4/15/2013

It was a normal Patriot's Day morning at the store. Get the Boston Marathon coverage on the TV, check the social network for all the chatter of local runners in Boston, and set the Athlete Tracker to "Alabama" to follow our friends' progress. I watched a little of the elite races, took a break, came back to the computer, and then the normal Boston Marathon morning changed. The first post on Facebook popped up about explosions at the Boston Marathon finish line. My first reaction was that it was a hoax, but it didn't take long to find out it was real! My second reaction, I've got a friend who is working at the race and is probably near the finish line, I need to make a phone call! In between unanswered phone calls to my friend, the store phone started to ring off the hook with concerns from the running community and the local media. After a couple of interviews with local TV and constant attention to social media to check on our local runners, a phone call went through, and Jaime answered. "I'm OK" he said. Then he described being across the street behind the VIP bleachers when the first explosion happened and the "carnage" he saw trying to leave the scene. He was OK, and as best I could tell from phone calls, emails and Facebook, everyone I know was OK as well. I went home, hugged the kids and Lena, and watched the news coverage of the bombings. That was my April 15, 2013.

I mentioned all of that because in life's experiences there is supposed to be something learned or gained. Right? I really felt that on the run this morning. It seemed every wave or pleasantry exchanged to a fellow runner on the road meant a lot more! I thought of that list of names of runners from Birmingham racing in the Boston Marathon and how I knew them from seeing them on the road, hanging out with them at the store or recommending their next shoe. Then, to go even deeper, I thought of the time when I really wasn't running and how those same people were always concerned, asking how I was, and wondering when I would hit the road again, because. I'm a runner!

What I have learned from April 15, 2013 is, if you have every excuse not to run or need motivation to hit the road, there are few communities stronger than the running community! If nothing more than to be a part of something that transcends all boundaries and strongly connects millions, start running!

I'll see you all on the road in the morning or at the next finish line!   

What a weekend!!

I just finished working my 12th Mercedes Marathon Weekend, so allow me to just say, WHEEEW!!!! I'm still a little hazy as it normally takes me a day or 15 to recover, but I wanted to blog a little about what an amazing weekend we had. I obviously have the unique perspective of working for the race director, running with a lot of local participants, answering phone calls and emails from out of town participants AND running in the event, and every year I am impressed at how it can exceed expectations!

Not since 2004 have I heard and felt such a buzz surrounding this event! It seemed all with who I spoke were running the 5K, had a kid in the Kid's Marathon, knew someone participating on Sunday or were in fact running the half or full marathon! I credit first Valerie, my boss and race director, her assistant race directors, Kim and Jill, the staff at Birmingham Events, and the FOV's (inside joke) for their dedication to producing a PREMIER event weekend! Second, the Service Guild and Bell Center for Early Intervention, for supporting such a worthy cause! Last, and most certainly not least, Birmingham's running community for showing their support for a local event through volunteering and participating! TO ALL, THANK YOU!!

Now, on to the running! The weekend started the same. Wednesday night, load pretty much the entire store on to a truck. Thursday, put everything in it's place at Boutwell. Friday, let's get this show started! The doors opened to the expo at noon, and my intentions of running on Sunday started at a definitely. Then, 21 cases of beer were delivered added to 7 hours of standing in front of a register and a visit to the new pub at the Westin, the intentions dwindled to a definitely maybe. By Saturday night, after 10 hours of standing in front of a register, breaking down equipment, a visit to the shop, and some of the same shenanigans as on Friday, intentions were at a "we'll see".

Two thoughts made me head to the start line on Sunday. One, I told our Mizuno rep I'd run with him. Most importantly though, I told Max I'd get him another finisher's medal!! As I told some one on the phone today, there is no good advice to give someone who's been standing literally dehydrating themselves for three days. What I'm getting at, there was no race plan! I just wanted to make it to the finish! At the start, conditions were absolutely perfect! The gun went off and we headed out. The pace started nice and easy and we gradually picked it up, respecting the hills of course. I won't bore you with the details of a nice, easy long run, but the highlights were at miles 4 and 9.5 when I thought the left hammy was going to take me out, but she held on for a 1:34! Oh, and Max got his medal!!

