Sunday, September 24, 2006

Training 9/18 - 9/24 and Sedalia Duathlon

Mon-Cycling – 22 mi, 1:27:56, 4:00/mi

Tues- Tripp 10K, 6.2 mi, 43:44, 7:03/mi; started out slower with warmup for the first 2 miles and easily running sub-7 miles the last 4 miles.

Wed-Rest

Thurs-MKT (progressively faster run), 5.9 mi, 44:55, 7:37/mi

Fri-Rest

Sat-Columbia Half Marathon Course, 13.3 mi, 1:49:52, 8:15/mi; We ran the end of the course incorrectly and ended up a little longer. This race is next week. Probably was not good to run this much the day before the duathlon, but felt I needed the mileage this week.

Sun-I woke up feeling sore which is unusual for a slower paced run. I was trying to run quietly (less impact) yesterday so maybe I used some leg muscles differently.

We left for the duathlon about 5:45 and picked up Hugh’s teammate on the way. We arrived in Sedalia about 7:20. I didn’t get a chance to warm up for the run and really didn’t feel that great. Once we started though I was in race-mode. First mile in 6:09, second in 6:23 and last 1.1 mile in 7:00 for a total of 19:32 for the first 5K. I passed at least one guy in the latter part but otherwise maintained my position.

Then off to the bike and I think I had a fairly quick (less than a minute) transition but didn't keep track of the time and the results included it in the bike time. I couldn’t seem to get my left foot clipped in for a few blocks but got off to a good start otherwise. The bike was out 9.3 miles with a couple turns and then back. The course was rolling but no severe hills. I didn’t see anyone close behind me until after the turnaround when I was passed by a couple guys. On the way back the wind was terrible and I’m sure I was slower than on the way out. By the time I was done with the bike I felt pretty spent. Counting the run to bike transition bike time was 59:23. Transition to the run wasn’t as quick as I would have liked (feeling shaky) since I was a little slow getting my running shoes on. Transition to the run was 50 seconds.

I didn’t have too much trouble getting into running mode and it was actually a relief to be running although pace was slower than first 5K which I expected. I passed one of the bikers that passed me early in the run. First mile split was 6:51, second was 6:50, and the last 1.1 (passed another of the bikers that passed me) was about 7:16 for a total of 20:57. Overall time was 1:40:42 which is 20 seconds slower overall than last year. My first 5K was faster 10 seconds faster than last year and my second was 13 seconds slower. I think the second 5K wasn’t so good due to the wind on the bike making me tired.

I thought Hugh’s teammate was surely going to pass me in the second half of the bike ride but she did not. However, they gained about 4 minutes on me since she is faster than me. Hugh ran each 5K in 22-something. Out of 3 teams, they placed first and won GOLD medals! Hugh ran the first 5K in 22:39 and the second in 23:28. Judy's bike time was 57:16 for a total of 1:43:23.

I placed second in my age group of 30 – 39 and won a SILVER medal plus a pottery mug. Actually, placed 3rd but the guy in my age group won. I placed 8th overall out 37. Last year I placed 9th out of 29 individuals and 4th in age group (got 3rd place award). So as far as placing, I seemed to improve.

Not real happy with my performance on the bike, but can’t do much about the windy conditions. I felt the running was good considering my legs did not feel fresh and I didn’t put forth all my effort on the first 5K. I felt like I recovered pretty well from the bike during the run and not a bad second 5K either.

The three of us went to Arby's in Sedalia to get something to eat after the race, and we wore our medals.

Sedalia Duathlon Course Map, Elevation, and Timex Data.

Running: 31.6

Cycling: 40.6 mi

Weight-lifting: 0 min

YTD Running: 1450.06 mi

YTD Cycling: 575.6 mi

By the end of the week, I felt pretty tired this week. I really need to take it easy next week so I’m ready for the half on Saturday.

October 1-Columbia Half Marathon Challenge
October 7- MU Vet School Dog Jog 5K
October 22nd-Chicago Marathon

Sunday, September 17, 2006

Training 9/11 - 9/17 and Chevy's 5K

Mon-Rest

Tues- Dreier Dirty Dozen, 9.1 1:06:27, 7:18/mi; It was raining a bit when we started and progressively rained harder. My shoes were thoroughly soaked. I was surprised my time on this course was the fastest this year.

