Sunday, 3/26/2017 to Saturday, 4/1/2017

I ran 4 times this week, 46.3 miles.

Sunday, 3/27/2017: 17.45 miles, 2:31:01, 8:39 pace, 37F, 93% RH, 9 mph E wind, wind chill 31F, overcast.


I set my alarm for 5:40 AM. Yes, it was dark, Yes, this is earlier that I set it for work M-F. But ... I didn't run yesterday so I made sure that I got out this morning. I got down to the swing bridge in Irondequoit at 7AM. I tried to link up my work Samsung with my Garmin Forerunner 200 but I couldn't get them to pair up. So I just sent a RoadID eCrump from my personal Droid.

I bet this sign is right and the website is wrong.

I saw a road sign that said "Bridge Closing 3/31/9AM which disagrees with the swing bridge website, link here. I set out solo at a nice and easy pace up the Culver Rd hill like I have 4 times this 2016/2017. Usually I only do one RtB but not this year. The run progressed. I took a bit of joy in running up the two big hills on the west side (I took a break at the tops to catch my breath) and the long hill up Empire Blvd without stopping. I stopped for some water at mile 4 and a Hammer Gel and water at miles 7 (just before going down the Empire Blvd hill) and mile 13.1 (1:51:50). I decided to go across Bay Rd to do the full Round the Bay run. I usually just turn left onto Bay Rd and then left on Lake Rd to "get it done". I got a bit lost when I didn't turn onto Vosburg Rd. I lost a bit of my mojo but I did get back to where I started with just an extra 1.5 mile. My splits were: 8:45, 8:22, 8:22, 8:08, 8:44, 7:54,  9:07, 8:53, 9:07, 8:12, 8:05, 8:55, 8:20, 9:58, 9:22, 8:36, 8:27 and 8:17 over the last 0.45 mile.

There was a lot of posts on my Facebook feed from people that ran the fifth Syracuse Half, link here. I ran this half in 2015 and 2016. The 4651 finishers had great weather with partly cloudy skies and temps in the low 40s. Yeah ... there was a snow squall in the middle when I ran it last year.

Monday, 3/27/2017:Rest day ... needed.

I surprised my darling wife, Christine, with pancakes and coffee. I ruined the surprise when the smoke detector went off. I used the big frying pan at first with not enough oil to grease the pan. I switched to the smaller frying pan after I used Pam to grease it. I was getting better before I used all the batter. All but one of the pancakes were edible. I soaked the frying pans for a pan and had to use steel wool (and lots of elbow grease) to clean them.

I put together a 4 shelf shelving unit down in the basement. That was the extent of my organization so far.

I got a new of ASICS GT-1000 4 running from Fedex today. Note: Fedex just rings the doorbell and runs without waiting for you to answer the door. This is how a package can get stolen. Yes, I know and I did read the emails from Fleet Feet Rochester about how I should buy locally. I run locally at local races. Well ... I got an email from rauketen.com that listed these shoes for $50 along with a $15 MasterPass discount that brought the final price down to $35. I read positive reviews so I pulled the trigger and ordered them. I just can't afford the MSRP of $120 per running shoe. I put 500 to 600 miles on my running shoes before I buy replacements so I buy two to three pairs a year. The last two pairs of Brooks Adrenaline GTS running shoes that I bought were last year's model that I bought from www.roadrunnersports.com using their VIP program. I did buy my just retired pair of Pearl Izumi M3 running shoes from Fleet Feet Rochester on a closeout sale for $50. I was not impressed with how these shoes wore. I am a heel striker as you can see.

Tuesday, 3/28/2017: 6.25 miles, 49:42, 7:57 pace, 52F, 82% RH, 3 mph NW wind, overcast.


I got out on my virgin ASICS. They did feel comfy. I didn't want to push a first run so I just did a 10K out and back. I tried to keep it nice and easy but I sped up on the way back. My splits were: 8:19, 8:01, 7:52, 7:54, 7:59, 7:50 and 7:09 over the last 0.25 mile. I did wear shorts, heavy running gloves and a hat (instead of tights, mittens and a beanie) but I overdressed on the top with 2 long sleeve tech shirts.

Wednesday, 3/29/2017: Rest day.

Thursday, 3/30/2017: 11.5 miles, 1:32:57, 8:04 pace, 37F, 48% RH, 14 mph ESE wind, wind chill 29F, overcast.


