2008 Around the Town 5K

This race should actually be called a 5.15K (or longer) as the course was just a teensy weensy bit long. But seeing as it is the first year for it, I won't be too judgmental. Except that I will mention the first and third miles were measured long, while the second was short.

It was cold yesterday morning: 23 degrees, frost all around, and some scattered icy patches on the course. A cloudless sky and no wind whatsoever made for a nice run though. Around halfway, I was warmed up and comfortable. It was a small race, a VERY small race. Probably the smallest field I've ever competed in. Which is why I finished 5th Overall. That's right, I said I was the 5th person to finish. I was 2nd in my age group. And I was gaining on him the last mile and a half. Just didn't have enough to catch him. It was really neat to be able to see the lead pack for as long as I did. Usually they disappear from view shortly after the start.

As for my time, I finished in 23:11.39. That means I shredded my 5K time from last year (23:50.72), but didn't come close to besting my PR for the distance. My 16 year PR survives a little longer. That may end up being one I don't have a chance to catch, but we shall see. I've been focusing on training for longer distances so I haven't tried to bring my mile times under 7 minutes. Which is exactly what I'll need to do to touch my 5K PR.

Speaking of longer distances, the Capital City Half Marathon is two weeks out, and I am sorely lacking in the long runs department. Which is why I did a long run yesterday afternoon. I raced in the morning, took a little nap afterwards, had lunch, rested, then went out around 3:00 to log some LSD. (LSD is Long Slow Distance, not the drug!) I completed another 7.4 miles in just over an hour in decent March weather: sunny, upper 40s, but breezy. That means I was sweating running certain directions and cold running the others. I'm hoping to finish out the weekend with some time on the bike trainer today. No bricks this weekend!

Mr. P

 

New Race Added For Tomorrow!

Well it is a new race. And it is tomorrow. But it's not really so exciting to warrant the exclamation mark. The race is the first annual (?) Around the Town 5K. It's here in Medina, so that's the main reason I'm running it. That, and the fact that Mrs. P was involved with the production of the event. So I'm grading you! I hope you do a good job! (She may or may not read this.)

Any way, as far as 5K's go, I did just one last year. I like to go a bit longer, the 5K distance is so close to a sprint, I just don't feel comfortable when I run them. I don't have access to my PRs right now, but I can check them later. If my memory serves me right, I'm thinking my best time is around 22 and a half minutes. I have recorded some faster 5K splits during duathlons, but I'm not sure how accurate the courses were measured, so I'm not counting those.

OK, I just retrieved my records and here's what we have. My 5K PR is 21:56.42 and I set it at the 1992 Cruise For the Critters in Cleveland. Wow, that's an old one! I would love to beat that tomorrow. As for last year's Run 4 Fun in Medina, I finished in 23:50.72. I should be able to beat that, as I was having some extreme shin pain when I ran that last year. I'll let you know how things go.

Mr. P

I'm Becoming Rather Proficient at Doing Indoor Bricks

A "brick" workout being a combination of multi-sport disciplines, done back to back during a workout. As I compete in duathlons, my sports are running and cycling. Heading into last season, I performed only one brick workout. That was at the rec. center, about this time of year. First I did a few miles on a treadmill, then I jumped onto a stationary bike, then a couple miles worth around the indoor track. It was hot and crowded, and that was one of my last visits to the rec.

This year, however, I've been trying to do a brick every Sunday, in place of my long run. I've been pretty good at getting the workouts in too. I must admit that I'm beginning to tire of all the indoor work, and I long to get outdoors again. Easter morning, I completed my latest brick. A two mile run on the treadmill, followed by 10 miles on my bike trainer, finishing with a final 3 miles on the treadmill. Now since the treadmill calculates mileage incorrectly, I ran more miles than I noted. But that's alright, the treadmill will soon be returned to it's rightful owner, and I'll need to locate a new one. Preferably one with a more accurate odometer.

What is starting to concern me right now, is the fact that I have the Capital City Half Marathon coming up in 3 weeks, and I haven't begun to increase my long runs. I haven't even begun doing my long runs. I just hate going out in the crap weather we've been having this winter and spring so far. And I hate running for more than half an hour at a time on the treadmill. I suppose I'll just end up winging it. I was at a point last fall, where doing a 13 mile run was easy. I could just up and go whenever, and still finish at or around my average time for the distance. I guess I can use it as an early season test to see how fit I actually am right now. Run the race, but not worry too much about my finish time. Based upon my results from the stair climb and the 5 miler, I'm confident that I am in better shape right now, than I was at this time last year. Besides, the Rite Aid Half in May is where I would like to make a PR attempt at the distance.