 I'll leave you with a photo! Something I think everyone should see! Below is your race director, taking care of the last marathon finisher! You'll notice in the background, few people around, so it'll give you an idea of when he finished. His name is Ray and he's been a great customer of ours for years! He came strolling around the last bend when the folks working the finish line noticed him and escorted him into Boutwell. Val put a finisher's medal around his neck, sat him down and chatted with him for about a half an hour to make sure he was OK! One of my favorite moments of the 2013 Mercedes Benz Marathon Weekend and something I won't soon forget!

38

Yeah, Yeah! You haven't heard from me in a while. You're probably getting tired of me saying it, so from now on, no more apologies for my sporadic and "lack of" blogging! Let's just call me a slacker and get it over with! I do, however, have two pretty pitiful excuses this time. The first, I've been trying to catch up on a year and half's worth of Fringe episodes! Almost there! It's getting harder to stay up late! Secondly, I had full intentions of sharing a training plan for the Vulcan Run, and my training was going well for a change, so I didn't want to jinx it! I guess along with calling me a slacker, you can throw in superstitious! How about a retrospective view.

Evidently, I've been talking about trying to race Vulcan again for quite a few years now, because upon mentioning it one more time to my wife I got one of those "Just Do It, Please" comments. I think I really needed that for some motivation. So, using some of the momentum from some successful training and racing in the Dixie 200 Relay, I gradually upped my mileage to around 45 to 50 miles a week, AND I even threw in one hill workout and a track workout! I know two workouts doesn't sound like much, but you gotta start some where! RIGHT!?

The week of Vulcan arrived and after a few "What time are you shooting for?" questions from co-workers and friends came, I realized I really didn't have a clue how fast I could run. At first, in trying to come up with a time goal, I thought back to Dixie 200 and running the last 3 mile leg in just over 5:50 pace. I knew I was in better shape than back then, so was 5:50 pace for 6.2 with folks to race against really out of reach? Then, I thought about the two workouts. The hill workout was all effort based, so that really didn't help, but the track workout was a 12 x 400 interval workout in which I ran all under 6:00 pace and the last few in 5:20 pace. All the thinking got too specific for me, so I decided, kind of last minute, to just say, "I want to beat my age!" I just turned 38 in October. I like that number, and it sounded doable. Besides, if I ran a couple of minutes faster than 38:00, I'd be REALLY, REALLY happy!

Race day hits! Knowing the course, I really wanted to be conservative early and feel comfortable through the first two miles. The gun goes off, and honestly, a half a mile into the race I realized I really have forgotten how to follow a plan and just run my own race. I let the excitement of being out there again, and maybe some overconfidence get the best of me. Mile 1 split - 5:29!! OOPS!! That is officially the fastest mile I've run in 10 years! Probably not the best idea to do that in the first mile of a 10K. Well, the plan was out the door, and I paid for it. I struggled mightily up Highland and suffered from mile 3 to the finish! Finish time - 37:39.

At first, after the race, I was hanging my head a little, and was pretty disappointed. Then, my perfectly, supportive wife reminded me, Vulcan 2012 was my first solid effort to race a 10K in, well, I can't really remember how many years! So, here's me accentuating the positives! I did beat my age, placed 3rd in my age group, AND, for you Nike + users out there, I set some records since using my Nike + Sportwatch, fastest 1K, fastest mile, and fastest 10K. Most importantly, I got out there! Lining up on that starting line, making myself suffer a little to try to hang in and race, and crossing that finish line has left a little fire to get out there and try again! Oh, and how can I forget! I got a sweet Top 200 tee for my son!

I did learn one very important lesson! I really need to re-learn how to race! If I learned anything "back in the day", you have to have a plan, you have to set a realistic goal, and you have to run your own race! I'm going to try to put those all together and have some more successful outcomes in the future!

Oh, I almost forgot! In sticking to the theme of the title. I did finish in 37th place, just under 38!! Coincidence, I think not!

Don't knock it til you try it!

I have run a total of 6 times in the past 7 weeks  on a treadmill! That is exactly twice the number of times I have run on a treadmill in my whole life, and the first 3 times were for the "sake of science". (I'll explain. The exercise physiology program at UAB asked the cross country team to come out to do some VO2 Max testing a few of times while I was there.) So, why have I doubled my treadmill running in the past few weeks? First, I went on a run with Mr. Stand one hot, sticky morning and, for lack of a better way to put it, thought I was going to die! Seriously, I saw blue dots, got real dizzy, felt chills, and had a nagging headache the rest of the day! The next day, I thought it would be nice to run in a "controlled environment". Second, I have had several customers come in recently who have told me they run on the treadmill exclusively, and when they ask questions about it, I honestly have very few to no answers! I thought that wasn't very cool, so I decided to give it a go, and you know, I'm not going to "knock it" as much as I thought I was going to!

