Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Gardens and Farms

First, a small update on my garden. I'm a complete novice which is bad news for my plants. But the good news is I'm learning quickly and haven't really spent a lot of money on this adventure. I've harvested a few radishes already (red and white) and my dad has been willing to give them a taste test. Some were a bit mushy in the middle which means I've picked too late. Beyond that, there's a long laundry list of things I'm doing wrong but hey, I'm learning.

Here's what the latest batch looked like.


In other news, we spent the holiday weekend adventuring around and doing some work. I spent Saturday working in the yard and on the trail. Sunday was hiking and biking and playing. Monday was laundry and a picnic. The kids had a good time, I got a new bike, and nobody died. Can't complain too much.

Here are the kids having fun at Westmoreland State Park and at the Westmoreland Berry Farm.




Monday, May 27, 2013

Podcast - Mile 60 - Whistles and Crosses

While attempting to run up the biggest hill near my house, I explain two specific items I always wear when I run; my whistle and my cross. While I often joke that it's my rape whistle, it isn't. It's because a whistle works better in emergencies than just yelling. The cross is a Celtic cross that's more a good luck charm than anything. If you listen, you'll understand more about why I wear both.

If you want to be blow your whistle on this episode directly, download it here. Otherwise you can pray to your God over on Podbean.

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Reverse Brick

Part 1

Hot. Humid. Blah. I'm so cold when winter is here then I regret wishing for warmer days when summer rolls around and roasts me like a damn pig. I wanted to go further today, somewhere around 5 or 6 miles, but the heat got to me too fast so I opted to run and ride. And it was pretty easy to convince myself to shorten my run since the only reason I wanted to go further was because I saw an OBEY sticker on a local street sign. It's the second I've seen in an area and I wanted to snap a picture but alas, I wimped out thanks to the heat.

The rest of the run was fairly boring. Snapped a picture at the bottom of the creek. Saw a dead snake and startled two others (I think, I never saw them but I know they're out to get me). And that was about it.

Photo:

Photo at the bottom of the creek.


Weather:
Temps were about 80F. Humidity was high. Sun was out. Light breeze.

Fluids and Fuel:
Breakfast was hash browns, iced latte, and a burrito. It was kind of a cheat day with food but I'm turning a corner because it just wasn't appetizing at all. Took a shot of Hammer Gel before the run. During the run I had a bottle of plain water and a bottle of Hammer Fizz. I didn't finish either but had about half of each. No recovery since I went into my bike ride.

Aches and Pains:
None really.

Gear:
Nothing special.

Experiment:
Took my large pepper spray. Decided to try it in the small pouch it came with. Seemed to work just fine.

Splits:
Outbound - 12:08
Inbound - 12:53
Finish - 25:01

Part 2

Did a fairly quick transition into my bike gear. Ditched my hat, grabbed my helmet and gloves, and swapped my fluids to a different bottle. I then headed down the road to the same stream, just further down stream than earlier. The gravel road was a bit dusty but I didn't kick up too many large rocks to impale my feet. Otherwise, a pretty calm ride. Although I did learn that beavers are afraid of my sneeze. Kind of odd, but hey, whatever keeps that damn things away.

Photo:

Photo of the same water, just further down stream.


Weather:
Temps were about 80F. Humidity was high. Sun was out. Light breeze.

Fluids and Fuel:
Coming off the run, I just took the leftover Hammer Fizz and added some ice cubes. I finished most of it during the ride. Recovery was Hammer Recoverite and leftover pork chop/stuffing/corn.

Aches and Pains:
None really but my feet tend to go numb after being on the bike a bit. Just had to shake out my feet a bit and all was good.

Gear:
Nothing special.

Experiment:
Kept the large pepper spray with me. Rode just fine.

Splits:
Outbound - 13:56
Inbound - 15:00
Finish - 28:57

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Some old photos

Forgot to post some photos from earlier so here they are.

First up is my failed run at Westmoreland Berry Farm and the Vorhees Nature Preserve.





And then we have William wearing my Stormtrooper helmet.


Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Skin Suit

Skin Suit:
Actually got my ass out of bed and onto the road this morning. It didn't feel great but I'm glad I at least got outside and got moving. The run was fairly uneventful as usual but a few highlights included a small but dead copperhead, a dead frog, and a turtle skimming the bottom of the creek. I also recorded another podcast episode in the hopes of getting back to a regular schedule of one a week. Ran past some construction workers who were nice enough to wave. Every car that went by was also nice enough to wave which felt good.