Wed-Rest

Thurs-Rock Quarry, 7.5 mi, 57:25, 7:39/mi

Cycling – 22 mi, 1:14:30, 3:23/mi; I was planning to only go 15 miles, but then decided to complete the 22 mile loop since I was making good time. This ended up being the fastest training time I have done on this course. It’s amazing what a difference 1 mph can shave off my time.

Fri-Rest

Sat-Chevy’s Mexican Independence Day 5K

We decided to sleep in a bit and woke up about 6:30 to get ready to leave at 7:15 for the race. This is the 4th annual race and I have ran this one every year. Last year I ran, but didn’t race it since it was 2 days before the HOA marathon. We consumed our pre-race shake and headed out the door.

I’m not sure if I wasn’t awake, but didn’t feel real energetic. We picked up our race numbers and shirts and then had a few minutes to warm-up. After 1.5 miles of warm-up, I felt much better. At this point, it was about 5 minutes until the race started.

This year the race started in the parking lot of Chevy’s instead of in the road as in past years. This worked much better. Last year we had a false start due to traffic. I took off with the lead pack (me and 2 other runners). There was another super fast guy that was immediately ahead of us and definitely not our competition.

I knew one of the runners and in other 5K races we are frequently close, but he usually beats me. I’ve beat him at longer distances though. A race a few years ago, I used him to set my pace and finished one second behind him in a 5K. He wasn’t in my age group at that time, but he is now in my age group. I was running right behind him and then passed him near the beginning. He caught up to me and another guy as well so the 3 of us were running side by side. First mile split was 5:53.

The three of us continued to run side by side. I really didn’t plan this, but it felt like a good pace for me so I stayed with them. Second mile split was 5:59. I’m thinking this is feeling like a real race since I’ve never been that close with 2 other runners for that long. I’m also thinking that at this pace I have a chance of possibly setting a new 5K PR. Even though this is a pretty flat course, I usually run it in around 20 min. After feeling great for the first 2 miles, the third mile, I didn’t feel so energetic The guy that I know started to pull a bit ahead and left us in the dust, and then the other guy was a bit ahead of me too.

I think I erred at this point since I didn’t try hard enough to stay with either of them. I need to remember that the last mile in a 5K isn’t going to be easy. So at this point, I am in 4th place overall and just trying to hang on. Another guy catches me and passes me somewhere between 2.5 and 3 mi. At 3 mi, my split is 6:45. I think I could have run it faster. I push hard until the end and run the last 0.1 in 37 seconds for a total time of 19:14. The guy ahead of me is 19:07, guy ahead of him is 19:01, and the other guy that left us in the dust is 18:39 which I think was a PR for him. He ran a great race. I wish I had tried harder to stay with him. The guy that finished ahead of me was kneeling and dry heaving so I had to duck under the tape to exit the finishing shoot.

The guy that won the race in 16:51 was in my age group, the guy that placed second was in my age group, so I received the 3rd place medal for my age group. I feel like I probably should have placed at least 3rd overall as well if I had pushed a little harder. I wasn’t puking like the guy in front of me so he obviously ran a harder race. I felt good after stopping.

I was 5th of 157 runners and Hugh placed 24th overall and also 3rd in his age group. His time was 22:46 which he wasn’t real happy, but I thought he did very well. He thought he should have been faster than last year, but he was 10 seconds slower.

My time was a 40 second PR for this course so I can definitely be happy about that even though I truly feel I could have run a smarter race in that last mile. That last mile is very mental and I just didn’t focus enough.

3.1 mi, 19:14, 6:12/mi, avg HR was 162 (proof that I didn’t run hard enough!)

Chevy’s 5K Results

Sun-The plan for today was to do a 4 mi run, 22 mi bike, and a 4 mi run. However, it rained all morning and was still raining in the afternoon. Instead, I decided to do a 16 mi run and Hugh joined me on the MKT for a 14 mile run. By the time we started our run it was barely raining and stopped shortly after we started.

MKT (flat course), 16 mi, 1:58:52, 7:26/mi

I was very happy with my splits for this run:

M1-7:36
M2-7:33
M3-7:34
M4-7:21
M5-7:37
M6-7:20
M7-7:35
M8-7:26 (1:00:02)
M9-7:31
M10-7:27
M11-7:20
M12-7:27
M13-7:23
M14-7:15
M15-7:13
M16-7:11 (58:50 for the second 8 miles)

Felt great after this run and not totally spent.