Although I think I'm in good shape and on a sure course for success, there is this one little thing that will most likely interrupt training next week..... VEGAS BABY!!! Yes, we're taking a short spring break trip to Vegas next week. I'm taking my running shoes and some clothes and have every intention of working out while out there. But it is Las Vegas, and who knows what's going to happen.

Mr. P

The First Week of Spring (in Cleveland)

And so we have a lovely example of springtime in Cleveland. Decent weather for the run on Saturday. Even better weather for the St. Patrick's Day parade on Monday. Tuesday was rainy. But Wednesday, Wednesday we get hit with snow. Snow no one, not even the venerable Dick Goddard, predicted. So of course, the roads were HORRIBLE last night because the road crews weren't ready for it. Good thing I don't have far to drive to work any more!

Now on to more important matters. I've been fighting off something since about Tuesday. I've had a scratchy throat. It hasn't progressed into a "real" sore throat yet, which I'm thankful for. I seldom get sick, so when something is beginning, I'm aware of it. But because of this bug, I have to decide whether or not to tone down the workouts. I know endurance events lower your body's ability to fight off disease, but I don't want to cut back on anything right now. I've been training well and don't want to mess with it.

So I haven't. After taking a full day off on Sunday, I squeezed in a 5k on the treadmill Monday morning. On Tuesday, I logged some more miles on the bike trainer. I rolled out of bed a little late, so only 8 miles again this time. Yesterday, with scratchy throat and everything, I ran 2 miles on the treadmill in the morning and another 3 after work. First time I've done a split running session ever, I believe. If it wasn't for the treadmill, I wouldn't have done it. There is just so much less impact than on the road, I'm able to run more often than I otherwise would. Once the weather improves though, I'll be back out on the road. But I hope to keep a weekly treadmill workout year round as a way to log some extra miles.

Mr. P

2008 St. Malachi 5 Mile Run

I'm sitting here, waiting for the official results to be posted to the race website. Am I impatient? Am I hoping they will hurry up? No, not really. It's just a lazy Saturday afternoon, we have dinner plans with friends later, and I've really nothing better to do right now. Of course, I'm not going to publish this post until I have the official results.

But here's what I do have: 5 miles in an unofficial time of 36:10.86. That's only 20 seconds off my PR. I'm VERY happy with that kind of time in March. I've done very few races in the month of March. On average, my first races don't normally occur until well into April. Come on results! OK, maybe I will publish this, and then come back and edit it later.

Ask and you shall receive! Official results are just posted! My official time was 36:09.90. That's 7:14 minute miles. Which is deceiving because we had two hills on the course that definitely affected my pace and consequently, my time. All in all, the hills weren't too bad though, with the worst one being at the very end, ending at the finish line. It was fun to go into an all out sprint to the finish going uphill. The weather was very cooperative this morning. We had mid 30's with a little fog. With no wind, it was very nice running this morning. My time placed me at 25 of 88 in my age group and 182 of over 1,000 overall. I'll take that.

My next shot at 5 miles is on the 4th of July, so I have a little time in which to prepare for another PR attempt.

It is good to be alive!

Mr. P

5 Mile PR

Let me start by just saying that I was really a bum yesterday. Not only did I skip my morning workout, but I skipped out on my evening one as well. But I do have a reason for missing the second one. Jr. P went to a birthday party last night, so with the driving around, I wasn't going to get a good workout in anyway. Ended up getting a pizza at the new local Scorchers restaurant. It was all right, but the Dortmunders were fabulous. Like I've said before, I'm not exactly a stickler for schedules anyway.

Now for the important stuff. After no digging around at all, for I am very  anal about keeping pristine records regarding important stuff, I was able to locate my 5 mile PR time. At the 1994 Cleveland Turkey Trot, I finished with a time of 35:50. What is that, 7:10 per mile? That's pretty good for me. I don't think I'm going to even touch that tomorrow. More realistically, I have a shot at beating my time from last July of 36:13. Well, now that I look at it, that's less than 5 seconds per mile additional. I didn't realize I had pulled off a time like that recently. I've been so preoccupied with 26.2, I haven't attempted to bring my times down for my shorter distances. I don't want to say I can't beat 36 minutes. That's just admitting defeat prematurely. I guess I'll just go out hard, like I always do. If it's dry tomorrow, and not too cold, I may have a shot. I've been on the treadmill mostly, but my pace has been faster than what I would normally do on the road. I suppose anything is possible. I will dutifully report back tomorrow afternoon.

