Trailrunning

I went for a trial run on the Appalachian Trail this morning with a few MCRRC members. I had no idea what I was in for so I rested and slept early Friday night to prepare myself for this run. Let me just say that this was the HARDEST run I had ever did ever since I started running. That’s right I had to bold and underline that so you can see how serious I am.

Trailrunning is NOTHING like road running.  There are rocks, branches, roots, leaves,  and everything else that are around to make your run as memorable as possible. One misstep and you’re in for a hurting, your race might even be over.  I tend to zone out in most of my races but today I was completely focused on the trail. Even so I must’ve twisted my ankles at least 6 times.  It is extremely hard to run with all the rocks and leaves on the trails, especially when you have to run downhill. The leaves make it very slippery to traverse the trail. We went out for 13 miles and 3 hours 17 minutes later we made it out of the trail.

I am glad that I made it out for this practice run, at least now I know what to expect on November 21st. There were 2 very big hills that would’ve broken me  if it was my first time seeing it. I think I am now better prepared, come race day I will walk it up those hills and take it relatively easy on the trail, run what I can and walk the treacherous part. There are still 35 more miles to go after we get off the trail. What the heck have I gotten myself into ?

 

Filed under: Running , appalachian trail, JFK50 Training, Trailrunning

Get over yourself

As with most challenges in life, the only real obstacle in your way is yourself.  Get over it and you’ll be amaze at the possibilities.

Here’s a little inspiration to help put it all into perspectives.

Filed under: Running , get over youself

Run for fun

Lately it had come to my attention that I’ve taken this running thing a little too seriously. I was no longer enjoying it, and it became another source of stress.

I used to be very lively during races,  I’d strike up conversation with other runners and listen as they share their stories of how they got involve in running.  Each and every individual story’s was unique.  Their reason for running may vary from runner to runner but everyone find it a welcomed change of pace and would like to keep at it.

Of course qualifying for Boston is on every serious runner’s mind. But its also important not to let it take over your whole reason for running, be realistic, set goals to get there. Don’t let it seem like a chore, have a little fun, talk to other runners, it will make the experience much more enriching.

With that being said I will run my next race with a different mindset. I will not run it for time but for the stories and enriching experience. 50 mile is a LONG way to go without talking to anyone.

 

Filed under: Running , run for fun

My 2009 Baltimore Marathon Race Report

Being the competitive douche that I am, I came to the starting line with 2 plans in mind. Plan A was to run the best race I could and try to break 4 hours. If that fail, plan B was to trip Amanda with about 100 meters left at the finish line and take the WIN.

The first 3 miles were an incline of roughly 365 feet. Normally my instinct would be to charge it and deal with the consequences later. But today, I went against my instinct and decided to listen to Sunny, our supercoach. We shuffled through the first 3 miles at a 9:53 pace. Mile 4 through 16 is downhill and flat so we picked up our pace to around 9:05 and 9:07

We got through the half way point at 1:59:53, that gave us enough motivation to realize that maybe we could do this. But alas, mile 20 came and all that motivations were gone, I felt like crying at 21 and seriously doubt that I could finish within 4 hours. It was at this very moment that I looked within myself to find something that would help me pull through. The first thing that came to mind was “omg just trip her now and get it over with” That didn’t seem right so I had to dig deeper and finally it came to me. “What would Sunny do ?”

First she would probably tell me to quit whining like a little girl and follow it up with a swift smack to the head telling me to man up and just DO IT. (btw. Sunny isn’t violent, but I needed to make it dramatic to help me pull through) The hills kept coming and I swore that if I see another hill I would curse the next person that pass me. Of course Amanda then decided to breeze by right beside me and goes “What hills ?” I raised my eyebrows and gave her the dirtiest look I could muster. She got the hint that I was tired, grumpy and am in no mood for friendly banter. (I am sowwie Amanda, forgive me ?)

My aggression was caused in part by the half marathoners that joined us half way. They were making it so hard for us to keep our pace, our only choice was to weave through them one by one. At mile 23 there was this lady that decided to give us her rendition of “freefalling” over and over again. I didn’t have the heart to tell her that her singing wasn’t helping anybody at all and maybe it would help if she knew more of the lyrics, you can only take so much freefalling. That was enough motivation for me to run away from her to keep my eardrum from bursting.

