the road a bunch over the next month so expect more entries as I spend more nights in hotels on the road. So here goes this weeks training:

Monday 6/2 - 8mi, 54:30, solo on the bay. 6X100 strides mid run.

Tuesday 6/3 - 8mi, 55:40, solo on the bay.

Wednesday 6/4 - 10mi, 64:35, solo workout on the bay. Workout: 20min easy, right in to 20min around what felt like Aerobic Threshold, right back in to easy running for final 24:35 of the run. Ditched the Garmin and ran completely on feel, which felt great. Core circuit.

Thursday 6/5 - 10mi, 68:45, around PB and La Jolla with JLew. As usual got in a solid run with JLew that included a different running route which was nice...a little bit of a stomach issue but I survived thanks to lots of construction projects along the way.

Friday 6/6 - 7mi, 50:10, solo on the bay. Needed a very easy day and took it. Felt horrible to say the least, and the fact that it was insanely windy did not help.

Saturday 6/7 - 8mi, 54:10, solo on the bay. Felt much better today and had a decent, yet windy, run. Core circuit.

Sunday 6/8 - 15mi, 1:39:32, solo around the bay and Fiesta Island. Solid long run, but it took a while to get in a normal rhythm. Averaged right at 6:30 pace for the final 10mi with a few under 6:20. I like to slowly pick it up over a long run and it felt really natural.

Totals: 66mi, 7 days. Great week and really on the track I want to stay with. Did more miles than I had planned but that is fine, and I think a comfortable 70mi is only a week or so away. Got in both my core circuits and a good early season workout mid-week. I really don't want to wear my Garmin for my AT work unless it is necessary, which it shouldn't be. It helped to just run on feel and not care how far/fast I went. This is how I ran all my AT type runs in college and the way I will do them from now on. Probably hit around the same mileage this coming week with a hard/hilly run mid week. Things are looking good...

Training Summary: May 26 - June 1

2008-06-02T16:01:00.001-07:00

Took one day off but it was a planned rest day so no biggie. Didn't stay true to the core work but need to stay more consistent there. Side note on my log, when I use my Garmin I will put a more exact mileage (see Thursday). Other runs are either exact on the Garmin or my best guess. Here goes:

Monday 5/26 - 8mi, 54:20, solo on the bay.

Tuesday 5/27 - 8mi, 54:30, solo on the bay.

Wednesday 5/28 - off

Thursday 5/29 - 8.2mi, 56:16, random solo run around Oxnard, CA. We stayed at some random hotel in Oxnard and I just ran around the roads near the hotel.

Friday 5/30 - 8mi, 55:15, solo on the bay. 6X100 strides mid run.

Saturday 5/31 - 13mi, 1:27:08, solo around the bay. Felt pretty crappy and didn't get in the push I had planned.

Sunday 6/1 - 8mi, 54:15, solo on the bay.

Totals: 53 mi, 6 days. Actually a pretty good week, besides missing on the core circuit...which I swear I will get back to this coming week. I figure about 60+mi is easily on tap for the coming week and I look forward to continuing to bump up each week.

Training Summary: May 19 - 25

2008-05-25T14:15:00.000-07:00

FINALLY a good week! All the goals for the week were met (50+mi, 7 days, core circuit x2). I even got a mini workout in! Going forward I am going to roll the push-up circuit and core circuit into simply "core circuit"... mainly because I don't feel like typing the extra part.

Monday 5/19 - 8mi, 54:35, solo on the bay. Easy run post the crazy weekend.

Tuesday 5/20 - 8mi, 55:15, solo on the bay.

Wednesday 5/21 - 8+mi, 61:00, with JLew around PB. JLew always tries to get me to venture out of my normal running routes so it was nice to just run randomly for once. Core circuit with Di.

Thursday 5/22 - 8mi, 54:25, solo on the bay.

Friday 5/23 - 8mi, 53:50, solo on the bay. 6X100 strides mid-run on grass. Core circuit with Di.

