Sunday, 6/19/2016 to Saturday, 6/25/2016 - Medved 5K & Charlie's Old Goat Trail Race

I ran 6 times this week, 29 miles.

Sunday, 6/19/2016: 3 runs of 1.1, 1 and 3.16 miles, 75F, 47% RH, 9 mph WSW wind, partly cloudy.

I slept in until 6:10 AM on Father's Day. Then I got ready for my fourth Medved 5K to Cure ALS held down at Frontier Field in downtown Rochester. It was going to be warm so I just wore my Brooks shorts and an old Medved 5K tech shirt along with my Brooks Adrenaline GTS15 shoes. There was practically no traffic and I made it to the race venue by 7:35 AM for a primo shaded parking spot in plenty of time for the 8:30 AM start. I met up with Prem Kumar and got out for a 1.05 mile warmup run at a really nice and easy pace of 9:31, link here. Then I met up with Bill Beyerbach and went out for a 1 mile warmup at a faster nice and easy pace of 8:47, link here. I got some water and then settled in for the start next to Prem with Bill up in front near all the other GVH runners.

Milling around before the start ... photo courtesy of Tim Matthews of runnerspics.shuttlefly.com

The start! ... photo courtesy of Tim Matthews of runnerspics.shuttlefly.com

And ... we were off! I had no trouble getting up to race pace. A 5K is like a controlled sprint. I usually go out to too hard and can't hold it ... like this race. I wanted to break 22 minutes. I remember hitting mile 1 at 6:30 or so.

Just after mile 1 ... photo courtesy of Tim Matthews of runnerspics.shuttlefly.com

Then I slowed down. I could feel it. I would love to run a 5K all out once just to see if I could it. When I got near the finish I could see that I was going to break 22 which I was happy about. I was parched and quickly found a orange Powerade to gulp down. I checked the results and soon found that I placed second in my M 55-59 age group so I stayed for the awards. I won a free pair of Features socks from Medved Run & Walk!

Running down the third base line ... photo courtesy of Tim Matthews of runnerspics.shuttlefly.com

I did pretty well. I finished in 21:47, 72nd out of 503, link here. I was 2nd out of 28 in my M 55-59 age group, link here. My splits were: 6:31, 7:03, 7:16 and 6:21 over the last 0.16 mile. I did slow down but I broke 22 ... so it was a good day.

I lazed around the rest of the day once I got home. I started off with the obligatory mug of coffee and bagel of course. Then I watched the US Open all afternoon. Dustin Johnson won, link here. I was happy (along with most of the males in America) to see Dustin's girlfriend, Gretsky, links here, congratulate him after he won. The internet either loved or hated her short white dress. I personally loved it.

Paulina Gretsky, Dustin Johnson and their son, Tatum

 My darling wife, Christine, cooked my favorite food for Father's Day ... ribs! Mmm ... tasty! Then we watched Game 7 of the NBA Finals between the Cleveland Cavs and the Golden State Warriors. It was a very close game and ... wait for it ... the Cavs won 93-89, links here, here, here, video mini-movie link here and The Block, links here, here and here. Lebron James put up a 27 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists, 3 blocks and 2 assists line. Lebron James, the favorite son of Akron OH, came home to the Cleveland Cavs and delivered the NBA Finals trophy just like he promised. He won the unanimous NBA Finals MVP trophy after averaging the best (first player ever) in points, assists, rebounds, blocks and steals. What a game!

"The Block" by Lebron! ... photo courtesy of http://www.businessinsider.com/lebron-james-chasedown-block-saves-cavs-game-7-finals-2016-6

Monday, 6/20/2015: Rest day ... moving on.

Tuesday, 6/21/2015: 8.6 miles, 1:18:49, 9:10 pace, 79F, 20% RH, 10 mph WNW wind, partly cloudy.

