Tuesday 28FEB2017 End of the month wrap

Jeff let me know that there was an interview up with Tony.  I was surprised to hear him mention this blog as some part of a motivation for his blogging back in that 2007 timeframe.  I think I was motivated to some degree by that community of bloggers… Tony, Lucho, James, Walsh, Beth, Jeff, FatDad, Brandon, etc.  Different time. 

I also did the “hmm … Tony was 23 when he won Leadville … so now he is 34 …”  Geez.  That seems so recent in personal memory but at the same time so long ago.  I recognize that is the of the most typical old person cliches  (“it goes by so fast you young whippersnappers and get off my lawn!!”) …

It seems that every time I hear Tony speak I am impressed with how articulate and intelligent he comes across.  I recognize that sounds like man crush sort of stuff (and there are haters), but I do mean it.  He has a level of insight on what he does and where it sits in “social media” and where he wants to contribute in this world and to be “him.”  I appreciate that level of insight because I feel in these sort of forums it is easy to believe you are a something more than what you really are.  

Afternoon – I had one of those days where … well, let’s say I was described as “wound tight.”  The run was a welcome respite, where I could disappear into the realm of feet pounding, breath heaving, and back sweating.  I did a handful of miles before the practice with the kids and then tacked on another handful with Dan and Greg during practice. 

In the evening, I swung by Flatirons with JZ and got him a set of track spikes for the season.  It was nice.  It was like a kid on Christmas morning.  He was taking pictures of them and just looking at them and saying things like, “Dad, look how awesome these are.”  Love it.

Meanwhile in Germany …

February ends with 294.1 miles, 39.95 hours and 14490 feet.  On the year, I sit at 623.8 miles, 86.63 hours, 32,655 feet.  This puts me at an average of 75.29 miles, 10.46 hours a week on the year.  I have had 1 day off from running, 2 camping nights and 8 business travel nights.   

Beyond the numbers – I feel good.  I have had a good chunk of putting down miles that I have not had in probably the last two years.  It has been a challenge to do that, but that is the easy part really … now I need to shift to training in quality more. 

For a mile … is there any workout that comes to mind more quickly than 10 x 400 at expected mile pace with a minute rest? 

Monday 27FEB2017 First Day of BrHS Track Practice 2017

Smashed my middle right finger this AM in a window, so guitar might be on hold for a bit.

AM – 5 miles with the dogs.

PM – 5 with Greg and Dan at the first day of official spring practice.

I love this.  I showed up and Greg and I had ear to ear grins.  “FIRST DAY OF TRACK BABY!”  Of course, there have been days leading up to this day, but this was the first official day.  Game on. The process, the accountability, the get the work done, the dreams, the hopes, the camaraderie in miles of training and in sweat, and the fact that a person versus the track versus the watch provides a basic truth for each of us in what we can accomplish with our physical self.   LOVE IT. 

Sunday 26FEB2017 Week in review

81.1 miles, 11 hours, 3860 feet on the week.  601.9 miles, 83.72 hours, 31,730 feet on the year.  Averaging 73.92 miles, 10.28 hours a week.  1 day off from running, 8 business travel nights, and 2 camping nights.  272.2 miles, 13565 feet and 37 hours on February. 

… so that was the biggest week in a long while but not so much bigger that I was completely buried by it.  I got some hills on Tuesday, some threshold on Wednesday, and some mid turnover stuff on Friday.  It is a good week for me.

I shared with Bob mid week that I could see in the run on Wednesday that my willingness to go for it in some workouts is not quite there yet.  As Bob came by me on the last rep on Wednesday I was contemplating if I should go with him … and I let him go.  I guess I could rationalize it in that it was a “threshold workout” but I also can see that the willingness to crack some eggs there at that point makes a difference … and more to the point, I am mentally not wanting to do that.  I hope that rounds out with some more fitness. 

Registration for Pikes is March 11.  I am still thinking I will pass so that I can pace Bob.  For what it is worth, its the last year I can leverage an existing Pikes time (my time from 2014) as an entry consideration. 

On a separate note I am working through Spirit of the Radio  and am a bit more than challenged with the quickness of the changes, and finding a take on the opening riff that I am completely happy with.  Then again, I could just go to the master …

Also been working through 2112.

Today was 11.2, with about half of that being with the dogs to get them some of their due. 

