The hottest, cold run EVER!

AHHHH…COLD WEATHER!! Around this time, every year, I’m reminded of a weekend in my life that was a very important learning experience! Now, this story applies to new runners and those who hate the cold, so pay attention!

 

A little history lesson first. I ran track and played basketball at Boaz High School. We didn’t have a cross country team, and most certainly didn’t have an indoor track season. My Fall and Winter running was in the gym up and down a court! I didn’t go outside to run til late Spring and ran a few road races in the summer. Basically, I was a warm weather runner! Well, obviously, that all had to change once I went to UAB to run cross country and indoor and outdoor track. College running meant every day, every condition, with few exceptions!

 

So, I showed up to UAB with what I considered running clothes. I actually did have good running shorts, but everything else was cotton. From August to October of my Freshman year, I was lucky! The weather was rather mild. Then, where is our first conference meet? Good ole Chicago! Now, this is funny for two reasons. One, the trip to Chicago would be my second time EVER on a plane, and two, there just so happened to be a winter storm brewing for that particular weekend.

 

First, the plane! We’re flying into Midway and the captain hits the mic as we’re descending, “Well, it’s a little windy in Chicago, so it’s going to be a rough one going in for the landing. But don’t you worry! We’ll have you guys down safe, shortly.” He did not exaggerate a bit! As we’re getting closer to the ground, I look out my window and can see straight down the runway, as if the plane is coming in sideways!! I was definitely freaking out, but as a freshman, if I were to have started crying, I’d never heard the end of it!! Anyway, we landed and all was OK.

 

OK, on to the running! We went to the course on Friday for a preview. It was a beautiful park right on the lake. The wind had calmed, but it was definitely cold! After the preview, we went to dinner and a team meeting, at which the coach informs us, a Winter storm was blowing in and to expect frigid temps and snow! I was in a panic!! Not only had I never run in snow, but I’m not sure I had raced in temperatures below 40 degrees! Back at the hotel, I looked through my bag. I had my uniform, team warm up, a pair of cotton gloves, a cotton hat and a long sleeve cotton tee. I decided to wear the long sleeve tee under my singlet. At the course, during the warm up, it came a blizzard, or at least, what I consider a blizzard! The snowflakes were as big as my head!! I took off my warm up and lined up on the starting line, shaking like a leaf. By mile two, I was sweating like crazy and about to die from heat exhaustion! At the finish, I couldn’t get that long sleeve tee off quick enough!!

Needless to say, winter running apparel was tops on my Christmas wish list that year, and I don’t know how my Mom pulled it off with no spectacular running store (Trak Shak) in town, but she hooked me up!! There were polyester mock turtle necks, running pants with tapered legs, and the prize of the collection, a kelly green pair of Sporthill stirrup pants. You old school runners remember stirrup pants!!!

 

So, if you’re new to running in the cold or just HATE the cold weather, here’s some tips.

 

1. Cotton is Rotten! Cotton fibers are thicker than synthetic fibers and hold more moisture, which in turn either makes you too hot or too cold depending upon the temperature. This applies from head to toe, so socks, gloves, hats, shirts, shorts, undies……they all need to be polyester, nylon or a blend of non cotton fibers.

 

2. If you are warm before you even start running, you have too many clothes on!!

 

3. Purchase a running vest!! It is by far my favorite piece of running apparel! It’s the perfect outer layer for Alabama weather! I’ll put a thick base layer on under the vest on those under 30 days, and even wear a short sleeve base layer on those 50 and raining days.

 

4. If the really cold weather burns your lungs, buy a neckwarmer. Neckwarmers fit, obviously, around your neck, but they also have a mesh area that fits over your mouth. It helps warm and moisten air as you inhale to ease the burning!

 

5. Fellas, buy a pair of wind briefs! There are certain areas of the body that are more sensitive than others. Wind briefs protect those areas WELL!

 

6. FINALLY, but probably should be FIRSTLY, stop by any Trak Shak location and check out the latest winter apparel from Brooks, Nike, Asics, Skirt Sports and others! There are a lot of smart people working for these companies, and they surprise me every year with new additions to winter running apparel lines!!

 

Oh yeah, for your viewing pleasure. In the picture above, I’m the one with the hat on!! That’s about 45 pounds ago, and the glasses probably weighed at least 5!

