7/18/2015 and 7/19/2015 - Shoreline Half and Du

7/18/2015: I ran 13.1 miles during the Shoreline Half Marathon

I woke up during the night around 4 AM as a severe thunderstorm moved through upstate NY. It produced an intense lightning show with lots of rain and thunder. I got up to close windows ... Christine slept through it. I went back to sleep and woke up just before the alarm at 6 AM. I tied to get Christine up long enough to go with me but ... she wishy-washed and finally chose to go back to sleep ... I just left at 6:55AM for Hamlin State Park for my fourth Shoreline Half (2011, 2012, 2014 and now 2015). So I knew going in that the Shoreline is usually hot, flat and had little shade if it's sunny.

A beautiful sunrise at Hamlin State Park - taken by Barb Boutillier

I go to the park and got in line with every other car that tried to get to the venue at 7:20AM ... lots of cars. The parking lot at lot 4 was 90% full when I got there. I popped open the back of the Equinox and immediately noted that I had forgotten my Garmin Foreunner 310XT .. oh, well. I adapted and overcame. I had Strava on my Droid so I fired that up and also sent my honey a eCrumb, link here, before I hit the starting line with really not much of a warmup. It was hot (around 70F) and humid when I toed the line. The good thing was that the sun was under clouds. I talked to a woman named Brittany who was running her first half and offered her encouragement.

The Shoreline Half course

The start! - taken by Kim Smith

A long line of runners - taken by Barb Boutillier

And ... we were off! I got up to speed quickly and ran the first 2 miles entirely inside the park at a pretty good pace.

Still inside the park - taken by Kim Smith

Brittany got ahead of me ... so I followed her for a while. I went into a run for 2 miles and walk through the aid stations past mile 4. It worked. Some runners would pass me but I would pass them again when I got back up to speed.

On the S curve of Priem Rd - taken by Barb Boutillier

A couple of cute signs

A trio of cute kids cheering their Mom on!

I walked a bit at mile 9 ... then Brittany told me "I could do this" and I just put her behind me. I took a tiny walk at the aid station at mile 10 and then knocked the side of my head, said "reset" and ran for the next 2.5 miles. The sun came out just as I got back to the park at mile 11.

The finish line is somewhere up ahead - taken by Kim Smith

There were 3 women in front of me when I got to the path on the shoreline with 1.1 miles to go ... I put them behind me before I hit the finish in 1:47:04 ... done!

I was drenched with sweat and was approached by volunteers who thought I needed help but I didn't. I downed a few cups of water and was fine. I hit up the post-race grup for a blueberry bagel and a banana. I was 5th in my age group so left before the awards, changed in the Equinox and headed on to my next task.

So ... my next task was helping move my daughter, Karen, from her mother's couch to a studio apartment in Farmington. My ex had picked up a Uhaul 10' truck in Geneva at 9AM and waited for me to arrive around 1PM. Then Karen, my oldest son Michael, the ex and I loaded what was left from her mother's and from mother's storage unit in Newark. It was hot and humid so I got a bit of sweat from my brow onto her stuff as I arranged her stuff in the hot truck. Then I drove the truck to her new place. She has a nice roomy studio with a nice sized kitchen and main area. Michael and I were puzzled for a while trying to put together one of her couches with no instructions before we figured it out correctly. Then I drove the truck to Victor to drop off the Uhaul. The ex drove me back to my Equinox in Newark so I could drive home. So ... another move of one of my kids done. I have really forgotten how many times I have moved each of them ... it does seem like a lot. Did I tell my darling wife, Christine? The answer would be no ... it had to be done so I just did it. I do what I can for my kids. Karen told me that Farmington has a nice bus system and that she wants to get a job in Canandaigua. I hope she does.

I got back up to Rochester by 6PM. I busied myself by taking out the garbage from the patio and putting my Saris bike rack onto the Equinox.  Soon it was time to go to bed early at 10 PM. I had signed up for the Shoreline Du for the first time so tomorrow was another race.

Sunday, 7/19/2015: 1 run of 0.4 mile and the Shoreline Du, 75F, 89% RH, 9 mph WSW wind, mostly sunny.

My wakeup call was 5:30AM this morning ... but I heard Christine's phone sound a notification at 5AM and I was up st 5:15AM ... no matter. I loaded the dishwasher and did the dishes in the sink before I tried to wake Christine ... but she begged off and went back to sleep. I didn't let it bother me and got ready, geared up and got my bike onto the bike rack. I nicked my right forefinger putting the bike onto the rack ... I just put some Kleenex on it and got going out to Hamlin. I was out there by 7:15AM for the 8:15AM start. I got my stuff together and was marked with my 267 bib number on my right hand and right calf as I entered transition. I racked my bike and noted that it was right opposite from the Finish line. I was a bit nervous since I had not done a Du since the Autumn Classic in 2013. I noted that it was a bit warmer (78F) and windier (9 mph WSW wind).

Getting ready to my first Du in 2 years

My trusty steed

I got out for a 0.4 mile warmup run at 7:54 pace, link here. Hey, I got this. It was just a run, bike, run ... right? I tried to start up a eCrumb for my honey but it was rejected just like my Facebook update because of bad cellphone coverage in Hamlin.

I turned my Garmin on at the beginning of Run 1 and just let it go. The result is that it thought that the Du was just one big run. I managed to chop up the TCX file into separate Run, Bike and Run files but ... it was a lot more difficult than I thought. Some Goggling was involved. But I ended up doing it in WordPad. Run 1 and Bike was relatively easy. I had the most trouble with Run 2 since Strava thought for a long time that it was a duplicate of Run 1. But I finally fixed it.


And ... we were off! I got off to a fast start and was 7th for the first mile. Some runners passed me in the second mile before I got to transition for the 16 mile bike. I put on my helmet and gloves, took a swig of water and ran/walked my bike to the mount area. I was on my bike and rolling ... out of the park and onto the course.


It was windy ... from 9 mph from the WSW. So a lot of the ride was into a crosswind or headwind. My bike is just a ordinary bike set up with a straight handlebar, city tires and no aerobars. So .. I heard "On your left", "Left" or nothing at all as rider after rider passed me. I pedaled as best as I could for my third ride of the season and pedaled some more. My butt hurt a bit and I ran out of energy about half way through the 16 mile course. There were slight hills and definitely a headwind on the course ... for sure! Our bike course was even on the Parkway for a couple of miles. I was really tired but I pedaled on and on and on until I got back into the park and to the dismount area. Wow! Did it hurt to walk or try to run again! Ouch! I got into transition, racked my bike, took my helmet and gloves off, toweled my head off and tried to run again.


