Training Log Archive: PGIn the 31 days ending Jan 31, 2007:
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Wednesday Jan 31, 2007 #
Note
Life continues to go downhill. Woke up this morning with a quite sore left hip flexor -- how do I develop a new ailment in my sleep? Perhaps it will disappear as sneakily as it arrived.
Anyway, no run today. Went and rented a metal detector and back over to Montague, spent another hour looking for the keys. No luck. Did find a buried bottle and an iron pin semi-buried. Looked for animal holes, none in sight. Finally gave up, though I do now know that little area very, very well.
Very annoying/frustrating....
But, like yesterday, the day wasn't quite over yet. I was about to summon George up here -- he had fixed his SI printer just by threatening it, surely he could threaten my keys and then they would show up right away. So I started to log in a request to George on AP and I got partway done, and I looked up and saw it was almost 5 pm, and for some unknown reason I thought I ought to at least try calling the Montague Police, and maybe I could catch them before they closed.
"By any chance did someone turn in a set of car keys?"
"What kind of car?"
"Subaru."
"We've got 'em."
Thanks, George, you're amazing.
I know there is a saying that all's well that ends well, but I hope this doesn't become a routine occurance.
Anyway, no run today. Went and rented a metal detector and back over to Montague, spent another hour looking for the keys. No luck. Did find a buried bottle and an iron pin semi-buried. Looked for animal holes, none in sight. Finally gave up, though I do now know that little area very, very well.
Very annoying/frustrating....
But, like yesterday, the day wasn't quite over yet. I was about to summon George up here -- he had fixed his SI printer just by threatening it, surely he could threaten my keys and then they would show up right away. So I started to log in a request to George on AP and I got partway done, and I looked up and saw it was almost 5 pm, and for some unknown reason I thought I ought to at least try calling the Montague Police, and maybe I could catch them before they closed.
"By any chance did someone turn in a set of car keys?"
"What kind of car?"
"Subaru."
"We've got 'em."
Thanks, George, you're amazing.
I know there is a saying that all's well that ends well, but I hope this doesn't become a routine occurance.
C • Threats 22
Tuesday Jan 30, 2007 #
trail running 1:10:38 [3]
rhr:52 weight:138lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
Got out the door a little sooner than expected, so I took advantage of the opportunity and went over to Montague to run in the Wills Hill area. Legs felt tired again, but a little better towards the end, including one short stretch off trail that actually felt ok. A pretty nice run on a decent day, upper 20s.
It was just too bad things didn't end there....
Got back to my car and I couldn't find the keys. I usually put them behind a tree or under a rock, being careful to remember where, and today was no different, put them by a little pine tree about 2 feet off the tree, went another few yards to take a pee, and then headed off. At least I'm pretty sure that's what I did.
So I got done with the run about 2:10. Looking and looking and then looking some more, 2:25 I figure I better call Gail, so I go knock on the door of a nearby house and they are kind enough to let me use the phone, but I'm afraid she's at the gym, which was true, and there is no answer. Back to look for another 10 minutes, still nothing. Back to the house again, call the office, one of the ladies comes to get me, by now I'm very cold. And all of my normal clothes are locked in the car.
So I deal with a couple of clients while in my most impressive and professional looking polypro top and O pants (at least I've stopped shaking), and then arrange enough of a break for Gail to come help me rescue the car (and look a little more in vain for the keys).
I have no idea what happened. The mind, which I seem to be slowly saying farewell to, is a mysterious thing.
It was just too bad things didn't end there....
Got back to my car and I couldn't find the keys. I usually put them behind a tree or under a rock, being careful to remember where, and today was no different, put them by a little pine tree about 2 feet off the tree, went another few yards to take a pee, and then headed off. At least I'm pretty sure that's what I did.
So I got done with the run about 2:10. Looking and looking and then looking some more, 2:25 I figure I better call Gail, so I go knock on the door of a nearby house and they are kind enough to let me use the phone, but I'm afraid she's at the gym, which was true, and there is no answer. Back to look for another 10 minutes, still nothing. Back to the house again, call the office, one of the ladies comes to get me, by now I'm very cold. And all of my normal clothes are locked in the car.
So I deal with a couple of clients while in my most impressive and professional looking polypro top and O pants (at least I've stopped shaking), and then arrange enough of a break for Gail to come help me rescue the car (and look a little more in vain for the keys).
I have no idea what happened. The mind, which I seem to be slowly saying farewell to, is a mysterious thing.
Monday Jan 29, 2007 #
trail running 56:37 [3]
rhr:52 weight:138lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
13 hills in Greenfield. Now that tax season has started in earnest, this will be a frequent route because it is most convenient, also because it gets some hikers year round, so it gets broken out quickly if/when we ever get snow again.
Legs felt reasonably dead after a couple of hard days, so I just chugged along. I did see and overtake another runner, not a common sight, he looked a little old and scruffy (no, he wasn't related), he was going quite a lot slower than I was so I went by him rather quickly, but what was most striking that he wasn't wearing any gloves. It was maybe low 20s out and breezy. My best guess is that he was either a construction worker used to working outside in the winter without gloves and had long ago frozen any nerves in his hands, or a chef who had long ago fried his nerves by stirring or reaching into too many pots without using a spoon. At least that's what Gail tells me chefs do.
Separate subject -- I notice that Eddie has made a stealth visit to AttackPoint. Does that mean he is still alive? Or is it merely a ruse by Swampfox trying to get revenge for when Eddie stole his identity?
Legs felt reasonably dead after a couple of hard days, so I just chugged along. I did see and overtake another runner, not a common sight, he looked a little old and scruffy (no, he wasn't related), he was going quite a lot slower than I was so I went by him rather quickly, but what was most striking that he wasn't wearing any gloves. It was maybe low 20s out and breezy. My best guess is that he was either a construction worker used to working outside in the winter without gloves and had long ago frozen any nerves in his hands, or a chef who had long ago fried his nerves by stirring or reaching into too many pots without using a spoon. At least that's what Gail tells me chefs do.
Separate subject -- I notice that Eddie has made a stealth visit to AttackPoint. Does that mean he is still alive? Or is it merely a ruse by Swampfox trying to get revenge for when Eddie stole his identity?
