Training Log Archive: maprunner

Mike and I went to the river trail in Lawrence for a long run today. I did 9 min jog/1 min walk repeats until the last four, when I switched to 8/2. My legs were tired. But the breeze was strong, humidity low and the view was pretty.

C • Good for you! 1

moving around the high school fields. The stadium is still being renovated but a few people managed to sneak onto the track. I also did a few intervals around the new soccer field. Poor players: there is a giant mud puddle along one sideline.

a sad day: I started to pack up my sewing room. I decided to give away my collection of Vogue Sewing magazines, but of course I'm keeping all the Threads. An issue of Threads is treated just as an O map: you never, ever, ever throw one away.

C • magazines 1

Bonner test loop. I took it easy on the uphills and tried to push a little on the downhills. Overall, I took it easy, because it was hot and sticky, and this was my first run of the the summer (of this course). So now I know what my baseline is for this year (a minute slower than last year)

Bonner Park - Splits

at PNS after work. It was 80 degrees and 80% humidity again; I was dripping wet within minutes. But seeing the dappled sunlight through patches of fog and running past overzealous waterfalls: beautiful.

at Wyandotte with Mike. My legs were tired and sore today, so I scaled back my original plan. Walked a lot, and when I jogged, it was nice and easy. Spent part of the time on the flat part of yesterday's course.

20 minutes before, 5 minutes after.

KC Trail Nerds 5K race at Wyandotte Lake, mostly flat with a big hill (300' vertically) in the middle. Humid but not so hot (mid 70s). Race director said the course was a bit short (2.92 miles, 4.7K). Results will be available here.

Pushed too hard right from the start, but still got stuck behind some slower folks on the single track. Flew by them all when we came out into a wide downhill section (why can't runners go downhill fast? All good orienteers should run fast downhill. Still working on my own technique). Uphill section was tough, lost some ground here, but caught up some on the downhill.

Lungs ached the whole time, legs felt OK until the last bit of uphill, but I recovered quickly. Spent some time at the finish talking with the race director, who I've known for years. Interesting guy, he's totally into trail running and does a lot to keep the sport growing in Kansas City. But I also know more than I want to know about his personality, since he dated a friend of mine a few years ago. Let's just say that his nickname is quite appropriate.

Continued my goal of meeting new people each day. Talked with some interesting women, mostly younger, who don't mind running fast in the dirt. I introduced them to orienteering shoes and they introduced me to these gaiters.

My route.

C • PG 8

C • Gaiters 2

Was going to cross train, but I forgot my shoes, again. I didn't feel like walking down the hall to get them, so I did weights instead. Concentrated on arms, which meant I couldn't catch up on my magazine reading (new issues of Dwell, Money, Bethesda, Real Simple and More arrived this week). So instead I just planned my next shopping trip for new running clothes :)
The TV was on downstairs, but I couldn't hear well enough to tell if it was Fox News or Price is Right.

C • Another guess 13

For some reason I slept badly last night. I felt worn out all day and decided a day off made sense. I used the day off to weed the lawn and pack some boxes.

C • No guesses? 10

In Kansas City MO for work. Started on 79th Street near the marina. A few minutes in, I realized I forgot my heart rate monitor, so I had to go back to the car. A guy passed me early on, but I couldn't keep pace with him. Made it through the A Loop switchbacks without any company. At the D intersection, I saw a woman in blue just ahead. I pushed the pace to keep her in sight. After a while, she got tired of leading, and pulled over to make me pass. I led up the next hill, but she didn't like my pace on the downhill. She passed me for good at that point. I kept up a good pace for the rest of the run. My weight is lower than usual, probably due to my use of the cookie diet this week.

C • I know this one!! 8

C • Two in one day! 1

Penta-weekly haircut with my stylist Deborah. Topics of discussion: installing a front door, lesbian weddings, beef trade with Korea, Tim Russert, "Sex and the City" movie, chances for Middle East peace, small vs. large venues for concerts, Procter&Gamble stock, crazy coworkers.

C • My guess 11

It was interesting to watch Pennsylvania try so very hard to move forward, while Ohio sat there blocking every move, and poor Minnesota was squeezed in the middle. Yet my eye was drawn to the window and I noticed that the day was So Fine! I had to get outside.

Since the rain had stopped and the sun was shining, did that mean that summer had arrived? No, the temperature and humidity were both low, which meant the hot heavy winds had not yet arrived from Texas. No summer yet.

I decided that such a fine day called for a visit to Parkville Nature Sanctuary. I was just jogging along (so fine!) minding my own business, when I spotted an attack turkey. I was scared, so I ran fast to get away. Once I was clear, I slowed down to a walk for a brief while. But then, another attack turkey! Off I ran again. Just when I was safe and walking calmly, I saw a third. Scared into running again. At this point, I said enough is enough and I left. And I'm not returning until the wild Texas winds arrive, and chase those critters back into the weeds.

C • This is going to be 2

When I got home, I realized that I was acting like a Sub Moron. How was I ever going to be a real Texas cowgirl if I didn't HTFU? A yowsa session was the only reasonable answer.

at Wyandotte Lake. This seemed like a good idea, especially the first 15 minutes, where the trail was in good shape. The next 30 minutes were pure muck (shoe-sucking type mud). When I turned around at 50 minutes, I decided to skip the muck and come back on the road. Altogether, I walked more than I had planned, so it was a super easy day.

While I was out today, I thought about my AP log entry. I decided it would be funny (and fun) to try to copy other people's styles for a week. Maybe one post a la PG? Swampfox? Nadim? Who else has a distinct recognizable style? Anyone else want to join me for "Copy Styles Week"?

C • it'll be fun to see... 3

At PNS on a typical spring evening (80 degrees, 80% humidity). This is a relatively small area, so it's boring to run around and around. But the trails drain well (hardly any mud) and I was never very far from the car (in case the tornado alarms went off).

Dinner with Dan. Lots of fun.

Plan was a long run at SMP. But all the trails were pure muck. So I stayed on the grass in the shade and did my interval workout instead.

I spent part of my work day playing whirlyball, which was a surprising amount of fun.

at Weston Bend, for a change. I took it easy because it is the beginning of my long week, and I was tired. I stayed up on the ridge most of the time, where the wind helped mitigate the heat and humidity.

Plus two trips to the storage place; definitely worked on arm strength.

Sprint course at Stoll park. It was fun to be on a brand new map, and feel like a true race. Messed up 3 (same reasons as Mike) and stupidly followed another runner in the wrong direction leaving 8. Fortunately, I was one of the lucky ones who was told that 12 was in the wrong place, so I didn't loose time there.

I was pleased that I kept a steady pace, and wisely slowed down (or even stopped) to look at the map when needed.

Nice pot luck afterwards, with good company.

at SMP after work. The MTB trails were really muddy (and officially closed) so I felt a little bit guilty running there tonight. But I did see one other set of footprints, and lots of deer tracks. And they will all be wiped away by the heavy rain we're expecting tonight.

I've had two stressful work days in a row. I was supposed to run tonight, but I just didn't feel like it after all the junk at work. I left Mike a voice message and told him my woes. My wonderful husband stopped at the store and bought my favorite comfort food. Bliss :)

C • What?? 5

on the trails at Smithville. Did 8/2 repeats again. This will be a nice place to run this summer, because it's shaded, there are miles of trails to explore (to prevent boredom) and they are being well maintained (volunteers were out trimming the weeds today).

Major accomplishment of the weekend: the attic room is empty and I was able to vacuum it for the first time in years.

Fun photo find of the day: I like the paper bag technique. Mike says this is from England in 1986.

C • The Transatlantic Cup! 4