A Guide to Ladies Night

The infamous Trak Shak Ladies Night is tomorrow night from 6 until YOU QUIT SHOPPING!!! I was thinking on my run this morning that I need to publish a “Trak Shak Ladies Night Guide”! Whether this is your first Ladies Night or you’ve been to them all, the guide will surely help!
1. I’d like to preemptively answer some common questions. No, we do not RSVP for this event. We want as many ladies in the store as we can get!! For you super, super bargain shoppers, NO you may not get your BTC, Vulcan Tri, Team Magic discount in addition to the already SWEET 20% OFF YOUR ENTIRE PURCHASE (of regularly priced items) LADIES NIGHT DISCOUNT!! We’re discounting the stuff, not giving it away! HA! Lastly, NO you may not put something on hold on Wednesday night to wait to purchase on Thursday night. I know that sounds strict, but our hold shelf only has so much room, and it stresses our manager out as it fills up!
2. Obviously, the best thing about Ladies Night, other than the guys in skirts, is the 20% OFF YOUR ENTIRE PURCHASE of regularly priced items. Other than Mercedes Marathon weekend, this is the only time our shoes are discounted this much! Even if you don’t need shoes, I’d recommend considering it!
3. New this year! We’re adding a Sidewalk Sale!! There will be quite a bit of apparel and quite a few shoes outside that will have extra special discounts!! I’d recommend arriving at 6 on the dot if you want to catch the extra special deals!
4. GIVEAWAYS!!!! We’re going to have a table set up with a bucket to throw your name into, from which we will be drawing for prizes at 7 PM!! What can you win? We’re giving away 2 pairs of Mizuno shoes ($100 value) and a Timex watch ($69.95 value). I’m sure, in the next 24 hours, we’ll come up with some other stuff to just giveaway without having a drawing, so be ready for key chains, caps and t-shirts!
5. Look for our Newton Running rep and Alektra Sportwear owner, Angela to chat about their products! 
6. If you can’t make it, try to get by our 280 or Trussville locations during the day, where we will be celebrating Ladies Day!! It’s the same discounts without the booze, raffle and food!
Well, that’ll about do it! If you’re sitting in front of your computer thinking “I don’t really need anything” remember this! Christmas is right around the corner!!! Sadly, I was reminded of that this past weekend after seeing some Christmas stuff already up in the stores! It’s the perfect opportunity to shop for that running brother, husband, girl friend, son, daughter, and…you get it! Also, this year’s attractions include a couple of bearded ladies, which is obviously a must see!!! We can’t wait to see you here!!!

An Old Dog Remembering Old Tricks

A couple of weeks ago, Vestavia Hills Country Club was nice enough to ask me to come out and participate in their first Lunch and Learn session. It was VERY cool! Basically, I got an excellent free lunch to do what I do everyday, talk about running!! During the Q&A, a member, who happens to be a friend of mine, asks about proper running form. He’s noticed over the past few years, after watching folks in his running group and in races, everybody’s form seems to be different. So how does one know when they have proper form? It seems I’ve become rather complacent when asked this question. I answered with, what has become my default response, “You run how you run.”, and added a few tips. For some reason, that answer  really bugged me though! I couldn’t quit thinking about it after the session!!  
Coincidentally, the following week, Newton Running was at our Wednesday Night Run. The reps brought a bunch of shoes to try out on the run AND their running form expert, Ian Adamson. Ian spoke at the run and then put on a running form clinic on Thursday morning. It was about 5 steps into the high knee drills  when I realized, I REMEMBER THIS and I really need to work on my answer to our customers’ “how do I run” question!!
Back in the day, after virtually every easy run, our team would venture over to the practice football field and do a series of drills that included strides, high knees, butt kicks, bounds and my personal favorite, The Karaoke. Back then, drills just seemed like something I had to get through before hitting the ice bath. NOW, after going through them with Ian and the Newton boys, I realize not only how weak I am, especially in my core, but how much they actually help with running form!
SO, here’s the new answer! Obviously, if you are a long time runner, out of habit and muscle memory, you’ve developed a form, and if it’s working, who am I to tell you to change! However, if you are new to running, have been running forever and can’t seem to get rid of a nagging injury, or want to improve your times, add these drills to your running regimen! I know it will help!! Oh yeah, for a full demonstration, please see Scott at The Trak Shak Homewood!

