For Whom the Dogs Bark

May 03, 2024

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Location:

Cypress,TX,

Member Since:

Oct 10, 2009

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Other

Running Accomplishments:

5K: 24:22 (March 2010); 22:33 (October 2010); 20:47 (May 2011); 21:05 (May 2012); 21:33 (September 2012); 21:23 (November, 2013); 22:31 (September 2014)

5M: 39:22 (November, 2012); 35:54 (November, 2013); 36:03 (March, 2015)

10K: 44:08 (November, 2010); 49:20 (July, 2013); 44:07 (April, 2015)

12K: 56:03 (December, 2013); 58:58 (December, 2014)

10M: 1:11:58 (October, 2012); 1:15:24 (October, 2014)

Half Marathon: 1:53:xx (London's Run 2010); 2:05:21 (Cowtown 2010); 1:37:04 (Gusher 2011); 1:42:19 (Huntsville 2011); 1:33:47 (Baytown Jailbreak 2012); 1:33:50 (The Woodlands 2012); 1:42:52 (Texas 2015); 1:49:17 (Jailbreak 2015); 1:38:34 (The Woodlands 2015)

25K: 2:01:47 (Fifth Third River Bank, May 2014)

Marathon: 5:51:35 (Texas Marathon 2009); 6:21:36 (Ogden 2009); 4:58:29 (St. George 2009); 4:13:45 (Texas Marathon 2010); 4:04:12 (Utah Valley Marathon, 2010); 5:11:14 (Hartford ING, 2010); 3:41:43 (Richmond SunTrust, 2010); 3:39:27 (Texas Marathon 2011); 3:41:46 (Utah Valley Marathon, 2011); 3:30:35 (St. George 2011); 3:41:51 (Richmond 2012); 3:49:15 (Texas 2013); 3:46:59 (Paavo Nurmi, 2013); 3:34:04 (St. George 2013); 3:49:51 (Texas 2014); 3:31:59 (Richmond 2014); 3:28:34 (Boston 2015)

Short-Term Running Goals:

3:20, 1:30, 0:20

Long-Term Running Goals:

I'm 60, there is no long term.

Personal:

I live, work and run in Houston, Texas. I have run 17 marathons, some good ones and some others. I prefer straight, flat, cold, sea-level marathons, still waiting for my first one. I feel like there are more PRs out there. When I have them, I am told it is time to dial it back, run for healthy reasons. I'm sure that's right, and I'm sure it won't happen.

My wife and I are from the mountains of the west. We have five kids, three granddaughters and three grandsons. The kids and grandkids are native Texans but we are not -- you have to be born here.

As for my blog title: I run most of my miles before sunrise, sometimes hours before. On the back road of my neighborhood two hours before daylight, I can depend on a pack of mutts behind the boundary fence lighting up when they hear my footsteps. I have wondered what they wanted; but according to Hemingway I needn't ask.

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Miles:	This week:	0.00	Month:	0.00	Year:	0.00

Wed, Feb 16, 2011

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
4.03	0.00	6.00	0.00	10.03

54º, 94% humidity, calm and foggy. I really like these conditions to run in. Since my knee was bothering me from running slow in normal-lift shoes, I put my flats back on and decided to do a speed day. Trying to discipline myself to only one speed day a week right now. The goal was to do 6 @ 7:15 and I made that. Warmed up for two miles, accelerating into the fast miles: 9:57 and 8:23. Then 7:00 (166), 7:09 (174), 7:04 (178), 7:08 (181), 7:15 (182) and 7:10 (184). From the way my heart rate was climbing rapidly, you can tell I was just hanging on at the end and it felt like it. Average pace 7:08 for the 6, which is an unofficial 10K PR for me, not quite 10K but close enough. Overall run was 10.03 miles in 1:22:18, average pace 8:12 per mile. If I could do 8 and then 10 at this speed in the next two weeks I might have a shot at running the half at 7:15 speed in 3-1/2 weeks. I think running intervals last week was helpful. The pace didn't seem quite so frantic this morning.

Our local church is doing a "pioneer trek" in March, and one of my assignments is to collect stories from accounts by the original Mormon handcart pioneers. I have been reading quite a bit in the last couple of days and it is truly amazing what they went through. Most families lost a few people in the snow, some were almost entirely wiped out. It was the last river rossing of the Platte River in eastern Wyoming that really did them in. The bad part of the trek only lasted a few weeks in late October and early November, but it was fatal for a lot of people. These homespun accounts will stop your heart, it is a sobering read. I was thinking about it on the run this morning but not in a way you would guess. Mainly I was thinking about how little it had to do with running.

Comments

From SlowJoe on Wed, Feb 16, 2011 at 09:52:37 from 131.59.200.80

Gotta love the PR on a training run, very nice! I don't think 7:15 is an unreasonable goal for you in the half, especially since this was a training run and you went a lot faster than 7:15 today. Looks like your half may be the weekend before mine. Sorry, one of these days I'll try to go first!

From lightitup on Wed, Feb 16, 2011 at 10:40:38 from 71.37.138.33

Sounds like a hopeful run. Pioneer stories definitely do not inspire competition; they had to go as slow as their slowest member. Their priority was each other, keeping each other alive and moving forward, and in a way they were not prepared for... Sounds more like life.

From I Just Run on Wed, Feb 16, 2011 at 12:20:50 from 67.79.11.242

Your run was very similar to my run on Saturday (times and all). I was beat after the run though...probably a little too much effort for me. I'll keep working to catch up with you though. My goal for this weeks 1/2 Marathon is a lot less at a 7:50 pace. Keep up the good work and I hope your feels better.

From Rye on Thu, Feb 17, 2011 at 12:25:02 from 208.45.117.27

If you need some additional info I can provide some stories. Our stake participates in the Martins Cove trek every three years. Sobering place! Nice run today.

From flatlander on Thu, Feb 17, 2011 at 14:45:06 from 198.207.244.102

Joe, thanks, it gave me a dose of hope when I needed it. I have been in that between-race funk for the last little while.

E, well said.

IJR, based on the times I have seen you should be able to accomplish that quite readily. You may be surprised at how well you do. Good luck.

Rye, that would be great to read some of your stuff if it is handy. I'm still looking for stories.

From derhammer on Fri, Feb 18, 2011 at 22:04:33 from 70.113.204.189

Nice run, Flat. You can probably attribute some of the high HR to the humidity.

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