August 30th, 2010 - Training - Lexington, MA - 9

Day 241 - Jim Rhoades invited me out to one of his training runs this evening (sponsored by Element Hotel). He's been running this course on Monday evenings for quite awhile with NETT.

The course is on the Battle Road Trail, a national historic park, down in Lexington. The main trail is about 9 miles out and back, and very, very scenic. I've ran in this area in the past, but always on the main road, never on the trail until tonight. The trail is really well groomed and there are a lot of options for getting lost on side trails. I will definitely have to come back down here to explore.

The most interesting part of the run was afterwards when we got back to the parking lot at the Element Hotel. Like I said, this meet up/run is sponsored by the Element Hotel. WTF you say? A training run sponsored by a posh looking hotel? I said the same thing.

It turns out that someone at corporate HQ for Element decided that it would be a good marketing idea to sponsor the run in order to help spread the word about the hotel. The runners get refreshments inside the hotel lobby after each run on Monday nights and the hotel gets....sweaty runners trouncing through their pristine lobby every Monday night looking for their loot.

I'd say that's a fair trade.

(And that's just the bathroom)

In the hopes of getting the Element Hotel to sponsor my blog, I am going to do some old school, early 2000's web page spamming. If you know what I am talking about, then you should be able to see what I am talking about below:

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August 29th, 2010 - Training - Tewskbury, MA - 3.1

Day 240 - Spent the morning timing a 5K/10K road race down near Hartford, CT. Over 1k runners showed up for this really well-organized event. The organizers of this race are the same people that put on the Hartford Marathon.

I discovered that the Hartford Marthon organizers had changed up the Hartford Marathon course for this year. I ran it last year with a time of 3:08, a week after I ran Portland in 3:07. I was trying to go for sub-3 hrs at Hartford, but that was just being unrealistic.

I checked out the new HM course and it looks like they've removed a lot of the annoying highway on and off ramps on the course, which I think will make the fast course even faster! RD asked if I was planning on running it this year. I told her that it wasn't my plan (didn't really enjoy my experience last year ), but might change my mind if there's a freebie in it for me...it's on my calendar now.

Oct 3rd - Pace Fil (sorry!) to a sub 3:20 at Maine Marathon

Oct 9th - Pace EJ (unbeknownst to him) to a 2:55 at Hartford

Oct 17th - Pace Cody and Andy at Baystate to BQ'er.

(A more runner friendly course, except for that last hill!)

August 28th, 2010 - Training - Charles River - 13

Day 239 - And now for something different.

Looks like Teddy might be sidelined from running for awhile. We took him to a free vet clinic in Cambridge this morning to get him checked out for a growth on his under belly. The poor pup might have injured himself while running with me through the woods.

Love and time should mend his wounds. He better. He has two months to recover for his canincross debut!

I took the opportunity to go for a nice run along the Charles while Rachel (she puts up with a lot) waited in line at the vet's for over two hours.

My original intention was to run into Boston to see all of the co-eds moving in for another semester, but instead I took a left and ended up heading out to Newton/Watertown along the Charles where it was much quieter and not as "interesting".

I did, however, discover some really cool trails along the Charles that runs parellel to the main running path.

Went out and back for a total of 13.

(Rest up, Champ)

August 27th, 2010 - Race - Hudson, NH - 3.1

Day 238 - The Zack Attack 5K didn't appear on my race calendar until about two nights ago when I found out that Linda Young had a couple of sponsorship entries remaining. She would have probably ran this race too if it wasn't for a broken foot! Get better soon!

I found that Linda had a total of three spots to give away when I asked for Fil and Deric. I wasn't planning on running any more short distance races this season, but I'm not one to pass up on a free race entry, especially one that's $30! In the end, my competitiveness got the better of me and I decided to head up to Hudson to run with the Farias.

This race would also be the first race I've ever ran on a Friday evening. Now I just need to find one on a Wednesday evening and I would have every day of the week covered this year.

This 5K in Hudson uses the same course as Nate's Race about a month back. I ran that race in 18:14 on a muggy Sunday morning about a month ago.

Tonight was a little humid, but nothing oppressive. I was hoping to run under 18 to continue where I had left off from the last GT5K on Tuesday night.

I also thought that I had a good shot at placing in the top 2 overall. That was until I saw a blue streak run past me during warm ups. Yep. Joe Donnelly was here tonight (one of Linda's other sponsored runner). Then my cell rang. Yep. It was Cody calling to tell me that he was heading up to the race. Well, at least I could try for 3rd place.

There was already a large crowd of runners gathered at Alvirne High when Deric and I arrived. We got our numbers, and went to heckle Fil out on the soccer field. He was reffing a game tonight, and he was hoping to finish up reffing by the 7PM race start time. It was going to be close.

(Take your red card and...)

Cody and I did a 1.5 mile warm up and discussed what we were hoping to run tonight. Cody was most likely going to place 2nd behind Joe with another sub-17 ass kicking.

Unfortunately for Fil, the race organizers were organized and got the race started a little before 7PM. Fil was still wearing his zebra outfit by the time Cody and I (also Andy) rounded the first turn on the course, a quarter of a mile into the race.