Mr. P

Being a Bum

Well, I was a lazy bum this morning. Instead of getting up at my alarm, I laid in bed and thought about getting up. Not the same thing. I don't regret it too much, though. My legs were still a little sore from yesterday's run in the morning, and from lifting Tuesday evening. I'm a big believer in rest. Rest is important. I'm also glad that my training schedule doesn't control me. I am able to loosely follow it. I think that's important, because it keeps things fun. If running became like work, I would quickly lose interest. I do work at work because I need to pay the bills. I run on my own time because it's fun and I enjoy it. Granted, if I trained more like someone trying to make the Olympics, I might destroy my PRs and be more competitive in my age group. That would be nice, but I don't know how much fun it would be. And the fun part is way more important to me than where I place at the finish line.

As for finish lines, my first 5 miler since last July is two days away. That's another reason for me resting this morning, I want to be as fresh as possible. Mrs. P has shin pain right now, because she doesn't rest enough. But she won't listen to me. Anyway, the weather forecast is starting to come around to be more favorable. They're calling for sunny skies but chilly temps. That's OK, I suppose. I'm not a huge fan of running in the cold any more, but since it's paid for, there's not much to do now but go racing. Off hand, I don't recall what my 5 mile PR is. I'll check and post again before Saturday morning. It would be nice to set a new PR, but I know this course has some climbing on it, so I'm not going to hold my breath.

Mr. P

The Blizzard of '08

I may have mentioned this before, but I'm seriously tired of the snow here. I mean come on, 15+ inches of snow with drifts 2 to 3 feet deep? I shovelled 4 times on Saturday, and it kept coming back. When you have a dog who can't see, having snow drifts across the back yard is not an option. Now, in Cleveland, we didn't technically have a blizzard. The winds were not sustained above the required threshold. We just had gusts. It was bad enough though, that mail delivery was canceled for us, as well as businesses closing early. Some areas had enacted emergencies which prohibited driving. But the Cavs still played, along with the minor league hockey team, the Monsters, and Wicked was still being performed. You just have to know where your priorities lie!

On the positive side, at least I was able to get a good workout in Sunday morning. I logged another duathlon brick workout. First, 2 miles on the treadmill, followed by 10 miles on the bike trainer, finishing with another 3 miles on the treadmill. I felt really good too. I was able to try out my new pedals and shoes. The pedals are wonderful. So much lighter with a wider area to work with than the Shimanos. I will need to do some tweaking though. The shoes are just a hair tight, so I'm going to find a pair of dress shoe stretchers to size them up. I'm also going to need to reposition the cleats on the shoes themselves. They need to slide a little back and to the inside. I'm glad I'm able to start breaking them in now, this early in the season. Hopefully everything will be ready to go when the weather breaks.

I took yesterday morning off, as I'm still adjusting to the time change. But I had a great workout on Sunday so I didn't feel so bad. Got a great chest, back, abdominal workout in last night. This morning I was back on the bike trainer, logging another 8 miles. I laid in bed too long and wasn't able to get an even 10 miles in. I plan on running tomorrow, Wednesday, hopefully a nice 4 miler on the treadmill. More bike work Thursday morning, with Friday being relatively light. My first race of the season is Saturday and I don't want to go into it sore or over trained. My shins are easily inflamed by daily running, unfortunately. I haven't run the St. Malachi course before, but I have run the flats in the past. I haven't done hill work since last fall though. Should make it interesting. Just no more snow!

Mr. P

New Race Added

Just a quick post to let everyone know I've made a last minute addition to my 2008 schedule. One week from today, Mrs. P and I will be doing the St. Malachi Run.  She'll be doing the 2 mile and I will be doing the 5 mile event. Hopefully the weather will be more seasonal and NOT like today.  We're getting hammered here with snow.  Fortunately we don't have the wind they're getting further south, but it still sucks.  I'll be indoors this weekend.