At mile 25 I was in so much pain that the only way to make it stop and make my time was to sprint like I had to pee and make my way to the finish line asap. I made the final surged and crossed the finish line with the clock showing 4:00:10 I smiled and realize that I had broken 4 hours and didn’t need to trip Amanda after all.

2009 Baltimore Marathon

Some of the mile splits didn’t record time because I screwed up my D-tag like an idiot

Our GB Support Team

This was us after the race and meeting up with our GB suppor team

Filed under: Running

2009 Great Prostate Cancer Challenge 5k

Official results available at http://www.charmcityrun.com/eventResults.cfm?eventid=881

The pace is completely off. I used the pace calculator provided by CoolRunning.com @ http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/4/4_1/96.shtml

I signed up for this race with the hope of breaking 22 minutes, putting me at a 7:05 pace, which is ultimately the pace I need to qualify for the Boston marathon. Its nice to have goals

I’ve been putting in 2 weeks of hills workout to help improve my time and as a way to prepare for the Baltimore marathon. I was confident that I can make this happen and 22 minutes was within grasp. This false sense of confidence was made under the assumption that the 5k course is flat. I was WRONG!

By the first mile I realized that 22 minutes was not gonna happen. I hit mile 1 at a 7:30 pace. Most of mile 1 was uphill with a max elevation of 559 feet. With 2 more miles to go I resolved to do the best I can and at least beat my last 5k time of 24:44

Mile 2 came and go and the rolling hills took its toll on my legs. The hills from mile 1 to 2 was in the range of 500 feet. I tried my hardest to stay under 8 minute pace.

Mile 2 to 3 was a devastating climb from 308 to 501 feet. I sprinted when I saw the finish line but because of the walkers I had to come to a complete stop, avoid them and start sprinting again. I finish with a net time of 24:04 which is a good 40 seconds off my previous time.

I came in 61st overall, out of 394 runners. I placed 20/61 in my age group. All in all it was a good race. I will have to train harder next time to break 22 minutes. Note to self: sign up for a flat 5k!

My run is also available via Garmin @
http://connect.garmin.com/player/14398408

One thing I must mention about this race is that the premiums are AWESOME, everything from the long sleeve running shirt and hat to the random items in each of the goodies bag. I will definitely consider doing it again next year.

Our Running Crew 6 strong

Filed under: Running , 2009 Great Prostate Cancer Challenge 5k

Run like a douche

Topless Douche!

That’s me at the 2009 Annapolis 10 miler It took me a while to find it too, turns out it was in the Douche folder aka Lost & Found cause my bib wasn’t visible.  I am sorta glad I found but also a bit surprise that there are countless others topless douche beside me Doucheness ftw!!!

See what had happened was, I was coming off a badly sprained left foot and after a 2 weeks hiatus I decided again’st my better judgement to just run it anyway.

I realized this was yet another bad decision around mile 4 when the pain I had been experiencing on my left foot showed itself.  I went out hard hoping to get it over with before the pain can set in, yet again another bad decision I tried to ignore it as best I could and shuffled to the finish line.

Needless to say I did not beat my time for last year.

not happy

I’ll take it for what it is.

Since not much was going my way I figured I might as well run it comfortably and took off my shirt around mile 5. But did you notice what I did there ? I carefully tied my shirt around my waist to conceal the muffin top that developed when I didn’t do much running and ate myself to happiness.  With the MF carefully tucked away under my shirt I merrily shuffled my way to the finish line looking for the Brightroom camera guys so I can give them my best cheesy running pose.

After that Sunday I a week off and iced my foot everyday. I started running again this week and it seem that the pain is gone.

Next on the schedule is the Baltimore running festival on 10/10/2009 which give me about 30 days to get in as much hills work as I can to prepare for the heartbreaking hills of Charm City.

Filed under: Running , A10, Annapolis 10 miler 2009, bad decision

The Keys to life are Running & Reading

Will Smith has it right. The keys to life are truly Running and Reading.

According to Will, “When you’re running … there’s a little person that talks to you, and that little person says, “Oh, I’m tired,” or “My lungs are about to pop,” or “I’m so hurt, I’m so tired there is no way I could possibly continue.” And you want to quit. If you learn how to defeat that person when you’re running, you will learn how to not quit when things get hard in your life.”