Garmin Connect Activity for Cobbs Hill

I needed hills so I loaded my running gear in the Equinox, changed after work and headed to Cobbs Hill. I did 2 grassy Vs, 2 Ys, 2 loops around the reservoir and then ran the long back to the Equinox with a total elevation gain of 813 feet. My splits were: 10:05, 10:02, 10:16, 9:08, 9:14, 8:41, 8:10, 8:17 and 8:15 over the last 0.6 mile. A bit of grocery shopping at Wegmans made it a long night before I had supper around 8:30 PM.

Wednesday, 6/22/2015: Rest day.

I watched "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" from Redbox. The movie did follow most of the story of "Pride and Prejudice" but threw in zombies ... cool!

Thursday, 6/23/2016: 8.6 miles at Cobbs Hill again.

I decided that I needed more hills so I loaded my running gear in the Equinox, changed after work and headed to Cobbs Hill again. Once I got there I found that I had no Garmin Forerunners (305, 210 or 310XT) in my bag. No matter ... I did the exact same route as Tuesday except that I did the 2 loops counter-clockwise instead of clockwise. Maybe I did it a wee bit faster than Tuesday.

Friday, 6/24/2016: Rest day ... nothing unusual with a race on Saturday morning.

Saturday, 6/25/2016: 2 runs of 0.55 and 5.99 miles, 70F, 80% RH, calm, sunny.

I slept in until 6:10 AM. Today was my sixth running of Charlie's Old Goat Trail Race put on by Charlie Sabatine. an interesting Google link about him here. Did you know that Charlie ran a 100 miler in 1989 when he was 56? I sure didn't! I quietly got ready with my usual pre-race bowl of cereal and banana. I woke up my darling wife, Christine, at 7:20 AM and she was ready to go at 7:45 AM. Then it was off to the Ganondaga State Historical Site south of Victor. We arrived at 8:15 AM in plenty of time for the 9 AM start.

I went up and got my bib. The weather was sunny and warm so I had on just my Brooks shorts, an old Charlie's short sleeve tech and my Salomon Speedcross 3 trail shoes. I didn't expect any mud but they do provide good traction on the trail. I got out for a real short 0.55 mile warmup run just short enough to build up a sweat, link here.

I settled into the start next to Prem Kumar with Bill Beyerbach, Wilt Alston and Andy Ciaio in front of me. There was no Native American prayer this year ... just Charlie going over some pre-race details and then a softly spoken "Go".


And ... we were off! I was a bit unprepared and hit to fire up my Garmin Forerunner 210 on the run which took about 100 yards. We had about 1/4 mile of grass meadow to spread out before we headed down into the trails.

The start ... photo courtesy of Tim Matthews of https://runnerpics.shuttlefly.com

Turning my Garmin on while crossing the start ... photo courtesy of Tim Matthews of https://runnerpics.shuttlefly.com

A line of runners ... photo courtesy of Tim Matthews of https://runnerpics.shuttlefly.com

Charlie had told us that it was a shorter race and I did notice some differences here and there. I did make a mistake about 2 miles into the race. I was following Prem and then Wilt with Bill up front out of sight. All of a sudden three runners came back at us saying "you're going the wrong way". I knew I was going the right way but allowed doubt that I wasn't turn me around and follow them for a bit as runner after runner passed me going the right way. I turned around to go back the right way after a minute or so after I convinced myself that I had been running the right way all along. I was a bit miffed but stuff happens on trail races. I just started to pass the runners ahead of me as I could for the rest of the race. The stream crossing didn't have much water ... just enough to barely get your feet wet if you looked for a puddle to splash in. The good downhill that we ran down about 1/2 mile into the race turned into a seemingly steeper uphill on the way back. Then ... I was done in 58:44 by my Garmin (I did turn it on a bit late) and 58:53 officially.

Charlie was right there after the finish to hand out a small bottle of ... his signature. Soon I ambled down to the tent by the Visitor's Center for some post race grub (3 small squares of pizza, a brownie and some water).

I won a jar of Once Again Peanut Butter in the post race raffle

Christine and I had a free admission to the Visitor's Center courtesy of my running the race so we went through and looked at all the interesting exhibits.

