For Whom the Dogs Bark

71F, 87%, S 8 mph, cloudy, but ain't gonna get no rain today.  Nice running weather though.  Started with 6 low heart rate miles at 9:36 per mile, then took my daughter to seminary.  Going back out, my legs felt good after a day off, so I promptly trashed them:  2 warmup miles then 4 tempo miles at 7:07 (163), 7:00 (171), 7:01 (177) and 7:07 (180), 1 mile active cooldown.  Not sure what the overall program looks like for this week.  Trying to keep the long + hard stuff going, but my schedule will be messed up beginning Wednesday, plus I have a 5K on Saturday, so playing it by ear.

My daughter on the way to seminary said she admires my effort, but why do I do it?  In particular she thinks it's crazy to get up not that far past the middle of the night, 6 days a week.  This from a teenager who gets up at 5 every morning to make seminary at 6, probably harder for her than for an old guy like me.  I can give long answers all day long, but I don't have a good simple answer, other than being addicted to the endorphins -- there must be something more noble than that?

74F, 84%, S 7mph.  Another good running day.  Ran for an hour before seminary at low heart rate, 9:55 average pace, dropped my daughter off and ran another 40 minutes, including 4 miles at GMP:  7:35 (155); 7:33 (160); 7:22 (167); and 7:18 (172).  Total 11.24 miles in 1:40:07, average pace 8:55 per mile, flat shoes.  Evening 4.0 on TM, hill work.  Tomorrow I am teaching seminary, plus my car is in the shop so I am running my son around, not sure when I will run.  Daughter is bringing in granddaughters tonight for a quick trip, so all is not lost.

75F, 83%, SSE 5 mph.  Wind was blowing hard at times, which wasn't indicated in the weather report, seems like it is trying to rain.  We are having a drought through most of Texas and could really use some rain.  I had to teach seminary this morning, so was out the door very early to try to get in at least the core of the run.  Did 2 LHR miles, 1 transition, then 4 at GMP, 7:36 (155), 7:20 (162), 7:24 (168) and 7:27 (172).  Right hamstring kept trying to cramp and it is still stiff, have to watch that.  Might get in some more TM work later today.

Schedule completely out of control today, taught seminary, picked up cars from the garage, early meetings at work, etc.  Settled down this afternoon but I'm not really into running in the heat in the middle of the day.  So I settled for 6 hill miles on the TM this evening, 3 up, 3 down, 3% grade each way.  Really hope doing this regularly helps me on the UVM course.  Trying to decide what to do tomorrow.  It is a holiday and I have a 5K on Saturday, so tomorrow would be an ideal day for a long run, but not sure I want to sacrifice my 5K time for a long run.  I'll just get up and play it by ear.

74F, 82%, SSE 6 mph and clearing.  Sky was clear by the time I finished.  It is Good Friday, no work today, slept until I woke up and decided to just do a regular run, but all in one session today due to the holiday.  Ran 6 LHR at about 9:55 per mile.  Second mile was 9:36 and had high expectations but the heat caught up to me pretty quickly.  Then 1 transition mile, 8:27 and 4 at GMP:  7:26 (163), 7:23 (169), 7:22 (175) and 7:27 (177), then 1 mile active cooldown.  Weight to start: 161; at end: 157.  In between I drank 1.5 pounds of liquid, so that is how much we sweat down here.

As I was thinking about my weight at about mile 6, it occurred to me that my best mile time right now is probably pretty close to 6 minutes flat.  In high school, the last time I ran seriously, I only broke 5 minutes one time, never consistently, so right now I am about a minute slower but 25 pounds heavier.  So the thing I realized (as I was running along at mile 6 with nothing else to do) is that if I had run with a 25-pound backpack in high school, it is unlikely I would broken 6 minutes, much less 5.  Looking at it that way, I am as fast now as then if I would lose more weight.  That is the rub, though.  Friends and family who are used to the old 200-pound me aren't really too thrilled about how skinny I am already.  If I went down to 135 they would probably stage an intervention.

