Monday, 3/23/2015 to Saturday, 3/28/2015 - Spring Forward 15K

I ran 3 times during these 6 days, 16.62 miles

Monday, 3/23/2015: Rest day ... naturally after running the Syracuse Marathon the previous day.

Tuesday, 3/24/2015: Another rest day.

I thought about going out but I had a strange twinge of pain that came and went in my right hip and leg when I walked. So ... I didn't. Probably a wise move.

Wednesday, 3/25/2015: 6.2 miles, 51:01, 8:13 pace, 43F, 81% RH, 12 mph SSW wind, wind chill 36F, overcast

I needed to get out so I brought most of my running gear to work. That way I could just change at work and go directly to Cobbs Hill for a much needed hill workout. It was a bit cold for shorts that's what I wore. I hoped I would warm up (and I did).

Garmin Connect Activity for Cobbs Hill workout: 1 loop, 3 Ys, 1 loop

I got to Fleet Feet Armory around 5:30PM. There was lots of people there already ... probably WalkFit and No-Bo types. I got out before them and headed up Culver Rd, Monroe Ave and Highland Ave to Cobbs Hill like I have done so many times before. I was a bit stiff on the run up and the first loop. Then I decided to do 3 Ys and finish with another loop. The road was soon populated with runners and walkers of various abilities. A few knew me. And ... done! Another 10K in the running journal. Maybe next time I will concentrate on running harder up the hills and resting on the run down the hills.

Thursday, 3/26/2015: Rest day

My darling wife, Christine, and I had a 4:30PM dentist appointment at Dr. Randy Raetz, aka the Running Dentist. We went directly to the Crab Shack for supper as we usually do ... so it was a  rest day.

Friday, 3/27/2015: Rest before a race day

As usual, I rested the day before a race the next morning. I will admit that I watched "Eight Legged Freaks" not once but twice before hitting the sack early. My alarm was set for 5:30AM.

Saturday, 3/28/2015: 2 runs of 1 and Spring Forward 15K (9.42 miles), 18F, 73% RH, 9 mph N wind, wind chill 7F, overcast, real light snow

I was awake a bit before the alarm went off at 5:30AM. My darling wife, Christine, had slept the night on the couch since she wanted me to get my rest. She does have the ability to snore and I am a light sleeper. I got up and did the usual on race mornings: the dishes from the previous night, ate my bowl of cereal with banana, did my duty in the bathroom, checked the temp, dressed appropriately, kissed Christine goodbye and hit the road. I was greeted to slippery roads since about 2 inches of fluffy snow had fallen during the night. The traffic down to Mendon Ponds Park (MPP) was a bit challenging but I handled it. I did pass one car that was doing 35 in a  55. Doing 45 I could have handled. I got down to MPP around 7:10AM. The Beach parking lot near Stewart Lodge was already practically full. I parked on the inbound entrance road up near Douglas Rd. I was getting ready to head down to Stewart Lodge when I noticed a traffic tieup. Cars were trying to get in and out on a 1 WAY road at the same time! About 10 cars couldn't read signs and went out the inbound road ... arrggh!

I mingled down at Stewart Lodge for a while before I got out a 1 mile warmup run at 8:18 pace, link here. It was cold, windy and a light snow was falling. The road conditions were slushy and slippery. I wore my New Balance 860 road shoes so I was a bit concerned about my traction during the race. I kind of wished that I had worn my Salomon SpeedCross 3 trail shoes but I had not brought them ... oops!

I mingled down at the start. I saw Mark Herberger, Prem Kumar, Andy Ciaio and Bill Sandow before the start. And ... we were off!

This race started down the outbound road of the Beach parking lot and goes up Douglas Rd to Pond Rd. I started a bit too fast as I kept pace with Andy Ciaio and Bill Sandow for the first mile. The rolling hills of Mendon were unending as usual. I handled them for the first three miles easily but ... then not so much.

I think this was taken on Canfield Rd. I was trying to maintain a run as best I could.

I just couldn't keep up my pace and had to resort to a run/tiny walk for a lot of the hills. The roads were slippery. We couldn't run on the shoulder and had to find clear tracks in the road or even on the other side of the road. I kept going and finished the race with a sprint down the icy road to the finish line at Stewart Lodge. And ... done with 13.42 miles in 1:15:24. My splits were: 7:21, 7:44, 7:36, 8:05, 8:05, 8:29, 8:34, 8:31, 7:58 and 7:21 over the last 0.42 miles.

I quickly got inside Stewart Lodge and had some water and a couple of bananas. The place was crowded so I just pulled on my Snow Cheap hoodie and left to go home.

My fingertips were getting white as I stripped, hung up my wet gear and headed to the bathroom for a hot shower. It was kind of weird washing and then toweling off while my fingers were tingling as they warmed up. But they pinked up and life went on. Coffee, couch and vegging soon ensued.

Yellowjacketracing.com/results soon had the results up. I did OK. I was 81st of 400, link here. I was 10th out of 29 in my M55-59 age group, link here. Bill Sandown finished in 1:08:49. Mark Herberger finished in 1:11:50. Andy Ciaio finished in 1:14:30. Prem Kumar finished in 1:16:25. I noticed that this was my 9th consecutive Spring Forward 15K ... wow!

