Training 2/19 - 2/25

Mon- Feeling very tired so took an extra rest day.

Tues- Rain Route West Blvd – Reverse (not raining), 8.3 mi, 58:40, 7:04/mi
We altered the route a bit since the trail still had snow and ice. Some icy patches on the roads and my light went out. Stayed with Phil and had a good run.

Afternoon: Rock Bridge State Park, 7.1 mi, 1:31:13, 12:51/mi; Trail was icy and snow and in some places I had to walk. I was very cautious and didn’t fall down once although I almost lost my balance many times.

Wed- Rest

Thurs- Tripp 10K, 6.2 mi, 43:24, 7:00/mi
Trail portion was quite slippery in places. I didn’t really expect this to be a fast run, but once again, I stayed with Phil after he caught up to me for most of the run until he sped up during the last 1.5 mi. I’m sure I didn’t slow down since this was a fast time for this course.

Afternoon: Rock Bridge State Park, 6.7 mi, 1:17:15, 11:15/mi; Wore my Screw Shoes and was able to run over any ice patches although it wasn’t as bad as Tuesday. The shoes really gripped the ice quite well.

My very own screw shoes

Fri- Treadmill, 4.2 mi, 38:23, 9:08/mi

Sat- Column’s Run, 10 mi, 1:32:04, 9:12/mi
Temperature was about 39F but it was windy. Started to rain at about 3 miles. There were a lot of runners out running in this crappy weather. Even though I didn’t feel cold during the run, I couldn’t seem to get warmed up after the run.

Sun- MKT, 18.3 mi, 2:25:41, 7:55/mi
I was hoping for a faster pace, but had a few obstacles. There was ice on one portion of the trail, but doubt it slowed me down too much. The brisk wind and very soft trail probably slowed me down the most. It rained this weekend and the regular trail was flooded between the 7 and 7.5 mi so I had to take a detour on the upper trail next to the waste water treatment area. The wind was worse up there.

Afternoon: Upper body weights, 40 min

Running: 60.9 mi

Weight-lifting: 40 min

YTD Running: 456.9 mi

March 17th-St. Patrick’s Day 5K
March 24th-Sedalia Half Marathon
May 19th-Berryman Trail Marathon
September 3rd-Heart of America Marathon

Training 2/12 - 2/18

Mon- Treadmill, 4 mi, 36:23, 9:06/mi

Tues- MKT, 6.6 mi, 54:17, 8:13/mi
Ran in 3 inches of snow and snowing during run.

Evening: Upper body weights, 53 min
Treadmill, 4 mi, 36:06, 9:01/mi

Wed- Rest

Thurs- Tripp 10K, 6.2 mi, 45:08, 7:17/mi
First 2 miles on the snow covered trail.

Evening: Treadmill, 4 mi, 35:23, 8:51/mi

Fri- Treadmill, 4 mi, 33:23, 8:21/mi

Sat- MKT, 10 mi, 1:51:31, 11:09/mi
2 more inches of snow and 3 by the time we were done running.

Sun- Brown School Rd, 16 mi, 2:12:06, 8:15/mi
I ran in the afternoon and the gravel roads were slushy and spongy. I didn’t feel like doing weights so skipped the weight workout. I think I need to try to schedule on a different day than my long run or get the long run done in the morning.

A few miles less than last week, but good considering the snow.

Running: 54.8 mi

Weight-lifting: 53 min

YTD Running: 396 mi

I’ve made a change to my schedule, deciding not to run my marathon on April 1st. Instead, I have scheduled a half marathon on March 24th, and will focus on the trail marathon. I need to start running on the trails to prepare.

March 17th-St. Patrick’s Day 5K
March 24th-Sedalia Half Marathon
May 19th-Berryman Trail Marathon
September 3rd-Heart of America Marathon

Training 2/5 - 2/11

Mon- Treadmill, 6 mi, 57:42, 9:37/mi
Very tired legs.

Tues- Ice Run, 6.2 mi, 44:59, 7:15/mi

Evening: Treadmill, 4 mi, 34:40, 8:40/mi
Forgot to do weights, but was too tired anyway.

Wed- Rest

Thurs- Rain Run – West Blvd, 7.6 mi, 55:44, 7:20/mi

Evening: Upper body weights, 44 min
Treadmill, 4 mi, 35:45, 8:56/mi

Fri- Oakland Rd 5.5 mi, 49:25, 8:59/mi
At the 2 mile point, I ran six 200 m hill repeats where I sprinted up the hill. HR only got up to 155. I need a longer hill to test MHR.

Sat- Column’s Run, 10 mi, 1:25:51, 8:35/mi

Sun- Upper body weights, 40 min

I waited until the afternoon to run since not enough time in morning. Calves were sore. Most likely the hill repeats from Friday. I really need to make sure I do those every week until I taper.

Prathersville + Derby Ridge, 20.5 mi, 2:51:15, 8:21/mi
Pace faster than last week, but legs felt sore. I was slow on the hills.