Which leads me to one other thing I need to mention.  I picked up my bike from Century Cycles on Thursday, and I'm excited to get my new pedals on it.  A few weeks ago, I bought a new set of Look pedals to replace the Shimano pedals the bike came with.  But I just could not get the old ones off.  I spent about an hour yanking on those things, but to no avail.  So I left it to the pros at Century.  There is a significant weight difference between the old and the new.  Plus I've also upgraded my shoes, so I'm hoping the slight weight decrease will lead to some faster times this season.

Mr. P 

2008 Tackle the Tower Stair Climb

(This blog originally appeared on my Myspace Blog)

Before I get started, I want to once again offer my kudos and congratulations to the firefighters who participate in this event. Climbing 37 stories is a difficult undertaking, but to do it with full equipment, takes a certain level of fitness, and a special kind of determination.

So the climb went very well. I'm happy to report that in my first event of the season, I was able to achieve a new PR. I climbed the 37 stories in 5 minutes and 48 seconds. That's nearly 45 seconds faster than last year. And I still hurt like hell for the effort too. My time was good enough to get me 12th of 63 in my age group, and 74th of 711 overall. I'm going to have a challenge next year, trying to better my time again. But try I shall. I already have some ideas about how to train more effectively. And I'm also hoping to end this year at a higher fitness level, so I would just need to maintain that through the winter. For some reason, I really enjoy climbing; stairs, hills, trails, etc... I don't know if I will ever get close to having a shot at an overall placing, but I would like to take a shot at the top spots in my age group.

Give me more 60 degree days in March

If you give me 60 degrees in March, in Cleveland, I'll run in that.  Gratefully!  I was able to squeeze in a trip around my 5K loop last night before the weather moved in.  We had beautiful sunny skies all day, up until it was time for me to leave work, of course.  Mrs. P was able to get a run in first.  If I didn't get a chance to, it really wasn't a big deal.  I had logged 4 miles on the treadmill Sunday morning and I usually don't run back to back days.  My legs have never been able to take it.  I develop shin splints very quickly when I try to run every day.  But I was able to get out there last night.  Yes I was tired.  Yes I'm used to running in the morning.  But it was so nice outside.  That spring smell was in the air.  Well I busted out a 23 and a half minute 5K, which I'm happy with.  That's just over 7:30 per mile. I was surprised by how much snow melted in a matter of hours yesterday.  Every sidewalk was uncovered save for a couple spots which were shaded by trees, and the plow mounds of course. 

Right now I can hear the ice pellets hitting the windows, so I don't think I'll be getting outside again any  time soon.  But that's OK too.  The time will be here soon, when I'll be logging many many miles again.  I have learned that it's OK to play with the cards your dealt. Especially when there's not a whole lot you can do to change them.

Mr. P

Running in Cleveland in February really sucks!

I mean, it really really sucks!  I don't like the cold weather.  I love snow up until Christmas, but at this point, I'm ready for global warming to kick in.  I really should be living somewhere else, south or west or maybe southwest.  Oh well, I'm just tired of being indoors.  I'll just suck it up and take it out on the treadmill, or the bike trainer, or the weights.  I'm well practiced at focusing negative energy toward a productive outcome.  I've been doing it as long as I can remember.  I guess I'm just bummed that today I was stuck on the treadmill while last Sunday, I was able to get out for nearly 7.5 miles.  I can't do 7.5 on the treadmill.  It would drive me insane. All I have down there in the basement is my iPod.  No TV.  No DVD.  I couldn't even ride indoors today because yesterday I dropped my bike off at the bike shop for a check-up before the season starts.

To recap the rest of the week from a training standpoint, it was same old, same old.  Aside from my Tuesday evening snow run, of course.  I was able to fit something in every day.  Three runs, two of which were on the treadmill.  In total 11.1 miles for the week.  Not bad for the beginning of March, I suppose.  It's actually more than that.  The treadmill we have right now measures distance a little slow.  So for the amount of time I was running, I actually went farther that what the readout showed.  As for cross-training, I'm still hitting the weights nearly every day.  I'm starting to focus more on lower weight and higher reps.  But on Monday, I bench pressed my body weight for the first time in a few years.  That's something I've been working towards for a few months now. Accomplishing goals is always rewarding, no matter their size.

That's all for today folks.  I'm anticipating another week of the same this week.  But maybe Mother Nature will surprise me.

Mr. P