Recap: Susan G Komen Race for the Cure / CVAR Night Crawl

One of my favorite running quotes of all time is from Kara Goucher in a short blog that was posted nearly a week after she gave birth to her son.  It reads, "That’s the thing about running: your greatest runs are rarely measured by racing success. They are moments in time when running allows you to realize how wonderful your life is."  Last weekend was a reminder of just how blessed I am to be healthy and to have the opportunity to enjoy the simple pleasures of life with my family and friends.

Saturdays are always busy this time of year and any time of the year for that matter - especially with 3 young boys.  My youngest son had a soccer game at 9:00 and I was coaching my other two sons' flag football team at 11:00.  Since the Komen race started at 9:00 and was very close to the Hickory YMCA I decided I could run the 5K, try to catch the second half of the soccer game, get back in time for awards, and make it to the Conover YMCA for the football game.  No problem, right?

The Komen event always draws a large crowd and on Saturday there were about 400 runners out supporting breast cancer awareness in the 5K race in addition to several hundred walkers that hit the streets at 8:00.  One thing you can always count on is a lot of pink -- I mean a lot of pink!  Pink shirts, pink socks, pink bandanas, pink hair, pink dog costumes, pink cars.........it's just a sea of pink which is actually pretty cool. 

As with every local race I saw several people I knew and a few familiar runners but a lot the guys I generally count on to set the pace were noticeably absent.  I hadn't been particularly pleased with my prior two 5K's so I really wanted to run something in the low 18's just to feel good about my conditioning going into the final 'hard' weeks of marathon training.  I took my usual place up front behind several 10 year olds that were determined to start out at record setting pace and they did not disappoint.

The 5K starts at 9:00 in what amounts to a 40 yard dash followed by a left turn down a steep hill and slightly uphill before a nice gradual downhill.  Once you start that initial climb you can get a sense for how the lead packs are going to shake out.  As we settled into the first mile there were a few younger guys up front that seemed to be working awfully hard to be less than a mile into it so I decided to go ahead and push past them and set the pace.  I knew there were a few seasoned guys behind me that weren't going anywhere but I also knew if I didn't run a fast first mile getting close to 18 would be tough. 

About 3/4 mile in starts the first notable hill which takes you between the Lenoir-Rhyne dorms and football parking lot before turning left on 4th street for a few rolling hills.  Just past the 1 mile mark the course heads back towards the college passing the baseball field before looping around the quad.  I caught a quick glimpse back at what seemed to be a pack of 3 runners running about 30 seconds back but they looked comfortable and I expected them to start chasing once the course flattened out.  At this point I was just trying to run my race and maintain my pace around the college and towards the science center. 

After mile two the course is remains relatively flat or slightly downhill before finishing with a steep uphill which is always fun (note sarcasm).  That steep downhill I alluded to near the start is not nearly as fun coming back up at the finish.  I really try not to look back when I race because I think it's a clear sign you're running out of gas but I couldn't resist a peak to see if anybody was chasing me as I approached the hill near the hill.  When I realized nobody was in sight it was just me against the clock. 

I was fortunate enough to clock the winning time of 18:21 followed by fellow masters runner Craig Langston and 15 year old Carter Powell in 3rd.  Full race results are below.

Foothills Race for the Cure Results

After the race I jogged down to the Y to find my little soccer man with a commanding halftime lead of 3-0 with a goal and an assist.  Once the game was safely in hand at 5-0 I made my way back to the awards with my 8 year old.  Quickly realizing there was no way were going to make it through the awards and be in Conover for kickoff I buried my head and let the race director know that I had a game to coach and simply couldn't stay.  I really hate missing awards because I think it's important to support all of the runners for their accomplishment but today it just wasn't happening... 

I pulled into the Conover Y about 5 minutes before game time and our guys went on to play a nearly perfect game winning 39-6 with every kid getting in on the action and my sons racking up two interceptions, a touchdown catch, and a touchdown pass.  Watching the boys walk off the field grinning from ear to ear filled with excitement and pride is a feeling that never gets old and something I'll never take for granted.