8 is the new 7!

While on a 4 mile run this past Sunday, I was thinking about an Evite I received for a friend’s 40th birthday party which read, “40 is the new 20!”. I was thinking of the correlation of age to pace. You see when I was 20, 7 minute pace was the easy pace. On days between workouts and races, we’d take off on a run, and 7 minute pace just seemed to be where we could stay comfortably forever! Now that I’m approaching 40, (I turn 37 next month, in case you were wondering) 7 minute pace ain’t so easy anymore! So, I’ve decided to tweak my “training” a bit. “Training” is in quotations because I’m not technically training since there really aren’t any workouts, long runs, or goal races. None the less, I’m making 8 minute pace my new 7 minute pace!

After finishing the aforementioned 4 mile run on Sunday, I was shot! Granted, I’ve only been back from injury for about 4 weeks AND that 4 mile run was my longest, I still felt a lot worse than expected. After going through every excuse in my mind, dehydration, 99% humidity, a run-in with a Copperhead, it wasn’t til I plugged my Nike GPS Sportwatch (available for $199 at all The Trak Shak locations) I realized I ran faster than I have been. The first mile was around 7:30 and the rest were all around 7:00 and under. As I thought back further to the training for Mercedes Half and Talladega, I realized all of my runs were close to 7:00 pace! With the lack of speed work and long runs, that’s pretty much race pace, and race pace all the time just ain’t good!

Here’s my training adjustment and what I’d recommend, especially for you guys trying to qualify for Boston or run a PR in the next local 5K. Throw some easy days in there!! Let’s say you’re training for Mercedes Half and your goal time is 2 hours, which is 9:16 pace. Pick two days a week when you’ll run 9:16 or faster and the rest at 10:00 pace or slower, including the long run.

HAPPY TRAILS!

This is how I roll!

It was about my 10th week of running in college when I developed my first running injury! Apparently, when one goes from running about 20 miles a week to running 80 miles a week in 5 weeks, they will develop IT band syndrome! Who knew?! I was freaked out!!!! It felt like I couldn’t bend my knee and the side of my leg was on fire. I went to see a couple of docs recommended by our athletic trainer, and it seemed their only solution was some strength exercises, a shot of cortisone and/or surgery. I did the strength, stretching, pool running and swimming with no success for 4 weeks. Coincidentally, those 4 weeks are when I developed my hatred for swimming and pool running!

FINALLY, my assistant coach at the time, Scotty Strand, mentioned a massage therapist he’d been visiting consistently for a while and maybe I should go for a visit. Why it took 3 and a half weeks to divulge that information, I’m not sure! Scott also mentioned he wanted to go with me once I made the appointment. I wasn’t really sure the reason behind his eagerness to come with, but it didn’t take long to figure it out. Ole Ron asked me to lay on my side and handed me a towel. I said, “What’s the towel for?”! Both Scott and Ron smiled as Ron proceeded to dig into my right IT band! THE most painful 30 minutes of my life followed, and as promised, I figured out the towel was to clinch between my teeth!! Oh yeah, and Scott came along to sit in the corner and laugh at me!

That was a Monday. On Tuesday, I woke up to go try to do my morning run, which had ended at about 1 mile on the previous attempts. Other than a bit of soreness, my IT band didn’t flare up, my knee didn’t lock up, and I was able too complete my 4 mile morning run! Not only that, I competed in our conference cross country meet the following Saturday, with no pain! Well, no IT band pain anyway!

My point to that story, it was the first time I realized the benefit of massage therapy for athletes, and attending massage therapy school after college only further reinforced that fact! While in massage therapy school not only did I get the added benefit of weekly massages for education sake, I also had to seek out volunteers to work on to complete the necessary “body work” hours in order to graduate. My volunteers of course were runners, which gave me a “hands on” (pun intended) view of how massage improved performance, prevented injury, and aided in recovery.