Running: 63.8 mi

Weight-lifting: 84 min

YTD Running: 341.2 mi

March 17th-St. Patrick’s Day 5K
April 1st-Hogeye Marathon
May 19th-Berryman Trail Marathon
September 3rd-Heart of America Marathon

Training 1/29 - 2/4 and Nut Race 5K

Mon- Treadmill, 6 mi, 51:18, 8:33/mi

Tues- Snow Route (9 F -12 F wind chill), 6.2 mi, 43:34, 7:02/mi
Face went numb and wanted to get the run over with as quickly as possible.

Evening: Upper Body Weights, 47 min
Treadmill, 4 mi, 33:42, 8:26/mi

Wed- Rest

Thurs- Diva Run, 6.2 mi, 48:19, 7:48/mi
About 1 inch of fresh snow made footing difficult. As I was moving over to the shoulder about 4.5 miles, I twisted my ankle stepping on the uneven crack between the road and the shoulder. I didn’t fall and maintained my balance, but it really hurt. I kept running and the pain seemed to mostly subside. I was very worried this incident was going to prevent me from running for a few days.

Evening: Treadmill, 4 mi, 39:54, 9:58/mi
Ankle hurt a little so I kept the pace very slow. I think my stride was off due to my ankle since my knees were aching just a little too.

Fri- Treadmill, 4 mi, 34:03, 8:31/mi
Barely noticed the ankle.

Sat- Treadmill, 6 mi, 54:12, 9:02/mi + Nut Race 5K
I decided Friday night to get up and run 6 miles on the treadmill before the 5K nut race at 9 am. Temperature was about 5 F with a negative wind chill at 7 am. By the time we left for the race, it had warmed up to about 9 F and I think a -5 wind chill. We arrived about 10 minutes before the race began and in order to stay warm I ran a little. There were 29 crazy runners that started and it was difficult to recognize some due to their face masks. I didn’t really have a goal time and cold temps usually slow me down during a 5K.

This course is a loop that we run around about 3 ½ times and every time we would catch the strong N-NW wind. Immediately my fingers went numb wearing 2 pairs of gloves but my face still had some sensation. My first mile split was 6:23, not too good for me but felt pretty good other than I couldn’t feel my fingers. 2nd mile split was a little slower at 6:31 but I did pass one runner. Somewhere during mile 3, I could hear someone behind me and he finally made a move. It was Steve S-F and he was holding a good pace and I let him go. Then I could hear someone else and I was determined to not let anyone else pass me this close to the end so I picked up the pace on the last half loop. 3rd mile split was 6:23. As we were almost to the finish I could hear faster footsteps behind me so I kicked it in. It turned out to be Phil S. as I suspected. He often seems to push me in 5Ks and beats me but I finished in 19:55, 2 seconds ahead of him.

I placed 7th overall out of 29 runners and first in the 35 – 39 age group and received a jar of honey roasted peanuts. Hugh finished in 23:59, 2nd in age group. Matt D won the race with an impressive time of 17:25. Overall results have been posted at Nut Race 5K. I’m pretty happy with my time considering the cold and my ankle cooperated with very little pain most of the race. On Sunday there was a nice article about the race Nut cases take to the streets. It’s nice to see the paper acknowledge there are other local sports.

Sun- Upper body weights, 44 min
At 8 AM is was 4 F and negative wind chill so I decided to do my weight workout first and wait to run until the afternoon.

Prathersville + Oakland Park, 18 mi, 2:33:15, 8:31/mi
I started the run about 1:30 and it had warmed up to 22F with some strong wind gusts and a wind chill around 6 F. I stayed plenty warm during the run, but at times the wind almost blew me over. I also had some fresh gravel on one of the roads that was difficult to run. It was a tough run to complete but I finished. My pace isn’t quite where I wanted it to be but considering the wind, ice and snow on parts of the course, still not too bad for a hilly course.

Running: 57.5 mi

Weight-lifting: 91 min

YTD Running: 277.4 mi

March 17th-St. Patrick’s Day 5K
April 1st-Hogeye Marathon
May 19th-Berryman Trail Marathon
September 3rd-Heart of America Marathon

Training 1/22 - 1/28

Mon- Treadmill, 6 mi, 52:16, 8:43/mi

Tues- Tripp 10K, 6.2 mi, 44:18, 7:09/mi
First 2 miles difficult to run on snow covered trail.

Evening: Upper Body Weights, 45 min
Treadmill, 4 mi, 30:00, 7:30/mi

Wed- Rest

Thurs- Rain Run (modified course), 8.3 mi, 58:31, 7:03/mi
Kept up with some faster runners and had a great pace.

Evening: Treadmill, 4 mi, 33:11, 8:18/mi

Fri- Treadmill, 6 mi, 51:33, 8:35/mi

Sat- Columns/Half Route, 10.8 mi, 1:32:07, 8:32/mi

Sun- Prathersville + Blueridge, 16 mi, First 8 mi 1:02:01 (7:45/mi), last 8 mi 59:21 (7:25/mi); overall, 7:35/mi
I’m very happy with this pace on a hilly course. I felt strong for the entire run. Temp was only 18F and a bit windy.

