do (run) while (date < 20071231)

December 24 through 30

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
4 mi		8 mi	4 mi		12 mi		28 mi

Merry Christmas!

Silent night, holy night!
Shepherds quake at the sight
Glories stream from heaven afar
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia!
Christ, the Saviour is born
Christ, the Saviour is born

do (run) while (date < 20071224)

December 17 through 23

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
7 mi		8 mi	8 mi		20 mi		43 mi

Commence Taper

I can drop one last 20-miler into the log. Now the training schedule starts three weeks of "taper" before the Big Day on the 13th. My legs are hating me, but my runner's heart is feeling fine.

With my morning of punishment behind me I can focus more on actually enjoying Christmas and New Year's. Yippee!

do (run) while (date < 20071217)

December 10 through 16

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
			7 mi		16 mi	4 mi	27 mi

How to Build a Simple Runner Trap

Ingredients:
One (1) wire coat hanger

1) Bend coat hanger into an irregular loop.
2) Place hanger in a random location on macadam pavement.
3) Expose to elements until hanger is rusty.
4) Wait for runner.

And to think I was doing so well to avoid injury too....

During mile 14 of this morning's long run, I was crossing a school parking lot when I took a mildly spectacular tumble on the pavement. I think what must have happened is that my left foot stepped on the hanger, which popped up and caught my right foot.

I never saw it coming; In fact, at first I looked behind me and thought it must have been the storm drain. And yet, the storm drain was a good fifteen feet away. Only on closer inspection did I see the bent rusty hanger, pretty well camouflaged on the pebbled surface of the parking lot.

The good news is that I'm not seriously damaged bodily -- a few scrapes on my hands and knees, and a bump on my elbow that might bruise later. The impact with the ground popped open the Velcro strap of my Garmin Forerunner 101, but it's fine. However, the Amphipod hand bottle in my left hand was not so lucky. While helping to break my fall, the part of the handstrap that hugs the bottom of the bottle snapped apart. This had become one of my favorite running accessories and I'm not excited at the idea of spending $18 to replace it.

After gathering myself back together, I snapped a picture of the perpetrator and the victim on the nearby sidewalk and then finished up my 16-miler. I went ahead and told the fine people at Sonic to make my burger a double today.

"THEY'RE COMING"

Tonight I was at a shopping center on Memorial Drive, right around the mile 21 point of the Houston Marathon course. In several of the store windows were posters announcing "THEY'RE COMING" and encouraging the public to come out and "shout, cheer, scream!" for the runners.

Seeing these gave me yet another jolt of nervousness and excitement that this marathon thing is "for real."

31 days to go. . . .

do (run) while (date < 20071210)

December 3 through 9

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
5 mi		9 mi	7 mi			20 mi	41 mi

Sugar Land 30K

Heading Out
My race morning began when I drove down to the mall and parked next to the Cheesecake Factory. (Hey, it was in our instructions!) For this weekend, the RW SmartCoach schedule was requesting a 20-miler from me. So after picking up my timing chip and finishing my usual 10-minute walking warmup, I took a one-and-a-half-mile jog around the mall parking lot. At the end of this, my clothes were already soaked in perspiration. Our temperatures are running twenty degrees above average for this time of year. We'd be starting under conditions of 72F and 90-percent humidity. I joined the crowd behind the starting line shortly before the horn went off. I crossed the starting mat and started my Garmin.

"This Looks Familiar."
If scenery during a run is important to you, then by all means avoid this race course. After leaving the mall, runners run a few miles to Palm Royale Boulevard and then go up and down the boulevard three times. The Sweetwater subdivision of Sugar Land is home to many of Houston's pro athletes, but we didn't see any of them, just the high walls of their McMansions. This triple-loop setup could potentially be very confusing to an unsuspecting racer. To the credit of the race organizers, mile markers 4 through 16 were very visible, even if they were seemingly scattered across the loop. But as long as I kept conscious of how many times I had been around, it wasn't an issue.

Reaching Redline
What was an issue was the rising mercury, not to mention the numbing boredom of the course that was setting in after making six U-turns on the same stretch of road. I had made it all the way through mile 14 locked in on a very comfortable pace in the tens and elevens. But three hours into the race, the temperature was reaching towards 80F and little of my perspiration was evaporating. I could sense my heartrate beginning to race and I started feeling lightheaded.