Saturday 5/24 - 10mi, 63:22, solo progression run on the bay. This is my "long run" for the week and my only "workout". Decided to make my long run, as I do often, into a progression run. Averaged just under 6min pace for the last 5mi. Miles were as follows: 6:56, 6:56, 6:39, 6:26, 6:32 (strong wind), 6:21, 6:12, 5:58, 5:49, 5:34. Never felt like I was "pushing" but simply lengthened my stride and picked up my knees a little. It was very comfortable and surprised how easy it felt the entire run.

Sunday 5/25 - 7mi, 50:10, solo on the bay. Super easy/lazy Sunday run.

Totals: 57mi, 7 days. Overall a good first week back to normal training. I was able to get in a double digit progression run and averaged over 8mi a day. The "workout" wasn't anything earth-shattering but it was nice to feel that good on an up-tempo run. The plan is to keep consistent over the next few weeks and work in to the 60's with a progressively longer long run and insert a similar type progression run. After that I will try and set up a schedule as far as racing but I just want to get healthy first.

Weekend Update

2008-05-24T11:59:00.000-07:00

Just thought I would throw out a few quick words on a lazy Saturday in San Diego. It is Memorial Day weekend which usually means craziness will being to ensue starting tonight. It is funny because when you live near the beach, or any other place people flock towards on a holiday, the one thing you want is to get away! It is fun but sometimes I wish I could have a long weekend that didn't involve people screaming and doing generally obnoxious things outside my window until 3am...

As far as running goes this week, it has been really good. I have kept to my goal of running every day and hitting in the 50's. So far I have run about an hour a day and assuming I actually head out for my run in a few minutes I will have a solid 7 day streak going! This is what I need to keep up with and just slowly build the mileage back in. I was able to get in my core circuit twice this week, which was my goal, and I even did strides yesterday! I feel like a new man...well at least a not so lazy man.

Hopefully I'll have a solid week of training to post up tomorrow evening. Until then have a great Memorial Day weekend!

Bay to Breakers Recap

2008-05-22T09:30:00.001-07:00

So, we (Reebok) sponsor the race/insanity that is ING Bay to Breakers. This year was, astonishingly, the 97th running of Bay to Breakers. Now before I begin please bear in mind I think this event is amazing in all aspects. From number of participants to the amazing job the Race Directors do, you can't help but look by in awe. Now, if you have ever been to a Mardi Gras party, hosted by a nudist colony that happen to invite a couple dozen elite African runners...then you have a SLIGHT idea what it is like at Bay to Breakers. There are usually around 40,000 official runners, but estimates usually grow to about 60,000 actually on the course with another 200,000+ spectators. It is truly an amazing sight to see.

I have had the opportunity to have run the race last year (although I was in the top 100 and didn't really see any of the shenanigans until I finished) and this year I was able to watch from the start line. Well, I must admit as fun as running was, watching was exponentially more entertaining, yet fairly disturbing. To answer your question...yes I do have pictures. Now bear in mind there are others that I simply cannot post here, but here are a few...

NINTENDO FLOAT!

CREEPY SILVER GUY

OLD, CRAZY NAKED PEOPLE (EDITED FOR YOUR PROTECTION!)

So that gives you the slightest idea of what it is like at Bay to Breakers. It is definitely a San Francisco born and raised event. I will argue that there is nothing like this in the world. This race truly transcends running. It is far less about running and more about the atmosphere. Outside of the top 1000 people (or so) I would venture to guess everyone is walking, drinking and being generally ridiculous. Where else do you see people smoking a cigarette, pushing a keg in a shopping cart all while wearing running shoes and a bib number? Nowhere...that's where!

Watching it really makes you forget that there is a $25k equalizer first prize! Some of the best runners in the world lead this circus from Embarcadero to the beach at Golden Gate Park. Imagine seeing this fiasco run down the road after the leaders at the Peachtree 10k in Atlanta or Steamboat 4mi in Peoria!?!?! I think not. Only in San Francisco...

Training Summary: May 12 - 18

2008-05-19T17:52:00.001-07:00

Not what I had hoped for but it works. Lost 2 days from work/travel and only did core once, but it is a step forward. Oh yea...and I never ran Bay to Breakers because I never set my alarm, I'm an idiot.

Monday 7/12 - off, traveling from Williamsburg

Tuesday 7/13 - 9mi 31:00, solo on the bay. Easy run on the bay. Core and push-ups.

