tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55095038489268667532024-03-14T14:49:07.587-04:00South County TrailsJonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.comBlogger411125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-72995470960337664352017-12-04T13:46:00.001-05:002017-12-20T17:24:51.133-05:00December Running ChallengeMotivation is a tricky thing, and I continue to find ways to keep running day after day, year after year. I've recently returned to an old standby: chasing miles. I realized a few weeks ago that I was falling behind my random goal of 3,000 miles on Strava for the year. I ended November with 2,695.5 GPS miles. If I still kept track of my miles manually, I would be at about 2,800. But, I'm too lazy for that, so here I am with a new way to keep myself running every day. For the month of December I need to run 304.5 miles on my watch. To maximize mileage, I need to forgo trails (at least technical, twisty ones) for the most part. With shotgun deer season, this is more palatable. Also, I won't seek hilly routes every day either. Hopefully, my body can handle it. I do have one race (Christmas 10K in Newport on Sunday the 10th) which will throw a wrench into this, but I will try to keep mileage up while "tapering". Additionally, it can always be tricky training around the Christmas break. This is going to be fun! I will update this post frequently during the month.<br />
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2017 GOAL: 3,000.0 DECEMBER GOAL: 304.5<br />
2017 TO DATE: 2,892.3 DECEMBER TO DATE: 196.8<br />
MILES TO GO: 107.7<br />
DAYS TO GO: 11<br />
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December Daily Log:<br />
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(1) 10.4 miles - Mt Tom trails. 1:42:49 with 1,639' of elevation gain. Not the best way to maximize miles, but a tremendous amount of fun on the last day between deer seasons.<br />
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(2) 9.2 miles - local runs. 3 miles in Burlingame with Jackson on his mtn bike. Good stuff. Found a very cool historical cemetery (Charlestown #67) by guessing wrong on an old lane. 32:09 with 200' of gain. A little later I ran local roads - 6.2 miles in 47:18 with 285'.<br />
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(3) 13.6 miles - Clark Falls / Green Falls road loop. Chilly start, but great weather. Ran solo from Clark Falls up Denison Hill Rd. After 4 miles, the road turns to gravel/dirt near Green Falls. Returned via Wheeler Rd (includes a nice dirt section) and Rte 49 (yuck). To get up to 75 miles for the week, I left the loop to climb up Boom Bridge Road. Total time 1:46:00 with 860' of gain.<br />
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(4) 10.5 miles - Matunuck / Green Hill. 1:23:42 with 196'. I was in this neck of the woods and it seemed like my best shot for natural light before turning on the headlamp. Parked at Deep Hole and zigzagged around Matunuck roads and then headed west past Trustom Pond to Green Hill. I climbed the "hill" and enjoyed the twilight water views. I decided to make part of my run a loop, and headed for the beach. Very slow going at first, but then eventually found hard packed sand. Darkness really setting in, headwind, but a great time running along the ocean. I hopped back onto Matunuck roads and donned my headlamp. Body felt good and running felt smooth. Slower paced than I anticipated, but who cares. Right?<br />
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(5) 10.5 miles - Queens River Loop. 1:19:28' with 326'. Okay mix of dirt and paved roads with 1 mile of trails at the end. One decent hill on Glen Rock Road. Ran early to beat the rain, but it rained most of the time. Legs feel great. Perky finish.<br />
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(6) 11.5 miles - Exeter / Richmond road loop. About 3 miles on dirt, the rest on mostly back roads. Feeling surprisingly fantastic. Chilly, but dressed appropriately. Pushed the final hill up and down. 1:26:09 with 933' of climbing.<br />
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(7) 10 miles - Quonset Bike Path and Calf Pasture Point. 1:15:58 with 250'. Nice to run here again after a long hiatus.<br />
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(8) 9.5 miles - Hillsdale Loop. 1:13:28 with 812'. Mostly roads (some trails) loop from Crawley Preserve. Overcast and feels like snow. Hoping to run early tomorrow before it collects on roads. Race Sunday.<br />
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(9) 6.5 miles - local roads in the morning. 50:20 with 501'. Began in a snow shower, but it faded after a few minutes. Legs tight at the start, but loosened up. Maybe I'll get back out later if I can snowshoe.<br />
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(10) 13.1 miles - Christmas 10K in Newport. 7th overall - 35:39. Pretty good race. I warmed up with a group of Turtles, officially meeting Zack Kudlak for the 1st time, and my legs and body felt really good. I wasn't sure with all the recent mileage. After lollygagging in my car, changing into my race attire, I got another mile plus in of jogging and strides. As for the race, I went out at a decent clip, hanging with a chase pack (Bronson out all alone immediately) that included local nemesises Bob Jackman, Steve Brightman, Mike Macedo, and Zack. Also there was a shirtless santa and another guy (last year's winner). After some hemming and hawing for two miles, things got strung out along Brenton Point. I was feeling strong, but maxed out speed wise. I watched as last year's winner, Jackman, Mike and Steve, pulled slowly ahead of me. I thought that 6th place would be my calling today, although you never know who may slow near the end (assuming it wasn't going to be me - haha). At 3 miles, Zack caught me, which was a surprise. I was not slowing. He pulled ahead by a couple of seconds and then remained there. I couldn't bridge the gap: not on the ups, downs, or flats. Frustrating! No one appeared to be remotely close behind. My race was in front of me. On and on the race went along Ocean Drive. There was a great tail wind and the road was in decent shape, especially since yesterday's snow. Near mile 5 there was a huge puddle/pond in the road. I watched the guys ahead try to run around it, but it looked muddy and wet anyway. I plowed right down the middle and it was deep! I wish Scott Mason had a hidden video camera here. Anyway, the last mile is the worst finishing mile in any race. There is a half mile plus long life-sucking hill. My strong point, I really thought I would catch up to Zack and a now fading Jackman here. No dice. After a way too brief screaming downhill, there is another steep wall to climb, before a long finishing shoot at the high school. I couldn't catch up and finished in 35:39, 7th overall. I was happy with my effort and can only guess the difference between this year's time and last year's (surprising PR of 34:57) was the mileage on my legs. I wasn't doing any speedwork last year either, but definitely had less miles coming in. This year was only 2 seconds behind the 35:37 I ran in 2013, when I trained so hard specifically for this race, and was doing a ton of workouts. Interesting to note. Long cool down with the Turtles again. Bonking by the end. Met up with WTAC teammates inside and ate too many Allie's Donuts halves. Yum! 2nd place Master - Brightman needs to get out of my age group! 2nd place team. Fun event.<br />