The Battle of Lexington
I interpreted my symptoms as possible warning signs of heat exhaustion. In miles 15 through 17, I shifted into a run/walk pattern to keep things under control; I was struggling to keep myself relaxed, but leaving that loop behind for good probably saved me from going loopy! As I made the turn onto Lexington Boulevard for the return trip to the mall, the sun was really getting to me and I was fretting about "running out of gas."

As if on cue, a cool breeze started blowing. "Where were you earlier?" I wryly asked aloud. ;) But I wasn't complaining; the battle had been turned! I was able to pick up my run again for the rest of the race, blowing a kiss at the mile 18 marker as I went by. The end was finally at hand.

Watch me finish!

(I'm wearing blue.)
Gun Time: 3:44:29
Chip Time: 3:43:06

Looking Forward
At the end of the race, we got some nifty medals. As much as I've complained about the course itself, I do have to give kudos to the race organizers and volunteers that made the human-controlled part of this experience pleasant to deal with. There was plenty of fluids available on the course and plenty of pizza, bagels, soda, and fruit at the post-race party. They even arranged to make finishing videos (like the one you just saw) available for download to everyone.

Well gentle reader, that's the story of my last race of 2007 and my first race as a member of the 35-39 age group. I suppose I should be feeling fairly good about my level of preparation for next month's marathon. Sure, I'm feeling fatigued and a wee bit sore, but nothing on my body outright hurts. I just hope we get some a "normal" January morning in Houston that won't force me to walk for extended stretches again due to heat issues.

Sonic Cheesecake Bites

Recently both Arby's and Sonic introduced cheesecake bites to their menus. I sampled Sonic's offering today by ordering the "large" 5-piece version for $2.49. For those attempting to maintain a facade of portion control, Sonic also packages a set of 3 for $1.99.

Turning cheesecake into a finger food was a brilliant idea. After being breaded up the resulting units are more than a cubic inch each. After consuming them with the Caramel Cinnamon Drizzle dip, I am pleased to say that they are a warm and timely winter addition to the dessert offerings at Sonic. Turning I suspect that someone realized that demand for ice cream Blasts might decline when arctic blasts come to town.

As of now, this item is not listed in the nutrition information at Sonic's website. I'm fairly certain, however, that this probably falls under the "sparingly" category of the food pyramid. In retrospect, the 3-piece serving would be plenty for one person, and the 5-piece is enough sweet tooth satisfaction for two.

do (run) while (date < 20071203)

November 26 through December 2

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
8 mi		10 mi	12 mi	6 mi	4 mi		40 mi

New weekly mileage PR.
New monthly mileage PR -- 151 in the month of November.

On deck: A heavy hitter in the middle of the order

This coming weekend on the RW SmartCoach schedule has a "go long" run of 20 miles listed. I still feeling a little rattled at finding myself quitting a 16-mile run at mile 11 last week. I can never get enough confidence boosters in this process, so I've registered for next Sunday's Sugar Land Lakes of Williams Ranch 30K (wow, that's a mouthful of a race title!). I'm hoping that a race atmosphere will help me get a quality 20 miles in that day. I'll feel very relieved if I can get that one because then I'll have two 20-milers in the log. This is the heart of the training schedule and the nervousness is only growing.

On the bright side, I did just log 40 miles this past week and 151 miles for the month of November.

41 days, 22 hours to go!

"Worthless"

While cleaning I found something I had feared I had lost: a pair of 100-peso notes from the Japanese occupation of the Philippines during World War II. Now here is evidence that the value of an object is tied purely to mutual agreement among buyers and sellers. A 100-dollar bill from the 1940s would still be worth at least 100 dollars today -- probably more due to desirability to collectors.

In contrast, an eBay search of completed items suggests that my bills are only worth a couple of American dollars now. But I think I would like to hold on to them because I like having tangible evidence that the Occupation did happen, and a reminder that war can radically alter what we believe is valuable and what is not.

Recharge Thyself

Some months ago, I was thinking about my upcoming birthday and decided that the best gift I could give myself is time off, some real time off. So today I'm embarking on Day One of Vince's Totally Unstructured Vacation.

The last time I took vacation off, I had myself running from place to place. I had slated an activity for every morning, afternoon and evening. Oh, it was great fun to be sure.

