Twelve Runs

I have been keeping my log, but delinquent in posting the runs.  Here are a bunch, in reverse order.  Read at your own risk (of falling asleep):


Wednesday, April 10, 2013:

Four miles in the Maplewood Community Center.  The Woodbury YMCA is a little closer, but we've gone clockwise on the track several times in a row now, and would have again, as they change direction every day and our last run was two days ago. Maplewood is exactly out of sync, however, so we went there to run the other way.

Four miles in 38:58, doing my usual run/walk, average pace 9:45.  Splits 10:08, 9:50, 9:45, 9:16.  Sped up at the end, no problems. I need some longer runs now.

Monday, April 8:

Four miles in the Woodbury YMCA again, 37:40, pace 9:25.  No problems.  Splits: 9:37, 18:48 (2 mi), 9:15.

Sunday, Apr 7:

About three miles on the park’s paved trails, 30 minutes.  It won’t be long now until we can run on more of the paved trails, the ones that were not plowed.  No problems.

Saturday, Apr 6:

Four miles in the Woodbury YMCA, in 37:02, pace 9:16.  No trace of the foot problem from last Thursday.  That’s good.  I ran pretty well today.  Splits: 9:40, 9:12, 9:09, 9:01.

Thursday, Apr 4:

Unfortunately, this is still the
scene from our front window.

Ouch my foot hurts.  We ran in the park again today, on the one paved trail that’s free of snow.  My right foot started to hurt at about one mile, on the bottom, on the medial side of the arch, about midway between the heel and the ball of the foot.  The pain was maybe a four of 10, more uphill and less or none downhill.  After 2 ½ miles it went away entirely.  I ran about four miles in 40 minutes.

However, the pain reappeared at home that night and again the next day in the house.  I didn’t run that day.

Tuesday, Apr 2:

Today we ran indoors in the Woodbury YMCA, one of the places that accepts our Silver Sneakers membership.  Four miles, no pains or trouble.  I had a cramp last night in bed, so I made sure to stretch properly after this run.  I should always do that, but all too often I skip it.

Splits: 9:42, 9:31, 9:39, 9:26, total 38:18, pace 9:35.

Saturday, March 30, 2013:

Another run in the park, with temperatures in the low 50's.  I felt fatigued in the afternoon, but the girls suggested a run in the park and we went.  Once there, I felt pretty good and ran about 3.7 miles in 37 minutes.  No pains.

Later that day, though, the cold that had started on March 22 was moving down into my chest, and got much worse the next day, Easter Sunday.  Too much running outdoors?  I doubt it, but that’s what others might say.

Friday, Mar 29:

Our First Run in the Park for 2013.  The trails aren't clear of snow yet, by any means, but a few paved trails were apparently plowed all winter and those are perfectly clear of snow and ice, though a bit wet in a few places.  Temperature was 50 degrees, sun was shining, we had a beautiful run OUTDOORS.

I ran about five miles in 51 minutes, no pains or problems.  It sure did feel good to be outdoors in Minnesota.  I can’t wait until the grass trails are clear and dry.

Thursday, Mar 28:

Stretching pays off.  I did my stretches after Tuesday’s run, and there were no cramps that night or the next, or in today’s run. Five miles in about 49 minutes - I didn't bring my watch so the time is approximate.  No pains, no problems.  In fact I felt very good doing this run.

Tuesday, Mar 26:

I had cramps in my calves Monday night, and had to get up several times to stretch them out.  I wasn’t sure that I wanted to run at all today, but went to the Woodbury YMCA track with the idea that I would stop if my calves felt injured.  However, the opposite came true - my legs felt fine and I had by far the best little run since the Virginia Beach Marathon.  Four miles in 39:00, not very fast but it felt great.  I’m back.

Whining:  None.

Splits: 10:07, 9:49, 9:39, 9:25, total 39:00

Monday, Mar 25:

We three went to the Woodbury YMCA to run 30 minutes on that track.  I felt a little better than I had Saturday, but still not quite right.  Also I had to take a phone call during the last mile, and I walked during the call, so that time is longer.

Again, though, the pace was OK and nothing hurt.

Splits 10:02, 9:47, 10:31 (phone call), total 30:20

Saturday, Mar 23:

We stopped at the North St Paul Community Center, which apparently will remain open after all, to see if they were accepting Silver Sneakers members.  They are not, at least not yet, so we kept going to the Maplewood Community Center to run on that track.