PM:  6 hill training on TM.

75F, 82%, S 9-25 mph.  I ran 6 TM miles last night, foregoing any pretense of anything but a pure train-through for this race.  Turned out to be a great decision, because this was a forgettable day.  This race is in a large community called Bridgeland, out on the plains west of Houston, converted rice paddies and pretty much flat.  Used to be prime territory for hunting ducks and geese; good thing I didn't have a shotgun with me.  It is an inaugural 5K/Half and it showed.  Got a queasy feeling when I read some of these gems from the race rules that were sent out yesterday:

"All chips must be surrendered at the finish line.  You will be responsible and required to pay Cadence Sports cost of $109 if you do not return your chip at the finish line."  [Really?  $109?]

"Bandits; otherwise known as unregistered runners, are not allowed and will be subject to a fine by an officer."  [A traffic ticket for running in a public place?  Good luck making that one stick.]

"It is against the rules to run with headphones on.  Does that mean we will disqualify you, not at all!" [So exactly what is the rule?]

"Results will be posted after the event.  DO NOT BOTHER THE TIMING COMPANY.  They are very busy and it takes hard work to do what they do.  If you go up and bug them, we will ask them to remove your time."  [If you can remember your chief rival's bib number, this unusual rule presents a golden opportunity.]

I had paid $30 for the 5K, which was plenty but actually a discount because I am in a running club.  The half marathon was $75, which I refused to pay, very good decision as things turned out.  My goal was to run 6:30 per mile.  The temperature was 74F at midnight and I thought there was a chance we would be under 70 for the race, but no go, turned out hot and windy.  I warmed up for a mile and a half and lined up at the front.  Almost everybody seemed to have half bibs on, so I thought I might have a chance to place.  Somebody with a pistol was talking, but I couldn't hear a word.  Thankfully she pointed it up before firing, and we were off.

First mile came in at 6:33, wind at our backs.  I got to a water station at about 1.5, kept going and finally saw a little sign that had a u-turn symbol and it said "5K turnaround".  So I turned around.  I could tell then that they had measured the course at least a quarter-mile long, not sure why nobody ever seems to get that pesky little detail right.  Second mile 6:43.  I was in second place at that point, but going back against the traffic it was impossible to keep track of the first-place guy.  A high-school kid came up behind me and passed me but I hung with him and he slowed down.  Repassed him at about 2.5 and saw the turn-in to the finish line, or so it appeared.  Orange cones guiding us off into a side street that looked just like the real thing.  I turned in of course, and the kid followed, but it was a trap.  I hit 3.11 miles and turned off my Garmin, but I knew long before then that I was lost and I had already slowed down, third mile 7:12, time for 3.11 was 21:18.  I told the kid we were lost, but he seemed to take it much better than I.  I ran an extra mile and a half before finally finding my way out of the neighborhood and getting to the finish line.  I have no idea what my official time was because the clock at the finish line was dark.  Should have asked the timing company just to make sure it didn't get recorded.  Looked like there were about 200-300 people running the 5K.  If you are running with a bunch of people you just follow the crowd, but if you are up front I guess you are on your own to figure the course out.

I just got in my car and drove home, didn't wait around, afraid I would say something I would regret. The thing that bothers me most was not missing out on the chance to get second place.  Any race where I would finish second is not really much of a race.  But I had saved a little something in the tank for the final push and I think I could have come in under 20:30, which would have been a 2-minute PR for me -- basically I didn't get to finish my race.  I feel like there is a certain element of dishonesty in taking people's money for a race then putting forth minimal effort to organize it.  But there is no incentive to do otherwise.  She sold out the half-marathon two weeks ago, $75 for an inaugural, unorganized no-name race in the heat, unbelievable.  Did I mention I was glad I didn't run the half?

PM:  10 hill miles on TM.