Beyond that, things were ho-hum.

Weather:
Temps were about 70F. Humidity was very high. No sun and all clouds.

Fluids and Fuel:
Pre-run meal was yogurt and some iced coffee. During the run I had a bottle of plain water. Recovery was more coffee, Hammer Recoverite, flaxseed waffles, bacon, and an egg.

Aches and Pains:
My right knee was still a little upset but nothing too bad. My right hip was also giving some anger pains but again, nothing too bad. Stomach is still growly but is gradually settling.

Gear:
Wore my Saucony tri-top. Which is pretty much a skin suit for my fat gut. And while I love that the zipper goes way down, it's pretty damn dangerous to zip back up when you have a hairy chest. Also took along my voice recorder.

Experiment:
Took my small pepper spray. Wanted to take the large one but it seemed a bit too large for the pocket in my tri-top. Rode well and didn't cause problems. Also took my phone for music but had it wrapped in a plastic newspaper bag in case in rained.

Splits:
Outbound - 22:25
Inbound - 22:02
Finish - 44:28

Monday, May 20, 2013

Podcast - Mile 59 - Trash Talk


As I huff and puff my way through yet another mile, I've forgotten what books I've finished. I intended to do reviews on them and, well, had a senior moment. So instead I talk about what I'm reading right now: The Guns of the South by Harry Turtledove and Becoming Odyssa by Jenn Pharr Davis.

In between that, I go on a rant like Ultradad and talk about trash on the trail. As it turns out, my trash talk takes up most of my time. At least it kept me distracted.

You can pick up this trashy episode right here or listen to the tripe on Podbean.

Friday, May 17, 2013

Just a short run

Not the best run but I managed to NOT get lost like yesterday. Of course by the time I got home I heard from my wife that if I had continued on and done my normal route, I would have come across a car accident. It was nice that she worried about me but I'm more happy about not being in the accident.

My stride felt a bit wonky the whole time. Going uphill felt more "right" as I could feel myself finding a nice tempo with a short stride and great foot plant. I just didn't have the stamina to keep it up. If you know what I mean. I also had to dodge a few cars along the way. Once was a bus which I did more out of kindness than necessity. Bus drivers have a shitty job so I did my best to make it easier. Second time was two cars coming in opposite directions so I just bailed out onto somebody's yard. Turns out they have poor drainage near their ditch and I nearly lost my shoe in the soft turf.

Weather:
Temps were about 65F. Humidity was moderate. No wind. Sun was out in full.

Fluids and Fuel:
Breakfast was yogurt and part of an iced coffee. During the run I had a bottle of plain water. Recovery was Hammer Recoverite, flax seed waffles, an egg, and some ham. Oh, and the rest of my coffee.

Aches and Pains:
Right knee was flaring up a bit but still no major pain. I think I'm just hyper-sensitive to it right now. Left quad and hamstring was also feeling tweaky. No idea why. Lower back was also tight but that's pretty normal based on how I sleep.

Gear:
Wore my little waist belt so I could carry my phone and listen to some tunes. I've confirmed yet again that animals, especially dogs, do not like to listen to Eminem.

Experiment:
Took my knife and phone. Phone was mostly for music. Knife fit well on my waist belt but periodically dangled a bit too far and would slap my junk. A bit uncomfortable.

Splits:
Outbound - 11:09 (downhill)
Inbound - 12:20 (uphill)
Finish - 23:29

Monday, May 13, 2013

Scouting the Slump

Scouting the Slump:
Nice easy run this morning to scout out the slump on the trail to see if it's clear for our dump truck to unload some rock. Not much exciting out there beyond a few trees down. Hoping my report will have enough intel to get the  backfill in. Stupid sinkhole is gradually growing and growing. Damn beavers aren't helping either.

Photos:

I call this the Isengard Swamp.


The big trees at Mile 6.25ish.


The small tree at Mile 4.75ish.


Weather:
Temps were about 50F at the start and about 65F by the end. Humidity wasn't that bad since it was cool. No wind. Sun was out.

Fluids and Fuel:
Breakfast was a burrito, yogurt, and iced coffee. During the run I had a bottle of Hammer Fizz and a bottle of plain water. Recovery was an iced latte and oatmeal.

Aches and Pains:
Ankles felt a bit wonky this morning. Right knee still had some mild pain but mostly after the run when I was going up my steps. Could also feel some of the sharp and pointy rocks through my shoes. Everything else felt fine.

