Douglass Statue Run 1

Weather: Intermittent Clouds, 32°F (feels like 19°F), 50% Humidity, Winds ENE @ 14 mph.
Route: 11 miles; south through Highland Park, past Mt. Hope Cemetery, through UR River Campus, into downtown past War Memorial at Blue Cross Arena, thru East End.
Time (Pace):  Approx. 1:39.45 (9:03 min/mile)

Close-up of  Douglass statue location map
from Frederick Douglass: No Soil Better.

While "quarantined" in our home for the foreseeable future, I am trying to make my four times weekly runs more interesting by routing them through some interesting community "landmarks". During long slow weekend runs in the past, I have often found myself passing (and noting) the locations of a number of the Frederick Douglass statues that pepper our city of Rochester, New York.

This morning, with a leisurely 10-or-so-mile run on tap, I decided to make it "official" and planned to pass as many of the statues that run south of the city that I could find. Never much of a social runner, self-guided tours at 7:30 a.m. Sunday morning definitely allow for appropriate social distancing while offering reprieve from at home isolation. (BONUS: flights of fancy such as this also gives me something to blog about, thus keeping my writing "chops" active.)

The locations of each of the 13 statues, actually replicas of the original made by local sculptor Olivia Kim, is available at the excellent Frederick Douglass: No Soil Better. I used this well curated website as my personal guide while pre-planning a loose running route, with some promising results...

"999 South Avenue, currently the site of Anna Murray Douglass Academy
 (School #12) This is the former site of the Douglass Family farm." (No Soil Better)

Frederick Douglass Monument by sculptor Stanley Edwards at Highland
Bowl. While not part of the set, worth checking out.

"Washington Square Park bordered by Woodbury Blvd., Court Street,
St. Mary’s Place and S. Clinton Avenue Site of Civil War “Soldiers and
Sailors” monument." (No Soil Better)

“300 Alexander Street, at the corner of East Avenue. Near the site
of Douglass’ first home in Rochester at 297 Alexander Street.” (No Soil Better)

While I picked-up three this morning (plus one extra at Highland Park Bowl), three elusive beauties remain unlocated for now. A few loops through Highland Park and onto the eerily empty UR River Campus both came up empty, though contributing to my overall mileage and supplying some beautiful scenery. Another statue reportedly located at intersection of Alexander Street and Tracy Street, the site of the Seward School, attended by Douglass’ children, also was undetected as I jogged by. Though a slightly less picturesque detour, it is always interesting to turn down slightly less familiar streets to get a flavor of neighborhood. Though I have (yet) to see the Douglass statues located therein, I'll count each count each missed opportunity as "wins"... and look forward to picking each up eventually.

2018 Johnny's Runnin' of the Green

A beautiful morning for a 5 mile run with 1,000 or so of my closest

sort-of acquaintances. (3/17/18)

Weather: Fair, 24°F (feels like 12°F) , 80% Humidity, Wind: WSW @ 13 mph.
Route: Johnny's Running of the Green, an out-and-back course.
Time (Pace): 41:29 (8:08 min/mile) Unofficial.

Pre-Race Observations: With my forty-ninth birthday less than two months away, I have only recently returned to actively "running". My "competitive" racing "career" has entered a new stage beginning with this morning's awesome annual community run, the Johnny's Runnin' of the Green. In years past, I would fancy myself occasionally competitive. Now, I am just happy to be out there.

Following January's aborted Winter Warrior Half-Marathon, due to very inclement weather and, if I am honest, poor pre-race training on my part, this morning's (morn's?) run is my first organized one since December's equally festive Reindeer Run 5k. In the interim, I have been rehabbing my hamstrings, reading books, and whining about the weather (oddly, a time-honored tradition for those in Western New York born to it!).

Pre-run jitters less of a problem when

you're doing it for fun. (3/17/18)

After getting out and about on one-day-icy, one-day-spring-like roads for the past week-and-a-half, I registered for the Flower City Half Marathon this past week. This run takes place toward the end of April and today's run is just another step toward accomplishing crossing that finish line with a smile. This is my sixth Johnny's, and third consecutive one, and after posting admirable times the previous two years (38:20/7:40 per in 2016 and 38:33/7:43 in 2017), I suspect the law of diminishing returns will bite hard this year as I project a finishing time of around 45 minutes based upon the past two weeks. Like most "old grey mares", this one ain't what he used to be. An increasing comfort with that new reality does not mean I am resigned to not going faster, further in the future!

Post-Run Reflections: As usual, the Johnny's Runnin' of the Green was a festive, enjoyable community event regardless of how well one might have run. Lots of friendly faces, green t-shirts and picturesque skies made for a very pleasant morning jaunt. Though I am a little socially awkward, it is always nice to see some familiar faces enjoying their time together as a community of runners. It is even nicer to be a small part of it for a few hours on a cold March morning.