Sunday Jan 28, 2007 #
Event: WCOC Meet and Winter Meeting
orienteering 20:13 [4] 2.4 km (8:25 / km) +295ft 7:06 / km
rhr:50 weight:139lbs shoes: integrators 2006
Sprint C at Bennett's Farm, new map (for me at least) just south of Danbury, part of a sprint tripleheader hosted by Rick and Susie DeWitt along with the WCOC winter meeting.
Decent run, no speed. But amazing for late January to be on bare ground, sunny, and about 40.
Decent run, no speed. But amazing for late January to be on bare ground, sunny, and about 40.
orienteering 19:55 [4] 2.4 km (8:18 / km) +230ft 7:15 / km
shoes: integrators 2006
Sprint B (you could do them in any order). Similar to the first one, ran a bit harder at the end to get under 20 minutes.
orienteering 19:10 [4] 2.4 km (7:59 / km) +262ft 6:51 / km
shoes: integrators 2006
Sprint A, decent run again, and ran hard at the end again -- knew Clint had done 19+ but not how many seconds. Think I got him by 2 seconds.
Routes and comments.
Routes and comments.
trail running 15:00 [2]
shoes: integrators 2006
Three times out to the start and several minutes easy afterwards.
Also about 35 minutes picking up controls, mostly at a walk.
Also about 35 minutes picking up controls, mostly at a walk.
Saturday Jan 27, 2007 #
road running race 43:40 [4] 6.21 mi (7:02 / mi)
weight:138lbs shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
Back to Forest Park in Springfield, this time for the 10K, where the Walkers were noticeable by there abscence. I suppose it was too cold?
It was a little nippier than I expected, about 15. Cothing was adjusted for the fact that I was going to be running harder, so just 1 pair of pants and two shirts. On the verge of being cold the whole time, which means I was dressed just about right.
Decent race. Way better than the last 10K, 2 weeks ago, 45:42, but that was a pretty bad day. Probably a little better than last week's 21:17 for 5K. The legs felt pretty good, though I got tired toward the end and didn't finish really well. Still, a good hard workout, which is the second reason for going to these things. The first is getting a measure of where I stand for fitness, and therefore a mix of motivation to ratchet the training up and a little bit of reward if there is some improvment. But still way behind last year at this time (42:30 and 41:57).
It was a little nippier than I expected, about 15. Cothing was adjusted for the fact that I was going to be running harder, so just 1 pair of pants and two shirts. On the verge of being cold the whole time, which means I was dressed just about right.
Decent race. Way better than the last 10K, 2 weeks ago, 45:42, but that was a pretty bad day. Probably a little better than last week's 21:17 for 5K. The legs felt pretty good, though I got tired toward the end and didn't finish really well. Still, a good hard workout, which is the second reason for going to these things. The first is getting a measure of where I stand for fitness, and therefore a mix of motivation to ratchet the training up and a little bit of reward if there is some improvment. But still way behind last year at this time (42:30 and 41:57).
trail running 18:00 [2]
shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
Before and after.
Friday Jan 26, 2007 #
trail running 56:05 [3]
shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
Boy, you mention one crappy musician in your AP log and the gods, well, the weather gods anyway, are not amused. Wake up this morning and it's below zero and windy and all indications are that we're in for an all-day snowstorm*.
But I got myself out the door -- a morning of dealing with taxes makes getting out the door much easier -- and it wasn't bad at all. Partly because I was properly dressed, 4 shirts, 2 pairs of pants including my Compass Point toasties, and my special warm gloves which if they have a problem it is that they are too warm. And the route was also cleverly chosen, the back side of Greenfield ridge, out of the wind except the first couple and last couple minutes. My usual wintertime route in other words, 13 hills.
And it was actually pretty pleasant.
* Note -- due to global warming, El Nino, and the willingness of Colorado to take almost all of the snow that might normally fall on Massachusetts, thank you very much, snowstorms here are now measured not in depth but in duration, and the duration is not how long it snows for but how long it lasts on the ground before it melts. So this winter has produced two half-day storms and the one today which is shaping up to be a 24- to 36-hour whopper.
Now traditional weather folks might say that all we've had so far is 3 dustings. But this is my log and here I'm the decider. And the cool thing about being the decider is that I'm right, no matter what anyone else says.
I feel great!
But I got myself out the door -- a morning of dealing with taxes makes getting out the door much easier -- and it wasn't bad at all. Partly because I was properly dressed, 4 shirts, 2 pairs of pants including my Compass Point toasties, and my special warm gloves which if they have a problem it is that they are too warm. And the route was also cleverly chosen, the back side of Greenfield ridge, out of the wind except the first couple and last couple minutes. My usual wintertime route in other words, 13 hills.
And it was actually pretty pleasant.
* Note -- due to global warming, El Nino, and the willingness of Colorado to take almost all of the snow that might normally fall on Massachusetts, thank you very much, snowstorms here are now measured not in depth but in duration, and the duration is not how long it snows for but how long it lasts on the ground before it melts. So this winter has produced two half-day storms and the one today which is shaping up to be a 24- to 36-hour whopper.
Now traditional weather folks might say that all we've had so far is 3 dustings. But this is my log and here I'm the decider. And the cool thing about being the decider is that I'm right, no matter what anyone else says.
I feel great!
Thursday Jan 25, 2007 #
trail running 1:21:07 [3]
rhr:48 weight:137lbs shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
Nice run with Phil on Mt. Toby. I was glad to get out and have company, and he had his gadget, so things were good.
Took yesterday off to let my heel mend itself -- these things happen slower as you get older, but when you get real old you get up in the morning and you can't remember what is supposed to be hurting, and so you just get on with life. Yup, getting old is sweet....
Anyway, a nice run despite 3-shirt weather (4- or 5-shirt weather is coming tomorrow). Still mostly bare ground, though there is ice in the places that are normally wet. One such patch on a sidehill/downhill got the better of me. I slipped, went to recover on a bit of firm ground and twinged my ankle, stumbled recoving from that, just about recovered but then tripped over a fallen log and went Splat. But no harm done, not even to the ego.