Now, if you’re like me, you can’t afford a weekly massage appointment. To remedy this issue, over the past few years, quite a few tools have hit the market to allow any individual to basically give themselves a massage. The two I like the most are The Stick and the foam roller. To give each a poor description. The Stick is pretty much a modified rolling pin made of strong plastic with ergonomic handles and segmented spindles over the shaft to independently roll over muscle. The foam roller is a large cylinder made of foam, and that’s it. They both sound pretty simple, and we’re all saying to ourselves, “Why didn’t I think of that?”! The basic premise for each is to roll over muscles to massage.

My favorite is the Stick! We carry two at our stores, the Sprinter Stick and the Marathon Stick. I recommend the Sprinter Stick to those who like deep tissue massage and the Marathon Stick to those who prefer a more sensitive massage. I prefer The Stick because I can use it to target smaller muscle groups and can manipulate it better to increase or decrease pressure. It works especially well on calves, Achilles tendons, and you can lay it on the ground to roll your feet over to loosen up plantar fascia tendons. You can also use it on neck and shoulder muscles, an often forgotten and tight area on runners who tend to tense up and lift their shoulders while running.

Honestly, I’ve just started using the foam roller! Mainly, because I’m lazy and don’t necessarily enjoy having to get into different “poses” to stretch or massage! That being said, it is by far the best tool to help work on IT bands, hamstrings, quads, glutes and TFL’s (look that one up).  Click HERE to see a really good demonstration on how it works. The idea is to use your body weight to apply pressure and to roll back and forth to massage any particular muscle group.

OK, so when do you use them? Before, after, during, it doesn’t really matter! The basic affects of massage are to loosen up muscle fibers and stimulate blood flow, both of which help warm up muscles before a workout, prevent tightness during a workout, and flush lactic acid after a workout. I am definitely not saying to forget about going to see a professional from time to time, but in the meantime, The Stick and foam roller are very useful in enhancing performance and recovering from hard, long workouts or injury! 

High Quantity H2O

I know a lot of you are right smack in the middle of your fall marathon training, which means, to most, you just have to follow that training schedule to a “T”. I know! I did it a few years back for the Chicago Marathon. Yeah, that ONE! The one where they ran out of water and shut it down with the majority left with at least 10 miles to run! Needless to say, I learned a few things training that year, AND I especially learned some things that glorious Sunday! I figured the hottest week of the year would be a perfect time to share.

Everybody has heard time and time again, you have to stay hydrated, but what does that mean? It is recommended by most docs to drink at least 64 ounces of water a day. You have to ask yourself though, who are the docs recommending that amount to? Well, I’ll tell you who it ain’t! It ain’t the runner/walker hitting the streets every morning, much less the marathon trainer in Alabama in August! So, I’ll say for you pavement pounders, 64 ounces is the bare minimum!

Now, here’s where it gets a little tricky! You can drink too much water!! If you continue to drink water after filling full, you basically are flushing your system of essential electrolytes, that not only help you retain water, but also aid in muscle and organ function. What I tell most of our customers is to mix your favorite electrolyte drink in with your daily water intake. So, try to make about 20 to 30 percent of your daily fluid intake blue Powerade, my favorite! I learned this valuable lesson on the aforementioned “glorious Sunday”!! I’ve known FOREVER not to “over hydrate”. I don’t know if it was the constant heat advisories at the marathon expo or the adrenaline that clouded my judgment, but either way, drinking probably 2 gallons of water and maybe half a Powerade the day before was a bad idea. As a result of flushing my system, I had a cramp (I describe it as one cramp because in the moment it just felt like one big, bad one) that started in both feet and went all the way through my legs into my lower back! I couldn’t move! I just stood at mile 16 wondering how I was going to get back to the hotel!

I pretty much drink three things, coffee, water and beer. I mention this because two of those drinks pretty much negate the other one. Coffee and beer contain the diuretics caffeine and alcohol. They tell your brain to get rid of water, which means if you consume those beverages, you have to take that in to account when deciding how much to hydrate. Don’t get all snippy!! I’m not telling you to lay off the tap at The Trak Shak on Wednesday night! Just drink more water!

Stress Fracture?

OK! I’ll admit it! I’m possibly the worst blogger ever! Along with suffering from a stress fracture, I’ve been suffering from a rare form of writer’s block called BITTERNESS! When last we blogged, it was April, I had just run the Dega Half and discovered that I had a stress fracture in my lower right shin, so as promised, here’s my “Stress Fracture” story!