With the Richmond Marathon coming up in 4 weeks I still needed to get in some miles so I decided to go ahead with my easy 10 miler as planned.  The Night Crawl 5K was that evening and the boys really enjoyed it last year so we decided to make an appearance this year.  Knowing I would be tempted to race again I figured running 10 in the afternoon would nix that silly notion - especially with the plantar fasciitis that I'm sure you're tired of hearing about!  Trust me, when it's gone you'll be among the first to know...

The Night Crawl is a great race, especially if you're a fan of evening races.  It starts just after dark at 7:30pm and there's usually a good crowd - just over 250 people this year.  Lots of bright colors, costumes, and plenty of glow sticks.  The race starts in the same general vicinity of the popular Old Soldier's Reunion 5K in Newton but fortunately this race skips the uphill start and takes you straight down Main Street.  For the most part it's a down and back circling past Newton-Conover High School with a few rolling hills.  For the last couple years the Bandy's cross country team has left their mark on this race and did so again with Yates Goodson winning with a 17:36.  Good friend and one of my three Blog readers William Adair won his age group and finished 5th overall at 20:07.  Even though he crushed his time from last year I bet cutting those 0:07 seconds was the first thing that crossed his mind.  I mean that is what runners do, right :)  Full race results are below.

Night Crawl Results

We didn't run but we walked most of the course, checked out the decorated houses, and cheered on the runners.  This was one of those days that I really didn't want to end.  My afternoon 10 miler was slow, painful, and I have no doubt that it wasn't pretty but it provided the perfect opportunity to reflect on a perfect morning and to fully appreciate a wonderful life :)

Good luck to all of you running the Peak to Creek Marathon this weekend!

Anatomy of a Long Run

Now that I've gotten a few long runs under my belt the love / hate relationship I have with long runs is crystal clear once again.  Since today's 16 miler is fresh on my mind I decided I would break it down from the inside.  And by 'inside' I mean those internal conversations that Jason has with Jason while out running the for a couple hours.

Mile 1 - 2:  Alright, let's get this over with.  I've got 35 miles on these legs in the past 4 days with two tempo runs but I'm feeling pretty good.  It's early enough for me to salvage most of my morning and once this is behind me I'm gold for the rest of the weekend.  Wow, I forgot how old I am - I can't believe how stiff my legs are.  But that's cool, I'll crank out some slow miles early on....might as well consider this my stretching.  <After a  quick glance at my watch> Seriously, I'm running that slow?  My watch must not have caught up with me yet.  OK, so I'm just going to run the first 8 slow and crush the second 8...

Mile 3-4:  Now I'm loose.  Wait a minute, I'm running race pace now.  I've got an idea....I'll just run at race pace and knock this run out in short order.  What's that up there, another runner, oh yes - I'm about to hawk it down and I'm closing the gap in a hurry.  Wait a minute, that's a chick and she's walking.  Nevermind...

Mile 5-6:  Alright, I'm starting to feel those tempo runs now.  Scratch that race pace thing.  That's a good way to get hurt anyway - too much too fast, right?  Coming up on the greenway now and dreading that hill.  Who are these people parked in mini vans at this shady little park this early in the morning anyway?  Nevermind, I don't even want to know.  <Another glance at the watch> you have to be effing kidding me?  That cannot be right, there is no way I'm running that slow.  These trees must be interfering with my signal.

Mile 7-8:  I'm glad that's over.  Almost half way there - I wonder what my average pace is?  Nope, I'm not even going to look.  It took me two miles to warm up and it feels like I've been running up hill all morning so my pace so far means nothing.  I'm getting hungry.  Actually, I'm starving.  What was I thinking when I set out for 16 miles with half a flat bagel and a spoon of peanut butter anyway?  And you washed it down with a Diet Pepsi?  Jason you are an idiot.  Seriously you think the water you drank after you brushed your teeth counts as being hydrated?  You are a super idiot.

Mile 8-10:  Over half way there.  Now I've got to crank out some decent miles.  But my feet are killing me.  I cannot wait to get home and soak these puppies in some cold water.  What's this up here, the road is closed?  Oh yeah, it's Octoberfest - this should be fun.  Lookout golf cart, runner coming through <weaving in and out of delivery trucks and golf carts>.  Ohhh there's a whole Pepsi truck full of cases of Aquafina.  I wonder if.... na, I've got to get through this mess.  I'm so freakin' hungry and I smell food.  But it's fair food - buckets of oil just waiting to fry anything that can be fried and some things that were never intended to be fried.  Alright, now I have to get through here because this is making me want to vomit.