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(11) 7.1 miles - local road loop. Recovery run with a speedy finish. Ran the gamut from feeling horrible to fantastic. 52:11 with 431'.<br />
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(12) 0 miles - couldn't find the time to run. Yuck.<br />
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(13) 11.3 miles - Saunderstown hills. A wander up and down sheltered hilly roads (stiff NW wind) and a short romp on trails at the end. 1:27:42 with 1,129'.<br />
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(14) 6.6 miles - late afternoon on snowy Burlingame campground trails. Another crazy day, but I salvaged it with this run. Loved being alone in the dark woods with a cover of snow. I wish I remembered I don't have any Yaktrax (I threw out the 3 broken ones in my car last year). They would have been perfect. 59:07 with 341'.<br />
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(15) 7.1 miles - afternoon run on the north side of Burlingame. A little more snow on the ground. I began from Burdickville Rd and realized that shotgun season was still going on. Checking online, Burlingame is in Zone 1 and the season didn't end until 12/17. Oops. The hunter I ran into on the River Trail was very pleasant. I felt bad. I also hadn't seen any deer tracks on this trail, just coyote. I crossed over Buckeye Brook Rd and ran trails close to the road. No hunters here. 1:00:02 with 607'. Not feeling optimistic about completing my GPS challenge, but I'm enjoying these shorter (and much tougher!) runs in the snow.<br />
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(16) 10.2 miles - afternoon run in Carter Preserve. The 3rd straight day of measurable (albeit not much) new snow. My body felt tired and sore in the usual places after snow running. I muscled through a bad attitude and zigzagged my way around the preserve trails from the Kings Factory Rd lot. I was laying down first tracks in the middle section, but a few others had been out before me near the parking lots. I did pop out onto Rte 91 after 70 minutes of tough running and ran mostly roads back (except for the powerline). 1:33:00 with 646'.<br />
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(17) 16.2 miles - morning solo long run. I quickly mapped out a couple of ideas for a long run before jumping out the door. It was chilly (mid 20's). I ran local roads and then headed out to Rte 91 in Alton. I then continued on back roads in and around Ashaway. I warmed up once I headed back east after 10 miles (west wind). I was pushing myself harder (and feeling faster) on this hilly return. Plenty of hills throughout the run. My body happily didn't feel awful, but my pace on the early miles was lackluster. 1:56:31 with 1,152'. I'm happy to end up with 58.5 GPS miles on the week. I still might be able to do this.<br />
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(18) 11.0 miles - dark, mushy, rainy bike path. Work is just so crazy busy. I left late and ran the safest spot I could think of on my way home. Why is it raining? 34 degrees. The bike path was plowed, and the remaing snow and ice could be mostly dodged. Really wet though. 1:21:39 with 233'.<br />
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(19) 13.3 miles - long loop around Richmond/Exeter. 1:39:02 with 814'. I parked on Hillsdale Rd at the Beaver River. I headed north and decided to increase my planned loop of all roads by following Bell Schoolhouse Rd north. Half of this road is a "Pass At Own Risk" dirt road, and is rather messy these days. I continued on dirt - NLT to the very hill Ten Rod Road west to Rte 3. One more short stretch of dirt on Carolina Back Rd. Rather hilly loop. Felt really good. <br />
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(20) 9.2 miles - Carter Preserve workout. My plan was to run hills, but ended up at Carter off Rte 112. Ran the awesome singletrack trails to the Grassland (3.2 GPS miles). Ditched my wind breaker layer and ran 3 Grassland loops in 18:10. This should measure about 5K, but today my watch gave me 2.8 miles. BS!! Each lap usually measures a little over 1 mile (1.03 or so) and I ran 3 in a row in 18:10. No peeking at my watch until the end of lap 3. Strong tempo effort. Cool down back around the Grassland, over to the powerline, and back on Old Mill Rd. 1:14:02 with 420'. <br />
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<br />Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-35049328544337547602017-09-08T18:18:00.001-04:002017-09-14T16:11:36.445-04:00Almost Race Time! (9/14 UPDATE)Getting ready for the Kismet Cliff Beast of the East mountain race in 2 weeks (registered), and hopefully squeaking in the Pisgah 23K next Sunday too. It was an awesome summer of fun and running went rather well. GPS mileage hasn't looked great, but I've been spending an inordinate amount of time deep in the woods running up and down obscure hills. The time on feet is there. The elevation is there. The couple of times I've tried, I've still got decent road speed. I'm looking forward to testing fitness in races! <br />
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Week of 9/4/17 to 9/10/17:<br />
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GPS miles: 62.6<br />
Let's call it: 67<br />
Time on feet: 9 hrs 32 min<br />
Elevation (non-barometer watch): 6,562'<br />
Synopsis: Really great work week and then petered out on the weekend. I'm fine with it. It's good to listen to my body and train accordingly. After some research, I purchased a new trail shoe for technical stuff/mountain runs: La Sportiva Bushidos. I've used them 3 times and like them. They are a bit heavier than what I typically wear (10.5oz), but that hasn't been an issue. I find I have more confidence descending on tricky footing which is exactly what I need to improve in this area. I will continue to run in them before my upcoming races: Pisgah 23K and Kismet Cliff Beast of the East. <br />
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Yes! Pisgah looks like a go for Sunday. We are going to a party at the Puddin's on Saturday night, so I'll need to behave and also drive up super early on race day. I've done this before and it's a pleasant drive. It will be great to continue my tradition of doing the Pisgah races (10 in a row?) and hang with my brothers and other local runners I've befriended over the years. It's a bit intimidating to think about the 23K. Running all out for 15ish miles of hilly trails is exhausting. I'm not sure what to expect timewise, but I will do my best.<br />
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Week of 9/11/17 to 9/17/17:<br />
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Through 4 days:<br />
GPS miles: 31.9<br />
Let's call it: 36<br />
Time on feet: 5 hrs 4 min<br />
Elevation (non-barometer watch): 4,104'<br />
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Looking for a couple of more days on rocky hilly terrain and then shutting it down to taper mode. <br />