I groaned quite loudly for the first 5 steps as I left my bike to begin the 4 mile run. There was an aid station right outside of transition and I downed 2 cups of Fluid to get some electrolytes in me. I was tired but it did hit the spot. I got up to a slow run and managed to hold it for most of the first 2 mile loop. I had another 2 cups of Fluid when I got around to begin the second loop. I remember seeing a sign just as I got back that read "Run Bike Run with the first two crossed out. I managed to get up a bit of speed when I crossed the finish line. And ... done in 1:57:59.70!

On the run course - taken by Kim Smith

In the finish chute - taken by Kim Smith

I got my finisher's medal, downed a cup of water and ambled toward the lodge where I gobbled down a banana and a couple of hot dogs. I was drenched with sweat and took a while to just relax. I found that I had finished 24th out of 58 so I stayed for the awards.

Later the results were posted. I was 24th out of 58, link here. I was 6th out of 9 in my M55-59 age group, link here. I did OK: Run 1 of 2 miles was 13:46, 6:51 pace, 12th out of 58; Transition 1 was 1:13; Bike of 16 miles was 1:07:44, 13.9 mph average (23.5 mph max according to my Garmin), 44th out of 58; Transition 2 was 1:09 and Run 2 of 4 miles was 34:13, 8:33 pace, 12th out of 58. So ... I did OK on the run and not so much on the bike. Hey ... it was fun. I got to see a lot of really fast bikes whiz by me!

Lloyd's Ribs ... tasty!

My darling wife, Christine, cooked up my favorite supper ... ribs! Along with french fries and ketchup!

Sweet Shoreline Swag!

All in all ... a great weekend!

Monday, 7/20/2015 to Saturday, 7/25/2015 - Karknocker 5K

I ran 3 times this week, 12.1 miles.

Monday and Tuesday, 7/20/2015 and 7/21/2015: Rest days

Sometimes rest days are necessary ... but I felt like a slug on Tuesday.

Wednesday, 7/22/2015: 8 miles, 1:06:18, 8:17 pace, 72F, 57% RH, 13 mph WNW wind, sunny

Garmin Connect Activity from Out to Brooks Ave and back

I brought my running gear to work so I could do a very rare noontime run from B601. The Canal Path is 1 mile from B601 so I just ran over there and then south to Brooks Ave and back. I took it nice and easy since my right knee hurt a bit for the first 3 miles. But ... it went away and I continued onward. I saw a woman with lots of baggage hanging off her fenders and with a solar charger. I thought about asking where she was from and where she was going but she was too busy fiddling with her phone to be much of a conversationalist.

Thursday, 7/23/2015: Rest day ...

Friday, 7/24/2015: 2 runs of 1 and Karknocker 5K, 81F, 39% Rh, 9 mph NNW wind, mostly sunny

Tonight was my third Karknocker 5K (2012, 2014 and this year). It's a nice 5K in East Rochester held on a Friday night during the East Rochester Fireman's Field Days. This 5K is flat, fast and usually hot. It begins and ends at the East Rochester High School and winds through the streets of East Rochester. I ran my 2nd fastest 5K of 20:18 here back in 2012.

I got home from work on time, ate the my usual pre-race bowl of Cheerios, dressed, got my gear and left with my darling wife, Christine at 5:52PM. We arrived around 6:15PM in plenty of time to get my bib and cotton T-shirt before the 7PM start. I got out for a nice 1 mile warmup run at 7:59 pace, link here. I went back to the Equinox, got a drink of water, kissed Christine and got ready.

I saw Tom Dutton, the 69 year old youngster, before the race. We both remarked how we were getting older and slower. But we were both out there toeing up to the line anyway. There is a certain satisfaction and anticipation to that. I was lined way to the left and about 20 feet behind the start line.


And ... we were off! I weaved a bit and got up to speed quickly. I put Tom behind me in the first 100 yards. It was hot and dry ... I passed the first aid station up and hit the first mile in 6:45. The second mile seemed to take forever and I knew I slowed ... a 7:27. I take a sip on water on the run at the second aid station. I shortened my stride and held on. I passed a few runners. I knew I was getting close ... I could see the finish ... bring it in ... the clock was barely under 22 ... sprint ... and done in 21:56, 7:05 pace!

I was really parched and soon had 3 cups of water. I was a bit worried about Tom and saw him come in to win his M65-59 age group at 23:45. I walked around a bit and then went to the Equinox to tell Christine that I was done ... which she already knew because of my eCrumb. I went into the carnival to have my free hamburger and adult beverage. Mmm ... tasty and well earned!

Then it was home with a side trip to Wegmans for some essentials like coffee creamer, bananas, grapes and the like. I prowled the PCR timing website until I saw that the results were posted. I saw that I was 58th out of 183, link here. I was just off the podium, 4th out of 12 in my M55-59 age group, link here.

Saturday, 7/25/2015: Rest day.

Housework had to be done so I got up early and got at it. I swept and mopped the kitchen and bathroom, then I did 5 loads of laundry. My darling wife, Christine, thanked me for my hard work!

I troweled Facebook and saw that the Burning River 50 and 100 mile Trail Run was being held in OH. Some runners from the Rochester area ran: Michael Ryan and Patrick Milligan. I read that the conditions were brutal. Pat finished 3rd in the 50 mile despite what happened to his heel at mile 20.

Pat's heel

His Facebook post says that he completed the first 26 miles in 4:22 and the last 24 miles in 7 hours. His heel does look gruesome ... but awesome! Lots of other Facebook posts were from people either prepping or spectating at Ironman Lake Placid (IMLP) which was being held the next day.

In real life ... Christine and I went out to see "Jurassic World" at the Regal Greece Ridge 12. It was a good movie ... that redhead sure could run fast in her heels!

7/12/2015 - Boilermaker 15K

I ran twice during the Boilermaker 15K, 1.6 miles for warmup and the Boilermaker of 9.45 miles, 63F, 88% RH, calm, sunny.

The alarm went off at 2:45AM but I was already awake due to Christine's snoring. It didn't really bother me ... I probably would have been awake anyway. I figure that I got 3 hours of sleep but no matter. This was my third Boilermaker so I knew the drill. The GRTC Boilermaker charter bus was scheduled to leave from the RTS Park'n'Ride at 4:30AM. So Christine and I got ourselves ready, geared up with our respective gear and headed out at 3:57AM. We arrived around 4:20AM and were practically the last ones to arrive. We had a tense moment when we saw that I-490E was blocked at I-390 and had to exit to I-390S. But my smart wife, Christine, was quick on her LG G2 and had Google Maps tell us to exit at Elmwood Ave just a second before we would have passed it. Crisis averted.

A selfie of us taken on the bus going to Utica

We couldn't sit together but I sat with her in front of me so that we could touch from time to time. The bus trip eastward to Utica was uneventful. The night slowly gave way to day as we passed by Syracuse and then onward to Utica. I had a blueberry bagel for a little energy in my tummy. I thought about and visualized how I wanted to run this Boilermaker. I decided to cut the 15K into 5K chunks: the first 5K (getting up to speed), the second 5K (getting through the golf course, down the hill and out to the 5K start) and the third 5K (hanging on, gutting it out and sprinting into the finish).

