Jack & Fairport XC @ V-V-S Invitational

Starting line pictures never bore me, it's in the faces; EVERYONE is focused!

The first full week of competition drew to a close this afternoon for the Fairport High School Boys' Cross-Country. Following a successful division quad meet on this past Tuesday (during which they won all three "meets"), the team woke up early this morning to take the bus trip to Verona, NY, to compete in the V-V-S Invitational.

Pre-race warm-up, last minute stretching and getting in "the zone."

Despite the picturesque surroundings, it was not very easy to take too many pictures as most of the course was within a wooded area. In addition to the start there were three other vantage points in relative proximity to one another.

Just past the one mile mark, Jack was comfortably running in fourth place. 

The rest of Fairport's talented top 5 close behind Jack. 

My son, Jack, running into the last 900 meters of the course.

Coming down the finish all alone.

First place!

A tremendous team effort... now on to the next race!

Next race is a quad meet this coming Wednesday at Webster Park, then onto the Baldwinsville Invitational next Saturday!

Final Thoughts on the FL50s

"Try the meditation of the trail, just walk along looking at the trail at your feet and don't look about and just fall into a trance as the ground zips by."~Jack Kerouac, Dharma Bums

The official results for this past weekend's Finger Lakes Fifties have been posted and I did better than I had expected (at least in terms of where I finished)... as I type that previous statement though, I am struck by how little my place and time mean in this overall experience. Talking with colleagues at work yesterday, I didn't even think to offer my possible time or place, but was proud to share the fact that I have finished... not something I have always done in the past.

At any rate, my time (5:38:15) was about five minutes slower than I had projected (the whole stop your watch at the finish or look at the HUGE clock is not my bag) in previous recent posts, but I placed tenth overall out of sixty-nine finishers (while five did not finish--been there).

Now on to the next challenge...

Breathe in, breathe out… YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

Results and (Upcoming) Runs

Yours truly running downhill during last Saturday's race. I hadn't realized how unflattering the combination of gravity and focusing can be to one's appearance... c'est la vie!
Sunday's performance at Medved Madness Trail Race was adequate as I placed 26 out of 69 total finishers, and fifth of 18 in my new age group (M 40-49). My birthday is not until next week, but at least this run will give me the opportunity to get "used to" seeing my name in a new (older) grouping. Great thing is, I really don't feel as if I've hit my prime yet and I have quiet a bit more I can accomplish if I continue to find the will to train.

If not for these two gentlemen, whom I "trailed" behind for much of the run, I likely would have ended up in another county or hopelessly lost...
With the future in mind (and despite the occasional aches and pains), I have begun to continue the process of selecting races to register and train for. While I have to decide on a "tent pole" summer run (marathon? ultra? race walk?), I am planning on continuing to register for as many Rochester Runner of the Year (RROY) races as possible. Given the competitive nature of my age group (which will be my "old"... er... "younger" one due to the rules... I don't plan on "winning," but would like to set a goal of finishing a higher percentage of races in the series than last year.

Coming up are a bunch of rather short distance runs:

May 17 Medved Lilac 10K & 5K Family Fun Run (RROY #3)

June 11 Charlie McMullen Mile Run (RROY #4)

June 21 Medved 5K to Cure ALS (RROY #5)

Breathe in, breathe out… YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

Spring Forward Distance Run 15k Wrap-Up

The picture above is from yesterdays FleetFeet Spring Forward 15k Distance Race, taken by one of the fine folks from the Greater Rochester Track Club (GRTC).

The complete results are available here care of YellowJacket Racing and my specifics are as follows: 68 of 378 total finishers, 59 among 250 male finishers, and eight from a group of thirty M35-39 year old finishers.

Not bad, if I do write so myself!

Breathe in, breathe out… YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

My 2008 Running Year in Numbers

Not surprisingly, numbers play a large role in any
training plan. One way that our local running community recognizes
recreational runners is by awarding patches to those who achieve
certain levels of cumulative performance. This honor is based on
finishes rather than places in any given race.
1,325.9
The number of miles (as of 12/28/08), including training and racing, covered during 2008, a decrease of 88.5 miles from the previous year.

167.6
Total miles run while participating in races ranging from 5 to 50 kilometers during 2008, an increase of 4.1 miles from the previous year. For the third consecutive year, I earned a silver Milestone patch from GRTC.

