The Need For Speed

20 min. w/u (2.5 miles)
Target (in minutes): 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 2, 2, 2, 1, 1, 1 all w/1 min. recovery
Actual: Above
16 min. c/d (2 miles)
Total: 10.5-11 miles

Caitlin's house, Freedom Park, Booty Loop.

I need to update the details on this but it's time for bed and I have an early flight in the AM. Just wanted to write this down before the week got away from me. It wasn't super fast, but it's a step in the right direction!

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Super Distance Summit Run

60 mins. (~8 miles)

This weekend I had the privilege of attending the Super Distance Summit at Queens put on by Coach Simmons. This is the first year that I've been present, and it was definitely an edifying way to spend the weekend. Guest speakers included Greg McMillan, the legendary coach Joe Vigil, biomechanist Jay Dicharry, Coach Simmons, high school powerhouse Fayatteville-Manlius coach Bill Arris, and finally Renato Canova, arguably one of the best coaches alive in the sport today. It was a stacked lineup, and it did not disappoint. I could spend this section recapping the Summit, but instead I will cheat and link to a great summary already written up in Mark Hadley's blog. I will add that it was pretty cool to see quite a few of other Charlotte-area running enthusiasts and coaches, as well as a few friends from out of town.

It was with one of those friends, Leo Kormanik, that Jordan and I enjoyed an easy jaunt during the lunch break on Sunday. Leo is married to my friend Jennie from Atlanta and will also be racing at Houston in a few weeks, so most of the run was spent discussing, well, running. The sky was brilliantly blue and clear, and the cold air quickly grew comfortable as the minutes ticked by. It was a beautiful day to go for a recovery run around the Booty Loop and Freedom Park, and though we'd heard that inclement weather was looming on the horizon it was hard to imagine at the time. Instead we were content to amble along enjoying the day and the camaraderie before heading back to the Summit.

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Quick Update

Friday, 8/27
AM: 8.5 miles
PM: 15 mins. + strides (2 miles)

Thursday, 8/26
AM: 89 mins. (12 miles)
15 mins. pool jog
15 mins. core/stretching

This post is just a quick catch up before I delve into the weekend's drama. And by "drama," I, of course, mean injury. I mean, come on? Do you know me at all? If so then you realize it's virtually impossible for me to go an entire year without getting injured. In frustratingly predictable fashion, 2010 is turning out to be no exception.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. On these easy and relaxed Thursday and Friday runs I still had no idea what the next sequence of events would portend. Stay tuned for all the sordid details.

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Jogger Wars, Part Deux

Tuesday, 8/24
AM: 11 miles

Monday, 8/23
AM: 10 miles
PM: Greenapple

Both of these runs were solo jaunts along the familiar Freedom Park/Myers Park/Booty Loop roads. Tuesday I did venture out on a bit of an exploratory route that found me taking the newly completed bike path all the way past Super Target, then heading back toward Queens on some pleasantly shaded side streets. I also ran into Coach Simmons trotting up the median on Queens Road so we jogged along together for a few minutes and caught up on life, running and his search for an assistant coach to fill Jenna's shoes.

The only other thing of note is the jogger war I was forced into on Monday. I've mentioned this before, but apparently I haven't been clear enough to some people (i.e., the toolbag who wouldn't leave me alone on Monday): Stop. Following. Me. More specifically, either run at an appropriate distance behind me or man up and pass. Either of these courses of action would be completely acceptable. What is not acceptable is when you speed up in an attempt to catch me, then sit on my shoulder for three miles of what was supposed to be my easy, relaxing recovery run. Despite what you might think, the sounds of your labored breathing and heavy footfalls are not exactly music to my ears. By the time I reached the intersection of Providence and Providence I'd had enough. I knew I could either come to an abrupt stop so he would be forced to pass or throw in a surge to shake him off my shoulder. In weighing those two options I thought not about what would give me more satisfaction, but rather what would shame him the most. Naturally, I opted for the surge. For a few seconds I heard him scrambling behind me in an attempt to respond and then he faded into oblivion. Serves him right.

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Sleepyhead

AM: 74 mins. (10 miles)

Let me preface this entry by saying I am not opposed to getting up early. As the past few months have indicated, rising before the sun and hitting the pavement by 6am is becoming routine. So when Jordan said he planned to get up and meet Paul et al. at the Providence Day track for an early workout, I thought it sounded like a great opportunity for me to join them and then head down to the trail.