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9/14/17: I've had a little too much fun running technical trails and hills through Thursday. Oops! At least I'm getting used to the new shoes. I will take it easy Friday and Saturday (this will be my mantra). Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-19563719138064461202017-03-01T14:09:00.001-05:002017-03-01T14:09:38.785-05:00Long Weekends: 2-20-17 to 2-26-17Monday: 7 miles in 1:00:09. Snowshoe run in Westbrook Maine on snowmobile groomed trails. This was great. The morning after skiing, I was feeling pretty good and excited to run. My friends suggested a place to start (Community Ctr), and I began heading north on the power lines. Right away I had the biggest climb of the day and it was tough. The snow was good to run on, but because of yesterday's warmth and this morning's near freezing temperature, it was a bit frozen and uneven in spots. No worries. After dropping down the other side, the terrain was less hilly and I got into a decent groove. At 2 miles I stopped at an intersection that had a kiosk with map. There were 2 fatbike riders there as well who were very friendly and told me how hardcore I was. Haha, maybe that's why I liked them. I decided to go west on a very wide power line, cross a road, then continue west on the same powerline until it hit the Mountain Division Rail Trail. The sun in the wide power line felt delicious, and this was a great way to (hopefully) finish winter running. After a mile heading south on the rail trail, I found my exit to the east bringing me back out to the road, across it, and into a groomed golf course. I hoped it connected to the original power line so I could get back to my car. After a few nervous moments, I could see the connection I needed. Instead of following my tracks back, I opted to veer into the woods and follow a trail that should get me back near my car. This was great. Deep woods, groomed, and rolling. I popped out just above my car. Great stuff. <br />
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Tuesday: 20 mile double. AM - 17 miles in 2:15:29. North Stonington MLR turned LR with Muddy. Vacation day! Convinced Muddy to join me for an easy longish run. I revised my plan to include less hills, but it included some new terrain for both of us. A great sunny cool morning. We parked at the NoSto basketball courts (where my brothers and I would play in the summer after a greasy day working down the road at McDonald's). We headed south down Rocky Hollow Rd, west on 184, then north on Jeremy Hill Rd (with a sneaky picturesque open summit). We then traveled east to and across Rte 2. We now ran through the village center, somewhere I had never been. Cool old houses and buildings. We then made our way north on Wyassup Rd. We veered NE on Chester Main Rd, which was a very big hill past the winery. Our deep conversation made this hill pass without much notice. As we approached Hangman Hill Rd, I had the idea of mixing up the run. We decided to head north and jump into the Tefftweald Preserve. I had noticed it the previous night looking for places to run in town. There was still a couple of inches of wet snow on the trails, but we had so much fun exploring this interesting place. A great place to go back and take the family hiking. We then took the shortest way back to the car via roads. This included backtracking on Hangman Hill and up and over Chester Main, back into the village. Ended up going longer than planned, but such a good run. <br />
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PM - 3 miles in 56:03. Family hike on the Cliff Walk in Newport. <br />
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Wednesday: 7.5 miles in 1:01:43. King Preserve trails with Nate. Fun recovery run from the parking lot on 1A. It was muddy, but not as bad as I feared. Good conversation as we wandered around. <br />
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Thursday: 11.5 miles in 1:20:14. Saunderstown roads with hills plus strides at the end. I pushed the hill climbs (Cottrell, 2xGSR, Plum Beach) hard enough to call this a workout. 6 x 30 seconds on/off at the end along 1A. Mapped out as 1,200' elevation gain. <br />
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Friday: 2 miles in 30 minutes. Vacation Day! Home with the kids on a very warm and sunny day. Did outside chores then spent a lot of time just reading in the sunshine. I fell asleep in the afternoon when my wife came home rather than run. Later, she and I briskly walked around downtown Westerly while the kids had karate class. Dinner at the Pizza Place followed. <br />
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Saturday: 17 miles in 2:07:55. Long trail run/workout in Burlingame solo. I was motivated to run in the morning and got out the door on another mild day. I kept my running easy as I made my way around the north side of the park. I then approached the north camp trail on Buckeye Brook Rd. Earlier in the week, Jeff had measured out a potential new point to point course for this year's Back Road Ramble. It began at the top of the camp double track, headed south to the pond, back up the single track on the other side, all the way up to Sammy C's. It followed Sammy C's all the way back down to Vin Gormley, before exiting the trails on King's Factory Rd. I'm really excited about racing this. So after 42 minutes of easy trail running, I ran this course rather hard. It was fun and challenging. The rocks were wet on Sammy C's which made me cautious, but I still managed to run 19:19 (new CR) for this segment. The entire tempo took me 35:39. I felt good about my overall effort and this also seemed like a good workout for the upcoming Ryan Park 10K. I caught my breath and then headed back into the woods via VG. I then did Lenny's Lane, back to VG, and then across the street to the hilly north side. It ended up being over a 50 minute "cool down". Good stuff. Opened up the outdoor shower after. <br />
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Sunday: 12 mile double. In the AM, I decided to head to Woody Hill and explore the trails there on my own. I've only been in there with a guide. I parked at the field and ran up the hill. I then took lefts and backtracked when necessary. Some of the terrain is really fun. Hills and rocks. I eventually made it to the top of the pond, but the beaver dam looked too treacherous to cross on this day. I then made my way to Hansel and Gretel Trail, and then explored the upper field. I didn't realize there was a fun, well-marked trail on the other side. My pace quickened as I ran down this hill. It popped out right at the field. I tacked on one more hill climb, and ran the road down the hill back to my car. 10 miles in 1:23:52. In the PM, my son, mother-in-law, and I hiked in Arcadia. We were going to do Ben Utter Trail, but the dirt road was closed. We opted to park at Frosty Hollow Pond and follow the Shelter Trail up to Breakheart Pond. Such a cool trail. We made a loop by taking John B Hudson Trail back. 2 miles in 35 minutes. <br />
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Weekly Total: 77 miles<br />
Last Week: 52 miles<br />
February to Date: 242 miles<br />
Year to Date: 524 milesJonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-49581028260259381722017-02-22T16:34:00.000-05:002017-02-22T16:34:10.346-05:00Winter Conditions: 2-13-17 to 2-19-17This was another strange week of running. My legs got trashed and are still recovering. <br />