24
Total number of races, beginning with the 2007 Freezeroo Series Race #2 in January and ending with the 2008 Freezeroo Series Race #1 in December, completed in 2008. This represent a decrease of five races from the previous year.

9
The number of those 24 races completed in 2008 which were at the 5k (3.1 miles) distance, the first being the 5k for Kenya in May and the last being the Race on the Ridge in November. I ran six less 5ks than in the previous year.

9
The number of those 24 races completed in 2008 which were longer than a 10k (6.2 miles), the first being the 2007 Freezeroo #2 at a distance of 7.5 miles in January and the last was the FleetFeet Sports Summerfest 12k (7.5 miles) in August(!).

2
Total number of races I did not finish EVER--both coming this past calendar year, the Muddy Sneaker 20k in April and the Rochester Marathon in September.
A few minor setbacks and "stutters" notwithstanding, this past year has been a fairly ambitious one for me and I think it does warrant a quick recap, especially in light of all the "realigning" and "recommitting" that will be occurring over the next few days with the New Year coming in less than a week. The numbers shared above seem to best capture my 2007 in running... and hint at what is yet to come!

Embrassez votre été invincible!

The Training Week That Was... 3/10-3/16

Three down and ten more to go! This, my third, week of following the FIRST Marathon Training Plan, went well, despite an early illness and late ankle tweak. The week began with a cold and some rest and ended with an intentional "two-part" Key Run, thanks to my participation in the local St. Patty's Day run.

In the recap below, the Key Run Workouts prescribed by the plan appear in parentheses. It is unclear what the total mileage I was scheduled to run this week is a little was, but I feel like I did pretty well:

Legend: R = Running, ri = recovery interval, ez = easy, m-t = mid-tempo, wu = warm-up, cd = cool down

Monday: (Rest)
Tuesday: (Key Run Workout #1--10-20 min. wu, 2x1200m, 400m ri, 2x800m, 5-10 min. cd) R 4.5 mi
Wednesday: (Rest)
Thursday: (Key Run Workout #2--4 mi m-t) R 5 mi
Friday: (Rest)
Saturday: (Key Run Workout #3a--10 miles) R 11 mi
Sunday: (Key Run Workout #3b--9 miles) R 9.1 mi

TOTAL--R 29.6 miles (+1.8 miles from last week)
Weigh-In*: 184.0 lbs. (-1.5 lbs. from previous week) [* took place at 5:00 a.m. on 3/17]

The official Johnny's Runnin' of the Green results are in, and I came in 57 of 984 overall and fifth of 88 in my gender/age group (M 35-39) with a time of :31:28. I am exceedingly happy with my time and place, though it seems like every time I make the internal decision that "I like running longer," I perform well in a "shorter" distance race.

As I shared with some fellow runners this weekend, I remain committed to racing the longer distances and participating in 5ks only when I can do so with my children, or when I need the speed workout. I'll have another chance to "race" longer this coming weekend, during a rare moment of training-racing convergence when the race distance is the same as the planned Key Run, in this case thirteen miles, the Leo Austin Memorial Cats Half Marathon on Saturday, March 22.

Breathe in, breathe out... YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

The Training Week That Was... 8/20-26

This week was the second to last of Summer Recess which means that the true challenges of maintaining mileage and motivation will begin in two weeks when I return to the daily grind of working seven to ten hours a day, as well as, taking the time to go to my own children’s athletic events. It is hard to complain about these responsibilities because I realize how fortunate I am to have the summer-time to work on personal development, and I enjoy (some days more than others) my work. Certainly I am looking forward to the kids Cross-Country seasons, too.

This week that was just completed was the second of my fourteen week training plan, and the second of three “cycle down” weeks, prior to a significant increase in mid-week long(er) runs, and long back-to-back weekends. In the recap below those miles was schedule to run appear italicized in parentheses. The total mileage I had been scheduled to run this week was 24 miles… and here’s how things went this went down week:

Legend: R = Running, R(T) = Running on Treadmill, Bicycling (B), w/A (with my wife, Anne). I've also noted increases (+x) or decreases (-x) from the previous week)

Monday: (Recovery Day)
Tuesday: (2) R 5.2 miles (2 runs = 2.7 miles solo + 2.5 miles w/A)
Wednesday: (2) R 3.2 miles
Thursday: (4) R 6.1 miles (2 runs = 4.1 miles solo + 2 miles w/A)
Friday: (Recovery Day) B 16.5 miles
Saturday: (6) R 6.5 miles (2 runs = 4.1 miles race & warm-up + 2.4 miles solo)
Sunday: (10) R 13.1 miles (2 runs = 10.1 miles solo + 3 miles w/A)
TOTALS--R 34.1 (+10.3 miles from the previous week), B 16.5 miles (+ 16.5 miles from the previous week).

