The Marathon. A Crap Shoot?

First I have to review the week leading into the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon.

I don't have a lot to report. I don't have any " I feel amazing, I can't wait" postings. For the most part, race week was much of the same that I have experienced all summer and fall. On Monday I ran an easy loop after a pathetic 90 minute run that left me in total doubt. Tuesday I woke up with the intentions of running a nice warm up and turning in a four mile "steady state" run at 5:55 pace just to get a feeling for the pace one last time. That failed miserably and I couldn't get myself to run under 6:30's and feel comfortable so I scrapped the workout and just ran easy. Wednesday came and I felt it was necessary just to get up and run and I started feeling better but still nothing too speedy. Thursday I took a rest day and did my back stretches and workout video. Friday I ran an easy 5 miler and actually felt very fluid and relaxed. A first in many days! Saturday I traveled to the Cities for the race but opted for a day of rest once I got down there, no running.

So, as you can see, I put together yet another week of "less than ideal training" heading into a marathon. No threshold, no speed, nothing. Just plain ol' running. Not exactly what I was looking for during race-week but then again, I have been going against the regular training plan all summer.

SUNDAY OCTOBER 3RD

Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon

Just to shed a little light on how my pre-race plans went, I have to mention that I continued to "go against the grain" in terms of marathon preparation. I drove to the host Hotel to get the final race instructions, check in, and get my race number. After a quick trip to the race expo and visit with some friends, I had to find my way back to the vehicle that I was sure would be sporting a parking ticket since the meter was malfunctioning when I had left it. I got lucky and found my windshield clear of any paper citations. It was now 1430 and I had last ate at 0830 before I left for my trip. I was getting hungry and I needed food. Thankfully I had left a Powerbar in the truck and I made it disappear quicker than I could imagine. I did manage to keep up on my fluids very well, just lacking in the solids. Once I made my way to the Hotel I checked in and soon was making the jaunt to Leann Chins for a healthy plate of vegetable fried rice with cashew chicken and two pot stickers. (I had done the Asian food thing once before a long run and swore it was the reason for a stellar run, so I figured if there was a time to test it before a race now was the time.) A bit later that night I made my way to an Irish Pub for a Summit Extra Pale Ale and a bread and cheese tray before settling in my room for the final checklist and preparation.

That night I drank a lot of water and finished a 32 oz. Gatorade I had started earlier in the evening. I was peeing clear upon awakening and I knew the hydration was well taken care of. I forgot one major detail. I had NOTHING to eat race morning!! I had a lot of gels but I needed solid food. What was I going to do? As I was leaving for the bus shuttle I saw a Rainbow food store only to find it closed until 0600. So I took off for the bus and downed a gel as I was driving east on I-94. I kept thinking to myself, "you have plenty of time, hit an exit and find a gas station for a breakfast bar or something." As I approached Snelling I hit the blinker and blasted up the exit before quickly eyeing up the golden arches. Yes, the McDonald's golden arches. I flew into the parking lot and ran in to order an egg and cheese biscuit. As I was driving out of the parking lot I discovered that the guy gave me a sausage and egg biscuit instead. The sausage ended up on the street and I ate the egg-biscuit. Another test in my not-so-ordinary race preparation plan. I made my bus and the rest of the morning was relatively routine.

If you are still reading I am sorry to yak about all the crazy shit I did but I just find it funny that a lot of the pre-race plan was so different that I am amazed to write about how the race unfolded.

The morning was made for marathoning. Clear skies. Cool, 40F just as the race was starting, and NO wind. Simply amazing and I was part of the 8000+ participants that got to take advantage of such a glorious morn. I got a decent warm up and stretches in and was ready as the gun sounded. What the hell? One last glitch in my race plan. My Garmin had not found all the satellites and was still searching as we left the dome. The gps would not work until 2 miles of the race, it was at that point I was able to start my watch. Not a big deal, but in past races it would have freaked me out big time!

Once past the 5K I was working pretty easy and I had the pleasure of running with Pete Miller whom I had competed against many a times over the last 18 years. He and I were looking to run very similar races and it was best to find someone to run with as it keeps a persons mind occupied. We had a difficult time settling on the 6:10 pace we wanted for the first 7-10 miles. Many of which were well under 6:00 minute pace. The good thing was they felt very easy. That was very promising and yet I was concerned. For some reason, at 8-9 miles my right, lower calf was starting to tighten and soon the upper hamstrings and glutes were joining in on the tightness. As we passed 10 miles Pete asked me, "how are you doing?" I told him I had a bad patch back there but things were improving. We ran very consistent through half-way and I mentioned to Pete as we passed the 13.1 mark, "I'm not too sure what the hell I'm doing going through half way at my current PR pace, but I guess it's too late to worry now." We progressed up the course and I progressed to feel worse. Miles 15-17 started to get really tough and I was then planning where my drop-out spot would be. For some reason 19 sounded good to me in my mind. Something told me to keep pressing though. As I monitored the splits for a mile or so it made sense for me to keep moving, despite the way I felt, the splits were staying pretty close and I wasn't walking yet. The gel I had taken at mile 17 must have started to work and soon I was talking myself into 'counting down the miles'. "Just eight miles to go, just seven to go", and I kept doing that as I moved up the course. As I moved up the hills coming off the river bottom something magical happened. I started to feel strong. I couldn't believe it but I was passing runner after runner and I was moving feeling very good. I had heard of this happening to runners before but was it really happening to me? How? I hadn't run over 18 miles since Grandma's Marathon back in June. I kept my eyes up ahead and just kept pressing the pace. From 20 miles to the finish I didn't look at my watch for pacing. I knew I felt good and I wasn't going to let some number ruin my feeling. If I felt that good I must have been moving decent for the last stage of a marathon. I took my last gel at 21 miles and at every aide station I took two cups of Poweraide and two cups of water and drank them all! I'm not too sure if that's what did it but I finally got to feel what it's like to crush the Summit Avenue curse!! I felt amazing but scared. I didn't want to have the feeling of moving so well come to an end at mile 22,23, or 24. I wanted to run strong to the finish. I put those worries to rest and told myself, "you will never find out if you can run strong to the finish if you don't try. Don't be afraid, just keep the same strong, relaxed effort and you may just make it. Don't stop!" I saw and heard many people out there cheering on myself and many runners but there is something about complete strangers looking at you and saying something like, "hey, number 118 you are really moving well, keep up the good work." Thank You All!!!