This week is my highest mileage week that I’ve run since 2005 when I ran 60 miles a couple different weeks. I felt strong all week with no aches, no morning stiffness, no muscle soreness, and good energy level all week.

Evening: Upper Body Weights, 44 min

Running: 61.3 mi

Weight-lifting: 89 min

YTD Running: 219.9 mi

February 3rd-Nut Race 5K
March 17th-St. Patrick’s Day 5K
April 1st-Hogeye Marathon
May 19th-Berryman Trail Marathon

Training 1/15 - 1/21

Mon- Rest

Tues- Snow Route, 6.2 mi, 45:19, 7:19/mi
Temp was 3F and wind chill -12F, and some ice along the roads.

Evening: Upper Body Weights, 47 min

Tu/Th group picture before the run

Wed- Rest

Thurs- Snow Route, 6.2 mi, 47:30, 7:40/mi
New snow and slush along the shoulder of road.

Evening: Treadmill, 6 mi, 49:25, 8:14/mi
No energy when I started this run, but felt good by the end.

Fri- Treadmill, 6 mi, 54:03, 9:00/mi
Energy level felt good when I started, and the run cleared my sinuses.

Sat- MKT, 11 mi, 1:36:53, 8:48/mi
Trail was snow and ice covered.

Sun- Brown Station Rd, 16 mi, 2:11:46, 8:14/mi
I woke up about 7 am feeling fairly well rested. It had snowed as predicted and I was very tempted to wait until later in the day to run but got dressed and went outside to measure the snow. We had 4.5 in on top of the 2 in ice/snow that hasn’t melted. After ½ mile of running on a snow packed road, I decided to run a different route since I didn’t have time to complete a 16 mile run at a slower pace in the snow. The gravel road that I normally run had not been cleared so I stayed on the snow-cleared pavement and ran out and back. Most of this course doesn’t have a shoulder to run on, but there were very few cars. The paved roads had been cleared but were wet and slushy in areas. This course had a few hills but not as many as the course I had planned to do. Considering the wet and slushy areas, I’m very happy with the pace. It didn’t feel like I was running an 8:15 average but it has been awhile since I’ve done that on a long run. The cold that developed on Friday seems to have passed quickly. I’m feeling almost normal again.

Afternoon: Upper Body Weights, 38 min

Running: 51.4 mi

Cycling: 0

Weight-lifting: 85 min

YTD Running: 158.6 mi

YTD Cycling: 0

February 3rd-Nut Race 5K
March 17th-St. Patrick’s Day 5K
April 1st-Hogeye Marathon
May 19th-Berryman Trail Marathon

Training 1/8 - 1/14

Mon- Rest

Tues- Morning: Dreier – C Route, 5.6 mi, 50:05, 8:57/mi running

Noon: Laughing Out Loud Marathon, 26.2 mi, 4:55:56, 11:18/mi

Wed- Rest

Thurs- MKT bridge, 7.8 mi, 1:02:05, 7:58/mi

Fri- Rest

Sat- Prathersville loop, 13.3 mi, 2:12:52, 9:59/mi
18 F and 3 inches of ice/sleet/snow to run on which made a nice smooth running surface.

Sun- Upper Body Weights, 40 min

Treadmill, 4 mi, 30:00, 7:30/mi
More ice last night so too slippery to run outside.

Running: 56.9 mi

Cycling: 0

Weight-lifting: 40 min

YTD Running: 107.2 mi

YTD Cycling: 0

February 3rd-Nut Race 5K
March 17th-St. Patrick’s Day 5K
April 1st-Hogeye Marathon
May 19th-Berryman Trail Marathon

Laughing Out Loud Marathon

The Laughing out Loud Marathon was an idea that Jim Linville, a runner, and former smoker, came up with after the Columbia City Council approved the no smoking ban in restaurants, bars, and bingo halls. The ordinance took effect on January 9th so Jim wanted to have a marathon on that day. For Jim LOL, means “love our lungs”. You can read more about his concept of a marathon to celebrate the smoking ban in the Columbia Missourian article Marathon to Celebrate Start of Smoking Ban

Hugh and me planned to run to about mile 14.5 (his parent's house) and then get on our bikes to finish the rest. I had run 5.6 miles at 5:30 am with the Tues/Th group and Hugh had run with the dogs. The marathon start was at Athena, in downtown Columbia. Registration was $1 and all participants had to sign a waiver which Jim said his lawyer had approved. It must have been a very slow news day since several from the local news media (about 2 TV, 1 radio, 1 newspaper) were on hand to witness this crazy event. The weather was beautiful. Temps were in the upper mid to upper 30’s, quite windy (up to 20 mph), and sunny.

