Sunday, 8/10/2014 to Saturday, 8/16/2014 - Rochester River Chase

I ran 4 times this week, 43.51 miles.

Sunday, 8/10/2014: 14.4 miles, 2:04:28, 8:38 pace, 61F, 88% RH, 3 mph SW wind, sunny

Prem Kumar told me yesterday that he needed a long run on Sunday. Well so did I. We are both signed up to run the Rochester Marathon in 6 weeks so we made up a plan to run from Fairport to Pittsford and back which is about 14 to 15 miles. I got up early and was getting ready when he chatted on Facebook that he would meet me on the Erie Canal path in Fairport at 8AM. I got there at 7:55AM and was just going to head east to meet up with him when he appeared. He had run from his house and already had 7.7 miles in.

Garmin Connect Activity for Canal path long run

So we headed east on the Erie Canal path at a nice and easy pace ... out for me and back for him. I forgot to turn on my Garmin for 0.3 miles. It was kind of hazy and shady for a while with the sun mostly at our backs. There were a lot of people out. We said "Hi" to most of them, some answered and some didn't. Prem said "Bye" at Schoen Place at mile 5.6 and ran the 1.5 miles back to his house for his 15 miles. I continued onward until my Garmin said 7 miles before I turned around to head back. I picked up my pace a wee bit until my right Achilles started barking. The sun was in my face plus the shade seemed to have disappeared. I was happy to stop at mile 14.4.

A female bicyclist was stopped at a nearby picnic table. I ambled over since I needed to sit down. She had a lot of gear attached to her bike. I stuck up a conversation. I learned that her name was Sheila and that she had started riding east from Washington on June 21 ... about 3000 miles ago. She was riding 80 miles this day to Wolcott and had gotten lost a bit when the Erie Canal path had merged with the Genesee River Trail. Her ultimate destination was Bar Harbor, Maine. Wow ... a coast to coast biker! It kind of makes my 14.4 mile run look a bit tame.

A cross country bicyclist named Sheila stopped in Fairport for a break.

I stopped at the Wegmans in East Rochester for some much needed (OK, maybe desired not needed) donuts on the way home. Soon I woke up my darling wife, Christine, with hot coffee and donuts.

Meanwhile ... the Sodus Point Triathlon was held. In past years I have volunteered for this sprint triathlon (0.45 mile swim, 13.1 mile bike and 3.1 mile run) but not this year. 158 triathletes finished, link here.

Swimmers exiting Sodus Bay

Tim Dwyer ... who has turned 55 and is now in my age group

Barry Cherney

Triathletes that I knew: Tim Dywer finished 10th in 1:10:10 to win his 55-59 age group, Barry Cherney in 1:21:28, Todd Dappen Sr in 1:31:17 and Chuck Traub in 1:34:06.

I watched sports most of the rest of the day. First, the Nascar race from Watkins Glen and next the PGA Open from Valhalla in Louisville KY. Both had lots of drama. The Nascar race had 2 crashes that caused red flags as AJ Allmendinger won, link here. The PGA Open had lots of lead changes until Rory McIlory won by a shot over Phil Mickelson (runner up in a major for the ninth time) in the gathering gloom at 8:43PM, link here.

Monday, 8/11/2014: Rest day ... sure enough!

Tuesday, 8/12/2014: A coulda, shoulda, but didn't day ... got caught up with watching Poirot on PBS and then a thunderstorm moved through.

Wednesday, 8/13/2014: 11 miles, 1:29:23, 8:07 pace, 66F, 83% RH, 10 mph WSW wind, partly cloudy.

I told my darling wife, Christine, that I was going out for a long run ... and did. I dialed in a pace that I would call a bit north of nice and easy but not a lot. I just meandered around my usual 10K route and added in the Chapel Hill Drive hill just for fun. The cool and gusty breeze felt nice and kept me from being totally drenched when I got done. My splits were: 8:04, 7:57, 7:47, 7:54, 8:40 (Chapel Hill Drive hill), 8:04, 8:05, 8:18, 8:07, 8:18 and 8:09. I need to get new tread soon since my Brooks Adrenaline GTS14 shoes have 593 miles on them. But I know I should and getting them are two entirely different things.Plus I have a lot of old shoes to get properly dispose of ... i.e. recycle.

Thursday, 8/14/2014: Rest day ... nothing unusual. I thought about going out for a run ... but not too hard.

Friday, 8/15/2014: Rest day .... before a race along with two loads of laundry.