Mile 11-12:  Coming up on the Soup Kitchen now.  I wonder who the lucky person was that got the long sleeve New Balance shirt I threw out here the other day.  What's that, are you kidding me?  My shirt is still laying where I left it?  It's been a week?! Clearly these folks don't appreciate a quality shirt when they find one.  Alright, how am I going to get this last four miles in - should I circle the college and run it back or run straight through and loop around the golf course.  I really hate backtracking but I think I hate those hills going to the golf course even more.  Circling the college and backtracking it is.

Mile 13-14:  My feet are killing me.  I'm hungry.  I totally do not need this long sleeve shirt on either but I like it too much to throw it out.  I wonder what my average pace is?  Actually no I don't, I don't even care.  Let's just get this over with.  Alright, another runner coming at me so let's show a little life here.  Hey that's Knox <we're training for the same race> I think I'll run with him for a bit to get through this last four.  Hey man, mind if I tag along <Knox:  Not at all>.  Wait a minute, Knox is fast - what was I thinking?  I hope I don't slow him down too much.  So let's circle around by the golf course, the hills suck but it's a good loop and we can grab some water at Fleet Feet.  Sounds good to me.  Watch the electric car up here, she's totally not looking.  Alright woman, I really think if you run over me it's going to hurt your wind up car more than me.  Are you kidding?  Do you really need to pull up 5 feet past the stop sign before looking left and right?  OK, clearly you suck at driving so I'll run behind you even though you're going to be at that stop sign for another 10 minutes.  Idiot.

Mile 15:  I feel like hell.  Seriously, this whole cumulative fatigue thing is just beating me up.  Doesn't help that I didn't eat very well this morning either.  I can't wait to get home, soak my feet, and eat like a boss.  True story, I am going to eat the whole kitchen.  Am I running Octoberfest 5K / 10K tomorrow?  Ha, are you kidding?  I've got an easy 7 on my calendar and no more / no less.  Besides if I had to race on these legs it would not be pretty.  So how do you want to get to Fleet Feet?  It's faster to take a left but safer if we go straight.  Let's take a left.....nevermind, more idiot drivers.  Looks like going straight is our best chance of not getting run over.

Mile 15.25:  Hello Fleet Feet.  That might be the best water I've ever had - room temperature and all.  I think I'll have another cup.  You know what, I've only got .75 miles left so maybe I'll have a third....  I wonder if I could talk somebody into coming to pick me up?  I mean if I run to my house I would probably get a solid 17 and maybe even a little more.  But my feet hurt, I'm starving, and this just sucks.  Who am I kidding - nobody is coming to get me. 

Mile 16:  Alright Jason, suck it up - you have a flat 1.5 miles home but only .75 to knock this 16 out.  But first you need to cross the street, all 5 lanes, and apparently everybody decided to be driving right now.  OK, there's an opening, OMG I'm running way too fast.  I guess that beats getting run over.  How many times is that now anyway?  I need some safer running routes.  Hey maybe this will get my average pace down.  Jason, you could run the last 0.75 in zero seconds and it wouldn't move your average pace.  Alright, I get it, who cares at this point.  So that's the third or fourth time I have suggested that my pace doesn't matter so I think by now it's obvious that my pace matters.  But it shouldn't, I mean it is a long run anyway - just get the miles in right :/  My legs are on fire, my feet hurt, my form broke down several miles ago, and now I have at least a quart of water sloshing around in my belly.  Yeah, when this watch hits 16.0 I'm shutting it down.  I don't care how far I am from home I am.  There it is, I'm done.  Stupid watch - the crowd is not going wild.  Alright, let's check the damage.  Well imagine that, exactly to the second equal to my last 16 miler.  I'm the model of consistency, just like I planned it.  