I put on my sunscreen and attached my Amphipod with 2 HammerGels in it as we got to Utica. I decided not to carry water since I knew that there were plenty of aid stations on the course. The bus driver took the second exit for the Boilermaker and we were unloaded just before 7AM. I walked up to the bib tent, got my bib, pinned it on and found a porta-potty to do my business. I walked farther up and found that an exit ramp had been closed off for us ... cool!



I used it for a nice 1.6 mile warmup run at 9:56 pace. I am pretty sure that this pace is off but that's what the Garmin said. I found a bush off of the exit ramp to do some more business and then walked up toward the start. I kind of cut it close and had to wade through (excuse me ... excuse me) a LOT of brown and yellow bib runners at the corner of Culver Ave and Dwyer Ave and to get up to my blue bib starting corral farther up Culver Ave.

A pre-race selfie looking forward to the start

I got as far up in my corral as I could comfortably before I found a nice place to stand while a trumpet played the Star Spangled Banner, a prayer was given and the mayor of Utica encouraged us to run well and enjoy "the greatest 15K on Earth".



And ... we were off! Well ... at least the front runners were. I didn't move for another 20 seconds or so and didn't cross the start line until 44 seconds had passed. I remember seeing a guy in the first tenth with the Rolling Stones tongue on all of his back ... he probably was at the Ralph last night for the concert I thought. I slowly got up to speed and began to run the race that I had visualized. I had a cup of water around mile 2 ... taken and sipped on the run ... nice! Mile 3 ... the golf course was in sight. A right hand turn and up I went ... I just ran up with no problem ... nice! Wilt Alston passed me just after the hill. I enjoyed the nearly mile long downhill afterward ... nice!

On Memorial Parkway - A screen capture  from MarathonFOTO.com

I knew about the dearth of water stops around the 10K mark so I knew to have some water around mile 5.5 on the run ... nice! I knew about the long gentle uphill afterward and had a HammerGel at mile 7 ... nice! I stopped for a few steps to gulp my water but didn't lose a position and got quickly back up to speed.

On Burrstone Rd - A screen capture from MarathonFOTO.com

Now is the time that I would have normally had trouble but for some reason I shortened my stride, picked up my turnover and just kept ... on ... going. I actually started to pass people with this shorter stride ... nice! The crowd support picked up the closer I got to the finish. I just put my head down and kept going ... nice! I saw the turn down to the finish line and got up to a sprint soon afterward. I was a bit too far from the finish line when I decided to sprint but tried to hold my speed as I hit the right side of the finish line. And ... done in 1:12:40 according to my Garmin! Christine had told me that she would be on the right side and did see me finish ... nice!

Sprinting into the finish - A screen capture from marathonFOTO.com

Done! - A screen capture from marathonFOTO.com

With the finisher's medallion - A screen capture from marathonFOTO.com

I walked along with everyone else toward the brewery and had a water, chocolate milk and fruit cup enroute. Then it was time to hit the nutrition line and to pick up my third Boilermaker glass before I hit the beer line ... nicely earned! I met up with Christine in the bus. She told me that she went there right after she hit up the Polish concession stand for a plate of polish food. She told that "You can take the Polish girl out of Cleveland but you can't take the Polish out of the girl" ... and I wouldn't want to!

A post race selfie

A word about the totally unauthorized screen captures from marathonFOTO.com. I might buy these pictures if I can get a price break. This is the fastest of my three Boilermakers.

I went back to the Family meeting area and just hung out. I talked with Roger Howe, Bambi Jasmin, Beth Spingar and Amy Lord. Jeff Rose introduced to his wife and son. He said that he invited 15,000 of his closest friends to their 29th anniversary party. LOL! Then I just people watched for a while. It was amazing what you can see when you just look around.

I saw the following t-shirts: Will run for beer; Keep up or I'll drink all the beer; Brew beer, Drink beer and Run it off at www.brewdrinkrun.com; Follow me to the beer; I run because I really like beer; Running is a mental sport and All my friends are Insane; Race starts at 8, Beer starts when you finish; See you at the finish and "Whether you think you can or you think you can't you're right" by Henry Ford.

We left to head back to Rochester pretty much on time. The trip back was uneventful and we arrived back where we started at 2:45PM. I wanted ribs for lunch so we decided to head to the Dinosaur BBQ since we hadn't been there for a couple of years. I had a 1/2 rack of ribs with baked beans and coleslaw as my sides while Christine has the catfish fingers off the appetizer menu. Mmm .... tasty! Then it was time to head home. I snoozed off for a while before I woke up enough to check up on Facebook and such.

I looked at the Leonetiming results, link here. I did pretty well. My Garmin splits were: 8:19, 8:04, 7:58, 8:17, 7:02, 7:22, 7:50, 7:29, 7:26 and 6:21 over the last 0.45 mile. I really can't believe that the last 2.45 miles were sub 7:30 pace. I got up to a 5:01 pace before hitting the finish line at 5:59 pace ... wow!

My third Boilermaker was my fastest with a gun time of 1:12:38 and net time of 1:11:54 (2014: 1:14:24 and 1:13:41 and 2013: 1:19:05 and 1:18:07). I was 1277th out of 11575 and was 45th out of 497 in my M55-59 age group. Wilt said that I passed him on the way to the finish line but he finished 6 seconds before me in 1:12:48 so maybe he thought someone else was me.

All in all, a great day!!!

Monday, 7/13/2015 to Friday, 7/17/2015

I ran twice in these 5 days, 20.2 miles.

Monday, 7/13/2015: Rest day after running the Boilermaker the day before.

Tuesday, 7/14/2015: 9 miles (estimated), 1:15:00 (estimated), 8:10 pace (estimated), 73F, 84% RH, calm, partly sunny.

Garmin Connect Activity for No time to taper

It was Tuesday. I run on Tuesdays so I got off the couch, got dressed, got geared up with a 20 ounce water bottle and got out there. My Garmin died at the mile 5.36 mark so I got my estimated mileage, time and pace off of my eCrumb that I sent to Christine. I changed my 15K route at bit to make it more towards 10 miles by continuing all the way on Dewey Ave until Beach Ave instead on continuing right onto Beach Ave but it turned up to be just as long when I mapped it on MapMyRun. I got it done and it felt good ... nuff said.

Wednesday, 7/15/2015: Getting and putting stuff together day

I was in acquistion mode after work. I had researched Weber charcoal grills and patio furniture at Lowes, Home Depot, Target and Walmart during the day. So I went to Lowes and bought a Weber 22" Premium charcoal grill. I used the 10% off Lowes card that I got in my USPS moving kit on its last day ... nice! Then I headed to Walmart to look at their patio furniture. I snapped up the Mainstays Warner Heights 5 piece Patio Dining set when I saw that it was 50% off ... boom! It was a bit of a challenge getting the three boxes (1 for the Weber and 2 for the Patio Dining set) to fit in the Equinox but I managed.