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Monday: 8 miles in 1:02:43. Solo snowshoe run in Ryan Park. Late afternoon start from the upper Oak Hill Rd lot. The main trails were packed rather nicely (a bit uneven but good for RI). I ran through the fields, down the rail bed, around the pond, and back. My average GPS pace was right around 10 minutes per mile. I was moving well. At the end of my run, I encountered another snowshoe runner coming my way - Scott Mason. We stopped and chatted for a few minutes. He went on to the power line and said the snow was deep and untracked. Glad I stuck to the main trails. <br />
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Tuesday: 8 miles in 1:04:26. Snowshoe run in Ryan Park with Galoob. Met at the same lot as yesterday, and conditions were still good. Mike was leading and the pace was a touch hot for me. I kept up without much trouble, but this was a good workout. Our average GPS pace was around 9 minutes per mile. I think I got my fix of snowshoe running. <br />
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Wednesday: 12 miles in 1:24:37. Solo hilly road run in West Greenwich. My legs and lower core felt tired, but I had the opportunity to do a fun run, so I just battled through it. I opted for a very hilly road run. It began on a side street 2/3 of the way up Plain Meeting House Road climb, then headed back down the hill (west) on the road all the way to the four corners. My GPS couldn't find me until 3.3 miles into the run which was annoying. I continued west down Liberty Hill Rd. I then went south on Hudson Pond Road, which is in the middle of nowhere along Kelley Brook, and beautiful. I then went west on Falls River Rd. I had hoped to summit Escoheag Hill via this dirt road, but ran out of time. I turned around at Stepstone Falls and retraced my steps. This direction was a long climb up Liberty Hill Road and finished with the Plain Meeting House monster (360' in 1 mile). My average pace for the run was pretty good, once I figured out the GPS glitch, and considering the hilliness. <br />
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Thursday: 4.5 miles in 34:13. Short recovery run with Galoob in Saunderstown. We both were hurting (he did a 22 mile run the day before) and we cut our planned easy hour short. I thought I might head out later to gobble a few more miles, but my day got way too busy. <br />
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Friday: 15 miles in 1:42:25. Solo hilly uptempo run in West Greenwich. Parked at the same place as Wednesday, with plans to follow my same out-and-back course, but this time making it up and over Escoheag Hill. I pushed the hills a little harder today, and also kept a steady pace on the flats and downs. I was averaging 6:42 pace until I hit the climb up Falls River Rd. Here I encountered iced over snow on the dirt road that climbs dramatically straight up. I had to find traction on the non-icy snow, which I sank in. This was a horrific experience. I made it to the top without stopping, but it was a slow sufferfest. I then continued on Escoheag Hill Rd (paved) heading north, back down the hill. Here I had to deal with a loose, aggressive dog. It looked mean and was harassing me. My loud stern voice wasn't working. A car came down the road, and paused to watch the interaction. It distracted the dog enough that I could run by. I began hammering the down hill, and the dog was soon out of sight. Annoying! Anyway, I reached my turnaround point, but I didn't want to repeat the Escoheag Hill debacles. I soldiered on up the road, hoping my memory of maps was correct. I was heading north for quite a while, but did find a connecting road to Hudson Pond Rd that I thought existed. A bit of a relief, but I wasn't sure what my mileage back to my car would be. I reconnected to my original route, having to blast up the two big hills. I got my average pace back down to 6:49 (6:41 GAP), but it was no doubt much faster without the slow snow climb. <br />
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Saturday: 4.5 miles in 32:00. Short solo run from my house. Legs felt trashed. We were traveling up to Maine later in the morning, so I forced myself to do a run beforehand. The weather was really nice and I tried to enjoy myself. I began mixing in short strides, which did seem to help loosen up my legs. <br />
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Sunday: XT - Shawnee Peak skiing with family and friends. This was my first time skiing in maybe 15 years, and the first time taking the kids somewhere besides Yawgoo Valley (for lessons). It was very warm on the mountain (mid 50's in the late morning, down to high 30's at 5pm). We got in a full day of skiing with our Maine friends, and everyone had a great time. It was fun! <br />
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Weekly Total: 52 miles<br />
Last Week: 62 miles<br />
February to Date: 165 miles<br />
Year to Date: 447 milesJonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-18696560846334566882017-02-10T13:15:00.000-05:002017-02-13T13:48:27.003-05:00Weekly Log: 2-6-17 to 2-12-17This is shaping up to be a weird week of running. Lethargy early in the week after Super Sunday's long run, then a random midweek long run, then a snowstorm leaving behind plenty of snow (on trails) and really crappy road conditions. <br />
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Monday: 3.5 miles in 30:39. Mount Tom trails in Arcadia after work. I had to stop by my mother-in-law's house on my way home, so after putting off a run all day, I opted to sneak one in near her house. Sunset on the Mount Tom ledges seemed lovely. I had more spring in my step than anticipated and enjoyed running up the ledges, across 165 and then did a loop around the old "Broken Rib" mtn bike trail. I then had to return via the ledges as the light was really fading. My watch had 513' of climbing so probably a couple hundred more in actuality, Suunto would give it 950'. <br />
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Tuesday: 8.5 miles in 1:07:52. Carolina hills after work. Another day of no motivation until the last minute. Drizzly and dark when I began at 4:23PM and pitch black when I finished (no headlamp) at 5:30PM. I drove the dirt road north on Pine Hill Rd to the end (impatiently driving through potholes). I then ran north then west up and over a hill to get to the trout pond parking lot. I ran north to Kenyon Hill Rd (half dirt, half paved). This is a good hill from both directions. I summitted 4 times, twice in each direction. These felt good as I seemed to be recovered from the long run, and I wasn't pushing too hard. I debated the merit of returning back to my car through the woods the way I came, but just went for it. I managed to stay upright on the long down hill at the end. Strided it out on the flat dirt road just for good measure. Well over 1000' of climbing. <br />