But I also miss the long-ago days when we were kids and had nothing to do on summer vacation except whatever we came up with that day. That's sort of what I'm aiming for now over the next couple of weeks. I have hope that in the process I'll re-discover a nearly forgotten passion and discover a new joy. But definitely I'm calling for some "recharge thyself" time at this point in 2007.

So this time, there's no big fancy airplane trips to a faraway land, no cruise, nor several nights at the Ritz-Carlton lined up. If nothing else, I think my financial health will thank me in the long run!

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to pet the dog, then do . . . whatever. . . .

do (run) while (date < 20071126)

November 19 through 25

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
7 mi	5 mi		5 mi	11 mi		5 mi	33 mi

Shortchanged

"My momma always said, running is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get."

Well, Tom Hanks never said that in Forrest Gump, but I will. I've been trying to stay on track with my mileage buildup for Marathon Sunday using a "SmartCoach" schedule from the Runner's World website. Each week includes a long run that folks usually fit in on the weekend.

This week's long run was written in as 16 miles. Normally, I put in a rest day (meaning no running) before and a rest day after the long run day. Well, Saturday's and Sunday's weather forecasts both show as being rainy with temperatures in the 40s Fahrenheit -- not pleasant as far as I was concerned. So instead of taking the rest day today and running Saturday, I decided to "go long" today, the day after the Turkey Dash. At mile 11, my legs left as heavy as lead and I decided that my heart wasn't in it, so I decided to return home.

I hate the thought of shortchanging a long run, but at least I got one in. If I didn't run today, the coming cold rain would likely have caused me to miss it completely.

It's just over eight weeks until Marathon Sunday . . . not that I'm paying close attention to this or anything like that.

Katy YMCA Turkey Dash

In the past couple of years, I've run the TXU Energy Turkey Trot in uptown Houston on Thanksgiving morning. The 2005 event was actually my first 10K.

This year I decided to run a 5K being held at the YMCA out in Katy. A cold front blew through the Houston area last night and the projected morning temperature was supposed to be in the upper 40s Fahrenheit. So the original plan was to wear a short-sleeved shirt and shorts. However, it turned out that the temps were in the lower 40s, so I kept my long-sleeved shirt on (over my short-sleeved shirt) and re-pinned my number to it.

After a short warmup and settling in behind the starting line, the race organizers announced that the race start was being moved 30 minutes later because the walk-up registration was so heavy. That was annoying, but I had enough time to fit in a few more minutes of warmup jogging and a trip to the men's room inside the Y as well.

Mile 1: 8:22
Finally the horn sounds and the pack took off running south on Peek Road. Even with the "heavy" turnout, it still looked like less than a thousand people, so there wasn't an excessive amount of "walker dodging." I saw a "1 mile" marker on the road and punched the Lap button on my Forerunner. It said "5:50"; I said "No way!" It turns out that this marker was the turnaround point for the Kids 1-mile course. Oops! A couple minutes later, I found the correct 1-mile marker and punched the button again.

Mile 2: 9:12
After the 30 minute delay (letting the sun rise some more) and then running hard for a mile, my upper body was feeling uncomfortably warm. I took off my long-sleeved top and tied it around my waist. As I was approaching the turnaround point, I could feel my throat starting to go dry. Maybe I shouldn't have bypassed the water stop. As we made the U-turn to head back north, I started getting a nauseous feeling on the right side of my body. I had to hold back a little or risk trotting out this morning's oatmeal.

Mile 3: 9:03
Last .1: 0:52
The nauseous feeling stayed with me until we had a half-mile to go. When I returned to the YMCA and saw the clock, I knew I had a new personal record. (Previous PR: 28:53 at this year's Fired Up 5K) It was a pretty good early birthday gift to myself, in my opinion.

I also think that the marathon training schedule, which has been pushing me to 30-or-more miles a week, has had some nice side effects!

I also thought it was amusing that the goodie-bag for registrants included a package of turkey stuffing!

Event: Katy YMCA Turkey Dash
Location: Katy YMCA, Katy TX
Garmin Forerunner 101 says: 27:30
Gun Time: 27:54.9 (chip detection mat only at finish line)
Place: 290/603 overall, 17/30 in M30-34 age group
Benefits: YMCA Partners Campaign

do (run) while (date < 20071119)

November 12 through 18

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
		6 mi	7 mi		20 mi		33 mi

Call me "dub"

This marathon training thing is getting serious now. This morning I logged 20 miles. I was doing a lot of hating by the end of it, but it's overwith and "on the books."

