THE WALL AWAITS?

Here it is. Decision time. I have done the training and run my last long run, and run it in strong fashion I might add. Now I have to decide how I will run my race.

In two weeks I will line up for the Flying Pig Marathon. My first Pig and first marathon was back in 2001 and I ran a 3:33 and hit the wall hard. I have never hurt so badly in my life. It is funny, I can’t remember exactly how it felt, but I do remember telling someone after the race that every part of my body hurt – even my hair hurt. I do not want to experience that again.

In 2004 I ran The Pig as part of my training for the Vermont City Marathon that was four weeks later. I ran a smart race, paced myself and finished in 3:38. I felt great at the end and ran even better at the end of the month in Vermont (3:37).

Then I blew out my left knee and faced a long rehab. In 2007 I ran The Pig again, just to prove I could do it. I trained using the “moderate consistent” plan and just wanted to finish in maybe less than 4 hours. I again ran smart, finished strong and crossed the line in 3:50.

Now this year. This will be the fourth time I have run The Pig and I may be in the best condition yet. I have trained very well. I have done speed work and increased my mileage to 48-54 miles a week. Last Saturday I ran my last 16 miler at an 8:05 pace, which started me to thinking – what if I could run a 3:30? That would be a qualifier!

The race predictors say I should be able to run a 3:35 based on my training and recent race times. So, if I push it a little could I get a 3:30? It would be an incredible accomplishment. But if I do push that hard is the wall waiting for me? Hitting it again would take much of the joy out the race, but qualifying would be like a dream comes true.

I suspect the decision will be made on race day, at the starting line. What the weather is like, how my taper goes, how am I feeling, all the usual factors. I trust that I will be able to change my goals mid race if conditions change. But I am already starting to feel like I may have to go for it.

And if I hit the wall and my hair starts to hurt again – well, I have a lot less hair now than I did in 2001.

YOU DON'T NEED A WEATHERMAN

I am an outside runner. It does not matter what the weather – I run outside. I cannot say exactly why I am so stubborn about it, but I have never found a day when I would not run outside.

We actually have a treadmill that my wife and kids use. It is in our bedroom which means that if I used it when I run in the early morning; I would wake the whole family up. But it does not matter if we kept it in the basement – I still would not use it.

Since I run in the early morning, it is never too hot and the colder it is the more layers I wear. It is kind of fun to run when it is super-cold – like below 10F. The icicles start to form on the eyelids and frost covers your hat. It makes for a pretty cool picture when you are done.

Recently I ran in a blizzard – 25F, snow and wind. I had a 15 mile run scheduled so I just kept doing a 2 mile loop around my neighborhood. The road would cover over with snow, the snow plow would come by and clear the road. It would get snow covered again, the plow would come, and I repeated the cycle for 8 loops; sometimes on clear roads, sometimes on snow covered roads. I got some really odd looks from my neighbors.

The one type of weather I hate is rain. Now I am sure that there are people that like running in the rain. My daughter that runs cross country and track told me she likes to run in the rain. I will run in the rain, but I don’t like it – I endure it. I dislike everything about it, the wet shoes, and the clinging clothes. If there is one type of weather that makes me think twice about running outside it is rain.

But I do it. I just can’t run without the feeling of pushing against the ground and the sensation of propelling my body through space. The weather is just another element, another obstacle, like a hill, to be overcome. Outside I am focused, centered and things become clear as my progress is marked by landmarks and not a digital counter on the treadmill display.

Running inside to me just feels like cheating, but next time it is pouring rain as I step out the door, I may wish that treadmill was in the basement.

AND THE WINNER IS.....

I always try to run the Heart Mini-Marathon in Cincinnati. Until the Flying Pig Marathon started, this 15K race was for many years the “big” race in Cincinnati. It is an out and back course that starts in downtown Cincinnati and runs out along a parkway that overlooks the Ohio River. It is a tough course, with a couple of killer hills and many smaller rolling ones. You really feel your quads after this race from both the up and down hills.

I want to fit the race into my schedule, but at 9.3 miles, it is a little short for the long run in my marathon training plan. So this year I signed up to do the “2 Beat Challenge” which meant I would run a 5K race starting at 9am and then run the 15K race starting at 10am. I thought this would be a good way to get 12.4 miles in and use it as a bit of a race simulation. This included trying out the fuel belt that holds 3 energy gels, which looked a little odd in a 5K, but I wanted to see how it worked (it worked great).

The morning was overcast, with the threat of rain and 45 degrees F. I was planning on running an 8 minute per mile pace and using this as a race simulation. My marathon pace would be closer to 8:30, but I felt the 8 minute pace would give me a good workout.

At 9am the cannon went off for the 5K. There were 1,535 finishers in this race so the crowd thinned out within the first ½ mile. My plans for an 8 min pace soon went out the window. At the mile point I started to see that there were not that many people in front of me. I knew that the top 10% in each division won an award of some sort, so I thought maybe I had a chance. I picked up my pace a little and kept picking people off through the rest of the race (including that little kid who tried to pass me right at the end). I finished in 22:24 or 7:14 pace – way too fast, but it felt good.