3/22/2015 - Syracuse Half Marathon

3/22/2015: 13.21 miles, 1:47:53, xx, 16F, 67% RH, 11 mph NNW wind, wind chill 3F, sunny

This was my first running of the 3rd annual Syracuse Half. I wondered what the attraction was so I had registered back in December for this race before it sold out. There were 3500 runners registered.

The wake up call at our room at the Maplewood Inn where we had spent the night was 6AM.

All the gear laid out the night before .... it was a good idea.

I had laid out all my my running stuff the night before. Good idea! I checked the temp and the weather outside. The temp had fallen from 41F the night before to 18F. An inch of snow had fallen overnight. Yeah ... I decided to go with most of my cold wear gear. My usual: CW-X tights, Sugoi heavy long sleeve tech, a short sleeve tech, 1/4 zip Brooks pullover, full balaclava, Brooks beanie and my ski mittens. I wore my New Balance 860 road shoes and Darn Tough socks. The Maplewood Inn opened up their breakfast early for us, another runner and a basketball team ... which was very nice of them.

We checked out and got on the road at 7:10AM for the short 7 minute trip to the OnCenter. Well ... it wasn't a 7 minute trip. 

Stuck in bumper to bumper traffic on I-81S trying to get off at the Harrison St exit for the OnCenter

We were at a dead stop about 3/4 mile from the Harrison St exit off of I-81S and crawled in bumper to bumper traffic the rest of the way for 30 minutes. We parked at 7:50AM and walked the rest of the way. I walked ahead to get there quickly. The OnCenter was packed inside. Soon I heard word that the race had been delayed for 15 minutes. This was an excellent move by the race organizers. I tried to find an bathroom inside the OnCenter but gave up and went to wait in line for an outside PortaPotty. I gave up on that need about 8 minutes before the race start. I kind of knew I would need one during the race. I saw Christine before the race and gave her a quick kiss for luck.

The Syracuse Half had emailed out two different ways of tracking runners: Xacte and RaceJoy. I had signed up for both. Xacte had timing mats at 5K, 10K, 15K and the finish. You could set up Xacte to email, text, post to Twitter or Facebook your times. I chose to text Christine and my kids along with a post to my Facebook wall. RaceJoy was a bit more involved. It was a Google Play and App Store app. I loaded it to my Iphone and set it up for the Syracuse Half. Then I loaded it on Christine's LG G2 and set it up to track me. I activated tracking about 15 minutes before the race. This was wrong since that threw off its pace and time to finish calculations. I should have activated it at the race start. I didn't do this because I thought that would be a bit more dicey since I would have to start RaceJoy, stow my Iphone, put on my ski mittens and safely start up my run. But ... Christine did like looking at RaceJoy to know exactly where I was on the course ... so Xacte and RaceJoy both worked well.


I got to my usual spot in the race lineup but just a bit farther back. I saw Bill Beyerbach, Heather Danielson and Chris Patterson and said "Hi". And .... we were off! I had not stretched or warmed up (stupid move) so I was stiff and started slow. I had looked at a map of the course and knew that we meandered all over. Right after the first turn or two, we headed up a long hill. The first mile was still on the hill.

Soon after the start - totally unauthorized from T Wellot Photography

Here is what I remember of the race. I ran pretty well for the first 5 miles then I felt a tightness in my thighs. I started to do a run/tiny walk. I tried to do the tiny walk on the many tiny uphills after a turn ... and there were a lot of turns (I heard 31). I stopped at a PortaPotty just after the 3rd aid station at mile 7. I was tying my tights back up when a woman opened the door ... luckily I had already taken care of my business! I caught up to and passed Bill. I told him that I wasn't too well and was doing a run/walk. He yelled behind me, "So when is the walk coming?" and runners around him laughed. Well, I was on a downhill and I didn't walk on downhills. I remember a nice long downhill. Some signs: "As you pass, we're checking out your ass!", "Why do all the cute ones run away?", "13.1 for a banana? and "Your High School Gym Teacher Would Be So Proud". A woman with a blonde ponytail had "Your Pace or Mine?" on the back of her jacket ... I passed her. I was getting tired. I knew I was getting close but could only hold a run for about a 1/2 mile at a time. I could see the finish ... run ... 13 miles ... OK, a sprint is gonna hurt ... a yell that must have been Christine to my left ... time under 1:48 ... finish ... medal around my neck!

Finish line - totally unauthorized from T Wellot Photography

Finished - photo courtesy of Christine

A few seconds later - photo courtesy of Christine

A selfie with the medal!

A better picture with the medal - photo courtesy of a random woman who took the pic using my Iphone

I met up with Christine and we headed inside the OnCenter for a great post-race experience. The grub was the usual along with chocolate milk, Greek yogurt, pancakes, sausage link and bacon! The convention floor was set up with a band and loads of circular tables with 10 chairs each. We sat with Heather and Chris. Heather placed 3rd in her age group and received a plaque!

