Sunday, 4/30/2017 to Saturday, 5/6/2017 - Flower City Half

I ran 5 times this week, 41.05 miles.

Sunday, 4/30/2017: 2 runs of 2 and 13.2 miles, 43F, 58% RH, 12 mph N wind, wind chill 36F, overcast with a light sprinkle in the middle.

I got up when my alarm went off at 5:10 AM. Race day, baby! My eighth Flower City Half was today's race. I had my usual pre-race bowl of cereal and banana. I washed the dishes that had soaked overnight before I went upstairs to change into my race gear. The temp was going to be low 40s and there was a bit of a wind. I went outside to feel the temperature for myself. Boom ... it was tights and long sleeve tech weather. I chose my old CW-X tights,  a plain yellow long sleeve tech, my yellow Brooks beanie and my heavy running gloves. I arrived down to my usual parking lot at the corner of Court St and Exchange Blvd at 6:30 AM after a 20 minute drive.

I visited a secluded upstairs bathroom in the Blue Cross Arena where I took care of business and had a bout of 10 sneezes. I got out for a nice and easy warm-up run of 2 miles at 8:01 pace, link here (a bit of a weird GPS track at the start). I took off my yellow Brooks jacket and stashed it in the trunk of the Cruze when I got back.

I did something I usually don't do .... I had a gel before the race. A tasty Maple Syrup Gel from Slopeside Syrup, link here! Mmm!

An awesome photo of Darth Vader on his new leg ... photo courtesy of Kim Smith of Fleet Feet Rochester

Darth Vader had been given permission to start 45 minutes early. Kim Smith captured this picture as he walked away. He completed the Flower City Half 5:06:33 later. Ellen, Boots and anyone who was around gave him a proper welcome!

I ambled up to the start line and settled in about 20 feet behind the 1:45 pace sign. I waited for the start when Ellen yelled out to the runners walking up the start line to "Get out of the road!".


And ... we were off! It took about 30 seconds (actually 26) before I got up to the start line as we began a slow shuffle, walk, slow run, a jockey for position and then finally up to speed during the first 1/4 mile.

The start ... photo courtesy of Barb Boutillier of Fleet Feet Rochester

A long line of runners starting the Flower City Half  ... photo courtesy of Barb Boutillier of Fleet Feet Rochester

The race proceeded as I had visualized the night before. Mile 1 was the Susan B Anthony House on Madison St (Failure is Impossible!), mile 2 was Frontier Field and mile 3 was Main St (I offered encouragement to Darth Vader who was walking the FCH with his new prosthetic leg).

I'm the yellow blob in the background somewhere on Main St ... photo courtesy of Game Face Media

Mile 4 was East Ave (I hiked up my sleeves at mile 4.5), mile 5 was Park Ave (a light rain started and I put my sunglasses on top of my head), mile 6 was S Goodman St (I had a Hammer Gel and water just past mile 6 without walking and didn't litter), mile 7 was Highland Park (I endured the ups and enjoyed the downs), mile 8 was just inside Mt Hope Cemetery (I endured the run up the cobblestone path and the hills in the early section, stretched out in the latter section), mile 9 was still in the Mt Hope Cemetery and mile 10 was just outside the Mt Hope Cemetery (only a 5K to go!).

Somewhere on the Genesee Riverway Trail ... photo courtesy of Game Face Media

Mile 11 was on the Genesee River Trail on the east side of the Genesee (I saw a Rochester Running Company sign with my name on it) and mile 12 was just before the Ford St Bridge (there was a string accompaniment under the bridge ... then over the bridge and down Exchange Blvd with about 0.9 mile to go). Stream of consciousness now: push the pace (but not too much) ... start picking off runners ... push the pace (a bit more) ... see the I-490 overpass ... push the pace (a bit more) ... hear the crowd ... mile 13 ... in the finish chute ...sprint ... look up and see the clock just before 1:43 ... harder ... and done with 13.2 miles in 1:43:00 according to my Garmin Forerunner 220. I took and wore the Flower City Half and Four Season Challenge medals with pride. I was quite happy with my race effort ... I had not walked and felt strong practically the whole way! Nice!

Straining for the finish line ... photo courtesy of Game Face Media

Crossing the finish line ... photo courtesy of Game Face Media

Just after the finish line ... photo courtesy of Game Face Media

Taken at the Blue Cross Arena by a fellow runner

I got a cup of water, ended my eCrumb to my wife and kids and stretched. I hit a rumble of thunder and made my way inside the Blue Cross Arena. I hit the post-race grub line for 2 pieces of pizza and 2 cookies. I learned that it had started to pour outside and thought of the runners that were still out there. I purposely left my free beer ticket at home so I wouldn't be tempted as I sipped water to quench my thirst.

I was wet and cold by the time I walked in the rain to the Cruze. I changed into my nicely earned Flower City Half 1/4 zip long sleeve pullover and yellow Brooks jacket while I ran the heater full blast. It really poured on the way home. I had to slow to about 45 mph and put my wipers on double time at one point. I earned my two mugs of coffee. Christine also made french toast out of cinnamon bread ... mmm!