I am sleeping in more and more as my week long vacation goes on. Today I slept in until almost 8 AM. I puttered around a bit while I ate my pre-run bowl of cereal and banana and waited to digest my breakfast. But ... long runs don't get done by themselves. So I dressed for the conditions ... except I decided to wear two long sleeve techs inside of one and my yellow Brooks 1/4 zip pullover (it needs washing). I decided to try out a new route that I figured would be about 11.3 miles. I set up a nice and easy pace but hiked it up a bit the further I got. I found that my darling wife, Christine, can tell how long I run by how much I groan when I get back. She guessed 8 or 9 ... I answered 11.5. My splits were: 8:13, 7:57, 8:05, 8:03, 8:02, 7:53, 8:01, 7:59, 8:08, 8:51 (water break), 8:00 and 7:55 over the last 0.5 mile. The new route wasn't too bad.

Friday, 3/31/2017: The usual Friday rest day.

I was glad it was a rest day. It rained all day. I did get downstairs for about 2 hours to work in the "pit" ... err, basement. I finished the back room of the basement pretty much. Does it count if I haven't taken out the stuff to be thrown out yet? Then I managed to make a bit of sense of the front room of the basement where all my computer stuff is strewn. This room is not done ... for sure!

Time to roll out the stats. I ran 21 times for 142.1 miles in the month of March, 6.77 miles per run. One of those runs were on snowshoes for 2.7 miles, another run was a snowshoe walk for 2.6 miles (a really cold walk). Two runs were warmups (1.25 and 0.5 miles) before two races (Johnny's Runnin' O' the Green 5 mile and the Spring Forward 15K). I ran around the Irondequoit Bay twice (14.85 and 17.45 miles) during the month. I have run 61 times for 413.66 miles, 6.78 miles per run.

Saturday, 4/1/2017: 11.1 miles, 1:29:58, 8:06 pace, 36F, 93% RH, 11 mph NE wind, wind chill 28F, overcast.

I debated on whether to set my alarm. There was a Fleet Feet run, the Flower City Half preview run #1, set for 7 AM. But I did set my alarm for 5:30 AM. I got about 5 hours of sleep and off it rang. It was dark and I debated for 22 minutes whether to get up or go back to sleep. I knew I wouldn't get back to sleep and if I did I would feel like a slug until I ran. So ... I got up, had half a bagel, got dressed, kissed Christine goodbye and drove the Cruze down to the Blue Cross Arena. I was there around 6:50 AM and congreated with about 100 to 150 other runners. There were pace groups from 7:30 to 15 minute mile.





I started just after the 8:00 pace group (about 12 strong) led by Kevin Clinefelter. I caught up to the group after 1/2 mile and hung with them the whole way. The route mapped out by Fleet Feet followed the Flower Half route up until the Mt Hope cemetery (about 8 miles) and then went back to Blue Cross Arena. I started to get tired around the usual spot at 7 miles in the rolling Highland Park area. I tweaked my right Achilles a bit at mile 10 which slowed me a bit. I ran onward ... it went away. Most of Kevin's group went back out for 7 or 9 more miles. I was OK with 11 miles. My splits were: 49, 59, 51, 04, 59, 8:17, 8:36, 55, 8:01, 8:24, 8:18 and 7;32 over the last 0.1 mile.

I walked up to look at the Genesee River on Broad St before I left and then stopped to take pictures of the High Falls from the Pont de Rennes bridge and the Lower Falls from the Driving Park bridge.

The Genesee River from the Broad St bridge

The High Falls of the Genesee River from the Pont de Rennes bridge

The Lower Falls of the Genesee River from the Lower Falls Park

Christine and I got out to do some grocery shopping at Wegmans and for her to get her nails done at New Nails. All went well ... except for stopping for something to eat. Here is what I messaged Burger King via Facebook (they never answered):

"I visited BK in the Greece Ridge Mall in Rochester NY at 2 PM. I presented a coupon for $3.99 for 2 double cheeseburgers and 2 fries. I ordered a medium iced tea and a medium orange Fanta to drink. I was told the bill was $12.06!! Hmm ... I ordered 2 drinks and the price goes up to $12.06?? I balked and asked to see a manager. I was told that I ordered cheese and bacon on each double cheese burger (which I did not) and the drinks were $1.99 and $2.49. I had to take their word for it since there was no itemized bill yet. I was hungry so I gave $15 and said "Whatever." The manager refused to fulfill the order. I believe I was the victim of a hard upsell. I don't have the names of the trainee, her trainer or the manager. I went to your competitor, McDonalds and got the following for $5.97: a filet-o-fish, double cheeseburger and 2 small drinks. I was not upsold at all. I had my order almost before I put my change away and the manager thanked me for coming in. McDonald's wins ... today."

