All about that pace.

9:00am John 1-13

The sun came out after raining all night and it was just too nice out to not run! Spring is finally here! It's been a whole week since I've used hand warmers. I really had to focus to keep it easy today. The first mile wasn't bad, then I started daydreaming about Boston and sped up on the second mile even though it was uphill and into the wind. I caught myself after that and backed off until I had 6 miles behind me. I picked it up a little for miles 7 and 8, then finished with an easy 3. Tomorrow I'm going to sleep in and do an ultra-easy froyo run after work.   

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:42
2.00 7:33
3.00 7:37
4.00 7:42
5.00 7:39
6.00 7:40
7.00 6:53
8.00 6:41
9.00 7:36
10.00 7:31
11.00 7:38
11.03 7:25

It's a little too early to bank on it, but this is today's forecast for Patriot's Day! Oh, wouldn't that be nice?

5:50pm

One mile warm-down on the way to Black Bear.

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:00
1.14 6:45

6:00pm

Through the park and around the lake with my daughter Karina. Nobody else showed up so we went straight home afterward and BBQ'd with some friends.

Distance Split pace
1.00 9:08
2.00 9:48
3.00 9:26
3.39 9:16

5:00am John 14 - Acts 2

I lose my cardio capacity very quickly (possibly due to my former smoking habit) so tapering just doesn't seem natural or beneficial for me in that respect. I have also done some of my best long runs coming off of a hard training week so this seems like really shaky ground. But.... since all the cool kids are doing it and I don't have to worry about qualifying for anything, I'm going to try doing a moderate taper this time around and actually stick to it.

My official 2 week "taper plan":
My average weekly mileage for March was 60 so this week I'm going to knock it down to 45 miles or 75% volume, and next week 30 miles for 50%. I'm going to focus on MP miles or very close to MP so I don't get stuck in a slower groove. Hopefully this will keep me sharp and get me rested.

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:24
2.00 7:18
3.00 7:12
4.00 7:17
5.00 7:04
6.00 7:07
6.74 6:59

I skipped my run today because my foot started hurting at work yesterday. It was a sharp pain near the ball of my foot close to where it hurt from the neuroma last year. It bothered me all day so I went to Walmart after work to get some gel pads for my shoes. On the way back to my car it just stopped hurting like there was nothing ever there! I put 'em in my shoes anyway. Tomorrow I'm going to do a quick 5 in the morning to see how it feels and then 3 more with the Tacoma Runners after work. They are the beer drinking club with a serious running problem. I haven't been on a run with them for months. This week the Tacoma Art Museum is hosting the group and staying open late for us, even serving beer. The group is also doing a special running related art project for the museum before the run. It should be fun!

4:30am Acts 3-10

My foot was a little achy for the first mile. I don't think it's anything to worry about if it didn't get any worse by running on it. I'll run 3 more tonight and then a do short "long run" tomorrow to test drive my race clothes and try out some GU. That should cover my 45 for the week. Next week it's going to be tough to only run 30. Here's the announcement for tonights run:

How many sweaty beer drinkers can you pack into the Tacoma Art Museum after hours? We’ll find out this Thursday… The Art Museum is welcoming the Tacoma Runners to a very special Beer Run, complete with art – both for the viewing, and for us to create, and a chance to put your gently used running shoes towards a good cause. Oh, and of course there’s the running and the beer! Show up around 5 p.m. to donate some running shoes for a good cause and take part in a special community art project that celebrates running. And after our easy 3 mile run, we'll return to beer and more fun on the atrium as the museum remains open until 9 pm - only for Tacoma Runners. And don't forget to view the Hide/Seek exhibit that everyone is talking about!

You know you wanna go :)

The Art run was not what I expected... the people were friendly and cool as always, but the art project was very kindergarten and the exhibit was gay - literally. I did get in a couple good tempo miles and another mile to and from the car probably around 7 min pace. So there was that, and talking with a couple friends I haven't seen in a while. It could have been worse I guess :)

Distance Split pace
1.00 6:54
2.00 6:42
2.54 5:40
 

9:00am Acts 11 - Romans 7

Shooting for 7:10 pace today and nailed it on average.

The good: My foot was fine and the GU trial also went well. "Espresso Love" is the ticket, not too pasty or sweet. "Jet Blackberry" tasted great going down at mile 5 and 2 miles later I got to taste it again. Not so great the second time around. At mile 10 I had another Espresso love and it managed to bury the blackberry burps.