I celebrated immediately afterward at Sonic Jog-In (where else?) with a SuperSonic cheeseburger, Sonic Size fries and a Route 44 cherry limeade. Yummy!

do (run) while (date < 20071112)

November 5 through 11

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
4 mi		8 mi	6 mi			13 mi	31 mi

San Antonio Half Marathon

My first year of this "running thing" culminated with the Aramco Houston Half Marathon in January 2006 (2:42:04). It was rough, but I did not perish, so I came back and ran that race again this past January (2:27:30). This coming January, I'm going to up the insanity level by attempting the full 26.2 miles of the Chevron Houston Marathon. During my training, I wanted to insert at least one other race as a "tune-up." So I wound up choosing San Antonio for my third half marathon, and it would be the first time I've tried mixing traveling and racing together.

The starting line of the race is in Alamo Plaza near the front of the iconic building which houses the shrine to the sacrifices for Texan independence. I settle myself into the corral directly in front of the 4:45 marathon pace group. It's not an overwhelming crowd for Marathon Sunday in a big city; it looks like no more than about 4,000 runners between the full and half courses. The race was started by 19th century re-enactors firing into the air with what appeared to be flintrock rifles. As I crossed the starting mat and got underway, the one thought that rolled around in my head was, "Do not get get sucked into going out too fast." So off I went, striding at what I thought was a conservative pace.


Mile 01: 10:08
Unlike my experiences in Houston, the small field of runners meant that I wasn't expending energy negotiating a crowd in the first couple of miles; I was mostly free to settle into my own pace. As approached the one mile marker, I looked at my Garmin. I wasn't running as conservatively as I had imagined. "What the heck are you doing?," I berated myself. "This isn't a 10K! You're going to regret this later!"

Mile 02: 10:12
I deliberately tried to retard my pace but didn't really succeed much. On the second mile, the route goes by a business called "Hashers' Supply." (Only runners might know why that could be funny.)

Mile 03: 9:55
Mile 04: 9:47
After rising slightly in a northerly direction away from downtown, the course began to return back to the south. This began several miles of declining slope. In mile 4 I was afforded one of the most inspiring race vistas I've seen in my short running career -- hundreds and hundreds of runners with me flowing downhill across all four lanes of North St. Mary's Street into downtown San Antonio, like water over a pebbled stream bed.

I have a handheld Amphipod bottle that I've been carrying with me on my long runs lately. Laden with Gatorade, I was running with it today, and it let me pass up nearly every aid station on the course without having to slow or break pace. I was particularly thankful for this at the mile 4 marker. Between the water stop and long lines for the porta-potties, the entre width of West Houston Street was full of either standing or walking runners. Ironically, the sidewalk was clear, so I hopped the curb and barreled through.

Mile 05: 9:32
Mile 06: 9:55
Mile 07: 9:46
Mile 08: 9:42
Still aided by the slope, I steamrolled my way past the Greek Revival and Victorian-style homes of the King Williams Historic District. After the 6-mile marker, I looked at my Garmin again, contemplating how my in-race progress compared to my standing 10K race PR. I shook my head and moved on.

At around mile 7 I noticed someone running the race in full firefighter gear -- helmet, mask, firesuit, and oxygen tank!

Mile 09: 10:20
A few miles down Mission Road, the half-marathon course U-turns back towards the north. Now the slopes were reversed. It's a good thing the photographers were set up prior to this point, because now I was in for a fight and it wasn't going to be pretty!

Mile 10: 10:09
Mile 11: 10:28
Heading up South St. Mary's Street in miles 10 and 11, I mentally latched onto a lady runner with a dark ponytail and a Nathan hydration belt riding on her hips. Let's just say that following the bouncing bottles kept me on pace and was a welcome distraction from my tiring legs coming into the final 5K stretch.

At mile 11 I also had a little fun with the crowd: "Has anyone seen a stadium around here?" I yelled. The folks on the sidewalk pointed in the general direction of downtown and answered back, "Over there!"

Mile 12: 10:27
Approaching downtown, there's definitely discomfort at this point. I'm sure my expression wasn't pleasant, but I knew that if I could hold on I had a chance to do something special today. At one point, thoughts of walking were creeping in. I swept them aside, telling myself, "Yes, there are days when you need to walk. This is not one of them."