Wednesday 7/14 - 6mi, 41:45, solo on the bay. Easy run before the flight to San Fran.

Thursday 7/15 - 7mi, 50min, Embarcadero/Fisherman's Warf in San Fran with Patrick Joyce and Blake Russell. Fun to get out somewhere new and catch up.

Friday 7/16 - 9+mi, 61:05, same route as yesterday with Steve Mienelt. Felt good and felt like we were moving along pretty well.

Saturday 7/17 - off, had to work and had a VERY LONG night the night before...craziness=no running.

Sunday 7/18 - 6mi, 40min, same route again with Patrick. Missed the race and ran with Patrick instead.

Totals: 37mi, 5 days. Not good but it was what I had to work with. Working the expo make running hard and getting insanely drunk one of those nights doesn't help either. Had a good run with Mienelt on Friday which was a confidence boost that I am not in terrible shape. Although, I need to hit in the 50's this week or I suck.

Off to San Fran

2008-05-14T10:08:00.003-07:00

I'll be in San Francisco until Sunday. I will attempt to update while I am there. I'll try to give an inside look at the expo with some photos as well.

Training Summary: May 5 - 11

2008-05-13T16:53:00.001-07:00

So my first week back wasn't really good because of the traveling to Ryan's graduation and traveling up the coast...but I got in some runs, so that counts for something!

Monday 5/11 - 6mi, 41:45, solo on the bay. Nothing exciting just an easy run in the sun.

Tuesday 5/12 - off, traveling all day and never found a time to run, gotta stop using this excuse.

Wednesday 5/13 - 8mi, 60:35, with Garret in Santa Barbara. Easy run with Garret (manager SB Running) through Santa Barbara. We ended up running through a weekly race and got stuck running slow with some mid-packers.

Thursday 5/14 -~7-8mi, 56:30, with Jason and Aubie (sp?) in San Marcos. Crazy hilly run in San Marcos with J-Lew and his dog. It is nice to hit the trails and some nice long hills. Running with Aubie is really fun, she is probably the greatest running dog ever.

Friday 5/15 - off. Traveling all day to Williamsburg, VA for Ryan's graduation. In other words too lazy to get up early.

Saturday 5/16 - 8mi, 55:00, solo in Williamsburg. Found a route from the hotel, through Colonial Williamsburg and past the school. Nice run and nice to feel a cool drizzle on a run!

Sunday 5/17 - 7mi, 49:00, solo in Williamsburg. Easy run nothing exciting.

Totals: 5 days, ~38mi. Just a crappy week with traveling, resulting in only 5 days on the feet. One sort of exciting thing was the return to core and push-ups! I haven't been "regularly" doing core work on push-ups for about...3 years and this is my attempt. This is supposed to keep me more on track and if I am going to be serious again this is a must. Eventually I want to be back doing this 3 days a week on my old normal schedule.

Plan is to actually try and run 6-7 days next week, core and a push-up circuit twice, and run Bay to Breakers on Sunday. It should be fun up in San Fran all week, but it will be a challenge getting in my runs with the expo and other various work things that need to get done with in San Fran.

Billy and The Bitch Graduation

2008-05-13T16:35:00.000-07:00

So I have been in Williamsburg for my brothers graduation for the past few days and got home late last night. It was a fun weekend and nice to see family for a little bit. The graduation speaker was Mike Tomlin, coach of the Steelers, which was pretty interesting. According to my brother lots of the "intellectual" W&M grads thought it was terrible but I liked it. I guess they actually thought he wasn't going to use football as a metaphor for life. I don't get what they expected from him...I guess they hoped for a dry, boring lecture by some high powered politician or intellectual, but whatever. I thought he was entertaining and memorable, which is about all you can ask for from a graduation speaker.

It was nice getting to meet some of Ryan's friends from school. The only time I was at W&M before this weekend was when I helped him move in Freshman year. Most of his friends are from Virginia so I never had the chance to meet any of them, so it was nice to be able to do that.