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Wednesday: 15 miles in 2:00:21. Hilly roads and trails in West Greenwich. Quiet at work and I had extra time to run. Spent too long trying to figure out where/what to run. Big slow hills won out over tempo/interval work. It's that kind of week. I parked at the Wickaboxet SP lot and ran down and then up Plain Meeting House Rd (biggest climb in RI I think). Instead of summitting, I took a right on Stubble Brook Rd, which climbed anyway and then was a roller coaster the rest of the way. This was a nice road, out in the middle of nowhere near the URI Alton Jones campus. I reached Rte 102 and had a short stretch uphill to the <a href="http://www.wglandtrust.org/frypondconservationarea.htm">Fry Pond Conservation Area</a> - a WG Land Trust holding. I had run in here once before (and also hiked with my family) and remembered how rugged this small trail system was. Well, it was even tougher than I remembered, and my legs were fried from all the hills this week. I stumbled a couple of times, falling once, but it is a beautiful place and worth the effort to visit. <br />
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Hillside trail is no joke. Great views of cedar swamp and pond from loop. </div>
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After 30 minutes, it was back on the roads the way I came. Once I reached Plain Meeting House Rd, I head right up the final 150' of the hill climb and then went back into the woods via Welch Hollow Rd (an unimproved dirt road that is currently a humungous mess). So it was really warm (mid 50's), and the ground was thawing bigly. I couldn't wait to get into Wickaboxet and onto firmer singletrack. I was tiring, and a little worried about the climb back out to the roads (via the WGLT <a href="http://www.wglandtrust.org/prattconservationarea.htm">Pratt Conservation Area</a> ). </div>
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Pratt Trail map</div>
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This is a very steep hill, but I kept my pace to grind mode and made it through. By now I was weak, wobbly, and hungry. However, I wanted to get to 2 hours. This meant a detour back up Plain Meeting House Rd to the summit, and then all the way back down (and then up) to my car. Tough run. 1442' of climbing on my watch, which is not easy to do! </div>
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Thursday: 5 miles in 42:05. Snow run from my house around north Burlingame. No school or work because of the storm. It rained for a while, then sleet, then finally snow around 10am. The ground and road were coated with snow when I decided to go do a short run before the weather got really nasty. I put on my Inov8's and got out the door quickly. I wish I had Yaktrax! My 2 pairs from last year got thrown out over the summer when I realized they were all broken. I was getting by without them this winter, but man they would have been perfect on this run. Snow over wet trails = a lot of slipping and very tiring on tired legs to begin with. The wind was terrible on the road, which led to stinging sideways snow. The woods were magnificent however (minus the slipping). I wished that I didn't tell my wife I'd only be gone 30 minutes, because I could have spent way more time wandering around the trails. Oh well. I stretched my run a bit, and the headwind on the final 1/3 mile to my house gave me an ice cream headache. Back inside for the duration of the storm. </div>
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Friday: 9 miles in 1:19:25. Snowshoe run/slog in Ryan Park with Galoob. Surprisingly, we were the first to lay tracks on the rail bed. We took turns leading and doing the grunt work. After a loop around the pond, we decided to turn around and take advantage of the snow packing we just did. It still wasn't ideal, but a little easier. We then opted to head back down the rail bed and back. Tough work and tiring. Talked to a couple from Vermont who just finished up their xc ski. They also run trails and were excited to hear about the upcoming Belleville Pond 10K here in a few weeks. </div>
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Saturday: 0. My run (snowshoe) had to be early or late. I wasn't motivated for either. Errands with the kids in the morning and then we went to Hope Valley School to sled in the afternoon. I didn't sled, but got a workout shoving my kids at takeoff. It was getting really warm, but their tubes still gave them good rides. Annoyed at night that I didn't make the effort to do a short run, but whatever. </div>
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Sunday: 21 miles in 2:29:34. Solo long run on roads in the morning from my house. So not motivated to do a long run, especially alone. I don't really have a long race coming up, so there really isn't any urgency. I just like doing them, more so when I can mix in trails. Another storm was brewing and I thought I would get caught in rain or snow while out on my run. I mostly stuck to a route I came up with the night before, heading down Burdickville Rd, 91-216 to Tomaquag Rd. West on Woodville to Hopkinton City. I was feeling sluggish the first 3 or 4 miles and not mentally tough. The roads were in decent shape - some icy spots from melting the day before, until Tomaquag Rd. Lots of ice and snow and the going got harder. There was also a strong north wind in my face making me cold. I pressed on and felt better by the time I was nearing Hopkinton City. I then made up the rest of the route as I went. South on Rte 3 to Wellstown Rd. 216 up to Cemetery Lane and then up Maxson Hill. I pushed this hill a bit, wanting to put up a decent effort on Muddy's home turf. At the top, I accidentally swallowed my gum, which mometarily brought on panic as it felt like I was choking at maximum heart rate. I relaxed and continued down Diamond Hill, finally peaking at my watch (13.8 miles). 19 would get me to 60 miles for the week - a nice arbitrary goal, so I opted for a longer way home. I ran down 216, through Bradford, and onto Buckeye Brook Rd. It began snowing at this point and was hard enough to begin collecting on the road. I was wearing my favorite trail shoes ever (Asics FujiLytes) and gription was not an issue. My thighs and lower core were tired and in pain. Climbing still felt good, but downhills were torture. I perked up the last mile, excited about throwing down 21 miles on roads all by myself. Decent average pace of 7:07, and GPS gave me exactly 1000' of elevation gain. No fuel, and didn't need it. Feeling strong although not sure about my speed. The snow continued most of the afternoon before turning to rain. This was a strange week of running, but I'll take it. </div>
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Week to Date: 62 miles</div>
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Last Week: 61 miles</div>
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February to Date: 113 miles</div>
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Year to Date: 395 miles</div>
Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-11844949118643957182017-02-07T10:43:00.001-05:002017-02-07T10:43:01.716-05:00Catching Up (1/16/17 to 2/5/17) and Race Write UpJanuary got crazy personally and professionally. I've been in a bit of a haze, but still running as much as I can/want. Here's a quick recap of the weeks I missed:<br />
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Week of 1/16/17 to 1/22/17: 66 miles, 8h 21m time on feet, about 5,000' of climbing. <br />