Saturday 25FEB2017

Mid day – got out with Bob and Neeraj.  It looked sunny out so I was completely underdressed for the high 30s but windy conditions.  We looped through Carolyn Holmberg, up to the Coal Creek Trail, connected back to Rock Creek and then brought it home.  Again, as is the case in groups, I was easily 20 seconds faster without a worry about it by being in a group.  12.7 miles.

Friday 24FEB2017

Afternoon – colder than it has been and spitting snow.  It was one of those days where the air was holding some more moisture … at least for Colorado and so it felt colder.  I jumped in with the kids and did 8 x 600 at threshold, with 100 meters off … or what I think Jack Daniels would call a cruise interval run.  10.2 miles in 73. 

I never felt great.  On Wednesday after I had run with the #GOM group I did not feel up for another run with the team in the afternoon so I just went to the weight room.  I didn’t do anything particularly intense or heavy, but I screwed around in there doing things for some 80 minutes … and I am flipping stupid sore.  At least I got that going for me. 

Got together with JV and in-from-out-of-town Kevin Tilton in the evening over at Waterloo in Louisville.
Good conversation on accents, falling through ice, hermits and maybe even a little about running.

Thursday 23FEB2017

Sluggish all day today. 

I have been asked if I’d do Pikes this year and while there is some itch there, I have been moving away from it.  I have been kicking around pacing Bob for some portion of Leadville.  Simply put, I think I’d get more fired up helping him out for 5 to 10 hours rather than hitting that hill again. At least for now.

Snow’s back:

4 with Hans and the 4.2 after that.  Slow.  Tired.  Sluggish.  And the snow did not help.

Wednesday 22FEB2017

AM – I met up with DD for some easy running to catch up about work, etc.  6.2 miles, super easy.

Mid day – Bob, Neeraj and Shad came over and we agreed to do some work.  In this case it was 3 x 10 minutes, where the 10 minutes would be a split of an out and back.  To start we were running down the “new trail” hill.  I have called it the “new trail” even though it has now been there for three years but it is the segment that connects the Broomfield Lake Link Trail to the Rock Creek trail and is about .9 miles long.  Since it was down to start, we figured about 4.5 minutes out and 5.5 minutes back on that.  It is good as it allows everyone to do their own pace thing and hypothetically we should all finish back at the start at about the same time.  It never quite works out that way but it keeps things a bit closer.  We did the last heading up to the water towers and around the “parade of homes.”  The gents were killing me and I was letting them do it without a lot of fight.  I need to get on that.  7.3 miles.

JZ has a knee that has been bugging him.  He is not stoked.

But trumpet is okay (blue in the middle)

Tuesday 21FEB2017 The wind is back

AM – took up a call from Greg to get out for a few miles in the AM.  5.2 miles easy on the ditch, 42 minutes.

Did some astronomy stuff with JZ and TZ up on the overlook last night.  We went up to look at Venus (you could see its phase) and Mars, but found that the Pleiades cluster was the real treat. 

It was a bit of a futile act but we even were trying to take pics through the lens on our Iphones.

Afternoon – 6.7 miles with the kids on the hill, cut down repeats (3-2-1).  Not great.

Monday 20FEB2017 Hemispheres

AM – jogged with TZ over to the school, and then jogged with Greg and Ian for a bit before heading back home.  8.3 very easy miles.  This February currently feels more like April.  Supposedly it goes back to typical February weather this weekend.

PM – 5.1 miles. I am a bit tired in the legs from yesterday but I do feel pretty good.

On a recommendation I started watching Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage on Netflix last night.  In the early 80s I was a young teen that had every Rush album that had been put out up until that point.  As they shifted styles in Grace Under Pressure they lost me but that period of stuff from 2112 to Moving Pictures is still some of my favorite music.  I was cranking up Hemispheres in the buds today and what Lifeson, Peart, and Lee do on pieces like La Villa Strangiato is just technically incredible.

Weekend ending 19FEB2017 Back Home

Back home …

Saturday – I did about 30 minutes of jogging on the track before the team’s Saturday AM practice.  I had thoughts of doing a tempo but I felt tight from the week’s travels and decided to keep it easy.  I got some jogging in with Greg, and then a little with TZ.  10.4 miles.