I ran the first mile at Nate's Race in 5:56, and was planning to run my miles a little faster here, since I knew what to expect on the course.

Joe Donnelly was out of sight by the first mile, and Cody wasn't too far behind him. Andy and I were right behind a pack of four other runners as we began to climb the only hill on the course. The hill itself steadily climbs for about a half mile before descending for the remainder of the race.

I relayed my splits and tips to Andy as we began to put the pressure on the runners in front of us. The pack fighting for 3rd overall went through mile 1 in 6:04. This was about 10 seconds slower than I wanted, but there was no reason to push it since 3rd place was less than two seconds in front of me at this point. I told Andy that two of the four runners in front of us would start to fall back shortly. One of them looked really young and his form was falling apart. The other was wearing a pair of soccer sneakers.

Right on cue, Andy and I reeled in the two kids I picked out and easily passed them on the hill. I managed to pass one other runner on the hill, who ended up battling with Andy for the rest of the race. It was now just me and the final runner from the original pack of four.

Dominic and I quickly chatted it up and I found out that he ran 18:37 at Nate's Race (I thought he looked familiar), finishing right behind me a month ago. He also said that he was coming back from an injury, and had been consistently running 15+ minute 5K's before the injury. Yikes!

I knew right away that I had my work cut out for me for the rest of the race. I tried a surge tactic on one of the final up hill portions of the course, and Dom stuck right with me.

I managed to keep pace with him on the downhills where I've recently changed my running style to great benefit. I've been trying to land on the forefoot as much as possible on the downhills, which reduces a lot of the breaking motion that I experienced before. The difference is night and day.

We crossed through mile 2 in 6 flat and the pace was starting to pick up as the rest of the race was going to be downhill.

I managed to keep within one second of Dom throughout the final mile, but it took a lot out of me. I found out after the race that I managed my fastest mile ever for a 5K (5:20) on mile 3 of this race!

Dominic managed to pull to about a 3 second lead at the bottom of the mile 3 downhill. I wasn't finished yet though. I made one last ditch effort to catch him and was able to hit the highest MPH ever recorded on my Garmin at a race: 15.8! I averaged a sub 4 min/mile over the last tenth of a mile (I can't imagine doing this for a whole mile!)

Even with that late, frenetic surge, I was unable to catch Dom who went on to finish 3rd overall with a time of 17:47. I finished fourth with a time of 17:48. Ironically, my 17:48 time would have been good enough for 3rd at Nate's Race, one second behind Cody's 17:47.

Cody (16:59) took second behind Joe's mind/leg numbing 16:23 performance.

Andy got out kicked by his rival over the final .1 and ended up in 6th overall.

Deric finished around 24:30 for a 5 minute PR over his Nate's Race time!

Almost as a footnote, Fil came in around the 30 minute mark (started 10 minutes late), and still managed to place in his AG! The timers were kind enough to deduct the 10 minutes from his time for the official results.

Official Results

Plan is to put in a long run tomorrow along the Charles River in Boston.

August 26th, 2010 - Training - Tewksbury > Tyngsboro - 14.5

Day 237 - Opted to skip track tonight and go for a long run instead. Gotta try to keep my weekly mileage up close to 60 per week for a couple of more weeks before pushing it further, leading into the ultra in November.

I left the apt at 7PM and didn't reach the parents' place in Tyngsboro until 8:45PM. Rachel (she puts up with a lot) was already there to give me a ride home. Averaged 7:45 pace for most of the run.

Went up Dunstable/Make Peace Rd and came across my good friend, Pre, the running ghost. I haven't spotted him in awhile, but he was definitely out tonight. We quickly said hello and then I bolted the other way.

(Running, you scary!)

Legs have recovered pretty quickly from these runs, and there hasn't been any lingering pain or weariness. Body has finally gotten use to running everyday for 237 days.

I also managed to negotiate and sign a new long-term running contract with Rachel, so I should be good to go for the rest of the year. Mortimer, we're back!

Going to be a great fall running season. Only a handful of races on the calendar, but boy, they're going to be memorable!

Speaking of races. Got a free entry into the Zack Attack 5K (57th race of the season!) tomorrow evening in Fil's back yard (Hudson, NH). Thanks Linda (Winner of the 2009 GT5K Spring Series)!

August 25th, 2010 - Training - Tewksbury, MA - 9

Day 236 - Andy and Cody stopped over in Tewksbury, after work, for a 9 mile tempo run in the light drizzle.

We checked out Catamount Rd (nice hill), and came back around for a 6:57 paced run. Excellent run overall, and they're both making great progress towards their BQ'er in Oct at Baystate.

(Almost got my foot caught in the crevice at the top)

In RTB Ultra news, we received some bad news tonight. Learned that Iron Donkey Jay might not be able to make it this year. He was the work horse (hence the nickname) at last year's run, logging in close to 40 miles when the team suffered an injury part way through. We're hoping that there will be good news before we start RTB, and Jay will be able to join us, but I do have an ace up my sleeve as backup just in case.

Dane, start stretching out those gi-normous calves!