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The highlight of this week was a long trail run loop from my house in Burlingame - 17 miles in 2:07:29. After 95 minutes I did a 20 minute trail tempo which was almost completely on Sammy C's heading up (19:06). <br />
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Week of 1/23/17 to 1/29/17: 71 miles, 9h 44m time on feet, about 2,500' of climbing. <br />
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A lot of somber miles this week including a long out and back along the beach from East Matunuck to Charlestown Beach and a long point to point run from Arcadia to Shumunkanuc Hill. I also wheel measured and finalized the Charlestown Chili 5K course and set it up with Pard and race director Laura the morning of the race. <br />
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Week of 1/30/17 to 2/5/17: 61 miles, 7h 58m time on feet, about 3,500' of climbing. <br />
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Low mileage work week due to a virus of some sort (chills, fever Monday night, weak and tired a couple more days), a trail race(!!), and a Super Sunday long run. <br />
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The 6th (and my 6th) Old Mountain 5K Trail Race put on by Galoob was on Saturday, 2/4/17. I ran the course on Thursday with Mike and remembered how the new course (Dec 2015) went. Three ascents (short but tough during race effort) of the Old Mountain, plus twisting, messy single track, and many obstacles along the way. My race ritual was thrown a last minute twist as my son decided to join me. Instead of hobnobbing with my running friends and running the course as a warm up, I instead hung with Jackson throwing things on the iced over pond and playing in the skate park. It was seasonable (high 20's), but felt chilly this winter. I was feeling good about racing since my legs were fresh and my health 100%. I didn't worry about only doing a shorter, disjointed warm up. <br />
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The race went rather well. With so many kids in attendance, I really didn't want to get stuck early on once in the woods, so I sacrificed my recent theme of starting slower. I had a clear shot to the front right behind Brightman and Lonergan. Last year it was the 3 of us (with Jackman for the first 2 miles) battling it out, with me finishing 3 seconds behind the Rhode Runners at the finish. This year was much different. Quickly I was overtaken by many people, including what I believed to be some high school XC runners. I received my penalty for the fast start, as I huffed and puffed up the wider woods trail on the Old Mountain. Muddy was right ahead of me, and I tried to keep him close, making aggressive uphill passes. I felt like I was pushing hard on the downhill and then flat techy section, but Muddy and some of the high school kids were not coming back to me. Out on the zerotrack through the frozen muddy swamp area, I tried not to give up and keep pushing, while keeping myself upright this year. I was a few seconds back a group of 4 that was being led by Brightman, but gradually losing ground. I had no one close behind me. On the last climb up the mountain, I closed in on a young runner. He regrouped enough on the switchbacks back down the hill to stay just in front of me, but I knew I would pass him eventually. Then he wiped out on the last turn and I ran by (it was a clean fall and I didn't feel guilty not stopping). Looking ahead, Muddy had passed another young kid and there was a chance I could as well. However, this kid hammered the final open stretch and I crossed the line in 20:17, good for 6th place overall. My time was about 30 seconds faster than last year when I was in contention for the win, so I was pleased. <br />
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I then headed back out on the course to find Jackson. Jon Short jogged with me. We found him near the pond, and then motivated him (or annoyed him) on his last mile plus of the race. I was really happy he ran and I think he enjoyed it. Post race lunch with local friends with kids at the Mews. <br />
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Results <a href="https://www.webscorer.com/racedetails?raceid=91662&did=98309">here</a>. Scott Mason posted this photo on Facebook the next day - my karate kid technique of running over rocks. <br />
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The next day, Muddy met me at my house for a long run. With the promise of no speed work, I was happy to tag along on his marathon training. Parts of this run were tough as my legs and lower core were sore, but the miles passed quickly as we rotated between trails (Carter, Grass Pond, Carolina) and roads and gabbed about life and running. 2:42:50 of running time! GPS had me at 21 miles and Muddy at 21.2. I'm calling it 22. Go Patriots! <br />
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I finished January with 282 miles. 51 miles for Feb 1-5. 333 miles year to date. <br />
<br />Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-22348928348370532082017-01-13T13:24:00.003-05:002017-01-16T20:40:49.589-05:00Weekly Post: January 9-15 2017Well the foot of snow from last weekend disappeared after three days thanks to very warm January weather. I was happy with this. I like winter conditions to come and go. I got in three awesome snowshoe runs, beating up my body in the process, but happy to return to open roads and trails. Here is a Go Pro video (thanks for the motivation Seth!) of my "run" up Shumunkawall last Sunday. It's a little long, but entertaining (to me anyway). <br />
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Monday: 7 miles - 1:01:15. Snowshoe run in Ryan Park with Gunshow and Galoob. It felt like old times, meeting up with these two guys for a midday adventure. The temperature was still nippy (20's). We headed out in the still deep snow from Ben's new house/farm that borders Ryan Park. Breaking trail was tough, but conditions were much better on the railbed. It was relatively hard packed by cross country ski tracks and walkers. To my surprise, most of the single track trails were also well tracked. We weaved around the east side of the park and then returned to the railbed and did a short loop on the west side before ending back at Ben's. GPS had this at 5.6 miles, but it felt like 7 to me. <br />
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Tuesday: 11 miles - 1:37:43. Long solo snowshoe run in Ryan Park. It was a quiet day at work and I had the opportunity for a 1.5 hour run. The rain was holding off and the temperature was now in the 40's. This was perhaps my last chance to snowshoe run for a while so I went for it. Conditions were awesome! The packed trails were melting, but solid footing for my snowshoes. Trail shoes would have been posthole hell. I wore less winter layers. I pretty much exhausted most trails in the park, except that extreme west side was not packed at all. I did the Rte 4 trail, following one pair of boot tracks - that's it. This was tiring, but the rest of the run was mellow and pleasant. GPS had me at 9.1 miles. <br />