Getting home:  Alright, I'll jog it out to the stoplight and walk the last 1/4 home.  Walking sucks.  Walking this close to traffic sucks even more.  No concerned driver, I'm not hurt and yes I'm tired but that's not why I'm walking.  I'm walking because I ran exactly what I set out to run.  No more, no less.  I need a shirt with a digital display on the back that logs and displays my mileage for everyone to see.  That way when I'm walking, or running slow everybody knows why.  Jason, really, that's the dumbest idea you've had all week.  Alright I'm about to have to walk way too close to these two chicks with big hair that are stuck in the 80's.  Just keep looking down Jason.  Oh no, one of them is making a hand gesture that seems directed at me.  Ugh, now the window is coming down.  Please don't throw anything at me.  Don't look, don't look, do not make eye contact!  That's it, keep looking down, keep the music loud, and just walk by.  What did she say?  Nice waist?  Surely not that's stupid.  Nice pace?  No way, that chick probably doesn't even know what pace is.  Did she ask me if I wanted to race?  Wait a minute, maybe she said get out of the way.  That sounds about right, but whatever.  I'm done and there is an Oreo Bonk Bar and a bucket of ice water waiting on me.

Until the next long run...   

Week in Review

Another week in the books and I'm really getting used to this fall weather.  I'm finally not suffocating in the summer humidity but this stupid plantar fasciitis has stepped in mightily to provide those moments of feeling like a lead footed slug.  But nonetheless I trudge on in my new Superfeet insoles with bucket of ice water awaiting my return.

Fall also brings several notable races to Hickory including;

- 10/11:  Oktoberfest 5K / 10K on 10/11 http://www.racingtoes.com/carolina-orthopaedic-specialists-2014-oktoberfest-5k-10k-footrace/

- 10/18:  Komen Race for the Cure on 10/18 http://www.komenncfoothills.org/

- 10/18:  Night Crawl on 10/18 (7:30 PM) (http://www.nightcrawl5k.com/

- 11/22:  YMCA Turkey Trot 5K / 10K

Fleet Feet of Hickory is also sponsoring a series of untimed social runs over the Thanksgiving holiday called the Turkey Trifecta http://www.fleetfeethickory.com/events/turkey-trifecta.  These runs begin Thanksgiving morning with a 10-miler followed by a 10K on Black Friday then a 5K the following Saturday morning.  I mean what better way to justify gorging yourself on Thanksgiving than having committed to running 19 miles over the weekend, right?  And I'm assuming they aren't timed but I could be wrong.  I know that comes as a shock to some of you - me being wrong of course.

So back to my week in review....

I finally got a quality week of training last week and my first long run of 16 miles.  Since I've loosely committed to running the Richmond Marathon in November I figured I need to get serious about this.  I just checked the website and apparently we're 43 days away.  That means I'm really counting on it living up to it's name of 'America's Friendliest Marathon'.  I've done a lot of running and stayed injury free the past couple years but this foot thing has me a little nervous.  I feel like my base fitness is solid and I'm comfortable with the pace I'll need to run but I've got some work to do to build up to the 26.2 miles.

I'm going with 4 of my Blue Ridge Relay teammates and we're all targeting a '16 Boston qualifying time which for a bunch of 40 yr. old guys is 3:15.  We've all run the standard before but it's gotten to the point that if you want to assure yourself a place in Boston you've got to target something at least 2-3 minutes better than the standard.  Not that a straight BQ won't get you in but for the last 2 years qualifiers have been turned away.  The cutoff for the '14 race was 1:38 better than the standard and the cutoff for '15 is was 1:02 better.

Nonetheless we're going after it but considering my late quasi-commitment I really need that whole friendly marathon thing to be more than catchy slogan.  My training partners have enjoyed success with the Hanson Brothers plan so I figured why not test it.  Basically the Hanson Brothers plan differs from traditional marathon plans by limiting the long run to 16 miles with a systematic approach to quality runs 6 days per week and training on tired legs.  Effectively the plan is designed to train your legs for the last 16 miles of the race. 

I'll provide my two cents worth as it relates to the Hanson Brothers plan versus traditional marathon training assuming I actually get through it but I can tell you that my 16 mile Sunday on the heels of two 8 mile tempo runs and a 10 miler was not fun.  And since I'm blaming my BRR guys for the soreness in my legs I think it's only appropriate to share the video of our 2014 race experience.  By now you're surely sick of hearing and reading about it but I just couldn't resist.