I felt remarkably well for initially feeling so unprepared to run. Though my pace was slightly slower than in years past, I was happy with both the final time and mile pace. As is to be expected with a back-of-the-pack position at the start (intentionally), my first mile was at a leisurely 8:49 pace though the final two miles were consistently faster (7:51 and 7:42). In both instances I settled within 5-10 meters of faster runners in an effort to pace with them. The pace also allowed me the breath with which to thank the many volunteers and police officers who helped keep the course safe.

While there was some slight discomfort in my hamstring, overall, I felt strong and excited about what comes next. With a little ice, core work and stretching, I look to be ready for tomorrow morning's longer, slower training run and ultimately (fingers crossed) ready for that half-marathon a few weeks.

Scoutin' Routes: Flower City Half

Over the past few weekends, Fleet Feet Rochester has offered course previews for the fast approaching Rochester Regional Health Flower City Half Marathon. While this is a run I have participated in two years ago, I would have liked to have attended these tours, not because I am likely to get lost (there will be plenty ahead of me) but because I like having a familiarity with the course prior to "racing" it. Unfortunately, I could not make it, though if Twitter pictures are accurate, a good time was had by those who did.

USATF Course #NY13101KL:
Certified Course Map.

With Spring Break this past week, I decided to preview the course myself, doing so in parts rather than in a single long run. Rather than running it, which would give me a stronger sense of the layout, I have opted to bike and walk it. A stretch of the course runs directly through my neighborhood (and as I sit here typing, flashes of my experience last year return).

Despite a great affection for USATF's certified course maps, they feel like a sort of runner's folk art, I used the 13.3 mile run map created by YellowJacket Racing. This course offers quite a bit for both participants and spectators to take in visually as the course flows through a variety of Rochester neighborhoods. As I biked the course over two days (in 6+ miles increments, Parts 1 and 2 on Monday, April 17, and Parts 3, 4, and 5 on Friday, April 21), these section breakdowns began to take shape in my mind. For myself, it will help me to get a sense of pace and distance to consider the half marathon as a 5-part run.

Part 1: Westside Start (Approximately 2.4 miles)
The race start is located at the western end of the Broad Street Bridge directly next to the Rochester Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial. From here, the course heads immediately west. Rochester can be thought of as having two sides: East and West, the line of demarcation being the Genesee River. This first section covers quite a few visual treats in a fairly short distance.

Part 2: Eastside, Represent! (Approximately 3.5 miles)
The course then heads back east passing once again over the Genesee River on Main Street. This part of the course takes one through downtown, along East Avenue, into the heart of the Park Avenue neighborhood before heading South along the edge of the South Wedge.

Part 3: Highland Park (Approximately 1.5 miles)
This third section is the important as it begins the second half of the run and, for my money, is the most challenging. The first half of the race is fairly favorable relative to any changes in topography. I can recall in years past feeling really confident passing over the expressway on Goodman. This, of course, can be dangerous. I often fall victim to getting too far ahead of myself and this part of the course will punish you (as it has me) if you lose focus...

Part 4: Mt. Hope Cemetery (Approximately 2.5 miles)
For some reason I always envision this part of the race as being toward the finish, but it's really not. This is among the most beautiful areas the course runs through and it is rife with deceptive challenges not the least of which is the mistaken impression I have that once your through the run is nearly done... it's not. Friends of mine who have also run this race point to the Mt. Hope Cemetery as being their least favorite (or most difficult) aspect of the overall course. I can see why as the initial beauty of the area quickly seems repetitive as the course gives way to follow a serpentine trail of paved, empty roadway.

Part 5: Genesee Riverway Trail to Finish! (Approx. 3.2 miles)
"Only" 5k to go. The water station immediately inside the gate of the cemetery you've just left is a good time to re-hydrate (again) and prepare for the last leg of the half marathon which takes you through another picturesque part of our city (yes, there really are many of those) along the Genesee River and past the University of Rochester. This last 5k provides lots to fuel positive thoughts...

As I bicycled the course over two days, many of the turns and views came back to me from my last go at the course in 2015. Out of proximity, I also run many sections of the course forwards, backwards and sideways during the course of any training cycle, so for me, like many other local yokels I suspect, there is a familiarity with the land. Fortunately for someone like myself, who gets lost on most trails (and in my head), given the layout and excellent job YellowJacket Racing does with the courses, getting off-course is not even a likelihood, should one even try (often at mile 10 I briefly wonder how I might successfully drop out and hide my shame until my wife can secretly picks me up in a car).

An added benefit offered by our friends at YellowJacket will be pace runners in short increments from projected finish times of 1:40 and up. Having fallen in with one of their pacers in the past, if you have a target finish and need some support, I would definitely look for them at the start and join their respective entourages. With those involved in the race, the course and your fellow participants, whether racing, running or spectating, Sunday (and Saturday for that matter--there are other events on that day as well) should be an excellent time!