Sunday, 5/22/11 to Friday, 5/27/11

I ran 2 times this week, 15.3 miles.

Sun, 5/22/11: 6.2 miles, 46:28, 7:30 pace, 74F, sunny, calm, 1 stop for water, no pain.


CJ and I woke up early enough to go down to Highland Park for the Lilac 10k ... I just didn't anticipate all the roadblocks that the police put up. I ended up backtracking back Monroe Ave to the Brighton Twelve Corners to get to Elmwood Ave so we could park at the Al Sigl Center. I did get up to the start in time. CJ couldn't get up close enough to see me start.

The Lilac 10K Start

My thighs were tight and a bit sore from racing on Friday. I started a bit farther back I like so I had to get around the slower runners before I could hit my stride. I took it nice and easy, 7:04 first mile. I passed the Fleet Feet cheering section at the corner on Monroe and Elmwood around mile 2. Thanks! I kept it going, 7:17, 7:15, 7:27. I did stop for water just before the 5 mile mark, 8:05 pace, for the uphill mile, 7:38 pace, on Highland Ave back to the finish.

Around mile 3 ...

 Heather on her way to a PR of 42:57

 Bill on his way to a 45:38 ... just 18 seconds shy of a PR!

My way back up Highland Ave

The finish!

I met up with CJ at the finish. We shot the breeze with fellow Fleet Feet runners and made our way to the Co-Op Center for post race chow and results. I did OK, 46:28, 7:30 pace. I finished 153rd out of 1231, link here. I finished 16th out of 77, link here. All in all, a pretty sweet way to spend a Sunday morning.

A lazy afternoon ensued. We stopped by BJ's on the way home to pick up some ribs which happened to be on sale, sweet and succulent. We watched The Green Hornet from OnDemand ... an OK flick. But how much green screen CGI and wired fighting sequences can you believe? I mean, c'mon!

I watched the last couple of minutes of Game 3 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals between Miami and Chicago. Miami won , link here. I must say that I am not too interested anymore.

Mon, 5/23/11: Rest day.

Just your normal Monday. I watched a bit of Game 4 of the NBA Western Conference Finals between Dallas and Oklahoma City. Dallas came from 15 points down at 84-99 with 5 minutes to go to win in OT, 112-105, link here. Dallas has a strangle hold on the series with a 3-1 lead plus going home for Game 5 on Wednesday.

Yes, it rained twice during the day. A line of rain came through around noon and a steady rain for about a hour just before midnight.

Tue, 5/24/11: Another rest day.

Another normal Tuesday. I installed the Flowmeter that I bought for my Camelbak Rogue. Then I tried on all the gear that I want to wear. I found that the Runningfunky gaiters that I bought are way too big around my ankles so they are a non-starter. Luckily, I only paid 7 bucks for them.

I wanted to get up early tomorrow morning for a gear test run so I tried to go to bed early. So ... I didn't see Game 4 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals between Miami and Chicago. Miami won, 101-93, link here. Miami went up 3-1 to put a stranglehold on the series. Both Dallas and Miami are 1 win away from the NBA Finals.

Wed, 5/25/11: 9.1 miles, , 8:17 pace, 52F, sunny, calm, 1 hydration stop, no pain.


Garmin Connect Activity for Out to Thomas Ave via the east Zoo trail

I got up at 5:30AM and was out the door by 6:10AM for a test run with all the gear that I will be wearing at the Sehgahunda Trail Marathon on Saturday. I wore my Camelbak Rogue and my Amphipod belt with one 10.5 oz bottle of EFS energy drink. I had a 2nd Surge Energy Gel before I headed out. Everything felt fine, no unbearable bounces from the bottle on my hip. I hydrated and had a Roctane Gu at the turn. Again, everything felt fine ... just nice and easy. My Flowmeter told me that I drank 38 oz of water during the run and another 22 oz when I got done. Perhaps there is something to be said for early morning exercise!

I watched a bit of Game 5 of the NBA Western Conference Finals between Dallas and Oklahoma City. I was tired so I went to bed at the start of the 4th quarter, OKC was leading. Dallas came from 6 down to close out OKC, 100-96, link here.

Thu, 5/26/11: A taper day.

I developed a right hamstring pain, way up high near my butt, during the day. So when I got home, I put ice on it. Hopefully it will just go away and not bother me again.

I didn't watch a second of Game 5 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals between Miami and Chicago. Miami closed out Chicago, 4-1, link here. The NBA Finals are set, Dallas vs Miami, starting on Tuesday, May 31st.

Fri, 5/27/11: Another taper day.

I took a half day off of work in advance of Sehgahunda tomorrow. CJ and I picked up my race packet at Fleet Feet and then eased on south to Mount Morris to stay at the Country Inn. Katie was working the front desk and was very happy to see us. She saw our Brooks Nightlife jackets coming in from the parking lot and knew it was a couple of runners. We had supper at the local McDonald's. I had an Angus, a side salad and a Vitamin Water. We relaxed in our room. We never did make it out to the pool. A thunderstorm moved through ... and gave even more rain to the mud that awaited me. My mind was racing when I tried to go to sleep. In my mind I was at the Sehgahunda start ... milling around for the start. I think I managed to get about 4 hours of interrupted sleep. My darling CJ was a saint and slept out in the car due to her snoring.