Yellow Jacket Racing had trouble posting results due to the severe weather conditions during the latter stage of the Flower City Half. They had to go to their backup systems and video and promised results by the evening. They weren't up by the time I went to bed around 9:30 PM (I was very tired for some reason) but were up when I checked on Monday morning before I went to work ... the timing crew must have had a long day. Here they are: Gun Time: 1:42:58, Chip Time: 1:42:32, 226th out of 2093, 9th out of 70 in my M 55-59 age group, 7:52 pace. My splits: 5K, 273rd, 24:47, 7:59 pace; 10K, 252nd, 49:01, 7:54 pace; 15K, 205th, 1:13:49, 7:56 pace; Finish, 206th, 1:42:58, 7:52 pace. The Flower City Half overall link is here and the age group link is here. My splits were: mile1 - 8:10; mile 2 - 7:40, mile 3 -7:47, mile 4 - 7:30, mile 5 - 7:45, mile 6 - 7:51, mile 7 - 8:12, mile 8 - 8:07, mile 9 - 7:34, mile 10 - 7:48, mile 11 - 7:43, mile 12 - 7:50, mile 13 - 7:43 and 6:36 over the last 0.2 mile. I didn't slow down as much as I thought during mile 7 (Highland Park), during mile 8 (late Highland Park and early Mt Hope Cemetery) and during miles 11 and 12 (east side of the Genesee on the Genesse River Trail).

An obligatory bling pic

I looked at my 8 times (2010 - 1:46:43, 2011 - 1:40:11, 2012 - 1;39:23, 2013 - 1:44:44, 2014 - 1:47:12, 2015 - 1:46:08 and 2016 - 1:43:35) for this race. I found that it was my third fastest FCH ... faster than last year's gun time of 1:43:35, way slower than 2012's obscenely fast 1:39:23 and my time is trending down not up. I guess I have lost a couple of steps since 2012 but I am five years older too, lol!

The Flower City Half was not just about me. I can only give my viewpoint but there were so many other stories that came out of that day. There were 906 runners in the Wegmans 5K held 15 minutes after the half start at 7:30 AM, results here. There were tales on Facebook of so many other runners who perserved through the elements and acheived their goal of reaching the finish line.

Monday, 5/1/2017: Rest day.

A look back at April. I ran 20 times in 30 days totaling 143.74 miles, 7.19 miles/run. Three of those 20 runs were warm ups of 1.2, 0.9 and 2.0 miles before the three races I ran: Dirt Cheap #1, River Run 5K and yesterday's Flower City Half. I biked once for 17.72 miles with an average speed of 12 mph. So far in 2017 I have run 81 times totaling 557.4 miles, 6.88 miles/run.

Tuesday, 5/2/2017: 7.05 miles, 57:42, 8:11 pace, 55F, 62% RH, 10 mph SW wind, overcast.


I went out before lunch because the evening forecast was lots of wind. My legs were stiff for the first full mile so I went out really nice and easy. I picked up the pace on the way back. My splits were: 8:36, 8:22, 8:20, 8:22, 7:59, 8:08 and 7:33.

Wednesday, 5/3/2017: Rest day ... nothing unusual about that!

Thursday, 5./4/2017: 8.65 miles, 1:08:57, 7:58 pace, 55F, 35% RH, 9 mph SSE wind, overcast.


I decided to add a run down Ridgeway Ave to Henpeck Park and then back on the Erie Canal Trail. I mapped it out on www.mapmyrun.com as 8.63 and it was spot on at 8.65 miles! I took it nice and easy. My splits were: 8:20, 7:52, 7:56, 7:37, 8:09, 7:57, 8:09, 8:04 and 7:30 over the last 0.65 mile.

Friday, 5/5/2017: Rest day.

A rest day for me but there were 300 people signed up for the Taco Mile down at Cobbs Hill, results here. There were 206 finishers and 8 DNF. A race like this is not my cup of tea but the pictures looked like a good time was had by all!

Saturday, 5/6/2017: 10.25 miles, 1:25:07, 8:18 pace, 46F, 93% RH, 7 mph W wind, wind chill 43F, overcast.


I wanted to get out early but my darling wife, Christine, had other plans. So ... I was delayed, ;-). A long run doesn't get done by itself ... so I got out there. It was a bit damp and chilly so I wore my Brooks shorts, a long sleeve tech, a short sleeve tech, my light Brooks gloves and orange Fleet Feet hat. I kept to a really steady pace and resisted the urge to push the pace. My splits were: 8:22, 8:15, 8:09, 8:21, 8:19, 8:21, 8:19, 8:18, 8:21, 8:20 and 8:00 over the last 0.25 mile.

I caught with Facebook while I had a bagel (1/2 peanut butter and 1/2 jelly) washed down with the usual couple mugs of coffee. I read and watched a bit on YouTube about Nike's Breaking2, the sub 2 hour marathon attempt last night at the Monza Formula 1 racetrack near Milan, Italy, Runner's World link here and CNN link here. Eluid Kipchoge ran a 2:00:25! It's not an official world record due to the use of pacers but ... still! A 4:36 pace for 26.2 miles!! It was 63 years ago to the day that Roger Bannister broke the 4 minute mile at 3:59.4, link with video here.

Later, Christine and I got our Star Wars geek on. We watched Star Wars: Episode IV (A New Hope), Episode V (The Empire Strikes Back) and Episode VI (The Return of the Jedi). Christine had set up on our DVR off of TBS. They were the later "special edition" versions. BTW ... Han shot first, not Greedo, link here!