I went home and parked the Equinox close to the back of our townhouse. Then I changed my clothes and went into assembly mode. I tackled the Weber first. I cursed the picturegram instructions a few times when they weren't clear but I got it together. Next I tackled the 4 chairs. They went together very easily with just four screws per chair and then clipped on the cushions. Last was the patio table. I had a bit of difficultly because it was a big table and I was fighting both dusk and mosquitoes. A nice touch was that Mainstays includes the hex driver and wrench. Christine came out to help a bit and to lend support. Later I found out that Christine attracted all of the mosquitoes ... she got 8 bites! I found that the rubber foot of one of the patio table legs was missing so I will have to contact Mainstays. But I got all three items together by 8:45PM ... cutting it kind of close for daylight in mid-July!

Thursday, 7/16/2015: 11.2 miles, 1:33:11, 8:19 pace, 70F, 46% RH, 8 mph ENE wind, partly sunny.

Garmin Connect Activity for Out and back for 11.2 miles on Edgemere

I helped Christine with household chores around the townhouse for a hour but it was Thursday. I run on Thursday so I ran. I needed to get one last long run before the Shoreline Half Marathon on Saturday so I got dressed, geared up with my usual 20 ounce hand bottle and got out there. I just headed out to Edgemere Drive for 5.6 miles and turned around. I found out that the Greece DPW is working on a bridge out that way which constricted the bridge to one lane with a stoplight ... joy! Don't they know that this road is a major running and biking route? Anyway, I took it nice and steady. I felt good and took my water on the run ... nice! I probably could have used a HammerGel but didn't. My splits were: 8:13, 8:15, 8:13, 8:19, 8:12, 8:23, 8:29, 8:33, 8:16 and 8:02 over the last 0.2 miles.

Christine had warmed up the Weber while I was out and soon cooked up some hamburgs for our late supper. Mmm ... tasty!

Friday, 7/17/2015: Rest day.

I should have laid out my clothes and gear for the next day but didn't. Christine and I went to bed early and struggled to get to sleep. Sleep finally came around midnight. My wakeup alarm was set for 6AM.

Sunday, 7/5/2015 to Saturday, 7/11/2015 - Dirt Cheap #4

1 ran 6 times this week, 26.81 miles.
I biked once this week, 18.35 miles.

Sunday, 7/5/2015: A bike in the morning and a trail run in the afternoon, 18.35 and 5.5 miles.

My bike, aka Black Beauty in Strava, was just waiting for me down in the basement so I decided to give it some love. I brought it upstairs, topped its tires with air, geared up and got out there. The weather was 70F, 73% RH, 7 mph SW wind and sunny. I have the Shoreline Du coming up in two weeks so I really needed some saddle time. I basically pedaled around, my average speed was 13.2 mph and top speed was 27.5 mph.


I got Christine's bike all ready but ... her stomach was bothering her and she stayed home. Her bike is now the last one in the townhouse so all she has to do is back it out 10 feet and she can ride it from the front door. I can't do much more. She is the one that has to do it.

I was relaxing with Christine with a bagel and coffee when Bill Beyerbach called about doing some Crescent Trail hill repeats in the afternoon. I readily agreed and we met up on the trailhead on Garnsey Rd at 4PM. The plan was to do 2 or 3 hill repeats for an hour. The weather was a bit sticky: 81F, 48% RH, 4 mph NE wind and sunny.

We topped off our water bottles and headed up. Bill took the lead on the first repeat up to the golf course and I led on the way down. We didn't push at all but we were definitely sweaty after the first repeat. But ... up we went for the second repeat. This time I led all the way up to Woodcliffe Lodge and back down. Kind of nice getting out twice on a Sunday!

I watched the US - Japan final of the Women's World Cup. Wow! The US was up 4-0 after 16 minutes on the strength of Calli Llloyd's hat trick! They won 5-2, links here, here, here, here and here.

Monday, 7/6/2015: 5.5 miles, 45:55, 8:21 pace, 84F, 58% RH, 11 mph S wind, partly sunny

Garmin Connect Activity for A hot and humid loop

I wanted to get out for a long run today and rest on Tuesday because I have Dirt Cheap #4 on Wednesday. Well ... it was really hot and humid so I just did a small loop. I was OK for the first 3 miles ... then it was a sweatfest with tiny walk breaks. My splits were faster than I thought: 8:08, 8:08, 8:11, 9:00, 8:30 and 7:54 over the last 0.5 mile. It felt like I was really going a lot slower.

Tuesday, 7/7/2015: Rest day ... yada, yada, yada.

The weather changed overnight from hot and humid to cool and a bit cool.

Wednesday, 7/8/32015: 3 run of 1.6 miles, Dirt Cheap #4 of 5.26 miles and 1.25 miles, 66F, 56% RH, 4 mph SE wind, overcast

It was a Dirt Cheap kind of Wednesday so I went to the latest venue of Dirt Cheap #4, Webster Town Park. I had packed all my running gear before I left for work so I changed after work and went straight there. I scored a primo parking spot in the first row about a hour before the start time of men's start of 6:30PM. I got out for a nice and easy run of 1.6 miles at 9:17 pace to warm my legs and to check out the trail conditions, link here. I did find mud and slop but nothing unusual.

I got done with my warmup run with 5 minutes to go before my start. No worries since I was parked close. I had time to go hit the head one more time and to get a sip of water. I lined up to the right and a little back from the start.


Ellen warned us to not follow the runner in front of us and Boots warned us of the hazards like prickers and limbs in the trails. And ... we were off.

The start is downhill and then across a meadow before we plunged into single track with the usual combination of mud, roots, water, prickers and overhead branches. The ever young Tom Dutton passed me at mile 1 and Joe Ciecierega passed me around mile 1.5 when I took a couple of breaths on a hill. I passed the single unmanned water stop at mile 2 before we hit the 100 yard stream crossing at mile 2.25. It was a bit hard to get back up to running speed afterward with water sloshing in my trail shoes. I got trapped behind a teenager for at least a mile when we were in single track with nowhere to pass. I bided my time and got by about a half mile to the finish. A couple more hill and then the last uphill to the finish ... and done with 5.26 miles in 49:44! The teenager was actually 11 years old and finished 8 seconds behind me. I was winded and downed a dog as soon as I could. My darling wife, Christine, sneaked up behind me and pinched my ass ... lol! Her left knee was hurting so she left to go home to ice it. I met up with her later after I stuck around for a cooldown run of 1.25 miles with Bill Beyerbach and Todd Dappen Sr, link here.

Thursday, 7/9/2015: Rest day ... resting up for another run on Friday.