As I passed mile 25 I knew I had put the worst behind me and all I had to do was press one more minor hill and then the reward was waiting. Most times the last half mile, mostly downhill from the Cathedral, feels horrible. A downhill that steep after running 25.5 miles hurts the quads. As I crested the hill and saw the huge crowds, I focused on the gigantic American flag at the bottom of the hill, all I wanted to do was let out a huge scream of relief. I made it!! I never did let out the scream but I wanted to and I kept pressing to the end. I focused on the finish tape and was very surprised to see the clock tick past 2:39:59. I was bummed out and excited at the same time. To run 2:40:17 was very rewarding with the challenges I had this summer and to get the opportunity to finally, after 15 marathon starts, feel that it is possible to hammer the last 10K of a marathon still brings tears to my eyes. I now have a little feeling of what it's like to nail a marathon. I didn't get a personal best, but it sure felt like it. I wanted to run much faster back in July when I started preparation for this race but some circumstances are out of a persons control. I finished this race happy! I've mentioned this in the past but it's races like this that keeps us crazy marathoners chasing the carrot. I feel like the marathon is what many call A Crap Shoot. I've trained much harder with all kinds of workouts before and raced much worse than I did on Sunday. What gives? I'm not willing to test this training again, but it sure will be on my mind come next build up.

Here are the splits the Garmin spit out starting at mile 2.

miles one and two were: 5:53, and 6:00

6:03,5:50,6:01,6:04,5:59,6:00,5:59,5:57,5:51,6:07,6:03,6:02,5:56,5:59,6:01,6:04,6:06

,6:13,6:28,6:31,6:24,6:11,6:08,6:06,2:02.

Here are the details:

Time: 2:40:17

87th overall, 6th in age group 40-44

*feeling strong at the end, PRICELESS!!

Miles for day: ~28 miles with warm up

Weeks Mileage: 56 miles

Years Total: 2033.7 miles

Roller Coaster Training

Last Sunday I ran the Grandma's Minnesota Mile that resulted in a decent time. I then woke up the next morning and did my long run that I had missed because of the race. On Monday I woke up and hit the roads by 0405 and did an out and back on West Skyline. The miles clicked off without any problems and I was feeling like things were on the rise.

For the remainder of the week I battled getting out of bed and running decent mileage. I wanted to run medium long on Thursday and long one more time on Sunday to have a solid week. Neither happened and I managed to take two days off of running. On one of the days off I followed a "egoscue" strength video to loosen up my back and that worked very well.

On Saturday I hooked up with my buddy Rod and we did a near 10 mile pace run for his preparation for a Half-Ironman in three weeks. The run felt very good and I managed to roll out 6:20-6:30 miles without any hesitation or issues. Then on Sunday I woke up with intentions of running for a bit over 2 hours and I was so stiff and sore just the thought of running was far-fetched. After some stretches and self-motivational thoughts I meandered out the door for a pathetic 90 minute run that felt just horrible.

All these feelings and thoughts leave in a very uncomfortable position heading into a 26er. I want to remain as optimistic as possible but I also want to be realistic and be ready for finding a way out of that race come damage time. Really, I guess there is no planning that kind of thing and I will just deal when and if the time arises.

Here is the lame week of training that was:

Monday:

2:05:16 17.5 miles

Tuesday:

0 miles

egoscue video for back and core

Wednesday:

57:23 8.6 miles

(4) steady state: 6:35 warm up

5:55

5:50

5:49

Thursday:

0 miles, sore

Friday:

38:04 5.2 miles

recovery that felt really good

Saturday:

1:05:51 9.8 miles

6:20-6:30 pace

Sunday:

1:32:00 13.2 miles

felt horrible, lot's of abdominal soreness

Weeks Total: 54 miles (5 runs)

Years Total: 1977.7 miles

Turning The Corner

It seems like my back has taken a turn for the better. I woke up yesterday morning feeling a bit more flexible and had a decent trail run with Dave S. To have my legs feel light and snappy has been a rarity but I had to keep things under control on the trails as I really wanted to rip a couple of loops in Hartley but held back and did an abbreviated version and made the trip home just under an hour. A gorgeous day for a trail run.