Heather ran a 1:36:20, 7:22 pace, 3rd out of 198 in her 40-44 age group

We hung out for a long time before we walked back to the Equinox. I fired up the Onstar and it led us on the road to I-81N ... along with everyone else. So ... I pulled a U-turn and drove the other direction until Onstar started to led us to I-690W (which had little traffic) and I-90W toward Rochester. But ... the Onstar expires on 3/28. I haven't decided what level of coverage to get yet.

I wore my sweet Syracuse Half medal and 1/4 zip pullover all day! - photo courtesy of Christine

Soon we were home, the coffee was brewed, our feet up on the couch and we vegged the rest of the day. Another half marathon in my book ... my 16th. The Syracuse Half was very well run and I will definitely be back. Staying overnight in Syracuse was definitely a good move ... though I would definitely avoid I-81S and get to the OnCenter a different way next time.

Later, leonetiming.com had the results posted. I did OK. My gun time was 1:47:53 (my fastest of the 3 half marathons I have run in 2015), 8:15 pace, 432nd out of 2773, 20th out of 89 in my M55-59 age group, link here. My splits were: 8:21, 8:17, 7:50, 7:40, 8:12, 8:28, 8:08, 8:55, 7:30 (nice downhill), 8:03, 8:16, 8:15, 8:20 with a top pace of 6:03 as I sprinted into the finish.

I looked at the times and noted the following from Rochester NY. Bill Beyerbach ran a 1:53:00, 33/89 in our M55-59 age group. Heather Danielson ran a 1:36:20, 7:22 pace, 3/298 in her F40-44 age group. Her fiance, Chris Patterson, also ran a 1:36:20, 7:22 pace, 26/81 in his M25-29 age group. Joe Ciecierega ran a PR, 1:37:53, 16/136 in his M40-44 age group. His girlfriend, Tina Pellegrin, ran a 2:53:52 while suffering from a head cold. Mike Reif, coach of GVH, ran a 1:38:37, and won his M65-69 age group. Steve Levitsky ran a 1:40:23, 15/118 in his M45-49 age group. Bambi Jasmin ran a 1:48:54, 22/298 in her F40-44 age group. Amy Lord ran a 2:48:31.

All in all, a great way to spend a frosty March morning in Syracuse NY!

Sunday, 3/15/2015 to Saturday, 3/21/2015

I ran 3 times this week, 25 miles.

Sunday, 3/15/2015: 7 ... err, 10 miles, 1:19:53, 7:59 pace, 34F, 80% RH, 8 mph NW wind, wind chill 27F, overcast.

I slept pretty well considering that Christine and I were in a strange double bed at the house of her daughter, Beth, in Lakewood OH. I was up around 7AM. I had brought my small gym bag with enough gear for running with temps around mid 30s. I fired up mapmyrun.com and figured out a 7 mile route from 1428 Lakewood Ave. My plan was to head west, then turn north to Lake Ave along Lake Erie, run a few miles, head south and then back west in a rectangle.


So ... I headed out. Well ... I couldn't find my first cross street to head north. I saw a main street and turned north on W Clinton Blvd and then a right onto Lake Ave to Edgewater Dr. I took a tiny detour to take a picture of Lake Erie.

Lake Erie was still frozen as far as I could see

I took another detour through Lakewood Park, then continued on Lake Ave until West Blvd. I turned right onto Detroit Ave and then saw that I had already run 7 miles. OK ... no problem. I did go through Lakewood Park. I saw Lakewood Ave but there wasn't a CVS on the corner. Huh? My Equinox was not at 1428 Lakewood Ave. Huh? I went back to Detroit Ave and continued west. On ... mile 8, on ... mile 9. I looked for the CVS. I didn't carry water and was getting thirsty. Detroit Ave was sure long! I finally saw the CVS on the corner of Lakeland (opps!) Ave. I ran by 1428 Lakeland Ave and stretched the run out to 10 miles. My splits were: 7:49, 7:43, 7:40, 7:56, 7:50, 8:01, 8:03, 8:15, 8:30 and 8:03.

Lesson learned ... know where you are starting before you head out from a new place ... lol!

Coffee and a hot shower soon ensued. Beth made a nice breakfast for us ... scrambled eggs, bacon and sausage patties. Yum! Then it was onward to Ravenna OH to see Christine's father who is 94 years young.

Christine, her father and I - selfie time!

We had a nice long visit. We talked for a while then headed out to visit his wife's grave in Twinsburg and ate a late lunch at the Cracker Barrel. We headed back to Rochester at 6PM and arrived at 10:30PM. I used the cruise control on Equinox for about 95% of the drive.

Monday, 3/16/2015: Rest day ... you betcha!

Tuesday, 3/17/2015: 5 miles, 41:54, 8:22 pace, 34F, 32% RH, 18 mph NW wind, wind chill 23F, mostly sunny.

Garmin Connect Activity for Cobbs Hill workout with 3 Ys

I headed down to Cobbs Hill Park for another whack at a hills workout. I parked at Fleet Feet Armory and geared up. The east side of Culver Rd was muddy so I headed up the other side. I felt a bit stiff during the run up and the first Y but soon loosened up. I held back and just did 3 Ys and then headed back. My splits were: 9:19, 8:14, 8:08, 8:13 and 7:58.