(You might want to also get another pair of sneakers, Dane)

August 24th, 2010 - Race - Lowell, MA - 3.1

Day 235 - Summa' doesn't officially end until Sept 21st, but if you're a local runner, then it ended tonight at GT5K #8.

I tried to end my run at this series on a high note with a new PR, but it wasn't meant to be, thanks in large part to the return of killer green sweater vests.

(One size fits Kong)

The conditions were ripe for a PR: 60's, overcast, drizzle.

I'm a glutton for pain and decided at the last minute to give my slime green GLRR singlet another shot. I knew it was raining. I knew it was going to be wet, but I still decided to wear the sweater vests anyways.

Highlights, and lowlights, from the last GT5K of the season:

- Last minute course change due to the river walk being blocked off.

- New course tacked on S curve in reverse and an uphill finish, adding on roughly 5-10 seconds to your
time.

- Runners complaining about S curve finish.

- New course was short by about .05, taking off roughly 5-10 seconds from your time.

- Strangely, no runners complained about this....

- Battled it out with someone slightly more attractive than the Water Buffalo throughout the race.

- Thought about throwing my singlet into the river, but it was bone dry. The river, not the sweater.

- Missed my PR by 3 seconds. I'll blame Canada for this one.

- Jim Rhoades and Fil Faria conspiring to make the GT5K super computer blow up by finishing the series in a dead tie for 2nd place in their AG.

- The super computer didn't blow up, but a bunch of runners did with some kick ass PR's. Congrats to all of those that did set PR's tonight, especially my new RTB Ultra teammate Kelly Y.!!

- Joe Donnelly breaking the sound barrier.

- GLRR member Cody taking 1st place overall in the series. Take that RUN!

- No Platinum Miley as hyped by Dave.

- Got me some good old poison ivy on my cooldown run.

- Fil standing in for me at the awards ceremony because I was too busy "cooling down" (sorry Steve Moland).

(This is where I get my looks from)

And there it is, another season of GT5K's in the books.

I managed only three PR's this year, with my best time being 17:33, but you know what, I had a GOOD TIME!

Results and a better a writeup by PT Barnum himself, Dave Camire.

August 23rd, 2010 - Training - Tewksbury, MA - 3.1

Day 234 - Training on the treadmill tonight at the new apt. It's been at least 4 months since I last stepped on one for a full 5K training run. Stupid rain.

New gym has some nice treadmills, i.e. doesn't burn out after 10 minutes at 8+ speed.

New gym also has a TV just in case you want to feel like you're running on your couch.

Even though I went to the gym pretty late tonight (10PM), there was a neighbor already down there watching TV. She was there watching the Miss Universe pageant while "walking" on the treadmill next to mine. She was cheering on Miss Mexico.

She didn't seem too happy that I was running while she was trying to watch her show.

What the hell has happened to this world. People go to the gym to watch TV?

(Ay Dios Mio!!)

August 22nd, 2010 - Race - Mines Falls, NH - 2.5

Day 233 - How do you kill a fly with a nuke? You put Cody, Andy, Fil, and myself on the same team for a 4-person relay up at Mine Falls for a run-of-the-mill trail race.

It was originally going to be just Fil and myself running as Team Dos Equis in the two-person relay (defending champs) at Moose on the Loose 10 Miler, but some wacko decided that it would be fun to add Cody and Andy to the team and enter the 4-person competition.

Last year's winning pace for the 4-person contest was 7:49. We were hoping to break sub-6, and perhaps catch Titus. He was the odds on favorite to win the individual competition.

After changing our team name to Green Slime (in honor of the Ghostbusters quad - not really), we took our positions. The name is actually in reference to the GLRR singlet colors of old (and new). It was either that or Team Green Sweater Vests.

(Who are you gonna call?....You betcha!)

Me and my dead legs (sporting the VFF's once again) were going to lead it off for the team, with Fil going second, followed by Andy, and the anchor leg taken by Cody.

I flew off the line and into the woods with the lead for about the first quarter mile. It wasn't long before I was overtaken by Titus and....Mountain Man Dave Dunham back in racing action! I only saw the "pig tail", but I knew exactly who was kicking my ass. Nice to see you back out there, DD!

(Mountain sold separately)

The leading pair were long gone by the time I reached the second mile with Alex Brown, who ended up in 2nd overall (DD was doing the 4-person relay too!). Alex and I chatted it up a bit before I turned it on for the final sprint.

I came into the transition area with a 14:23 (5:57 pace) interval before tagging up Fil for his run at the fun.

I continued back into the woods to cool down. I decided to run the course in reverse in order to to cheer on all of the other runners. Glenn was also up here in the individual competition, along with Mike Shaheen and his son in the two person contest. Deric, Zack, Adam, and Scott rounded out the GLRR representatives today with their own 4-person team.

Fil arrived back into transition 15 mins and 15 secs later. It was now Andy's turn (also sporting the VFF's).

He went through his interval in 14:57 without incident. We, as a team, were currently second overall in the race and about three minutes behind Titus.