This morning was the Grandma's Minnesota Mile. Four years strong, the race is growing and the field was as competitive as ever. For some reason the race organizers felt it was necessary to have the Masters that were chasing the $500.00 top prize run in the open elite wave. Wow, what an eye opening. I didn't want to take it out too hard but being close to 10+ seconds behind at the 400 meter mark made that difficult. I passed the 1/4 in 64 seconds! Just about 6 seconds too fast from what I was going to do. Once I rounded the corners past Fitgers I had the downhill segment to cruise and allow my breathing to catch up with me. I may have slowed too much, and ultimately cost me the top prize, but I managed to hit the half mark in 2:14. I missed the clock at 3/4 mile but I'm sure it was much the same and as I made my move to run strong up the final stretch I saw the clock tick past 4:29.... then I had to sprint with all I had left. I saw the clock last at 4:34, probably turning to 4:35 but my recorded time was 4:36.8 seconds. A new PR!

I came away from the race happy as I figured it would be very difficult to hit sub-4:40 as I had near zero confidence going into this race. The way I felt during the race was weird. I was running all I could and it felt a bit harder than tempo pace but the unfortunate thing was I had no other gear. I couldn't find that deep, low end fast turnover I needed to catch the next guy. I'm sure it's from the lack of long runs and workouts. The next two weeks will hopefully get me some more strength going into TCM. I plan no true taper, just a few easy days prior to the race. I need all the training runs I can get in.

Saturday:

52:30 6.6 miles

Sunday:

4 miles warm up. 1 mile race

5 miles total

Weeks Total: 38 miles (6 runs)

Years Total: 1923.4 miles

Week In Stride

I've managed to make it through the workweek fairly well but remain to have a fair amount of lower back discomfort in the morning. It's feeling very stiff and after some stretching and exercises it allows me to go out and train but once I'm done it gets stiff again and remains like that all day at work. Once I get rid of the low back problems I believe I can step up the training and will find myself in a really good position to get in some quality workouts and possibly have a good race yet this fall. (I have a few on my radar I may go chase if all my cards fall in place.)

It's amazing what a couple of emails and comments from friends can do to a persons perspective. Sunday I was willing to throw in the towel and scrap the whole racing season. Then I heard from a few pals that truly understand what I am going through. I just needed to hear it! I will pick myself up from this funk and soon be on my way to excellent fitness! I'm just not sure when that will be...

In about 36 hours I will be getting ready to march downtown Duluth and ready myself for the Duluth Minnesota Mile. Back in July it sounded like a good idea. I would have the entire summer and fall to train and come September I would find myself in kick ass shape and set a new PR. Well, throw in an abdominal incision or three and the whole summer was screwed! I will not back out of my commitment as I wanted to but it may not be pretty. There will hopefully be a true "masters" field to compete with or else I will look like that kid that was picked last in gym class to play on the team as I chase true paid "elites" down superior street. In any case it will be interesting.

So far this week the mileage has been cut down and I remained to take one day off. On Wednesday I woke to my alarm and just couldn't fathom the thought of getting out of bed, let alone run down the road. I managed to get in some quality runs and the rest was just plain ol' jogging in the morning. I will update after the mile on Sunday and hopefully I will have good things to report. I will be keeping my fingers crossed the entire time.

Monday:

Despite the crash on Sunday I found myself feeling well and not too sore. I did manage to eat like a horse on Sunday at my sister-in-laws at a birthday party so I imagine that helped a lot. I kept the run short and sweet and had a good one.

38:45 5 miles (Morley)

Tuesday:

Two day lag. I didn't have it in me to go to the track and throw down some 200's and 400's. Instead I ran a road loop out in Woodland and did a series of 1 minute on 30 seconds rest. I did 6 X 1 min at 5:40-5:30 pace just to blow out the rust. They felt decent, but as soon as I slowed down the back got tight.

101:03 8.6 miles

Wednesday:

morning of death. no running. very tired.

Thursday:

To UMD track and did a series of 200's at 34-35 seconds. They felt very good and for a few I felt like I had some power being generated in my stride. That always feels good.

8X200 meters with 200 rest.

56:25 8 miles

Friday:

Easy road loop in Morley. I had everything I could do not to be sprayed by a skunk in the cemetery. Had I forgot my headlamp, I would be one stinky guy right now. LUCKY!

38:08 5.2 miles (7:20's mostly)

Borderline Misery

I like to think of myself as an optimist. In most circumstances I can find the "good" that can be overlooked. This past week has been a test to see just how optimistic I can remain. My back continued to give me grief all week and despite another Chiropractic visit on Friday little has changed. I know my glutes and hips are tight and that may be the source of my discomfort.

The other problem I continue to battle is a continuous feeling of "no pep". No matter what run I do, fast or slow, I feel mostly shitty. They say a lot of surgeries need a minimum of 6-8 weeks before one can expect to join their overall activities before the procedure. This week will be 8 weeks since my appendectomy. Who knows??

Because of the above issues I continue to take at least one day off a week and this weekend I scrapped my racing plans to race/run the City of The Lakes 25K. I just didn't have it in my heart, or legs for that matter, to drive down to the metro area and race a LONG run. That race can take a lot out of you when you are ON your game, let alone zapped like I feel. Instead I ran a longer effort at home and nearly had to walk home. I believe I started the run a bit depleted and I continued to crash from there. With two miles to return to the house I had everything I could do not to walk. Much like the last few miles of a marathon, I felt zapped and ready to be done. A good Ol' fashion BONK. All I can say is Hammer Gel and Co. could go out of business tomorrow and I could care less. They make useless products! (I'm just pissed because one of their gels couldn't get me out of my bonk because they don't put anything worthwhile in their gels)

With all that said, a lot of racing is in question. I am not too sure I will continue this season. I'm tired, sore and quite frankly pissed off I can't get in a decent week of training and trying to cram any worthwhile training before a 26'er just isn't working. I haven't given up YET, but I will give myself another week or so and honestly if things are not any better I will probably pull the plug on the entire season.