Gear:
Nothing fancy but since it was cold this morning, I wore a thermal shirt, long tights, shorts, short sleeve shirt, gloves, and a buff. Also took my phone and voice recorder.

Experiment:
Took my knife and cell phone. Phone was mostly to take pictures with though. Knife felt a little uncomfortable in the waist band if I took too high of a step with my right leg.

Splits:
Mile 1 - 11:53
Mile 2 - 14:02
Mile 3+ - 22:37 (includes the extra 0.46 mile to turnaround point, a pee break, and photos of the downed tree)
Mile 4 - 11:53
Mile 5 - 11:31
Finish - 1:12:00

Friday, May 10, 2013

Rebirth

Rebirth:
I had intended to hit GW's birthplace as well as Westmoreland Berry Farm but due to time constraints, I had to skip the Berry Farm and head home. The trail was pretty wet and had plenty of roots but was generally flat as a pancake. The loop was maybe a mile long but I took two little spurs that added about half a mile. Both spurs took you to the historic area near the house but I didn't go beyond that. I just turned around and kept things to the main trail. Along the way I spotted two deer, two snakes, and a few angry squirrels. Didn't mind the animals but the snakes creeped me out. Yech.

Photos:

To get to the trail, follow the signs for PICNICKING. When you get to the last parking lot, look for this map and follow the trail around. The two spurs are on the Southern part of the loop and both go to the houses in the historic area.



Nice flat trail.



This is one of the spurs.



This is another boardwalk off the first spur.



Long bridge for the second spur.


Starting to get used to these selfies.


Weather:
Temps were about 75F with moderate to high humidity. Slight wind when I was near the water or swamp, otherwise it was calm. Sun was out in full.

Fluids and Fuel:
Breakfast was yogurt, two pancakes, a burrito, and an iced coffee. During the run I had one bottle of plain water. Recovery was iced latte, burger, and fries (it was a cheat day).

Aches and Pains:
Everything felt fine.

Gear:
No special gear. Shorts, shirt, hat, sunglasses, and camera.

Experiment:
Took my phone for the GPS but also took my large pepper spray. Carried just fine but got a little sweaty.

Splits:
Kept track via RunKeeper so I'll just ignore the splits.
Finish - 21:24

Thursday, May 09, 2013

Gunning It

Gunning It:
Just a short run today with a few walking breaks. Wanted to make sure my knee wasn't too jacked up from the weekend. Turns out, it's still jacked up but not quite as bad as I thought. It still hurts but my pain level is lower now that I've stretched things out and flushed the gunk from the muscles. I'm thinking I need to do some weights or flexibility training or something to make my training a bit more dynamic.


Photos:

My shorts.


My gun.


Tent worms.


Weather:
Temps were about 60F. Humidity was mild. Sun came and went with plenty of clouds in the skies. No wind.

Fluids and Fuel:
Breakfast was a burrito, yogurt, and coffee. During the run I had a bottle of water. Recovery was Hammer Recoverite followed later by lunch.

Aches and Pains:
Shins, right knee, ankles, calves, and quads hurt. Nothing hurt too bad but I could still feel it. Everything else was fine.

Gear:
Most of the interesting info will be in the next section but I wore a long sleeve shirt, buff, and my Sniper (c) shorts from T-Star Running.

Experiment:
Took my S&W 380 out for the first time today. Fit nicely in both side pockets of my shorts but rode better in the top pocket. Didn't jiggle and wiggle as much as the bottom pocket. And since I took my gun, i also had to take ID which was a pain but easily doable with the extra pockets. Also took my cell phone but that was mostly for photos and music.

Splits:
Outbound - 9:25
Inbound - 9:45
Finish - 19:10

Tuesday, May 07, 2013

Podcast - Mile 58 - Moon Cup Cycles

Mile 58 is upon us already. Hard to believe that I've belted out so many of these shows. Even harder to believe that anyone listens to them. And while I spout off about my 24 Hour race goals, I'll ruin the ending and tell you I stopped at 43 miles, just one loop shy of my 50 mile goal.

The rest of the show gets into the highs and lows of running, training, and life. I know a few other runners out there go through the same thing but there are so many times I feel like I'm alone out there. Deep down I know I'm not but not many people are willing to talk about their mental baggage. Instead the sweep it under the rug and ignore it. Like it's Great Grannie's dress stuffed into a steamer truck with moth balls in the attic. Even though you dig out the dress every few weeks to wear it around the house without telling anyone, you'd feel ashamed if somebody knew about it. When really there's nothing to be ashamed of.