Sunday – I slept like I was in a kung fu fight.  Which is saying not great.  But given my week had been just maintenance like, I decided I need to hit the go a bit.  It was one of those runs where I felt good enough out of the gate that I was already moving a bit quicker than my typical pace.  The drop into the Carolyn Holmberg and Ruth Roberts space punched it up just a touch, and so it was good to progress the effort and the pace over miles 2-6 and change for a good tempo run (6:40 pace).  12.4 miles in 88 minutes.

So it was a maintenance week but that was not completely unexpected given the travel.  I managed 72.5 miles over 9.5 hours and with 2630 of climbing (Overland Park was pretty flat it seemed).  No big workouts but today was a nice one.  I have 10 weeks of 70 plus now, and I need to start to turn my head and workouts to more specific work for mile – 5k optimization … if I am going to be real about it. 

520.8 miles on the year, 72.6 hours and 27870 vertical feet.  1 day off from running, 2 camping nights and 8 business travel nights.

I rarely go into Boulder anymore to run peaks … in part because I am not training for that sort of thing, in part because it increases the time-effort for a run by about an hour all told when you consider the commute (more if I come back during the 4 or 5 hour on a weekday) and because they have made the southern trail heads something you have to pay for if you are from outside Boulder County.  This sort of smells like they are going to do that for Chautauqua soon too.   Hat tip to Jeff for the find on that article.

Friday 16FEB2017

AM – I managed to get up a bit earlier and get a loop in around the Indian Creek and Tomahawk loop.   As has become typical for these earlier runs, I start really slowly but then find a way to wake up and open up.  10.2 in 80 minutes. 

One more go of BBQ before heading back home …

Thursday 16FEB2017

AM  - I am able to get my stuff together to get out for a run at crack of dawn while on this travel (well to some extent … I get out at 6ish but I can’t drag myself out earlier than that), but my discipline is not strong enough to get on a workout.  I am getting something for getting out there, but I am not moving forward much in terms of actual performance.  8.2 miles, in just about an hour, looping around on the Tomahawk and Indian Creek Trails. 

Lots of cigarette butts on the corners around here:

Working my way through the Jocko Podcast.  A fellow Scout parent recommended his book to me recently and then Lucho posted a link to his podcast.  Its pretty intense stuff.

Wednesday 15FEB2017

AM -  7 miles easy.  About a mile into the run I got a FB call from KZ in Germany and so I enjoyed the jog while chatting with her.

Evening – 4 before heading out with the team here.

Tuesday 14FEB2017 I could use some sleep

I have not been sleeping well as of late. 

TZ points out that since Leadville of 2015 my sleep habits have changed.  Shortly after that event, I could suddenly sleep until 8AM versus my typical rise time of 5:30 or 6.  I don’t do that most days, but I don’t tend to enjoy the 8 uninterrupted hours that I did as a younger man.  I often wake up at 1 or 3 and have some issue getting back to sleep for anywhere from an hour or three.  I do get back to sleep, but it tends to throw me off for the rest of the day a bit because I still have to get to things – like work – in the AM. 

Or when on a road trip like I am, I get up early to bang out the morning run in the dark and cold before heading into the job site.  Such choices makes for some groggy miles to start and an afternoon where I feel like I am battling a bit of jet lag. 

I have played with a variety of things to see if they are the culprit … cutting coffee, cutting alcohol, cutting evening screen time … none of those seem to make a significant difference.  I have chalked it up to being one of the features of the 5th decade of life.  I have noticed when I have a cold if I pop a couple of those flu and cold tabs for the overnight, I am socked out for the evening.  I am pretty sure I am not going to lean on that as a habit.

Anyway … 9.2 this AM.  Headed down the two miles from the hotel to the Tomahawk Trail and then connected up with the Indian Creek Trail.  I think I can turn the whole thing into a loop rather than an out and back.  I started a bit sleepy but managed to slip into a low seven gear for most of the way back. 

Evening – 4 miles around the local cemetery.

Monday 13FEB2012 Tomahawk Trail

Good morning Tomahawk Trail.

I was here last in May of 2010.   And interestingly it was with the foundation of the team that is now the core owners of our new company.   We toasted that last night. 

Knowing that I had been here previously, I went and looked for my training from that time off this blog … it was fun reviewing it.  It was the time when blogs were in their heyday, ultras were suddenly a hot topic, apparently I was regularly running 90 miles a week and thinking nothing of it.  It was interesting to contemplate what had changed in regards to my running, my work life, my family … and what had stayed same.    I still blather about getting to more specific training, I do less hills these days, I am consistent with getting out more days than not, I am slower, I am still doing the same sort of work but I am now with my own company, my kids are closer to being adults, same incredible wife that I have shared a bunch of experiences with, have traveled internationally, I still use a GPS (although I think I am on my fourth one since then) and I have gray hair that was not evident then.