Here is the rest of the week:

Tuesday: up Woodland, Arnold, Martin, Riley, and home via Vermilion.

1:11:00 9.3 miles easy

Wednesday: Lakeside loop with 3 minute pick-ups.

8 X 3 minute at 5:20 pace

1:00:20 8.6 miles

Thursday: 0 miles, too damn tired and cold to get out of bed.

Friday: I made up a quick decision to hit the UMD track.

8 X 400 meters at 70-73 second pace with 200 jog rest.

49:07 7 miles

Saturday: out and back on west skyline.

49:22 7 miles

Sunday: Bonkfest! Roads and Trails of Chester, Lakewalk, Lester, and SHT.

2:00:20 16 miles

Weeks Total: 60 miles (6 runs)

Years Total: 1885 miles

Victory 10K

Well, the race wasn't victorious for me, but close. I managed to get second in the "masters" as a tuned-up Pat Billig showed up and took top honors. I did manage to nab 1st in the 40-44 age group. Not too sure what that's worth but I did get knocked out of $150.00 by 20 seconds or so. Oh so close... (you know what they say...)

My back is better but it remained to take a little coercion to get moving this morning. I did a slow, longer warm up and followed it up with a series of stretches that allowed a little release and the ability to stride out some. I am finding out that the root of a lot of my problems are, at least what I believe, the piriformis muscles in my glutes. They are very tight and the next four weeks I must spend some time attending to them if I have any prayers of finishing 26.2 miles. Next weeks 25K will really put things in perspective. I'm not too sure I want to know...

The race unfolded about as well as I could have hoped. I didn't want to go out too hard and dive into oxygen debt. I did that all too often in my younger years and paid the piper big time during the last two miles. Today I went out with a group that rolled through the first mile in 5:24. Right where I wanted to be, maybe a few ticks fast but I managed to think of it as "time in the bank". It's been a few years since I last ran Victory and that time allowed me to forget about the upgrade second and third miles. The third split was slow at 5:41 and I was shocked because I made a conscious effort to break out of a group of four that I had been running with and chase the next few guys ahead of me. At the turn-around I kept a positive state of mind and when I made the subtle turn to the straight the third mile made sense. From that perspective you could see the now downhill and the grade that caused the slow third mile split. I managed to crank out the fourth fairly well and hit the marker at 5:19. The fifth mile I was still chasing three guys and split in 5:23, still moving pretty decent. I had some mental let-down the sixth mile even though I had caught one of the three runners on my radar and he kept me going as well as I could. Mile six was 5:31. We both traded positions over the last mile and 0.2 tenths with he getting to the tape first. I crossed the finish line in 34:06 and was quite pleased with the effort. I wanted to run 33:45 or faster but it just wasn't in the cards today.

Complete Results HERE

Totals: 10K race: 34:08 (i had 34:06)

warm up and warm down of 24:00+ each

~11.5 miles total running

Spine

Right now my spine is the only thing limiting me to crank up the miles and pace. Sitting in the van at Ragnar was the start of trouble and then having my dog pull me in an awkward direction on Monday, fresh off a successful Chiropractor visit, put my right lower back into hell for the remainder of the week. Each morning I feel the will to quit the sport and pick up my banjo. Each morning I take a little time, drink a cup of joe, go through a series of stretches and next thing you know I am heading out the door for a run of unknown duration. Thankfully I have been able to resume some decent training and I hope I can nail a few more workouts, long runs and an occasional race or three.

Saturday I made a connection with Dave S. and Dave H out at Lester trails. I wasn't too sure how things were going to feel after Friday's 2:20:00 but the trails are the best place to test things. We made our way up on the ski trails and managed to find mostly dry single track to make our way to the top of the park. My legs were quite fresh much to my surprise and the hour chipped away very quickly.

Total: 1:06:37 7 miles trails

Sunday I woke up feeling just as many days this week. I followed my morning routine and sure enough I was making tracks down the road once again. The main difference was that I knew I was going to have a good run after half a mile. My legs were fresh and minimal back stiffness with running. The course for the day was down the SHT and Hawks and back via same route plus a short segment in Hartley. Today was one of the very few where I actually had to hold myself back from running too hard. As long as I can drag my carcass out of bed tomorrow I think I can give the 10K a decent effort.

Total: 1:08:34 8.7 miles trails

Weeks Total: 52 miles

Years Total: 1825.6 miles

Meat and Potatoes

Vacation weeks are always difficult to maintain training volume so often I resort to the "meat and potatoes" of training. I'm way behind in training volume and workouts heading into the last four weeks of preparation for Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon. This may very well be the least prepared I have been for a marathon. I keep having people tell me that things will be alright and I will have to rely on training "muscle memory" and experience. I guess the main thing will be for me to mentally be ready and gut out another 26 miler come October 3rd. Maybe the last four weeks will be magical.