My two biggest "knocks" about running on a treadmill have been it's much easier than running on the road and it's boring. So, I tried a couple of things to help. First, I wore a heart rate monitor. To me, the only true test of effort is heart rate, and I have the hardest time controlling it. I started easy and gradually increased the pace to reach about 75% of my max heart rate. My goal was to reach a comfortable working effort to insure I wasn't over doing it OR just going through the motions. The first positive of the treadmill, with no inclines and a constant pace made it very easy to keep my heart rate consistent. It's the perfect solution to those of us who have a hard time keeping those easy, recovery runs, EASY!

The second issue I've had with treadmills, is that they are sinfully boring! There are no "sites to behold", curbs to jump, cars to dodge, or owls to escape!! In fact, there's way too much to stare at to remind you of EXACTLY how long you've been there! First, right in front of you, there's this control panel that reminds you of the elapsed time or the time remaining in your workout! Second, that same control panel allows you to watch TV! Now, this may be the "running purist" in me typing, but you should NOT be able to watch TV while you are running! I know you "treadmillers" are going to disagree and probably say that's the very reason you run inside, but frankly it's just wrong! Why? Everybody on this planet knows damn well most programs are either a half hour or an hour long. When those credits roll, I'm thinking, "I've only been here for 30 minutes!", and quite honestly, there aren't enough shows on a limited cable selection to hold my attention for an hour. SOLUTION: a towel! I throw the towel over the dreaded control panel, and it's me and my watch, just like the road (HA!)!

My inventional spirit has lead me to a more running friendly idea of a treadmill. Obviously, the control panel needs to disappear! Have an open front with the pace and incline controls on the side rails. There are an abundance gadgets today to help you see your pace, heart rate, calories burned, and elapsed time, and if you need help with a training program, surf the web, email danny@rununiversity.com, runingwithal@yahoo.com or purchase an app on your smart phone. Finally, add one of those fancy bladeless fans about 4 feet wide and 7 feet tall to the front! Then you can feel an actual breeze, instead of getting puffed in the face by a vent!

Let me tell you about my morning!

After a few weeks of running as time has allotted, I decided this past Sunday to try to step it up. I felt like it was time to get in a little longer workout. The trick, I really haven't felt like running up to an hour, not just mentally, but physically, the legs just don't feel up to the task. The solution, get up at 4 AM, a challenge in itself, and run a little before a tough spin class. I chose this morning to start this new routine because, well, it was a new week, AND I read about the Persiad meteor shower. A little personal note, I have a thing for celestial events. Now, I was fully aware the article I read mentioned the best time to see the event was the morning before, but I was thinking meteor showers have to be pretty big, so MAYBE I'll see some of the tail end!

The alarm goes off at 4, I roll out of bed and head to the gym. A few core exercises inside, and then I take off down the safe streets of Vestavia, "armed" (that word will seem funny in a sec) only with my Nebo 250 flashlight. As one who advises folks on how to run on a daily basis, I certainly don't recommend looking up regularly, in the dark while trudging along at 4:30 AM, but I was really hoping to see a "shooting star" or two! A couple of miles into what was supposed to be an easy jog, I SEE A SHOOTING STAR! I'm all giddy! Then, ANOTHER! My stargazing has paid off!!

A few more strides after the second star, I look up, and SWOOSH! This, what I will describe as massive, owl flies just over my head! I spotlight it with the Nebo, and watch this brown and white striped creature fly up to the limb of a tree. Now, you have to know some of the past stories I've heard in order to properly understand my reaction. First, most Birmingham runners have heard the stories of the "Jemison Trail" owl, and have seen the sign warning of a nesting owl and their aggressive nature. However, only a select few have heard the story of former The Trak Shak employee Cris Picard running down Jemison Trail and suddenly feeling a bump and a scratching sensation on his head! (I don't want to cause a huge owl attack scare. Cris was fine! He just dropped a 4:30 mile to get out of the woods!) Secondly, it's dark, I'm alone (you all can sigh now), and honestly, I just don't want an owl to land on my head!