After a short speech from Jim, we were off. I’m guessing there were about 15 people that started. There was no course support for the marathon so we had to obey traffic laws although many people stopped and let us pass. The first part took us through downtown Columbia where I’m sure we received lots of strange looks with a couple runners dressed as cigarettes and a chicken skipping and running all over the place. Everyone pretty much stayed close together until about mile 5 and then we split up. I think the chicken collapsed and got on the tandem about mile 3 and gave runners rides if they wanted.

The course was very urban, and challenging with the traffic. We ran on the shoulder, close to the shoulder, and sidewalks. Some parts there were very little traffic and really not a problem. Up to mile 12 took us through the north part of Columbia and out of the city. At this point, I was saying to a couple other runners that I caught up to that I could probably finish the course running, but would evaluate when I got to mile 14.5. About mile 12 I caught up to Hugh (he had run ahead of everyone) and we ran together. He said that he was thinking about running the complete course and I told him I thought the same. We decided to make our decision when we reached our bikes at 14.5. We passed mile 13 and had been running for a little over 2 hours.

About mile 14, a radio interviewer started running with me and asking questions. Shortly after that we stopped at Hugh’s parents to use the bathroom and get water. I guess after having so much fun running 2 hours, and feeling relaxed not worrying about our time, all good sense left us and we decided to continue on for the entire marathon.

After mile 16, there was a big hill that we decided to walk. About mile 17, we stopped at Tryathletics to purchase some Sports Beans and drink water. There were several people biking as well as a tandem bike that the chicken was riding at this point, plus they had a cooler full of water, energy gels, and beer. After standing around for awhile Hugh took off and then N. and D. (using initials to protect their identity) and myself took off. They each had a beer and were going to try running and drinking. I didn’t get far (less than a mile) with them and D. decided he needed a bathroom and they stopped at The Starting Block

Ahead, I could see Hugh so caught up to him. While we were in Tryathletics, we had been passed by S. and he was running the entire course, and then L. also passed us since she was on her bike. After mile 20, Hugh decided he needed to walk. He wanted me to go ahead, but I stayed with him. We would run and then walk. At mile 21 we were passed by N. and D.

For the rest of the course, we would run a little, and then walk a lot. We wanted to make it by 5 pm and would be under 5 hours. Those last 4 miles seemed to take forever, but we made it to the finish in 4:55:56. We went inside Athena and we gave Jim our time, got our finishers ribbons and had some food. Jim said that we finished last and the prize was his ice cream maker that he won at Cross Country X-Treme.

We decided that we needed some more food, changed our clothes, and had dinner at the Bread Basket. My legs still felt okay last night, but this morning my ankle hurts a bit but I’m walking. Being out on the course for almost 5 hrs I can now more fully appreciate the accomplishment of those that take longer than I normally do to finish. This totally unexpected marathon was number 8 for me.

Today, there was an article in the Missourian Smoke Free and Breathless There were some close up shots of me and Hugh running ahead of the chicken in the print version. The picture online you can see our backsides. Hugh’s brother said he seen us on KMIZ news. We didn’t stay up late enough to see if we were on KOMU as well, but I will check my tapes later.

I carried my camera and have posted all of the pictures

You Tube Videos:
Chicken Dance

Pre-Marathon Speech

Start of Marathon

D. signing Jim's shirt

pre-race

N. warming up and Hugh assigning race numbers

The Starting "Gun"

Go chicken!

Chicken being King of the Mountain

Chicken still going

Hugh about at mile 12

Taking a break at Tryathletics

Training 1/1/07 - 1/7/07

Mon- Boatman Hill, 6 mi, 1:00:30, 10:05/mi; legs very sore

Tues- President’s Hill, 7.5 mi, 59:37, 7:57/mi; felt better, 6th day in a row running

Evening: Upper body weights, 38 min

Wed- Rest

Thurs- Rock Quarry, 7.8 mi, 55:17, 7:05/mi

Fri- Rest

Sat- 19 mi, 2:17:09, 7:13/mi
The first 20K I ran the Columbia Track Club Runner’s Choice. The course was out 3.1 mi and back with really long inclines. For the 20K, we completed the course twice. After I finished I went out one more time and added enough to round up to 19 mi.

1st 6.2 mi, 42:30, 6:51/mi
2nd 6.2 mi, 44:55, 7:15/mi
3rd 6.6 mi, 49:44, 8:01/mi

Felt very hungry at the end. Replenished blood sugar with a filled long john from Dixie Creme.

Sun- Clay’s Fork out and back, 10 mi, 1:29:31, 8:57/mi

Evening: Upper body weights, 48 min

Legs very tired earlier this week, but managed a couple pretty good runs and hit 50 miles. Ankles feel great after long run yesterday and run today. I’ve been doing exercises and stretches for my ankles twice per week very consistently since Chicago. It seems to be working.