Tuesday I woke up in the camper feeling mighty rested after near 10 hours of sleep. I may have mentioned but I have been sleeping 9-10 hours a night after my little all-nighter relay last weekend. This week I definitely caught up! As I made my way outside all I could do was soak up the 80F sun and drink coffee. After Kari and I polished off a french press of coffee we all showered and made our way to the nearest park and ride to make a day at at the Great Minnesota Get Together. We had a super day, drank a few beers and took in some unwanted calories of various forms. The last item I ate was a deep fried Reces Peanut Butter Cup. OK at best.

Total: 0 miles running

"a few" of walking at state fair

Wednesday I made my way out after yet another stellar nights sleep. I got out on the nearby asphalt trails and managed to do a impromptu workout. After 2 miles of warm up I slowly worked into 6 X 20 seconds hard (4:45 pace) with same rest. I then bumped up the interval time and did 8 X 60 seconds at 5:00 pace with 30 seconds of rest between. It felt good to get in some speed to the legs. With the warm up and warm down I ran a bit over an hour.

We made it to our first ever Twins game. Target field was amazing and what a good time! I can't believe people pay $7.00 per beer 12 oz's. Crazy....

Total: 1:02:00 9 miles

Thursday I woke up and my back was a bit tight and with the recent rain all I could do was drink coffee and start to dismantle the campsite. We had a window of sunshine and I wanted all the tents and matts to dry if possible. Once we arrived in Duluth and unpacked I made my way out to do a little "shake-out" run and call it at 4 miles. My legs felt very good and my back was holding it's own.

Total: 28:40 4 miles

This morning, Friday, I made a quick decision to make the day a long run effort and have the weekend to rest before making my way down to the Victory 10K on Labor Day Monday.

The weather was horrible. Mid 50's F along with on/off drizzle. (what happened to the 90'sF we had on Monday and Tuesday!) My buddy Erik and I did the first hour on trails and a few road miles. Once I dropped him off at an hour I added some more loops of trails in Rock Hill before doing an out and back on Skyline and finishing my last two miles with one more loop of Rock Hill. My back did well but I fatigued fairly well in the abdomen, hips and upper hamstrings. A few more long runs and this should minimize. The distance was fair but time on my legs was key for the day. Overall a very good run.

Total: 2:20:21 18 miles

*mostly trails, terrible winds!

Vacation Week

I am on vacation! What a way to start a post. It feels great to have some time off and I hope to make the best of the week.

We are going camping, the State Fair, and a Twins game this week. I'll do some running in between all that as well.

This morning was a nice "shake-out" run in the sticky heat. It was 73F at 5:30 this morning so running easy was just a bonus. Toward the end of the run I made my way to the UMD track and did 6 striders on the 100 meter straights before heading home. For the most part my legs felt good and now I just have to get my back in better shape. Hopefully the people at CHC can get me in this morning.

Total: 39:32 5 miles easy

Trail Weekend

After Thursday's rest I got out Friday and hit the roads for a hour of general aerobic training. Nothing too fast nor was it a recovery pace run. I was going to try for 90 minutes but I knew I wanted to get in some good back to back medium distance this weekend so I opted for a hour run. For the most part things were feeling good except my lower right back. ( a result of sitting in a mini van for 20 hours last weekend)

Total: 1:06:22 9 miles

Saturday:

I got in touch with Dave H on Friday night and we agreed to get in a nice 90 minute loop in the late morning hours on Saturday. When we left my house the temps were 82F and the sun was beaming on us. It was a good thing we hit the trails by the second mile and the trees provided a much needed canopy for much of the distance. We made our way down the SHT to Hawks Ridge and over to Amity creek before I made my way to the creek bottom for a splash of refreshing water. Our return trip up SHT was very comfortable but my right leg and lower back were beginning to take a toll on me. It felt good to stop but the back was about as tight as I could handle. I need the CHC people.

It was nice catching up with Dave and it seemed he had a decent run as well.

Total: 1:29:32 11.2 miles

Sunday:

When I woke up things were ugly. Yeah, I was too, but my back was telling me "no running today". I couldn't stand the thought of missing another longer effort. My wife told me to try a DVD she had the really focused on the core and back stretches/strength. I followed it which lasted near 30 minutes and what a difference it made. My back was stretched out and I was ready to hit the road. I fully expected it to spasm up mid run and cause me to bail out but it didn't.

I ran the same course Dave and I did on Saturday then I added a loop in Hartley to make up some additional time. I got out a little earlier and the heat didn't hit me as hard. To get in two quality runs back to back was very satisfying and I hope things are ready to progress to the next level this next week.

Total: 1:46:00 14+miles

Weeks Total: 59 miles (6 runs)

Years Total: 1773.9 miles

Back In The Groove

Just when I thought I had run some slow, horrible, stiff, recovery runs I then got the luxury of feeling Monday's run. I took Sunday off for recovery and sleep and I had to go to the well on Monday. My quads and lower back were not letting me stride out so I kept things well under control. After I made it past the first half mile things slowly improved to the point where I knew I could make it through the miles. I've also mentioned in the past that these types of runs are very important in the recovery process and as much as they suck you can't avoid them. They must be done. Here are the feeble mile splits:

8:14,8:30,8:08,7:31,7:43,9:01,8:20

Total: 7 miles 57:28

Tuesday I had it in my mind that I was going to get out there and hit some miles and get my legs to do what I wanted. Crazy thought. The did do much better but I was not able to do my half-marathon pace segment in the run so I just kept it at an honest pace. I was surprised how good I felt. Towards the end things started to get a little stiff again but for the most part I was very happy with the weeks progress so far.