The bad: It was too cold and icy out to test drive my race shorts and figure out how to carry 4 packets of GU. Sweats, gloves, hand warmers, and a beanie was the uniform today :( I also had a number of phantom pains during the run, left knee, right calf, left ankle, all of which passed, but were still annoying.

The ugly: I didn't notice any increased energy level from taking the GU on this run. I was hoping it would tip the scales and make MP seem a little easier, especially for a short 15 miles. The worst thing was having to stop about the time the work will start in Boston. I really wanted to keep going, but I am trying to be good and stay on my taper plan.

If I ever start a rock band I'm going to name it "Phantom Itch".

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:16
2.00 7:04
3.00 7:06
4.00 7:09
5.00 7:14
6.00 7:13
7.00 7:13
8.00 7:08
9.00 7:09
10.00 7:10
11.00 7:13
12.00 7:08
13.00 7:10
14.00 7:11
14.66 7:13
 

11:00am  Romans 8 -  1Corinthians 6

Happy Easter. It's not about chickens and bunnies. He rose from the dead to prove everything he said.

Into the wind out and back. I pushed the pace a little today because I was cutting it short. I planned to do 10m and got started too late. 10 tomorrow at or slower than MP.

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:00
2.00 7:12
3.00 7:05
4.00 6:58
5.00 6:56
6.00 6:47
6.78 6:40

4:30am 1Corinthians 7 - Galations 2

So cold! I thought I wouldn't need gloves, still can't feel my hands, typing with 2 fingers. only 7 more days...

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:20
2.00 7:22
3.00 7:14
4.00 7:22
5.00 7:09
6.00 7:18
7.00 7:17
8.00 7:08
9.00 7:07
10.00 6:51
10.08 7:13

4:30am Galatians 3 - 2Thessalonians 1

Everything is really falling into place this week. I'm feeling healthy, I finished a couple projects at work, my friend Preston decided to go to Boston with me on short notice and I was still able to get him a ticket for the private bus before it filled up, the hotel upgraded my room for no extra charge, and I even got 2 tickets for a tour of the Sam Adams brewery on Tuesday. All I need now is a tailwind on Monday morning :)

Pretty comfortable at this pace today, the last mile felt the best. I think the reduced mileage is making a difference.

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:10
2.00 7:18
3.00 7:07
4.00 7:13
5.00 7:03
6.00 7:29
7.00 7:10
8.00 7:06
9.00 6:56
10.00 6:44
10.09 6:47

7:00am 2Thessalonians 2 - Hebrews 3

I went out for a quick 3 and forgot to turn around in the middle :) I think I've exceeded my quota of miles for the week. Time to rest, for real.

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:03
2.00 7:02
3.00 7:00
4.00 6:54
5.00 6:51
6.00 6:39
6.27 6:39

"As the race approaches it is paramount that all distractions disappear. It's equally important that all doubts be cast aside. Remember, the marathon is not without adversity, not without pain." -Dennis Longboat

St. Ralph

5:00am

Taper FAIL! Still on the low end for mileage compared to my average for the last couple months and lower than last week, but I could not stick to my 30 mile goal for this week :(

I decided to run down to the coffee shop to meet Preston. It's only a few miles and I really wanted to run the downhill stretch to get a couple speedy miles in wthout a lot of extra effort. Hoping it will make MP feel a little bit more "normal" or "easy" on Monday. I met Preston in the park where he did a few strides, I picked it up a little bit, but didn't want to push it too much with anything out of the ordinary. I just let him go and caught back up on the recovery. I ran ahead for the last mile or so down Steilacoom hill at 6:05 and felt great.

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:08
2.00 7:07
3.00 7:28
4.00 7:06
5.00 6:05
5.02 7:03

7:15am

After coffee I ran home(uphill) at less than a race effort and still dipped under MP. I'll give credit for that to the caffeine. No aches, no pains, and no worries this year. It's going to be a great weekend!

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:05
2.00 6:38
2.82 6:32

8:30am - Salem, MA

A couple easy miles around Salem to scope out a place for breakfast. Settled on A Place in Thyme, and had a great veggie/spinach omelette.