Running: 50.3 mi

Cycling: 0

Weight-lifting: 86 min

YTD Running: 50.3 mi

YTD Cycling: 0

January 9th-Laughing Out Loud Marathon I’m running about 14.5 mi and biking the rest.
February 3rd-Nut Race 5K
March 17th-St. Patrick’s Day 5K
April 1st-Hogeye Marathon

Training 12/25 - 12/31

Mon- Rest

Tues- Dave’s Dirty Devil Run, 6.66 mi, 0:51:38, 0:07:45/mi

Evening: Upper body weights, 43 min

Wed- Rest

Thurs- MKT Bridge, 7.8 mi, 1:01:24, 0:07:52/mi

Fri- HOA course (hills), 18 mi, 2:20:12, 7:47/mi

Sat- Column’s, 10 mi, 1:28:12 0:08:49/mi

Sun- First Night 5K, 3.1 mi, 0:20:43 (M1-6:36/mi, M2-7:08/mi, M3.1-7:00), 06:41/mi

My legs were pretty much done before I started this race. I gave it my best effort.

Running: 45.6 mi

Cycling: 0

Weight-lifting: 43 min

YTD Running: 1937.0 mi

YTD Cycling: 575.6 mi

Running: 153 miles less than last year.

26 events included running for 200.8 mi

3 events included biking 53.8 mi

Janurary 6th-Runner’s Choice 10K/20K
February 3rd-Nut Race 5K
March 17th-St. Patrick’s Day 5K
April 1st-Hogeye Marathon

Training 12/18 - 12/24

Mon- Rest

Tues- Tripp 10K, 6.2 mi, 0:42:50, 0:06:55/mi

Evening: Upper body weights, 44 min

Wed- Rest

Thurs- Rain Run - Last 3 mi lactate threshold (6:46, 6:37, 6:21), 7.1 mi, 0:53:33, 0:07:33/mi overall

Fri- Treadmill - Four 1/2 mi 10% incline with 1/2 mi recovery, 4.5 mi, 0:40:56, 0:09:06/mi; those were tough!

Sat- MKT (flat), 10 mi, 1:19:23, 0:07:56/mi

Sun- Prathersville+ (hills), 16 mi, 2:05:37, 0:07:51/mi

Afternoon: Upper body weights, 40 min

Running: 43.8 mi

Cycling: 0

Weight-lifting: 84 min

YTD Running: 1891.4 mi (looks like I’m going to be about 153 less than last year)

YTD Cycling: 575.6 mi

December 31st-First Night 5K
Janurary 6th-Runner’s Choice 10K/20K
February 3rd-Nut Race 5K
March 17th-St. Patrick’s Day 5K
April 1st-Hogeye Marathon

Training 12/11 - 12/17

Mon- Rest

Tues- Jaira's Jaunt, 7.1 mi, 54:50, 7:43/mi

Evening: Upper body weights, 42 min

Wed- Rest

Thurs- Rain Run, 7.2 mi, 50:17, 6:59/mi

Fri- Rest

Sat- Column’s, 10 mi, 1:24:19, 8:26/mi

Sun- Prathersville Loop+2, 14.4 mi, 1:52:57, 7:51/mi

I am now officially training for my April 1st marathon so I increased my long run this week. This is a hilly course and felt it went really well. I backtracked 1 mile up the biggest hill on the course to add 2 more miles.

Evening: upper body weights, 39 min

Running: 38.7 mi

Cycling: 0

Weight-lifting: 81 min

YTD Running: 1847.6 mi

YTD Cycling: 575.6 mi

December 31st-First Night 5K
Janurary 6th-Runner’s Choice 10K/20K
February 3rd-Nut Race 5K
March 17th-St. Patrick’s Day 5K
April 1st-Hogeye Marathon

Famous Dogs

Thanks to Runner Susan for the mentioning this blog in her article Running with the Dogs

Training 12/4 - 12/10 - Cheese and Sauerkraut 10 miler

Mon- upper body weights, 47 min

Tues- Snow Route, 6.2 mi, 46:40, 7:32/mi

Wed- Rest

Thurs- Snow Route, 6.3 mi, 46:06, 7:19/mi

Fri- Rest

Sat- Cheese and Sauerkraut, 10 mi, 1:16:39, 7:40/mi

This is a prediction race that is run without a watch. I did not take the snow on the trail into consideration and predicted 1:07:00 (my time for last year). We started on the trail. I was in the lead at the beginning and stayed in the lead for the entire course which is 2 loops. On the last part of the loop, we run on the trail again. The condition of the trail with the hard snow was treacherous. After the first loop back on the pavement, I seemed to regain my speed, but once I hit the trail again I slowed a lot. I ended up being the second worst predictor so I didn’t go home with the sauerkraut. I placed 1st out of about 18 people. My ankles and legs felt pretty beat up at the end.

Sun- Prathersville Loop, 12.4 mi, 1:50:32, 8:55/mi

I woke up at 6:30 am and tried to think of an excuse to put the run off until later since my legs were sore. The temp outside was 36F so I decided that I didn’t have any excuses. Although the pace was slow it was an enjoyable run as the sun came up.

