Just Run for a Just Cause 10K

I began the morning by slicing a fingertip with one of my fingernails while tying the drawstring on my shorts.

Yup, that's the kind of pro runner I am.

After applying a Band-Aid and muttering, "Who does this!?" a few times, I was on my way to the Just Run for a Just Cause at Kingsland Baptist Church in Katy. I just wanted to give myself a little test to make sure I haven't forgotten too much about race execution.

I'll generously grade myself a D-plus for this one. The course is a semi-shaded 5K loop on suburban concrete. I would be circling it twice for 10K distance. The first loop went by in about 32 minutes. This was way too easy, so of course I immediately hit trouble in the form of lightheadedness and a feeling that control of my breathing was slipping away. I think I can put the blame on any combination of the following causes:

• A little too much caffeination before the race.
• An arcing sun dialing up the mid-morning temperature to almost 80F.
• Pushing the pace too fast too soon.
• More than the recommended daily allowance of running skirt sightings.

I decided that the smart thing to do was to slow down before I gave myself a lovely case of heat exhaustion. So I completed my second loop at long-run pace, basically keeping myself in line behind a guy sporting excellent facial hair and a finisher shirt from the Cowtown Half Marathon. With the power of Cowtown Soul Patch leading the way, I trundled back into the church parking lot in a total time of about 1:11, which is totally acceptable versus laying myself out on a random curb with my heartrate skyrocketing.

This run was a benefit event to fund aftercare for women rescued from human trafficking operations. The shirts given to today's registrants were created in a factory that gives these rescued women jobs outside of the sex trade. They sport a unique design, with the race name on the back and signatures of some of the workers on the front.

Today was the race debut of a new pair of shoes, the Asics Gel Phoenix. Interestingly enough, years ago I was in "shoe love" with Saucony's Grid Phoenix which was discontinued, so it's a wonderful happenstance that the competition also picked up the "Phoenix" moniker years later for mild stability running shoes. They even have the nice wide toebox that had been a Saucony hallmark.

So I'll close this report with a question: Before I run away with the stupid-injury crown, what is the wackiest race day injury you've had that had nothing to do with running the race itself?

The splits:

Mile 1 - 9:59
Mile 2 - 10:31
Mile 3 - 11:20
Mile 4 - 11:20
Mile 5 - 12:40
Mile 6 - 13:10
Last .2 - 2:30
10K Elapsed Time - 1:11:32 per Garmin Forerunner 205

Ever call in an order for "wildflowers" and have "wildfires" show up instead?

The other morning, I woke up listening to the update on Tropical Storm Lee and had a really good laugh when I heard that the tropical storm watch area stopped at Sabine Pass. It's like the weather knows exactly where the state border is located. Houston, normally gifted generously with moisture from the Gulf of Mexico, continues to be hit with the Texas Drought of 2011.

It's been so dry that my neighborhood reservoir caught fire twice this past week. When the air has been just right this summer, I can still catch a whiff of ashes from a fire that burned about a hundred acres just after Memorial Day. During this morning's long run, I got a look at a small pumping base the fire department has set up to fill up their tanker trucks with water from Langham Creek in case another flareup appears.

The run itself was a wholly impromptu affair with a lot of unplanned sidetracking to check out how the flora and fauna are faring. The 11-mile Garmin track resembles a rough sketch of an amoeba. I'm continuing my experimentation with fueling, and after last week's Sport Beans, today's choice was an old friend, Vanilla Bean GU Gel. I can't exactly say I enjoy eating them, but the packets are very compact and they still digest readily.

Just for fun, I'll leave the next few choices up to the audience:

GU Chomps vs. Clif Shot Bloks -- between those two, which should I take with me on the next long run? (The other, of course will be used on the one after that.)

And, what's your favorite stowaway on-the-run energy source that I should try next?