Total: 1:26:17 12 miles

Wednesday was back to a little recovery time and just getting out the door was a success. I was still feeling very tired from the weekends all-nighter and getting up each day has been a chore despite the extra sleep I have been getting. The morning was another gorgeous one and getting up is much easier when you know you have decent weather to run out into. I took it easy and was looking forward to Thurs longer run again.

Total: 41:05 5.3 miles

I never made it out this morning. The overall feeling of fatigue while in bed got the best of me and that is breaking rule number one. I am not supposed to make decisions of working out while in bed. I make myself get downstairs to make that decision and usually once I am down there it is really easy to get out the door. I didn't give myself that chance and just readjusted my alarm clock and gained an extra 90 minutes of sleep. I'm not beating myself up too bad about it and I realize I can still get in some good mileage this weekend so I guess it's a good thing. (i'm not really sure, just rationalizing)

Total: 0 miles :(

Ragnar Relay- A Story of Masters

I turned 40 in April. It couldn't have been too long after that I received an email from an old buddy I met years back during my internship in Marshfield WI. He was inquiring to see if I would be interested in joining himself, along with several others I had met the summer of 1992, in a multi-stage relay from Winona to Minneapolis. I wasn't done reading the email and I already knew my answer. YES!

The Great River Relay, organized by Ragnar Relay events, was an epic event the would cover 193 miles of demanding roadways from Winona to Minneapolis. There are several "classes" a person could participate in and our team would be considered a mens "Masters" aka 0ver 40 years age, class. For anybody who has participated in an event like this you know the excitement I am about to describe. EPIC is one word.

Part of my decision in running this event was the fellow runners. If a person is going to spend the better part of a weekend with 11 other runners he or she better be able to get along. I knew this wouldn't be a problem. Steve, Mike, Mark, Eddie, Scott and Jay have been runners and friends I have known since the early 90's. I've kept in touch with Steve and Mike the most but catching up with the rest was just like jumping back in time and taking off just where we left conversation. The rest of the team consisted of Tom, Perry, Zup, Ole and Greg. All of whom I just met on Friday. Great guys!! Thank you for letting me be part of such a great experience.

I can't stay up and type enough to replay all the excitement and energy that I was exposed to. Here were some highlights:

The race times were staggered and we shared the last starting time with a half-dozen teams or so. We left Winona at 4 PM on Friday and had a mission to be in Minneapolis by noon on Friday. If we did that, we knew we would place well. Keeping skepticism to the side I got ready to lace my shoes, ties my shorts and run like hell! I ran the 2nd, 14th, and 26th leg of the event and my first leg was in the late afternoon heat of 86F! It's been some time since I felt heat like that and running 5:30 miles just wasn't in the cards. I managed to complete the first leg in 5:45's. I was happy. After our van finished up all six legs we jumped ahead to where we would be starting late in the night and tried to get some rest. Try is the key word. I got ten minutes of "rest" and then I had to prepare to run another 8.4 miles with one killer hill. A hill that would last near 2.5 miles was awarding the runners with 2.5 miles of downhill to follow. I would cover that section with an average of 6:01 per mile. Getting a shower after our van completed it's second rotation was key and we were off to Stillwater to rest for the third round. This was where I was hating life. Damn! I was thinking of quitting, sleeping, crying, anything but running. These are times where great team members come through. Tom, the guy who had been running his legs of the race right before me and I would tag off with, kept at me to eat, drink, eat drink. Try something. You need to eat. So I ate some chocolate chip cookies. Four to be exact, and then had half of a banana. As I started to become more alert, Tom kept circling back to the van while giving me the "thumbs up". Then I heard another comment that hit home. Mark, who was lying on the ground with his legs and feet up on the van floor, was doing his own version of self-pitty. He was mumbling something about not being able to get up and do it. "How can I get myself to run another leg?" "I'm so sore!" Then the message was heard. As he slowly, and I mean slowly, got his carcass up from the ground I saw him shake out his shoulders and say, "Ok, stop feeling sorry for yourself. Quit being a pussy. Everyone is tired. You can do this. Get up and get moving." He wasn't talking to me but I heard him loud and clear. He was absolutely right. I can guarantee you that nobody out there after running two legs were not ready or willing to head out for their third round. But you have to do it. That was your commitment to the team. That's what teams do. They win and fail together. Hell yeah Mark! You got me going. I had been saving it for a time like this. I crawled out of the backseat, reached into the cooler and pulled out my one and only.....you guessed it. RED BULL! This stuff is magic in times of need. I slammed it and along with the teams support I was ready to take the tag from Tom and push up yet one more hill and pass of the tape to my partner, Mike, for the last time.

We found ourselves in a true race. Three teams kept sharing the lead and we ultimately won with a cushion of about 5 minutes. It sure is unreal to be up all night, running, sweating, laughing, yelling, and finding yourself and two other teams just 7 minutes from each other after 193 miles and just over 20 hours of running.

Our time was unofficially 20 hours 9 minutes and 30 seconds. Good for an average of 6:19 per mile pace. I am so proud to be part of a team that consisted of such a great group of guys. Thank You so much for the experience.

Friday: 6.2 miles

Saturday: 12.3 miles

Sunday: 0 miles

Weeks Total: 52 miles (6 runs)

Years Total: 1715.4 miles

Ending The Week With A BANG!