Sunday, 4/23/2017 to Saturday, 4/29/2017 - River Run 5K

I ran 4 times this week, 18.1 miles.

Sunday, 4/23/2017: 2 runs of 0.9 and 3.1 miles, 46F, 71% RH, 8 mph WSW wind, wind chill 42F, sunny.

Today's race was my second River Run 5K. It has been a GRTC Runner of the Year (RROY) race for the past two years. I ran it in 22:36 last year. I tried to set my alarm for 6:55 AM since the race start was a leisurely 10 AM. Well ... I forgot to move the hour digit and woke up at 5:55 AM instead. I hadn't gone to sleep until 1 AM so I laid in bed for a while. I used my Samsung Health app to take my resting heart rate ... 43. I got up around 6:45 AM when the sun started to peek into my eyes.

I had my usual pre-race bowl of cereal and banana while I checked out Facebook and my email. It was a bit chilly so I wore my green Brooks shorts, an orange long sleeve tech. I brought my yellow Brooks jacket for warmth. I also packed a few shirts to change into and an assortment of running gloves. Gotta be prepared, you know. I got down to the InterCampus parking lot on the U of R campus around 9 AM. I picked up my bib and a swanky black long sleeve tech shirt. Gotta love the races that give out tech shirts ... especially long sleeve!

I met up with Prem Kumar who was just freshly home for a family vacation at Disney World in Orlando. He remarked about my upcoming race conflict on Sunday. I signed up for my third Fleet Feet Four Season Challenge way back in November and the second race is the Flower City Half on this Sunday, 4/30. Well ... I didn't check my race calendar when I signed up for this great deal, $26.20(!), on the Hall of Fame Marathon in Canton OH ... on 4/30. Well .. when I signed up I thought that the Flower City Half was 4/23 (like last year) not 4/30. I can't afford to go out and stay overnight in OH so I made the decision to race local on Sunday. I'm a bit peeved at myself for pulling the trigger on the HOFM but what can you do?

Anyway ... I got out a nice and easy warmup run of 0.9 mile at around 9:00 pace, link here. I lined up for the start. Prem warned me to look out for potholes. The winter had not been kind to the roads of Genesee Valley Park. I lined up next the front and off to the right ... like usual.

A calm moment before the start ... photo courtesy of Tim Matthew of https://runnerpics.shutterfly.com

And ... we were off! I'm not a fan of uphill starts but I got up to speed quickly. It was a 5K with a fast crowd so I settled in at a fast pace. I'm not as fast as I used to be but I can still bring it. A 5K is just a controlled sprint: mile 1 is getting your breathing right and getting out to a fast pace, mile 2 is trying to hold that pace and mile 3 is sucking it up and getting it done. This course was a bit challenging because it was a bit twisty and we had to cross 4 bridges as we ran around Genesee Valley Park.

Just after the start, Bill and Prem are ahead of me ... photo courtesy of Tim Matthews of https://runnerpics.shutterfly.com

About a 1/2 in ... photo courtesy of Tim Matthews of https://runnerpics.shutterfly.com

Anyway ... I was mindful of the potholes. I did hear someone trip behind me in the middle of the race. I don't know if they caught themselves or not. I was about 100 feet behind Prem most of the way. I pulled even and passed him with the finish arch in sight. I could see that I was going to finish under 22 ... sweet! And ... done in 21:57 according to my Garmin Forerunner 220. My splits were: 7:04, 7:07, 7:10 and 5:52 over the last 0.1 mile ... not bad!

I ambled over to the pavilon and tackled the post-race grub. I chose a couple of bananas and an apple. I looked at the results and saw that I officially finished in 21:56, 35th out of 790 and 7th out of 65 in my wide M 50-59 age group, link here. A bit faster than last year's 22:36. I looked closer and figured out that I was 4th in my M 55-59 age group so I should pick up 7 RROY points. I didn't stick around for the awards and went straight home.

Later, my lovely wife and I went out to Palmyra to see my daughter, Karen. Then it was back home where Christine crashed for the evening and left me to my own devices for the evening. I watched some Star Trek: Voyager episodes off of the DVR and had a sandwich and potato chips for supper. I didn't see the leftover pasta which might have been a better choice, lol.

Monday, 4/24/2017: Rest day ... it's a Monday.

Tuesday, 4/25/2017: 7.05 miles, 54:19, 7:41 pace, 52F, 82% RH, 10 mph SE wind, light sprinkles



The forecast was for light rain until around lunch time. I could have waited until after work to run but I have gotten used to running before lunch. It gets me out on time after work and home sooner if I need to make a grocery run. It was sprinkling (OK ... a light rain) when I went out to get my running stuff ... but no matter. I questioned myself when I was getting ready and when I first went outside ... but I was out there so I went. I struck up a pace that was a bit above nice and ready. I always seem to run a bit quicker when it's raining. It had almost stopped raining by the time I got done. My splits were: 7:50, 7:37, 7:38, 7:50, 7:46, 7:54 and 7:23.

Wednesday, 4/26/2017: Rest day ... some R&R put a pep in my step!

Thursday, 4/27/2017: 7.05 miles, 56:30, 8:01 pace, 77F, 54% RH, 10 mph S wind, mostly cloudy.