Thought about humming some Jimi Hendrix tunes along the way just to make the run really fine, but then I don't know any Jimi Hendrix tunes, and I'm pretty sure I wouldn't like them if I did.
Took yesterday off to let my heel mend itself -- these things happen slower as you get older, but when you get real old you get up in the morning and you can't remember what is supposed to be hurting, and so you just get on with life. Yup, getting old is sweet....
Anyway, a nice run despite 3-shirt weather (4- or 5-shirt weather is coming tomorrow). Still mostly bare ground, though there is ice in the places that are normally wet. One such patch on a sidehill/downhill got the better of me. I slipped, went to recover on a bit of firm ground and twinged my ankle, stumbled recoving from that, just about recovered but then tripped over a fallen log and went Splat. But no harm done, not even to the ego.
Thought about humming some Jimi Hendrix tunes along the way just to make the run really fine, but then I don't know any Jimi Hendrix tunes, and I'm pretty sure I wouldn't like them if I did.
Tuesday Jan 23, 2007 #
track 11:35 [5] 3.2 km (3:37 / km)
weight:135.5lbs shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
At the Smith indoor track with Phil. A good bit quicker than expectd. 8 x 400 with an easy 200 and some walking in betwee, starting a 400 every 3 minutes. 89.0, 88.0, 87.3, 87.0, 86.2, 86.1, 85.1, 84.9.
Hamstrings hurting as usual, plus a little left heel pain, ok after about 5 minutes of running but noticeable before and after.
Hamstrings hurting as usual, plus a little left heel pain, ok after about 5 minutes of running but noticeable before and after.
track 28:30 [2]
shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
Before, between, and after. Mostly for the benefit of the Smith women's track team to show them what good running form really looked like.
Monday Jan 22, 2007 #
trail running 1:06:55 [3]
weight:135.5lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
On the snowmobile trails in Conway, except there was still no snow other than a dusting we got this morning. Started at the Boyden Brothers sugar house, was planning to follow the main trail over to the Conway-Whately Road and return (dashed line). There are a few other trails around, and one of them caught my eye, so I followed it until it had looped around to back where I'd been. 25 minutes so far, wanting to do an hour, that wasn't going to be enough, so I headed back in the direction of Norton Hollow, figuring I'd go partway down.
But my curiosity got the better of me, wanted to see what the state of the bridge was across the end of the beaver pond there, so I went all the way down. Which meant I had a 10-minute climb coming back up, good for me I guess, though I might be trailing Phil by a good amount at our planned track outing tomorrow morning.
The bridge was fine, lots of new planks.
But my curiosity got the better of me, wanted to see what the state of the bridge was across the end of the beaver pond there, so I went all the way down. Which meant I had a 10-minute climb coming back up, good for me I guess, though I might be trailing Phil by a good amount at our planned track outing tomorrow morning.
The bridge was fine, lots of new planks.
Sunday Jan 21, 2007 #
trail running 1:26:41 [3]
rhr:49 weight:136lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
Nice run up in Montague, amazing condition for mid-January, no snow, hardly any ice, even though the top little bit of Dry Hill still had some ice on the trees from a few days ago, quite beautiful in the bright sunshine. Up the old M&M, then instead of continuing on as usual past Ruggles Pond, hooked left over Dry Hill, north end of the Robert Frost trail, and followed it down just past Chestnut Hill. 44:57 out, 41:44 back.
Legs were a bit tired after yesterday's race, but not too bad. Still have a whole lot of work to do if I want to get anywhere close to the fine collection of scalps I got last year**. Six weeks to go until the Team/BOK A meet, and I need to get in at least 35 good workouts.
Followed the run not with a nap as one would guess, but another outing to the Mullins Center. UMass is a little better this year, but more importantly for me, they play a much more entertaining game than any time in the recent past. Though you could argue that the real reason I go (besides free tickets in the third row) is the fine ice cream at halftime.
** 2006 scalp collection includes Platt, Fredrickson, Hawkins, Bone, Scarborough, plus 3 of the 6 members of the Canadian WOC team. A mighty fine year.
Legs were a bit tired after yesterday's race, but not too bad. Still have a whole lot of work to do if I want to get anywhere close to the fine collection of scalps I got last year**. Six weeks to go until the Team/BOK A meet, and I need to get in at least 35 good workouts.
Followed the run not with a nap as one would guess, but another outing to the Mullins Center. UMass is a little better this year, but more importantly for me, they play a much more entertaining game than any time in the recent past. Though you could argue that the real reason I go (besides free tickets in the third row) is the fine ice cream at halftime.
** 2006 scalp collection includes Platt, Fredrickson, Hawkins, Bone, Scarborough, plus 3 of the 6 members of the Canadian WOC team. A mighty fine year.
Saturday Jan 20, 2007 #
road running race 21:17 [4] 3.1 mi (6:52 / mi)
weight:136lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
5K at Forest Park in Springfield, upper 20s, very windy, but bare pavement. A little beeter than 4 weeks ago (21:23) and 2 weeks ago (21:33). Strange, felt I was moving better all along but time for the first couple miles was the same as the last couple times, but then faster at the end. A least a little progress.
road running 31:00 [3]
shoes: Pegasus 08/06
Warm-up by myself, and then afterwards with George and Lyn, trying to keep up to them....
Friday Jan 19, 2007 #
trail running 40:38 [3]
rhr:50 weight:137lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
Late afternoon at Five Ponds in Litchfield after a quite productive visit to take care of some matters at Mom's (lawyer, bank, Social Security office, dentist).
Down to Beaver Pond and back, 20:34 out, 20:03 back, legs felt heavy to start but better after a while. Rewarded myself for getting out with a little ice cream on the way home.... :-)
Down to Beaver Pond and back, 20:34 out, 20:03 back, legs felt heavy to start but better after a while. Rewarded myself for getting out with a little ice cream on the way home.... :-)
Thursday Jan 18, 2007 #
trail running 1:26:56 [3]
rhr:49 weight:137.5lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
On the south side Mt. Norwottuck, same bike trails as last Friday with Phil. The plan was to go to the end of technical stuff (i.e. continually up and down, though never too much at a time), 48 minutes last time, and then come back the same way instead of the shorter way we had done. So a little over 90 minutes.