I got in a few runs through Colonial Williamsburg (or "CW" as I found it is referred to). It was pretty cool running there and I wish I had the chance to hit the trails because they were supposed to be nice. Unfortunately I never get used to the jet lag and we were busy each day and all I could muster out of myself was a mindless run down some streets.

Congrats again Ryan!

Colonial Weekend

2008-05-09T09:12:00.000-07:00

So I have been doing some running this week which is nice. I spent most of the week up the coast in LA, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo doing random work stuff. I got some nice runs in up there and hope to keep the consistency up for the next few weeks as I build mileage back up. I am currently packing to head off to Virginia to watch Ryan's graduation. It should be a fun weekend and I'll be back on Monday. I'll plan on posting an update when I get back to SD.

Boston Marathon Recap

2008-05-02T15:55:00.000-07:00

Ok, at long last here is the Boston Marathon report. I have been really busy with things at work and have had no chance to put this up until now.

The plan for the "race" was to run with Di and hopefully get her across the line around 2:55 or so. Well...we were pretty much on schedule through the half but things fell apart about a mile or two before that.

The first 2 miles were a bit fast but not a big deal, I think we averaged about 6:30 for those first two miles but quickly settled in to hitting miles between 6:40-6:50. This was perfect and right on our pace. I could tell that after about 8 miles Dianna wasn't doing very well because she had already stopped talking and I thought it was a bit early for that. I could see her laboring but hoped it was just some nerves getting out and that things would turn around by 10mi or so. Well that never happened and the remainder of the run consisted of about 10 stops, including one stint of her sitting in a medical tent. We stopped our watches for each stop and our the watch read about 3:05 when we crossed the line...unfortunately we had stopped for over 21 minutes and the clock read 3:26 as we crossed in front of the Boston Library.

What seemed to happen was that her calves just never warmed up and were shot by the half marathon. It was very warm in the sun and with the wind blowing it was very easy to get dehydrated. Each stop consisted of her stretching her calves and catching her breathe from some slight dizzy spells. I think the dizziness was also caused by the dehydration. In the future, if she wants to actually run a good marathon, we need to really practice taking fluids and whatever else (gu, etc.) she needs. Although she would say she drank lots, I watched her and not much actually went down her throat.

I was pretty sore for a few days, and I blame this on two things. One, I didn't run anything more than a 2 hour run and the race lasted an additional 1.5 hours. Additionally, the stop and go nature of the last 12+ miles really made me tight and it was really hard to run like that.

Overall, not the greatest day but it is a story to tell. I'm glad I was there for her through the tough day and I hope I helped her to the finish. I think her next idea is to drop back down to the 5-10k distances and work back there for a bit. This is good and I think where she should be. I, on the other hand, am starting back slow but plan to run a good half this fall, potentially the BAA Half.

That's all I got. I'll start "normal" running again next week and will begin posting my training again. More to come...

Long Days

2008-04-24T17:53:00.000-07:00

I know I have not posted anything since Monday, but it is because it have been very busy and really no time to do anything but work and sleep. I will post a full "race" report by the weekend and continue my normal posting next week.

Night Before Boston

2008-04-20T18:51:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry I have missed the past few days on entries but it has been crazy hectic. I have worked 3 days at the expo and my feet/legs are quite tired, but I think I did the best I could to stay rested. We were able to get VIP stickers for our numbers from Reebok which is going to be great for the morning. I will try and post Tuesday on how the race went.

Lots of other things I want to comment on but I literally don't have the time right now. I will definitely do lots of updating later this week.

Wish us luck and Goodluck to everyone else running!

Training Summary: April 7 - 13

2008-04-14T11:29:00.000-07:00

Monday 4/7 - 8mi, 60:05. Easy recovery with Di on bay.

Tuesday 4/8 - off. Rest day, legs still need to recover from race.

Wednesday 4/9 - 7mi, 50:00. Easy with Di and 6X100 strides.

Thursday 4/10 - 8mi, 55:00. With Di around the bay. Included 4mi at 6:15 pace as a small workout for her.

Friday 4/11 - 8mi, 53:00. Solo on the bay, easy but not as comfortable as I hoped.

Saturday 4/12 - 8mi, 53:30. Solo on the bay in hot dry weather. Felt terrible.