Wednesday, 3/18/2015: Rest day

My darling wife, Christine, has been looking at apartments and townhouses since our lease at Pine Ridge Apartments is up at the end of May. We need to get out of our cramped 1 bedroom apartment with its tiny kitchen. Last week she visited a 2 bedroom apartment at Long Pond Shores (too expensive) in Greece and a townhouse at The Viking Apartments in Brockport (too far). Today she visited Greenleaf Meadows in Rochester. She liked them and suggested that I visit them after work. I did and I think we found the one! I looked at a 2 bedroom townhouse with 2 bedrooms up with large closets, 1 upstairs bath (the only bad point), a bigger kitchen with a window and a full basement (sectioned into a utility room and storage room). A bit pricey but it includes free heat, water and central A/C. It also has an onsite 24/7 exercise room, a seasonal (Memorial Day to Labor Day) pool and is adjacent to a pond and a running/biking trail with Lake Ontario about 1/2 mile away. A Google Maps link is here. The map looks to have some nice and long running loops possible plus nice long roads or multi-use trails for our bicycles.

Thursday, 3/19/2015: 10 miles, 1:18:44, 7:52 pace, 34F, 40% RH, 11 mph NE wind, wind chill 25F, mostly sunny.

Garmin Connect Activity for A not so nice and easy 10 miles

I needed to run to get a last 10 miles before the Syracuse Half on Sunday so I got home, had my usual pre-run bowl of cereal, get dressed and got out there. I stuck to my usual 10K route, struck up a not so nice and easy pace, stuck to it and then extended it to 10 miles. My splits were: 7:44, 7:54, 7:57, 8:00, 7:46, 7:47, 7:56, 7:54, 7:55 and 7:51. Boom!

Friday, 3/20/2015: Rest day.

I felt a bit gimpy with a bit of Achilles tendon tightness and a bit of tightness across my lower abdomen.

Saturday, 3/21/2015: Rest and travel day before the Syracuse Half

I got out and got my haircut cut. I decided to go with a short, aerodynamic cut ... not bald but short on the sides and about 1/2 inch on top. I have had quite enough with the wind blowing my hair all over the place. I might even go even shorter. I have lots of older guys sporting the look and some younger ones like Chris Patterson.

Packet picket up for the Syracuse Half was at Fleet Feet Syracuse from 9AM to 5PM. My darling wife, Christine, and I packed our stuff and made it there by 4:45PM. A bit rushed but we travel well together now. I quickly got my blue 1/4 zip Syracuse Half pullover and race bib. Then we shopped for a bit. Christine found a couple nice looking tech tops in 2XL on sale and I found 4 HammerGels. My impression of Fleet Feet Syracuse was: more stuff to choose from and a better selection. It would be worth the trip if they had a nice sale.

Then it was onward to the Maplewood Inn. A basketball team was just ahead of us at the front desk for check in so ... we went to a nearby Denny's for supper to avoid the crowd. Christine and I had a nice leisurely dinner of haddock for her and spaghetti and meatballs for me ... gotta carboload you know! Back at the Maplewood Inn we quickly checked in and got to our nice room with a king size bed. Sweet! I laid all my stuff out for the next morning and set my alarm for 6AM. Sleep came quickly for me ... not so quickly for Christine. She said that she heard basketball players roaming the halls during the night.

Sunday, 3/8/2015 to Saturday, 3/14/2015 - Johnny's Running of the Green 5 Mile Race

I ran 5 times this week, 20.38 miles.

Sunday, 3/8/2015: 6.6 miles, 1:14:26, 11:24 pace, 34F, 55% RH, 20 mph W wind, wind chill 22F, sunny.

The clocks advanced one hour overnight due to Daylight Savings Time so I woke up a hour later at 8:23AM. There were only three clocks in the apartment to change ... boom, done. Now what? Hmm ... the long range forecast was for temperatures above freezing so ... how about a run/snowshoe/run out to Seneca Park? I had a banana for my pre-run snack, set the timer on the coffee for 11:45 AM, dressed and headed out.

Garmin Connect Activity for Run/Snowshoe/Run

It was a bit windy so I had on my heavy Sugoi long sleeve tech instead of a middle weight under my 1/4 zip Brooks long sleeve pullover on top. I choose the usual CW-X tights and Darn Tough socks on the bottom along with ski mittens, 20 oz water bottle, full balaclava, Brooks beanie and sunglasses. My "go-to" running gear for winter. Those 30 year old (at least) ski mittens are great for keeping my hands warm!

I headed out at a nice and slow pace to the Seneca Park while I held my Dion snowshoes. I got in 1.3 miles before I put them on. Then I did a nice and easy snowshoe walk / mostly run out 2 miles and back 2 miles. I clipped the inside of my right ankle 5(!!) times with my left snowshoe. Man ... did that smart! I knew that I drew blood. Then it was take off the Dion snowshoes and run home another 1.3 miles. It must have looked a bit weird ... but it's what I did. My splits were: 8:59, 12:03, 11:48, 13:03, 12:32, 10:59, 8:20. Kind of easy to figure out what miles were on snowshoes.