The temperature hit the mid 70s before noon so I made sure that I brought my running gear to work so I could take advantage of it. It was a bit warm so I set up a nice and easy pace. But ... my nice and easy pace must be getting faster because it was still a 8:01 pace. I was drenched with sweat when I got done. My splits were: 8:09, 7:48, 7:59, 8:13, 8:03, 8:09 and 7:45. It got even warmer in the afternoon ... 86F which tied a record. But ... the warm weather was short lived and back down to the 50s and rain by midnight.

Friday, 4/28/2017 and Saturday, 4/29/2017: Rest days.

I rested the two days before the Flower City Half. I wanted to get some stuff done in the basement on Saturday but settled for doing 5 loads of laundry. I visualized the Flower City Half course and how I wanted to run it before I went to bed at 11 PM.

Sunday, 4/16/2017 to Saturday, 4/22/2017

I biked once this week, 17.72 miles.
I ran 3 times this week, 26.45 miles, 8.82 miles/run.

Sunday, 4/16/2017: 17.72 miles on the bike, 1:28:41, 12 mph average, 79F, 23 mph WSW wind, mostly cloudy.

I wanted to rest my running legs after running 16.6 miles yesterday but I just couldn't let a hot and windy Easter go by without doing something. I did take 7 boxes of my old stuff, one box at a time, out of the basement and walked it the 100 yards to the dumpster in the morning. Then ... I got it in my head that it would be a great idea to go for a bike ride.

So ... I got together my padded bike shorts, my black Brooks pants, a long sleeve tech, my bike gloves, my bike helmet and my Garmin Forerunner 310XT. I only had to look for a couple of minutes for my 310XT and my bike short which I considered a win. I pumped up my bike tires to 70 psi and headed out.


The wind going east or any variation of was fierce! But the warmth (79F) didn't let it be cool or cold so that was nice. The wind almost seemed to stop me at times. I think I slowed down to 5 mph several times. But I had an awesome tailwind! I hit 24.6 mph on Edgemere Drive on flat road. My butt didn't really hurt onward either so it was a win for my first ride of 2017. I weighed myself after I got back and yes, I lost the 2.6 pounds that I gained overnight. Back below 165 pounds ... barely!

My 310XT balked at uploading to my Garmin Connect account. I had cycled its power, my laptop's power, deleted it on my Garmin Connect but it continually timed out in the middle of an upload. It took 3 hours before it finally uploaded. There is a reason I changed from my trusty 305 and balky 310XT to the 220.

Monday, 4/17/2017: Rest day.

Today was the 121st Boston Marathon. I stalked several Rochester runners who qualified and ran it. One of these days I will qualify and run it. But first I have to get over my fear of the road marathon distance and qualify ...

Tuesday, 4/18/2017: 7.05 miles, 54:48, 7:46 pace, 45F, 57% RH, a bit windy, sunny.



I got back to B601 just before 11 AM. I had a close parking spot so I brought in my running gear, got dressed and got out there. It was a bit cool to start. I wore my Brooks shorts, a long sleeve tech, my green Brooks beanie, my heavy running gloves, and sunglasses. I thought about taking it easy but I was a bit chilly to start so I pushed the pace to get warm at first and then to keep warm! I do like running when it is between 30 and 50F! My splits were: 7:46, 7:40, 7:44, 8:00, 7:54, 7:49 and 7:34.

Oh ... if you want to get a great running belt for cheap, head out to Yugster to get their 2 pocket Go-Belt, link here (note, the deal is gone right now but it could come back). I got not 1, but 2, Go-Belts for $6.97 plus $3 shipping, yes $6.97 plus $3 shipping. I have worn one of the belts for almost 2 weeks now ... it holds my cell phone easily in the big pocket and anything else I need in the smaller pocket (keys, Hammer Gel, money, ID). It's quite stretchy but I am uncertain how it would fit someone with a larger waist (greater than 34"). I have it adjusted all the way open.

Yes, I did not "buy local". I can't afford to buy local. An equivalent running belt will retail for at least $25 at either Fleet Feet or Medved. I will check the next time I go to either one. I have not bought local the last three out of four running shoes. The one I bought local were on sale for $50 (Pearl Izumi M3) and only lasted 500 miles. I am running on a pair of ASIC GT-1000 running shoes that I picked up from www.buy.com for $50, $35 once I bought them through MasterPass and applied a SPRING15 coupon. The MSRP on any pair of running shoe is $120 minimum. I can get a pair for around $60 off of www.6pm.com or www.shoekicker.com. A guide to cheap overpronation running shoes, link here. Hey, I race local except for the Boilermaker.

Wednesday, 4/19/2017: Rest day.

I bought the last ticket to "Boston: An American Running Story" this morning. Fleet Feet Rochester had arranged for it to be shown at the Eastview Regal, link here. I Googled the movie and the closet link is "Boston: The Documentary", link here. I went after a supper of leftover chicken (mmm!) and sat next to Kevin Clinefelter. I learned why he had a slow (for him) time. He fought a cold during the marathon. He walked the last 2 miles and still BQed for next year! He was still fighting it during the movie with some sniffles and sneezes. He has been to Boston three times and provided some insights before the movie. It was an awesome movie. One of these days I want to earn the right to experience Boston ... but first I have to qualify somewhere. I am thinking either the Empire State Marathon in early October (10/8/17 this year) or the Mohawk Hudson Marathon in early October (also 10/8/2017 this year). Maybe this year or maybe next year. It would certainly blow a hole in my race budget if I every BQ since staying 3 nights in Boston would most likely be expensive.