Cody's mission now was to try to catch up to Titus. It was highly unlikely that we would be able to make up three minutes on Titus with 2.5 miles to go, but you don't tell that to Cody. He flew out of transition like the Road Runner that he is! Hide the women and children!

(Meep! Meep!)

Titus came through the finish chute in 56:36 for the easy victory over all of humanity. Cody managed to cut off about a minute on Titus' lead, and finished with an overall team time of 58:07. He did his interval in a blazing 13:32.

The other green slimers did just as well.

- Glenn kicked geezer butt by winning his AG by over 10 minutes! His motivation? Not to be lapped by us.

- Mike and family finished 2nd overall in the two-person relay.

- Deric, Zack, Adam, and Scott finished a respectable 9th out of 22 teams in the 4-person.

Results

Fil and I plan to return next year as Team Dos Equis to challenge Team Geezers (Glenn and Don) to a rematch. I'm not bitter or anything...I WANT MY GUINNESS!!!!!

August 21st, 2010 - Training - Tewksbury > Lowell > Tewksbury - 24

Day 232 - Upon waking up, the first things I checked were the current temps and the outlook for the day. Currently 50 degrees and expected to rise steadily throughout the morning and afternoon. It was supposed to be in the mid 70's by the time I expected to finish my 20+ mile run.

Visually, outside was currently overcast and dreary on this Saturday morning, very rare for this summer.

It was only 6:30AM and Rachel was still in dreamland, but the boys were..the boys...wide awake and ready for breakfast. I took them out and re-filled their bowls.

I had some breakfast too by chowing down on a slice of cold pizza (my favorite) from Wicked Cheesy Pizza on Rt 38 (not recommended).

Threw on my GLRR singlet (white version), a pair of running shorts, a light cap, running shades, Nike Free, and Camelbak with 50% mix of a sports drink and water. Garmin, GU, money, credit card, license, and phone. Check. Check. Check. Check. Check. And Check.

Disclosure: I wore my Ipod for this one. A) Because I was going to be running with Fil for part of it B) Getting tired of being honked/screamed at from passing cars (shatting myself) C) You would too if you know how much Fil likes to talk. Therefore, I am temporarily lifting the nag for those who run with Ipods.

A kiss and goodbye to Rachel (she puts up with a lot) before I got out the door by 7:15AM.

I had 45 minutes to run the six miles from my apt in Tewksbury to the GLRR office in downtown Lowell. I was hoping to meet up with GLRR, getting ready to head out for their usual Saturday morning group run. I wanted to incorporate part of my long run with the group in order to have some company. After the 25 miler on Wednesday, I definitely could use the company to keep my mind off of the distance for today.

My goal for today was to see how I would fare after already doing a long run earlier in the week, and if I could maintain my first half JFK goal pace of 8 min/miles at this point. Also, this long run would help mimic what I would experience in about a month at the RTB Ultra: a long run less than 12 hours after a short and fast run.

I got down to the GLRR office a little after 8AM and right on cue, Glenn was kicking ass and taking names for the run. Fil, Cody, Scott, Paula, Mike, Deric, and others were there, rearing to go as I pulled in for the group photo:

(We look better every week)

I re-started my run by 8:15AM and this time Fil, Cody, and one new member (didn't catch his name) joined me. They were planning to run about 12 miles. Out to Vinyl Square in Chelmsford and back. I was hoping to get to my parent's place in Tyngsboro, to get in at least 13, before turning back.

We were about 10 minutes into our run on the Baystate course when I noticed a flash out of the corner of my eye. It was Titus!

Titus was out for his daily "fun run" to stretch out his legs, and was planning to "just" put in an hour run this morning. He decided to tag along with us even though we told him we were not planning to run much faster than 7:30's on this run.

The guy is a walking atomic clock. He doesn't run with a Garmin, and he was able to stick to the same pace throughout the entire run.

We went a little past Vinyl Square and decided to turn back. I already had 12 miles so far, and a run to my parents would give me closer to 15 miles before turning around. It was also getting really warm out and I was the only with any liquids on me.

Six miles later we were back in downtown Lowell at the GLRR office. I stopped for about 15 minutes and re-filled my Camelbak for the final six miles home.

I was feeling pretty good and didn't have to use any GU until about mile 21.

I eventually got back to the apt by 11:30AM after logging 24 miles with an elapsed run time of 3 hrs and 9 mins (7:54 overall pace), barely qualifying for Boston....if Boston were only 24 miles.

No walnut rot on this run, which was a relief. Did the ice bath again and everything felt fine. No blisters, no chaffing.  

Some things that I've learned over the past few days on these long runs that should help me on my ultra:

- 50/50 mix of a sports drink and water is the key to a steady run.

- Drinking every two miles (or every 15-20 minutes) keeps dehydration at bay. More so near the end of the

   run.

- Ice baths are key for a quick and painless post-recovery.

- I was recently told that I run with my forearms too high for long distance, therefore, tiring out my shoulders.

  I lowered the angle of them on this run (closer to the shorts) and that did the trick. No upper 

  body soreness.

- Nike Frees (with some Dr. Sholes Sport inserts) will be the weapon of choice for my ultra run.

Things are on track for a good showing at RTB and JFK.