Friday, 7/10/2015: Another rest day.

I was starving on the way home so I picked up a free pizza from Papa Johns. Then we vegged out on Star Trek Enterprise from Netflix. Just relaxing.

Saturday, 7/11/2015: 8.2 miles, 1:06:37, 8:07 pace, 68F, 73% RH, 6 mph SW wind, sunny.

Garmin Connect Activity for Just out to Long Pong and back

Ordinarily I don't run the day before a race but I felt I needed to today to get used to the heat and just to shake things up. I slept on the couch and woke up for good just before 8AM. I set the coffeemaker to have coffee ready when I got back, got dressed, geared up with a 20 ounce water bottle and got out there. I decided to just do a nice and easy out and back to Long Pong Rd ... nothing too hard. My splits were not bad: 8:09, 8:10, 8:05, 8:05, 8:01, 8:19, 8:04, 8:12 and 7:29 over the last 0.2 mile. I felt better for getting out there.

I just lazed the rest of the day. Christine and I tried to get to sleep early since our wakeup alarm was set for 2:45AM. Sleep did not come easily ... we struggled. Tomorrow is my third Boilermaker 15K in Utica NY and the GRTC charter bus is scheduled to leave the RTS Park'n'Ride at SJFC at 4:30AM.

Sunday, 6/28/2015 to Saturday, 7/4/2015 - Irondequoit 10K

1 ran 5 times this week, 35 miles.

Sunday, 6/28/2015: 9.3 miles, 1:15:37, 8:08 pace, 57F, 93% RH, 7 mph E wind, overcast with a real light mist

I woke up around 8:15AM ... later than usual because I wore an eye shade. Yes, it was still drizzling ... it would drizzle the rest of the day. But I got up, dilly-dallied a bit and got out there. It was a bit cool so I wore shorts, a long sleeve tech, light gloves and a hat.

Garmin Connect Activity for A nice 15K route

I struck up a nice and easy pace and just ran. I headed up Greenleaf Rd, turned right on Beach Ave and headed toward the Ontario Beach Park boardwalk and then out onto the pier. It was quite foggy plus the waves crashed up and onto the pier ... got my shoes wet! Then it down Lake Ave, out Latta, up Dewey Ave to Beach Ave and back home on Greenleaf Rd. Not a bad route!

My splits weren't bad: 8:03, 7:57, 8:25, 8:20, 8:17, 7:57, 8:04, 7:58, 8:08 and 8:05 over the last 0.3 mile. I stopped to hydrate from my 20 ounce handbottle two or three times.

I wish I could say that the rest of Sunday was as productive ... but you would be wrong. I should have done a lot more ... but I just lazed around. I should have gone downstairs to unbox the basement but didn't. Hopefully I can get off my lazy butt over the long July 4th weekend.

Monday, 6/29/2015: Rest day.

My darling wife, Christine, and I reconnected after work. Then she made a scrumptious pasta dinner ... yum!

Tuesday, 6/30/2015: 9.3 miles, 1:14:38, 8:02 pace, 72F, 78% RH, 6 mph NW wind, sun & rain

What better way to close out the month of June but with a run in the sun ... well it was sunny when I started and when I finished. I just wore shorts, a short sleeve tech, sunglasses and brought my 20 ounce water bottle.

Garmin Connect Activity for A 15K in the sun, rain & sun

I headed on the same route that I ran on Tuesday ... a bit faster this time. It was sunny when I started but I saw dark clouds in the south. When I got to the Ontario Beach Park it started to sprinkle. The sprinkles progressed to a light rain and then a steady rain as I ran on Latta. I thought for a few seconds about turning back onto Greenleaf and cutting my run short to 5 miles but ... what fun would that have been? I was already wet and I could see clearing in the west. So I continued onward. The rain tapered to a sprinkle on Dewey. I saw a rainbow on Beach Ave. I saw steam raise from the road and felt pockets of chilly air as I ran down down Beach Ave ... kind of cool! Then it got warmer again as I climbed a small hill past the Lakeshore Country Club on Greenleaf. The sun was shining now but I was drenched ... nice! My darling wife, Christine, made me strip naked when I got home. She said that she was doing laundry ... sure, lol! She really was actually. My splits were: 8:05, 7:47, 7:34, 8:30, 7:58, 7:48, 7:58, 8:24, 8:11 and 7:54 over the last 0.3 mile.

I ran 21 times during June for 112.2 miles 5.3 miles/run. 7 of these runs were warmups before races. I ran 5 races: McMullen Mile, Webster Trail Classic, Dirt Cheap #3, Medved 5K to Cure ALS and Charlie's Old Goat Trail Run.

Wednesday, 7/1/2015: Rest day.

Gotta have them ... gotta hate them ... maybe I should cross train too ... OK, I know I should cross train.

Thursday, 7/2/2015: 8.2 miles, 1:03:31, 7:45 pace, 72Fm 35% RH, 9 mph NW wind, partly cloudy

Garmin Connect Activity for An out and back - a bit hard

It was Thursday so I ran. I dilly-dallied a wee but, had my pre-run bowl of cereal, got dressed and got out there. I decided to just do an out and back to Long Pong Rd at a not so easy, pedal down pace. My splits were: 7:50, 7:45, 7:46, 7:46, 7:39, 7:46, 7:43, 7:48 and 7:17 over the last 0.2 mile.

Friday, 7/3/2015: Rest day ... the usual before a race the next day.

Saturday, 7/4/2015: 2 runs of 2 mile2 and Irondequoit 10K, 61F, 85% RH, calm, partly sund.

I woke up at 6AM, got ready quietly, kissed Christine goodbye and headed out to my second Irondequoit 10K (a 44:09 in 2012). I got down the Christ the King Elementary School a hour before the 8:15 start time ... no worries. I saw Mark Herberger, Bob Dyjak and Roger Howe before the race. I got out for a really nice and easy warmup run of 2 miles at 8:51 pace, link here.


I lined up near Mark Herberger and positioned myself to the right about 30 feet back from the start line just like I usually do. And ... we were off! I ran next to Mark for the first mile in 6:53 down Kings Highway. This 10K course is deceptively easy for the first downhill 3 miles to Lake Ontario and then heads back uphill for the return to the Irondequoit Town Hall. Mark got ahead of me when I got caught behind some runners on a curve. He stayed there for the rest of the race but I kept him in sight. I got within 30 feet of him on the last small downhill about 1/4 mile from the finish. Mark said he sprinted up the last uphill ... I was really tired and couldn't match him. He was 100 yards ahead by the time I got up to Titus Ave. I tried sprinting after him but couldn't make up any distance. Mark finished in 45:09 and I finished in 45:14. I can't beat myself up about this race ... I didn't take any tiny walk breaks and I did the best I could. It was deceptively humid and I was soaked when I got done. My splits were: 6:53, 7:14, 7:09, 7:51, 7:39, 7:23 and 6:33 over the last 0.17 mile. There were a lot of curves on the course and I took advantage of everyone of them.