Sunday 4/13 - off. Stayed up until 4am watching London Marathon and was dead all day.

Totals: 5 days, 39 mi. No long run really kept the mileage low and the fact was I only got out the door 5 times. No plans on running much more next week with Boston less than a week away now. I figure I am really just doing maintenance work until Boston and then taking that week low. The plan after that is to actually start "training" again and focus on a half this fall. More this week on the upcoming race plan for Di at Boston and my take on the London Marathon. Check back soon.

Dry Desert Winds

2008-04-12T15:01:00.001-07:00

Runs:
Yesterday - 8mi, 53:00, solo on the bay. Felt ok but not great.
Today - 8mi, 53:45, solo on the bay. Crappy run, it was probably 80+ and I would guess if it was possible to have negative humidity it would have occurred.

So it is usually pretty nice here near the beach but when the winds change and they blow off the desert it is a completely different story. I actually had pains in my chest because of the air quality. For you average beach goer today was amazing but not great to run in. Not only does the desert winds blow out hot, SUPER DRY air but usually it sends along all the pollen from the "spring" flowers as well as all that great pollution that gets stuck in the mountains.

Luckily the Sox are on national TV so life is good.

Easy Days

2008-04-10T13:51:00.000-07:00

Runs:
Yesterday - 7mi, 50min, easy with Di, 6X100 strides.
Today - 8mi, 55min, with Di, included about 4mi at 6:15 pace.

Feeling much better since taking the other day off. The Half took much more out of me than I had anticipated. Finally my legs are coming back around, however I am getting a little worried that my right arm is doing odd things. Having looked at the pictures from the race the other day I worry my right arm is starting to hang a bit low and it feels a bit awkward. I think once I get past this marathon then a regiment of drills, core, push-ups, etc. may be in need. I haven't really done any of these additional things since college and I think it is reflected in my form and conditioning. Considering I used to be religious about them I have finally started noticing what happens when you go from doing them all the time to not at all for such a long time.

Disputed Results

2008-04-08T17:06:00.001-07:00

Run- off, needed a rest day, legs still a little sore from the race.

As I mentioned in my race report for the Cheseboro Half I had thought I finished in 3rd place but later found out I finished in 4th. The pictures from the race finally came out today and CLEARLY there is an an error. According to the results "Mark Dodson" of Los Angeles, a 25-29M, was the person that beat me. I looked up his number and the pictures proved the results are incorrect. The person wearing #1255 is an older, stocky woman. If that is the person that beat me I quit running forever. This makes me feel a little better now that I didn't get beat by 13 seconds and never saw the person.

Training Summary: March 31-April 6

2008-04-06T21:17:00.000-07:00

Monday 3/31 - 8mi, 58:41, easy with Di

Tuesday 4/1 - off

Wednesday 4/2 - 8mi, 55:30, solo but felt terrible

Thursday 4/3 - 8mi, 60:03, very easy with Di, 6X100 light strides

Friday 4/4 - 8mi, 58:30, easy with Di

Saturday 4/5 - Cheseboro Half-Marathon, 1:18:42, 1 up/1down, 15mi total

Sunday 4/6 - 6mi, 48:30, easy solo

Total - 6 runs, 53mi. Overall it was a pretty decent week with some fairly easy running leading up to a very hard 1/2 marathon. I am feeling a little better about running 6:35/mi at Boston with Di. I didn't think I would break 1:20 at the half considering how tough it was and I did, so that was a nice surprise. In all no injuries, no major issues and that is all I care about right now.

I don't plan on running any more or less than 55mi or so next week or the week of Boston. I know for sure I am working the Boston Marathon expo which is going to make running tough. If you have worked an expo you know how much it beats up your legs. I hope I get some sort of sympathy from the guys and I can take it fairly easy on that Sunday at the expo. More to come on this as we get closer.

Race Report - Cheseboro Half-Marathon

2008-04-05T17:13:00.000-07:00

So I took the trip up to Agoura Hills with Millsy and his brother to run the Cheseboro Half-Marathon. Going in to the race all I knew was that it is mainly on rocky/sandy trails and that is is fairly hard. According to results only 4 people have ever run under 1:20:00. Therefore, I knew it was going to be very challenging. What I found out was that it was VERY challenging with lots of twists, turns, rocks, switchbacks, lots of quick ups/downs and some suicide downhills.