So ... beware of upselling! Hey, BK ... a person who presents a coupon for $3.99 might get a bit ticked off if the bill is $8 more when all they do is order 2 drinks!!

I caught up on Facebook. I marveled at the pictures from the Fifthly Formal 10K held out at Black Creek Park, link here. I passed on this TrailsROC trail race though I have done it twice in the past. I would have been drenched. There were pictures of runners in knee high water! It did look like fun though.

Sunday, 3/19/2017 to Saturday, 3/25/2017

I ran 3 times this week, 27.7 miles.

Sunday, 3/19/2017: 12.2 miles, 1:41:26, 8:19 pace, 34F, 80% RH, 5 mph NE wind, wind chill 29F, partly cloudy

I slept in so I didn't get out until just before 10 AM. But I didn't want to be a slug so I got out.


I decided to run my "Out to East Manitou and back" route. I livened it up a bit by doing "2 telephone pole pickup" about 6 times on the way out on Edgemere Drive. I just picked up my pace for the distance of 2 telephone poles and then went back to my normal pace. I ran out of energy after mile 9. I got back by lapsing into a mostly slower pace with a few walk breaks ... but I got it done. My splits were: 8:18, 7:55, 8:06, 7:47, 8:18, 8:09, 8:07, 8:24, 8:33, 8:44, 8:51, 8:37 and 8:04 over that last 0.2 mile.

Situation awareness ... or why I don't run with headphones. I started running down Greenleaf Rd towards Beach Ave. I saw up ahead a woman running on the sidewalk about 1/4 mile away. I was running really nice and easy but I knew I would catch her. I caught up to her just after we turned left onto Beach Ave just after 1 mile into my run. I saw the curve of headphones on her neck when I was about 20 feet away. We were both running on the left side of the road now. I swung wide to the right (no car was coming) when I passed her ... and scared her ... "Oh I didn't hear you!" Well ... duh!!!

Oh, there was 8 ice fishermen on Long Pond and 8 ice fisherman on Cranberry Pond. Both ponds were completely frozen over.

Monday, 3/20/2017: Rest day.

Tuesday, 3/21/2017: 6.25 miles, 52:02, 8:19 pace, 39F, 75% RH, 6 mph W wind, wind chill 35F, overcast.

A rare day off. I have 6 more vacation days to take before the end of March. I am in a "use them or lose them" situation ... so I will use them. What to do with myself? Well ... take a run of course.


My legs and ankles were a bit achy so I set out in a really nice and easy pace for the first 2 miles. My body was trying its best to get me to turn around and go back inside. But ... I am made of sterner stuff. I did cut it short to a 10 but I did pick up the pace on the way back. I think I need to order a new pair of road running shoes. My splits were: 8:33, 8:31, 8:26, 8:16, 8:04, 8:08 and 8:04 on the last 0.25 mile.

I was a quiet mood and didn't want to talk. My darling wife, Christine, insisted on talking and "winning" any discussion on the day or what we had planned for the day. She misinterpreted my sighs and silence for disapproval at whatever she did. She had a doctor's appointment and luckily left soon. It put a damper on the entire day off. I had to out to Palmyra to wish my daughter, Karen, a happy 29th birthday. We went out to eat to IHOP in Henrietta where we met up my youngest son, David. A bit of driving but it's what I do for my kids.

Wednesday, 3/23/2017: Rest day ... the Wednesday usual ...

Thursday, 3/24/2017: 9.35 miles, 1:16:23, 8:10 pace, 28F, 46% RH, 5 mph N wind, wind chill 23F, sunny.


Today's run was brought by you by "getting it done". I had another day off. It was 15F when I got up and I did putter around a bit until I got up and out. I set up a nice and easy pace and set out on my LOSP trail and IC 15K course. It was a bit chilly at first but I warmed up after a mile. The LOSP trail only had two spots with crusty ice. I could have cut it short to 10K but didn't. My monthly mileage is over 100 miles again ... all is well. My splits were: 8:23, 8:12, 8:05, 8:12, 8:18, 8:05, 7:51, 8:13, 8:13 and 7:29 over the last 0.35 mile.

Friday, 3/24/2017: Rest day ... nothing unusual.

Saturday, 3/25/2017: Arrgghh ... rest day.