Running: 37.1

Cycling: 22 mi

Weight-lifting: 0 min

YTD Running: 1418.46 mi

YTD Cycling: 535 mi

September 24-Sedalia Fall Duathlon
October 1-Columbia Half Marathon Challenge
October 7- MU Vet School Dog Jog 5K
October 22nd-Chicago Marathon

Sunday, September 10, 2006

Training 9/4 - 9/10

Mon- Heart of America Marathon, 26.2 mi, 3:07:42, 7:10/mi

Tues- Dave's Dirty Devil Run-Walked C Route, 5.2 mi, 1:14:51, 14:24/mi

Cycling – 22 mi, 1:34:00, 4:16/mi

Wed-Rest

Thurs-MKT, 6 mi, 51:03, 8:30/mi

Cycling – 22 mi, 1:18:30, 3:34/mi

Fri-Rest

Sat- ½ marathon challenge course, 12.8 mi, 1:46:36, 8:20/mi

Sun-Cycling, 16 mi, 59:39, 3:43/mi

Immediately followed by 4 mi run, 31:02, 7:46/mi

Running: 54.2 mi (includes 5.2 mi walk)

Cycling: 60 mi

Weight-lifting: 0 min

YTD Running: 1381.26 mi

YTD Cycling: 513 mi

September 16-Chevy's Mexican Independence Day 5K Run
September 24-Sedalia Fall Duathlon
October 1-Columbia Half Marathon Challenge
October 7-MU Vet School Dog Jog 5K
October 22nd-Chicago Marathon

Monday, September 04, 2006

2006 Heart of America Marathon

Today was the 47th annual Heart of America Marathon in Columbia, MO which I ran for the 3rd year in a row. This is one of the oldest marathons and attracts around 100+ people
each year. I set the alarm for 4:00 and slept pretty well for about 6 ½ hrs. I had my pre-race meal (protein shake with banana and yogurt, another yogurt, Clif Bar), hydrated myself until 5 am. At 5:20, we left home to head to the race which starts at 6 am.

The start is near the old basketball arena near MU. This year we parked at the Campus Inn and I was able to use the restrooms one last time before walking to the start.

There were 138 registered runners and it was difficult to see who was there, but I recognized and talked to several other runners before the race. Some were planning to run the first half and then drop out. Hugh and I entered most of the registrations into a spreadsheet last night so we would be ready to post times today. Quite a few runners wait to register until the morning of the marathon since there is no penalty and they probably wait to see if the weather is going to be decent.

Temperature at the start was about 60 F, 93% humidity and fog. My goal was to try to run as good a race as I did on this course last year when I ran it in 3:10:12 and placed 7th overall. As usual, it was difficult to see the watch for the first couple miles, but I held back the pace and let the faster starters go ahead. At mile 2 my time was 14:48 which I felt was a nice conservative starting pace. At this point, I decided to pick it up a little and see how I felt and ran mile 3 in 7:03. Miles 4 – 7 were all 6:45 – 6:58. I was told I was in 7th place at about mile 8 and then passed my first runner shortly after.

From this point until the first half (at the top of the worst hill), my pace dropped a bit on the hills, and on the worst hill it was 7:42 which was much better than last year when I ran 8:15 on the hill. I was wearing the Timex GPS and heart rate monitor today. Heart rate climbed to 160 on the hill. At 13.1, my time was called out at 1:33:00. I still felt pretty good so picked the pace back up to 7:06 for mile 14.

I passed 3 different people the rest of the race. I found it unusual that I was passed by some different people than the ones that I passed. There was no passing back and forth the same person. I alternated between 6th and 7th place. At about mile 19, the guy ahead of me was starting to walk and I easily passed him. The hill in mile 20 always seems to tire me on this course and my legs were starting to feel a bit fatigued. I had been taking Honey Stingers every 4 – 5 miles and quite a few times I used some of my water to cool myself. The cold water down my back always seemed to help pick up the pace a little.

After mile 20, I’m thinking if I can just hold on and keep the pace at least 7:10/mi, I should set a PR for this course. I’m just not sure if I can do it, but once the road flattened out, I was able to get back on pace.

