I'm retired from racing. Really.

Just posted my race report from my win at Chattooga River 50k last weekend.  Only a week late, I'm getting quicker at posting!

PM- Back at it to see how 3 days rest treated my ankle.  Ran on the TM so I could stop anytime.  Felt no pain for 5 miles, then started bugging again.  Probably should have stopped at 7 or 8, but pressed on for the full 10 miles I had planned.  I think I'll be able to carry on a few more weeks till my 14k, then take a week or two off.  But I'm skipping the speedwork I had planned on doing to prepare for the race (other than an 8k race this weekend).  Not that speedwork will help me much against the likes of Bobby Mack, anyways.

Lunch- didn't think my ankle would feel good after yesterday, but it didn't hurt at all.  Go figure.  Ran about 45 min with Joe, Phil, and Eric, then ran to Sams Club by myself through the mud.  Good times.  10 miles in all.

AM- Meetings all day, so ran on the GE track this morning.  Wanted to do some speed, my first time in many weeks.  Warmed up about 4 miles, then started doing 6 x 1 lap (~1100m per lap).  Last time I did this was 3x3 laps, with avg pace 3:46-3:57 per lap.  I didn't think I'd be that fast, especially when the warmup was slow and tiring.  First repeat was 4:05, so I hoped that was shaking off the cobwebs.  Second was 3:59, then a pit stop.  The last 4 were better- 3:56, 3:55, 3:53, and 3:48.  Felt good by the end, if not in great top-end shape.  I guess we'll find out on Saturday at the 8k race.  8.5 miles or so.

AM- it started raining yesterday afternoon and has now rained more than 3 inches. Wow. Anyways, ez 6.5 miles in the rain today before going to school for my kindergartener's last day.

PM- 10 on the tm.  Didn't feel like getting rained on. 

AM- only had time for 8 this morning, plus lunch meetings so no other runs.  8k race tomorrow morning, my first one since college.

AM- Sunrise run 8k, another of the Greenville Corporate shield events.  It's a fairly large race, with almost 900 people this year, and is somewhat top heavy.  I had never done it before and it was my first 8k since college.  I had planned to use this as a speed workout for my trail 14k in a few weeks, though I had hoped to be in much faster shape.  My ankle injury has restricted my for 6 weeks now.  Add on that this week has been very bad for sleep plus a slight cough, and I wasn't overly confident.  The GE team looked to be stacked, with maybe 10 people under 30 min.  My last fast race was the RDT 5k in January where I crushed my PR, finishing in 16:01.  My 8k PR is 27 min, so I hoped to be somewhere in that ballpark.  It's nice to wear my green shorts again, too, and even had a few people recognize me and thank me for my blog posts.

Woke at 5 am, ran a bit, drove to the race, ran more with the guys, then lined up.  It was warm (70 deg) and very muggy.  I planned to follow my normal philosophy of starting as fast as I can, assuming my endurance will let me hang on.  We started and I found myself around 10th place.  Mile 1 went by in 4:57, though everyone thinks it was short since it did not feel like we were running that fast.  Kyle was the only GE guy ahead of me, though Dan and Jim were immediately behind me.  I felt great through about mile 2, though Dan did pull ahead (I didn't see mile markers 2 and 3, so no splits).  I felt ok during mile 3 but just couldn't move as fast as I wanted.  Jim and Phil both pulled away from me rapidly around mile 4, though they both said that it was more me slowing down than them speeding up.  I was definitely not enjoying life and just wanting the race over- today, my go-out-hard philosophy didn't work well.  One more GE guy, Jacob Behal, pulled away a minute later and I was alone with my fatigued legs the rest of the way.  I turned the final corner as the clock counted to 28 min, with me finishing in 28:01.  My shirt was soaked with sweat, though most of the guys were so bad that even their shoes were squishy.  Ahh, summer races.  Winning time was 25:23 for the men, 29:24 for the women.  Results here.  

Overall, a very blah race.  I just didn't have a good run, and probably didn't deserve one based on training, sleep, etc.  Admittedly, 28 min 8k isn't bad.  Most years, it would have been top 5-10 at this race, and never lower than number 2 GE runner.  This year, though, I finished 16th overall and 6th GE runner.  Wow.  We definitely have a good team- I dare say we could be competitive at a normal college meet (not top level, but mid-level).  Not bad for a bunch of married-with-kids, 40-hr-a-week mid-age guys.  

Finished with a long cooldown, then went to REI garage sale.

Hopefully I can feel better at my next race.  Jim provided some words of encouragement, reminding me that he dropped out of a 5k last weekend cause he felt so bad, and now he ran well today.  Anyways, I plan to get in a few more speed workouts. 

Am- 12 ez on the treadmill followed by a very long day at work.  Left foot, both calves, and both sides of groin are sore.  I guess Sat was a challenging race, after all.