But as I got out about 35-40 minutes my willpower started to wane and I decided to take the easy way back, even though I was chugging along pretty good. Got to the turn-around in about 44:30, that was nice, stopped for a moment, looked at my watch again, and said to myself, should be a couple of minutes faster going back because it's a net downhill, just do it.
And I did, about 42:30, just as expected, legs felt pretty decent the whole time, longest run since the Highlander. Still can't run fast until I can get the hamstrings to loosen up, but maybe the last month of training is starting to kick in a little. Can always hope.
Upper 20s, quite pleasant out and a really nice route. Only problem is that any snow will kill it as it would be very hard to follow in the places through the hemlocks.
But as I got out about 35-40 minutes my willpower started to wane and I decided to take the easy way back, even though I was chugging along pretty good. Got to the turn-around in about 44:30, that was nice, stopped for a moment, looked at my watch again, and said to myself, should be a couple of minutes faster going back because it's a net downhill, just do it.
And I did, about 42:30, just as expected, legs felt pretty decent the whole time, longest run since the Highlander. Still can't run fast until I can get the hamstrings to loosen up, but maybe the last month of training is starting to kick in a little. Can always hope.
Upper 20s, quite pleasant out and a really nice route. Only problem is that any snow will kill it as it would be very hard to follow in the places through the hemlocks.
Wednesday Jan 17, 2007 #
trail running 1:09:14 [3]
rhr:49 weight:137.5lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
Up to the power line, over towards the gate, the bridle path loop and back. Hamstrings were sore but quads not bad, all things considered it wasn't awful, which puts it well above average for recent outings!
15 degrees and breezy, had full winter gear on, 3 shirts and 2 pair of O' pants, the outer pair being ones made by Compass Point which were always too warm for me, except for conditions like today. Legs felt just right! And a slightly warmer pair of gloves combined with pulling the sleeves of my outermost shirt down over my hands -- every once in a while there is an advantage to having short limbs -- kept my fingers comfortable.
Ice flows in a few places, easy to avoid if you can see them, but will make it tricky if we get some snow tomorrow night that will cover them up.
15 degrees and breezy, had full winter gear on, 3 shirts and 2 pair of O' pants, the outer pair being ones made by Compass Point which were always too warm for me, except for conditions like today. Legs felt just right! And a slightly warmer pair of gloves combined with pulling the sleeves of my outermost shirt down over my hands -- every once in a while there is an advantage to having short limbs -- kept my fingers comfortable.
Ice flows in a few places, easy to avoid if you can see them, but will make it tricky if we get some snow tomorrow night that will cover them up.
Tuesday Jan 16, 2007 #
trail running 55:14 [3]
weight:137lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
"13 hills" loop in Greenfield, still no snow or ice, though it was colder today, 30 and a stiff wind. Hands got quite cold, need to wear some warmer gloves, maybe my circulation out there is getting worse?
But the rare day when the legs felt a touch of life. Not zippy, mind you, but not dead/painful. Picked up the pace a little the last 10 minutes, not a Surge, didn't want to be really dumb after all, maybe just a small augmentation. As is usual with an augmentation, makes you feel a little more macho -- see, I'm doing something!! -- even if it doesn't really do any good.
I had during the run the chance to check in briefly with two of Greenfield's Finest (i.e policemen), who, as part of their job of protecting the local citizens from all things evil, were out looking for some wild coyotes, which had supposed been bothering the local population and their dogs.
Had I seen any?
Nope... and if I do, do I call you?
Sure.
And you're the Greenfield Police? (might have been the environmental police)
Yup.
Ok.
And by then I was well past them. But I wondered, what were they going to do if they saw a coyote? Catch it? Hard to imagine. Issue a citation? Maybe. Shoot it? Well, that seemed possible, and when I though about that a bit it occured to me that I've never been thratened by coyotes, nor had them jump all over me, whereas with dogs....
So who knows. But I had the distinct and rather unsettling feeling that the two cops were not AOWN.
But the rare day when the legs felt a touch of life. Not zippy, mind you, but not dead/painful. Picked up the pace a little the last 10 minutes, not a Surge, didn't want to be really dumb after all, maybe just a small augmentation. As is usual with an augmentation, makes you feel a little more macho -- see, I'm doing something!! -- even if it doesn't really do any good.
I had during the run the chance to check in briefly with two of Greenfield's Finest (i.e policemen), who, as part of their job of protecting the local citizens from all things evil, were out looking for some wild coyotes, which had supposed been bothering the local population and their dogs.
Had I seen any?
Nope... and if I do, do I call you?
Sure.
And you're the Greenfield Police? (might have been the environmental police)
Yup.
Ok.
And by then I was well past them. But I wondered, what were they going to do if they saw a coyote? Catch it? Hard to imagine. Issue a citation? Maybe. Shoot it? Well, that seemed possible, and when I though about that a bit it occured to me that I've never been thratened by coyotes, nor had them jump all over me, whereas with dogs....
So who knows. But I had the distinct and rather unsettling feeling that the two cops were not AOWN.
Monday Jan 15, 2007 #
trail running 21:07 [3]
rhr:50 weight:138lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
Rain all day, about 34 degrees, finally got out the door. Up to the power line. Figured I'd do a little more but not sure what, had been thinking about hiking the steep trail right up to the top (from aid station 1/5 to 3, not so silly to think I can run any of it these days), but just before I got to the PL the landscape changed -- it was obviously a little colder because all the trees were iced up. Well, I thought, that makes the decision easy, only a fool would go up, I'll go out the Sugar trail (the race course) for a bit and then head back down.
And then, of course, I thought, hmm, just get to see what it looks like higher up, so up I headed, walking at the first steeper part....
And then, of course, I thought, hmm, just get to see what it looks like higher up, so up I headed, walking at the first steeper part....
hike 12:14 [3]
shoes: Pegasus 08/06
Hike up through the muck on the ground (it hadn't iced up at all), and the bent-over icy branches, the ice getting thicker. Missed the right turn at about 1000' and went a little bit on an old trail, realized what I'd done, stopped, started to go back to continue climbing when I heard a loud crack and large enough branch to do some damage came crashing down about 50 yards up the slope.