Racing up in Mine Falls tomorrow morning with Cody, Andy, and Fil on the 4 person relay team at Moose on the Looser 10 Miler. This should be interesting.

August 20th, 2010 - Training - Lowell, MA - 3.1

Day 231 - Took the boys out (not Cody and Andy) for their weekly run through the state forest. Teddy is still going strong. Scooter not so much. I think he's "getting too old for this shit".

Looks like Teddy will be the dog of choice for our next doggy 5K at some point in Sept/Oct.

Plan is to put in another 20+ mile run tomorrow morning to mimic some RTB ultra action. I'll just need to add in some sleep deprivation and poor diet and I'll have the full effect of the RTB experience.

(I hear ya, Danny)

August 19th, 2010 - Training - Lowell, MA - 4

Day 230 - There's no better way to shake off the malaise of a long run then to go to track and do a marathon track workout!

Probably not recommended, but it looked like it did the trick.

My legs felt dead before I got to track, but I felt great after doing the track workout.

I ran the 4 mile (non-stop) progression with Fil, and staying locked in with him really helped clean out the junk in my legs from yesterday's mini-marathon.

Mile 1: 7:19
Mile 2: 7:12
Mile 3: 6:47
Mile 4: 6:31

Nice to see all of the GLRR members (new and old) taking advantage of track, but would love to see more faces out there to keep Jim busy! My goal is to see him with 20 stop watches around his neck!

(How NOT to do track)

August 18th, 2010 - Training - Burlington > Fenway Park > Burlington, MA - 25

Day 229 - We'll need to have a USATF certified person wheel measure the course for next year, since the 1st Annual Fenway Park Marathon ended up being ONLY 25 miles.

The whole idea started late last week when I was offered 4 free Sox tickets from a friend. That got my running juices flowing at the prospect of running to Fenway Park from my office in Burlington, MA.

I did this run many times last year when Rachel was attending BU, but she would always give me a ride back to Burlington, so those runs were only half-marathon runs. Ever since then, I had always thought about running to Fenway Park for a game, and then running back home afterwards. Hey, parking is expensive!

I asked around to see who would want to meet me at the ballpark. There was no way anybody would want to run there and back with me! Not even Fil. It also gave me the option to bail out half way through the crazy run, and get a ride home after the ballgame.

I had takers on the tickets (Fil and his son, Ryan, and my F-I-L and B-I-L), and for specific reasons, I wanted the four of them to take all four tickets. That left me with no tickets for myself (not a math major)!! I actually didn't really care to sit through a Sox game on a Wednesday night until 10PM, fight traffic, and be  home after 11PM.

I'd rather run a marathon than do that.

(I'm Your #1 Fan)

Disclosure: I use to be a die-hard Sox fan (just look at my e-mail addy!). I still remember the pain of how the 2003 season ended, and not turning on the television for like three months after Aaron Boone hit the solo home run to end the Sox season that year, but like many fans after the 2004/2007 championship season, things just aren't the same anymore. I haven't been to a game at Fenway in a couple of years, and haven't watched more than 5 pitches on TV all season! The Curse is gone, and with that, so is the lure of cheering on the Sox.

Also, with RTB and JFK right around the corner, I needed to put in a really long run to work out any kinks in my gear and fitness.

After GT5K on Tuesday, I asked Cody if he wanted to join me on my run. He's young and adventurous, so he said yes without hesitation. It would be his longest training run of the year as he gets ready to qualify for Boston at Baystate.

Andy would eventually also agree to join us on our little jaunt into Beantown. He too is going to qualify at Baystate (knock on wood).

The plan was set by Wednesday afternoon and the boys (not Scooter and Teddy) met me at my office. I was relieved to see that they also brought along their Camelbaks, and other long distance gear and supplies. It's like they've done this before. Not bad for a bunch of rookies!

Our goal was to get to Fenway no later than 7PM in order to hand off the game tickets to Fil and my F-I-L, and then re-supply and head back home to Burlington by 9PM.

The weather was warm, but again, overcast to help relieve us from the mid 80's temps. Perfect night for a ballgame. Not so perfect for a marathon.

We got on the road by 5:15, giving us exactly 1 hr 45 mins to make the 13 or so miles to Fenway before the game started. This would work out to about an 8:05 minute mile, which was exactly what I had in mind for this training run.

I told Andy and Cody to use this run to work out any problems that might arise during the actual marathon, like chaffing, poor sneakers, pacing, hydration, etc. Better to find out now than on race day. This was the case on my 21 mile Boston training run back in May. I discovered that the sneakers I had on were definitely not the pair I wanted to wear for Boston.

My goal for today was to see how much GU and water I would need through the first half of a 50 miler. Reno was able to complete his 20 miler yesterday without food or water. The guy is an animal and is ready for his victory lap at JFK!

(wuss)

Also, I wanted to see if my Nike Free's would keep me comfortable for the entire run. I figure that I'll prefer comfort over speed at the ultra. My pace goal for the first half of the JFK 50 was going to be around 8-8:30's, so this run was going to mimic that pace pretty closely.

