I'm off to Columbus, Ohio, for the a fun-filled weekend of Chiro Business talk. I've already found a couple places I want to run, so that's something to look forward to, along with the fact I rented one sweet ride to cruise C-bus in.
Have a great weekend!
Even you, Horse teeth.
UPDATE/UPGRADE: Upon arrival in CBus, I was given a FREE upgrade to a...wait for it...Toyota Carolla! I was also given the option of a Jetta (additional $5) or Corvette (additional $50), but passed on both, thus upholding my total tightass tendencies.
UPDATE2: I ran at the Alum Creek Mountain Bike trails today, and they were amazing! They reminded me a bit of the Greenbush Single Track I run on a lot, only condensed into a smaller area, with less hills. The first 6 mile loop was done in 48, second loop in 44. Humid, too!
29 May 2009
23 May 2009
Specificity Schmecificity
Not long ago I had written about how I wanted my upcoming weeks of training to focus on fast road miles in preparation for Grandma's. Forget that approach.
I have ZERO interest in fast road miles. I have very little interest in slow road miles. I don't even like walking roadmiles yards at the moment. I'm hooked on the trails, folks.
So that's how I spent this weekend. Saturday's run was a 5 miler on trails with Ellie, followed by 7 miles on the Ice Age Trail, followed by about 4-5 more miles on roads. I had intended for that road portion to be about 12 miles, with my final destination being my home. I made it about 5 miles before I called for a ride. It. Was. Boring. I was hot and tired from the trail, and simply had very little ambition to continue. Saturday's Run available here.
Today, after 3 hours of landscaping around the office, I made it out to the Greenbush Single Track for some speed work. I ran a combination of the 3 loops that was likely about 7 miles a couple of times and LOVED IT!
The highlight of the run was stirring up an owl. Every time I see one, I'm amazed at how large they are, the small confines they'll fly through, and how quiet they are. They're amazing. I'm not sure I've ever seen this type of owl before (not even sure that's what it was, but the huge black eyes were pretty creepy), but he wasn't real worried about me. After landing in a tree about 50 feet from me, he spent only 30 seconds looking at me before returning his gaze to the forest floor. I could have stood there all day and watched. Can you find him?
Sorry for the terrible film quality...it's from my phone. I'm pretty sure the only thing that would take a worse photo worse piece of 'technology' is Glaven's camerahome internet connection and 39 gig memory.
I have ZERO interest in fast road miles. I have very little interest in slow road miles. I don't even like walking road
So that's how I spent this weekend. Saturday's run was a 5 miler on trails with Ellie, followed by 7 miles on the Ice Age Trail, followed by about 4-5 more miles on roads. I had intended for that road portion to be about 12 miles, with my final destination being my home. I made it about 5 miles before I called for a ride. It. Was. Boring. I was hot and tired from the trail, and simply had very little ambition to continue. Saturday's Run available here.
Today, after 3 hours of landscaping around the office, I made it out to the Greenbush Single Track for some speed work. I ran a combination of the 3 loops that was likely about 7 miles a couple of times and LOVED IT!
The highlight of the run was stirring up an owl. Every time I see one, I'm amazed at how large they are, the small confines they'll fly through, and how quiet they are. They're amazing. I'm not sure I've ever seen this type of owl before (not even sure that's what it was, but the huge black eyes were pretty creepy), but he wasn't real worried about me. After landing in a tree about 50 feet from me, he spent only 30 seconds looking at me before returning his gaze to the forest floor. I could have stood there all day and watched. Can you find him?
Sorry for the terrible film quality...it's from my phone. I'm pretty sure the only 19 May 2009
Nada. Nada. Nada. Nada. Nada.
(Daily Mileage since last Thursday)
Much like Helen's recent training, life has been a bit busy. If you can consider Karaoke at a Graduation Party and Morel Hunting (I've collected about 4 lbs in the last 3 days) as cross training, then I'm good!
Perhaps tomorrow will produce a run, but it'll have to be in the morning, as I'm headed to Madison for classes all day Thursday.
Luckily, SteveQ's recommendations don't mention any goal for weekly mileage, so I'm using that as my excuse if I sleep in tomorrow.
Fawn spotted while Morelling --Parsenn was completely oblivious
Morel and Pepperoni Pizza
(There is photographic evidence of a truly epic Karaoke performance. It may or may not make an appearance.)
...and in other news from Sheboygan County...
Update: This morning, 5 miles, 35 minutes, felt like crap.