I slept in and blew off a morning run. It was cold and rained all morning. It stopped around noon. I could have gotten out in the afternoon but didn't. Yes, I felt like a slug. I am off all the next week. I need to step it up if I am going to get the stuff done around the townhouse that I want to get done.

Sunday, 3/12/2017 to Saturday, 3/18/2017 - Spring Forward 15K

I ran 6 times this week - 34.52 miles.

Sunday, 3/12/2017: 13.3 miles, 2:22:02, 10:41 pace, 12F, 61% RH, 10 mph NW wind, wind chill -1F, partly cloudy.

I don't usually do social runs. I'm more of a solitary runner. But this "fat ass" event spoke to me. It started as a Facebook invitation labeled "Maybe the First and Maybe The Last (MFAMTL) 360 minute challenge" which denoted a 6 hour (8 AM to 2 PM) on a one mile trail loop down at Durand Eastman Park put on by Mike Vallone and Eric Eagan along with their wives.

It was cold ... again. So ... I dressed in what I wore for yesterday's Johnny's Runnin' of the Green: my CW-X tight, shorts, long sleeve tech, yellow Brooks 1/4 zip long sleeve pullover, yellow Brooks jacket, balaclava, yellow Brooks beanie, ski mittens and clear sunglasses. I put on my Salamon Speedcross 3 trail shoes for the first time since 12/31. I slept in so I didn't get down there until 9 AM. My lovely wife, Christine, was still asleep when I left.



There was trees and wires down on Lake Shore Blvd so I had to detour into the parking lot along Lake Ontario on the way. We were instructed to park in the parking lot along Lake Ontario across from Horseshoe Rd. I took my small running bag that I had stocked with Hammer Gel, water, some energy bars and a sandwich along with me to the start. I ended up just drinking some water. Eric Eagan had me sign the waiver and away I ran. The course was easily runnable with some gentle rolling hills, a long stretch along Eastman Lake and a thigh high tree to straddle. There did seem to be some newly fallen trees from the windstorm of last week.

Mike Vallone snapped this pic as I ran by on loop 3

On my 8th loop I met up with Frank Quattrone when he was starting. He had run 17.9 miles (7 before Johnny's, Johnny's and 8 post Johnny's) yesterday and wanted to run 12 today. He still didn't have power out in Webster. I ran a bit with Prem Kumar. He was on his 9th loop. He had gotten power back on Friday night. I had water on loops 5, 8 and 10 along with a cookie on loops 6 and 10. I decided that I was done after loop 13. I had tripped but recovered twice during the run. The ground did look frozen, quite hard and I didn't want to do something stupid like fall. Oh, I ran a nice trail pace of 10:41. My splits were: 10:19, 10:19, 10:12, 10:13, 10:10, 11:52, 10:40, 10:30, 11:19, 10:19, 11:56, 10:22, 10:02 and 11:38 over the last 0.3 mile. MFAMTL was attended by 58 runners. Some ran a lot. Not a bad way to spend a cold Sunday morning. A link to the results is here. The lead male, Dan Ward, did 29 miles. The lead female, Olga Huber, did 31.64 miles.

I went straight to the shower and also took a bath when I got home. My fingertips were white like usual until I warmed them back up. It is what it is. I woke Christine up with the obligatory coffee and donuts. Later, I found out that I picked up the usual trail cuts. I got a small scrape on each leg from straddling the log plus I kicked my right inside ankle with my left shoe several times.

Monday, 3/13/2017: 5.05 mile, 41:23, 8:12 pace, 19F, 62% RH, 9 mph ENE wind, wind chill 9F, overcast with a real light snow.


Today is usually a rest day but the forecast for tomorrow was snow, snow and more snow (18 to 24 inches) until Wednesday night. So ... I got out there. It wasn't as easy as all that though. It was a test of will ... it was Monday, it was cold, it was windy, my mind of full of excuses. But I got out there and did it. I did cut it a bit short though. My splits were: 8:16, 8:10, 8:06, 8:14 and 8:11.

Tuesday, 3/14/2017: 2.7 mile snowshoe run, 36:35, 13:32 pace, 21F, 86% RH, 17 mph NNE wind, wind chill 7F, overcast with snow.