So there you have it. The moon cup cycles of a runner. Not to worry though because I'm a Lumberjack and I'm okay.

You can get your Moon Cup directly here or listen to it over on Podbean.

Monday, May 06, 2013

2013 24 Hour ATR Race Report

Is The P-Word Bad?
So, 43 miles. 16 hours. Not exactly what I wanted for this race but it's still better than my minimum. Why don't we start with my goals. I had a minimum goal of 50k (31 miles or 5 loops). I met and exceeded that. My realistic goal was 50 miles (8 loops) and I missed that by one loop. My not-so-realistic goal was 100k (62 miles or 10 loops). I quickly learned by my 4th loop that I wasn't going to meet that goal so it quickly dropped.

So is the P-Word really that bad? I mean, a pussy can take a pounding by dick heads, bleed every month, and give birth to a new life. So why do we make it sound like a weak thing? I'd think a dick is weaker. Bend it in the wrong direction or try to squeeze a pea-sized stone through it and you'll make a man cry. What does all this have to do with my race? Well, I'm left wondering if I was a pussy or a dick after this race. Parts of me think I was smart to quit and parts of me think I was dumb. My head and my knee are thankful that I stopped when I did. But my heart is just broken that I gave up when I did.

Pre-Race
So I started my day with an early wake-up call. I was up at 0430 and gone by 0500. By 0600 I was at the park and parking my car. I had enough time to stop for a small breakfast and coffee before I got there. I also had plenty of time to get my personal aid station set up and settled in. Since it was May 4th, I set up my Stormtrooper helmet as a visual marker just to keep me focused on where I needed to go. It would pay off later. I also got a bead on where we started, where we came/went, and where the bathrooms were. And without much of a wait, we were off and running.

Loop 1 - Introductions - 1:34:10
As I started my first loop, I hung way back to the back just to keep myself out of the way from the front runners. The course was a figure-eight but the Start/Finish portion was so small, everyone just thought of it as a lollipop. From the Start we headed out past the bathrooms, down a trail, along the lake/pond, to the bridge. The scary bridge. The bridge that freaked me out every damn time I crossed it. I'm not afraid of heights but I am afraid of falling. And this bridge made me nervous. From there we ran the stick portion of the lollipop. It was fairly technical with plenty of rocks and narrow single-track trails. This would prove important later in the race as there would be two-way traffic. From the stick we turned to the right to make the loop in a counter-clockwise direction. We continued to follow the stream and most of this section was pretty flat, runnable, and easy. There were a few tougher sections with rocks but nothing too terrible. The halfway point was at a road crossing where there was water, Gatorade, and a bag of chips. But it wasn't set up for the first loop so I had no idea where I was on the route. This meant my first loop I ran through my water faster than expected and had to start to conserve. I knew the loop was 6 miles but a bottle usually lasts me only 3 miles. Well, as I came through 4 miles or so, I was much lower than expected so I started to conserve. I ran out right around the turn back onto the stick part of the course. I wasn't happy but I survived. Anyway, from the first road crossing (what would turn out to be the halfway point), we went about a mile up a gravel access road. It was a gentle slope but it was certainly uphill. We turned onto another trail, passed a small cemetery, then went through some rollers. From the cemetery on things were pretty much up or down. The downs were pretty easy to run and the ups were mostly short and not too painful. We crossed over another road and shortly after that we made it back to the stick where we followed our footsteps back to the dam. From the dam we took a gravel road up to the Start/Finish and aid station.

Loop 2 - Devil's Rock - 1:45:34
There were roughly 13 bridges that we had to cross (three of them we crossed twice) and only two small sections that were slightly muddy. As I was finishing my second loop I came across one of the last bridges and did a little bit of a jump/big step off the end. And promptly landed on a sharp stump with my left foot. Thankfully I didn't face-plant into the large rock right on the other side. Instead I limped and hobbled a bit until the pain lessened. Half a mile away, things were much better and I was able to carry on. This was also about the time I realized I needed to slow down a bit.