The Fenway Park Marathon route itself  is a fairly flat and straight one: down 3A through Burlington/Arlington (Water Buffalo's back yard), to Mass Ave through Cambridge, and then down the Charles River into Boston. Nothing too challenging other than some car and pedestrian traffic.

We averaged 7:50's through most of the Burlington and Arlington stretch, and then picked it up for the scenic and fun stretch through Cambridge. We came across some wicked smart kids around Harvard Yard before heading down the Charles River towards the rickety old BU bridge.

We all felt great on the first half of the run (12.5 miles), and I felt kind of bad for picking it up near the end (averaged sub 7:30's for the last 4 miles) to try to get to Fenway before 6:30PM. The plan was to meet everyone at Gate C by 6:30PM, and it was already 6:45 by the time we hit the bridge near the Cask and Flagon.

The one thing I love about Fenway is the atmosphere before game time. Can't beat it!

The three of us finally reach Gate C at 6:45PM in good spirits, and of course, nobody, but good looking pink hats, were there to take the tickets from me. I should have given the tickets to the pink hats.

Cody and Andy went around the corner to grab some sanely priced Gatorade, while I waited and waited and waited at Gate C for my foursome (not with the pink hats). My F-I-L and B-I-L eventually showed up a little after 7PM to get their tickets. Two down, two to go.

I called Fil and found out that he was living it up down the street at Uno's with Ryan.

We headed down there and stuck around for about 20 minutes after I handed over the final pair of tickets. Like I said, we all felt great and waiting around for a ride or taking the train home never entered our minds. We were going to finish this mission on foot. 

Fil was kind enough to order us some appetizers and hard liquor. We re-filled our water packs (with Gatorade), and got back on the road by 7:30. It was already dark out so I threw on my head lamp and night vest.

We didn't expect to go much faster than 8 min/miles for the return trip, so an ETA of 9:30PM was going to be more likely. Night running is tough because you gotta focus on the road at your feet and also the incoming traffic. It's even harder when you're at the tail end of a long run.

Even though I wore my compression shorts to help reduce the chaffing and walnut rot, it was still painful to restart after our 30 minutes of stoppage time. There's gotta be some remedy for walnut rot. Any advice for this condition is greatly appreciated. Please, no pictures.

We went through the first mile of the second half in 9 minutes and in a lot of pain. The good news was that we got through the next 11 much faster.

I felt great once we were back on Mass Ave and away from the traffic of the city. Cody looked good, and same with Andy. Andy actually looked the most fresh out of the three of us.

We stopped at a convenient store at mile 18 to re-fill our water supply (so much for pulling a Reno on this run). It was still quite humid out and I couldn't believe how much water/Gatorade I had already gone through. I decided to take a GU, before starting back up again, in order to avoid bonking short of the finish line.

The last 7 miles of the run felt endless, but we managed to pick it up quite a bit over the last couple, running a 7:30 final, and exhaustive, mile.

We basically passed out by our cars when we reached the top of the gi-normous hill at the base of my office. We could have gone another 1.2 to get the full marathon experience, but it wasn't worth it. It was late and Burlington sucks for running, unless you're running to the mall in a car.

Overall, it was a pretty intense and beneficial 25 mile run that took us 3 hrs and 22 minutes (8:08 pace) to complete. The course and conditions were tough, so repeating the same effort over the Baystate course should be a piece of cake for Cody and Andy...unless it decides to snow and hail on race morning, but that never happens.

While the three of us were busting our walnuts, Fil & Co were having a blast at Fenway:

(How do you like these apples?!)

August 17th, 2010 - Race - Lowell, MA - 3.1

Day 228 - GT5K Summa' #7 turned into another showdown with my best frenemy, EJ aka Bad Doggy aka Water Buffalo (I want to hear that story).

I tried everything to break him throughout our duel.

- Sprinted down the first mile stretch at a 5:50 pace

- Did my best impersonation of Jazz Hands while trying to toss my coaster into the bin (so close!):

(Don't Ask, Don't Tell)

- Tried to throw him off kilter by following the course as it was intended to be run

- Put up with his breathing

- Sprinted down the VFW stretch for a 5:49 second mile

- Let him catch me at 2.5

- Picked it up for the final mile (5:43!)

- Crossed the finish line in 17:45 with EJ two seconds behind me!

- Another PR for EJ .

Results

Speaking of PR's. Congrats to Mike, Cody, Fil, Deric and the other 46 PR's tonight. Congrats to Dave for making a ton of dough on another record breaking night at the GT5K (261 runners)!

Felt great being able to finish under 18 again at this race! GLRR track is without a doubt the reason for my improvement over the past 2 weeks.

Looks like Cody will be joining me on my Fenway Park Marathon tomorrow evening after work. You'll just have to wait to hear more about this one.

August 16th, 2010 - Training - Tewksbury, MA - 3.1

Day 227 - No Mine Falls for me tonight. Fil, Deric, Cody, and Andy went up to represent GLRR. Cody managed to knock off another PR with a sub-30 on the 5 mile course. The kid is an animal! He'll eventually catch up to me at this rate...

Legs were a little dead tonight from the hike and run yesterday. Just an easy run around Tewksbury.