And I still listen to podcasts … this AM I listened to the Jay Johnson Run Faster Podcast regarding how to get quicker at 5ks/10ks.  Jay’s plan is specifically built for “busy adults” … or folks with jobs, kids, and other obligations.  He builds his program on 5 days of running on the week, with the other 2 days being a day of cross training (Thursday) and a brisk walk post the long run (Sunday).  Monday and Fridays are easy days with strides, Tuesday is a challenging workout, Wednesday is a “tired legs” run and Saturday is the long effort.  Of course, Jay brings in various mobility and strength exercises as well.  It is a sound program, but I am not sure I am ready to buy into the days off but for the person looking to maximize time … it probably is smart.

Also … I enjoy the obsession (and have some of it) with the Salazar group “post race workouts.”

Sunday 12FEB2017 KC here I come

AM – 6.3 miles starting in the dark … I had to get up early as I headed off to KC for work today.  I started pretty slow as I was waking up, but got some good cruising towards the tail of the run.

Evening – did an afternoon of meetings here in KC and then got out for a quick four.

70.8 on the week, about 10 hours and 4905 of climb.

Saturday 11FEB2017 Playing catch up

14.3 miles.  I headed over to practice with JZ and jogged with Greg for five and a half.  Afterwards I added on another hour to get in some miles.  Things clicked in around 7:45 pace for “easy” today. 

Admittedly I am chasing a bit here today … with lower miles earlier in the week, and those miles even split into doubles, I felt the need to get in a little longer continuous run, and bump the weekly mileage.  I am off to KC tomorrow and so next week will be a challenge as well. 

Over the last nine weeks I have been averaging just under 75 miles a week.  Some of those weeks have had some decent quality in them with turn over work, hill sessions and tempo work.  Some have just been more of just getting in a chunk of miles … like this  this past couple with the work travel.   I do need to get on it a bit, and frankly jumping into  a few races would probably force the issue.

Friday 10FEB2015

I was carrying some heaviness in my legs (and I think I mean that in the “I sort of feel crummy” sort of way as well as the “my legs are actually heavier” sort of way) from the trip this week.  I headed over to preseason practice with the track kids to blow out some of the chaff.  6.8 miles.  The kids had a fartlek run, and they determined to structure it as a ladder:  50 on, 50 off, 60 on, 60 off, etc up to a double set on the 90s, and then back down.  Good little run to open things a bit.

In the afternoon, I was in Boulder for a meeting and decided to get about another hour on the Mesa trail.  I learned that much of the Mesa is currently closed (at the connection to Mallory Cave just below NCAR) and that a good part of the trail is about to be rerouted (north of NCAR above the drainage).  Apparently it has been some time since I have been there.  It was good to get a little of the trail burn in my legs and realize that my skills on the more technical stuff (which were never good) have lapsed to very poor.  I ended up going up to the Mallory Cave slab base and back for 6.3 miles.

Thursday 09FEB2017

AM – super slow to get up today and get out:  a groggy four miles before heading into the job site.

Headed back home today.
 

I saw this lake as coming into MSP.  That looks to be a helluva track.

Wednesday 08FEB2017

AM – as I have learned to expect, day 2 of travel is always a bit tougher for the run.  I used to think that I’d be better adjusted with a day under my belt, but I actually tend to be in a better groove when I first arrive, and then hit a bit of a lull. 

So, I was slow to rise this AM.  The fog and dark didn’t make it easier but the warmer temps were still welcomed.  I drew a bit of motivation seeing a person running around the parking lot (the options immediately from the hotel are limited) and then a couple of guys doing burpees and bear crawls on a nearby driveway.  5.2 miles – real easy and slow.

Post the day at the facility … and yup, that day 2 feeling had really hit:  a bit tired, a bit dehydrated and just worked even though I had not done much physically … just the nature of the travel beast.  I got out after the work day and got in another 6.1 around the parking lots of the speedway. 

Tuesday 07FEB2017 Concord

AM – I didn’t get settled into the hotel here in Concord, NC until about midnight.  Getting up early for a pre-dawn run was a tad difficult but warmer than expected temps helped the cause (50F).  I did a couple of slow miles to wake up and then hit a local pathed hill for 10 x 1 minute on it.  5.5 miles.