Thursday, 4/20/2017: 8.05 miles, 1;06;20, 8;15 pace, 46f, 76% RH, 9 mph ENE wind, wind chill 42F, overcast.


The weather forecast for the evening was for rain so I brought my running gear to work and ran before lunch. My body didn't feel like running fast so I settled for nice and easy. I did stretch it to 8 miles instead of 7 and sped up a bit on the way back. It was a bit cool and windy but I wore "spring-ish" clothing: green Brooks shorts, a long sleeve tech, green Brooks beanie, heavy running gloves and sunglasses (not really needed). My splits were: 8:24, 8:21, 8:31, 8:21, 8:23, 8:12, 8:06 and 7:51.

Friday, 4/21/2017: Rest day.

Saturday, 4/22/2017: 11.4 miles, 1:33:02, 8:09 pace, 43F, 73% RH, 7 mph NW wind, wind chill 39F, overcast.

I set my alarm for 5:50 AM and fully intended to get out early when I set it. But ... my mind was weak and I went back to sleep. I got up around 7 AM and puttered around on Facebook. But ... I found my mojo, had my usual pre-run bowl of cereal and banana, dressed and got up and out. It was a bit chilly so I wore my green Brooks shorts, a yellow long sleeve tech, a yellow short sleeve tech, green Brooks beanie, heavy running gloves, and sunglasses. I carried my 16-ounce water bottle and an Amphipod with 2 Hammer Gel.


I headed out nice and easy. I thought of doing my Greenleaf 15K but when I got up to Edgemere Drive and turned and added the 10K loop and made the new Greenleaf 11.4 route. I sped up a bit on the run down Janes Rd. My splits were: 8:20, 8:03, 8:10, 8:14, 8:14, 8:03, 7:57, 8:01, 8:06, 8:22, 8:20, and 7:58 over the last 0.4 mile. Taper? What taper? I just get out there and run.

Later, my lovely wife and I got out to get her nails totally redone at New Nails since she had lost 4 of them and the others were in rough shape. She decided to go back to white tips instead of the red nails she had been rocking for the past couple of months. The result is as sexy and sharp as ever, ;-)

Saturday, 4/9/2017 to Sunday, 4/15/2017 - Dirt Cheap #1

I ran 5 times this week: 39.29 miles.

Sunday, 4/9/2017: 9.35 miles, 1:16:17, 8:09 pace, 43F, 49% RH, 10 mph SW wind, wind chill 37F, sunny.

I slept in until 7 AM. The sun was starting to peek into the room so I wouldn't have been able to sleep anymore. So ... up and at 'em. I had my usual pre-run bowl of cereal and banana, started the coffee, dressed and got out there. It was 43F and was forecast to go to 73F during the day so I wore shorts but two long sleeve tech shirts, my yellow Brooks beanie, heavy running gloves along with sunglasses. The wind felt brisk on my legs but it's SPRING!


There was a nagging bit of slight pain behind my right knee so I kept the pace really nice and easy while I waited for it to work itself out. It didn't get any worse so I pushed past the 3.1 mile turnaround and went for 9.3 miles. I thought about turning down Janes Rd to push it out to 13.1 miles but didn't. I already have 54 miles for the month of April with a lot more month to go. My splits were: 8:09, 8:05, 8:01, 8:14, 8:15, 8:12, 8:02, 8:15, 8:19 and 7:49 over the last 0.35 mile.

I sat down to a mug of coffee and half of a Giant Cinnamon Bun (purchased yesterday from Herrema's after yesterday's Flower City Half preview run #2). I brought a mug of coffee and the other half up to my darling wife, Christine, when she woke up.

We watched "Rogue One" twice. I rented it off of Spectrum On Demand and it's good until Tuesday at 6:45 PM so why not? Meanwhile, it warmed up to 73F and I started to see Facebook posts about fellow runners running in shorts. Yeah ... so did I when it was 43F, lol!

Later she cooked up my favorite food ... wait for it ... ribs along sweet potatoes and spinach. Mmm!!! We ate them when I watched the Masters. It was gripping golf as Sergio Garcia and Justin Rose battled in match play the last several holes down in Augusta GA, links here and here. They both had birdie putts to win on the 18th. It down went to the first playoff hole. Justin got into trouble and Sergio needed two putts to win. He only needed one.

Monday, 4/10/2017: Rest day ... nothing unusual after running 13.2 miles on Saturday and 9.35 miles Sunday.

Tuesday, 4/11/2017: 7.5 miles, 1:01:49, 8:14 pace, 64F, 73% RH, 15 mph SW wind, overcast.


I was a bit grumpy because I had missed running before lunch but I had some printers to look at so that took precedence. A part of my mind started to make up excuses about not running ... like you will be tired, you have a trail race tommorow or you are hungry but I didn't have any part of that. I got dressed after work and headed up to Greece Arcadia High School to do my 7.5 mile route. Boom! My splits were nice and easy: 7:59, 8:09, 8:10, 8:12, 8:14, 8:15, 8:36 and 8:14 over the last 0.5 mile. No more grumpy! But I did fall asleep on the couch ...