A little history first. I didn’t have very many injuries in college. In fact, I only missed two races due to injury, but my right shin pretty much always hurt. Call it being a little tougher, dumber or just simply 45 pounds lighter, I could always run through it. A little massage here and some ice there, and I was good. Looking back though, I think all the miles with that pain has lead to a weak area chronically on the verge of what’s commonly known as a stress response. If I ignore it, it turns into a fracture.

This is my 3rd diagnosed fracture in the exact same spot, so I pretty much knew what to expect when I took the bone scan results back to the doc. The initial treatment was at least 8 weeks in a boot and to use crutches as much as possible.  What I was hoping to NOT hear come out of her mouth after “distal third, medial tibial stress fracture and wear the boot” was “SWIM”!!! Low and behold, no weight bearing exercises, including cycling. Go get in a pool somewhere. AHHH!!!!

You’ve all seen those clever high school track team t-shirts that say “My sport is your sport’s punishment”. That is exactly how I feel about swimming!! I like to be outside! I like to be able to talk when I’m training! I like to breath when I want to breath! I like wearing shoes! AND there is NO WAY I look good wearing nothing but tights and goggles! All of that being said, you gotta do what ya gotta do! Luckily, the only time I could go swim was at 5 AM and no one else was ever in the pool when I was there.

Cross training adventure part 2 started at 12 weeks when I got the go ahead to get on the indoor bike. I used to ride a ton, but I’ve never ridden indoors, much less attended a spin class. I think I’ve always had this stereotypical view of some spin Nazi chick at the front of the class yelling in drill sergeant fashion “QUIT BEING A WHIMP!” at everyone. My wife loves it though, so I knew that wasn’t the case. She did make it sound like I may have to actually fight someone for a bike though. Needless to say, I was feeling a little squeamish about my first class. Of course, it wasn’t bad at all, except for that burning in my chest I’ve heard heart attack victims use to describe their near death experience! In fact, I kind of like spin! It helped me answer a question that has long perplexed me. “What is the purpose of this Linkin Park music?”

The picture above is a result of my BITTERNESS! It’s been 16 weeks! I did run twice last week, but both were less than 2 miles, hardly at a pace I call “running” and the worst of it, my shin still hurts pretty bad. It looks like it’s going to be a long road back, but I ain’t gonna give up! I’m trying a few new things with different shoes and orthotics, but the biggest thing, I’m really working on my lower leg, foot and core strength, but that’s a story for another day. I’ll be back out there! Just wait!!

DEGA BABY!!