Then Jordan set his alarm. For 4am. And just like that, I was out.

Instead, I slept until the indulgent hour of 7am and ran 10 miles solo around Myers Park. After that I headed to work for 10 hours to prepare for tomorrow's first annual Kickin' Grass Cross Country Challenge and Cookout Classic. That's right, RFYL is putting on a pre-season xc meet and I'm in charge. Pretty scary, on several fronts. It looks like we have 18 teams who will to bring a total of 700 kids, to whom we plan to feed hot dogs and sell spikes and otherwise entertain. At this point it is equally likely to be awesome or disastrous, so keep your fingers crossed for me!

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Keeping Up With the Boys

AM: 61 mins. (8.6 miles)

This morning I knew I was in need of a nice, easy recovery run. So when Jordan and I jogged over to Freedom Park so he could meet Nick, I opted to continue running along the bike path instead of hanging out and waiting for Nick by the lake. This way, I reasoned, I could continue along at my pedestrian pace and not worry about trying to keep up with the two speedsters.

That line of reasoning worked out great for the next mile or so as I exited the park and turned right to head up Queens on the Booty Loop. Before long, however, I heard the sound of footfalls and familiar voices behind me and I knew that the boys were gaining ground. To keep things interesting, I decided to try to stave them off for as long as I could. This meant picking up the pace a bit and throwing in a few surges as they drew closer. They caught me in front of the university about a mile later, but instead of just letting them go I stubbornly held on for the duration of the Booty Loop. Fortunately they decided to do another loop and I had to return home and get ready for work, so once we parted ways at the park I resumed my previous turtle-like pace for the rest of the run.

At least the shenanigans made a familiar route a bit more interesting.

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Training Camp

AM: 3+ mile w/u
12x1 min. uphill, jog down
2.5-3 mile c/d
Total: 10 miles
10 mins. pool jog
15 mins. core/stretching

My schedule for this week called for 16x1 minute hard, which seemed fairly doable. It just so happened that Jordan and his new buddy, former professional triathlete Nick Frank, would be doing a similar workout today with one small catch: their "minutes" would be straight uphill. Warily I agreed to join, as it meant I would be afforded the opportunity to sleep in as late as I wanted on my day off and still make their 10am workout time.

As we warmed up down the bike path to meet Nick in the park, Jordan and I scoped out a few prospective inclines. We finally settled on Tranquil Rd., the only one we deemed both steep and long enough for our endeavor. I must admit I was a bit apprehensive. Sure, I do plenty of runs that incorporate hills, and none of my recent road races could be described as "flat." But short, steep, nearly all-out repeats straight up the asphalt? I haven't done a workout like that in as long as I can remember.

After a few strides and some last-minute strategizing we were ready to go. Nick, who is just getting back into fighting shape, would be running the first 30 seconds of each repeat with Jordan. I would be trailing behind trying not to completely embarrass myself. I'm accustomed to being one of the faster people in my workout group, so having my butt kicked up and down the road is somewhat of a foreign concept. It's good for me.

The workout itself was tough. Really tough. Basically my legs and lungs were burning from the very first interval and I knew the sensation would not abate for the duration of the workout. If there is an upside, it's that things didn't get much more difficult from there, but that's hardly any consolation when you're as far into the hurt tank as I was. Despite the rapid approach of the noon hour the overcast skies kept temperatures at bay, and for once the humidity didn't seem to be a distraction (maybe that was due to the aforementioned leg/lung burning). Though I doubt my pace increased throughout the workout, I did make a conscious effort to drive my arms and dorsiflex through my toe-off all the way to the top. I may not have been breaking any speed records, but dangit if I didn't look good trying.

After a very slow extended cooldown, Jordan and I returned home with the intention of following up with some recovery measures. We took our yoga mat and flotation belt to the pool and took turns stretching, pool jogging and doing core work. This was followed up with a hearty brunch of flapjacks and potatoes and a long, delightful nap. If it weren't for my lingering foot situation, I would've joined Jordan for a slow double run with Caitlin and Jay in the evening too. In many ways our day felt like that of a professional runner, something I could certainly get used to if I allowed myself. Instead I savored this rare respite from my otherwise busy week and made plans for more of the same on my next day off.