A sweaty post race selfie

I stuck around for the awards. Mark won his M60-64 age group and I was 3rd in my M55-59 age group, link here. Roger Howe won his M65-59 age group in 51:04 and Bob Dyjak finished in 55:15.

The Irondequoit 10K age group award - a nice touch

There were 6 races going on today with 2573 finishers in the greater Rochester area. The Brighton 5K had 574 finishers, link here. The Firecracker 4 had 701 finishers, link here. The Town of Greece Freedom Run 5K had 159 finishers, link here. The Sodus Lighthouse 5K with 634 finishers and the Irondequoit 2 mile / 10K.with 219 and 286 finishers, links here and here respectively. The 2 mile started at 7:45AM so I could have ran both ... maybe next year!

Meanwhile ... the trail runners who ran the 25K, 50K or 50M of the Fingerlakes Fifties down in the Finger Lakes National Forest in Hector NY contended with epic mud! 81 finished the 25K, link here. 112 finished the 50K, link here. 21 finished the 50M, link here.

I did get downstairs over Friday and Saturday to unbox some boxes in my new "Man Cave" portion in the basement. OK, maybe it could be called a "Computer Cave" right now. More work is needed but it's a good start.

Sunday, 6/21/2015 to Saturday, 6/27/2015 - Medved 5K to Cure ALS and Charlie's Old Goat Run

I ran 5 times this week, 23.6 miles

Sunday, 6/21/2015: 2 runs of 1.3 and 6 miles (Medved 5K plus a cooldown), 72F, 83% RH, 7 mph WSW wind, partly cloudy.

I was up around 6AM for my fourth Medved 5K to Cure ALS. This was a Rochester Runner of the Year (RROY) race so all the fast kids were there. I dressed quietly, kissed my honey goodbye and got down to Frontier Field around 7:40AM. The race didn't start until 8:30AM so I had plenty of time for a 1.3 mile warmup run at 8:25 pace, link here. It was the sticky kind of muggy.

I met up with the usual runners: Chris and Heather Patterson, Prem Kumar, Kevin Clinefelter, Dave Kudla, Chris O'Brien, Bill Beyerbach, Bob Dyjak and Mark Herberger. I also saw a lot of runners that I knew by sight but not by name. Chris O'Brien had just previewed half of the 100K Twisted Branch yesterday. I lined up in the middle about 30 feet back and waited for the start.

And we were off! I got up to speed quickly with just a bit of trouble squeezing by some slower runners. I ran well for the first mile at 6:35 pace. Bill and Prem were ahead and Mark was behind. Heather said a quiet "Hey" as she passed. Chris passed too. I started to have a bit of trouble with my breathing in mile 2 and took a tiny walk break just after mile 2, 6:49 pace. A guy came by, tapped me on the shoulder and said "You can do it". I got back up to a run and stayed behind him for a long while. Bill was having trouble. I passed him just as we passed by Frontier Field. I could see Prem up ahead.

We entered Frontier Field at the right field warming track, mile 3 was in the middle of the warning track, 7:09 pace. I tried to kick a bit and got up to 5:38 pace as I hit the finish by home plate. Done in 21:38, 6:59 pace!

I later found out that I was 97th out of 555, link here. I was 6th out of 37 in my M55-59 age group, link here. Chris Patterson finished in 17:47, Kevin in 19:16 (a PR), Dave in 20:45, Heather in 21:03, Chris O'Brien in 21:17, Prem in 21:33, Bill in 21:44, Mark in 22:01 and Bob in 26;35. I got out with Bill for a cooldown run of 2.9 miles. I found out during it that I had forgot to start a new segment so the Medved 5K and the cooldown run are the same segment. A rookie mistake!

I got bagels and donut holes for my honey at Wegmans Latta on the way home. I surprised her with bagels, donut holes, coffee and the Sunday Democrat and Chronicle in bed when I got home. We relaxed for a bit.

Then I got out out to Scottsville to see my youngest son, David. He surprised me by hopping in the Equinox and saying "Take me to Newark". We had a lot of conversation to and from Newark as we saw both his sister, Karen, and his brother, Michael. He also wanted me to take a look at a Windows XP laptop that wouldn't boot.

Monday, 6/22/2015: Rest day ... gotta have rest days don't cha know!

Tuesday, 6/23/2015: 8.2 miles, 1:06:09, 8:04 pace, 73F, 53% RH, 17 mph WNW wind, partly sunny.

We got to bed late the night before plus it was windy as a line of thunderstorms moved through plus Christine snored. So ... I was up at 6AM anyway. Work was work.

Garmin Connect Activity for A windy out and back

It was Tuesday so I got up and got out there no matter how tired I was. I chose my "go-to" run ... just an out and back on Beach Ave, Edgemere Drive to Long Pond Rd and back. It was windy so I fought a headwind on the way out but enjoyed the tailwind on the way back. My splits were: 7:56, 8:10, 8:07, 8:25 (directly into the wind), 7:58, 7:55, 7:55, 8:10 and 7:40 over the last 0.2 mile. A sweet run!

Wednesday, 6/24/2015: Rest day

Thursday, 6/25/2015: Another rest day.

I decided to shop at BJ's instead of run. When I got home I just had to unbox a 32" Samsung Smart TV for the master bedroom. It was kind of sweet watching three episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise on Netflix over the wireless network.

Friday, 6/26/2015: Yet another rest day.

My darling wife, Christine, thought that I shouldn't run the night before a race ... so I let her talk me into not running.

Saturday, 6/27/2015: 2 runs of 1.8 and Charlie's Old Goat Trail Run (COGTR) of 6.3 miles,

Today was my fourth Charlie's Old Goat Trail Run. This trail race at Ganondagan in Victor NY is set on a nice 6 mile or so trail mixed with boards, a bit of mud, rolling meadows, a big hill and a stream crossing. My darling wife, Christine, wanted to come so we both got ready and got there around 8:05AM in plenty of time for the 9AM start.

It was a GRTC Rochester Runner of the Year (RROY) race for the second straight year so all the fast kids showed up but there was still a low key trail race vibe. I said "Hi" to the usual runners: Andy Ciaio, Heather Patterson, Tina Pellegrin, Bob Dyjak, Bill Beyerbach and Mark Herberger (who was running his first trail race). It was a bit cool so I took a long 1.8 mile warmup run at 9:32 pace, link here.

Before the start - courtesy of Tim Matthews

Just after the start - courtesy of Tim Matthews

After a brief greeting and prayer from the manager of Ganondagan ... we were off! There was about 1/3 mile of open meadow trail to sort ourselves out before we hit single trail. Then the usual COGTR ensued ... woods with rolling hills, running on boards, a wee bit of mud, rolling meadow, more woods, a stream crossing, a road crossing, rolling meadow, up a big hill, rolling meadow, down the big hill, rolling meadow, the road crossing, the stream crossing, more woods, more rolling meadow and the finish. Mark passed me at mile 2 but I passed him back on a downhill in a rolling meadow.