And rumor has it there is a Palmetto 200 group in the making...

Why morning runs suck....

Yes I said it, morning runs just suck.  And I'm not talking about normal morning runs.  I'm talking about those predawn runs when any normal person would still be sound asleep.  I'm talking about waking up before the sun has even given a passing thought to rising and before the fine folks and Bojangles have even started making biscuits.  I get that it's a great way to start the day.  It wakes you up, gets the blood flowing and kick starts your metabolism.  Plus your run is officially over and 'out of the way' before most people are waking up for work and you can go about your day doing the things that need to be done.

Whatever.  As you might have guessed I decided to join some friends for one of those predawn runs at local University for a speed workout, or strength workout, or something along those lines because I wasn't really sure what I was getting into.  Ultimately it ended up being a strength workout because the plan was to run 6 miles in intervals at something between 10K pace and marathon pace or thereabouts.  Because we were somewhat pressed for time we decided on 3 mile intervals to get it over with. 

So why does it suck?  Well I guess it's not really all that bad, just sort of a shock to my system that leaves me lost for the rest of the day.  I am very much a creature of habit - I wake up, shower, get dressed, go eat a bagel, and start working.  And that goes for pretty much every single day and for the most part includes weekends too.  On this particular morning however, I woke up much earlier than usual, got dressed, and decided I needed a little something in my stomach for the morning workout.  I opted for half a bagel with some peanut butter, half a Diet Pepsi, and I was off.  Knowing I would still be eating my regular breakfast as scheduled I decided that if I only ate half a breakfast that it didn't count... 

I was less than 1/4 mile into the 3 mile drive to meet the guys when I started seeing the other early morning runners and they were everywhere.  And these runners where not just out for a morning stroll like I'm used to seeing.  These folks seemed to be serious but considering it was just after 5:00 in the morning so I guess that makes sense.  Generally I think of the morning runners as those early weekenders out at 7:00 - 8:00ish on Saturday morning but this was a whole new breed.  As I get to the college I see more runners, reflective vests darting by and coming from every direction and I'm still half asleep.  I take a peek towards the track and there are more runners doing speedwork.   At this point I'm really starting to second guess getting out of bed because I'm just not feeling it.  I normally don't shy away from some healthy competition but at this hour all bets are off.

I finally see my guys walking towards the track and my reaction was something like, "Whoa guys, I thought you said no track workout today?"  I was relieved to find out they were just looking for our potential third that didn't make it.  After a one mile warm up we jumped right into our first 3 mile interval and talk about a rude awakening.  Thirty minutes ago my heart was on cruise control at about 40 beats per minute.  Now it was about to beat out of my chest and was not too happy about it.  We made it through the first interval at a 6:48 pace probably thanks in large part to my slow start.  After a 200 meter cool down we ran the second interval at 6:35. 

Then it was over.  It was still dark and the relatively normal people were just starting to show up for their morning runs.  Now I had no idea what to do with myself.  I headed home to help get the kids ready for school but not before icing my feet.  That's become a post run ritual and it seems to be helping.  So it's still not even 7:00 am yet, my blood is flowing, I'm a sweaty mess, my feet are in ice water, and I'm starving.  I finally get the kids out the door and head to the shower.  I hate going from the ice bath to the shower but really I had no choice.  I decided to grab half a Clif bar on the way out the door to go along with the half of breakfast I had already eaten as I was headed to eat my 'real' breakfast.  You'd think that I had run 20 miles the way I was eating.  Unfortunately I always manage to consume as many, if not more calories than I burn.  Seriously, if I ran 50 miles one day I would find a way to eat it all back.  That day.

I would go on to spend the rest of the day being hungry and a little tired but I will admit that it was nice to be able work through the remainder of my day without breaking for an hour or more to run and shower.  I was able to get home from work at a decent hour and we spent would would have likely been my running time picking out pumpkins so it all ended well.  To all you morning runners, I genuinely admire your commitment to outrunning the sun every morning but you're more likely to catch a glimpse of a Sasquatch than to see me running at that hour...

Happy Running