Much like Helen's recent training, life has been a bit busy. If you can consider Karaoke at a Graduation Party and Morel Hunting (I've collected about 4 lbs in the last 3 days) as cross training, then I'm good!
Perhaps tomorrow will produce a run, but it'll have to be in the morning, as I'm headed to Madison for classes all day Thursday.
Luckily, SteveQ's recommendations don't mention any goal for weekly mileage, so I'm using that as my excuse if I sleep in tomorrow.
Fawn spotted while Morelling --Parsenn was completely oblivious
Morel and Pepperoni Pizza
(There is photographic evidence of a truly epic Karaoke performance. It may or may not make an appearance.)
...and in other news from Sheboygan County...
Update: This morning, 5 miles, 35 minutes, felt like crap.
15 May 2009
So, what's next?
- I actually have some time off until my next marathon. From late March to present I was running an event about every other weekend (13.1, 26.2, 50K, 26.2), but now I'm off until Grandma's in June. I'm not sure what to do with myself!
- My goals for Grandma's are pretty simple: Sub 3. But how far under can I get? Perhaps a SteveQ-like drop in my PR to 2:46? (JOKE) That's what the next couple weeks are for--speed work! I have ZERO desire to do a long run (anything over 12 miles) on roads currently. When it comes to nice long runs, give me the trails, but the shorter intervals can be managed on the roads, and I guess we'll see what kind of pace I'm capable of and have a better idea about Grandma's after that.
- After June 20th I can really focus on the trails again in preps for the fall, when I hope to run very well at the North Face 50K. The Ice Age Trail around here gets incredibly overgrown and clouded over with bugs (thankfully, very few ticks, though) so that will be a challenge from July to September. Still, the trails are so much better than the sidewalks...I can't wait!
- Yesterday I took a spin on the new road bike for my longest ride yet--18 miles--and loved the transition of run to bike. Only one problem: it seems I've developed a metal "tapping" or clicking every time my left pedal is at the bottom of the rotation. Very, Very annoying. Anyone out there have any suggestions? Considering I know as much about mechanics of a bike as Glaven knows about tact regarding photoshop, consider me a blank canvas for suggestions.
- Speaking of which, Ellie loves to hide behind doors at our office, and then jump out and scare me. I fall for it way too often. It was only a mild annoyance, until yesterday, when she started a meatpunch/bag tag to the act. Note to self: no more pics of Ellie without approval.
13 May 2009
Meatpunch Forthcoming...
In hopes of spurring some more worthwhile content (i. e. stuff from Teh 'Bride) on Glaven's site, I'm risking my 4th meatpunch this week (and it's only Wednesday) by posting, without permission, pictures of Ellie's many hairdos. And, perhaps even, some hairdon'ts, but who am I to judge.
Rockin' the Bunny Ears
Rockin' the Jovi Hair
Striking a (Senior Picture) pose
As a brunette.
Whoa...way outta my league.
Rockin' the Bunny Ears
Rockin' the Jovi Hair
Striking a (Senior Picture) pose
Straight Hair
As a brunette.
Whoa...way outta my league.
10 May 2009
Journeys
This past Saturday was the Journeys Marathon. My legs have been heavy lately and my last couple runs weren't all that good, but I still felt like I had a PR in me, and after being named Blogger of the Week by Marcy, I knew I had to represent! I mean, if I was going to increase my readership at all, I should at least post something during this momentous honor, right? So I pulled it together and ended up with a great day!
But I'll be honest. I'm really not in the mood for writing a long report. Don't get me wrong...I'm really happy with my run (3:02:21) and happy with setting a 6 minute PR! I really want to write this report using bullet points (just to irritate Glaven, mainly) but instead I'll put a little bit extra work into it and use Picture Points:
The start of the marathon was 26.2 miles northwest of Eagle River, at the White Birch Resort. The resort had opened up their lobby and provided coffee and snacks, which was a big plus considering it was 34 degrees out. I lined up somewhere in the middle, and after a gun sounded (fired by a politician, no less...insert joke here), I was off. Yes, I'm wearing the "ladies ballroom gloves" too.
By about Mile 5, the field of 99 had been spread out so much that I could only see one runner in front of me, and zero behind me. I was running the first half (which contained endless rolling hills) as easy as possible.