OK, I'm standing in the middle of the road spotlighting this owl in a tree! I think to myself, "He's happy up there. Surely he'll stay." I proceed along with the run, looking up of course, AGAIN, a little closer this time, SWOOSH! I spotlight him, and see him rest on another limb. Full blown panic hits this time! How do I know it was full blown panic? Well, I have told many customers about the Nebo 250 flashlight and it's self defense properties, but never thought of actually having to USE it! That thought actually entered my mind!

I'm at a crossroad (no pun). I take a left on a cross street thinking maybe, just MAYBE the nest is on that street, and if I head in a different direction, I'm no threat. WRONG!! Once again, here he comes, only this time I have the light on him as I look over my right shoulder. Over my head he goes and up to another limb. THAT'S IT! I do what any owl fearing runner would do! I RUN!! It's only a mile back to the gym. I figure I can out last him to the finish line!

I make it back to the gym unscathed, but certainly not unscarred! I head up stairs to tell the story to a few of my fellow spin-mates. After about 20 minutes on the bike, taking the occasional look out the window of course, I finally calm down, and as only a runner could, I think to myself, "That had to be a looking over my shoulder, mile PR!!!"

STAY SAFE MY FRIENDS!

OK, NOW I get it!

The Dixie200 Relay is behind me! As I said in a previous post, my goal wasn’t very specific. It was simply to NOT be the weak link. By that I meant, I wanted to make sure I could be a productive member of the team by simply finishing all my legs of the race! It was decided early on that I would be the lead off leg for Van 1. From past relay experience in college, I knew the lead off leg would set the tone for how our team would perform, so even though the conversation on the trip to Atlanta was mostly about having fun with this race, I knew in the back of everybody’s mind, they were thinking “Let’s get after it!!”. It’s been a LONG time since I felt the pressure of performing for teammates, none the less, actually trying to “Get after it!”

Thursday night was much like previous nights before races! A hotel room with a teammate and not much sleep! As 7 AM approached, I was really nervous! Considering I really haven’t raced in, well, I don’t remember when, I did not know what to expect! The first leg was a 7 mile straight shot down the Silver Comet toward Alabama. The race began, and I felt pretty good, thinking of pacing well to ensure I finished strong. The first mile went by pretty slow. The second a bit faster. The third even faster! My confidence built and I was able to maintain a pretty solid pace through the hand off to leg 2. When I looked at my Nike Sportwatch to see my average pace, I was surprised and pleased! I was really thinking, with little to no speed work and just a few long runs under my belt, 6:30 pace would probably hurt, but not be unrealistic. The Sportwatch said “Average Pace 6:19”!! It was as if a ton of bricks had been lifted off my shoulders! While 6:19 was modest for the caliber of runners we had on our team, I felt like it contributed to the team and set a good tone for what would turn out to be a very good performance for us!

Leg 13, a 4 mile jaunt starting in Piedmont on the Chief Ladiga trail, and my second leg. There was a pretty long wait between legs, which kind of reminded me of those long days at track meets waiting to run a second race! The delay was good for recovery, but it started to wear on me. I got a little anxious! The first mile, 5:52, was the first time I’ve run a mile in under 6 minutes in quite some time! I wanted to run faster, but 5:52 may have been a little ambitious! I finished the 4 miler struggling up a final hill that can only be described as just plain WRONG! I knew I slowed on the final miles, but was surprised to see a 6:10 average!

Leg 25, my final leg of the race, started at 5:15 AM on Saturday morning. I’ve been meeting a couple of friends at 5:30 AM on Mondays in order to prepare for an early morning race. Just a side note here, I AM NOT an early morning runner! The Monday runs have helped me appreciate beating the heat and “getting it over with”! However, I had not prepared for “sleeping” an hour in the driver’s seat of a 15 passenger van before taking off in the dark! Luckily, this leg was not only my shortest, but also the shortest of the event, a 2.85 miler. I began with the same fervor as the previous run hitting the first mile at 5:52. I don’t know if it was the euphoria of being finished with this long weekend or some old muscle memory kicking in, but the idea popped in my mind that I could hold sub 6:00 pace til the finish! And the GPS says………..Average pace 5:57!!! I was pumped!!

Now, I went through all of that to get to this! This was my first long relay event. I talked to many who had participated is similar outings and each said something like, “It was my favorite running experiece!” OK, NOW I get it! There is something about riding around in a van with some friends, navigating from one strange place to the next, cheering each other on, helping each other out with wet, stinky clothes, sharing Sticks, foam rollers, BodyGlide (EWWWWW!), scoping out the nearest port-a-let, keeping an eye out for Beware of the Dog signs, getting photos taken with volunteers at small churches, being there for a friend’s first meal at a Waffle House (thanks for that Jerry!), and finally, getting to the finish that makes you want to run FOREVER!

