Bret

March 2020

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Location:

Milton,GA,USA

Member Since:

Jul 27, 2010

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Other

Running Accomplishments:

PR's -

Mile - 4:38    (High School)

2 Mile - 10:12 (High School) 

3 mile - 15:51 (High School)

10k - 35:19 (High School)

Marathon - 2:59 marathon (London -2013)

Half marathon - 1:25:18 (Deseret News 2013)

Completed all 6 of the World Marathon Majors 2024

Completed each of the 5 majors (NY, Chicago, Boston, London & Berlin) at least twice.

8 x Boston Marathon (1999, 2000, 2005, 2007, 2014, 2020 (virtual due to covid) 2021, 2022)

13 x NYC Marathon (1997, 1998, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023)

 

 

Short-Term Running Goals:

Sub 3 hour marathon

Long-Term Running Goals:

Continue to enjoy running and racing as long as my body permits me.  

Personal:

Old guy - (grandfather even) been running for 40+ years.  

Favorite Blogs:

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Miles:This week: 23.75 Month: 113.20 Year: 382.05
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
182.107.253.004.50196.85
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
0.000.000.000.000.00

No running today.  Too much going on and not motivated enough to squeeze a run in. 

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
4.750.000.000.004.75

 

 

AM - about 4.75 miles with Finn before work.  Colder it seemed than the temperature indicated.  Felt a bit "off" having not run yesterday for the first time in a while.  

So my experience as a spectator at the Olympic Trials was interesting - we positioned ourselves at a point in the circuit where we were able to see the leaders go by 6 times - both men and women.   That combined with the NBC coverage I was watching on my phone gave me a bit of insight to the race I would not have had if I was only watching it on TV or if I was only spectating in-person without having the TV coverage.   

What you could not appreciate on TV were the wind gusts which were probably close to 20 mph and though the temperature may have shown 48 degrees, everyone was really bundled up on the roads.

Crowds were 4-5 deep in the areas we could see and the fan support was very good.  Everyone who had phones with TV coverage was keeping their immediate area informed of the progress of things in between the gaps of when the runners would go by.

The gentlemann in front of me was there to see his son "Willie" race.  He had a qualifying time of 2:14 at Chicago and his dad had a huge image of his son's face on his T-Shirt.  They were from Portland.   We chatted for a while and cheered for Willie when he ran by.  He maintained contact with the lead group until the halfway mark.  He unfortunately DNF'd after having some difficulty (as did many) later in the race.   

We made our way to the finish area after we saw the men pass by the last time - but the crowds at the finish were too deep to really get a clear view of them in the home stretch.  (But I had my phone).   The women's finishers were easier to view as the crowd thinned out a bit after the men's race concluded.  

Things of note:   The road surfaces on the streets of Atlanta are not very smooth.  Lots of cracks and uneven surfaces.  We saw two runners fall probably due to the uneven surfaces. 

There were way more women than men in the race.   And at least 2 women who were quite pregnant in the race.  And many more women who perhaps decided to participate even though they were struggling with an injury - who were clearly not really "competing" as much as just wanting to be part of the event.  Very few "stragglers" in the men's race.

The hilly course combined with the cooler temps and high winds plus the 180 degree u-turns - no doubt made for a very difficult day for most runners.   

I thought the TV coverage was mediocre.   It was not evident to me - (even when I re-watched it at home where I recorded it) that the coverage really captured the moves when they happened.   Like at one point we all though that Schrader had a 55 second lead, and then less than a mile later Rupp was in a small pack and Schrader had been caught.  TV kind of missed that.  

From what we could tell, the race was all about 2nd place after mile 20 or 21 because Rupp looked so relaxed and in control - but the commentators seemed to be a bit slow on the story line.  There were multiple changes in the final 10k for the final 2 places and it seemed that the coverage and commentary sort of missed things in terms of the drama that played out.

Similarly - it seems we missed the break in the women's race during the president's press conference - and then the majority of the commentary seemed initially to focus on Molly instead of Ali - but maybe that was just my perception.   

The post race interviews were good.   Galen's statements in his interview in particular were well done.  Post race photos/videos of Jake Riley's embrace with his coach Troop and Galen consoling Jordan Hasay - really seemed to capture the day.  

Comments(3)
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
6.100.003.000.009.10

AM - 5k with Finn before work on a foggy wet morning.

PM - lunchtime -  treadmill workout.  20 x 40 seconds on / 20 seconds off - at perhaps mile pace effort.   Basically just hopped to the sides of the treadmill on the rest period - as it would take too long to ramp up and down on speed.  Good workout.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
3.000.000.000.003.00

PM - very busy day - just barely able to squeeze in 3 miles on the treadmill before bed.

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
4.107.250.000.0011.35

AM - 5k with Finn in the rain.  Been terrible weather here in ATL since January.   Have not seen the sun since Sunday - and it has been constant rain all week.   Supposed to clear up tomorrow for the weekend though.  
 