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Starting Off on the Wrong Foot

AM: 9 miles

I. Felt. Horrible. Jordan and I did a standard medium loop plus a few quick detours this morning, but for whatever reason I just didn't have it. The humidity is high even by our standards, so I'm hoping that has something to do with it. Plus my foot isn't getting any better, which is starting to concern me a bit. Today it was a bit creaky for the first few miles but then loosened up just fine, but I'm certainly not seeing any progress. Time to go on an ice/ibuprofen binge for the next few days and see if that clears it up. Fingers crossed.

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Booty Loop Domination

AM: 3 mile w/u
Target: 3x2 miles w/3 mins. rest @faster than Caitlin's MP (6:19)
Actual: 12:07 (6:00, 6:07); 11:38 (5:50, 5:48); 11:24 (5:43, 5:41)
2.5 mile c/d
Total: 11.5-12 miles

This workout was very, very tough. It was also a lot of fun and quite possibly Caitlin's and my best workout of the entire summer. Have I mentioned before that she's in badass shape? She is absolutely destroying all her "marathon pace" workouts, and this one was no exception. Of course, it didn't hurt that we once again had a studly male entourage consisting of Mike, Justin, Lat and Billy. Most everyone seemed to be having an "on" day and we really fed off each other's energy. For more specific details, see Caitlin's detailed recap here.

Also, this workout mini-breakthrough could not have come at a better time, as today I found out I was accepted for the second ADP race I applied for, the US 5k Champs at the CVS Downtown 5k in Providence. I immediately went online to check flights and discovered nonstop tickets for $138! This is delightful news, especially considering that PVD is not the largest airport in the world, so I immediately booked a flight for myself and Jordan for race weekend (September 18-20). Now I have a real, tangible goal (read: to not embarrass myself) that's less than five weeks away! This should give me ample motivation to keep soldiering on through these final brutal weeks of summer.

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The Scientific Method

AM: 64 mins. (8.5 miles)
PM: 30 mins. (3.5 miles)

After yesterday's 800 session I was in the mood for a super slow medium loop today. Luckily Jenna, Caitlin, Danielle and our male bodyguard Jordan were happy to comply. In the evening I headed over to the Queens sports complex on Tyvola to help Coach Simmons out with a body temperature study he's doing. I don't want to reveal all his secrets, but basically he is exploring the cooling effects of a substance similar to dry ice, specifically when being held in hand. For my part I had to jog around the soccer turf for 30 minutes holding what looked like small hairspray cans and stopping every 10 minutes to have my temperature taken (in the ear, thankfully). The turf was so lush and pristine that I almost felt guilty wearing shoes, so after the first break I chucked them to the side and reveled in the feel of the soft surface on my bare feet for the remainder of the run.

I returned home to find Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, aka Jordan and his boss Paul, drinking beers and "working" in the living room. Paul is in town traveling with Jordan for a few days and we've really enjoyed his company. For his final night we walked over to Duckworth's for a few pints (them) and sweet potato fries (me). It was a great way to cap off the evening and Paul's visit to the Queen City.

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Accidental Long Run

AM: 90 mins.
12 miles

Well, that got out of hand. What started out as an intended 9- or 10-mile loop gradually morphed into an outing just 10 minutes shy of yesterday's long run. It started when I ran into Jay en route to meeting Caitlin in Freedom Park, where we found that she had brought Matt and John along for the ride. Apparently we'd just missed Matt face planting on Morehead, which was unfortunate (that we missed it, not that he fell). So, as a larger-than-expected group, we embarked along the familiar loop of booty.

About 45 minutes into the run, instead of turning left to head back toward the park, Caitlin continued straight with her domestiques. Since I'd decided to run close to 10 miles I thought I should tag along for a little bit. However, I got a tad carried away and since these weren't my normal streets I wasn't aware of how far I'd gone. By the time I turned around, I was north of the Target shopping center. Considering I live south of Park Road shopping center, this presented a bit of a problem. Not a problem, really, just a boring 30-minute run back home. The upside is that any brief thoughts of doubling in the evening were tossed aside summarily and without guilt.