Saturday, 8/16/2014: 2 runs of 7 and the Rochester River Chase of 11.11 miles.

My darling wife, Christine, has had trouble sleeping of late and this night was no exception. I woke up at 5:45AM and did the dishes and folded the whites from last night. I quietly got ready, kissed Christine bye and was out the door to Ontario Beach Park in Charlotte by 6:45AM and arrived by 7AM. The weather conditions were:

This was my first atttempt at the Rochester River Chase (RRC) put on by GVH at 8AM. This race was a unique idea of seeding the runners so that the slowest start first and the fastest start last so that everyone has a chance of winning depending on how well you run. I was seeded 33rd with a start time of 8:33:33AM.

Garmin Connect Activity for Warmup before Rochester River Chase

So ... I had the bright idea of going out for a 5 mile warmup run. I got this idea from Bob Dyjak who planned on running 9 miles to the RRC and then running the RRC. I did see him about 1.4 miles after I started and waved "Hi". I decided to stretch my run out to 3.5 miles instead of 2.5 miles. But .. this had the detriment that I had to rush to get back. I looked at my Garmin and saw that it was 8AM and I still had 2 miles to go! So my "warmup" run of 7 miles was 8:21. My splits were: 8:33, 8:30, 8:24, 8:37, 8:15, 8:03 and 8:09. I saw Tom Butler heading out as I got back.

I had 15 minutes to cooldown, get some water, hit the bathroom and get settled before I headed out. Prem Kumar was scheduled to start 22 seconds behind me and Andy Ciaio was scheduled to start 1 minute or so behind me. Jason "Jmac" McEllorn was to start last since he was the fastest.


The weather conditions had warmed up a bit: 61F, 72% RH, 10 mph SW wind, sunny. And ... off I went! I settled into a kind of fast pace. I followed the cones out and north on Lake Ave and then onto Pattonwood to the O'Rorke Bridge across the Genesee River. Prem passed me just before I got to mile 1.

Thomas Ave just before entering the trail heading up to the Seneca Park Zoo - taken by GVH

Then down Thomas Ave onto the the Zoo trail ... up I ran. Andy Ciaio passed by and then some GVH runners. The run up the Zoo trail to the Seneca Park Zoo and down the pedestrian bridge around mile 5.5 zapped my legs. I thought to myself, "I've almost run a half marathon and I still have 6 miles to go!" After we crossed the Genesee River the course went up the stairs instead of up the ramp ... ugghhh! I walked the stairs and then proceeded south on Maplewood Dr and Lake Ave, past the cemeteries at mile 7, had a Gu at mile 8, into Turning Stone Park, along the river on the Genesee River Trail at mile 9. I said "Hi" to Bob Dyjak and then Tom Butler as I passed them. Jmac whizzed by me, the last runner to start. I was running onward ... getting there surely. Back onto Lake Ave. The GVH volunteers were saying I looked great but I didn't feel so great. I pushed when I got back to Ontario Beach Park. And ... done in 1:35:15, 8:29 pace. I was more than happy to stop after running 18 miles before 11AM in the morning.

Officially, I was 18th overall out of 46 in 1:34:21, link here; 38th in the chase, link here; passed 6 runners and was passed by everyone behind me. My splits were: 8:05, 8:15, 8:18, 8:52, 9:03, 8:55, 8:17, 8:42, 8:35, 8:17, 8:08 and 7:28 over the last 0.11 mile. A long and pleasant race. I have run a very similar route on my "Bridge route" but always in a counter-clockwise direction. It was definitely different to run it in a clockwise direction.

Soon I was back home. I woke up Christine with some coffee. I would have liked to put up my feet for the rest of the day but my Uncle Bud Nevil's 90th birthday party was at 2:30PM at the Williamson Town Park. Uncle Bud married my mother's sister Eleanor VerPlank way back in the late 40s. She just died last year. Christine and I got there around 2:40PM. I met up with my youngest son, David, and my daughter, Karen. My older brother, Don, and my younger sister, Diane, and her husband, Jim, were there ... along with a lot of other people. All of Uncle Bud's four kids were there: Terry (his oldest) and his wife, Linda; Larry (his 2nd oldest) and his wife, Donna; Mary Tack (his 3rd oldest) and her husband, Steve; and Judy Nevil (the youngest). Uncle Elmer (my late mother's brother) and his wife, Aunt Pat, were there and sat with us.