Going into mid-week I knew things were beginning to click once again. My legs were more fluid and I was recovering much faster. Each day felt good and the pick ups on Tuesday went about as well as they could have. Feeling that I was way behind on preparation for TCM I kept the mileage up even heading into a rather interesting weekend of running. (more on that later)

On Wednesday I took it easy and hit the Morley neighborhood for some easy miles. I was going to add on some but it made sense to keep it easy. A great day of running and legs felt just fine.

Total: 45:43 6 miles

Thursday was an upper Woodland run that included some short pick ups as I felt. Nothing too technical but a little pacing to prepare for my legs in the upcoming relay during the weekend. God it felt great to hammer out some good miles and with the stellar mornings we have been having it made the run even more enjoyable.

Total: 1:04:24 9.1 miles

Friday and Saturday running deserve a their own post.

Jump Week

I planned on this week being a week in jumping mileage. I need to get in some miles in the next 6 weeks and now is the time to start. Overall I am feeling pretty good. Tomorrow marks 4 weeks since my surgery and I am happy with my progress. The high point of this week will be the Ragnar Relay I am participating in with a group of great guys that I met in Marshfield, WI years ago. A great time for sure!

Monday I ran my easy loop out in Woodland and felt very good. The hills from Sunday's run didn't hinder me too bad and I ran feeling pretty comfortable. It sure is nice seeing some 6:30 miles show up on the Garmin these days.

Total: 57:35 8 miles

This morning I decided to get in a little uptempo work without busting my balls. This is easily accomplished by doing 1 minute repeats at 5K pace with equal rest. With temperatures at 50F and clear skies I couldn't have asked for a better morning of running on west Skyline. I managed to do 8 X 1 minute at 5:00-5:15 pace with adequate warm up and warm down. I felt great on the speed segments, thank god. As an added bonus the sunrise was one for the record books!

Total: 1:13:27 10.6 miles

Lester River Singletrack

I had all the intentions of getting out early Saturday morning but arose to a fine cup of coffee and excellent conversation with the wife and the time just passed. It's amazing how much I value some alone time with my wife as our conversations during the week often revolve around preschool chatter and plans that include Lucas. I didn't mind missing the run as I knew I would be burning some calories in a different fashion later in the day.

Saturday, members of our team at work got together for some much needed social time without "work lingo" involved. What a great time had by all. At the end of the day, we spent close to 4 hours paddling the Brule River, had sunny skies, temperatures in the mid 80'sF, and high water levels. We may never have conditions like this for some time so we had a blast!! My forearms are killing me today, good thing running takes little arm involvement because if I had to paddle today I would get nowhere.

This morning I met Dave Schude out at his place and we hit the Lester Park ski trails until the first sign of new single track made it's appearance. These trails have been around for a year or so and I had never made the trip out there to run on them. WOW. That is one word to describe them. I told Dave, with the exception of SHT, those trails are by far the best single track we have in the area hands down. Close to two loops and some extra on the west side of the rive made our morning complete and near 90 minutes of running was had. Thanks Dave, what a great way to start a day.

My legs are feeling very good and I should be able to get in a "normal" week of training this week. The weekend is looking good and I will be joining a team from Marshfield, WI for the Great River Ragnar Relay starting this Friday. This too shall be an Epic event filled with many laughs and pleasures...

Totals: Saturday: no running, 4 hours of paddling

Sunday: 90 minutes of trails with Dave in Lester Park

1:27:03 9 miles HR: 134

Weeks Total: 39 miles (5 runs, 1 paddle day)

Years Total: 1663.2 miles

Vast Improvements

This has been a great week. Each day I have been feeling better and the last two runs couldn't have gone better for being three weeks post-op. The main improvement has been my legs, hips and overall ability to stride out more smoothly. The paces for my runs have become more "normal" along with a lower heart rate. That's all good!

Things may just come together as long as I can keep progressing over the next 6-7 weeks. I still want to run the marathon in October and will plan for it unless I become derailed somehow.

Here are the last two days of running. This morning was a last minute day off for rest. I think the extra day off really is more beneficial at this point then running for a half hour. Next week will be a scheduled 7 or more runs so I should enjoy the rest day.

Wednesday: Out and back on Skyline at an easy clip. The paces are improving at a much lower heart rate. As I was running home I hit the UMD track and did three laps with the straights excelled at 5K pace. (whatever that is right now?) I was amazed how good it felt to stride out at 5:10-5:15 pace. 6 total striders then jogged home.

Total: 45:10 6.3 miles

Thursday: I ran up Woodland to Arnold, Martin and home via Vermilion before making my way through UMD campus and seeing a couple friends running very fast on the track. I had to investigate what was up. The finding was a mile time trial. You two sure looked strong out there. Good job!! For me, I made a few more laps before getting home and discovering I had run the longest run since my surgery. A good morning and very pleased with the progress.

Total: 1:14:30 9.8 miles

Friday:

decided on a rest day. I will enjoy it.

0 miles

Dwindling Light

I hate to say it. The summer months are limited and fall is slowly approaching. This simple fact comes to reality for me as I wake up each morning for my runs. I woke up and made my way down the street this morning no later than 0500 and it was near complete darkness. I've gotten used to this cycle and I really don't mind running in the dark. By mid run the daylight was present and I could turn off my red LED I had clipped to my shorts.