What a rainy few months. Well above average, with rain almost every day. It has already rained over 5 inches at my house in June, with two-thirds of the month to go. The average month has 4 inches total. Now it's going to heat up, too- mid 90's the next few days.

Lunch- 8 run, 4 xt.  It's definitely getting hot, and I'm getting a cold.  Ironic.  Someone call Alanis Morissette. 

Supposed to run this morning, but felt like I was getting sick and was very tired, so skipped it.  Then felt worse and worse during the day so had to skip my Paris Mtn trail run with Jason.  I have to feel pretty bad to skip one of my rare trail runs.  Blah.  Plus long hours at work.  

Lunch- felt moderately better, so went on a lunch run with Paul and Aaron.  Egads, it was hot and humid- in the 90's.  First hot week of the year.  50 minutes with those guys, then I ran the trails to Sams club.  11 miles total.

AM- wanted a bit of fast running. Warmed up 3 miles and felt tired and sluggish, so almost quit. Warmed up 1 more mile and went ahead and cranked it up. Ended up with 3 miles at MP, then a bit of a cool down. I had planned to be in much better shape right now for my next race. Life got in the way.

Lunch- only 80 deg today, so much nicer than yesterday. Still warm, though. 10 miles with a big group. Fruit at the gym, too, so gotta love that. We compared sweat after the run and the others accused me of not even having sweat glands.

AM- Finally made it up for a trail run again.  I felt like running the FHT but didn't really want to run the Bench, where I knew I would push myself.  So I ran a trail I've never done before- 5.5 miles RT to the waterfalls at Estatoe Gorge and back.  Then ran FHT to the beach at Joccasee, which includes a little bit at the end I've never done before, either.  Saw Merle along the way- he was taking 4 runners on their longest run ever (17 miles) in prep for a 50 miler they signed up for in the fall.  I ended up with about 21 miles in just under 4 hrs running time and 3800 ft climbing.  Wasn't even too hot or too many spider webs.  As soon as I got home, I had to go clean the church for a few hours, then go to Lowe's to get some paving bricks, then mow and trim the lawn, all of which took me until 8 pm.  I really need a nap.  But first I have to start preparing my lesson for church tomorrow.  At least time goes fast when busy.

The week ended up higher mileage than expected, given that I only had 24 miles mid-morning on Thursday.  Unfortunately, I've missed many planned speed sessions, which isn't good for my fast 14k next weekend.  We'll just have to see how it goes. 

AM- 8

Lunch- 8 more.  Not too hot, rather pleasant today.  Although the other guys didn't think so and ended up completely sweaty. 

Lunch- 9 with a few of the guys.  It rained this morning (and very hard last night) so it was very humid.

PM- PM with Justin (fresh off lasik surgery), Jason, and Merle.  The most mud and puddles I've ever seen at PM, probably due to the 4 inches of rain last night.  Went the long way- 12.5 miles and 1500 ft in 2:14 or so. 

Lunch- planned on about an hour, but my ankle really hurt and I felt just plain tired all over.  Turned around early and stopped at 32 min.  Not how I wanted to feel race week.

Lunch- wasn't sure I wanted to go running cause I still felt tired and sick, but dragged my butt outside to try at least a few minutes.  Ended up running all planned 6 miles to Sam's Club, then doing 4 strides.  We're leaving in the morning for Charleston, and my race is Sat morning.  After that, I think I'll take a week or two completely off before I start my long grind of base building towards Pinhoti in Nov.  I need a break, which is sad since my past 3 month have been fairly low mileage anyways.  For example, I averaged 88 miles per week in Jan and Feb this year, but only 58 mpw in Apr and May.

AM- 3.5 by myself, then a mile with both my girls riding their bikes alongside.  Our 5 year old, who is normally somewhat timid, decided this week to remove her training wheels and taught herself how to ride in just 1 day.  

Report later. Had a blast at the inaugural trail race competing against some awesome runners. Now to finish my vacation in Charleston.

Belated update- put a few thoughts on my blogspot page. 

Week off from running.  R&R before a long build up to Pinhoti 100 in November.

 I did get my metabolism tested at the gym.  Based on their data, my resting metabolism rate is in the top 1% for calorie burners, meaning I burn far more than most people just by sitting still.  Add in my running calories, and I average needing over 3100 calories a day.  Yummy. 

Last year, I ran 2035 miles Jan to Jun.  This year, 1669.  So basically, I'm a month behind this year vs last.  Might be the first year since I joined FRB that I don't increase my miles.

Great day today- Marci took me to a spin class first (5 miles xt), then we went and picked tons and tons of blueberries for a while (I might have eaten just a few), then to a dairy farm/creamery for fresh ice cream.  After that, I mowed the lawn and then we went swimming for a few hours.  Lots of fun family time.

Rest week is over and I'm ready to get back at it, especially after following the Western States 100 today.  I'm starting a slow build up to Pinhoti 100 in November.  Should be a blast.