I signed up at the last minute on the Dirt Cheap Trail Race Series. Another 12 hours and I would have had to pay $10 more which would not have pleased me too much. This is my 9th year running the DCTR series.

Wednesday, 4/12/2017: 2 runs of 1.2 and 4.64 miles, 48F, 62% RH, 16 mph W wind, wind chill 42F, overcast.

Tonight's race was Dirt Cheap #1 down at Devil's Bathtub in Mendon Ponds Park. This is my ninth time running the Dirt Cheap Trail Race Series so I knew what to expect ... mud ... especially with the wet spring Rochester has had. Oh, Strava says that I have run this course 14 times since 2010.

I dressed after work ... well technically just before work ended and then drove down to MPP. I was 45 minutes early so I drove past the people parking on the road and drove up the hill toward the lodge. I was rewarded with a prime parking spot about 3/4 up the hill. Oh, I wore my Brooks shorts, calf sleeves, Darn Tough socks, a long sleeve tech, a short sleeve tech and my Brooks gloves. I noticed that plenty of people went with tights. I couldn't blame them because it was right on the borderline with the wind chill. Everyone is different.

I got out for a really nice and easy 1.2 mile warmup run, link here. There was a tree down across the course about 1/4 in so I knew I had to go out relatively hard to beat the crowd. I had 5 minutes before the race start so I took out my yellow Brooks jacket and drank some water.


I moved up towards the front and saw "Hi" to Andy Ciaio, Joe Ciecierega and Danielle Feligno. And ... Ellen yelled "Gooooooo"!

The start ... photo courtesy of Kim Smith of Fleet Feet Rochester

I got up to trail speed pretty quickly. The wait at the downed tree was only about 15 seconds and then it was off again. I passed Andy. He said that he was a bit tired. I saw a mirage at mile 1 ... a clean shaved Boots, lol! He showed up twice more at the top of Cardiac Hill (from both directions). The bog section had some water so I took the path above it about 50% of the time along with everyone else. I jockeyed back and forth with Danielle. Joe passed me when I walked for a couple of seconds at the top of a hill.

No mud yet on the 'dry" portion of the course ... photo courtesy of Kim Smith of Fleet Feet Rochester

There was a lot of mud on the second half of the course. I followed Joe right through it while other tried to avoid it. Splash! Splash! The bridge across a creek was taped off so I followed Danielle right through the shin high water of the creek ... which washed all the mud off! My shoes were full of water so it was hard to run for a bit afterward. I passed Danielle on a downhill before the infamous Devil's Bathtub stair finish. Hearing Ellen call your name at the finish ... priceless. And ... done with 4.64 miles in 44:36, 9:37 pace, overall results here. My splits were: 8:02, 9:52, 10:39, 8;31 and 11:37 over the last 0.64 mile.

Runners on the infamous stair climb finish ... photo courtesy of Kim Smith of Fleet Feet Rochester

I was parched so I went back to the Cruze to get some water and to put on my yellow Brooks jacket before I got cold. Then I ambled back to the lodge for a couple of hot dogs and cookies. I didn't stay long since it was getting cool and dark. I stripped and changed into dry clothes when I got home. I needed something to eat ... so I chose potato chips. I guess my body needed salt, lol!

Thursday, 4/13/2017 and Friday, 4/14/2017: Rest days.

A couple of days off while I contemplated a new long run. My idea was to run from the Swing Bridge down to MacGregor's on Empire Blvd and back. I figured that it would be 16 miles if I took the route up Culver Rd. I told me idea to Bob Dyjak. He suggested adding the long Empire Blvd hill up to Bay
Rd too! I didn't say he should run it too ... lol! But it put the idea in my head ... hmm.

Saturday, 4/15/2017: 16.6 miles, 2:23:34, 8:38 pace,

I set my alarm for 5:20 AM. Sometimes, runners set their weekend alarms earlier than their weekday alarms, lol! Well ... I was up so I got out of bed, weighed myself (what? up 2.6 pounds to 167.5? I chips and the rest of the apple pie was a bad idea last night.) and ate my usual pre-run bowl of cereal and banana. I checked the temperature: 41F going to mid 60s ... so I put on my Brooks shorts, a long sleeve tech, a short sleeve tech. I put on my yellow Brooks running jacket for warmth. I kissed my sleeping wife, Christine, goodbye and headed out. I brought an assortment of running gear. The drive down to the Swing Bridge was short. It was a bit cold and windy down on Irondequoit Bay. But ... I was here. I put on my yellow Brooks beanie, my heavy running glove, hitched my Amphipod with 2 Hammer Gels in my waistband, filled my 20 ounce water bottle, put on my sunglasses and headed out.


I decided to go up the I-590 hill instead of the Culver Rd hill to cut down about 1.5 miles (0.75 each end). I took it out nice and easy. I ran up most of the hill on Bay Shore Blvd. Then down again on Glen Haven Rd. I stopped to take the picture (gasp!) on Bay Front St below. It just spoke to me.

It seems a bit eerie ... A bird was on every post out there.