Evening: upper body weights, 37 min

Running: 34.9 mi

Cycling: 0

Weight-lifting: 84 min

YTD Running: 1808.9 mi

YTD Cycling: 575.6 mi

December 9th-Cheese and Sauerkraut 10 Miler
December 31st-First Night 5K
Janurary 6th-Runner’s Choice 10K/20K
February 3rd-Nut Race 5K
March 17th-St. Patrick’s Day 5K
April 1st-Hogeye Marathon

Rusty's Comeback: A Race to Bark About

NOTE: The following article was printed in the November 2006 Columbia Track Club Newsletter. Also, The Complete Running Network will be publishing an article about dogs and listing this blog in the article.

Related Link: Dog Jog 2003: A Day in the Life of a Dog

On October 7th, I ran the 13th Annual Dog Jog 5K Run (sponsored by the MU College of Veterinary Medicine Class of 2008) with my 9-year-old dog Rusty. Rusty loves to run and has only missed this race once since 1997. We call the Dog Jog "Puppy Christmas" at our house because it’s the most exciting day of the year for Rusty.

Rusty, a German Shepherd/Lab mix, was born in 1997 and has been running ever since he was a puppy. Rusty was just a puppy the first year we ran the dog jog, and I led him for most of the race because he could not keep up. He showed his competitive streak in 1998-2000 and pulled me during the race because I couldn’t keep his pace. I became a faster runner in 2001, and Rusty might’ve mellowed out somewhat, and from 2001 – 2004 we finished as the first place male-human-with-dog team with a minimum of pulling on either part.

I was out of town in 2005 at the time of the race but doubt Rusty would have been able to run very well; he had developed a problem with his left back leg in November 2004 and would not place weight on it. The vet took an MRI and found a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and prescribed glucosamine for arthritis and Deramaxx for pain. On some days Rusty seemed better, but then he would overextend himself running and limp and walk on 3 legs afterward. He still wanted to run during this time, and once he started running, he usually managed to run with all 4 legs, but he paid for it later.

The vet took another MRI in October 2005, and nothing had changed. Since Rusty wasn’t getting better and waiting would put him at risk for arthritis, we decided to try ACL repair surgery. An artificial suture was placed alongside the joint to "fool" the knee joint into thinking there is a ligament and permit it to move in a normal fashion. It was difficult to keep Rusty still during the recovery, but he recuperated quickly. Sometimes he would have a setback when he overdid it, but in the past year he seems to have made a full recovery with no major problems.

This year Rusty was at the start line, barking and ready for the race to start. We took off at a pretty good pace and were near the lead with 2 other dogs. Rusty kept a steady pace during the race and didn’t seem to slow down too much. He was not pulling me, and I didn’t want to push him, so I ran his pace. Near the last 250 yards, I decided to see if we could pass Mike Denehy and his dog Riley. Rusty pulled ahead with me, and we passed them crossing the finish line. We won by only 1 second, finishing with a time of 19:35. During the awards ceremony, Rusty demonstrated good sportsmanship by barking for many of the winners when the humans applauded.

Here’s a picture of Rusty and me sitting in the back of our Honda Element with all of our Dog Jog souvenirs.

Training 11/27 - 12/3

Mon- Rest

Tues- Dreier Dirty Dozen, 9.1 mi, 1:08:08, 7:29/mi

Evening: upper body, 40 min

Wed- Rest

Thurs- MKT to Bridge, 7.8 mi, 57:29, 7:22/mi

Fri- 14 inches of snow. I shoveled snow for about 2.5 hrs.

Bruno romping in the snow

Snow-covered hot tub

Sat- Jingle Bell Run was cancelled on Sat. morning.

3.7 mi in snow, 41:10, 11:10/mi

A few of us decided to attempt to do a run. We ended up running to the trail and then back downtown. Running in snow hard work!

Sun- Rest. Lower back hurt and no energy. I slept a lot today.

Running: 20.6 mi

Cycling: 0

Weight-lifting: 40 min

YTD Running: 1774 mi

YTD Cycling: 575.6 mi

December 9th-Cheese and Sauerkraut 10 Miler
December 31st-First Night 5K

Training 11/20 - 11/26 & Thanksgiving Day Pie Run

Mon- Boatman Hill Rd, 6 mi, 53:24, 8:54/mi

Tues- Jaira’s Jaunt, 7.1 mi, 56:38, 7:59/mi

Wed- Rest

Thurs- Thanksgiving Day Pie Run

This year we arrived early so that we could run the 3.1 mile loop completely flat course once as a warm up. We ran at about a 9 min/mile pace and ended up at the start line about 5 minutes before the race started. Originally, I was thinking about running the 5K since I would have a better chance at placing in the top 3 in my age group. I don’t get many opportunities to run a 10K and I thought that I might have a good chance of setting a 10K PR again this year. I ended up registering for the 10K and Hugh ran the 5K.