Going out - courtesy of Eric Eagan

Coming back - courtesy of Eric Eagan

Getting my feet wet - courtesy of Eric Eagan

 I remember Heather passing me just before the big hill at mile 4. I was still behind her and Andy on the second stream crossing at mile 6. I passed Andy on a uphill coming back to the finish. The cool air did help. I walked a tiny bit of some uphills but ran all the flats and downhill so I can find nothing that I can really beat myself up about in this race. I could see Heather about 100 yards ahead of me as I ran toward the finish ... and done with 6.3 miles in 55:38, 8:50 pace!

I stuck around for a while to eat the excellent post race grub ... a banana, two pieces of pizza, an excellent jelly donut and 2 homemade cookies before I headed back to the Equinox to meet up with Christine. We got out just before the rain started. We hit Wegmans and New Nails in Irondequoit on the way back.

I checked the results when they were posted by Score-This, link here. I did pretty well, 42nd out of 208 and 4th out of 17 in my M55-59 age group. Here are some results of runners that I knew: Jason "Jmac" McElwain in 45:37, Chris Pattererson in 46:53, Liz Matthews in 48:09, Bill Beyerbach in 53:54, Heather Patterson in 55:16, Andy Ciaio in 56:05, Mark Herberger in 56:31, Dave Kudla in 57:45, Mort Nace in 1:00:15, Wilt Alson in 1:01:44, Bob Dyjak in 1:09:04, Jeanne Herrick in 1:09:07, Tom Butler in 1:18:39, Dave Sek in 1:26:23, Amy Lord in 1:26:55, Tina Pellegrin in 1:46:10 and Bill Murphy in 2:28:01.

Sunday, 6/14/2015 to Saturday, 6/20/2015

I ran 4 times this week, 33.8 miles.

Sunday, 6/14/2015: 12.4 miles, 1:40:36, 8:07 pace, 68F, 78% RH, calm, mostly sunny

Garmin Connect Activity for Out to Manitou Rd and back

I was up early, per usual, around 6:30AM. I puttered a bit, then dilly-dallied a bit more. But I got out there. I struck up a nice and easy pace down Greenleaf Rd, left onto Beach Ave and then out Edgemere Drive all the out to Manitou Rd and back. I had just waster so I was pretty much under 8:00 pace until mile 8 went I ran out of energy a bit. You can see it in my splits: 7:59, 7:51, 7:46, 7:54, 7:55, 7:54, 8:03, 8:05, 8:11, 8:35, 8:22, 8:31 and 8:43 over the last 0.4 mile.

Later, I busied myself moving lots and lots of boxes around in the basement to make room for the GE washer/dryer that Charlotte Appliance will be delivering on Monday. Then I move some furniture around in the living roomI started around 1:30PM and was more than happy to stop at 6:30PM.

Monday, 6/15/2015: Rest day

My body really needed to rest today. My right arch ached which was pretty unusual. Meanwhile, Charlotte Appliance delivered our GE washer/dryer. It sure will be nice to wash and dry our own clothes without feeding quarters or tokens. Christine used her small tabletop grill for the first time. She was outside on the patio grilling four hamburgers when I got home. I could smell someone cooking something. I looked for her on the first floor, second floor and basement but couldn't find her. I yelled for her and she said she was outside on the patio. It was her cooking ... sweet! We moved a couple of folding chairs and tables out there and ate there while we watched golfers putt on the sixth green of the Lakeshore Country Club. Pretty nice!

Tuesday, 6/16/2015: 7 miles, 55:52, 7:59 pace, 79F, 45% RH, 14 mph NW wind, sunny.

Garmin Connect Activity for A sweaty 7 mile loop

I wanted to get back on my usual Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday schedule so I got out there. Christine's cell phone was acting up and I probably should have helped her take it to Verizon but ... I needed to run. I wanted to explore a new loop so when I got down to Beach Ave I turned right not left. I got down to Lake Ave at mile 2. I turned right onto Latta Rd. I saw Tom Butler and his wife, Amy, at mile 2.7 as I continued on Latta. Then a right onto Dewey, another onto Ling, and another onto Greenleaf before a left into the complex. A nice loop though with a lot too much sidewalk for my taste. My splits were: 8:09, 7:48, 8:09, 8:00, 7:55, 7:59 and 7:50.

Yes, the Cleveland Cavs lost in Game 6 to the Golden State Warriors, 97-105, link here. Oh, well.

Wednesday, 6/17/2015: Rest day.

I should have gone to bed early ... but didn't like usual. Christine and I watched "Harry Potter: The Half Blood Prince" off the DVR.

Thursday, 6/18/2015: 8.2 miles, 1:05:18, 7:58 pace, 81F, 62% RH, 12 mph W wind, mostly sunny.

Garmin Connect Activity for A sweaty out and back to Long Pond Rd

Thursday night ... time to run. I got up off the couch and got out there. I just did an out and back on Beach Ave and Edgemere Drive to Long Pond Rd and back. I started a bit fast and held it until mile 5. I brought water and had a sip when I turned around. My splits were: 7:47, 7:50, 7:50, 7:56, 8:04, 8:03, 8:05, 8:08 and 7:50 over the last 0.2 mile. All in all, a sweet run.

Friday, 6/19/2015: Rest day.

I met my honey at a new restaurant, The Original Charbroil House, on the corner of Island Cottage Rd and Edgemere Drive. I went directly there ... she took the scenic route from her PT appointment in Penfield. We like the atmosphere and both deemed it our new "go to" restaurant. Done!

Saturday, 6/20/2015: 6.2 miles, 50:18, 8:06, 57F, 67% RH, a bit of wind, partly sunny.

Garmin Connect Activity for Just a 10K

I was up early like usual. I dilly-dallied like usual but got out there at 7:30AM. I explored a new route and was not entirely satisfied with it ... but I got out there. My splits were: 8:18, 8:17, 8:10, 7:54, 8:06, 7:57 and 7:49 over the last 0.2 mile.

My summer cut ... I won't have to comb it for sure!

Then I got out and out back to the old neighborhood to get my haircut at the OK Barber Shop, get gas at Deltasonic and get some shelf dowel pins at Black's Hardware. All these businesses are with 500 feet of each other. Boom ... done!

Sunday, 6/7/2015 to Saturday, 6/13/2015 - Dirt Cheap #3

I ran 4 times this week, 12.47 miles.

Sunday, 6/7/2015: Rest day.

There were some people who made it out to run and compete ... that much I saw on Facebook. The Pittsford Tri and the Keuka Tri were held today. Me ... I didn't. I did put some time in unboxing and sort stuff in the living room. There are fewer of my boxes in the living room now.