I had rested a bit taking the picture so I ran up the whole Orchard Park Blvd hill. I did take a brief walk to catch my breath at the top. Then it was down the Empire Blvd hill. I ran all the way back up the long Empire Blvd hill. I stopped at Plank Rd at 8.3 miles and had my two Hammer Gel packets along with most of my remaining water. I started to run back. I found the hill back up Empire Blvd to be a bit dangerous. It's a tight corner and the traffic was blazing down that hill at 45 to 55 mph and I was running up with a 5 foot wide shoulder (at best). Next time I will cross over to the right hand side that has a sidewalk. My back would be not facing traffic but I would be farther off the road. The run back was just as fun ... just in the opposite direction. I ran most of the hills with tiny walk breaks. I took off my yellow Brooks beanie when I was about a mile out. It felt like it had gotten a bit warmer. I was right ... the Cruze told me that the temperature was 61F. So ... 16.6 miles done! My splits were: 9:06, 8:33, 8:30, 8:27, 8:19, 9:09, 7:47, 8:51, 9:51 (2 Hammer Gels and water), 8:08, 8:55, 9:17, 8:16, 9:15, 8:39, 8:06 and 7:36 over the last 0.6 mile.

I didn't stop at Herrema's on the way home but I did walk the 0.35 mile to and from the mail box at the corner of Greenleaf Rd to mail back my latest Redbox DVD. It loosened my legs a little bit. My post-run fuel of coffee and a bagel with jelly had to wait a bit while I changed our coffee maker back to the old Black and Decker. The Mr Coffee coffee maker had refused to make the programmed coffee that I had set up before I left. Good thing I didn't throw the old one out! I have no idea why the old one had not made coffee ... everything seemed to all OK.

A long and lazy day ensued with lots of shows watched off the DVR. Some Star Trek: Voyager episodes along with our staple of like "NCIS" shows.

Sunday, 4/2/2017 to Saturday, 4/8/2017

This blog entry is labelled IN PROGRESS and published to turn off Blogger's Auto Save "feature" that can delete the entire contents of a blog post if you accidentally delete it and "auto save" kicks in. I have done this more than once ... and it sucked each time.

I ran 5 times this week, 33.55 miles.

Sunday, 4/2/2017: 6.25 miles, 47:52, 7:39 pace, 34F, 86% RH, 5 mph SW wind, wind chill 29F, mostly sunny.

I slept in a bit but still got out there a bit after 8 AM. I thought I was going on a nice and easy run but ... I decided to put the hammer down (about 90%) for a fast out and back on the LOSP trail and a bit of Island Cottage. Boom ... I picked it them and laid them down! My splits were: 7:35, 7:49, 7:35, 7:39, 7:39, 7:49 and 7:02 on the last 0.25 mile.

Then it was a bit of a quick turnaround so I could head out to Palmyra to be a computer technician for my daughter, Karen. My services were: replace her battery (the old one had moderate health), replace her power supply (nicked cord), put on a hard drive cover and replace her 250 GB (with 220 GB of data) hard disk drive (HDD) with a roomy 1 TB HDD. The first three were trivial ... the last took 9 hours. I had looked at the instructions on www.howtogeek.com and printed them out, link here. They use Macrium Reflect Free  (MRF), link here, to clone the drive from the smaller HDD (in the laptop) to the larger HDD (hooked up via USB 2.0). It went well until Karen moved the hard drive suddenly when she got up. It didn't hit the carpeted floor but the clone failed at 70% after 3 hours. No worries ... I got it going again and the clone succeeded after 4 hours. But ... there was two partitions on the 1 TB HDD; one of 250 GB and one unused one of 653 GB. The instructions said that I should be able to adjust it after I was done. Well ... I finally found the User's Guide for the version of MRF that I downloaded. It told me that I should have adjusted the destination drive size before I started ... not afterward. What to do? I knew I had a copy of Partition Magic that could do the job ... at home somewhere where it couldn't do me any good right now. But ... Google is my friend so I found a copy of EaseUs Partition Master, link here. I had a hiccup of thinking the program was resizing the 1 TB HDD partitions for about 20 minutes ... until I figured out that you had to click APPLY NOW to get it to do anything. Then it was just a matter of putting the 1 TB HDD in the laptop and I was done.

Karen and I watched 3 DVDs while I was working: "Hidalgo", "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl", "The Lord of the Ring: The Two Towers". I also walked up to Mark's Pizza to get a medium pizza (half extra mozzarella and half pepperoni) for us to chow down on when I waited for the hard drive to clone on the second attempt. I was not crazy about how Mark's cooked the pizza ... too greasy and soggy.)

Monday, 4/3/2017: A rest and "get your butt back to work" day.

Looking back at last week: I got a lot of running done, 52.55 miles. Did I get a lot done around the townhouse? Well ... I got a bit done. I gotta get more done before the good weather comes ... trust me.

Tuesday, 4/4/4027: 7.05 miles, 55:04, 7:48 pace, 63F, 72% RH, 12 mph SW wind, partly cloudy with a light mist from time to time


I had an inkling that I needed to take my Tuesday run during lunch not after work. It was certainly nice out when I went out to get my gear. There was a real light mist by the time I started and it had gotten windier. I struck up a nice and easy pace into the wind and headed out. The clouds parted for a bit midway through and were clouding up again by the time I got done. I don't do nice and easy too well so my splits were: 8:13, 7:51, 7:49, 7:54, 7:41, 7:46 and 7:30. I was a little sweaty when I got done. It will be a change when the weather stays warmer.