Mile 13: 10:51
I clung to my running cadence as I turned down Durango Street. After emerging from under the IH-37 overpass, I made my final turn. There's nothing quite like the sensation of just knowing the finish line of a race is just ahead. It's a heightened state of awareness that must be similar to what a predator experiences when its prey is in reach. Out of the sunshine, I plunged down a dimly lit ramp. Still barreling ahead at full speed, I darted under the finish clock and onto the floor of the Alamodome, fists in the air.

The poor announcer at the finish line stumbled over my name three times before giving up. I was so thrilled, I didn't care one bit!
Gun Time: 2:16:46
Chip Time: 2:13:35 (new half marathon PR)

Wow, what a ride!

do (run) while (date < 20071105)

October 29 through November 4:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
6 mi		7 mi			11 mi	xt1	24 mi

xt1 = 28 mile bike race
Looks like 127 miles run in the month of October

Tour de Donut

I ride my bike sometimes for cross-training purposes or just for fun, but prior to this morning, I had never rode in an organized cycling event or race. But when I found out this event was coming up I decided to give it a try.

I managed to look like a newbie right away. Unlike almost everyone else that showed up, I arrived with my number pinned to the front of my shirt. I suppose cyclists are very proud of their gluteus muscles and want to give everyone an excuse to look around that area. ;)

The start/finish area was the mall parking lot in front of the Sun and Ski Sports store. With the amount of cars parked in the area, you would have guessed that single store was having an after-Thanksgiving sale or something! What really surprised me was how long it took to get started. Being a newbie, I lined up in the back, just like I did when I started running road races. After the starting horn blew, it took SEVENTEEN MINUTES for me to reach the starting line. While we were standing and waiting, a kid on a mountain bike to my right suddenly lost his front tire with a loud "BANG" -- I guess it was overinflated just a little! Luckily, his dad was able to bring the bike right into the store for immediate repair. Finally, I rolled across the starting mats with the timing chip on my left ankle down low. I heard the reassuring "BEEP," started my Garmin, then joined the stream of cyclists on their way out of the parking lot.

Mile 01: 11.1 mph
Mile 02: 11.6 mph
Mile 03: 14.8 mph
The first few miles were very congested. The shoulder of the road was narrow, there were a lot of slower cyclists, and it was difficult to find passing room.

Mile 04: 15.0 mph
Mile 05: 15.1 mph
Mile 06: 15.2 mph
Mile 07: 12.9 mph
Mile 08: 13.8 mph
Mile 09: 13.3 mph
Mile 10: 15.4 mph
After making the turn onto FM1093, the crowd loosened up a little more. There was still quite a bit of effort expended in passing people, though.

Mile 11: 4.4 mph
This mile looks slow because it includes the first rest stop: Riders pulled over in the parking lot of a BBQ restaurant in the small town of Fulshear. I took one look at the thirty-deep line for the port-a-potties and decided that I should have no trouble putting off bladder business until after the race.

The "gimmick" to this race is that the rest stops would be well stocked with donuts. Every donut taken would subtract five minutes off of a rider's finishing time. I walked over to the donut table, took three Shipley's glazed and a volunteer drew three marks on the pull tag at the bottom of my race number bib. After downing the first donuts with no trouble, I returned to the table for three more. Then it was back on the road. I was one hour into my ride at this point.

Mile 12: 14.0 mph
Mile 13: 15.3 mph
Mile 14: 15.4 mph
Mile 15: 14.7 mph
Mile 16: 16.6 mph
Mile 17: 14.7 mph
Mile 18: 13.9 mph
Heading north on FM359 back towards the Interstate, I had fairly good passing room and used it a lot.

Mile 19: 6.1 mph
Arriving in Brookshire, I was presented with the second and final rest stop. I scored two more donuts, then made the decision that I had gotten my fill for the day. After washing down the last donut with Gatorade (The salty formulation was especially important today!) from my bike bottle I returned to the road. I was an hour and a half into my ride.

Mile 20: 17.7 mph
Mile 21: 19.0 mph
Mile 22: 19.5 mph
Mile 23: 17.7 mph
Mile 24: 16.3 mph
Mile 25: 17.8 mph
Mile 26: 18.5 mph
Mile 27: 17.4 mph
Mile 28: 17.2 mph
Now heading east on Highway 90 through Brookshire back towards the mall, I had a wide shoulder to work with and I was feeling flush with energy. "It's time to deliver," I said to my legs. I started cranking the bike hard. I was passing obviously-tiring cyclists at will, dozens of them.