All in all, a good race. My splits were: 8:08, 8:49, 11:20, 10:48, 9:51 and 9:48. I finished 40th out of 116, link here. I was 4th out of 10 in my M 55-59 age group. I was happy to note that I still finished behind Wilt despite my misadventure. This was a GRTC Rochester Runner of the Year race so I was a bit worried.

Sunday, 6/12/2016 to Saturday, 6/18/2016 - Dirt Cheap #3

I ran 4 times this week, 21.19 miles.
I biked once for 10.55 miles.

Sunday, 6/12/2016: 6.35 miles, 1:09:51, 11:00 pace, 61F, 45% RH, 17 mph NW wind, partly cloudy.

Garmin Connect Activity for 10K Fail

Well ... that didn't go well! I had thoughts about just a nice and easy 8 miles, 15K or a half when I started out. It was cooler and windy (such a difference from yesterday's 75F and 74% RH) so I wore my Brooks shorts and a long sleeve tech (yes, in June). I noted my right hip pain nagging at me as soon as I started. I figured that it would go away just like it usually does. Well ... it didn't go away. I continued on Edgemere Drive as I passed Schaller's as I looked to shorten the run to 8.2 miles. But ... I stopped at 3.2 miles and turned around. I tried to continue running but couldn't. I ran/walked/limped back home. It's a long ways when you can't run more than 100 yards. A runner who knew me said "Hi" as I walked past the Lake Shore Country Club on Greenleaf Rd. I think he (Phil??) disappeared either into Greenleaf Meadows on the left or Pebbleview Dr on the right. I have three races (Dirt Cheap #3 on 6/15, Medved 5K on 6/19 and Charlies on 6/25) in the next two weeks that I am signed up for and really want to run! I am not a happy camper if I can't run ... my darling wife, Christine, can tell you that.

I was sad most of the day after learning what happened overnight at the nightclub in Orlando FL, link here. There is sadly no shortage of links about this tragedy, rhetoric between Hillary and Donald, a much needed debate about an assault gun ban and any number of depressing news articles about death. My darling wife, Christine, doesn't want me to tell her about the news. She says that she saw enough death when she worked in healthcare and that it upsets her.

Later, I went down to see two of my three children. I gave my oldest, Michael, an Android charging cord and gave my daughter, Karen, back a dish that did have some delicious cookies. The usual catching up on stuff ensued.

Monday, 6/13/2016: Rest day.

I tried to watch Game 5 of the NBA Finals with the Warriors up 3-1 on the Cavs out in CA. If I had stayed awake, I would have seen Lebron and Kyrie combine for 41 each as the Cavs won 112-97, link here.

Tuesday, 6/14/2016: Rest day ... moving on.

Wednesday, 6.15/2016: 2 runs of 1.5 and Dirt Cheap #3 of 3.29 miles, 73F, 44% RH, 9 mph ENE wind, overcast.

I put all my running gear in the Equinox before work so I could go directly to Dirt Cheap #3 at Lucien Morin Park situated next to MacGregor's Bar & Tap Room. I got there a bit late at 5:40 PM but was still directed to a primo parking spot by Ellen (who seemed to be everywhere like usual). I geared up and got ready. I have run this course numerous times so I knew what to expect: a tight, technical course with lots of up and down and to be ready for anything: mud, bees, heat and humidity come to mind.

I got out for a not so short warmup and not so easy run of 1.5 miles at 10:43 pace, link here. I noticed right away that I was wearing my Brooks Adrenaline GTS15 shoes on trail and had the predictable kind of unstable footing. But I didn't turn back but went onward. I went longer than I thought and didn't know if I would get back out in time but I got back to the Equinox with about 6 minutes to go before my wave 1 start at 6:30 PM. I quickly changed into my Salomon Speedcross 3 trail shoes. Then I went up and toed the start line with Andy Ciaio and Joe Ciecierega among others.