Finally, I cannot say enough about the fellow competitors, mostly Birmingham folk, who joined in the adventure, who made the race very enjoyable! Also, thanks a ton to the race directors who drove from checkpoint to checkpoint ensuring we could find our way and had all we needed to continue, the Sheriffs who kept us safe, the volunteers who provided food and encouragement, Apple for inventing the iPhone with Google Maps app, AND the whole Smiling Chewbacca crew (most of the team was hairy and smiles a lot) for giving it their all!! I hope we can do it again some time!!

Weapons of Choice!

Well, the week of the Dixie 200 Relay is upon us!! My training didn’t go as well as I would have liked. I got in quite a few long runs and was very consistent, probably averaging around 40 miles a week over the past 4 to 5 weeks, but I didn’t get in as many of those tempo runs. I’m hoping the team and race dynamic will motivate the old legs to turn over quickly!  All of that being said, I’M STILL RUNNING AND ALMOST NOTHING HURTS! I’ve had a lot of fun training, and possibly the most fun choosing my wardrobe and accessories aka. “Weapons of Choice”! We all do it! You’ve got your favorite shirt, socks, shorts, hat, glasses, and GU and if any are forgotten on race day, it’s bad news! Here’s what I’ve tested and decided to wear!

 

First things first, “It’s gotta be the shoes!!” I’m not ready to make the big jump to all out flats yet, so the next best thing, really light trainers! I’m wearing the Karhu Flow_Fulcrum Ride! Why? First, it’s still considered a lightweight trainer with it’s 7 mm drop from heel to toe, so hopefully it’ll go easy on the calves! Second, I liked the color names! One of the LEAST important factors when deciding which shoe to buy is color, but I had to get a shoe to race in with the colors Formula One and Scream! 

We’re working our way from feet up! I will run every inch in my compression socks from CEP! I’ll admit, I wasn’t a true believer in compression socks until I wore a pair all weekend at the Mercedes Expo two years ago. I woke up to run on Sunday morning and my legs were no where near as fatigued as previous years! It made that half marathon a LOT easier! There’s not a whole lot of research on compression and performance enhancing, but if there’s a chance, I’ve got to give it a try! Oh yeah, the other reason I’m a true believer in compression now, I’ve worn these socks a lot during this stretch of training for the Dixie 200, and my calves and shins feel great, and as all TWO of you who read this blog know, my calves and shins have not been my friends in recent years!  

The shorts get longer and longer the older I get, but hey, this is racin’, so I’m going to pull out some Nike Tempo shorts! Why? Non Cotton liner + non cotton material + less material = less moisture & less chafing! I do have a split pair, but I’m not ready for the splits on the side yet either!

We have to wear something visible the entire race! Well, that works well for me considering over half my running wardrobe contains Trak Shak logo stuff on very bright shirts! I’m going singlet since it could be warm. Pictured above is the 2011 Retro Run shirt, which is a Brooks Podium Singlet in their popular “Nightlife” color. FYI – the 2012 Retro Run shirt is a similar color, but made by Asics.

Other than shoes, I don’t geek out about anything more than sunglasses! My “visual aid” weapon of choice is the Oakley Split Jacket! They are comfortable and feature Oakley’s patented Switchlock technology that will allow me to change the lenses quickly with differing light conditions. YES, I have lenses for EVERY light condition, including no light, and if you’ll allow me to geek out for about a second, I have a new anti-fog lens! You know when you’re running or cycling, especially on humid days, and your glasses fog up? These won’t do that!

Added accessories include 110% Compression Sleeves, GU Chomps, and the Nebo 250. We’ve just started carrying this 110% product (check’em out at www.110playharder.com) and I’m adding it to my Top 5 inventions of our generation! If you’re curious about my to 5, here it is: 1. DVR 2. Hybrid golf club 3. iPhone 4. Yurbuds 5. 110% Compression Sleeves. They help combine the benefit of compression and ice and will definitely come in handy over a 200 mile relay!

That’s all I have for now! Wish us luck on our journey! If you are on Facebook or Twitter, keep an eye out! I plan to have frequent updates!