I decided I'd gone far enough!
I decided I'd gone far enough!
trail running 22:03 [2]
shoes: Pegasus 08/06
So I came back down at a very modest pace.
A decent outing, very much AOWN.
A decent outing, very much AOWN.
Sunday Jan 14, 2007 #
road running 46:07 [3] 5.7 mi (8:05 / mi)
weight:139lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
Another bad day. SMAC run from South Deerfield, ended up running not far and not fast and not on any new roads and not with any energy or enthusiasm. Other than that I felt great!
Route.
Route.
Saturday Jan 13, 2007 #
road running race 45:42 [4] 6.2 mi (7:22 / mi)
weight:138lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
10K at Forest Park, despit saying to Phil at the end of yesterday's run that that workout had been hard enough that now I had no need whatsoever to go to the race the next day. But it seems like I forgot.
Though my legs didn't. A lot of effort for a lousy time, another personal worst.
The excitement came just before the 4-mile mark, when Lyn Walker went cruising by. Wow, you're doing great, I said, or something like that. I'm going too fast, was her response. So I spent the next couple minutes coming to grips with the fact that she was going to beat me, and I think I was actually quite content with that, and certainly pleased for the good race she seemed to be having.
And then all of a sudden she slowed down (I know I didn't speed up, about the same mile split as the previous ones -- 7:50 uphill, 7:25, 7:22, 7:17, 7:22, 6:57 downhill, 1:28), and I went by her. She still got another age record, 46:06, pretty cool.
Light rain, mid 40s.
Though my legs didn't. A lot of effort for a lousy time, another personal worst.
The excitement came just before the 4-mile mark, when Lyn Walker went cruising by. Wow, you're doing great, I said, or something like that. I'm going too fast, was her response. So I spent the next couple minutes coming to grips with the fact that she was going to beat me, and I think I was actually quite content with that, and certainly pleased for the good race she seemed to be having.
And then all of a sudden she slowed down (I know I didn't speed up, about the same mile split as the previous ones -- 7:50 uphill, 7:25, 7:22, 7:17, 7:22, 6:57 downhill, 1:28), and I went by her. She still got another age record, 46:06, pretty cool.
Light rain, mid 40s.
road running 18:00 [2]
shoes: Pegasus 08/06
Before and after, mostly with George and Lyn. Could tell my legs weren't there, especially for the 10 minutes after when I had trouble making it the hill to my car, even at a very slow pace.
Note
Stopped on the way home at East Mountain to take a long walk. Started slow, finished very well, 75. Rain had just stopped, quite nice. Very few people out but quite a few ducks.
Friday Jan 12, 2007 #
trail running 1:06:32 [3]
rhr:52 weight:137.5lbs shoes: Pegasus 08/06
With Phil (and all his gadgets, including something that rings like a cell phone everytime we've supposedly gone a mile, though Phil assumes it's really a little more than a mile).
Mountain bike trails on the south side of Norwottuck. Nice training route, though it would be a lot more fun if I wasn't feeling rather fragile. No long hills, but constantly up and down and very twisty, really good route to practice turning. Starting at the parking on the south side, we took BA-FE-FS-FO-PW, took 48 minutes to get to the north end of Pete's Wicked, and we for sure weren't going to do an out and back, then returned via OS, the main trail for a while and then TW. Much quicker back, also downhill mostly.
There's a nice looking map of all the trails on the Hampshire College web site, very pretty, even looks like someone went out with a GPS to map them, but I hope for the sake of the GPS maker that wasn't the case. The general concept is right -- there are lots of turns, squeezing a lot of trail into a small area -- but the location sucks, and I don't need a GPS to tell me that. It was actually good practice taking along the O' map, which has some of the trails we ran on (I think some are more recent), and more or less accurately. The trail makers seemed to like to go over every bit of rock, makes for a more technical trail I guess, so it was hard to keep reading the map. I managed pretty well where the trail was on the O' map. Elsewhere I was just guessing, mainly trying to remember the general route. Which I remembered well enough to see how far off the bike map is. But at least it is good enough to give an idea for a nice run.
Note -- I thought it might be nice to match the color of my text to the color of my bar graph. Seems to just make it hard to read, even harder than the white on black standard. May be a short lived experiment!
Mountain bike trails on the south side of Norwottuck. Nice training route, though it would be a lot more fun if I wasn't feeling rather fragile. No long hills, but constantly up and down and very twisty, really good route to practice turning. Starting at the parking on the south side, we took BA-FE-FS-FO-PW, took 48 minutes to get to the north end of Pete's Wicked, and we for sure weren't going to do an out and back, then returned via OS, the main trail for a while and then TW. Much quicker back, also downhill mostly.
There's a nice looking map of all the trails on the Hampshire College web site, very pretty, even looks like someone went out with a GPS to map them, but I hope for the sake of the GPS maker that wasn't the case. The general concept is right -- there are lots of turns, squeezing a lot of trail into a small area -- but the location sucks, and I don't need a GPS to tell me that. It was actually good practice taking along the O' map, which has some of the trails we ran on (I think some are more recent), and more or less accurately. The trail makers seemed to like to go over every bit of rock, makes for a more technical trail I guess, so it was hard to keep reading the map. I managed pretty well where the trail was on the O' map. Elsewhere I was just guessing, mainly trying to remember the general route. Which I remembered well enough to see how far off the bike map is. But at least it is good enough to give an idea for a nice run.
Note -- I thought it might be nice to match the color of my text to the color of my bar graph. Seems to just make it hard to read, even harder than the white on black standard. May be a short lived experiment!
Thursday Jan 11, 2007 #
trail running 32:31 [3]
weight:137.5lbs shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
Checking out a few new jeep roads (not newly created, just new to me) northeast of Eaglebrook Schiool, including a few minutes off trail. Felt like I hadn't done that for a while, which was true, kept knocking my hat off. Chilly, a little ice, but not bad.
track 13:34 [4] 3.2 km (4:14 / km)
shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
Now warmed up, 4 x 800 on the track, 200 in between. 3:24, 3:24, 3:24, 3:22. Hadn't known what to expect, hoping no worse than 3:30, so this was ok. Decent effort. Butt/hamstring hurt the whole time, nothing new there, but tolerable. And I think it was ok to have done this.