That’s right! Pictured above, is an RV, behind my son, Max, on a rolling giraffe, and the Martinez home for the Saturday night before Talladega Half Marathon! I know the race director fairly well, and she was nice enough to rent the “Queen Sized” RV for us and get permission to camp out behind the pit garage! We arrived around 2 PM on Saturday and stopped by packet pick up to see four gracious volunteers manning the tent with Corona Lights in hand and a curious picture of a familiar face (Julia) taped to a tent post front and center! Apparently, “Julia” was the complaint department!
Other than the huge grand stands and the blowing flags, two things reminded me I’m at Talladega almost immediately. First, the curmudgeonly gate keeper at the guard shack of the main entrance. Three years ago, when we ventured to the track to measure the half marathon course, the very same guard, who’s name escapes me, didn’t seem to be too happy with our presence. He had the same demeanor on Saturday afternoon! Second, the roar of pistons pushed to their limits echoed around the track as we parked in front of our “mobile home”. I’ve now visited the track at Talladega a total of five times, twice of which were to attend actual car races. I will admit, I am no NASCAR fan, but the first time you see 40 cars traveling at close to 200 miles per hour around that track, you can NOT help but be amazed! That day, the Dale Jarrett racing adventure was in session, so we got a very small taste of “racin’”! Max loved it!
After helping with the half marathon course set up, which included Clark and I dragging coolers full of water bottles with a golf cart to the finish line, the tail gaiting commenced! Corralled by 6 RV’s, the tail gaiting area included a gas grill large enough for 100 hot dogs and burgers, a fire pit, two coffin sized coolers full of your favorite cold beverages, and a projection screen set up to broadcast the Kentucky vs. UConn Final Four matchup! Needless to say, it was a good time! The clock struck 11, and I snuck into our recreational vehicle’s door past a zonked out Max in a pack n’ play, into the “queen” sized “bed” (note my overuse of quotations) in the very back.
2:30 AM! We awake to Max calling out MOMMA, MOMMA! WHO KNEW! My son didn’t take a liking to sleeping in a home on wheels with a gas powered generator running all night! It was pretty much play time for him for the better part of the next 4 hours! OH YEAH, did I forget to mention in this running related blog entry that I was participating in the Talladega Half Marathon on Sunday morning? My bad!
7:00 AM! I jogged around with eventual winner Scott to warm up, wake up, whatever you want to call it! The one responsibility I had, other than to make it to the start, was to deliver an iPod full of tunes to the race coordinators to play over the enormous sound system during the race. I will take this opportunity to apologize to Audrey, Martha, and Kathleen for my grouchiness. Apparently, little sleep and no coffee equal grumpy pants!
7:30 AM! The race starts under pristine conditions! We pass by the finish line where Audrey, the race MC and one of the witnesses of grumpy pants, actually called me “Grumpy Pants” over the sound system that can be heard from space! It’s around turns 1 and 2 when the enormity of the track is realized, and, FYI, the point at which I was offered my first beer! NO! I didn’t partake, but thanks BTC and Hashers! We’d almost completed 2 miles as you exit the track just before turn 3. The course then winds around the apron of turn 4 where you can look down and witness what a 36 degree grade actually looks like!
7:58 AM! I only know the time because 7 minute pace seemed to be the comfort zone for the first 4 miles. My friend Chappy says, “We can run faster than 7 minute pace!” After little sleep, no coffee, and this little pain in my right shin, which I will cover in my next blog entry entitled “Stress Fracture?”, I was really comfortable at 7 minute pace, but what the hey! 6:30’s and 45’s took us through the next few miles. After running off the Talladega Superspeedway grounds, we reentered under the Gadsden Tower of the grandstands. It was a great break from the sun!
To make a long story short, the pace stayed pretty steady over the apron of turns 1 and 2, through the Allison Grandstands, and around to the tunnels to enter the infield. Then, the wheels came off! I was just begging for the finish line from then on! We got back on the track just before mile 11, where once again I was offered a beer, which I refused. My apologies to the BTC and Hashers! As an ex-track athlete, I kept thinking “just one more lap”, but for some reason 2.1 miles kept creeping back into my head! I limped across the finish line in 1:28! Now, on the positive, that time was 3 minutes faster than Mercedes! Now, on the negative, I was limping and didn’t feel all that great! I think no break from running since October had taken it’s toll! The best thing, Lena and Max were there waiting on me at the finish!
I cannot thank the volunteers, the directors and the guys who run the Superspeedway enough! The Talladega Half Marathon is by far the most unique race I have ever run! If you’re thinking of taking a tour of the Superspeedway, I’d recommend taking the “running” tour and enter next year’s Talladega Half Marathon!

Mardi Gras Memories!

Lena and I took our son Max to his first Mardi Gras parade this past weekend in Bogalusa, LA! I know what you’re thinking, WHERE??!! Bogalusa’s a small town located in, where I like to call, the “toe of the boot” due West of Poplarville, MS. The town is known for is distinctive paper mill odor and is , coincidentally enough, nicknamed “The Magic City”! The majority of my Dad’s side of the family either live or grew up there. My grandmother, Maxine, was VERY involved in Mardi Gras activities. So, a very popular time for us to go visit was during Mardi Gras. They have a rather large and EXCELLENT parade for a small town. They also normally have a 5K, the Milltown Classic 5K, the Saturday morning of the parade. My grandmother used to beg me to run, but when I was younger and actually fit, I always made up an excuse not to run. Well, in ‘07, my family and I decided to run!