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No Boys Allowed

Friday, 8/6
AM: 8.5 miles
PM: 20 mins. (2.5 miles)

Thursday, 8/5
AM: 80 mins. (10 miles)

Caitlin and I and special guest Danielle enjoyed a very early, very slow run on Thursday morning. It was for girls only so we talked a lot about feminine topics such as boys, clothes, hair and makeup. Also if this run was a step over 10 miles I'd be surprised, but I couldn't have been more pleased to keep the pace relaxed.

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Early Week Runs

Tuesday, 8/3
AM: 66 mins. (9 miles)
15 mins. core

Monday, 8/2
AM: 10.5 miles
PM: 4 miles

Apologies to all my loyal readers (i.e., my dad) for falling behind this week in blogging. I've recently started doing marketing full time at Run For Your Life so I've been working what most people would consider to be normal hours. In addition to running and trying to finish up this summer class my time has been pretty well occupied! (Sorry, Dad, I know that's no excuse. You raised me better than this.)

So, as far as I can remember as I'm typing this six days later, these runs were unremarkable. I do remember that Tuesday morning was with Jenna, who is freshly returned from her summer in Arizona and Hawaii. She hasn't been running much the past few weeks and was looking for a pretty easy pace, but the conversation and the lower than usual temps helped pass the time quickly.

A few other items of note: 1) I'm famous. 2) I found out on Tuesday that I got accepted by the NC division of USATF to represent their "Athlete Development Program" at the US 10 Mile Championships on October 3rd. I'm pretty excited because they're paying for almost all of my travel and lodging expenses as well as my race entry. I'm even more excited because this will be the same day as the Twin Cities Marathon that Caitlin and Megan Hovis are running, so I'll be there to cheer them on after my race! (And, of course, join them for the post-race celebration festivities.) On that note, it's time to seriously start getting in shape. I have no interest in embarrassing myself in the elite section of the race in t-minus eight weeks.

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Checking Out Some Booty

AM: 65 mins. (9 miles)

I would've loved to meet up with the CRC group that was running long on the trails of Francis Beatty Park this morning, but unfortunately I was scheduled for work beginning at 9 so it just wasn't going to happen. Instead, I set out for a slow medium loop from home. The 24 Hours of Booty ride, a fundraiser with over 1500 participants, was in progress on the Booty Loop, and I wanted to check out the scene.


Riders taking off at the start of 24 Hours of Booty. Photo credit to the
Charlotte Observer.

I was about 20 minutes into the run--the first two miles of which I'd covered in a blistering 16 minutes--when I ran into AJ of CRC fame. I met him for the first time at an early morning Dowd run a few months ago and since then have seen him around town on occasion. He was just starting out a 16-miler and asked if he could tag along with me. I told him that I was running pretty slow, around 7:30-7:40 pace, to which he responded that he didn't plan to go any faster. I had my doubts. He is legendary for pushing the pace on easy runs, and I could tell by the way he'd rolled up on me that he was not taking it as easy as I would've liked. Sure enough, within the span of a few steps my "recovery" run pace dropped by nearly a minute and I found myself huffing and puffing up the Queens Road hill. Fortunately, things improved after a mile of my legs and lungs fighting the pace change, and for the rest of the run I thoroughly enjoyed the company and conversation. It was also fun to see all the cyclists and crew/spectators out supporting 24 Hours of Booty even at this early hour (and according to this followup article, they raised an astounding $1 million). Definitely made the standard loop a bit more entertaining.

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Easy Recovery

AM: 66 mins. (9 miles)

After yesterday's effort, it's no surprise that Caitlin and I were feeling absolutely terrible on this morning's run. Fortunately Jordan had no intentions of pushing the pace and everyone finished in one piece. That's about all you can hope for on a day like today.

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Kicking Booty

AM: 3 mile w/u
Target: 3x3 miles @6:20 pace or faster (Caitlin); 2x3 miles @Caitlin's pace (me) w/4 mins. rest
Actual (me): 18:22 (6:10, 6:13, 5:59); 18:00 (6:03, 6:06, 5:52)
2.5 mile c/d
Total: 12 miles

Caitlin absolutely rocked this workout. Anyone who can run 3x3 miles faster than marathon pace at 5:45 in the morning in the middle of summer deserves some serious props. She also did a great job of summarizing it in her blog, so since I'm already behind on blogging I'm going to take the easy way out and link you there. What I will say is that we made a game time decision to switch this from McAlpine to the Booty Loop due to rain, and surprisingly it turned out to be a great idea. The loop is almost exactly three miles (2.88 according to Mr. Garmin, so we only had to add on a little bit), and the direction that we ran sets things up nicely for a negative split. (The first 1.25 miles are uphill, then 1 mile flat, then .75 screaming downhill.) The only drawback is that it's on the sidewalk instead of dirt, a detail that was not lost on my aching legs and feet upon returning home, but otherwise I have no complaints. Another great effort with some great peeps in the books.