My darling wife, Christine, made ribs and sweet potatoes for supper ... mmm! I may be biased but I think she does a better job than Famous Dave's. the Dinosaur or Sticky Lips. Again ... mmm!

Monday, 3/9/2015: Rest day ... almost a workout day. I brought my stuff to work but I was tired and just went home instead.

Tuesday, 3/10/2015: 6.4 miles, 51:55, 8:06 pace, 48F, 50% RH, 6 mph SW wind, most cloudy.

Garmin Connect Activity for Back and Forth on Norris Drive

It was above freezing so I changed into shorts and calf sleeves on the bottom and a long sleeve tech and short sleeve tech on the top along with heavy gloves and a hat. I was a bit overdressed but not by.much. I headed down to Cobbs Hill Park to do hills. The Culver Rd sidewalk was still icy and rutty so I headed down Norris Drive. My plan was to head up to Cobbs Hill the long way. But ... I had a strange pain in the back of my right knee that kind of hurt. I continued on Norris Drive up to Winton Rd N and back to see if it would sort itself out. It kind of did but I didn't want to maybe make it worse by doing hills so I just continued running back and forth on Norris Drive ... avoiding the mud puddles and getting bored to death. My splits were: 7:22, 8:20, 8:17, 8:17, 8:22, 8:09 and 7:46. But a run is a run.

Wednesday, 3/11/2015: Work out!

Yes, I finally made it to LA Fitness to work out! Nothing too special just a set of 12 on the upper body machines mostly.

Thursday, 3/12/2015: A rest day.

Thursday would ordinarily be my day to run. A Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, Sunday running schedule works well for me but ... my muscles were still sore for working out on Wednesday.

Friday, 3/13/2015: A rest before a race day.

My usual "don't run the night before a race the next morning" rule. It seems to work for me so I go with it. I went out.

Saturday, 3/14/2015: 3 runs of 2, 0.3 and Johnny's of 5.05 miles, 37F, 93% RH, 5 mph SW wind, wind chill 34F, overcast, a real light mist

I got up around 7AM to do my usual: do the dishes from the previous night, have a banana, get dressed, check the race venue and start time, kiss Christine goodbye. I headed out at 8:28AM. The trip down to the Blue Cross Arena only took 10 minutes.

I was there in plenty of time for my fifth running of Johnny's Running of the Green 5 Mile Race. My lifetime PR for 5 miles was on this course in 2012 at 33:58. I wore my usual running attire for 37F: CW-X tights, medium long sleeve tech, Brooks 1/4 zip long sleeve pullover, Brooks beanie and heavy running gloves. I wore Darn Tough socks and my usual New Balance 860 running shoes. I got out for a real nice and easy warmup run of 2 miles at 8:38 pace, link here. Just before the race I got out for a faster 0.3 stride at 6:57 pace to get my heart rate back up.

The course for Johnny's is a simple out and back. The start this year was at the corner of Court St and Exchange Blvd. I got into the pack in my usual spot about 20 feet back from the front and off to the right. I saw a lot of running friends: some knew me and some I knew (I am somewhat bad with names). Steve Levitsky mentioned that he had taken a 15(!) mile warmup run before the race.

The start! - courtesy of Julie D'Ovidio

And ... we were off! The start went well. I found opening running room as we ran down Exchange Blvd up to Ford St.

Outbound on Exchange Blvd soon after the start - courtesy of Ron Heerkens Jr

Then it was a left onto Ford St, across the Ford St bridge and a right onto Wilson Blvd. Pete called out my time as 7:14 at the 1 mile mark (my Garmin said 7:01). Wendy Abbot and Heather Danielson said "Hi, Doug" as they passed me. I tried to draft them but couldn't keep up. Boots, Ellen and Barb from Fleet Feet were cheering just after the 1 mile mark. I gave me a bit of pep in my step to see them. I could see Mark Herberger just ahead of me but I couldn't keep up. Andy Ciaio passed me and said "Hi". Mile 2 passed in 7:08. I knew that the turnaround was coming soon. I had a bit of trouble with my breathing and took a tiny walk break just before the turnaround. Steve Levitsky passed me for a minute before I passed him and kept him behind me. Mile 3 passed in 7:35. I found my running mojo and kept it in gear the rest of the way. Boots, Ellen and Barb were still cheering just before mile 4 again. Thanks! Up to the Ford St, turn left, over the Ford St bridge and right onto Exchange Blvd. Mile 4 passed in 7:22.

Inbound on Exchange Blvd and grimacing for the finish (as usual) - courtesy of Ron Heerkens Jr.

I was running well but didn't run to start a sprint yet ... still too far to go. I concentrated on keeping my position. I could see the I-490 overpass .. too soon ... crossing Court St, mile 5 in 7:06 pace ... now ... I sprinted into the finish, 36:27, with the last 0.05 mile at 5:35 pace. I was thirsty so I quickly downed a bottle of water. I didn't stick around very long and was soon back home ... places to go.

