Training Log Archive: Spike

I ran the Psycho Wyco trail race at Wyandotte. I did two loops, roughly 20 miles.

The time seems slow, but it was a fairly tough course. We had plenty of hills (up and down) and the little bit of snow on the ground made for some slippery spots. Most of the race is on horse trails -- frozen horse trails can be rough to run on.

I had a nice run. I did about 1:45 on the first loop and 1:49 on the second. I think I lost most of the time on the second loop in the first 1/3 of the loop.

I carried the O' map and read it off and on. It was nice to know what was coming.

I haven't seen results, but I talked to the guy who won the 2-loop in 3:06 and I was third overall. So, the field was spread out.

Now my legs are tired.

C • Happy Birthday 5

20 minutes of map study at lunch (where I also ate 2 cookies!). I had one "major" (maybe even "crippling") boom on a Norwegian sprint course when I picked a route that went to a dead end, forcing me to back track and climb a number of extra lines.

Just enough to feel like I did something and break a good sweat.

A looong run is on the plan for tomorrow morning.

The plan was a 90 minute run with some faster stuff. But, plans change. Especially on a day that begins with picking up the phone and hearing Mary say, "I just had a car crash." She's unhurt, but the car is probably done for. Mary was on her commute when someone driving next to her turned to the right, crashing into the driver's door (all at 60 mph).

Add in more work stress for Mary (not to mention the dissing I got from our Mayor)...and, plans change.

I did manage some time on the trainer.

C • That sucks 3

Map study -- 20+ minutes yesterday at lunch and 25+ today.

2 x 40 minutes on the bike while watching Kansas beat Nebraska in Lincoln. I took it quite easy.

Slooooow, easy jogging at PNS. I ran the first 30 minutes without my headlamp.

I spotted a strange car up by the baseball field. It was dark. The car had its lights on and was sitting still. Then, the driver turned off the lights and drove slowly along the road, stopping near the trail head. I ran off.

Almost forgot..25+ minutes of lunch time map study.

A very easy day seemed to be the right thing to do. I rode the trainer and watched more of the TDF stage to Gerardmer.

25 minutes of map study at lunch (old Tio Mila maps, mostly). I also spent some time looking at the routegadget online armchair O.

Easy jogging at PNS before (a bit over 15 minutes) and after (just barely 15 minutes) the race.

Trail race ("Buffalo race"?) at PNS. The course was a bit different than I'd expected, less hilly with only one good climb (I'd expected two). It was an 8K race, but I think it was a little less than that.

I had a nice run, feeling much better than I'd expected. I actually passed someone on the uphill and smoked by some guy on the rocky downhill. Some of the good feeling must have been the temp -- 23 F -- which is just about my perfect running temp.

Not sure of my overall place, but I won M40. (And I kept Mean Gene much further behind me than the last race we did at Clinton!).

Got home, turned on the TV, tuned in the Jayhawks and rode the trainer in the basement (despite tired legs).

What a great game. Kansas was down by 16 with maybe 9 minutes to go. They worked hard and came back to win it by one (Oklahoma had a last second shot that would have won it). Great game. There is probably a lesson there, too -- don't give up, work hard, good things can happen.