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It's a Small World After All

AM: 75 mins. (10 miles)

Today's run covered familiar territory, but it was made significantly more interesting by the presence of a new face. Scott Schilter, the national sales manager for Nuun, is in town traveling with Jordan for a few days. I picked Scott up from the airport yesterday evening and within the span of a few minutes we discovered that we knew about two dozen of the same people, as he previously worked for both Brooks and Adidas. (Those people include, but are not limited to, my buddy Rousey whom we just saw in San Diego, my former hiring manager at Brooks, the owner of RunTex in Austin, and about a dozen more current or former Brooks employees.) In fact, after further conversation we realized we'd met each other once before, and actually sat beside each other at the Gate River Run afterparty in early 2009. In case I haven't mentioned it before, the running world is absolutely tiny (or, one could argue, incestuous). At any rate, the two of us hit it off instantly and I could tell it was going to be fun having him around for a few days. How can you not like someone who gamely agrees to wake up early and go for a run despite sleeping poorly and feeling jet-lagged from west coast time?

Fortunately for me, the pace was kept quite easy and conversational. I'm feeling a bit knackered after yesterday's runs and need to chill out this morning, especially since Caitlin and I bumped our Friday morning tempo run(s) to tomorrow instead. After some time on the feet through Freedom Park and the Booty Loop, we called it a morning and headed home to shower and start the day.

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Freedom Park Meetup

AM: 80 mins. (10.5 miles)

Well, I definitely learned my lesson yesterday. When the alarm went off this morning I didn't even think twice about sleeping in. Instead, I nudged Jordan a few times to ensure that both of us were awake, then got up and put on my costume. In addition to beating the heat, the main incentive for the early run time was a scheduled meetup with Caitlin in Freedom Park. We left our respective abodes at 6:15 and met a few miles into our runs before joining up for the rest of a medium loop. The pace was quite slow--I was going to use "relaxed" or some other euphemism, but no, it was most definitely just slow--as all of us struggled to shake off a weekend of hard running. Luckily for me and Caitlin, Jordan was feeling the worst of all, which meant he was content to meander about at girl pace for the duration. Once back at the park, we decided to add on by escorting Caitlin back in the direction of her house. We parted ways on Morehead and then Jordan and I slogged out the remaining miles home. I can't say this was one of my better runs, but the company and cooler temperatures might necessitate this becoming a Monday morning routine.

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Reacclimation

Friday, 7/23
AM: 8.5 miles

Thursday, 7/22
AM: 6 miles
15 mins. core
PM: 4 miles

Can I go back to San Diego now?? Seriously, for the past week I've been jogging 7-minute pace on my easy runs without even batting an eye, but upon returning back to this sauna called Charlotte I can barely maintain 7:30 pace on my morning runs without feeling utterly wiped out. This doesn't bode well for the 4 Miler on Saturday or for the pleasantness of my mood, but unfortunately there's not much to be done about it now. Everyone's dealing with the same conditions, and all of us are hoping that this will make us tougher and stronger come autumn. (The alternative, that the weather is doing nothing but zapping our energy reserves and breaking us down beyond repair, is too depressing to consider.) I'd hoped to set a fast pace at the race but am now adjusting my goal to survival. Set the bar low, clear it every time.

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Easy Tuesday

AM: 77 mins. (10.5 miles)

In what is turning into a Tuesday routine, I rose early-ish to put in a slow, relaxed LFPL by myself. Jordan and John are working out at PDS before Jordan heads to Cali for his Chrome sales meeting, and I can't double tonight because of class. Ten miles is a bit ambitious for a solo run, but once I zoned out and lost myself in thought the time passed quickly. On tap for tomorrow is another now-habitual early morning workout with Caitlin and the CRC crew.

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