This is the one thing that every runners know well. We constantly fight with this little voice, at times we give in but when we do manage to tell it to SHUT UP miracles can happen. Especially when its only the first mile in a marathon and you’re asking yourself why the little voice came out so early.

As for reading,  Will said that “there have been millions and billions and gazillions of people that have lived before all of us, there is no new problem you could have with your life, parents, school, jobs, bullies that someone hasn’t already solved and wrote about it in a book”

So  get out there and run like you mean it, tell that little voice inside your head to SHUT UP and make it a great run. Once you’re done running, head home and open up a book. Well eat first then open the book. Gotta listen to that little voice that keep telling you to feed it.

Why Reading?

There have been millions and billions and gazillions of people that have lived before all of us, there is no new problem you could have with your life, parents, school, jobs, bullies taht someone hasn’t already solved and wrote about it in a book

Filed under: Running , keys to life, running and reading, Will Smith

I want that medal

Truthfully the only reason I signed up for the JFK 50 miler was because I heard they gave out a huge medal. This is the same line of reasoning that motivated me to run both Frederick and Baltimore marathon together in the same year. The prospect of an extra third medal was enough to lure me in.

It goes without saying that you don’t just sign up for a 50 mile ultramarathon without properly training for it. After speaking with various runners that have done it before the secret formula seem to be miles miles and miles. I need to run run and run some more. The extra mileage will give my body a chance to adjust so I’d be able to actually finish the race within the alloted time of 12 hours.

The one main contributing factor to me finishing my first marathon last year was the group training with MCCRC’s FTM program.  Being very new to running I learned a lot from the coaches and more experienced runners. I learned to stop at EVERY water stop and take a gatorade, pace myself correctly for a strong finish and most of all running should be fun, if you’re not enjoying it, its not something worth pursuing. Sure every now and then you’ d want to step up and go for that PR but keep in mind that running should help relieve stress not add to it. So what if you didn’t make your time, accept it and try harder next time.

With that being said I am beginning to take my training more seriously. My weekly mileage were lacking and at that rate I was in for a world of pain at JFK. The magic number seem to be 50+ miles per week. More is always better but if I can at least manage 50 miles per week, I’d be able to finish. In order to keep track of my training and motivate myself I’ve even created a spreadsheet for it. (See told you I was serious, I made a freaking spreadsheet) You can track my ongoing progress @ http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=tXsh2G8xAdQwlmlmdceRyBQ&output=html

This post didn’t seem right without a picture so BAM.

FTM 18 Miler

This was our point to point 18 miler on Sunday 8/9/2009 starting from Grovesnor Metro Station to Union State. It was HOT, I fell apart at mile 17 due to cramps on my left calf but I manage to sucked it up and shuffled my way to Union Station.

Filed under: Running , JFK50, MCRRC FTM, Running, training run

Frederick Marathon 2009 Race Report

My goal for this marathon was to get under 4 hours and 30 minutes.  That didnt happen. I’ve been training all winter since mid January to make up for my humbled experience with the Marines Corp Marathon in 2008.  I finished in 4:34:57 A LOT better than MCM but failed to meet my goal. The thing about setting goal is that if you exceed or meet your expectation its a great feeling but for those that couldn’t quite make it due to various reasons there’s a huge sense of burden. Dissapointment will always linger until they confront what happened. The easy thing to do would be to find excuses and blame it on factors that are outside of our control.  I didn’t have the drive and motivation to push myself . There’s no sense in beating myself up about it, I am already in too deep. I must train harder and smarter in preparation for the upcoming Baltimore marathon in October. 

Now that’s out of my system, let me just take a moment to mention the weather. IT RAINED!!! The first 2 miles was fine as there was a little drizzle and everyone welcomed the nice breeze. After mile 3 it started pouring, there was no sign of it slowing down. Everyone was completely drenched and it took extra effort to shuffle on in wet and heavy clothes. But as marathoners go, we’re somewhat masochistic so a little rain doesn’t really put anyone off. A lot can go wrong in 26.2 miles, rain is but another inconvenience that we have to put up with . If anything, it makes for better post race stories.  