Later, Christine and I watched Game 2 of the NBA Finals ... the Cleveland Cavs versus the Golden State Warriors. Christine is from Cleveland and is rooting for the Cavs ... so I am too. The Cavs led most of the game and held on win in OT, 95-93, link here. It seemed for a while that the Cavs were searching for a way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory but Lebron notched a triple double of 37, 16 and 11 to pull the Cavs to a victory and even the series at 1.

Monday, 6/8/2015: Another rest day.

I should have ran ... but I was hungry when I got home so I didn't. I really should have just sucked it up and ran instead of lighting into Christine for what I thought was her lack of unpacking during the day ... she had unpacked 3 boxes upstairs. I just wanted everything unpacked and put somewhere ... packing, moving and unpacking is very stressful to me. I am not handling the unpacking very well at all. Christine and I just tried not to say anything to each that would set either of us off the rest of the night. I love my darling, Christine, but ... I just want both of us to be unpacked. A washer/dryer in the basement would help too.

Tuesday, 6/9/2015: 7 miles, 57:11, 8:10 pace, 63F, 93% RH, 3 mph wind, overcast with a bit of fog

Garmin Connect Activity for Out to Edgemere Dr and back

I set my alarm for 5:15AM because I wanted to see if I could get out for a run before work. I woke up at 4:49AM with my darling wife, Christine, sawing wood next to me and the bird chirping up a storm outside. So ... I got up, got dressed, programmed the coffee and got out there by 5:20AM or so. I just did a nice and easy out and back down Greenleaf Rd, down Beach Ave and a bit out on Edgemere Dr. It was quiet and peaceful with just minimum traffic. My splits were: 8:20, 8:12, 7:59, 8:10, 8:17, 8:11 and 8:00. The only people out were dog walkers ... some said "Morning" and some didn't. I was back by 6:30AM and sat down to a nice hot mug of coffee.

Christine had sorted all the laundry and was doing it at the complex laundromat (only $1 a load!) when I got home so I stopped to help. Nine loads of laundry took longer than I expected. I broke off when Game 3 of the NBA Finals between the Cavs and the Warriors came on at 9PM from Cleveland. It was a good game ... Lebron went out for 40, 12 and 8, Dellie went off for 20, 5 and 4 as the Cavs blew a 20 point lead down to 1 but won by 5, 96-91, link here, to lead the series 2-1.

Wednesday, 6/10/2015, 3 runs of 1.47, 0.63 and Dirt Cheap #3 of 3.37 miles, 75F, 69% RH, 9 mph SSE wind, mostly sunny.

Today's race was Dirt Cheap #3 held at Lucien Morin Park on Empire Blvd next to MacGregor's. I loaded all my gear into the back of the Equinox before work so I just changed there and headed straight over afterward. I got there at 5PM and was rewarded with a prime parking spot. Christine called and said that she would meet me there.

I met up with Prem Kumar and we went out for a really nice and easy warmup run of 1.37 miles at 13:29 pace on the white and blue trails, link here. I found the portion of trail that we ran to be variable with some slick spots. I fell once on my left side with no damage ... just dirt. Really ... I just fell onto my butt. We also saw a big branch fall to the ground about 100 feet. First we heard some cracking and ... then boom! I think we were both happy it happened over there and not over our heads! I was drenched with sweat when I got back to the Equinox and gulped water ... which led to multiple trips to the bathroom with no lines ... the woods. I got out for another warmup run on the road of 0.63 mile at 10:41 pace where I thought Christine would park (but I didn't see her), link here.

This race had a 4 wave start due to over 300 runners. I was lucky to be in Wave 1. I would imagine that the footing got worse as more and more runners went over the same terrain. It warmed up to 81F before the race started so it was plenty hot and muggy back in the woods.



And ... we were off! As usual, it was a scramble to get down the stone road to where the trail turned left into single track. A choice ... go out hard and then pay for it on the long uphill after the single track or go out a bit hard and have a bit left for that long uphill after the single track. I chose to go out a bit hard.

I was behind 69 year old Tom Dutton for a good half mile before he motioned me ahead. He said that he got tired of hearing me behind him. Joe Ciecierega passed me just as we passed close to the Irondequoit Creek. I almost got caught leaning the wrong way on one of the turns there. The trail is narrow there and you could easily fall in. He laughed when I told him that. He did say that he would have helped me out ... while laughing about it of course. We both got a chuckle and continued onward. Up ... down ... sideways ... be careful of slippery ups and downs ... onward. I did fall hard once on my left side and lost my 10 ounce hand bottle for a second. I reached back for it as Tom Dutton passed me again. My left thumb hurt as I grasped my water bottle but I gathered myself and ran onward. I ran under control and made it out to the finish without further incident. And ... done with 3.37 miles in 39:06! Christine was there to greet me after I drank some water. Soon we headed inside for some food and drink. I had the usual post race MacGregor's grub (veggies, salad and pasta) and she ordered a Reuben. I did have some of her fries though.

My darling wife, Christine, did have some surprises for me. She got her nails done (2 repaired and all 10 sharpened), her blonde hair trimmed and got herself a Vivofit. She says that she is going to start exercising ... good for her!

We made home just ahead of yet another thunderstorm. There was a report the next day that a EF0 tornado touched down in Farmington in Ontario County southeast of Rochester, link from 13WHAM here. I took a quick shower to wash the mud off of me. I had to wash off the walls of the shower after I got mud on them!

All in all, a pretty nice day! I looked at the results later in the evening. I was 55th out of 347, link here. I was 4th out of 13 in my M55-59 age group.

Thursday, 6/11/2015 through Saturday 6/13/2015: Rest days from running.

We watched Game 4 of the NBA Finals between the Warriors and Cavs. The Warriors won 103-82, link here, to even the series at 2.

It's a bit weird that I didn't have a race this weekend but that just my race schedule worked out. I could have and should have gone out for a run on Thursday night or Friday night or Saturday morning but just didn't get around to it. I guess I just needed to recharge my running batteries.

My darling wife, Christine, and I did get out on Saturday afternoon to enrich the Rochester economy. First, it was to locally and family owned Charlotte Appliance where we purchased a GE washer/dryer. This GE washer is one of the few left that has the old style electro-mechanical dials that allow you to add your detergent, let water in dissolve it and then add clothes. The new style has the locking mechanism that makes you add the detergent, the clothes and close the lid before the water starts. Christine is old school so we went old school. The washer/dry is being delivered Monday. Second, it was to BJ's where we purchased a Samsung 40" LCD HDTV and Shark Rotator vacuum. The new HDTV is sweet! It's so much bigger and lighter than our old 35" Sanyo CRT TV. We also had our first "garbage" plate at Harbor Hots on Lake Ave. We both had gas and heartburn afterward.