As usual, harder to do a track workout alone. Plan was just what I did, but it took some willpower not to cut it short.
As usual, harder to do a track workout alone. Plan was just what I did, but it took some willpower not to cut it short.
track 4:38 [2] 0.8 km (5:47 / km)
shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
The 4 slow 200s. Didn't feel like any more afterwards so I headed home for a late lunch, bowl of soup and 2 apples. Hopefully we've seen the holiday peak for the G, now have to get it down a bit.
Wednesday Jan 10, 2007 #
trail running 52:24 [3]
weight:137.5lbs shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
Short summary -- from the gate up to the top of Toby (29:05) and back (23:19). A dusting of snow and some ice, but footing mostly ok. 30 degrees, windy, first day it's felt like winter.
Longer version -- You really don't want to surge too often, and you for sure don't want to escalate. It occurred to me that what really was called for was a "de-escalation" so I made my way to the top of Toby and then de-escalated for all I was worth. It felt great! And I'd really recommend it to anyone else that has escalation on their mind. De-escalation is just a whole lot more fun.
Of course, you have to be a little careful, particularly this time of year. I went sliding on the ice a couple of times, no damage done, but enough to remind of the time maybe 20 years ago when Swampfox had taken up residence in Sunderland. And we went out for a run on a very cold winter day, only a couple of degrees above zero if at all. We went all around on the upper trails and after about 90 minutes we did a full de-escalation and were on our way back along the low route, following a snowmobile trail, when it came to a small creek. And the bridge was in need of repair, one of the beams was busted and the other was rotated a bit and all the cross slats were gone, so it wasn't the easiest thing to cross. And it may have had a touch of ice on it. It only took about 3 quick steps to get across, no problem for me, but then Swampfox hesitated partway, and then he slowly lost his balance, and then slowly fell over backwards into the creek. The creek was only a foot or so deep, but he was all under except for his head.
My initial thought was to leave him there, but then it occurred to me -- who would organize the 1000-day? Would I have to move to Laramie and take up a life of equal parts of training and gardening and organizing O' events? Trying not to laugh too hard, I pulled him out and we did a first-class surge on the 15 minutes left to run home and get him straight into the hot shower.
He will probably claim not to remember this.
Longer version -- You really don't want to surge too often, and you for sure don't want to escalate. It occurred to me that what really was called for was a "de-escalation" so I made my way to the top of Toby and then de-escalated for all I was worth. It felt great! And I'd really recommend it to anyone else that has escalation on their mind. De-escalation is just a whole lot more fun.
Of course, you have to be a little careful, particularly this time of year. I went sliding on the ice a couple of times, no damage done, but enough to remind of the time maybe 20 years ago when Swampfox had taken up residence in Sunderland. And we went out for a run on a very cold winter day, only a couple of degrees above zero if at all. We went all around on the upper trails and after about 90 minutes we did a full de-escalation and were on our way back along the low route, following a snowmobile trail, when it came to a small creek. And the bridge was in need of repair, one of the beams was busted and the other was rotated a bit and all the cross slats were gone, so it wasn't the easiest thing to cross. And it may have had a touch of ice on it. It only took about 3 quick steps to get across, no problem for me, but then Swampfox hesitated partway, and then he slowly lost his balance, and then slowly fell over backwards into the creek. The creek was only a foot or so deep, but he was all under except for his head.
My initial thought was to leave him there, but then it occurred to me -- who would organize the 1000-day? Would I have to move to Laramie and take up a life of equal parts of training and gardening and organizing O' events? Trying not to laugh too hard, I pulled him out and we did a first-class surge on the 15 minutes left to run home and get him straight into the hot shower.
He will probably claim not to remember this.
Tuesday Jan 9, 2007 #
trail running 55:45 [3]
weight:138.5lbs shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
Excellent day. Started out by winning a disagreement with the Mass. Department of Revenue for a client of mine, then off to the golf course, 4th round in January, unreal, a little rinky-dink course but a 75 is still a 75, though we were lucky we started on the early side because the Deerfield River was rising and by the time we were done the first hole was pretty much underwater/unplayable. And then over to run my wintertime hour loop on Greenfield Ridge, only even though it's January there isn't anything resembling snow or ice, and what's left is just the nicest sweetest rolling trails, hardly even any wet spots despite lots of rain, and what made it even better is that towards the end I tossed in about a 5-minute ....
Surge! And that felt so good, surges that do that for you, even if afterwards you think maybe it wasn't so smart, but then it did feel good! That's the thing about surges....
As I said to a friend at the Body Shoppe afterwards, the first day in quite a while when the legs didn't feel like shit. Progress, maybe?
Surge! And that felt so good, surges that do that for you, even if afterwards you think maybe it wasn't so smart, but then it did feel good! That's the thing about surges....
As I said to a friend at the Body Shoppe afterwards, the first day in quite a while when the legs didn't feel like shit. Progress, maybe?
C • Surge 19
Monday Jan 8, 2007 #
trail running 39:57 [3]
weight:139lbs shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
I was thinking today that some change is needed in my training, that something new is needed if I want to start making some real progress, a "new way forward" perhaps. Because the things I've been trying since I decided that staying the course was a disaster -- the ramp, at one with nature -- well, things were still pretty much a disaster even though I might not care to admit it.
So anyway, after much consultation, I've decided it's time for a change in strategy if I ever want to win this struggle. And the strategy that is clearly called for is a Surge. No, not just the surge in the G that has been going on for a while. A real Surge, with a capital S.
It feels really good to have this figured out, and I know that better times lie ahead.
And the new strategy is already working. Got out late afternoon after the rain ended and surged from the gate up the jeep road to the summit, not sure how far I was going, made it as far as the hairpin before losing my willpower. 22:09 up, 17:47 back.
Really optimistic about the future!
So anyway, after much consultation, I've decided it's time for a change in strategy if I ever want to win this struggle. And the strategy that is clearly called for is a Surge. No, not just the surge in the G that has been going on for a while. A real Surge, with a capital S.
It feels really good to have this figured out, and I know that better times lie ahead.