Weigh-In*: 179.5 lbs. (-1.5 lb.) [* took place at 5:30 a.m. on 8/27]

This was another productive week during which I exceeded my scheduled mileage primarily through my runs with my wife. I felt proud of my ability thus far to stay on schedule, and comfortable in being flexible with the days on which certain runs were called for. This past week I also ran a “race” for the first time in three weeks, the Greece PAL 5k. Due to challenging weather conditions, I failed to PR, but enjoyed the run anyway.

Next Sunday I will be running in the Oak Tree Half Marathon for the third consecutive year. In each of the previous two years I improved on my time 1:37:05 (2005) and 1:36:35 (2006), so I’m hoping to continue the trend this weekend!

Breathe in, breathe out... YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!

YEAH! Got My Milestone Patch!

Yesterday in the mail, I received my Greater Rochester Track Club (GRTC) Milestone Silver Patch!

"Why would you get that," you ask?

The little beauty pictured above is one of the fringe benefits of membership in one of the most storied of the River City community's running clubs (the one which also organizes--in part--the winter Freezeroo Race Series. A benefit of which I was unaware until receiving the inquiry via e-mail toward the end of November. After whipping up an Excel spreadsheet, I (translation: the computer) tabulated my total mileage for the year at about 177 miles, an accumulated total consisting of races ranging from a bunch of 5ks all the way to a full marathon.

For having "raced," or more accurately "finished," runs accumulating a total mileage of between 101-200 miles in 2006, I became one of thirty-six other folks to earn a Silver patch. Twenty hardier souls participated in over 200(!!!) miles to receive a Gold patch. Fourteen runners also ran away with Bronze patches for running 50-99 miles. Just a small representative sample of the tremendous group of runners we have here in Rochester...

Next year, it's Gold or bust!

Adio, wli nanawalmezi.

Freezeroo 2 Results

The results are already in, thanks to our friends at YellowJacket Racing, and I placed fairly well, considering the high caliber runner's who participated in the race. There were a total 321 finishers, including 258 Men and 123 Women. I placed 52nd overall, was the 49th Male finisher, and placed ninth out of 32 in my age group, M35-39.

My finishing time was :51:23 minutes, and I maintained a pace of :06:51 minutes per mile. My final time at the same race last year was :52:57, so I improved on that time by :01:34! It seems like a great way to start the New Year!

Embrassez votre été invincible!

Results Updates: Two Birds, One Stone, Bad Taste

As I popped onto the Greater Rochester Track Club, or GRTC, Results page to check on the availability of this weeks race results, I realized that the "official" results for last weekend's race had been posted. Therefor, I hope to "kill" two birds by sharing the official results from both of my recent finishes.

I was pleasantly surprised that, in an exmaple of classic Castaway execution of facts, I had recalled and recorded the incorrect finish time for myself, and I was off by quite a bit. While I had noted my finishing time in the Out of Bounds Trail Half Marathon as being at (about) 2:25:35, it was in actuality, 2:15:04! A pretty favorable error, for yours truly! Additionally, I placed 20th out of 73 registered runners and 6 of 17 in my age group (M30-39).

On the opposite end of the "excitement spectrum" were the published "results" from this morning's Run for Hospice race. While I noted the time as being 1:10:54 while running through the chute today, the "official" published times had my finish being timed at 1:26:06 (a pace of 8:37 per mile--which is my long slow distance training pace!) Huh? I'm not sure what to attribute their error to, but I did send an e-mail to them to see if they could correct it...

I know it seems silly, and that I didn't "win" anything, I did work hard and was dissappointed to see this poor time attributed to my performance. It kind of leaves a bad taste in my mouth when I can't trust the tech, or whatever, tracks the runner's performance. According to the Race's erroneous stats I placed 95th out of 148 males, while in reality I placed 38th... SIGH...

Next up: next weekend's BlackDiamond Off-Road Duathlon (2 mile run/10 mile bike/2 mile run) in Victor, NY.

Breathe in, breathe out... YOU AND I ARE ALIVE!