The sweet Johnny's long sleeve cotton T-shirt

I can beat myself up about this race. Maybe I was too warm or it was too humid. Maybe I'm a wuss. The tiny walk break at the mid point on a 5 mile race ... come on! But ... it's just the start of the spring race season and there is plenty of time to do speed and hill workouts. I did OK officially, 36:18, 7:16 pace, 169th out of 1387, link here. I was 5th out 66 in my M55-59 age group, link here. I was only 11 seconds off the podium.

Wendy Abbot outkicked Heather Danielson to finish in 34:05 and 34:09 respectively. Andy Ciaio finished in 35:57. Steve Levitsky finished in 36:33. I did see that Mark Herberger aged up to the M60-64 age group. He took first with a 35:42.

Soon Christine and I changed gears and were on the road for Lakewood OH. The plan was for a quick trip to celebrate her son, John's, 34th birthday on Saturday night and to see her father in Ravenna OH on Sunday. Our trip to Lakewood OH was uneventful except for a bit of concern when we ran in a 10 mile patch of pea soup fog in PA during the late afternoon. Visibility was reduced to about 1/4 mile. We met up with her daughter, Beth, her finance, Nick and John to have pizza, wings and brownies for supper. We weren't exactly nightowls ... we were all asleep by 11AM.

Sunday, 3/1/2015 to Saturday, 3/6/2015 - Snow Cheap #6

I ran 4 times this week, 32.42 miles.

Sunday, 3/1/2015: 9.3 miles, 1:21:52, 8:48 pace, 18F, 79% RH, calm, light snow

Garmin Connect Activity for A warmer 15K

I slept in more than yesterday but I knew I was still going out anyway. I did the dishes from the previous night and had a bowl of well earned Cinnamon Toast Crunch. It was 20F warmer than the previous morning so I only wore my heavy Sugoi long sleeve tech and 1/4 zip Brooks long sleeve tech on top. I set out nice and easy. My thighs were a bit tight and it didn't go away. It got worse instead. I slowed down, just endured it and didn't walk. I was more than happy to stop. My splits were: 8:27, 8:40, 8:39, 8:58, 8:59, 8:45, 9:12, 8:57, 8:38 and 8:31 over the 0.3 miles.

Soon I was drinking a nice mug of coffee with my feet up. My darling wife, Christine, and I lazed around the rest of the day. We just enjoyed the day.

Monday, 3/2/3015: Rest day ... yada, yada, yada ...

I thought of going to LA Fitness to work on the machine ... but didn't. It felt warm outside ... because the temperature got above freezing for the first time in 20 days according to Accuweather.com.

Tuesday, 3/3/2015: Another rest day ...

The weather during the evening commute sucked. I had all my gear (again) to go to LA Fitness after work. But the weather had other plans. During the afternoon; first it snowed a couple of inches of wet snow ... then freezing rain started. I spent 30 minutes in bumper to bumper traffic going from the Hess station on 104E to the intersection of Lake Ave ... a distance of less than a mile. Why? There was no accident. As soon as I got to where 104E become an expressway traffic sped right up to at least 40-50 mph. I just went home ... whatever.

Wednesday, 3/4/2015: 2 runs of 6 and Snow Cheap #6 of 1.62 miles, 32F, 69% RH, 10 mph W wind, wind chill 24F, overcast.

Tonight was the final Snow Cheap of the 2014-2015 series and also the last time I could wear my Golden Bib that I bought last year. I raced 24 out of 27 possible races with it. Yellow Jacket Racing did not offer it again in 2015 but it was fun while it lasted!

My "Golden Bib" survived 24 races pretty well!

I wanted to get some pre-miles in so I brought all my gear that I could possible need with me so I could go down to Riley Lodge at Cobbs Hill Park right after work. I changed at work and got down there around 5:30PM. I met up with Carl Camillo and Chris O'Brien for a bit and talked running. Carl had to go mentor No-Boundaries and Chris had to get up to run a bit of the course backwards to gauge the conditions. It was 32F and felt warm compared to the weather in the weeks before. I decided to head up to reservoir and run the road around the reservoir to get pre-miles. The sidewalk up the east side of Culver was crap so I headed up the long way at a nice and easy pace but mindful of cars since there was no shoulder due to the snow. When I got up to the reservoir I decided to run loops. I was on my third loop when I saw the driver of a car just dump garbage out the passenger window ... what? I picked up the garbage and dumped it into a garbage can on my last loop. It was getting dark and I was wearing little reflectivity and had no headlamp so I headed carefully back to the Equinox. I took the short way back, down Monroe Ave and Culver Rd. I got 6 miles in, link here. My splits were: 8:50, 9:02, 8:35, 8:40, 8:12 and 9:02 ... just nice and easy to get miles in the tank. Gotta get to 100 miles in March you know!

I had 30 minutes to get ready for Snow Cheap #6. I saw Chris O'Brien and he told me about the snow conditions. He said that the snow was deep and that he was going to run with snowshoes. So ... I went out to the Equinox and got mine too. I had taken a layer off so I was a bit chilly standing around before the start. I took a bit of a run out from the start. Wow ... did I kick up snow! Some of it landing on my back and was it cold! Runners that didn't have snowshoes remarked that they wanted to avoid runners with snowshoes because of all the snow they kicked up ... can't blame them but it was my traction choice of the night.