The runs this week are going well. Monday was a typical morning. I always seem to be a little more fatigued on Monday's with the busy weekend behind me so this week was no different. Today was a good day and I added just a bit to the distance to make the long Martin road loop that brings me back home just under an hour. With the temperatures approaching 90F I sure am glad I have the opportunity to run first thing in the am. It's going to be a great day!

Monday:

Easy out and back on Skyline. My legs are feeling better and I am having a lot less overall soreness.

Total: 40:52 5.5 miles

Tuesday:

I did the Martin road loop returning via Vermilion and UMD. Felt great and things are really starting to improve. This was what I was hoping for!

Total: 1:00:00 8 miles

HR: 137

It's Hard To Be Patient

Having this be my first week back after a layoff sure was tough. I knew it would be difficult for a few days, and maybe I underestimated the set-back, but the entire week was a challenge. For the most part I don't have any discomfort from the surgical sites. My lower abdomen feels good. My legs, hips, calve are tight and sore. I believe it's the Piriformis Syndrome coming out again as I had this a few years ago and had some difficulty getting rid of it. I know my exercises I have to do and when I can I will perform them in hopes to rid the discomforts ASAP.

On a high note I managed to get in a couple of great local trail runs both on Saturday and Sunday. The trails of Rock Hill and Hartley were calling my name yesterday and for this morning I ran a spur trail segment of SHT. Both just wonderful runs and I hope to use the momentum of these runs to springboard my fitness this upcoming week. It's going to be an added challenge to keep things under control and push the red-line just a bit over the next 7-8 weeks.

Here are the totals of the end of the week and weekend runs:

Thursday:

Once again the pace early on was super slow until I got my legs to loosen. I made my way up Woodland and did the short version of the Pigs loop. By the end of the loop I was feeling the added time and took some additional time to stretch really good after.

Time: 53:00 6.6 miles

Friday:

I woke up really sore and knew I needed a day off. I took that day off and my muscles thanked me.

0 miles

Saturday:

I did all the trails of Rock Hill and Hartley. The trails in Hartley were wonderful and I saw a half-dozen local runners enjoying the morning. A good day, and a step in the right direction.

Total: 1:03:05 7.2 miles (trails)

Sunday:

Not ready for a full-on distance run yet so I decided to repeat a similar day like yesterday. I hit the SHT spur trail for an out and back with a little added time on Hawks Ridge. Once again, after my initial warm up I really started to work into the run and I am beginning to feel more fluid. As soon as those Piriformis loosen I will be rockin' the steady state runs again. I can't wait!!

Total: 1:04:46 8.1 miles (trials)

Weeks Total: 39 miles (6 runs)

Years Total: 1624.6 miles

Mild Progression

Tuesday:

I knew this week was going to be a bunch of crappy runs filled with self-doubt. That is the norm when taking off several (12 to be exact) days of running and having abdominal surgery. That part was new. I underestimated the power of abdominal muscles and their involvement in every movement we do. When I started running yesterday most of my muscles felt "stunned". Not really dead tired. Not really sore. But, "less-than-ideal" would be putting it in perspective.

This morning was near brutal. The muscles I woke up yesterday were screaming at me during the first mile and, once again I found myself thinking positive thoughts just to get through. By the end of the second mile things were loosening up and I remained pretty steady for the out and back on Skyline. The temperatures were already 70F at 5:30 am and the humidity was climbing. The main issue this morning was inability to stride-out. My left groin muscles are tight and I feel really choppy when I run. Tomorrow has got to be better.

Total: 46:04 6 miles HR:130

Wednesday:

When the alarm sounded I was just ready to throw the clock across the room. Then I realized what was making that sound and I needed a quick "snooze" before another alarm to roust me out of bed. The hobble down to the basement was slow but soon I was feeling like things may be improving from a flexibility point.

I decided to wear a pair of racing flats for the run in hopes to force myself to run on my forefoot more. This also allowed me to get some quicker turnover and run a short segment of the SHT down to Jean Duluth road. Once on Jean Duluth my stride started to open up and I found myself running a pair of 7:05's back to back. (that's a huge improvement compared to the 8:00's of yesterday and Monday.) My quads, and calves remain a bit sore but I can handle that as long as I keep progressing. Tomorrow I may add ten minutes to the run if all feels well. I have to press just a bit if I am going to get back into form for October 3rd.

Total: 43:44 5.5 miles (some trail)

A Step In The Right Direction

Whew! Almost two weeks off of running, and though I know I didn't loose too much fitness, I feel like I am starting from scratch. Ground zero if you will. I made it out the door this morning and really had no prescribed distance or time and was just running by feel and was allowing myself the decision to turn around and return home at any given minute. I have done this enough though to allow myself at least two miles before making a decision. Sure enough, after a mile and a half things improved but the pace remained pedestrian. That's ok. I may remain at this pace for the entire week. As long as I can get out the door and begin to loosen up this week I will consider it a success.

The loop consisted of an abbreviated version of my usual Monday morning loop that took me through the cemetery, Vermilion road and UMD before making a couple laps on the track and returning home. My lungs felt great. My legs didn't. My sites from the surgery felt good. My glutes didn't. What does all this mean? I guess it means I am on the road to a good recovery and I have legs, and glutes that haven't run in a couple of weeks. Pretty normal I guess. That's it for now. Just wanted to update the fact that I am on the road to recovery and this time next week I hope to be getting back in the groove.

Totals: 41:21 5.3 miles (7:52 average)