My sister, Karen, and my youngest son, David

My older brother, Don, and my younger sister, Diane DeMent

(l to r) My brother-in-law, Jim DeMent, Uncle Elmer VerPlank, Aunt Pat VerPank and sister, Diane DeMent

The 90 year old birthday man, Uncle Bud Nevil

We said our "Good byes". It had been a long time since so many relatives had been together. I tried to get as many pictures as I could  I was really tired when we got back to Rochester and our cozy 1 bedroom apartment. I was in bed by 7:30PM and asleep by 8PM.

Sunday, 8/3/2014 to Saturday, 8/9/2014 - Young and Wyld 5K & Bergen 5K

I ran 5 times this week, 17.3 miles.

Sunday, 8/3/2014: Rest day ... pure & simple.

The DVR broke so we were forced to watch Netflix with good and bad results. The first movie worked fine, the next two, "Invasion of the Body Snatcher" and "Apollo 18" were interrupted by buffering every minute.

I also crawled the web to find the results of the Cayuga Triathlon down in Ithaca NY. The Intermediate Tri was 1.5K swim, 24.3 mile bike and 10K run with 247 finishers: John Muoio finished in 2:37:50, Barry Cherney broke 3 hours in 2:56:46, Steve Levitsky finished in 3:07:54, Wendy Abbot finished in 3:22:56, Kimberly Levitsky finsihed in 3:32:39. The Short Tri was 750m swim, 14 mile bike and 5K run with 327 finishers: Tom Button was 27th overall and won his M65-59 age group in 1:24:24.

Monday, 8/4/2014: 7.7 miles, 1:02:51, 8:10 pace, 75F, 78% RH, 5 mph ESE wind, mostly cloudy.

Garmin Connect Activity for A sweaty 7.7 mile run

I needed to run I took the day before off and will take the day after off because of a 5K on Wednesday. I struck up my usual nice and easy pace when I headed out. En route I thought about running a 10 mile run but decided to take it easy on my feet and cut it a bit short. When I stopped I was drenched with sweat. It was more than a bit humid!

Tuesday, 8/5/2015: Rest day.

Time Warner replaced the DVR and I occupied myself with two loads of laundry.

Wednesday, 8/6/2014: 2 runs of 1.8 miles along with the Young and Wyld 5K of 3.14 miles, 73%, 44% RH, 5 mph NW wind, sunny.

My darling wife, Christine, and I headed down after I got home from work to Honeoye Falls for something new ... the Young and Wyld 5K. We got there at 6:10PM. Just in time to park 50 feet from the finish line across from the Post Office. The race started at 7PM so I had plenty of time to go out with Bill Sandow and his friend, Jim Werven, for a nice and easy 1.8 miles at 8:42 pace, link here. I said "Hi" to Andy Ciaio and Bob Dyjak before the race.

Garmin Connect Activity for Warmup before the Young and Wyld 5K


I stretched a bit, kissed Christine and waited for the start. And .... we were off! There was no police escort for this race just road marshals. The course is the old PolarCat route and was all right hand turns so we ran with our backs to traffic. Luckily there was not much traffic. I started pretty well and settled in for what I hoped was a fast 5K. There were pockets of cool air in the first mile that felt nice, 6:46 pace. I slowed a bit during mile 2, 7:04 pace. I picked it up a bit on York St as I picked off some younger high school runners, 6:55 pace. I started my sprint as I turned onto W Main St. I heard Christine yell, "Go, Doug!". And into the finish chute ... I was done in 21:36 with a 5:54 pace over the last 0.14 mile.

Taking it easy after the Young and Wyld 5K in beautiful Honeoye Falls!

I recovered with a couple of slices of pizza and a tasty root beer float. Officially, I did pretty well. I was 20th out of 115, link here. I was 2nd out of 6 in my M55-59 age group, link here. Jim Werven finished in 19:41, Andy Ciaio finished with spitting distance of 20 at 20:18, Bill Sandow finished in 20:55 and Bob Dyjak finished in 25:45.

Christine and I finished up our evening out by having a late snack for me and supper for Christine at Salvatore's on East Ridge Rd. An early bedtime soon ensued!

Thursday, 8/7/2014: An unplanned rest day due to lack of communication

Well ... maybe I should tell Christine when I am planning to run so she won't have supper ready and waiting when I come home. I was kind of planning a 10 mile run ... but I ate a nice supper and binge watched "Under the Dome"instead.

Friday, 8/8/2014: Another rest day.

I thought about going out for a run after work but my darling wife, Christine, had other plans ... so I went with them.