This was my first experience with the Frederick course and I must say, it is HILLY. The rolling hills punished the unprepared, myself included, and reminded us why it was a bad decision not to do any hills workout during our training.  I had to walk some of the hills to save my calves from cramping and locking up.  Unlike MCM I didn’t experience any sort of cramps at all for the whole distance. The decision to forego water and stick to only gatorade at the water stops was a big influence. 

I met a lot of interesting people as I made my way around the course. The most interesting was “barefoot Todd” running his 250th marathon today. He was quite an inspiration and a witty conversationalist, as there were other runners asking how he does what he does ? to which he reply “You guys have jobs” this is mine. There was a brief moment of silence as everyone within earshot wonder what it would be like to live a day as Todd.  Another interesting character was a tall and big build gentleman that have calves the size of my thighs. These things were freakishly huge and everyone couldn’t help but look at them. He overheard us talking about them and looked back to remark  ”Yea ya like it huh ?” I am not sure what it was about them but I just couldn’t look away. 

Overall it was a pleasant experience, I am a little dissapointed that I didn’t make my time but I WAS running with a callus on my right foot  <—- excuse  :) 

Frederick Marathon 2009 Official Results

 

Me at the Frederick Fairground

Filed under: Running , frederick marathon, frederick marathon 2009 race report, Running

Pike’s Peek 10k 2009 race report

 Preliminary 2009 Men’s Results
Preliminary 2009 Women’s Results

So there I was lying in my bed, tossing an turning. All I could hear was the incessant chirping of birds outside my window. chirp chirp chirp …  Why the heck did I leave my window open ? It wasn’t that hot and I know those damn birds would wake me up. Then it hit me, omg I actually planned this  and intentionally left my window open so the birds would wake me up early enough for the Pike’s Peek 10k today. I have an instantaneous reaction to the sound of my alarm where I spring upward, extend my left arm and index finger just enough to hit the snooze button and roll right back into bed. The plan worked out beautifully, it was 5:30 AM and sure enough, the birds were there.

I had been training all winter the for Frederick Marathon on 5/3/2009, Pike’s Peek was a little preview to see if my training paid off. Last year I ran it in 57:09 at a pace of 9:12 minute per mile. My goal for this year was to make it under 50 minutes.  For the first 2 miles I was cruising along at 7:30 minute pace. I kept checking my garmin to see if it was malfunctioning, to my surprise I really ran at that pace. This is huge for me, I was training at an 11:00 minute pace.  I’ll never figure out how I did it but just felt really good that it happened.  

In order to make my goal time I needed to keep a pace of 8:03 minute per mile. The first 2 mile felt easy but knowing that I need to conserve energy for the last half, Islowed down to an exactly 8:00 minute pace and went along merrily in my own little world thinking to myself “OMG I AM FREAKING AWESOME 7:30 PACE RAWRRRRRR!!!!” I might have let out the RAWRRR!!! a few times, if I remembered correctly there were a lot of awkward vibes as the runners around me were giving me that “SHUT UR TRAP” look. IT was hot and they were tired so I hold no ill feeling towards them.

The main strategy I wanted to try today was to not stop at any of the water stop. I made sure I was well hydrated enough before the race so I would be able to push the pace the whole distance. Its extremely hard for me to stop for water and start back up again. I always walk more than I want to and that end up costing me a lot of time.

I didn’t have to run the race by myself this year, I was able to con…vinced 2 of my friends to do it also. My training partner is just as crazy as I am so she was definitely in, we both had different time goals, it was a little weird not running along side her but its just something every runner have to do. Run at your own pace.  We BOTH made our time goal. I finished in 49:24 at a   7:57  pace and she made her’s with over 2 minutes to spare. This is a huge confidence booster, we’ll be heading off to Frederick next Sunday ready to take it on. John & Amy just wanted to finish and they seemed to really enjoyed it. Still trying to talk them into a marathon

One complaint I have about the race was that they failed to let us know that only the first 250 people can get the beanie hat. I really wanted a beanie, I signed up before the February deadline. But I was denied the hat when I came to packet pickup Other than that the race was well coordinated, I really like the beach towel, I have enough shirts, don’t really need anymore.

 

The four of us after the race.

Frederick HERE WE COME!!!

Filed under: Running , MCRRc, pike's peek 10k, pike's peek 10k 2009 results