This was the first run since the Virginia Beach Marathon, six days earlier, and I felt like an oxcart with wooden wheels.  I really shouldn't let so many days go by without running.  Nevertheless the pace was OK and nothing hurt.  It’s all good.

Splits: 9:56, 9:40, 9:31, total 29:07.

Yuengling Shamrock Marathon, Virginia Beach, VA.

Fifty States for My Sweeties:

My girls have run a half marathon or a full marathon in every one of the United States, as of today.  I'm very proud of them.  They have been looking forward to this race for a long time, and they enjoyed it.

My race:

This was my 72nd marathon and I was first of seven in age group 70-74, imagine that.  I bet there are some other old guys who wish they had entered the race.  My time this year, 5:16:04, would have come in seventh of nine last year!  Nevertheless, since those other guys sat on the couch, I get full credit and I accept!

I was shooting for a 5:00 finish and ended up with 5:16:04, but that’s the only disappointment.  I had a great time in this marathon - it was probably the best marathon we've run on the East Coast, except perhaps for the NYC Marathon.  I tried to do my run/walk, 30 triplets running and 30 walking, where a triplet is three footfalls, taking about one second, slightly longer for the walks.  Mostly I was successful, and was able to maintain an 11:26 pace for most of the miles.

That pace would result in a 5:00 finish, but I took at least four bathroom breaks, maybe five, including a long one in our own hotel room, where I also dropped off a shirt.  Handy when the race goes right past the hotel, no waiting for the porta-potty, although I did wait for the elevator instead.  That stop took eight minutes, and I’m sure the other stops took a minute or two apiece.

I took four Clif Shot Mocha gels enroute, 50 mg caffeine each, and four or five salt tablets.  The temperature was 43 during the entire race (believe it!) and windy, but only a few raindrops - not enough to get anything wet.  Because of the wind I wore running pants, and started out with a LS shirt under a SS shirt, both under a running wind jacket.  At mile 12 I ditched the SS shirt in our hotel room and was comfortable with just the one shirt and the jacket.

Whining: NONE!  The right knee and the left hip both started to complain but cleared up completely.  Even the cramping that usually appears at mile 23 or 24 stayed away until I pushed a little too hard in the last 100 meters of the race.  Then I sort of hopped on one leg to the finish, where a helpful volunteer asked what he could do.  I said “get me to that lamp post, and I’ll stretch out the cramp and be on my way.”  He did and I did.  No further cramps.

I did a couple of things differently for this race: (1) I ate a PB sandwich, with honey, three hours before the race start, though I usually don’t eat anything the morning of the race; (2) I took only about four salt tablets enroute, instead of the usual six or eight. I suppose one or both of those might have reduced the cramping.  Maybe the low temperature helped too.

Shamrock Marathon:

Where do I begin?  This was a great marathon!  Things we liked:

• We could easily have stayed right on the beach at any of a hundred good hotels, all within walking distance from the race start and finish, all on the boardwalk.
• We actually did stay at the SeaHawk Hotel/Motel, on the boardwalk.  Our room has a kitchen and very reasonable rates.  It’s basic but clean.
• We ran right past our hotel, affording me the chance to duck in and change gear.
• I have no idea how many aid stations we saw, but it seemed like a lot more than one every two miles, and every one had water, then sports drink, then water again.
• I didn't wait more than a minute for a portable toilet, though some toilets ran out of paper.
• There was NEVER an issue about vehicle traffic.  I pity the non-marathoners in Virginia Beach, but the roads were closed to traffic and we rarely had to run on a tilted road surface.
• The race celebrates St Patrick’s Day, with costumes and even burma-shave style roadside signs.
• What’s Irish and stays out all night?    Patty O’Furniture.
• Nice soup at the end, gluten-free.
• They handed out a real blanket at the finish, not a Mylar sheet.  Nice one, and useful later.
• We got nice hats at the finish too - a hat I’ll probably use.
• Great expo.
• This was a Team in Training destination, so I chatted with a dozen or so of their runners.
• Our names on our bibs were in big enough print for people to cheer us by name.  Go Don!
• The timing device was on the bib - a little nicer than chips on the shoes.
• Results were on line before we got back to our hotel room, just a few blocks away.
• The Star Spangled Banner was sung correctly, a pet peeve when it isn't.
• The whole event seemed to be run by people who knew what they were doing.