And the new strategy is already working. Got out late afternoon after the rain ended and surged from the gate up the jeep road to the summit, not sure how far I was going, made it as far as the hairpin before losing my willpower. 22:09 up, 17:47 back.
Really optimistic about the future!
Note
Found one more fine AOWN photo, and this is really At One With Nature -- Craig Murray (left) and Jim Baker, in a competition in Alaska in 1994 to see who can stand in a glacial stream the longest. The icepack ended about 100 yards upstream.
Jim was the winner, about 4 minutes, clearly he has no pain receptors in his feet. The prize/motivation was a Snickers bar.
Jim was the winner, about 4 minutes, clearly he has no pain receptors in his feet. The prize/motivation was a Snickers bar.
Sunday Jan 7, 2007 #
road running 1:30:05 [3]
weight:139.5lbs shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
A glimmer of hope. SMAC fun run, included the hilly 10-mile course in 80:35 without pushing the pace, a good bit better than the 85-90 I expected. Hamstrings still sore, getting tight at the end, but quads were better, and I didn't have that dead-tired feeling I've had on my runs in the last month.
Afterwards, at the club's annual meeting, got the award for the "oustanding male runner of 2006." A nice surprise, though it was a very good year, at least until the beginning of October.
Afterwards, at the club's annual meeting, got the award for the "oustanding male runner of 2006." A nice surprise, though it was a very good year, at least until the beginning of October.
Saturday Jan 6, 2007 #
road running race 21:33 [4] 3.1 mi (6:57 / mi)
weight:139lbs shoes: Air Max Trail 09/05
Another day with no zip. 5K at Forest Park,10 seconds slower than 2 weeks ago, though it wasn't for lack of trying. Phil was well ahead, George is getting closer. At least I ran the whole course....
Hopefully sometime this month I'll have a good day.
Warm (mid60s) and humid during the race. Clearing up and over 70 afterwards! Stopped on the way home at Mt. Tom to walk a couple of miles and enjoy the early afternoon.
Hopefully sometime this month I'll have a good day.
Warm (mid60s) and humid during the race. Clearing up and over 70 afterwards! Stopped on the way home at Mt. Tom to walk a couple of miles and enjoy the early afternoon.
road running 20:00 [2]
Before and after. Very sluggish.
Friday Jan 5, 2007 #
Note
Ok, here's the last photo, back to the AOWN theme.
Wells State Park, Sturbridge, MA. May 5, 1985. Awards ceremony for the Trolll Cup A Meet. And my old running buddy Fred Pilon, who had contacts in the sports industry, had somehow procured a copy of the 1984 USA gymnastics uniform, which was all the rage then, and then somehow talked me into donning it....
I mean, awards ceremonies were a lot more fun back then! And with all the recent griping about the outfits all of us old-timers orienteer in, well, this outfit ain't no pyjamas.
I've also written up a bit of the Wheaties story.
Wells State Park, Sturbridge, MA. May 5, 1985. Awards ceremony for the Trolll Cup A Meet. And my old running buddy Fred Pilon, who had contacts in the sports industry, had somehow procured a copy of the 1984 USA gymnastics uniform, which was all the rage then, and then somehow talked me into donning it....
I mean, awards ceremonies were a lot more fun back then! And with all the recent griping about the outfits all of us old-timers orienteer in, well, this outfit ain't no pyjamas.
I've also written up a bit of the Wheaties story.
Thursday Jan 4, 2007 #
trail running 38:48 [3]
weight:139lbs shoes: Air Max Trail 09/05
Short loop, out along the river, then up through Gunn farm and down N. Mt. Slow pace, though still didn't feel easy, 6:26 up Gunn, 10:21 down N. Mt.
AOWN report -- a flock of bluebirds seemed to be enjoying a pleasant January day in the fields by the river. Aren't they supposed to have gone south by now?
AOWN report -- a flock of bluebirds seemed to be enjoying a pleasant January day in the fields by the river. Aren't they supposed to have gone south by now?
Note
The next to last in the holiday series of old photos -- and to counter complaints that earlier photos were way too much "at one with nature," even though I've just been trying to support the IOF's new slogan, today's photo shows nothing but high class and good taste.
The photo was taken in January, 1985, at the Coliseum in Los Angeles. The tall, perhaps it would even be fair to say "very tall," and handsome dude to the left is none other than PG with a full head of hair. To the right and getting a quick lesson in the use of map and compass is Mary Lou Retton, gold medalist in gymnastics several times at the '84 Olympics.
Final photo, also very high class and with some connection to this one, comes tomorrow. With luck, also a bit of a story....
The photo was taken in January, 1985, at the Coliseum in Los Angeles. The tall, perhaps it would even be fair to say "very tall," and handsome dude to the left is none other than PG with a full head of hair. To the right and getting a quick lesson in the use of map and compass is Mary Lou Retton, gold medalist in gymnastics several times at the '84 Olympics.
Final photo, also very high class and with some connection to this one, comes tomorrow. With luck, also a bit of a story....
C • class 13
Wednesday Jan 3, 2007 #
trail running 49:22 [3]
shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
Sugar-Gunn loop. Legs feeling crappy as usual, but ran the last 15 minutes hard (6:03 up Gunn, 9:03 down N. Mt.) just because I didn't want to be more than 50 minutes for the loop. Probably not smart, but some things can't be helped.
Off to the links, then a tax appointment, then let's see if I can catch up on some team stuff tonight (maybe if I put something here, then I'll actually get something done!).
Just a couple more photos coming in the holiday series. The last one is really fine....
Off to the links, then a tax appointment, then let's see if I can catch up on some team stuff tonight (maybe if I put something here, then I'll actually get something done!).
Just a couple more photos coming in the holiday series. The last one is really fine....
Tuesday Jan 2, 2007 #
Note
Today we feature a (much) younger Peggy, date unknown.
The conversation on the shirt:
Mom -- "Dear, the whole family wants to know why you aren't married yet?"
Daughter -- "Tell them... tell them I forgot!"
Some things do change.
The conversation on the shirt:
Mom -- "Dear, the whole family wants to know why you aren't married yet?"
Daughter -- "Tell them... tell them I forgot!"