Evening – post a pretty good day at the facility I am working at, I got out into the twilight for 6.1.  As it was just getting dark, I got spooked pretty good by a deer that hopped out away from me. 

Back to road warrior living …

Monday 07FEB2017

AM – 6.1 in 48 through the Commons before heading to the airport. 

Sunday 06FEB2017 Week in review

Picked up some new shoes for JZ over at Flatirons today.  JZ has a driver’s license with still that new smell so I let him drive home by himself from there and I ran home.  This used to be a bigger deal but now with the 36 bike path in place it is a pretty simple run.  I spun out at the mall onto the Carolyn Holmberg and Ruth Roberts open spaces to bump it to 13.7 miles in 1:40.  Not a huge run, but the biggest I have had in a bit (can’t really count the Solstice Slog) at a fair pace.

It was not a good week of training but it was not bad either.  I got the expected mileage (70.5) and some turn over work but I failed to get in a good tempo run.  I sort of fudged that a bit today by clipping along some spurts of sub sevens but nothing really came of it. 

The next two weeks will be a training challenge:  I’ll be back to my job road warrior self for a bit and so I will be fighting for available time, day light and energy to get some running in.

Saturday 04FEB2017Air Force Academy

Several members of the Eagles team headed south to the Air Force Academy for an early season indoor meet.  The purpose was to get some early season race experience, see where folks were at, and have some fun.  The challenge is that the Cadet Field House sits at 7000 feet. 

We had kids in a variety of events, but I was focused on the kids in the 800 and mile.  We had some good performances.  JZ squeaked a tiny PR, but given the conditions that was considered a very nice start to the season for him.

Between events I squeeze in a short run (6 miles).  The winds were ridiculous.

So I spent a lot of time at tracks in the last two days.  My family thought this was a dream weekend for me.  JZ was mocking me by saying “so I am going to go for a run.  Then I am going to go to a track meet.  Then I am going to go to bed.  And when I wake up I am going to drive a 100 miles to another track meet.  Then I will run when I am there.  Then I will watch more of the track meet when I get home.”

He’s got it right though.

Friday 03FEB2017 some fast miles at CU

10.2 miles for me on the day.  I felt sort of heavy to start so it started a bit slow but as I was on the track for the warm up, I made a deal with myself to stay there and fartlek the run for a back and forth of a harder lap (6:20 paceish) and then a easier lap but not too easy (7:30 paceish).  Made for a fun run.

In the evening I went watched some miles at CU by Buffs.  It was simply ridiculous:  4:01.x … after coming through in about 2:35 for the kilo (so the last 600 was 1:25 high).  When you consider the conversion on this stuff, it is 3:55, maybe 3:54.

This pic by Dave Albo:
 

The girls were fast too, with the win coming in 4:39 after Jenny Simpson paced the run for about 1500 of its 1609 meters.  Another Dave pic.

That new field house is beautiful.  And that surface is fast. 

Thursday 02FEB2017 Frozen Fog Groundhog Day

I laced up today with intention on a tempo.  The weather had other plans:

A freezing fog had set everything in a thin coat of ice.  Even the dirt trails were iced over.  In some regard, the roads, which are usually a bit more perilous, were a tad nicer as cars had melted some of the ice out.  Still, it was the slickest I had ever seen it down here and I kept the run easy.  Of course as it was supposed to be a tempo run, I went out with some light low traction road shoes … that did not help.  5 miles. 

In the evening (and dark) I got out for another easy 5.  It was not quite as bad with the ice, but it was still pretty ridiculous. 

I still feel a bit of angst when my expectations for a run don’t match up with what actually gets performed.  I wanted that tempo today but it was not going to happen unless I found a treadmill or took risk to do it on the ice.  In younger days, I’d find a way to make it happen … and maybe that is better?  Now I find a way to reconcile it realizing that pushing it a day or two is not a big deal right now … and maybe that is better? 

Wednesday 01FEB2017 A case of the Tuesdays even though it is Wednesday

I thought if I felt good I’d get after it a bit today.

But I felt pretty tired and cruddy.  And it just wasn’t lifting.  And the afternoon weather made it look like Pittsburgh or Syracuse out.  Cold, wet and gray.  It made for an easy call.  I kept it super easy.  8 miles and then timed some kids on the track doing early season fun.