The race started with a very steep downhill along with around 3 miles of winding, up and down roads. As we entered the trail I was in 6th place and moved into 5th shortly thereafter. I moved in to 4th around 5 miles and that is where I stayed for the remainder of the race. From mile 3 to just after 7 the trail was mainly all uphill with a few sharp up and down hills. Around 7.5 miles there was a very steep set of switchbacks that were far from enjoyable. Miles 8-10 was virtually all an extremely steep downhill which I found to be very difficult to maneuver. As you came out of the park there was a final VERY steep .5mi long hill and then I finally came back to the road. The last 2.5mi was downhill and flat making for a nice end to a very hard race.

I never felt good but never felt bad either. It was really fun running out in the hills and through the trails, and as far as scenery this was the nicest race I have ever run. Just to keep myself at bay during the race I ran in trainers and wore my Garmin. This way I didn't feel like I was really in a "race."

Truthfully I thought I had finished in 3rd and later saw the results and found out I came in 4th. According to the results someone finished 13 seconds ahead of me, however I have no idea where that guy came from because, considering how fast the leaders went out, I never saw anyone after about 4 miles. I figure I would have seen someone just 13 seconds ahead of me at some point. I'll be interested to see the pictures when they are available... However, I would have won the past 2 years by 4min so I guess it just an "up" year for the race. Considering Josh Spiker decided to show up, along with the fact that I am in terrible shape, I had no chance today.

Splits (you can see how the hills effected the race!):
1- 5:22
2- 5:50 (11:13)
3- 5:56 (17:09)
4- 5:58 (23:07)
5- 6:08 (29:15)
6- 6:32 (35:38)
7- 6:50 (42:37)
8- 7:24 (50:01)
9- 5:39 (55:40)
10- 5:34 (1:01:13)
11- 5:44 (1:06:58)
12- 5:38 (1:12:35)
13-5:33 (1:18:08)
Finish- 1:18:42

Results

1 part Boston, 5 parts Water

2008-04-04T13:00:00.000-07:00

In need to express my extreme disdain for this guy selling his Boston Marathon bib on e-bay (message board threads discussing the issue can be found here and here). Where does this guy get off doing this? Why doesn't everyone that has run a qualifying time just sign up for $100 then turn it around and sell it for $400 on e-bay?!?!? The answer: people respect Boston.

The reason that the Boston Marathon is so prestigious is that people have to qualify for it. In a world that is bent on accepting mediocrity as a norm, Boston is that constant that keeps people striving for something more. I see this as a slap in the face to all those people who have trained for 2, 5, 10+ years to qualify for Boston. I really hope that he gets busted by the BAA and they never let him run Boston ever again.

This is a problem that is something bigger than one guy selling his Boston number to a potentially under qualified participant. Boston reportedly gives out 1,500 bibs to charity runners every year. These are runners that have not actually qualified for the event. According to marathonguide.com there were 340 marathons run in the US in 2007. That leaves 339 marathons for charity runners to chose from that don't have standards like Boston does. Why don't these runners get held to the same standards as the thousands of other runners?

The BAA should still give out charity numbers but with the stipulation that those who receive them have run an official Boston qualifier. I, by no means, disagree with the concept or generosity of running for a charity and I definitely think these people train hard and strive to do their best at the event they chose, whether it is a marathon, Ironman or local 10k. However, I think Boston should be kept to those who qualify.

Here is a quick cure I have for the issue. The BAA decides on a specific number of entrants that will get a waiver on the qualifying time. Let's just say it is 100 people. These 100 people would be taken out of a pool of applicants that have to fill out an application for the waiver with the reasons why they want to run Boston, etc. This would allow certain charity runners, celebrities, people with compelling stories or even politicians to run and avoid having to qualify. The BAA can then use these runners in ads, seminars, etc. to promote the select few that are accepted in to the the program. It would become prestigious to receive this "award" and they could wear special bibs at the race or even a special uniform. This would help to keep Boston exclusive and give these people the chance to raise money and still run. A group could even pool their money to help make a more convincing case for their charity to receive one of these prestigious spots.