Some things do change.
Note
Time for a few numbers for 2006:
68 O’ races (61 in 2005)
-- 13 sprints (22 in 2005)
-- 11 middle (8)
-- 34 classic (24), though a “classic” varied a lot, from 35 to 95 minutes depending on whether I was running M21, M45, or M60.
-- 1 long (2)
-- 2 goats (2)
-- 2 cross/farsta (0)
-- 3 relay (2)
-- 2 night (1)
-- 0 trail-O (0)
9 sessions of O’ training at a serious pace, plus another 7 times on a map at mostly a walking pace.
256 hours training (278 in 2005) including:
-- 75 orienteering (56 in 2005)
-- 181 other running (193)
-- 0 biking (20)
-- 0 rogaining (0)
So about the same running training, with more orienteering, with roughly the same yearly cycle – good training in the winter and spring, lots of competitions in the spring and summer, slacking off in the fall (though injury played a big role in that this year).
Also ran 14 foot races:
-- 6 on the roads, from 5 km to a half marathon. Best performance was half marathon in 1:27:30 at Westfield
-- 4 local 5 km XC, best 19:56 at Holyoke
-- 5 trail races from 6 to 18 miles
-- 1 track race, mile in 5:46
Other thoughts --
1. Very little downtime from sickness (especially compared to what I see on other training logs), but took a fall at the North Americans that wrenched my left hamstring, which seems like it will be bothering me for a while.
2. Went to a lot of really fun O meets. The highlights were the trip to Jukola with CSU and the Swiss O’ Week in Zermatt, but overall there were just a lot of really good events.
3. Spent a lot of time on both the Team and the Sprint Series, with both bringing a lot of personal satisfaction.
4. Laughed a lot, and got my share of being laughed at too.
5. Weight held steady at 1G all year long, though the G itself sank quite a bit (thanks to the motivation of staying lighter than Mr. Swampfox) before rebounding at the end of the year. But the combination of good training and a low G gave me my best competitive season for a long time.
6. And finally, so far there have been 27,034 times that someone has stopped doing something useful to come look at my training log (6,908 at this time last year). I admit to spending a lot of time on Attackpoint, and getting a great deal of enjoyment from it, and it seems like some others do too.
And finally, my motto for 2007:
68 O’ races (61 in 2005)
-- 13 sprints (22 in 2005)
-- 11 middle (8)
-- 34 classic (24), though a “classic” varied a lot, from 35 to 95 minutes depending on whether I was running M21, M45, or M60.
-- 1 long (2)
-- 2 goats (2)
-- 2 cross/farsta (0)
-- 3 relay (2)
-- 2 night (1)
-- 0 trail-O (0)
9 sessions of O’ training at a serious pace, plus another 7 times on a map at mostly a walking pace.
256 hours training (278 in 2005) including:
-- 75 orienteering (56 in 2005)
-- 181 other running (193)
-- 0 biking (20)
-- 0 rogaining (0)
So about the same running training, with more orienteering, with roughly the same yearly cycle – good training in the winter and spring, lots of competitions in the spring and summer, slacking off in the fall (though injury played a big role in that this year).
Also ran 14 foot races:
-- 6 on the roads, from 5 km to a half marathon. Best performance was half marathon in 1:27:30 at Westfield
-- 4 local 5 km XC, best 19:56 at Holyoke
-- 5 trail races from 6 to 18 miles
-- 1 track race, mile in 5:46
Other thoughts --
1. Very little downtime from sickness (especially compared to what I see on other training logs), but took a fall at the North Americans that wrenched my left hamstring, which seems like it will be bothering me for a while.
2. Went to a lot of really fun O meets. The highlights were the trip to Jukola with CSU and the Swiss O’ Week in Zermatt, but overall there were just a lot of really good events.
3. Spent a lot of time on both the Team and the Sprint Series, with both bringing a lot of personal satisfaction.
4. Laughed a lot, and got my share of being laughed at too.
5. Weight held steady at 1G all year long, though the G itself sank quite a bit (thanks to the motivation of staying lighter than Mr. Swampfox) before rebounding at the end of the year. But the combination of good training and a low G gave me my best competitive season for a long time.
6. And finally, so far there have been 27,034 times that someone has stopped doing something useful to come look at my training log (6,908 at this time last year). I admit to spending a lot of time on Attackpoint, and getting a great deal of enjoyment from it, and it seems like some others do too.
And finally, my motto for 2007:
trail running 53:33 [3]
rhr:54 weight:139lbs shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
From the gate up to the top of Toby, back via the link and RF. Pretty depressing, stopped a couple of times on the way up to rest. Just another day with no zip.
Forgot that yesterday was my O' birthday, now M63.
Forgot that yesterday was my O' birthday, now M63.
Monday Jan 1, 2007 #
Note
weight:139lbs
Spent the last couple of days in Litchfield, lots of food, no exercise -- hamstring/butt was very sore Saturday and it seemed like the right time to kill the ramp. Also, since it is 33 and raining here on Monday morning, not the best time to run a 10K, so I am skipping the Montague race.
What excellent common sense! The problem, of course, is that continued common sense will have me perpetually fat and out of shape....
What excellent common sense! The problem, of course, is that continued common sense will have me perpetually fat and out of shape....
Note
Today's photo from the archives is a young and dashing (well, relatively young) Spike, c. 1989. What is striking is not how much hair he used to have, or how brown it was, but how thin he used to be....
trail running 51:55 [3]
shoes: Air Max Trail 12/06
Not real pleasant out -- about 35, still a little rain coming down -- but got out for a short run on the mountain. Through the town park, up Middle Mt. road, down the power line and North Mt. road. A little bit icy, left over from the overnight freezing rain, so I took it easy on the way down, not wanting to grab the runner-up spot to Brian for stupid New Year's Day tricks. And I made it down without crashing, even though I was sliding more than I cared to a few times.
Total training logged for 2006 was 256 hours. Pretty good for the first 9 months, much less in the fall due to injury. And almost all of the 256 was running in one form or another.
Total training logged for 2006 was 256 hours. Pretty good for the first 9 months, much less in the fall due to injury. And almost all of the 256 was running in one form or another.