By the way, I was right. I had to do stuff when I got home. I would have been extremely rushed if I had gone straight to Greece Arcadia High School to run my usual 7.5 miles. It seems that if I want stuff done I have to do it myself ... that way I know it will get done. I might complain, I might mutter under my breath, it might not be done "correctly" but it will get done.

Wednesday, 4/5/2017: 7.05 miles, 53:35, 7:36 pace, 43F, 75% RH, 8 mph NNW wind, wind chill 38F, overcast.



The forecast for Thursday is rain all day so I got out today. I had expected it to warm up to the mid 50s so I took out my CW-X tights, yellow Brooks 1/4 zip pullover (which still needs to be washed) and mittens from my gear bag. Well ... it didn't warm up. It was 20F colder than yesterday! So ... I put on shorts, 2 long sleeve tech shirts, a hat and my heavy running gloves and got out there anyway. I did push it to keep warm. So ... my splits were a bit quick: 7:53, 7:37, 7:39, 7:35, 7:35, 7:36 and 7:19.

Thursday, 4/6/2017: Rest day ... rain day.

My oldest son, Michael, moved in a new 1 bedroom apartment in Macedon run by Lakeview Health Services, a news link here. He didn't need my help and even moved his digital piano. He did say it was quite heavy. I personally can vouch for that since I have moved it once or twice myself.

Friday, 4/7/2017: Rest day ... nothing unusual.

Saturday, 4/8/2017: 2 runs of 1.2 and 12 miles, 30F, 80% RH, 7 mph WNW wind, wind chill 23F, sunny.

Today was the Flower City Half preview run #2 put on by Yellow Jacket Racing. I set my alarm for 5:20 AM and was out the door by 6:25 AM. My cell seemed to know where I was going since it asked whether I wanted the travel time to the Blue Cross Arena when I woke it up to check the temperature so I knew what to wear. It told me a travel time of 22 minutes. I must have made all the lights because I only took 16 minutes. I had enough time to get out a really nice and easy warmup run of 1.2 miles at 8:30 pace, link here. Then I headed into the Blue Cross Arena and posed for Ellen's pre-run picture. We were out the doors by 7:05 AM.

I'm the tall guy in yellow about 3 rows up towards the right middle.

Kevin Clinefelter was our 8:00 pace leader again. He didn't dawdle starting up. I had to start up my eCrump and my Garmin Forerunner 220 first! So I had to pass the 9:00 and 8:30 pace group to catch up to the group of 10 runners clustered behind him. It was a beautiful morning: sunny with the sun just rising in the east and pretty calm. This preview run was scheduled for 12 miles. The first 3 was just around towards the Mt Hope Cemetery, the next 5 was the back half of the Flower City Half course. We went right by the Blue Cross Arena after 8. We stopped for a second to see if anyone wanted to drop out. No one did so Kevin led us out on the Flower City 5K course (which I had never ran before). For some reason I couldn't really keep up today so I lagged behind a good portion of the run. I almost lost the group in the cemetery (I was about 100 yards behind at that point) so I had to put on a bit of speed to catch up. I picked up a glove that a guy dropped in the cemetery. He figured that he had dropped something about a 1/4 mile later. There was a water stop just before we got out of the cemetery where I had a Hammer Gel packet. I picked up a pair of what seemed a pair of ladies gloves just outside the cemetery. I gave this pair of gloves back to a woman when we stopped. I was surprised to see that my lagging pace was really 7:53! It certainly didn't feel it. My splits were: 7:30, 7:54, 8:04, 7:46, 743, 7:39, 50, 46, 8:31, 8:00, 8:08 and 7:45.

I stopped by Herrema's on the way back to get a couple of Giant Cinnamon Buns (just like I did last week) and an Easter lily. Christine and I split one of the buns ... mmm!

These Giant Cinnamon Buns from Herrema's are decadently delicious! I can only eat half of one after a run ... well, maybe a whole one.

I caught up with Facebook and uploaded my Garmin data. I scratched my right eyebrow and encrusted salt came off ... so I decided to take a shower. Then it was off to Bob Johnson Chevrolet. The Cruze needed a NYS inspection (it had expired last month) and the Equinox needed an oil change and tire rotation. We dropped off the cars and walked a 1/4 mile down W Ridge Rd to Olive Garden. We had a leisurely pasta lunch. I had angel hair with meat sauce along with salad while Christine had spaghetti with meat sauce along with milestone soup. Christine's knees were bothering her so I walked back to pay for the cars, drive back with the Equinox to pick up Christine and take her back to the Cruze.

I started the laundry once back home. My tech stuff desperately needed washing. We watched "Rogue One" off of Spectrum On Demand. I just couldn't wait for it to get to Redbox or Netflix. It was $5.99.but still cheaper than going to the movies. I took a couple of laundry breaks while we watched the movie. The movie was quite good. It provided the back story of how the rebels got the Death Star plans that started off the whole Star Wars saga with the first Star Wars movie: "Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope" back in 1977. Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) and General Tarkin (Peter Cushing) were digitally inserted into Rogue One, link here.