Distance Split pace
1.00 9:00
1.94 8:35

10:00am

You might not guess that I thought I would die of heat exhaustion during this race by looking at my finish pic. The heat totally kicked my butt during this race! I thought I was taking it fairly easy during the first several miles, yet at each split I would see that I still needed to back off more. It's so hard to keep the brakes on during those first few downhill miles. The heat really took it's toll on the first couple inclines during miles 8 and 10. Now I was nauseous and way too hot and it wasn't long before I had to make a pop stop. At this point I knew I wasn't going to see any more 7s if I wanted to finish the race. I started walking through the water stops and took advantage of the shade where it was available. The next bit of excitement was a blue otterpop that went down soooo nice and then quickly came back up like a scene from the exorcist, luckily not much of it came out my nose and it didn't hit anybody. Note to self, never ever try anything new during a race, yeah I already knew that. I finally caught up to Preston somewhere after the half and felt the need to turn around and pass him running backwards, not because I was feeling good or anything, just because we had joked about it earlier. In hindsight I feel pretty lucky that I didn't fall and hurt myself as I was definitely not 100% at the time :) During the climb up the Newton hills Derunzo let out the loudest and most enthusiastic cheer I heard all day. That charged me up for a little while, but not long after that Dan and JG both passed me like I was standing still; actually I may have been. I was so hot and dizzy I could barely string a few words together to say hello and wish them luck as they left me behind. Part of me wanted to man-up and try to turn out a decent time and the other more sensible part of me wanted to finish without the need for a stretcher or an IV. I continued to run at a comfortable pace (simlar to a zombie shuffle) and went a few more miles before I got another slap on the shoulder by someone I knew from some local races at home. He said "COME ON! we're almost there", and I immediately picked up the pace to catch him or I tried to anyway, because within about 3 steps my calves cramped up so bad I almost fell down. When I backed off they calmed down a little bit and I was able to continue at a very slow pace until I hit Boylston Street and tried to pull myself together for the final stretch.

Aside from a little agony on raceday I had an excellent weekend with my friend Preston. Sorry I didn't meet up wth any FRBers after the race. Preston and I decided to do all the race related stuff on Monday, post race massage, open house at Fenway, and the after party at House of Blues. Then a tour of the Sam Adams brewery on Tuesday before heading to the airport. I did get to meet Jake and Andrea on the plane from Chicago. They were both very nice and it was so cool to see somebody I know kick some butt in Boston! Congrats to both of you if you're reading this :)

6:30pm Hebrews 4 - 2Peter 2

My quads were complaining every time I went down the stairs so I went out for a little run after work to show them who was boss. The first mile was a little rough, after that they loosened up and felt pretty good. I should be good to go by the 29th.

Distance Split pace
1.00 7:16
2.00 7:19
3.00 7:03
4.00 7:09
5.00 7:06
6.00 7:15
7.00 7:17
8.00 6:58
9.00 7:03
10.00 6:47
10.08 6:32

4:00am Winnemucca, NV

Lots of laps around Walmart. A couple years ago I did this run and opened the front doors every time I went by :) This time I did the sidewalk around the perimeter of the property and reduced the lap count a little.

Avg 7:04 with a few in the 6's toward the end.

7:00am Bullhead City, AZ

70 degrees! 5 miles out Boundary Cone Lane and back. 7:30ish on the way out and 7:00 on the way back. 7:08 avg. I forgot how deceiving the incline is on that road. It seems almost flat on the way out because it is so long and straight. I was feeling discouraged about how much effort it took to keep moving until until I got to the turn around point and looked at where I'd been. The trip back was a nice easy effort at a much quicker pace.

6:30am Bullhead City

More of the same today, slow out, fast back. Heat, hills, hooray!

7:12 avg

6:00am Bullhead City

I pushed it an extra mile out Boundary Cone Road today before turning around. 6 miles uphill in 70 degree heat is about as much fun as a guy can have at 6:00am. Only to be topped by the easy 6 coming back. Oh, did I mention that it was a dry heat?

5:30am Bullhead City

Holy swirling dustclouds Batman! Yes Burt, the wind is the worst part. It keeps messin' up my hair. Only 6 miles today and I'm calling that my taper. Tomorrow should be a great ride over to Big Sur. I can't wait to see my beautiful wife, she's flying down to meet me for the race. Saturday we're going to ride the course and then after the race we're going to hang around for a few days to enjoy some good weather at the beach.