At one point, I was rapidly approaching a group that was riding three abreast on the shoulder. There was car traffic in the right lane of the highway, so passing on the left wasn't a viable option. So I yelled out "ON YOUR RIGHT," rolled my Schwinn Suburban Sport onto the grassy shoulder next to the road and passed them. I heard one of the ladies mutter "Oh. My. God." as I went by. The only thing that slowed me down on this last section was climbing the overpass that would take me to the other side of the freeway.

According to my Garmin Forerunner, I crossed the finish line about two hours and seven minutes after I started. I had a blast and would definitely consider doing this race again. But next time, I won't start at the back!

Event: Tour de Donut
Location: Katy Mills Mall, Katy TX (and the towns of Fulshear and Brookshire)
Gun Time: 2:25:07
Chip Time: 2:07:10
Overall Placing (bike only): 127 out of 329
Gender Placing (bike only): 95th male out of 196
Overall Placing (donut-adjusted): 53
Benefits: Make-A-Wish Foundation of the Texas Gulf Coast and Louisiana

48 hours 'til it's time to eat the donuts!

With the Tour de Donut coming Sunday, I used this "rest" day in my schedule to liberally apply spray lube to my Schwinn Suburban Sport and go for a short 20 minute ride to make sure everything is "mechanically sane."

All systems appear to be "go" for now!

do (run) while (date < 20071029)

October 22 through 28:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
7 mi	7 mi	4 mi		xt1	18 mi		36 mi

xt1 = one hour (14 miles) on the bike

J's Bistro

When I read the September review of J's Bistro in the Houston Chronicle I knew that this was one restaurant I wanted to try. A place that bills itself as "Euro-Asian fusion" that's not inside the Loop or a touristy area like Kemah . . . but smack-dab in the middle of the bland, non-descript strip shopping centers of Bear Creek ( 4502 Highway 6 North near Aspenglen to be exact)? The owner is definitely a risk-taker!

Was it what I was hoping for? On the one hand, the food was a celebration of sights, smells and tastes. The bratwurst appetizer that we got to sample definitely had a kick to it. The cream of mushroom soup was OK, although I like my mushroom chunks a bit bigger. The duck breast with fig sauce, served over mashed sweet potato was fantastic.

The bad part was that despite the restaurant being half empty on Saturday night, they were still understaffed and it took nearly an hour and a half for our dinner entrees to arrive. I
got a complimentary dessert -- the key lime cake rocks -- but let's just say that it's a good thing my dinner partner and I were able to keep conversation going.

Would I go back? Yes, I'm hoping that the staff had an off night and that the positive reviews on B4-U-EAT are more typical. That area of town could really use a shot of fine dining and I'd like them to succeed. It took three visits before I saw the service at Studio Movie Grill finally "click" and I'm glad I didn't fully give up on them....

do (run) while (date < 20071022)

October 15 through 22:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
	8 mi	8 mi			16 mi		32 mi

New weekly mileage PR!

Harris County Fair and Rodeo

My little digicam was struggling under the fluorescent lights and fast action.

People in marathon training do it longer.

I just realized that I haven't officially announced this in the blog yet: I'm registered for the 2008 Chevron Houston Marathon. Yup, I got in before the cap got reached. We're going for it. Woohoo! And so the training begins to ramp up.

I'm back from this morning's long run. I logged 16 miles on the Garmin in 3:07:58. I even managed a negative split! (For the lay folks, that's running the second half faster than the first.) The first eight were done in 1:34:01, and the last eight were done in 1:33:57.

It was in the sixties Fahrenheit when I woke up this morning, and I think I really took advantage of the weather. It's so much nicer to be invigorated by the air instead of feeling sapped by the heat and humidity.

Naturally, I celebrated afterwards with a stop at Sonic Jog-In....



On the return leg, I passed this water meter cover. I want to think this is a good sign somehow:

Where did all the brown sugar go?