Plan is to go out strong at GT5K tomorrow since there's only two weeks left. Track workouts from the past two weeks should begin to show their benefits.

1st Annual Fenway Park Marathon on tap for Wednesday. More to come on this shortly.

(Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls...)

August 15th, 2010 - Training - Bedford > Tewksbury - 9

Day 226 - I thoroughly put the new KSO Trek Five Fingers through their paces today. This is the pair that I won for placing second in my division in the Barefoot 5K at the Pineland Farms Running Festival.

(Big Foot would be jealous)

The basic differences between the new model and the old model is the additional traction, better heel and angle support, and more cushion/protection on the new model.

First stop on this early morning was to Cannon Mtn to hike the Kinsman Ridge Trail (2.4 one way) to the top of Cannon with Rachel, her dad, brother, and of course, Teddy and Scooter.

Weather was perfect for a hike, overcast and warm, but it got cooler (and windier) as we got closer to the top (2k ft elevation gain, to top out at about 4k).

(Nothing to see here)

I took it easy going up in order to stay with the family. Once we reached the top, Rachel and her family took the easy way out and travelled down by tram. Teddy, Scooter, and myself took the more scenic route by going back down the Kinsman trail the same way we came up. It took exactly two hours to reach the top, and less than one hour for the three of us to get back down.

Some very slippery and steep spots on the way down, which wasn't noticeable on the way up.

New VFF's performed just as I thought they would on this hike. No blisters or chaffing, and debris stayed out of them. My feet stayed dried, and there was no noticeable smells emanated from them afterwards, mainly due to the anti-microbial material used in this model. Definite plus!

Once I broke them in on the hike, and we headed back home, I decided to see how they would perform on the road.

Rachel dropped me off in Bedford and I high tailed the 9 miles back to Tewksbury. Ran the same course last week with the Nike Free 7.0 in 1 hr 3 mins. Completed this run with the VFF's in 1:05. I could have done the same, or better, if it wasn't for the hike earlier in the day.

Legs didn't feel any worse for the wear, and actually, I felt refreshed like I always do after wearing the VFF's on a run. It's definitely because they tend to use different muscles, or less used muscles, vs normal running sneakers.

No lingering pain in the left mid-foot, so that's a positive for this model.

August 14th, 2010 - Race - Shelburne, MA - 6.2

Day 225 - Shelburne, MA. Population on August 13th, 2010: ~2,031. Population on August 14th, 2010: +3,000!!

Matt, Fil, myself, and the always quiet and shy, Deric (and a bunch more GLRR's) travelled two hours west to find ourselves at the Bridge of Flowers 10K in sleepy Shelburne. This race was the second to last GP event of the season. Sadness.

I had never heard of this race until this year. Let me re-phrase that. I had never heard of the Hill at this race until this year.

Here's my artistic rendering of the Hill at BoF:

(You're just another brick in the wall at this race)

Here's my Garmin's more accurate rendering of the Hill at BoF:

(Not drawn to scale. The Hill is a lot bigger and a lot worse in person!)

For comparative purposes, here's my run on Mt. Washington:

(Nice and steady. Nothing crazy.)

In the beginning, God created the earth, created runners, and then created the Hill at BoF to torture the runners.

The point is, the Hill at BoF eats puppies, hates new borns, funds terrorism, and is a registered Republican/Independent (for those that dislike Democrats).

We met up with Cody, Andy, and the other GLRR's at the race site around 7:30AM for the 9AM start. We were so far west that I think we were in a different time zone. Whatever time it was, it was just too damn early to be driving two hours and then run less than you've driven!

We all did our warm up, and Deric gave us a scouting report on the Hill. He said that it was huge (that's what she said).

Frank, Reno, and the regulars were here. Katy and her mom, Karen, from Team Masssoles were out here too.

Oh, did I mention that there was a monster hill here too?

By the time the race started, I swear that the Hill was bigger than Everest, and bigger than the fish that I almost caught last summer!

The start was very unique, with the female runners lining up right next to the male runners on the bridge (not named flowers).

Also unique today was the fact that Mike Shanahan, Cody, and myself were running in a GP race together, for GLRR, for the first time all season! Mike has been fighting off his GP curse all season, and he looked primed to rip up some asphalt today. I felt great. Cody felt great. We were ready to flatten this stooopid hill as a team!

My goal was to try to set a 10K PR (sub 37:50). It's been awhile since I last ran a 10K race, so I couldn't really gauge how well I would do here today, but I wanted to give it a shot.

"Ignorance is bliss."

Conditions weren't too bad. A little warm, but it was overcast by the time the "strange noise" went off to signal the start of the race a little after 9AM.

I quickly got settled into a 6:05 pace, hoping to hang onto that for most of the race.

That pace lasted all but 6:11 as I crossed through the hilly first mile in 6:11.

I fared only slightly better crossing through the downhill portion of mile two in 6:09.

If you look at the elevation chart above, for the BoF race, you'll notice that the first two miles is almost like a summary of the rest of the course. Slight downhill, a climb, and then a steep downhill into the finish.