Loop 3 - Twerk It - 2:06:24
Sure enough, I slowed down. On purpose. I knew I had 24 hours to get miles in and if I wanted to survive that long, I needed to plan accordingly. This is one of the problems I have with timed-races is trying to manage speed over distance over time. If I do too much of one, I can't do the other. So for this lap I did a lot more walking. I still ran the flats and the down but walked all the hills and generally tried to chill out. I even made a minor detour (all of 20 feet) to check out a suspicious pile of rocks. It was off the marked trail on what was the old trail and it looked very much like a burial mound or cairn. Turns out it was a pet rock spot. Even had a little sign. Anyway, somewhere in this loop, I twerked my knee funny. I took a step, landed funny, and twerked it. Yes, twerked it. I didn't tweak it or twist it, I twerked it. Why did I choose the word twerk? because it looked all find and sexy when it happened but as time went on things just got uglier. Ultimately, my right knee getting twerked would be the reason for me stopping. But at the time, it was just a minor thing that I could push out of my mind.

Loop 4 - Wool Sweater/Friend Zone - 2:25:36
As I went through this loop, I was started to feel my knee a bit more and was started to slow down more. Again I told myself to save some energy for later and that's what I was trying to do. The heat also started to kick in and I started to overheat a bit. I even managed to run a bit without my shirt before eventually putting my tank top back on for fear of scaring the ladies out there. Or attracting Knobby's wife. There were two kids out on the course, one boy and one girl, that I had seen here and there. Both were about 12 or 14 and usually ran with an adult. I thought that was pretty awesome until I heard the girl talking to a lady she was running with (probably her mom). The conversation went something like "So you like Bobby?" "Yeah, I like Bobby, but just as a friend." I wanted to say something to the girl about telling poor Bobby that he was friend-zoned but alas, she was running in the other direction and I doubt her mom would have appreciated it.

Loop 5 - Nap Time - 2:38:36
As I finished 25 miles, I felt zonked. So I took a nap. That's right, I took a mother-fucking-nap. And it was awesome. How awesome? Consider this. My Loop 4 time was 2:25. I did lots of walking and felt like quitting. So when I finished, I laid down and put my feet up for 15 minutes. Then I spent another 15 minutes getting my gear together for another loop. So 30 minutes of my Loop 5 time was spent at the aid station. My Loop 5 time was 2:38. So with the nap factored in, I sped up. And I could feel it. I ran almost all of the first half of Loop 5. I felt like a new person. Maybe it was the coffee, maybe it was the Coke, maybe it was the nap, maybe it was something else. I don't know. But it was awesome. Granted, the second part of that loop wasn't as special, but I still had some run left in me to run most of the downs. I felt great coming in to the aid station again.

Loop 6 - What Lap - 2:41:21
Somewhere on this loop I began to loose my mind. I was still coherent but just couldn't keep things straight. I couldn't do the math in my head and had to spend several miles figuring out how much time I had left to do how many miles before my time was up. The pain in my right knee was gradually increasing which made figuring out the math all that much harder. So I toiled away until I finally figured out that the 100k distance was out of reach. But I felt that 50 miles was still a chance.

Loop 7 - Tab To The Rescue - 2:47:54
As I finished Loop 6, I was happy to see Tab there waiting for me at the Aid Station. We geared up and headed out for a loop. Things were getting dark and I had already started using my headlamp at the end of the last loop but things were really getting dark now. So we ran in the night, talked about everything under the sun, and Tab made me feel like a very special person. In many ways. But don't worry, we kept our clothes on. Except that one time. When I had to pee.

Post-Race
By the time we neared the end of the last loop, I was done and I knew it. My knee just couldn't take it anymore. Well, it could take some of it, but not all of it. The flats were just fine. I could walk with almost no pain. The uphills were okay, I just had no power in my right knee. The downhills were just getting scary. I had to do a zombie-stiff-leg hobble down steps, which were okay, but any sort of downhill grade and it hurt like hell. I know, things are supposed to hurt in an ultra. But this wasn't that kind of a hurt, this was a kind of hurt that didn't feel right. And I decided to err on the side of caution and not jack myself up by being stupid. So I called it quits. I felt horrible for dragging Tab out for all this time just to quit after one lap. So I told her to go pace another guy who was walking just about the same speed as I was. She ended up pacing him for two more loops so that made me feel good that he was able to go that far.

After I quit, I slowly gathered my crap and got things organized. I even took an impromptu shower that didn't get me super clean but it at least got most of the crap off me. I napped a bit, helped crew Tab and her walker Joe as they came through again, then napped some more, then took some stuff to my car.