There really wasn't much of anything that we didn't like.  It’s a big marathon, and a good one.

Splits: 22:21 (2 mi), 37:08 (3 mi & rest stop), 10:14 (really?, 11:36, 11:12, 11:59, 12:22, 32:49 (2 mi & rest stop at our hotel), 11:47, 12:10, 11:42, 11:29, 11:09, 13:25 (rest stop), 11:13, 11:27, 11:27, 12:10, 11:26, 11:32, 11:34, 11:24, 2:28, total 5:16:04, pace 12:03.

Taper Runs

Friday, March 8, 2013:

Woodbury YMCA track, three-mile run/walk.  No pains or problems.  Splits:  9:37, 9:34, 9:15, total 28:25.

Wednesday, March 6:

Woodbury YMCA track, three-mile run/walk.  No pains or problems.  Splits: 9:45, 9:24, 9:12, total 28:21

Three Recovery Runs

Sunday, March 3, 2013:

We went to the Maplewood Community Center to run on their track, four miles in 38:31, for pace of 9:38  No pains, no problems.

According to the community center the track is 11 loops per mile.  However, they do admit that distance is measured around the outside of the track, not the inside.  Since we are supposed to keep to the inside except when passing, I believe that the correct number is more like 12 loops per mile for me, and that is how I counted the miles today.   Maybe someday I will bring a measuring wheel.

Splits:  10:06, 9:41, 9:32, 9:12, total 38:31, pace 9:38

Egg, turkey bacon, spinach,
& more, all organic

Saturday, March 2:

I ran four miles in the Woodbury YMCA at my usual run/walk pace, finishing in 38:11.  No pains.  It’s a masterpiece!  Splits:  9:58, 9:31, 9:33, 9:09, total 38:11, pace 9:33

Thursday, February 28:

We went to the Stillwater Soccer Dome for the first run since the Hyannis Marathon.  Though I didn't realize it at first, I had injured a bursa in my right hip during the marathon, so I didn't want to annoy it too much today.  I deliberately slowed from  my usual faster-than-marathon training pace, and had a great run.  For some reason there were very few people in the dome today - I suppose they are out on the street in the warmer weather, but it’s still slippery where we run outdoors.

Three miles in 33:44, pace 11:15.  No pains.  Perfect.

Hyannis Marathon

Today’s headline: Whitecaps on the puddles in the street.  The big news today was the weather: cold, windy, and raining.  I've been happy to finish every one of my 71 marathons, but never happier than today, no fault of the race committee.

My Race:

Temperatures slid from 43 to 37 as the day wore on, with winds increasing.  Rain was pretty constant, letting up only in my last two miles or so.  Misery index: 9 of 10, where 10 of 10 would be 34 degrees & sleet, or maybe 90 degrees without shade.  This was easily the coldest weather for any marathon I've run.  One in St Charles MO was similar, not quite so cold, but with so much rain that the course became flooded and the race was cancelled while we ran it.

My pace was slower than usual because of the weather.  Gear: Wind jacket with mock-turtle LS technical shirt underneath, running pants with running shorts underneath, normal shoes with regular (not thin) running Wrightsox, ear cover band, visor, and mittens.  In addition I carried an extra shirt, knee covers, and a large trash bag, just in case I couldn't handle the cold.  None of that extra stuff was needed, and in fact it slowed me down in the last few miles because the extra shirt got waterlogged and dangled behind me.  Live and learn.  I didn't get cold until I stopped and went inside the finishers’ building.  I had aimed for a finish of 5:30, considering the weather, and my actual time was 5:34:59.  Good enough for second place in the 70+ age group, though there were only two of us in the age group.

Whining: No serious injuries.  My quads and hip flexors spoke up a lot, starting at mile 11 and gradually worsening until the end.  Calves threatened to cramp a few times but didn't, and my speed was ultimately limited by the pain in the quads and hip flexors.  I suspect that the temperature affected those muscles.

Family:

My sweeties finished too, and now have run a marathon or a half marathon in 49 states.  One more to go!