And ... we were off! It was a bit of a scrum like usual. I tried to run out of the beaten down track for a while but that was strenuous so I got in behind everyone after a couple hundred yards.

A line of runners seen from the start line

Then it was just a matter of running when I could and walking when I had to either because someone was walking in front of me or because I just couldn't run ... which did happen a couple of times. The snow was crusty and a bit icy but deep in spots. The trek up the switchback and along the side of the Reservoir Rd was mainly just walking due to the hill or the deep snow. Later in the race sometimes I could pass by breaking out of the track when the snow bore my weight but other times I just sank and couldn't move so I just went back into the track with everyone else. I mainly tried to get going at a semblance of a run.

Close to the end!

I could hear Ellen announcing at the finish ... push ... deep snow ... push ... finish. And ... 1.62 miles done in 22:20. A bunch of runners passed right me at the finish but I broke the finish before them. I did OK, 41st out of 196 and 6th out of 15 in my M50-59 age group, link here.

I ditched my snowshoes and changed into my Snow Cheap series hoodie before I could get chilled. My fingertips didn't get white this time. The post race pizza party was quite filling ... nice! I stuck around for the Winter Warrior and Snow Cheap awards while I talked running with Amy Lord, Tom Butler and Chris O'Brien.

Soon I was home. I dragged all my gear back in the apartment in one trip ... which was quite an accomplishment. I hung everything that was wet up and stowed everything else, stripped, changed into my sweats and put my feet up ... done for the day.

Oh, today was also my brother, Don, 64th birthday. He said that the warmth today was due to the candles on his birthday cake!

Double Oh! Courtney Wagner, the Canandaigua senior who has brain cancer got to Ellen! Links here from Ellentube, here from the D&C, here from whec10 and here to a fundraiser.

Thursday, 3/5/2015: Date night!

My darling wife, Christine, and I attended the Trail Film Festival at the Little Theatre hosted by Fleet Feet Rochester. We treated it as a date night. We had never been in the Little Theatre. It was an old style theatre with old style,  high school type seats. I still fit though!

The TFF was presented by Rainshadow Running from the Pacific Northwest. Here is a selection of the film lineup with links: 2013 Mt. Marathon, The Traveler, The Barkley Marathon: The Race That Eats Its Young, The Crossing, 2014 Gorge Waterfalls 50K, 100: Head/Heart/Feet, 3022, Around Patagnoia and The Long Haul (had trouble finding a link to this movie about Mike Wolfe and Hal Koerner's attempt on the John Muir Trail). The movies made me want to find a trail!

Friday, 3/6/2015: Rest day

The usual rest day before a long run the next morning ... in this case, the Round the Bay run.

Saturday, 3/7/2015: 14.5 miles, 2:01:21, 8:21 pace, 21F, 58% RH, 7 mph SW wind, wind chill 12F, overcast

I got up a bit earlier than when I go to work, around 5:45AM. Time for my seventh (yes, 7) Round the Bay run. I checked the temp, just 19F. I ate just a banana, got dressed with the usual cold weather gear, kissed Christine and headed out.around 6:30AM. I got down to the west end of the Swing Bridge in Irondequoit around 6:45AM. I geared up with a hand bottle and a HammerGel that I put in a Amphipod tucked in my CW-X tights.


The parking lot was congested and some late arrivals had trouble finding a place to park. There seemed to be around 100 hardcore runners. I recognized some. Then just like that we headed out. The run up Culver Rd was an eye opener and a warmup for the legs. We all sorted out after a mile or so by our speeds as we ran down Culver Rd. I had made up my mind that I was going to do the long route with all the hills so I headed down Bayshore and GlenHaven. Bill Beyerbach said "Hey" as he passed me at mile 4. I kept him in sight as I ran down the hills and walked a bit on the uphills. I would pass a couple runners on the downs and get passed on the ups. I stopped at the impromtu aid station at mile 7 on Orchard Park Blvd and had my HammerGel and some water. Then it was down Empire Blvd and back up the mile long hill on the other side of Irondequoit Bay. I took a few walk breaks for 100 feet or so more than once. Then I turned down Bay Rd and tried to bring it in the best I could. On and on ... 13.1 miles in about 1:50:00. The wind kicked up as I turned onto Lake Rd. It was bone chilling and froze my face but I knew the Swing Bridge was near ... in sight ... over the steel grating ... run until 14.5 miles ... done. I looked at my Garmin for my pace: 8:21 min/mile, not bad. I ended home after downing a few brownies. Soon ... I had a mug of hot coffee and my legs were up. A nice way to start a morning!

Monday, 2/23/2015 to Saturday, 2/28/2015 - Freezeroo #6 (Canceled)

I ran 4 times this week, 28.9 miles.

Monday, 2/23/2015: A full rest day.

The day after the Lake Effect Half Marathon (LEHM) ... a bit achy in my thighs and Achilles tendons. I found that if I had sat for a while that I limped for about 100 yards before I could get my legs walking normally. My thighs were a bit tight when I walked down stairs.

I had a "well" doctor appointment at 7:40AM. I was double-teamed by my regular doctor and a fourth year resident. My stats were: BP was 121/76, my pulse was 61, height was still 6' 4", my weight at home was 174.6 (I could lose 10 pounds).