A few side notes:
- Even though I was dehydrated after my first loop, I hydrated the rest of the race perfectly. I had enough to drink to pee but not too much to pee every mile. I think I averaged a pee break every loop to loop and a half.
- I didn't use any music. While a small victory, it was unplanned. I intended to use music on Loop 6 but I forgot my battery. So I handed it to a kid who was volunteering and he put it back with my gear. I was thankful that he knew what a Stormtrooper helmet was.
- Speaking of Stormtrooper helmets, it made it easy for me to tell Tab where my gear was. I simply said "look for my Stormtrooper helmet" and was safe in knowing I was the only Star Wars geek there celebrating May the Fourth Be With You.
- Speaking of celebrating, I also had a Mexican blanket down for Cinco de Mayo but nobody offered me any Corona. Probably a good thing.
- Tab is a super-awesome person. In many ways what I did wouldn't be possible without her. While the burger was great, the company was even better. We both vented, gossiped, and shared stories. I'd gush more about how great she is but I don't want her head to swell too much.
- Two lights at night is the way to go. I ran a little with just one light before I realized how much I hated it. Two lights, especially at two different levels, gives much better depth perception. I also felt much safer (and smarter) carrying spare batteries. Some guy had his batteries die and he blindly walked a mile or so before somebody loaned him a spare headlamp.
- This race was the first time I had any chafe issues with my T-Star Running shorts. It wasn't bad but I had a seam that started to annoy me after 25 miles or so. I took the buff off my head and put it around my other one and things were good. Well, I didn't wrap it around, I mean, things aren't that big down there. But I tucked it in like a cook or quarterback would tuck in a rag. I'm sure I got some funny looks when people saw it hanging out of my shorts like a funny looking kilt but it worked. It worked awesomely. So awesomely I'm wondering if the design could be improved somehow.
- I really need to train more.
- No, really, I need to train more. I'm starting to wonder if the 8, 24, and 12 hour races will be my goal races in 2014. The 8 hour kicked my ass two years ago and the 24 hour kicked my ass this year. I think I'm starting to grow plans for revenge. Twice I've been vexed by this race series. I want to do better. I need to do better.
- Even though I bailed out at 43 miles, I'm happy I did. Sure, I'm disappointed, but my knee is thankful that I quit when I did.
- My wife is awesome. More awesome than Tab. She dealt with the SAT's, her mother, her sister, our kids, groceries, and me over the weekend. I never heard her complain about it and I'm thankful for it all.

Photos:
Me getting my pre-race face on.


The start.








A selfie because I know Lauren would appreciate it. Too bad I don't smile like she does!


I swear this tree unloaded on the ground. Oh, and that's Joyce in front of me. She killed it out there.


The scary bridge.




Weather:
Temps started out around 35F to 40F but quickly warmed to about 70F in the afternoon. By sundown and into the night it went back to about 40F. Skies were clear the entire day. Wind was light to moderate.

Fluids and Fuel:
Aside from my slightly dehydrated first loop, everything with my fluids and fuel went perfectly. I was peeing on a regular basis and it was the right color. My fingers were only slightly swollen. I had water, Hammer Fizz, an iced latte, some Coke, some coffee, and a few other things I don't remember. For food, I had some breakfast burritos, pierogies, grilled cheese, and one bottle of Hammer Perpeteum and Hammer Recoverite (mixing them didn't work as well as I had hoped).

Aches and Pains:
Already talked about my right knee. It still hurts but is getting better. Everything else is feeling sore but that's normal. I will say that my legs hurt far less today than they did after Leatherwood.

Gear:
Nothing too special for the race. Most everything has been tested over time. I started with gloves, t-shirt, two shorts, and a buff. I would eventually cycled through two tank tops before going to a long sleeve shirt and then to a thermal shirt with a t-shirt over it and a winter hat.

Experiment:
N/A

Splits:
I listed them above.
Finish - 43.75 miles - 15:59:35

Thursday, May 02, 2013

Cycles

Just a short, easy run to keep the legs free from rust. That's all.


Photos:


Weather:
Temps were about 50F. Skies were cloudy. Slightly humid from the previous day's rain.

Fluids and Fuel:
Pre-run was yogurt and water. During the run was about half a bottle of plain water. Recovery was iced latte, hash browns, and a breakfast burrito.

Aches and Pains:
Nothing.

Gear:
Wore my new Buff today. Worked great but I still wish it was designed for people with large heads like me. Also wore my new T-Star Running shorts. They also worked great once they stopped sliding down my ass. Maybe I need to get a bigger butt.

Experiment:
I'm disappointed in myself for forgetting to carry something other than my phone.

Splits:
Mile 1 - 13:59
Mile 2 - 13:44
Finish - 27:44