At Mile 13, the course leaves the very hilly county highway and starts its 'journey' over a bunch of roads that are all named after lakes. While it is a beautiful area of Wisconsin, these roads were pretty forgettable. With the exception, of course of the runner ahead of me, sporting jean shorts, going shirtless, and letting his shoulder-length gray hear flow in the wind. Parsenn couldn't believe someone was running in that either, and literally never even saw me as I ran past at this point.
After passing Jean Shorts, he said "Congrats. You're now in 8th place." Really? The next time my parents came up to me, I asked them to drive ahead and find 7th place and time the split back to me. About ten minutes later they informed me I was roughly 5 minutes back. Considering it was about mile 21, I was going to need some serious bonking to occur on their part, so I just kept plugging away. I must have been feeling it a bit, too, as my mom asked at one point, "Nic, are you okay?" Between breaths, I managed to answer that I had just completed running 23 miles and still had 3 to go. So no, I was starting to feel a bit tired.
Due to a Garmin Snafu (more on that later) I really wasn't sure of my exact time for the event. I didn't know my first half split, but knew I was close to running the second half in under 1:30. At mile 24 I started to push it, seeing if I could sneak in under 1:30...and perhaps break 3 hours. My 24 was my fastest mile of the run (6:40), and just about killed me, so I decided sub-3 would have to wait for Grandma's, and finished strong. The picture above shows zero celebration, and I managed to even keep my eyes shut as I crossed, in 3:02:21.
I celebrated a 6 minute PR with a single beer, and then it was off to the car. My feet were KILLING me. I ran in Brooks T5's...and there simply isn't enough shoe available for a marathon. My right big toe feels like the nail's gonna fall off, and the tops of my left toes are all blistered. The shoes worked well, though: I ran 3 events in them (Milwaukee Marathon, Dick Lytie Half Marathon, and Journeys) and set 3 PR's. Parsenn was also exhausted from a big morning. He needed a nap and a dip in the lake :)
I had told my dad this morning that I wanted to run a PR and maybe even sub-3, and that I think that would put me in position to possibly win an award...and I did! 8th overall, 3rd in the 19-29 age group!
This picture was included for Ellie. She always tells me my (big) ears are "cute" and is especially fond of pictures which seem to accentuate them. I think this one qualifies! Perhaps the ears are the reason for the good run--we had a 10 mph tailwind the whole time :)
But I'll be honest. I'm really not in the mood for writing a long report. Don't get me wrong...I'm really happy with my run (3:02:21) and happy with setting a 6 minute PR! I really want to write this report using bullet points (just to irritate Glaven, mainly) but instead I'll put a little bit extra work into it and use Picture Points:
The start of the marathon was 26.2 miles northwest of Eagle River, at the White Birch Resort. The resort had opened up their lobby and provided coffee and snacks, which was a big plus considering it was 34 degrees out. I lined up somewhere in the middle, and after a gun sounded (fired by a politician, no less...insert joke here), I was off. Yes, I'm wearing the "ladies ballroom gloves" too.
By about Mile 5, the field of 99 had been spread out so much that I could only see one runner in front of me, and zero behind me. I was running the first half (which contained endless rolling hills) as easy as possible.
At Mile 13, the course leaves the very hilly county highway and starts its 'journey' over a bunch of roads that are all named after lakes. While it is a beautiful area of Wisconsin, these roads were pretty forgettable. With the exception, of course of the runner ahead of me, sporting jean shorts, going shirtless, and letting his shoulder-length gray hear flow in the wind. Parsenn couldn't believe someone was running in that either, and literally never even saw me as I ran past at this point.
After passing Jean Shorts, he said "Congrats. You're now in 8th place." Really? The next time my parents came up to me, I asked them to drive ahead and find 7th place and time the split back to me. About ten minutes later they informed me I was roughly 5 minutes back. Considering it was about mile 21, I was going to need some serious bonking to occur on their part, so I just kept plugging away. I must have been feeling it a bit, too, as my mom asked at one point, "Nic, are you okay?" Between breaths, I managed to answer that I had just completed running 23 miles and still had 3 to go. So no, I was starting to feel a bit tired.
I celebrated a 6 minute PR with a single beer, and then it was off to the car. My feet were KILLING me. I ran in Brooks T5's...and there simply isn't enough shoe available for a marathon. My right big toe feels like the nail's gonna fall off, and the tops of my left toes are all blistered. The shoes worked well, though: I ran 3 events in them (Milwaukee Marathon, Dick Lytie Half Marathon, and Journeys) and set 3 PR's. Parsenn was also exhausted from a big morning. He needed a nap and a dip in the lake :)
I had told my dad this morning that I wanted to run a PR and maybe even sub-3, and that I think that would put me in position to possibly win an award...and I did! 8th overall, 3rd in the 19-29 age group! 