I took vacation today. I busied myself with doing laundry but I did take a break after 3 loads to get out and play in the snow. It did look a bit cold and windy ... it was. But ... I dressed for it and was fine once I warmed up. I strapped on my Dion snowshoes outside the door of the townhouse and took a nice and easy run around the Lake Shore Country Club. I found some bare spots and some spots that had a foot or more or snow. I could hear the wave crashing onto the shoreline from nearby (probably 1/4 mile away) Lake Ontario. My splits were: 14:26, 12:59 and 13:03 over the last 0.7 mile. I was pretty snow covered when I got done ... it was fun!

I still had 3 loads of laundry to do but tromping down to the basement and back up to the bedrooms was more exercise. My lovely wife, Christine, and I caught up on 5 (yes, 5) episodes of "Grimm".

Wednesday, 3/15/2017: 2.6 miles, 1:16:22 (actually 54:47), 29:25 (actually 21:04 pace) pace, 23F, 58% RH, 23 mph NW wind, wind chill 7F, partly cloudy.

Back to work today. There was a foot of snow behind the Cruze that I had to back through. The main roads were a lot better today and there seemed to be a lot less traffic so I had no trouble getting to work. Christine wanted me to get groceries on the way home but I begged off. The wind was really whipping the snow in my face and I also wanted to respect the "no unnecessary" travel advisory. So ... I went straight home.


But ... that meant that could get out and play (snowshoe) in the snow. I did ... and almost froze. I dressed with the same number of layers as I did yesterday. But ... the snow was deeper. It was at least a foot deep in most spots and sometimes up to my knees. So I couldn't run. I could only walk about 95% of the time. Thus I didn't generate as much heat, the wind was a lot worse and was out there much longer on mostly the same route. I was shivering and couldn't really talk when I got back. I went straight to the shower to try to warm up. That didn't really help but I eventually warmed up. Somewhat scary but not the stupidiest thing I have done.

My splits were: 22:35, 21:40 and 15:37 over the last 0.6 mile. It looks like I didn't turn off my Garmin right away so the actual time is estimated. I was pretty cold.

Thursday, 3/16/2017: Needed rest day after 5 days (3 days running and 2 days snowshoe) in a row.

Some personal stuff: Today marked no alcohol since my 59th birthday six months ago. I made that decision because I determined that I am a binge drinker. The best way for me to be in charge of my life is for me to have no alcohol. Yes, I have saved hundreds of dollars. Yes, I still think about having a drink ... be it a beer, a glass or wine or a mixed drink. But I make a conscious decision every day to walk past the beer aisles and the liquor stores that I come across.

Some snowstorm stuff: The Rochester airport got 16.2 inches of snow on Tuesday (5th most ever) and 26.7 inches total on Tuesday and Wednesday. 102.9 inches of snow have fallen to date versus 53.9 inches in 2016. The average snowfall in Rochester is 89.4 inches. So ... Rochester got 1/4 of its 2017 snowfall is one shot.

Some running stuff:

1) I saw a news piece about the Baikal Marathon, link here, in Russia. It's a winter marathon across the frozen surface of Lake Baikal on March 7, 2017. The winner was a Polish man in a record time of 2:53:26. Their website is still not updated with this record time as of 3/19/17.

2) Ed Whitlock died at age 86, obituary link here, news link here, on 3/13. Some quotes: "Canadian Running is saddened to announce that Ed Whitlock has passed away at 86." "Whitlock was one of the world’s all-time great runners as he set dozens of masters world records during his lengthy and illustrious running career." "The Canadian running legend is notably the first, and only, person older than 70 to have broken 3:00 in the marathon. He ran 2:54:49 when he was 73. He raced in November 2016 setting a 15K world record for men 85-89 at the Stockade-athon 15K Road Race. Prior to that, he bettered the men’s 85-89 world record in the marathon by more than 30 minutes running 3:56 at the 2016 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon last October." "When asked what advice he had for other runners, he mused “I’m not sure what I’m doing is good for me, let alone anyone else.”"

Friday, 3/17/2017: Rest day before Spring Forward 15K

I believe that the last two customers who lost power in Brighton finally got their power back.

Saturday, 3/18/2017: 2 runs of 0.5 and 9.37 miles, 30F, 55% RH, 8 mph ESE wind, wind chill 23F, overcast with a few flakes late.

Today's race was my eleventh Spring Forward 15K held down at Mendon Ponds Park (MPP). My stats: 2007 - 1:14:29, 2008 - 1:11:21, 2008 - 1:12:49, 2010 - 1:17:05, 2011, 1:10:20, 2012 - 1:09:15, 2013 - 1:11:40, 2014 - 1:18:00, 2015 - 1:15:24 and 2016 - 1:13:04. My 15K PR is 1:09:15 back in the "magical" year of 2012 when I set a lot of my lifetime PRs.