2:00am Salinas, CA
A $33 room at the GoodNight Inn doesn't come with a coffee pot or microwave so I had to ask the girl behind the bullet proof window to heat up the cup of coffee I bought at the gas station before bed. She was really nice and met me at the back door to nuke my stale java since it wouldn't fit through the tiny slot in the window. Funny story: Kym was sitting outside by the hot tub after I went to bed and some dude asked her if she was alone and wanted to go to a party. When she said "no, I'm here with my husband" he said "oh, are you on your honeymoon?". Seriously!? Honeymoon at the GoodNight Inn? Classy huh?
So, even though I got my morning coffe and other business taken care of, I was still kind of a basket case in the morning before the race. We needed to leave the motel no-tell by 3 so I could be a little early for the bus at 4:00am and that didn't happen so I was really worried about getting to the bus on time (miss the bus, miss the race, no exceptions). On the drive there, Kym was swerving around on the highway trying to pair up her phone with the blutooth in the rental car and I'm thinking if we get pulled over I'll miss the race for sure, even if there isn't a real DWI infraction. So now we're driving along in a slightly straighter line after a little arguing, but doing about 5 under the speed limit and someone is tailgating us. Just before we exited in Monterey, the tailgater swung around us and sped off in a State Patrol car! Ok we narrowly avoided missing the race in my opinion, and I'm now off to the start village in the yellow bus. Before the bus driver even got to HWY 1 she got lost and couldn't decide which way to turn at an intersection. Suddenly everybody on the bus is shouting different directions at her and now she is just as confused about where to go as I am worried about getting to the start on time. Eventually a very loud voice shouted from the back of the bus "Turn right! Trust me, I live here." and we got back on track. I ended up getting to the start village about 5:45 and had plenty of time for more coffee, a banana, a bagel, and a final POP stop while I waited. All that stress for nothing :)

6:45am Big Sur, CA
The first 6 miles is mostly downhill and I was knocking out 7 min miles without much effort at all. Then came the headwind! No, wait, I mean HEADWIND! It was blowing so hard it knocked me off balance a couple times. I plowed though it until the ascent to Hurricne Point started at mile ten. Then it was time for two miles with about 600' of elevation gain. Fortunately the road is very twisty and on this section we were shielded from the wind for the most part until we got to the top. Once I got to the top I wished the wind was only as bad as miles 7-10(it's all a matter of perspective). The descent from Hurricane Point was not the recovery I expected at all with the wind in my face again. The view was pretty incredible though! Just over the hill at mile 13.1 there was even a dude playing a Grand Piano. Another unusual sight was a herd of cows grazing in a field right by the ocean around mile 15. The second half of the course is a series of not so gentle rolling hills and the wind continued to blow hard from the north. It died down a few times or was buffered by the trees, but never for long and even the downhills felt like uphills with it pushing against me. My pace went from fast down and slow up to slow down and slower up. I never got sore, I was just winded, literally! This race was a huge cardio challenge and definitely the toughest course I've ever ran. Even so, I finished with a BQ and Marathon Maniac Status so I'm calling it a success! I was 30 minutes faster than Boston and felt so much better at the end. The finish area was very cool. I got my medal and got some pics taken by the race photo guy who said I was the best dressed on the course. Then I got a great free post race massage and headed to the B2B tent where I got another medal and a jacket for completing the B2B challenge. The medals are really nice hand designed clay things so they are a bit fragile, but very unique. They also had tons of food and free beer for the B2B finishers and their guests so Kym even got to come back and hang out with me. Everything they say about this race on their website is true. It should be on your marathon bucket list for sure. Now it's time for a nap before the post race party...

4:30 Monterey, CA
The post race party at the Marriott Grand Ballroom was first class. Lots of free fancy food; little salads in martini glasses, spicy thai noodles, coconut shrimp, mushroom risoto, beer, wine, live jazz and a slideshow from the race course. There was a time that I wouldn't have been caught dead in a place like that... I guess I'm one of them now. haha! I'll post some pics when I get home to a computer.

I love the look on the girls' faces in this shot. I think the one right behind me might be a zombie. They must have been 21 milers since this is about the half way point on the course. I still don't get why they have so many distances to choose from in this event. In addition to the marathon they have a 5k, 9 mile, 10.6 mile, 21 mile, and a relay. Passing all the walkers and shorter distance folks in the second half did keep the course from getting too lonely. Nobody likes to suffer alone :)

Sill feeling good after leaving zombie girl in my dust.

The gloves are off, time to get down to business...

Photo bombed by my beautiful wifey Kym. It was so great to have her there at the finish. We had an awesome wine tasting recovery week in Sonoma following the race :)

The finisher medals

Quote from the Monterey County Herald:
"Toughest double award: About 8 percent of the starters had run the Boston Marathon 13 days before. Boston was boiling hot and Big Sur was brutally windy. We're renaming this year's B2B challenge as Boiling to Brutal. Those who received the special B2B medal this year really earned it."