This picture was included for Ellie. She always tells me my (big) ears are "cute" and is especially fond of pictures which seem to accentuate them. I think this one qualifies! Perhaps the ears are the reason for the good run--we had a 10 mph tailwind the whole time :)
09 May 2009
07 May 2009
Catching the Marathon Bug
I just stumbled (more on that in a bit) across this article (that includes a photograph) announcing Kara Goucher will be running in Berlin in August. That's not what got my attention (neither is the photo...okay, yes it did). In the article, Kara shares she "desperately" wanted to run the London Marathon the Sunday after Boston, and wasn't talked out of it until Wednesday! How cool is that? I was taken aback by the emotion she shared after Boston, and this really shows how much the marathon means to her. Very cool.
As for that "stumbling" topic, my run today was terrible. I wanted to run an easy 30 minutes, then pick up the pace a bit for another 30 minutes. Instead, I ran 3 miles and felt really crappy. My legs felt especially dead, so I turned around and called it a day. The worse part? It's probably the best day here we've had since last fall. And my arms, as I've mentioned previously, could really use some sun.
As for that "stumbling" topic, my run today was terrible. I wanted to run an easy 30 minutes, then pick up the pace a bit for another 30 minutes. Instead, I ran 3 miles and felt really crappy. My legs felt especially dead, so I turned around and called it a day. The worse part? It's probably the best day here we've had since last fall. And my arms, as I've mentioned previously, could really use some sun.
05 May 2009
Not Techno Saavy. Savvy.
Despite the dearth of changes on this site, I've actually been running and biking quite a bit! We bought a new computer for our home and office, and in the process I've somehow lost the ability to automatically download my activities to Garmin Connect. My USB port searches aimlessy for its buddy, my watch, making me increasingly frustrated with each minute.
Today's run was an 11 miler, where I ran the first 5 relatively easy with the intention of running the following 3 at 6:50 pace, and then the last 3 all-out. Unfortunately, I've got nothing regarding how it went. D@mn you technology!
(any help out there?)
This weekend is the Journeys Marathon, and I'm excited. I was thinking about trying to run sub-3 there, but that's simply not going to happen. Well, maybe...there's supposed to be a strong NNW wind on Saturday morning, and that would make for a great tailwind the entire run. Considering how much I lucked out at Chippewa weather-wise a couple weeks ago, though, I won't hold my breath.
I do want to PR. That leaves me running something under 3:08:19. I'm hoping to take the hilly first half down in around 1:34 or 1:35 and then having something left to run a negative split. Hopefully all goes well, and with a couple good weeks of training, the sub-3 happens at Grandma's!
After that, I'll celebrate by having several beers before Helen even arrives at that huge ship near the finish of Grandma's, at which point I'll make my way back to the finish line to heckle her.
Update: Now the trackball on my blackberry is on the fritz. Fantastic. And I looked up my run on my watch...first 5 miles at 7:08 pace/158 AvgHR, last 6 at 6:47/166 AvgHR.
...and now for something completely different...
Today's run was an 11 miler, where I ran the first 5 relatively easy with the intention of running the following 3 at 6:50 pace, and then the last 3 all-out. Unfortunately, I've got nothing regarding how it went. D@mn you technology!
(any help out there?)
This weekend is the Journeys Marathon, and I'm excited. I was thinking about trying to run sub-3 there, but that's simply not going to happen. Well, maybe...there's supposed to be a strong NNW wind on Saturday morning, and that would make for a great tailwind the entire run. Considering how much I lucked out at Chippewa weather-wise a couple weeks ago, though, I won't hold my breath.
I do want to PR. That leaves me running something under 3:08:19. I'm hoping to take the hilly first half down in around 1:34 or 1:35 and then having something left to run a negative split. Hopefully all goes well, and with a couple good weeks of training, the sub-3 happens at Grandma's!
After that, I'll celebrate by having several beers before Helen even arrives at that huge ship near the finish of Grandma's, at which point I'll make my way back to the finish line to heckle her.
Update: Now the trackball on my blackberry is on the fritz. Fantastic. And I looked up my run on my watch...first 5 miles at 7:08 pace/158 AvgHR, last 6 at 6:47/166 AvgHR.
...and now for something completely different...
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