The race was at 8 AM so I set my alarm for 5:30 AM. My lovely wife, Christine, had signed up to volunteer so I woke her up at 6 AM. She put up a bit of a fuss and got up at 6:11 AM. She asked me what temperature it was outside like she always does. It was 30F so I wore the usual for a race at that temperature: my CW-X tights with shorts, a red long sleeve tech, my yellow Brooks 1/4 pullover, balaclava, yellow Brooks beanie and ski mittens. Christine wore tights with jeans over them, two tops and boots. We were out the door at 6:45 AM and arrived down at the Beach parking lot next to Stewart Lodge around 7:10 AM. We split up. She went to her assignment at the 2.5 mile turnaround. I puttered around a bit at the lodge and stashed my "after" bag (change of tech shirt and my yellow Brooks jacket) under a table before I got out for a 1/2 mile warmup run at 9:36 pace, link here. I saw Bill Sandow on my warmup. He told me that he had suffered a calf tear back in October and that this was his first race since then. He told me that he was going to run a 9 min pace. I told him that if he passed me that I would remind him of that.


I met up with Andy Ciaio and Prem Kumar near the start line. We made the usual small talk before the start ... and we were off!

The Spring Forward Banner Page captured me at the start

Andy in orand, Prem to my left in gray and me in my usual yellow on our way up the first of many hills ... photo courtesy of Kim Smit of Fleet Feet Rochester

We started together and ran together for a mile before I lagged behind. I kept both of them in sight: Prem was about 100 feet ahead and Andy was about 200 feet ahead. Christine was at our left turn onto Pond Rd just after the one mile flag so I waved to her. The 5K mark passed in 24:06. I caught up to Prem at mile 5 as we ran up one of the many hills ... for about 10 seconds. I stopped to take a drink of water at mile 6. The 10K mark passed in 48:24.

I'm in the yellow with the vertical black stripe ... taken around mile 7 by Kim Smith of Fleet Feet Rochester

I was getting a bit tired but didn't break to walk up the short hill back into MPP. I knew that there was less than a mile left with only 2 hills to go. Prem had stretched his lead to about 200 to 300 feet. One more hill and then the downhill into the finish. I was told about the ice on the downhill. I heard someone slip a bit behind me so I totally backed off racing into the finish. I just stayed to the left where the snow seemed to offer more traction rather the risky bare spots that looked to be icy.

Carefully running down the last hill into the finish ... photo courtesy of Derek Backus

I saw the timer click to 1:13 as Ellen Brenner called my name. And ... done with 9.37 miles in 1:13:04 according to my Garmin Forerunner 220 (that I bought from Prem when he upgraded to a Garmin VivoActive). I grabbed a cup of water and fist bumped with Andy and Prem who finished 10 seconds apart. I went to the lodge after a bit and had a bagel and a cookie. I changed into my dry clothes and checked the results. I was 41st and 5th in my age group. Andy was 2nd in the 50-54 age group and Prem was 3rd in the 40-44 age group. I didn't see Christine around so I ambled out to the Beach parking lot to look for the Cruze. I was just getting cold when I found it and her asleep in it.

We took a roundabout route home: Breakfast at the Char Broil House on Island Cottage followed by a bit of grocery shopping at Wegmans for ingredients to go with some corned beef that I bought yesterday. I checked out the official results. My time was 1:13:02 gun and 1:13:04 chip. I was 41st out of 321, link here. I was 5th out of 16 in my M 55-59 age group, link here. My splits were: 7:42, 7:53, 7:37, 7:47, 7:40, 7:48, 8:02, 8:03, 7:47 and 7:32 over the last 0.37 mile.

I thought about going out to get a snowshoe run in ... but I decided to bag it. I could see bare spots on the ground at the Lake Shore CC and I didn't want to dig up their grass. Still ... all in all, a great day!

Sunday, 3/5/2017 to Saturday, 3/11/2017 - Johnny's Runnin' O' The Green

I ran 9 times this week, 25.7 miles.

Sunday, 3/5/2017: Travel day to Corning

I could have ran today but didn't. I was up at 5:30 AM because I thought that my lovely wife, Christine, wanted to leave early enough to get down to Corning to maximize the 9 AM to 5 PM Sunday hours of the Corning Museum of Glass (CMOG). She didn't feel well so I didn't push her. I have learned to set "soft" travel plans whenever possible. We did get down to the CMOG by close to 2:30 PM. We saw the Contemporary Art & Design Galleries, most of the Amphitheater Hot Shop Demo, the Innovation Center and Contemporary Glass by 5 PM.