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Wednesday: 10 miles - 1:23:48. Saunderstown mix. I parked at the King Preserve parking lot on Rte 1A. Very warm (50's) and rather sunny. I ran around the Plum Beach neighborhood roads before jumping on the beach and running north. The tide was super low, and I debated ditching my planned loop to see if I could make the Plum Point - Casey Point connection. I decided to press on with my course. So much coastline was exposed and I was clearly running well under the normal low tide mark. I made my way around Rome Point and then jumped back on the roads, this time heading south, mostly on Gilbert Stuart Rd. It was then time to hit the trails in King Preserve. The trails were in worse shape than I thought, and I had low expectations. I tried to find the firmest options, and made my way over to the dirt road on the south side. This hardpacked dirt road was so soft. I got rather messy. I finished up with a mile plus heading north on 1A, mixing in 5 strides. <br />
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"<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">GPS looks like Bart Simpson giving someone the finger"</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 12px;">Quote by BLS 1-11-2017</span></span></div>
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Thursday: 11+ miles - 1:25:29. Narragansett loop with Galoob. Easy paced run mostly on roads in Middlebridge and Bonnet Shores, but included some dirt on Walmsley Ln and Bonnet Shores beach. Very warm (56 degrees). <br />
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Friday: 11 miles - 1:21:40. Charlestown Chili 5K course finalizing in Ninigret Park. Quiet in the park, and I had a good chunk of time to work on the course. I was happy that my idea squeezed in rather nicely. Out on the bike path to the crit course and back on the bike path. My first run at 7:15 average pace netted 3.09 miles. The second run was faster (6:35 ave. pace) with optimal tangents(?), and came out as 3.06. I'm not surprised that faster on GPS usually equates to shorter. I will run it again (same start and finish line) nice and slow and see what I get. I may need to tweak start or finish lines. Here is a quick course map I did (looks like a toddler may have done it....):<br />
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Charlestown Chili 5K, Saturday January 28th, 1PM</div>
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New bike path!</div>
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Can't wait to have the race use this! </div>
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Saturday: 16 mile double. AM 10.5 miles - 1:21:44. Burlingame trails with Jon Short and Jeff. Up Sammy C's at a brisk pace (I was dragging a bit), then VG to Lenny's Lane, over to a loop of VG, unnamed trail, Stillwater Rd, and white dot. VG back to King's Factory Rd. Chilly, but good fun. I went home and stacked wood for about an hour. After lunch - 5.5 hike with Sarah and the kids to my parents' house via Burlingame trails. 3 miles of no whining, and the kids carrying their backpacks with gear necessary for their overnight stay. Sarah and I hiked back, cutting off part of the trails as it was very cold and looking like it may snow any minute. Met up again with Jon Short and his better half in Westerly at the Malted Barley before heading over to the Knickerbocker to watch Soulshot play. Missed the Patriots game, but I always enjoy this talented 10 or 11 piece band play. Tiring day!<br />
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Sunday: 19 miles - 2:15:00. Long run / workout mix solo. I wasn't going to be able to join the group long run that I was planning which was frustrating. Oh well. I hoped I could still get a good run in at some point during the day, but truthfully, my body was rather tired from a busy Saturday and a big week of miles. It turned out that I could get out around 11am for the long run I desired. I quickly put together a nearby loop of trails and roads. My idea was to run the road sections at marathon pace and run easyish on the trails. I began at Meadowbrook Pond and saw Galoob's car in the parking lot. I thought about running my loop in reverse thinking that I might run into him, but I figured he had been running for quite some time and probably wouldn't want to join me for my loop. I warmed up for 1/4 mile on the road, then picked up the pace since I was on roads, and a flat one to boot. The speed felt challenging without a proper warm up, but after tackling the rise over the train tracks, it was a breeze to speed down hill and then the flats leading to Carter Preserve. I ran the frozen and lightly snow coated powerline trail. I was wearing road shoes, and I was slipping a little bit with every step. Not a big deal, but it proved to be tiring as the run went on. Anyway, I jumped onto the wooded single track and made my way over to Charlestown School. After this pleasant 3 miles it was back to pavement, and my longest stretch of it for my run - almost 5 miles. I ran down into Shannock and then had to battle a continuous uphill the rest of the way (North Rd and Beaver River Rd). After a while, I got into a good groove. I was moving too fast for true marathon pace, but I was doing work and feeling good about it. I finally made it to my turn off - still briefly paved but snow covered, and I fell into a jog. 4.67 miles at 6:12 ave. pace. I was happy, although struggled up the slippery Wilbur Hill in the Grass Pond Preserve. My respite on the trails was short lived, and it was back on pavement. I now headed west down Wilbur Hill Rd and along Kenyon Hill Rd. I reached my planned turnoff onto the NST in Carolina, but decided to tackle the huge hill in front of me. I was again moving well (sub 6:10 for almost 2 miles), and I was making good work of the hill. The steepness and length eventually took its toll, and I stopped once the road turned into dirt. Kind of lame, but I was toast. I jogged up the rest of the hill and then into Carolina. I missed a planned turn, which added distance, more hills, and better trails. I'm pretty sure I was seeing Galoob's tracks in the snow. After a pleasant stroll (except for my tightness from slipping), I reached Pine Hill Rd. This would be a short paved section, but uphill on tired legs. It was a grind, but indeed short. Back on trails. I was feeling really good for 2 hours of running (and 80+ miles for the week). I reached the open fields and the sun felt warm and the snow was gone. I jumped onto Rte 91 for one more mile of speed (6:08), and then did a short cool down before stopping at 2 hours and 15 minutes. My lower core was very tight and pain was setting in. I took some vitamin I and felt fine ever since. <br />
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Week to Date: 85 miles<br />
January to Date: 135 miles<br />