We'll make do with the white stuff I suppose. I'm usually in such a rush in the morning that I never take the time for any food that requires more than grab-n-go time. Since I'm home with a head cold, I'm going to actually put a wee bit of TLC into breakfast today.

do (run) while (date < 20071015)

October 8 through 14:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
	7 mi	5 mi		4 mi	3 mi xt1		19 mi

xt1 = 6 miles on bicycle

do (run) while date < (20071008)

October 1 through 7:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
5 mi	5 mi			xt1	13 mi	4 mi	27 mi

xt1 = 1 hour biking on Cullen Park trail

do (run) while (date < 20071001)

September 24 through 30:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
	6 mi	4 mi	5 mi		13 mi		28 mi

Looks like a total of 83 miles for the month of September.

do (run) while (date < 20070924)

September 17 through 23:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
xt1	6 mi	4 mi		5 mi	11 mi		26 mi

xt1=biked on Terry Hershey trail from the Beltway to Dairy Ashford and back in about an hour

Tour de Art Run

I've strolled art galleries before. I've run before. (duh) It never occurred to me to combine the two activities until this week. Friday, September 21 was designated by the Road Runners Club of America as National Run @ Work Day, and to celebrate, the Houston Striders hosted a "Tour de Art" event. I joined this evening group run as it snaked through and then outside the pile of skyscrapers in downtown Houston.

As we briefly stopped at 15 outdoor sculptures, our leader, Roger Boak, would introduce each piece and give us tidbits about the sculptor and how the piece ended up there. Many of the sculptures I had seen before (but didn't know anything about them) and some I would have never discovered if it wasn't for this tour. For example, "Big Bubble" by Dean Ruck is a concealed air compressor that sends up a burst of air from the bottom of Buffalo Bayou up to the surface when triggered by a switch on a nearby ledge. (We all agreed that this would be great to try out on unsuspecting kayakers/canoeists!)

The last artwork in the run was the Police Officers Memorial. I have driven by it many times, but have never gotten a close look at it. Tonight I realized why. The field it is in is cut off from the rest of Eleanor Tinsley Park by Memorial Drive. To get to it, we took a dirt path under a nearby bridge. It's a shame that this monument to fallen officers isn't more accessible to the public. A pedestrian bridge spanning Memorial Drive would be useful at that spot.

Had I been more foresightful, I would have brought my "real" digital camera. But I didn't, so instead I can only present a handful of low-res cameraphone shots:



The group takes off in the shadow of City Hall.


The Virtuoso by David Adickes


Points of View by James Surls


Monument to the Phantom by Jean Dubuffet



Me, in front of Personage with Birds by Joan Miro



Runners climb to the top of Houston Police Officers' Memorial by Jesus Bautista Morales. Yeah, it was getting pretty dark by the end.



The memorial looks like this in the daytime. On all four sides of the upright pyramid are four inverted pyramids of matching size, carved in sunken relief into the ground.

do (run) while date < (20070917)

September 10 through 16:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
4 mi		8 mi			8 mi	5 mi	25 mi

Returning back to 20+

do (run) while (date < 20070910)

September 3 through 9:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
4 mi							4 mi

The technical term is "post-race blah."

Fired Up 5K

With a 7:00 a.m. start and a cloudy sky, the sun was not a factor on this Labor Day morning. The warmth and humidity were factors, however, and my clothes were quite damp with perspiration after only a half-mile warm-up jog!

The crowd at this year's Fired Up 5K was oddly serious. Usually I can strike up a light-hearted exchange with the people around me during a race, but most everyone seemed so focused (or lost in their headphones) and no one wanted to return my chatter. I also seemed to be the only one in my vicinity who cheered on the leaders on the back half of the out-and-back course. Come on, it's not as if we -- "we" meaning anyone running close to my pace -- are actually in the running to win anything! Don't forget to have fun and support the achievements of fellow runners, folks!

The 5K distance is always an uncomfortable one to race for me, because there's little thought to endurance, only speed. There's nothing better than setting your lungs on a low flame for half an hour, is there!? After hustling through the first mile in 8:45, I settled in and held a pace in the nines the rest of the way, but it wasn't easy! At this time, I'd like to thank the nameless lady in the pink running skirt in front of me for her wordless motivation during that tough third mile. :) And I needed it then, too, because I got one of my dreaded waves of nausea with only a quarter-mile left in the race! So I did walk for a few seconds until the urge to heave left my belly.