The Hyannis Marathon:

This is advertised as a “winter marathon,” and so it is.  I ran briefly with a local woman who said that her friend had flown up from Florida to run because she wanted to find out what a winter marathon was like.  I’d say she got her money’s worth.  Hyannis is on Cape Cod, so it is subject to strong influences from the Atlantic, but by and large the weather is not too different from the weather in Boston, also close to the Atlantic.  Boston, on Friday, would have been a wonderful day for a marathon; perfect temperature, no rain, snow, or wind, only perhaps a little too much sun!  Otherwise perfect.  Saturday in Hyannis would have been pretty good too.  Not today.  Not, however, the fault of the Hyannis Marathon!

In fact, the race committee did publicly discuss cancelling the marathon outright, and might have done so if the wind estimates had been higher, (50 mph was mentioned but didn’t materialize).  They kept us well informed and made the decision at 4:00 pm Saturday, as they said they would.

Finisher's medal

Running conditions were: (1) Roads completely open, plowed curb to curb; (2) Lots of big puddles in the roads, full of very cold water, not quite ice; (3) Sidewalks existed on maybe half of the course, and were mostly plowed and mostly free of debris from the blizzard two weeks ago.  I used the sidewalks a lot, especially in the second half of the two-loop marathon: (4) Traffic was worse than advertised on the race web page, and because of the puddles in the road some runners were doused by thoughtless passing drivers.  One driver doused a runner (not me) so thoroughly that I resolved to unload my full 72-year dictionary of invectives at him if I ever saw him and his VW Beetle again.  Happily I didn't - I was pissed;  (5) The rain rarely let up, never for long, and at one point near the Atlantic it was actually sleet.  Ah well, I’m from Minnesota and I can handle anything!

Volunteers were WONDERFUL!  It’s one thing to spend 5 or 6 hours out there running, with the body heated by the effort, but quite another to spend that time standing in one place.  Huzzah! to all of the valiant volunteers, and police as well.  I love you, and I high-fived a lot of you.

We three all thought that the Hyannis Marathon race committee and the race itself were great.  Aid stations were well-placed and sufficient.  The only area for improvement was the number of porta-potties: The first location after a race start has to have more than one!  In fact, this race is big enough to support at least two at each location.  Not only would this reduce the lines, but then two people running together might not have to wait for each other.

Splits: 12:25, 23:05 (2 mi), 23:09 (2 mi), 17:29 (major natural break), 23:37 (2 mi), 11:54, 14:08 (natural break), 11:59, 11:25, 23:36 (2 mi), 49:33 (4 mi), 13:15, 42:19 (3 mi & natural break), 26:39 (2 mi), 13:32, 16:56 (1.2 mi), total 5:34:59, pace  12:47.

Tempo Taper Run

I believe that taper runs should be shorter than the runs building toward a marathon, but not less intense.  In particular I like to run a modest distance at a tempo pace, or even a race pace, about a week before the marathon.  Today we went to the track at the Woodbury YMCA, six miles, 13 laps per mile.

Most of it lands on the ground and
has to be shoveled, but some lands
on the trees and creates beauty.

I did the run/walk as usual, lengthening the run and shortening the walk a bit, to a ratio of probably about 4 to 1 by distance.  Splits:  9:35, 9:27, 9:25, 9:26, 9:26, 9:14, total 56:34, pace 9:26.  That corresponds to a 10k time of 58:29 or so, a little better than I did in the Victory race last summer, and I wasn't quite racing today.  I’m happy with the pace.

Whining: Not so happy with my right Achilles tendon.  It hurt during a run, then got better during the next walk.  Most of the time it was OK, but that cycle repeated itself three or four times.  Probably not a problem, but it’s in the log.

Taper Run, 4 Miles

Wednesday morning,
through the window

After 12 miles two days ago, and with a marathon looming, four miles was just the ticket for today.  We ran on the Woodbury YMCA track, 13 loops per mile.  I forgot my watch, but used a wall clock and I believe that I ran the four miles in 39 minutes, for a pace slightly better than 10 minutes per mile.  I did my usual run/walk, running about 5 to 1 by distance, 3 to 1 by time.  Good enough.

Whining: This morning when I got out of bed I felt a strange cramp in the right calf.  After a little massage it seemed to go away, and didn’t bother during some snow shoveling and other work.  During the run, though, it reappeared, more while running than while walking.  I stopped once to massage it a bit, and it was better, though not gone.  Problem: It was different from my usual calf cramps, and I’m not absolutely certain that it was not a deep-vein thrombosis (DVT), which can be a risk of my current myeloma treatment.  It’s gone now, though.