Then we used the $25 gift card that we received from her brother, Bill Wisniewski, at Applebee's. I had a half rack of ribs (ehh ... too many small bones) and she had some type of chicken and potatoes.

We spent the night at the Country Inn & Suites in Big Flats. We simply vegged out ... I fell asleep while Christine played a slide show of all the CMOG pictures that she took that day. I guess we have become an old married couple, lol.

Monday, 3/6/2017: 4.25 miles, 34:08, 8:02 pace, 28F, 39% RH, 3 mph E wind, mostly sunny


I needed to run. I was tempted to just use the nearby treadmill rather than search for a running route. Christine suggested that I run around the adjacent mall. That seemed easy ... so I ran 3 times around the Arnot Mall. It was closed at 8 AM so there was minimal traffic. I dressed in my usual for the 28F weather: CW-X tights, short sleeve tech, yellow Brooks 1/4 zip pullover, balaclava, yellow Brooks beanie and ski mittens. I took it really nice and easy but it was still a 8:02 pace ... boom. My splits were: 8:09, 8:01, 8:09, 7:56 and 57 over the last 0.25 mile.

Christine was waiting for me in the hotel's breakfast nook when I got done. I sat down for a nice and leisurely breakfast of a waffle, sausage, egg, fruit, coffee and orange juice. I wanted to use the hotel pool but couldn't because it was being shocked. Oh well. We took a little nap before we headed back over to CMOG. We arrived at noon and spent the rest of the day in the 35 Centuries of Glass gallery. I ended up taking a lot of pictures and drained the battery in my personal cell and most of the battery in my work cell. There is certainly a lot to see!

Still smiling the next day after seeing hundreds or thousands pieces of glass!

Our unused tickets to the Rockwell Museum are good for a year ... as long as we don't lose them. We took the scenic (what scenery there was until it was dark) route home up 414N to Watkins Glen, 14N to the NYS Thruway and home.

Tuesday, 3/7/2017: Rest day.

I could have ran but ... I was a bit tired from lack of sleep plus the need to do a bit of grocery shopping. A rest day is a good thing I have been told.

Oh, the Lee Rd - Lexington Ave intersection near B601 where I manage Ricoh printer for Harris was finally open after being closed for 6 days due to 12 downed power lines.

Wednesday, 3/8/2015: 7.05 miles, 57:00, 8:05 pace, 52F, 40% RH, 20 mph WSW wind, mostly cloudy.



I needed to run. There was a high wind warming for later in the afternoon so I ran before lunch. There was already a stiff wind that tried to blow me back several times but I "got 'er done". My splits were: 8:30, 8:04, 8:22, 8:19, 7:55, 7:55 and 7:35.

Thursday, 3/9/2017: 7:05 miles, 57:16, 8:07 pace, 37F, 44% RH, 19 mph W wind, wind chill 27F, mostly cloudy.

Well, Christine and I didn't get blown away by yesterday's winds. There was a gust of 82 mph at the Rochester International Airport and sustained winds of 50 mph for 5 hours. There were a lot of downed trees, power lines (S Winton Rd in Henrietta and Long Pond Rd in Greece). traffic lights either out or blown down and lots of people (RG &E - 98K as of 6 AM) without electricity. We didn't lose power but my Facebook feed had plenty who had downed trees, lost power or both, news links here and here.



It was Thursday ... so I ran. The power poles that were down last week for 6 days around the intersection of Lee Rd and Lexington Ave took a beating. 5 of them were leaning and braced by RG & E trucks as I ran by. The intersection of Lee Rd and Emerson St was still without a traffic light or even a portable stop sign. Someone is going to get hit there for sure. It wasn't me today. It was colder, the wind was a bit lighter and I survived. There were more twigs and branches down on the Erie Canal path. My splits were: 8:14, 8:04, 8:27, 8:32, 7:49, 7:52 and 7:56.

Friday, 3/10/2017: Rest day ... the usual before a race the next morning.

Saturday, 3/11/2017: 4 runs of 0.52, 1.25, 5.06 and 0.52 miles, 16F, 67% RH, 7 mph NNW wind, wind chill 6F, overcast with light snow.