This is the view runners see as they make their final turn to the end of the course:


Here I am, checking my Garmin unit at the finish as only the geeky do:


I've got a new 5K personal record time of 28:53. This still put me near the bottom of my age group, but I would have been less than a minute from a third-place age-group award if was in the 20-24 age group. Weird, eh?

Link to more photos by the official photographer, Raceshots.net

This was my third time to run through the fire station. I do like this trend:

2005 Fired Up 5K: 35:22
2006 Fired Up 5K: 31:59
2007 Fired Up 5K: 28:53

Just because I know that certain ladies seem to like 'em, here's a gratuitous shot of the resident firefighters thanking the runners for helping them support the Muscular Dystrophy Association:


What I liked this year was that the race organizers automatically entered all registrants into the door prize drawing, and being present wasn't necessary to win. This was much better than last year, when a representative of the community association was drawing numbers in one area at the same time the race winners were being announced and recognized in another. That was just discourteous in my opinion.

One more oddity: There were age group awards for literally everyone. They even had a "no age" award category for males and females that declined to list their age on their registration!!! Guess what? I would have come home with a first-place award if I had simply left the age field blank. Isn't that crazy?

Event: Fired Up 5K (3 Sep 2007)
Location: Fire Station No. 5, Sugar Land TX
Result: 28:53 (chip), 28:56 (Forerunner 101), 9th-of-14 in 30-34 age group
Benefits: Muscular Dystrophy Association

do (run) while (date < 20070903)

August 27 through September 2:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
			6 mi				6 mi

71 miles logged for month of August. Introduced fresh pair of Saucony Trigon 4 Guide during the only run this past week. I did play around Lake Livingston during the weekend, so at least I wasn't a total couch potato.

do (run) while date < (20070827)

August 20 through 27:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
		3 mi			10 mi		13 mi

The two-hour mile

I know I'm slow, but this is ridiculous!

Well, OK, what really happened is that my Garmin unit decided to reset its distance counter towards the end of what was in fact a ten-mile distance this morning. However, the timer kept right on going.

Maybe a shiny new ForeRunner 301 isn't such a bad idea for a birthday gift to self this year.

Still, it is funny to see myself credited for 1.07 mi for 2:11:41 effort. I guess it didn't want me to get conceited about my fitness progress or something.

The 199 special . . . enjoy it while it lasts!

I had just gotten home from a quick sunset three-miler down the neighborhood boulevard and back. After showering off, I decided to step on the scale.

I looked at the readout, then stepped off.

I stepped on the scale a second time, looked at the readout again, shook my head, then stepped off.

Thinking that gravity was malfunctioning in that spot in the bathroom, I moved the scale to a different spot, and stepped on for a third time. I knew I had to snap a picture to really believe this:

First, I apologize for having ugly feet.

Second, I realize that was the result of mostly sweat loss, and I bounced right back to 202 pounds after rehydrating and eating dinner. But I honestly cannot recollect the last time I saw my weight in pounds start with a "1" in any circumstance. Maybe it was as a high school underclassman????

do (run) while date < (20070820)

August 13 through 19:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
		5 mi	7 mi		8 mi		20 mi

do (run) while date < (20070812)

August 6 through 12:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
5 mi		5 mi	3 mi		9 mi		22 mi

do (run) while date < (20070805)

July 30 through August 5:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
		5 mi	5 mi				10 mi

Weekend in Corpus Christi. The call of the surf was stronger than the call of the streets!
For the month of July, a total of 86 miles.

do (run) while date < (20070730)

July 23 through 29:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
6 mi		6 mi	5 mi				17 mi

The 20+ streak is stopped at seven weeks in a row.

do (run) while date < (20070723)

July 16 through 22:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
5 mi		5 mi	5 mi		8 mi		23 mi

do (run) while date < (20070716)

July 9 through 15:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
		5 mi	5 mi		8 mi	3 mi	21 mi

do (run) while date < (20070709)

July 2 through 8:

MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT	SUN	TOTAL
	2 mi	4 mi		4 mi	7 mi	3	20 mi

This is the fifth week in a row at 20 or more miles.

Reading, Writing, and Twice-a-Day Smooching

Today is the 7th day of the 7th month of 2007. So what better way to start it than a 7-mile jog? On my way back, I passed by a school -- on 7th Street -- with a "BUSSES ONLY / 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM / 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM" sign.

I guess this is where the pre-teens are expected to take care of their making-out before and after class.