The 10K start line was behind the 5Kstart line so I quickly caught up to the slower 5K runners so it was a bit crowded at first. The 10K course was 2 laps around the course. My goal was to run a 6:22/pace, but after the first mile I decided that maybe 6:30 was more realistic. I felt good the first loop and my splits were:

M1-6:30
M2-6:27
M3-6:39

The second loop I maintained my pace and no one passed me. I did seem to be gaining a bit on the runner in front of me, but never passed him. At 6 miles, I picked up the pace a little for the last 0.2 miles.

M4-6:22
M5-6:26
M6-6:37
M6.2-1:18 (6:30 pace)

Overall pace: 6:30/mi

My HR averaged 163 and I decided to run to cool down. At first I thought I would just run out a little, but I felt so good I decided to do the entire 3.1 mile loop again.

My time was 40:18, 53 seconds off my 10K PR which was on the same course last year. My next goal is to get my 10K under 40. I placed 4th in the 30 – 39 age group and 8th overall out of 43 runners in the 10K. Hugh placed 4th in his age group in the 5K and 37th of 159 runners with a time of 22:05. No pies (top 3 win pies) for either one of us but Hugh was only 4 seconds from 3rd in his age group. I should have run the 5K for a pie since 1st place in my age group was 20:42, but I ran the 10K to break a PR.

We didn’t win any of the door prizes which were provided by Walmart, Target, Coca-Cola Bottling Company, All N#1 Sports, and Larsigns Engraving. Chez Monet Bakery donated the award pies.

Fri- Rocky Fork Conservation Area, 6 mi, 52:40, 8:47/mi

Later morning: upper body weights, 36 min

Sat- Fulton City Trail, 9.5 mi, 1:28:00, 9:16/mi

Sun- Prathersville Loop, 12.4 mi, 1:45:56, 8:33/mi

Evening: Weights, upper body, 47 min

Running: 53.4 mi

Cycling: 0

Weight-lifting: 83 min

YTD Running: 1753.4 mi

YTD Cycling: 575.6 mi

December 2nd-Jinglebell 5K Run for Arthritis
December 9th-Cheese and Sauerkraut 10 Miler
December 31st-First Night 5K

Training 11/13 - 11/19 and Cross Country Xtreme

Mon- Rest

Tues- Dave’s Dirty Devil, 6.66 mi, 50:46, 7:37/mi

Wed- Rest

Thurs- Rain run, 7.1 mi, 52:20, 7:22/mi

Evening: Weights, upper body, 40 min

Fri-Rest

Sat- Boatman Hill (7 am), 6 mi, 54:40, 9:07/mi

Cross County XTreme (9 am)-~3 mi, 28 min

This was my first Cross Country Xtreme and it was a fun event. Many people dressed in costume for the race. We ran through over creeks, in muddy creeks trying to dodge mud and trees, sawdust/manure uphill, and over big round hay bales. Along the way, we looked for 4 different buckets of wrist bands. Each bucket had a different color and we could take one from each bucket. We completed the course twice. Once we finished the race we received a raffle ticket and an extra ticket for each of the different color wrist bands. I found 3 wristbands and Hugh found all 4 wristbands.

After everyone finished they picked numbers for the first set of raffle prizes and we would pick something from a group of prizes. One of our numbers was picked and I chose a Bumble Bar. Next they picked one of our numbers for tickets to different groups performing at the Blue Note. I chose Los Lonely Boys.

There were also prizes for top 3 in each age group, costume, most muddy, most bloody. I would guess that Hugh came close to winning the most bloody with a scrape on his leg, but another guy had been cut by barbed wire. Hugh’s leg really wasn’t too bad there was a bit of blood. I just had a few minor scratches. Hugh wore overalls, and his nose from the flying pig. I think he placed 8th in the costume contest and was awarded a rubber chicken. I placed 3rd in my age group (30-39) which was a surprise since I stopped several times. The award was made from items you might find along the course.

3rd place age group award:



My muddy shoes:


Hugh as Farmer Pig Man


Me


Rusty and Bruno enjoying the rubber chickens:



Cross-Country Extreme - The Video!

Cross-Country Extreme - Photos.

Cross-Country Extreme - More Photos.

Race results were burned in the bon-fire!

Sun- Prathersville, 13.5 mi, 1:58:53, 8:48/mi

I woke up and legs felt fine from yesterday so I planned 13.5 miles. My HR averaged only 126 on this run. I counted at least 10 good hills on this course and felt good.

Evening: Weights, upper body, 45 min

Running: 36.26 mi

Cycling: 0

Weight-lifting: 85 min

YTD Running: 1700 mi

YTD Cycling: 575.6 mi

November 23rd-Thanksgiving Day Pie Run 5K/10K
December 2nd-Jinglebell 5K Run for Arthritis
December 9th-Cheese and Sauerkraut 10 Miler
December 31st-First Night 5K

Training 11/6 - 11/12 and Cranberry Crawl 5K

Mon- Rest

Tues- President’s Hill, 7.5 mi, 57:36, 7:41/mi

Evening: Weights, upper body, 37 min

Wed- Rest

Thurs- MKT, out for 3.15 mi), 25 min, 7:56/mi, and then back 3.15 mi at 6:43/mi (goal 10K pace), overall 6.3 mi, 43:09, 7:20/mi

After this run we took our fall picture on the trail.
