Today's race was my seventh Johnny's Runnin' of the Green (2007 in 37:34, 2011 in 40F, 34:35, 2012 in a lifetime PR of 55F, 33:58, 2013 in 26F, 36:23, 2015 in 39F, 36:18 and 2016 in 36F, 35:40). It was the kickoff race for the 12 race Greater Rochester Track Club's Rochester Runner of the Year series. It does appear that today was the coldest Johnny's I have run and it was definitely colder than any of the six 2016-2017 Freezeroos (the coldest was 23F for Freezeroo #3 on 1/14). Brr! I wore the usual for under 20F weather: my CW-X tights with a pair of shorts over, red Freezeroo long sleeve tech, yellow Brooks 1/4 zip pullover, yellow Brooks jacket, balaclava, yellow Brooks beanie, ski mittens and sunglasses.

There was a real light snow for the 20 minute drive down to the Blue Cross Arena (BCA). The parking lot on Exchange Blvd and Court St where I (and a lot of other runners) usually park was closed so I had to park 1/2 mile away ... hence a 0.52 mile warmup run at 8:50 pace to the BCA, link here. When I removed my mittens inside the BCA I discovered that I had somehow cut my left thumb knuckle. It bled and I got a bit on my pullover for sure and probably some on my jacket. It hadn't stopped when I went out for my second warmup run of 1.25 miles at 8:20 pace, link here. I didn't have a nearby car to stash any clothes so I just wore what I had ... it was certainly cold enough. This St Patrick's race had the usual runners in colorful costumes! I heard an announcement about a course detour due to a downed tree on Wilson Blvd before I headed out to the start line.

I lined up in the usual spot ... a bit back from the start line and off to the right. I bumped fists with Andy Ciaio before the start .... and we were off!

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

I got up to speed quickly and settled in for the usual 5 mile out and back course down Exchange Blvd to Ford St, across the Ford St bridge, right on Wilson Blvd for 1.5 miles before the turnaround and back. I had a good first mile at 7:04 just after we turned onto Wilson Blvd. I could see the tree up ahead but it didn't block the whole road and there was no path leading off. We just moved a bit to the left. Boots and Barb Boutillier from Fleet Feet Rochester were there along with a sign that said "FF loves you!". I later learned that Boots took a chainsaw to some of that tree to clear a path for us. I had a bit of trouble in the miles that followed. It wasn't enough to stop and walk a bit but just enough to slow a bit. I realized this and just let the run continue onward. I tried to keep up with the group that I was with and for the most part did. Andy passed me and then Prem Kumar. So ... up Wilson Blvd to the turnaround and back. Now I could everyone behind me as we ran back to the start.

The way on Wilson Blvd was cleared by Boots and his trusty chainsaw ... photo courtesy of Barb Boutillier of Fleet Feet Rochester

Around nmle 3.75 on the way back ... photo courtesy of Barb Boutillier of Fleet Feet Rochester

Back down Wilson Blvd, left onto Ford St and the Ford St bridge, right onto Exchange Blvd. A mile to go ... don't speed up yet ... too soon. I could see the Freddie-Sue bridge ... the I-490 overpass ... keep going ... the stop light at Court St and Exchange Blvd ... a little faster. I could see the finish line ... I didn't have much left but I put it out there. I saw the timer click past 37 ... a bit disappointed ... and done in 37:10, 7:26 pace. I bumped fists with Andy and Prem. Then straight into the BCA ... it was cold and I was a bit damp. I grabbed and guzzled down a bottle of water. There wasn't any bagels because the place where Johnny's gets the bagels didn't have power. I checked out the results and saw that I was 90th and 8th in my M 55-59 age group. I didn't stay long and slowly ran the 0.52 mile back to the Cruze.

A post race selfie

I passed about ten Central Maine power trucks as I drove home. There are still lots of homes without power. I went straight to the shower. My fingers were white for a white like usual until I warmed up. PCR Timing soon had the results up: I was 90th out of 876, link here. I was 8th out of 61 in my M 55-59 age group, link here. My splits were: 7:04, 7:22, 7:34, 7:31, 7:17 and 7:10 over the last 0.06 mile. So ... I ran my second slowest Johnny's. I have raced enough in the past 12 years to know that some races are better than others. I went out there and ran the best I could. That's all you can do.

Christine and I watched a couple of movies. One called "Water for Elephants" with Reese Witherspoon was quite good. She found for FREE off of Time Warner's OnDemand. The other called "Arrival" from Redbox was so-so. It was a bit boring.