The plan was to simply run in the 5K, NOT TO RACE! I was in no shape to actually race! We all loaded up and went to the start. It was a chilly morning, which effected the turnout a bit. As we lined up, the competitive juices began to flow a little. The gun went off! Of course, the 12 year olds took off to the early lead. I just kept a smooth pace that felt pretty comfortable. I was stunned when I heard the first mile split! 5:40!!!!! I was thinking, “That had to be short! OR Man, I’m going to pay for that shortly!” Anyway, I kept the same pace and tried to stay relaxed. There was one guy out in front of me, so it was decision time. Go after him and take a shot at this thing or just cruise it on in. Well, the competitive juices got the best of me! I picked up the pace! At a mile and a half, I was right behind him. I knew if I was going to pass him, it was going to have to be a strong move to get a good gap. If we were neck and neck at the finish, it was going to be ugly! Another surge, and I put about 30 meters on him. We take a left and pass mile 2. I couldn’t hear the split from all the PAIN! Here’s the good part! Another left and I run right into the back of the police car leading the race! Why? There was a train coming!!!!!!!! I’d love to type exactly the words that came out of my mouth and were going through my head, but I know this is a PG blog!

So, there we stand! Me and the guy I just tried to get away from waiting on the stupid 4 car train to pass! The gates rose, and off we went! Once again, I knew I had to get away from him. I took off thinking I could make it at a pretty steady pace for a little less than a mile. To my surprise, the guy didn’t hang with me! I make it to the finishing stretch by myself. Focused on the finish line, the only thought I had was don’t fall down! The legs were a bit shaky! I crossed the finish line in 18:14 in first place! Certainly not a blistering time, but hey, a win’s a win! The Martinez Krewe took home some serious hardware! Lena was 3rd overall, my mom was 1st in her age group and my sis was 2nd in her age group!

I’m seriously disappointed in myself for being “too busy” to run that 5K when Maxine was around! I’d like to think she was watching in ‘07! Hell, maybe she even had something to do with the weather that scared the fast boys away!

PHEW!!!

Phew: –interjection (used as an exclamation to express disgust, exhaustion, surprise, impatience, relief, etc.)

I’ve been trying to think of a word to properly described the past couple of weeks, and it finally came to me as I sat down to write this blog. PHEW!! I thought that sigh of relief would come much earlier, perhaps even the Monday following Mercedes weekend, but NOOOOOO! The running Gods have blessed us with a taste of Spring, and it seems everyone needs shoes! Believe you me, this is no complaint, but busy days at the store mean no sitting in the office writing a blog.

You’ll be happy to know, I reached my goal of finishing the Mercedes Half Marathon!! Now, before you start your sarcastic,WHOOPITY DOO’S, allow me to tell you why this was a bigger challenge than you may think. You may remember in a previous blog a mention of some lower leg issues I was having while training. My diligent efforts of massaging, icing, stretching, and compression sock wearing paid off!! I was able to complete a pain free 10 miler the Saturday before Mercedes, which gave me a little more confidence leading up to “race” day. Furthermore, Scott and I don’t actually make the days leading up to “race” day, what one would call, ideal. Our Mercedes weekend starts on Wednesday with a gathering of all our left over winter apparel and shoes, which are collected from all three stores and then loaded on a truck. Said items are then transported to Boutwell on Thursday, and organized into an expo, Trak Shak, retail experience!  The REAL fun begins  when the doors of the expo are opened, and Scott and I begin our “winter clearance marathon” standing all day Friday and Saturday behind registers, properly positioned just beside a bottomless cooler full of icy cold bottled Budweiser and Bud Light!

Needless to say, the legs were a little fatigued and parched come Sunday morning! So, I awake, strap on my glowing Puma Faas 500’s and head to the start! My race plan: DON’T CRAMP! Also, my friends Wayne and Abercrombie told me they were planning to run 7:15’s, which I thought would be reasonable. The race begins, and allow me to say, Birmingham provided weather nothing short of PERFECT! Dead legs would be the proper description for miles 1 thru 3! Luckily our pace landed us right next to the cross dressing, ultra marathoning, just a tad freaky, celebrity of the Mercedes Marathon Mr. Gerald McGwin (see photo)!! The cheers of “THAT’S THE PRETIEST WOMAN I EVER SAW” and “NICE NET STOCKINGS” guided us through Highland Avenue without a hitch and on pace!!