Frank Georges was with me, and in front of me, throughout the first two miles. We had discussed a strategy at the start to perhaps run 5K pace up to the Hill, and then succumb to the Hill where we could recover a bit. Obviously, I backed away from this strategy when I realized how hilly the first two miles were. I was just praying for a very fast downhill after the Hill to make up lost time.

Bob Strout was also ahead of me by about 15 seconds at this point, but I lost sight of him and never saw him again throughout the race. He's been my rabbit all season and I could always depend on catching him by the end of our races. Not today. He's getting stronger and faster. It's the biking!

I didn't see anyone else from GLRR for the majority of the race (except at the turnaround a little after mile 4).

The drum beats at the bottom of the Hill at mile 2 signified the start of the climb.

You first go under a bridge, and then you curve around a slight left-hand turn that deviously hides the rest of the friggin Hill!

When I finally caught sight of the half-mile long beast, I just went into mountain running mode, which involves not looking up, leaning slightly forward, pumping the arms, lifting the knees, and doing my 1-2-3-4 cadence with each breath. You do this until you reach the top, and then you smile.

(Sandbagger Rule #1: Always be aware of where the camera is)

There weren't too many stretches on Mt. Washington that were this brutal for this long. Crittenden Hill Road definitely earned my respect today. I just can't believe that people actually live on this hill, and drive up and down this thing in the winter time!

I only managed to pass a couple of runners on this stretch, reaching mile 3 on the downside of the Hill, with a 8:04 pace. Overall pace at this point was about 6:53! I had a lot of lost time to make up. I also got drenched pretty well by a grandmother hosing off runners at the top. It was refreshing, but this would come back to haunt me later on.

The half mile or so after the Hill is mostly dirt road, and very steep in some parts. It took me a few steps to get my bearings again after the climb, but once I got moving, gravity took over.

I started passing more and more runners on the downhills, which was basically the rest of the race! I caught sight of Glenn, Matt, and most of the GLRR crew on the turnaround at mile 4, where I logged a staggering 5:41 pace!

HOLY SHIT!! THIS WAS FUN!

It was literally like riding a roller coaster. You first have the steep climb and then you have the walnuts-to-the-wall (coconuts for the ladies) descent into madness. This is Sparta!

I couldn't stop even if I wanted to. My biggest fear actually was falling flat on my face. Tripping here would mean serious road rash, a definite DNF, and an expensive trip to the ER.

After the dirt road portion, you come back onto asphalt, but you still have the same constant decline in elevation. A 5K course here could definitely give the Hollis Fast 5K a run for its apples.

I caught sight of Mike at mile 5 where I checked in with a 6:02 mile. He was about 30 seconds in front of me, but I quickly closed the gap. We were stride-for-stride next to each other by 5.5. 

I told him to finish strong and he responded. We went back and forth, racing each other, and at the same time passing at least five other runners. I had complete tunnel vision. My form and stride felt natural. We were in the runner's zone and working off of each other's energy. In short, it was the most intense racing that I'd been involved in for quite some time.

(We could...

...go all...

...the way!)

We both kicked it into another gear after crossing mile 6 (5:42), and the final bridge (not named flower) with .2 to go.

Mike made a move and surged past me. I didn't know if I had it in me to respond, but respond I did. I made my final kick and went by him, and hung on for the 1 second victory!

I finished with an official time of 39:01 (6:17 overall pace).

***WARNING: RANT***

Like I said earlier, being drenched at the top of the Hill by nanna probably added at least a pound of weight due to the GLRR singlet's amazing ability to absorb and retain every drop of water. If it's true what they say about each pound = 2 seconds per mile, then...you get the idea. My point is, we need to review the material that we use for our singlets. The old white singlets, for example, is great material for wet conditions. I'm just saying.

***RANT OVER***

This is one race that I plan on putting on my calendar again for next year. I left a piece of my soul up on that Hill, and I want it back!

BOF RESULTS

Place      Time           Pace    Name

75           37:24:00      6:02      Cody Freihofer
102         39:01:00      6:17      Jason Bui
103         39:02:00      6:17      Michael Shanahan
127         40:39:00      6:33      John Dowling
168         43:08:00      6:57      Andrew Pupa
169         43:09:00      6:57      Fil Faria
185         44:06:00      7:06      Ken Goodin
194         44:23:00      7:09      Matt Story
206         44:47:00      7:13      Ben Bourne
214         45:06:00      7:16      Glenn Stewart
233         45:47:00      7:22      David Pecchia
238         46:01:00      7:25      Trish Bourne
262         47:09:00      7:36      Kathy Burley
274         47:40:00      7:41      Tom Amiro
278         47:44:00      7:41      Melanie Hire
289         48:24:00      7:48      Peg Bastien
327         49:52:00      8:02      Michael Brodeur
370         51:42:00      8:20      Tom Foltz
480         56:18:00      9:04      Nancy Dorn
501         57:25:00      9:15      Scott Casper
559         1:00:03        9:40      Deric Faria
687         1:11:07       11:27     Doug Sylvester
696         1:12:43       11:43     Paula Canela
715         1:16:30       12:19     James Shelton