In the end my point is simple. The Boston Marathon stands for the peak of excellence in marthoning. Boston gives the average Joe/Jane the opportunity to strive for something other than finishing. By allowing under qualified runners in to the race is a serious issue that undermines the entire qualifying procedure. To make matters worse there are qualifiers that feel like taking upon themselves to sell or give their bibs to people who couldn't otherwise get one. We need to keep the races like Boston to save our sport from falling in to complete mediocrity.

Day before Cheseboro

2008-04-04T12:57:00.000-07:00

Run: 8mi, 58:30. Easy does it with Di around the bay. Tomorrow's race should be very challenging and I want to go in to it rested.

Heading up to stay with Mill's for the night before the race. Should be a good time. I'll post a race report before the end of the weekend.

Movie Night

2008-04-03T20:51:00.001-07:00

Run: 8mi, 60:03. Ran a really easy recovery day with Di on the bay. Did some light strides (6X100m) mid run to help stretch my legs out. Hopefully the legs turn around tomorrow.

Watched Gone Baby Gone which I thought was a great movie and would recommend seeing if you haven't seen it yet. There is something about Boston movies that make them exponentially more awesome than all other movies. If you don't believe me then add this movie along with The Departed, Mystic River and Good Will Hunting to your NetFlix queue. You will find them amazing and if not then you are clearly an idiot.

Flying Around

2008-04-02T19:51:00.000-07:00

Run: 8mi, 55:30. Solo around the bay. Felt terrible, I assume it has something to do with the fact that I flew to and from Phoenix today.

So today was the first time I've ever experienced flying to work and then flying back home all in the same day. It is a very odd thing to do and something that I'm not sure I could get used to.

Lots of people tell me "you job is so great you get to travel around and talk about running all day." I will admit it is, for the most part, very enjoyable getting to talk running, meeting lots of interesting people and getting free trips to amazing events. What isn't enjoyable are the drives home from LA to San Diego that take 6 hours (for reference it is only a 120mi drive), working 70 hours in a week, or getting stuck in a crappy motel in a shady part of town with nothing but Del Taco to eat. Don't get me wrong, I love my job, but it is crazy sometimes.

Inside Edition

2008-04-01T21:12:00.000-07:00

Run: none. Drove 330mi in the past 24hrs and fell asleep when I got home, not a big deal because I planned to take either today or tomorrow off.

Today was a productive day spent in the "Valley" and Agoura Hills (home of Deena Kastor). Driving so much really leaves you time to think about things so I tried to think of ways to make my blog interesting so people will want to come read. The plan for now is to mix in my training, my life and my spin on the current happenings in the running industry. Lots of people talk about runners, results, training ideas, etc. but not many people focus on the industry itself. Hopefully I can give some good insights and interesting opinions on different aspects of the running industry.

As for now I am off to bed because I am flying to Phoenix in the morning and then back in the afternoon. Somewhere I plan to fit in a run...I hope.

Farm Hands Rejoyce

2008-03-31T18:13:00.000-07:00

Run: 8mi, 58:41; easy day with Di around the bay, felt a little sluggish from yesterday but that was expected.

For all of you that don't live in CA, today is César Cháve z Day. I had never heard of this holiday until I moved out to CA but it is actually a big deal here (along with the other 9 states that celebrate it). I had to look him up, which is sad for a person who supposedly majored in US History, but this guy was the driving force behind all modern laws pertaining to the rights of farm workers. He put himself on the front line of many very confrontational protests, including a stint of 36 days in which he didn't eat in the 1980's. I'm not saying today should be a national holiday, but I give this guy some serious credit for standing up for workers who tend to get overlooked and generally treated like crap.

Well that is my history lesson for the day. In other news I am getting ready to drive to LA to stay with Millsy tonight so that I don't have to drive up in rush hour tomorrow. For someone who stays in hotels more nights than you would care to hear about, it is nice to have a normal place to stay in LA when I need it. Not only does Matt get to have my wonderful company for the night, but he usually gets a free dinner out of it, so he never complains.