Saturday, 8/9/2014: 2 runs of 1.5 and Bergen 5K of 3.16 miles

I woke up early and woke up Christine a bit later. I had wanted to leave at 7AM but didn't leave until 7:24AM for the drive out to Bergen. This was my third Bergen 5K. I ran a 20:31 back in 2011 and a 21:36 last year. I left Christine in the car while I went to get my bib and shirt at registration. I kind of knew the young lady behind the table and she handed me my bib and shirt without my telling her my name. I guess there are a lot of people that know me ... I wish I knew them. I am kind of bad with names.

It was a beautiful morning for a fast 5K. I got out for a nice and easy 1.5 miles at 8:02 pace with the weather conditions: 59F, 88% RH, 4 mph SW wind.

Garmin Connect Activity for Warmup before Bergen 5K

I was stretching here ... not trying to kick the sign over as Bob Dyjak suggested on Facebook, lol!

I saw Bill Beyerbach, Jim May, Bob Dyjak and Mark Herberger briefly before the race. I met up with Prem Kumar and lined up with him. I was a bit farther back than I was used to. The Bergen 5K always attracts a very fast group of runners since it is the USATF-Niagara 5K Open and Master Championship so I let them be in front.




And ... we were off! I got caught behind slower runners a bit at the start but I followed Prem's lead and navigated into the clear.

The start - taken by Tim Matthews

The start from the other side - from the Bergen 5K Facebook page

Another view of the start - taken by Tim Matthews

I was behind Prem by 10 feet at the sharp turn from Parkview Dr onto Buffalo Rd. I passed Mark Herberber for a bit and then he passed me back. Mile 1 passed at 6:44 pace. I settled in and kept my position on S Lake Ave, aka Route 19, and on the turn onto Rochester St. Mile 2 passed at 6:47 pace.

Somewhere on S Lake Ave

I wasn't gaining on Mark or Prem but I wasn't losing ground either. I slowed a bit on mile 3, 7:05 pace.

Approaching the finish chute

I sprinted over the last 0.16 mile as I entered the finish chute, 6:10 pace. And ... done in 21:34 according to my Garmin. I congratulated Prem and Mark on their 21:12 and 21:19. Bill Beyerbach finished in 20:26, a 5K PR! Bill May, a very fast 68, finished in 20:15. Bob Dyjak finished in 25:05. Here is a blog post from Road Kill Racing, link here, about how their team results.

"Kip" Tisia finished in 14:44

Hannah Davidson finished in 16:01

Meanwhile ... Kiplangat Tisia of Rochester finished 1st in 14:44. The first 60 runners were under 17:00! Hannah Davidson of Manlius was the first female in 16:01. I did OK. Officially, I finished in 21:32, 147th out of 365, link here. I finished 7th out of 16 in my M55-59 age group.

I had to leave fairly quickly. My father, Bernard J DeWeaver died back on 3/10/2014. His urn was being buried along side my mother's urn at the East Palmyra Cemetery at 11AM. My mother, Doris E DeWeaver died on 1/14/2004. I changed in my daughter's stairwell in Newark since she wasn't home. We made it there in plenty of time. I met up with my older brother, Don, along with my younger sister, Diane, and her husband, Jim DeMent. Uncle Bud Nevil, the husband of my mother's late sister; Pat VerPlank, the wife of my mother's brother, Elmer and their daughter, Lea Ann, also attended the short ceremony. My sister gave a short eulogy and concluded with Dad's signature goodbye ... "See you later".

My father's urn

My parent's gravestone

My older brother, Don, and my younger sister, Diane

My Uncle Bud Nevil. He is the husband of my late mother's late sister Eleanor.

My Aunt Pat VerPlankand her daughter Lea Ann Sawyer. Aunt Pat is the wife of my late mother's brother Elmer. 

I saw my oldest son, Michael, for a bit at his mother's apartment in Newark before we headed back up to Rochester. A lazy and leisurely day ensued.

Tragic news later from Canandaigua ... Tony Stewart hit and killed Kevin Ward Jr in a racing accident at the Canandaigua Motorsports Park, links here and here. I watched the raw video posted on Youtube. Kevin spun out after getting a flat tire after contact with Tony. Kevin got out of his car and walked down the banked track to gesture at Tony as he came around on the caution lap. A couple of cars missed Keven before Tony's car hit and killed him. I think there will be rule changes for Nascar and all other race car series in the future ... don't get out of your car after a crash until directed by safety personnel unless it's on fire.