Fri-Rest

Sat- Cranberry Crawl 5K, 3.1 mi, 19:54, 6:25/mi + 1 mile warmup

I enjoy running this course which is the hilliest 5K that I run. I slept well and was feeling ready to race when I woke up. Temperature was 32F and sunny so I decided to wear a long-sleeve wicking shirt and covered it with a cotton shirt, wore gloves and headband as well. I was a bit concerned I might be overdressed by the time the race started, but with the wind it felt just right.

Hugh and I warmed up for about a mile right before the race which started at 8 am. There were 91 runners which were down from last year. I lined up in front and when we took off it seemed like several people were starting really fast. I held back and still passed a few people the first half mile and a couple more in the latter half. First mile split was 6:14 and I felt good.

During the second mile there were more hills. I wish I had worn my data recorder since this race would have an interesting elevation chart since there are plenty of hills. During the second mile there’s a loop of streets we go around and we were directed the wrong direction, but it was still the same distance. However, the mile marker was off since we went the wrong direction. I did get my split from my GPS and second mile was 6:37 with hills.

I felt good on the 3rd mile, but there were still hills so I waited until we were done with the hills to pick up the pace. I could see a couple runners ahead of me but it wasn’t likely that I was going to catch them. Third mile split was 6:26 and then I could see the clock. Last year I ran the race in 19:55 and I was hoping to at least be sub-20. It looked like it was possible so I pushed and ran the last 0.1 in 37 sec. Total time was 19:54. Not a PR for the course, but still not a bad race. I felt like I could have kept running for a few more miles. My avg HR was 163 which seemed a little low for a hilly 5K.

Overall I placed 6th out of 91 and 2nd in my age group (35 – 39). Hugh had a great race running in 22:35, the second fastest time for him on this course, and first in his age group. We’ve been running this race course since 2000.

For prizes we were able to pick from several nice options. Hugh picked gloves and I picked socks. Race Results are posted at Cranberry Crawl

Sun- Prathersville, 13.5 mi, 1:56:29, 8:38/mi

The plan was to run 8 miles today. Before I set out to run, I decided I would run 10. The temps were in the 50s during this run and I felt so good I decided to go 12 miles. This is a very rolling course with some good hills and I was enjoying it so much I decided to run to the stop sign in Prathersville and turn around so I ended up going 13.5 miles. My heart rate only averaged 133 on this hilly course so definitely an easy run for me. It felt good to run some long easy miles. I’m looking forward to doing more of these runs.

Evening: Weights, upper body, 43 min

Running: 31.4 mi

Cycling: 0

Weight-lifting: 80 min

YTD Running: 1663.73 mi

YTD Cycling: 575.6 mi

November 18th-Cross Country Xtreme Off-Road 4-mile runNovember 23rd-Thanksgiving Day Pie Run 5K/10K
December 2nd-Jinglebell 5K Run for Arthritis
December 9th-Cheese and Sauerkraut 10 Miler
December 31st-First Night 5K

Training 10/30 - 11/5 & CTC Cross Country Challenge

Mon- Rest

Tues- Tripp 10K, 6.1 mi, , 46:48, 7:40/mi

Evening: Weights, upper body, 37 min

Wed-Rest

Thurs-Grindstone, 7.8 mi, 1:01:48, 7:55/mi

Fri-Rest

Sat-MKT, 6 mi, ~48:00, 8:00/mi

Sun-CTC Cross Country Challenge 6K, 3.72 mi, 25:03, 6:44/mi

Evening: Weights, upper body, 43 min

This race started at 1:45 pm in Stephen’s Park. The grass course was 3 times around with one straw bale jump for each lap. I competed with a team called the Lumberjacks. We had 6 people so the top 5 scored. I was not able to keep up with my usual competition, but didn’t really expect to do so today. I didn’t have any expectations for this race other than to finish. I ended up finishing 2nd of our team members. There were about 55 runners and I placed 26th overall. Our team placed 4th of the 5 men’s teams.

This competition attracted some great runners from the area so it was not a good day to slack, but I just wasn’t ready to push that hard yet. I am looking forward to next week since it can’t be worse than how I’ve felt most of this week. I’ve been tired and down which is probably my body telling me not to push yet. Even though my legs feel good and I have the desire to run, I’m still in recovery mode.

Running: 23.62 mi

Cycling: 0

Weight-lifting: 80 min

YTD Running: 1632.33 mi

YTD Cycling: 575.6 mi

November 11th-Cranberry Crawl 5K
November 18th-Cross Country Xtreme Off-Road 4-mile runNovember 23rd-Thanksgiving Day Pie Run 5K/10K
December 2nd-Jinglebell 5K Run for Arthritis
December 9th-Cheese and Sauerkraut 10 Miler
December 31st-First Night 5K