Well I got a tank of gas and a Khaos with my name on it down at Volero. Catch ya on the flip side...

Training Log : March 24-30

2008-03-30T14:38:00.000-07:00

Monday 3/24 - off, extremely tired from a long, yet fun, weekend watching NCAA BBall in Tampa

Tuesday 3/25 - 6 mi, 42:00, easy run testing out a sore shin, felt fine

Wednesday 3/26 - 10mi, 72:30, easy run on the bay with Di, shin feels better now

Thursday 3/27 - 8mi, 57:40, solid run around Del Mar with JLew

Friday 3/28 - off, no good reason but to try and not run every day this week so I stay healthy for Boston

Saturday 3/29 - 7mi, 48:03, easy around the bay alone with a good stretch afterward to prepare for my long run/"workout" tomorrow

Sunday 3/30- 18mi, 2:03:20, ran with Di the entire way, we did a 12+ mile push averaging 6:35 which is almost spot on her goal marathon pace, it was windy today so we had a solid effort with a few miles south of 6:30 in to the wind

Total: 5 day, 49 miles. I felt fine with how this week went. Although I am feeling healthy enough to run 7 days I don't think it is the best idea to just start in to my normal routine when I plan on running Boston in 3 weeks. I am still weary about Boston for a few reasons: 1, I would never tell someone to run a marathon off the minute training I have done and feel a little like a hypocrite, 2, I worry I may potentially hurt myself (refer to reason #1), 3, I am a little worried Dianna will have a better day than we are planning for and will drop me, which could definitely happen, 4, finally I would like to repeat I would think someone else training for it like I am is an idiot and therefore think that I, myself, am an idiot. More to come on this as Marathon Monday approaches.

p.s. Anyone that reads Mario's blog will notice this is relatively the same format he uses. Yes I stole it and no I don't feel bad about it. Until I have time to think of my own ways of blogging I will use other people's ideas. I will always cite when I do this. Actually I think this is the first time I have cited something since my senior project. Truthfully I think this is the first time I've used anything I learned in college since I graduated...how sad.

In the beginning...

2008-03-30T14:32:00.000-07:00

Alright, so I finally decided to start this blog in some sort of attempt at keeping a record of my attempt at getting back to serious racing. It is going to be a hard road and as you will read below, I haven't exactly shown that I am capable of this since I graduated. Keeping a public record is hopefully going to keep my mind focused and give me a little motivation on the tough days.

A quick look at my life since I last "trained." Well I shouldn't say that because I did run a marathon last fall and did run some decent mileage, but I wouldn't say I trained well for it, but I digress. It has been 3 years since I graduated from the wonderful life I had at Stonehill College. Since I graduated I took a summer of resting the legs from 4 hard years of training and suddenly before I had time to start training again I had a job. I have worked for Reebok for almost 3 years now, during which I have moved to San Diego, for work, and all that time attempted to train. Well as many may know it hasn't work out the way I wanted. With my crazy schedule I will get in a month, maybe two of great running but then suddenly lose a week or two to work. I was able last summer to really dedicate my non-work time to running and it felt great. I didn't get any workouts in and I ran a forgettable time (although, in my defense, on a horrendously hot/humid day in the Twin Cities), but I felt good about myself and felt as though training had a direction again. After that I cooked up a plan to run respectable at Boston and it was going well until I accidentally stepping on a piece of glass and suffered for 2 1/2 months dealing with that until the doctor finally removed it all last month. Now I am trying my best to get in good enough shape to pace Dianna, my lovely FIANCE, through Boston in less than a month.

So that is where I am right now. Clearly I left many details of my life out but that is the general gist of my life since college. I am living in a place where training year-round is so easy that I need to take advantage until we move back for the wedding. The plan is to suffer through Boston to help Dianna reach her goal and then get my ass in gear. As of now I am aiming at finally running well for a half marathon this fall and then see where that takes me. I plan to use this blog to track my progress through Boston and beyond. I will add little random tidbits about my life, the Sox , my travels and anything else that comes to mind. I will do my best to update daily and keep a fairly detailed training log which I will post in full once a week. Well here goes nothing, I hope you enjoy!