Tuesday, 2/24/2015: 7.2 miles, 1:02:03, 8:37 pace, 27F, 26% RH, 9 mph SW wind, wind chill 18F, partly cloudy.

Garmin Connect for Cobbs Hill run, 2 Ys and 3 loops

I needed to run miles to get to 100 miles by the end of the month. So I loaded enough gear to run either inside or outside. It was 25F so I decided to run outside. There was a Fleet Feet Cobbs Hill workout I went down to Fleet Feet Armory. I went in to look at the winter sale (didn't find anything) and said "Hi" to Chris O'Brien. He said that his plan was to run 7:30 pace for 6 miles. He was going to run up on the reservoir 0.69 mile loop. I told him that I was going to run hills on the reservoir road. I headed up and found that the sidewalk had not been plowed and was tough to run on. When I got up to Cobbs Hill I just ran easy ... 2 loops, then 2 Ys and another loop. I took the long way back to the Armory via Highland Ave, Cobbs Hill Drive, Hillside Drive and Norris Drive. It's hard to believe but it actually felt warm.

When I got home I learned that Freezeroo #6, a 10K  which was going to held in Ontario, was canceled. The Ontario Town Supervisor had told GRTC that the roads were not going to be safe, link here.

Wednesday, 2/25/2015: 6.2 miles on the treadmill

It had turned colder yet again ... down to 13F. So I went to the dreadmill at LA Fitness again. I endured 6.2 miles with 90% of it at 7:30 pace. My LEHM short sleeve tech shirt was drenched with sweat when I got done.

Thursday, 2/26/2015: 6.2 miles on the tradmill

Still cold ... 12F but almost no wind. So another night to the treadmill at LA Fitness again. I ran 6.2 miles at 8:00 pace. Another sweaty short sleeve tech shirt instead of slipping and sliding outside and freezing my face off.

Friday, 2/27/2015: Rest day ... needed after 3 days of running.

Saturday, 2/28/2015: 9.3 miles, 1:18:22, 8:24 pace, -2F, 77% RH, 8 mph SW wind, wind chill -17F, bright sun

Garmin Connect Activity for A Subzero 15F

I wore up a bit early at 5:50AM due to my darling wife, Christine. She was snoring ... but no matter. I had my alarm set for 6:05AM anyway since I needed to run. I did the dishes from last night and ate breakfast. I found that the temperature was 0F so I dressed warmly. I wore my usual CW-X tights and GRTC shorts on the botttom. I wore 3 layers on top: my heavy Sugoi long sleeve tech, my medium Brooks long sleeve tech and 1/4 zip Brooks long sleeve pullover. I paired it with my full balaclava, Brooks beanie and ski mittens. I waddled outside ... just kidding! I stuck up a nice and easy pace as I headed out on my usual 10K route. I mixed it up a bit by heading down and back up Chapel Hill Drive. The footing was good: the main streets were clear and the side streets were covered with hard packed snow. The miles just clipped along. It was a bit chilly on my face when I turned into the wind. My thighs were a bit tough when I get done. My splits were: 8:27, 8:24, 8:21, 8:21, 8:39, 8:34, 8:28, 8:25, 8:21 and 7:48 over the last 0.3 mile.

So ... I got to 102.5 miles for the month of February. I needed 20 runs to get there: 4 were warmup runs of 0.43, 1, 4.5 and 0.5 miles; 3 were snowshoe run of 2.5, 2.05 and 2.45 miles; 4 were treadmills run of 6.2 miles each, 4 were races (Snow Cheap #4, Freezeroo #5, Snow Cheap #5 and the Lake Effect Half Marathon). It was a struggle to continue my streak of 18 months of at least 100 miles per month.

A bit later after some coffee, a bagel and a shower I headed back out to meet up with my youngest son, David, at the Blue Cross Arena. His landlord had given him a couple of tickets to the Rochester Razorsharks - Philadelphia Flight basketball game, links here and here. The local Canandiagua senior, Courtney Wagner, who is battling stage IV brain cancer, was signed to a one day contract with the team.

Courtney Wagner on her way to dunking for the first two points of the game - photo courtesy of the D&C

The twitter hashtag #getcourtneytoellen was everywhere!

She stared the game and was boosted up by two team members so she could score the ceremonial first basket. The undefeated Razorsharks won in a huge blowout, 152-98.

David and I had supper at Famous Dave's along with some pleasant conversation. Mmm ... tasty!

I had a 1/2 slab of ribs while David had a pulled pork chickens sandwich

I kind of like winter ... but it is beginning to wear on me. The Rochester Democrat and Chronicle posted an article that said that February was the coldest month in Rochester on record ( around 12.3F), had only 6 hours above 32F, 5 record lows set or tied and was the 4th snowiest February (44.8 inches). Accuweather had that the month of February with 11 lows of 0F or below and only 2 day with a high of 32F or higher, link here.

I did find a lot of winter memes from Facebook. Some (one was NSFW) were quite amusing!

A Schuyler County musician by the name of Scott B Adams composed a song by the title of "Suck It Up, It's Winter" about winter, link here.