The lead runners of wave 1 ... photo courtesy of Kim Smith of Fleet Feet Sports

Running down the stone road just after the start ... photo courtesy of Kim Smith of Fleet Feet Sports

The runners of wave 1 ... photo courtesy of Kim Smith of Fleet Feet Sports

And ... we were off! There was a cloud of dust as we ran down the stone road for about 1/4 mile before we turned left into singletrack. It was just long enough to get your blood pumping and to spread out a bit. Then the race really started. This course is very technical, narrow in spots with lots of roots along with lots of up and down. I was ahead of Andy and Joe for a mile before both passed me. Mile 1 was definitely quick for me.  I kind of ran out of gas after that and walked a few hills. I hung on as best as I could. Boots and Sean cheered me at a tight turn back into the woods for the last 1/2 mile. Up the last hill and then down into the finish with Ellen calling me in ... priceless!

I quickly drank the water in my 10 ounce hand bottle as I waited for my coveted long sleeve Dirt Cheap series t-shirt. I didn't put it on since I was dripping with sweat. Thankfully it was just a bit warm and not very humid. I went into MacGregor's for a bit of their post race grub: pasta, salad and a bun ... tasty!

I did OK. My splits were: 9:30, 11:30, 12:16 and 10:10 over the last 0.29 mile. I was 70th out of 443 overall, link here. I was 53rd out of 330 series overall, link here. I was a distant 2nd out of 16 behind Jim Roche in my M 50-59 series age group, link here. I thought I ran OK. I didn't have any right hip pain and didn't trip. There was no mud to speak up and no bees like a couple of years ago.

Another excellent Dirt Cheap put on Fleet Feet Sports and Yellowjacket Racing. It's easy to overlook how good they are at what they do but I try not to. Thanks!

Thursday, 6/16/2016: Rest day.

I watched Game 6 of the NBA Finals between the Cavs and the Warriors, link here and here. Lebron was ON from the opening tip as the Cavs pushed to a 3-3 tie, 115-101. Lebron at one point in the 3rd quarter scored 18 straight points. The Warriors got within single digits a couple of times (8 and 7). Lebron had another monster game: 41 points, 8 rebounds, 11 assists, 4 steals and 3 blocks. Game 7 on Sunday night should be epic, an interesting link here.

Friday, 6/17/2016: 10.05 miles, 1:23:57, 8:21 pace, 84F, 20% RH, calm, sunny.

I needed to run so I didn't talk myself out of it. I just took it nice and easy. I wanted to go ten so I went out to Lowden Point Rd on Edgemere Drive before turning around. I added a wee bit to make it to 10 miles. My splits were: 8:24, 8:9, 8:13, 8:20, 8:21, 8:25, 8:22, 8:28, 8:30 and 8:21. I was dripping wet when I got done and proceeded directly to the shower.

Saturday, 6/18/2016: 10.55 mile ride, 47:59, 13.2 mph, 20.8 mph max, 86F, 19% RH, 4 mph N wind, partly cloudy.

I definitely needed to go out for "anything" after a "discussion" with my darling wife, Christine, on the way home for a nail salon appointment at New Nails. I had brought up a story that my oldest son, Michael, had told me that his mother had not fixed her parked car after it had gotten dinged because she had needed to pay off a vet after her cat had died. Well ... a "discussion" ensued. I just wish she could accept that yes, I had a life that involved an ex and three kids before I met her again. I give her that privilege that yes, she had a life that involved an ex and two kids before I met her again. Yes, she is fiercely loyal to me and does stick up for me. But there is a time and a place. A "Oh, that's too bad" reply and a quick change of the subject would have been so much better.

Anyway ... I needed to get out but not for a run since I had a race on Sunday. So I got ready to get out on my bicycle. I did have to pump up tires which finally broke my old car air compressor (the DC plug was cracked). The DC plug broke more and now the on/off switch is stuck in the on position. It still works though. Anyway, I got out for a bike ride which put me in a better mood.