I was dreading mile 24 since it is the last hill. It really isn’t that steep, but it seems really long. I managed a 7:34 on this mile. Before the race today I hoped I wouldn’t slow down the last few miles. I did slow down, but it was less of a slowdown than last year. Mile 25 was 7:29 and the last 1.2 was 8:43 so I ran all miles less than an 8 minute pace this year. Last year I had 2 miles at 8+. I pushed myself a little on the last 1.2 and it felt like a strong finish. I didn’t even see the clock at the finish, but checked my watch once I got my medal and plaque (3rd in age group of 35 – 39). My time was 3:07:42, 2.5 min faster than last year and a course PR. I was happy with this time and I placed 6th overall out of 113 people that finished. Both guys that beat me in my age group were 35.

There were water stations about every 4 miles and sometimes more often. I took water at all the stations except one even though I didn't always feel like drinking. A couple entertaining guys on the course riding their tandem bike gave me water once and also offered me a cigarette and some M&Ms at some point, but I declined.

The Timex Bodylink was very useful in helping me set a pace for the entire race it seemed to always have a signal. I also picked up the pace a little when the heart rate dropped into the 140s on the flats. Average heart rate was about 150 - 153.

Everyone always likes to run negative splits and I’m sure a few people did on this course, but it is tough since the second half has more hills than the first half. Although the hill at the end of the first half is the worst hill.

No pain or cramping issues until after the race. My left calf almost cramped when I took my shoe off to get in the ice cold pool at the finish. I couldn’t stay in there very long since it was too cold. My legs are feeling achy already, but muscles aren’t feeling tight as last year. After about half hour I ate a banana and grapes, and watched more people finish. It’s fun to watch people finish since some of these runners I know didn’t sign up until today.

We had 1 runner from Moscow this year, and several out of state. The race results
One of the local news stations covered the race and we posted the news video at the Google Video website. I spotted myself near the beginning, but it is difficult to see. At 1 min into the video to about 1:06, you will see some headlights ahead of a runner which is me. Unfortunately, we didn’t get any other pictures and I’m not sure if anyone was taking pictures or not. I also posted the data from the Bodylink to the Bones in Motion website BIM Blog which shows the elevation for the course and a map.

I have the day off work tomorrow to recover. I’m planning to walk tomorrow morning and ride the bike later. I may try running a little on Thursday depending on how the legs feel, otherwise I will wait until Saturday.

Here are my splits below. I must be improving since last year I only had 2 sub-7 min miles on this course and I had 7 sub-7 miles today. Often it is difficult to believe in your training when you are feeling so fatigued week after week, but it usually pays off every time once you taper for the race.

1-7:20
2-7:28
3-7:03
4-6:48
5-6:58
6-6:45
7-6:53
8-7:22 (Hill)
9-7:02
10-6:47
11-7:07
12-7:13
13-7:42 (Hill) (much better on the hill than I expected)

13.1-1:33:00 (last year I was 1:35:00 at this point)

14-7:06
15-7:16
16-6:57
17-6:52
18-7:10 (Hill)
19-7:04
20-7:32 (Hill)
21-7:08
22-7:16
23-7:04
24-7:34 (Hill)
25-7:29
26.2-8:43

3:07:42 - 2006, 3:10:12 - 2005, 3:18:59 - 2004

Columbia Tribune Article

Sunday, September 03, 2006

Training 8/28 - 9/3

Mon-Rest

Tues- President’s Hill, 7.5 mi, 54:43: 7:18/mi

Wed-Rest

Thurs- Rain Run, 7.1 mi, 53:24, 7:31/mi

Fri-Rest

Sat- MKT, 6 mi, 49:41, 8:17/mi

Sun-Rest

I feel more rested this week. I’m not sure what to expect tomorrow. I never know how I feel until the day of the race. I will just go out not too fast the first 3 miles and try to keep a fairly consistent pace as I get to race pace. I would be happy to run about the same race as last year except run the last 2 miles the same as the rest of the race. Last year I ran this course at about 7:16 average.

Running: 20.6 mi

Cycling: 0 mi

Weight-lifting: 0 min

YTD Running: 1327.06 mi

YTD Cycling: 453 mi

September 4th-Heart of America Marathon
September 16-Chevy's Mexican Independence Day 5K Run
September 24-Sedalia Fall Duathlon
October 1-Columbia Half Marathon Challenge
October 22nd-Chicago Marathon