I jogged back to my car, dropped off my finisher medal, gloves and hat, picked up an ear band, and went back to the starting area.

I once again told myself to run my plan of 8 minute miles, and I knew it was much more important to stay on pace for the 15K distance than for the 5K. The cannon boomed at 10am and almost 4 minutes later, I crossed the timing mat. The 15K race has 2,926 finishers, so it takes a good mile or two until it really thins out. I ran nice and easy through the first few miles and was right on pace. At the half way point I ran into a friend I occasionally run with on Saturday mornings. He had celebrated his 40th birthday the night before and he was looking surprisingly good under the circumstances. We ran together for about half a mile until I needed to pick up the pace and we parted ways.

I ran the last half of the race in a surprisingly strong pace. I concentrated on my form going up the hills and lengthened my strides going down. I crossed the line in 1:11:39 for a 7:42/mile pace. I felt good after the race though I do not think I could hold that pace for a full marathon. My splits were:

7:57, 8:10, 7:17, 7:59, 7:57, 7:43, 7:39, 7:03, 7:32, 2:19 (.3 mile)

I proceeded the two blocks to Fountain Square (the center of downtown Cincinnati) to check for my unofficial results. The volunteer checked my bib number, punched it into the computer and said “Go over there to that tent for your award” What? Me? Check the bib number again. I have never won anything in running.

To my utter astonishment I had come in 6th in my age group (out of 70 finishers) in the 5K and 3rd in the combined 5K & 15K time. I joked that there must have only been 4 people in my division – a fact I later learned was no joke, there were only 4 people in my division. But, my 5K time did earn me a $10 gift certificate at a local running store which I used that afternoon to buy a new pair of shoes. That was pretty cool.

What did I learned from this race?

1. My marathon conditioning is right on target.



2. I probably cannot run a 3:30 marathon (BQ), but a 3:40 is a good stretch goal.



3. If you pick your races carefully, you can win something even if you are not that fast.



4. Always check for an award – you may be the only one in your division.
   
   

REFLECTIVE RUNNING

On the drive into work this morning I was listening to The Final Sprint pod cast, when the host asked why the current group of elite runners included so many people with a strong faith. Andrew Carlson commented that he felt that since they had been blessed with the talent to run, they should develop that talent to the glory of God.

While that was a very honest and logical answer, I thought “shouldn’t that apply to all elite athletes in all sports?” Now I have done no statistical analysis on this, and maybe it is true in all other sports. But I have always thought that somehow running brings me – a decidedly non-elite athlete - closer to God and my spiritual self than many other activities.

I think it is the fact that running, once you have done it for a while, does not require the external focus that many other sports demand. For the most part there is no need to concentrate on striking a ball with a racket or bat, or even to pay much attention to other participants, particularly while training in the early morning hours. Often time running lends itself to an inward focus, a focus on breathing, footfalls and turnover. With me this naturally leads to introspection.

My running is a time for thinking, meditating and finally praying. My thoughts are almost always positive and lead me to discovering the right course of action when dealing with difficult situations. Maybe it is because it is the few times I am truly alone with my thoughts – and with God.

Looks like my running vest is not the only reflective thing I bring on the early morning runs.

WHERE WE ARE NOW

Right now I am in training for the Flying Pig Marathon on May 5th. This will be the fourth time I have run the full Pig. I did run a two person relay one year. I have run one other marathon, which was the Vermont City Marathon – but that can be the subject of another post.

I am into the meat of the training right now. I just finished a 50+ mile week of training with a long run of 16 miles. I am using a modified “moderate consistent” plan from the Hanson training group.

The modification has been to fit my work and family schedule. My work schedule dictates that the only time I can really run is in the early morning hours before work. I am usually up by 4:20am and on the road by 5:00am. I get 6 to 8 miles in and then rush to get out the door for work by 7am. The weekends are a little easier, but with four kids all in different activities, I do not have time for much more that 16 miles. I also take Sunday off so that I can go to church. This makes the moderate consistent plan ideal for me.

Next Sunday I am running the Heart Mini-Marathon in Cincinnati. This year I will be running the “Two Beat Challenge” which means I will be running a 5K at 9:00am and then running the 15K race at 10:00am. This fits well with my training schedule, but my only worry is that I do not go too fast and treat it as a race rather than a training run. I will give a race report next week.

Ok, so now we have the background out of the way and in future posts we can get into some more of the fun stuff.

Welcome

Welcome.

Why write a blog? Well how about a creative outlet. It is opportunity to step outside everyday boundaries and to share my thoughts on running.

Perhaps it is a way to connect with other runners.

Maybe it will connect with other friends who do not run, and by connecting, encourage them to adopt a physically active lifestyle.

Maybe it is just a fun way to share and record some things going on with me and provide a little entertainment.

In any case it is a start. So lets start…