Now, I knew the real challenge of this race for me, along with not cramping, was going to be miles 10 – 13.1! Approaching 10 miles, at the water stop in Forest Park on Clairmont, I slowed to shake hands with some friends and, of course, grab some water. I got through the stop, looked around to find my compatriots and one in particular was not beside me as he had been for the entire race. I looked up a little further and see the former, collegiate track and cross country athlete up on his toes, like “olden” times, trying to gap me! Nothing like a little friendly competition to keep your motor running through those tough, late miles. I gradually picked up my pace and passed Ab around 10.5 miles. I had to focus so much on not letting him get back to me, and again, not cramping, I forgot to stop and get a beer at the infamous beer and doughnuts stop sponsored by our friends from the Birmingham Track Club, and I really wanted a beer!

I’m not sure what it is about running down 20th Street to the finish, but it is one of, if not, my favorite finish to a race! I have to admit, during a race most of the time I’m thinking to myself, “When will this street end?!”, but there’s nothing like seeing Linn Park and the crowd once you cross 6th Avenue! I crossed the finish line at 1:31 and change, and actually felt pretty good! PHEW! Then it was on to the after party with friends and refreshments! WHAT A GREAT DAY!!!

I can’t express enough gratitude to all who walked up to us at The Trak Shak tent after the race and thanked us for a great day and event! I can only say thanks in return and give credit where credit is truly due! If you have the opportunity, shoot an email to info@mercedesmarathon.com and thank the ladies at the Birmingham Events office! They work their butts off to ensure all the weekend’s participants have a great experience! Particularly, thank Valerie McLean! Her dedication to this event and the running community in Birmingham deserves much praise!

What’s next? DEGA BABY!!

WARNING: This is NOT a product review!

So, my “training room” experiment failed, for the most part! The running was pretty good and the calf WAS getting much better. Then, I’m not sure what happened, but I took the Christmas weekend off, got back in town on Monday and went to the Greenway for a run. A little stretching, and I was off, for about a quarter of a mile!! My calf, for the lack of a better word, SEIZED up! I walked back to the car and sped home to ice it. After the ice, I noticed a rather large knot while massaging my calf. NOT GOOD! I’ve felt knots before, but this one seemed mean! Mean enough, in fact, to hang around for about 2 weeks! I took the rest of the week off and tried again the following Monday. No luck! Took the rest of that week off and still no luck! Finally, last week I started running with no pain. The first day was 20 minutes. I’ve run at least 30 minutes every other day for 2 weeks straight now!!

OK, I know! The worst words to a runner’s ears “TAKE SOME TIME OFF”! Sometimes though, it’s the only thing that will work! Here’s the trick, “time off” doesn’t mean “do nothing”! I actually tried to focus on some other things during my break from training. For instance, I’ve started a new core strength routine (no not P90 X). That doesn’t sound like a big deal to you over-exercising freaks, but for me, I haven’t worked out in, OH, about 10 years! Needless to say, my core needed some help! I also kept up my icing, strengthening and stretching routine I started when my calf first started hurting. I think both have aided in my return to running pain free, and will hopefully help me continue to train for the Mercedes Half!

Now, since I don’t have a whole lot of training to write about, allow me to GEEK OUT for a bit! I’ve got some new shoes!! I’ve been selling shoes for the better part of 20 years now, and I still love opening a box of brand new shoes, especially when they’re new shoes that no one else has! Karhu’s latest line of shoes are just now coming out, and we got a few pairs to try out! The latest Karhu Fast2 Fulcrum Ride (pictured below) is light, feels great, and, most importantly (sarcasm), looks awesome! Great new features include an improved mesh upper and fit, lighter weight, and an improved Fulcrum system (read about it at www.karhu.com). 

Alrighty then, the second of 5 things I really GEEK OUT about is sunglasses, and more specifically, Oakley sunglasses!! I still remember getting my first pair in Panama City! (It’s OK, you can laugh now) The same goes with sunglasses as does with shoes. I LOVE opening a box of new Oakleys! My latest pair, Split Jackets (pictured below)! They are by far the best fitting and best performing glasses I’ve ever owned! The frame is light and doesn’t impede your vision in any direction. They come with an extra set of lenses too, so you can have two different shades for varying light conditions. Why Oakley? They are dedicated to performance and most importantly, pure optics. It doesn’t hurt that they look pretty cool too! Anyway, if you want to learn way more than you need to about sunglasses, just stop by the Homewood store while I’m working and stand in front of the Oakley case for about 2 seconds! I’ll be right out!