PM - steady state effort on the treadmill.  1 mile warm up then 7 miles at just under 7 mins per miles.  HR was good and this was a good effort - though I did not feel as relaxed as I think I should have felt. 

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
5.000.000.000.005.00

AM - a little over 5 miles with Dan and Finn on a clear cool morning. 

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
10.100.000.000.0010.10

AM - a little over 10 miles with Finn at sunrise - still cold - right at freezing this morning.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
20.000.000.000.0020.00

PM - 20 miles on the treadmill.  Bit of a grind to get this one done.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
3.100.000.000.003.10

AM - 5k with Finn before work,  very easy recovery effort. 

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
3.750.000.004.508.25

PM - after work - treadmill workout- Yassos 800's.  9 x 800 with a 400 rest.  Average pace was right around 3:03 per rep.  I had planned to do 8 reps but lost count and did 9 which now feels like I should have done 10.  These were hard, but it was a good effort. 

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
10.500.000.000.0010.50

AM - easy recovery effort - around 5.5 miles with Finn before work this morning.  

PM - 5 more on the treadmill at lunchtime.   Non-essential travel ban at work with the virus issue has given me more time to get training in, uninterrupted from work travel.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
6.600.000.000.006.60

AM - 5k with Finn in a light mist/rain early this morning.  Working from home for a bit now with the whole virus thing - my employer is encouraging it.  
 

PM - 3.5 miles with neighbor Dan and Finn at the end of the day.  Lost some motivation for doing a workout as I expect to hear that Boston will cancel their race soon.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
5.000.000.000.005.00

A little over 5 miles this morning in the rain with Finn and Dan and Greg.  Everyone is work from home so we could go out later than usual since we don't have to commute.  
 

Boston is postponed to September- so I will back off the longer long runs for now.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
7.100.000.000.007.10

PM - unexpectedly difficult run this afternoon with Finn.  Maybe need a rest or very easy running for the next day or two.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
4.000.000.000.004.00

AM - just an easy 4 with Finn in a light rain this morning.  Attended services this morning online. 

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
4.500.000.000.004.50

PM - 4.5 miles midday with Finn.  Work from home - social distancing being observed. 

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
5.250.000.000.005.25

AM - 5.25 miles in a drizzle/mist - weather has been really wet and dreary.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
5.250.000.000.005.25

AM - a quick 5.25 miles with Dan and Greg (and Finn).   With everyone work-from-home this is the second time in a week we've had the chance to run together (social distancing and all) - and we got to get out later than we normally would because of not having to commute to work - so more time to sleep!.   These gents like to run faster than I do most mornings, but it is good to connect and have a run together with friends.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
4.000.000.000.004.00

AM - 4 miles with Dan and Finn early.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
5.000.000.000.005.00

AM - 5 miles with Dan and Finn. 

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
8.000.000.000.008.00

PM - 8 miles with Finn on a beautiful springtime afternoon.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
4.000.000.000.004.00

PM - a little over 4 miles with Finn late afternoon.   Was on calls much of the day dealing with COVID-19 business and legal issues globally for my company.   Quite stressful.  Should have run early instead of later.  Early morning runs start my day off better mentally/psychologically it seems versus running late in the day.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
7.000.000.000.007.00

AM - 4 miles with Finn and neighbor Dan in a light drizzle/mist - still cool in the upper 40's for this time of year, it seems.   Gray wet days working from home makes this period of uncertainty a bit more depressing.  
 

PM - 3 more on the treadmill at the end of the day.  Did 4000 meters of indoor rowing and 15k on the Peloton bike.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
5.000.000.000.005.00

AM - 5 miles with neighbor Dan and Finn.  Roads are still soaked from all the rain yesterday - with more in the forecast today. 

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
5.250.000.000.005.25

AM - 5.25 miles with Dan and Finn - in a light mist before sunrise.

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
7.000.000.000.007.00

AM - started off to meet up with Dan for a run this morning, but met him outside his house and he said he was having sharp pain in his knee - so Finn and I ran a little longer without him.  Chilly out - at least colder than I had expected in the upper 40's, but no rain for a change.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
5.000.000.000.005.00

AM - 5 miles with Finn before sunrise.

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
8.250.000.000.008.25

AM - late morning 8.25 miles with Finn.  Warm enough for my first shirtless run of the year.   

Comments(1)
Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
6.000.000.000.006.00

AM - 6 miles early with Finn

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
4.000.000.000.004.00

AM - a little over 4 miles in the neighborhood with Finn. 

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
5.500.000.000.005.50

AM - just under 5.5 miles with Finn and Dan. We ran on the White Columns golf course for a bit.  Good change of scenery and conversation.  

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Easy MilesMarathon Pace MilesThreshold MilesVO2 Max MilesTotal Distance
182.107.253.004.50196.85
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