Year to Date: 135 milesJonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-7499988908319457352017-01-05T16:15:00.002-05:002017-01-08T20:40:10.078-05:00Weekly Post: January 2-8 2017I'm looking forward to a busy January of running. First up is Galoob's <a href="https://www.webscorer.com/register?raceid=88727&owner=0">Resolution Beach & Trail 5K</a> this Saturday the 7th. I also am involved with the <a href="http://www.active.com/charlestown-ri/running/distance-running-races/chili-5k-and-kids-fun-run-2017">Charlestown Chili 5K</a> again this year, and need to be out in Ninigret Park working on a new course that utilizes the recently finished bike path. The race is Saturday, January 28th. Other than that, I'm thinking about my goal races for the year. I'm pretty interested in the Baystate Marathon in October. It's an easy course and also serves as the marathon for the USATFNE Grand Prix. Hopefully, I can knock a few minutes off my Manchester City Marathon time (2:53). The date of Baystate most likely means the short race (23K) for Pisgah in mid September. It's still early. <br />
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2016 ended with a great, mostly trail run. First it was a group of 6 WTACers running from Ashville Pond, north on the Narragansett Trail to Camp Yawgoog. Then we ran around Hidden Lake, connected with Tippecansett Trail, and followed north to Beach Pond. This was a nice casual pace and very enjoyable for me. Muddy and I then made a loop back to Ashville Pond via the techy and remote Deep Pond and Dye Hill Trails, and then jumping on roads (mostly Canonchet) back. We passed 9 ponds on this route: Ashville, Long, Ell, Yawgoog, Hidden Lake, Beach, Deep, Grassy, and Wincheck. I surpassed the 3,000 mile mark on Strava during this run. I didn't try to keep track of my real miles, but I'm guessing around 3,200 or so. <br />
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Monday: 7 miles - 1:04:40. Slow technical trails in Burlingame. I zeroed on the 1st (Sunday) thanks to a busy day with family and a chest cold. Today was the last day of vacation for everyone, so we took it slow. I still had crud in my chest, but got out for an easy run on Sammy C's down to VG to Schoolhouse Pond to Secret and back to VG. I ended with 4 random length strides on the road. <br />
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Tuesday: 0 - 0:00. Wild day at work and very rainy. I didn't bother to even entertain the idea of running today. No big deal. <br />
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Wednesday: 11 miles - 1:22:48. Quonset Bike Path and two Calf Pasture Point loops. Work was much quieter and I had the time to run! My idea was to run CPP since it is similar terrain to the Resolution race. I wanted to do a light workout as well, but not too hard since I'm still getting over head/chest crud and race is on Saturday. After 3 miles on the bike path I did two CPP loops, mixing in 5 x 1 minute on/off. 4 out of the 5 were on the very slow beach (peak high tide) and the last was back on the bike path. The sprints felt taxing but very slow. I'm not sore from it, so that's all I wanted. Long cool down back to my car. <br />
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Thursday: 9 miles - 1:09:20. King Preserve and Camp Nokewa single track with about a mile of pavement and dirt roads in between. I ran into Sandals and stopped and chatted for a few minutes. I was hoping the trails would be frozen (only 33 degrees and windy), but they were very wet and muddy - especially the Blue Dot high up on the hill. I did my best to leave no trace, and just plow through the slop. This was a fun out and back. GPS had it at 8.1 miles, but my effort was peppy, and closer to 7:30 feel. <br />
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Friday: 5+ miles - 44:06. Black Point trails and Scarborough Beach. We received 3-4" of fluffy snow in the morning (kids had a 1 hr delay) and I needed to see what the race course would be like. Plenty of tracks on the Black Point trails and decent grip. Not many icy spots as I had feared. It was high tide, but the sliver of exposed beach (not snow covered or under water) was flat and firm. I took a few photos to post on Strava:<br />
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Fluffy snow in the Black Point parking lot</div>
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Creepy selfie on the ocean trail</div>
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trail heading toward the ruins</div>
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icy in the ruins</div>
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large tidal stream that the course usual passes over</div>
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Saturday: 10 miles - Resolution Beach & Trail 5K - 5th overall, 19:00. What an incredible day for a race. Big snow storm brewing, and the flakes began falling a few minutes before start time. It was 25 degrees and very windy (out of the north). I ran 4+ miles of warm ups over 3 different runs. I was excited for the normal team battle, as well as the fact that my wife and 2 kids were both racing as well! On top of that, I had convinced a couple of friends to sign up for WTAC and join in the fun. <br />
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By the time I had finished my wardrobe change for the race (wind briefs, shorts, short sleeve shirt, singlet, hat, gloves, and xc spikes!), and ran to the start line, it was time to go. The wind driven snow really picked up, and it was clear this race was going to be in epic conditions. Lots of smiles at the line, and then the race began. I wanted to just hang with the lead pack, only if the start was not too fast. Brightman went out hard, and I settled into a chase pack of fellow teammates Muddy and FiveK plus other guys. At the flag turnaround, I was fifth in a strung out train. We now needed to run almost a mile down the beach directly into the wind and stinging snow. It was crazy! By the mile mark, I was passed by Rhode Runner Mike Macedo (who I narrowly beat last year here) and another local runner. I tucked in behind them (didn't help), and then made a move around both just before the slow, snowy beach dune trail. This worked well. The footing wasn't great and I felt slow, but I had created room. I felt like my quick cadence and spikes gave me an advantage. That was until the 1/4 mile road section. I did my best to fight the wind and the clackety clack of my shoes. My margin was slim as I reached the Black Point parking lot. Onto the snow trails, I again just focused on turnover, and using any slight downhill to my advantage. Soon I was safely ahead of Mike again. Up ahead, Muddy made his way around FiveK (3rd and 4th overall) and I wondered if I had a shot to catch FiveK on the trail portion. I knew my shoes had much better grip than his (we warmed up together) and trails aren't his forte. I made up a bit of ground, but he did a great job in these conditions. I reached the ruins, jumped down to the beach, over the tidal stream, and onto the long finishing stretch. In six years, today had the best conditions - firm flat sand and a wicked tailwind. I went into rapid turnover mode. Peeking back, I could see I wasn't going to get caught from behind. FiveK was not to be caught by me however. I finished up in <a href="https://www.webscorer.com/race?raceid=89622">19:00 flat</a>. Fifth overall for the 2nd year in a row. This time 10 seconds ahead of Mike Macedo (as opposed to 2 seconds last year). I was also 10 seconds behind FiveK. Rhode Runner finished 1,2,6 and WTAC was 3,4,5. Close, but no cigar for the men's team. <br />
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After finishing and watching finishers for a few minutes, I remembered I needed to go check on how my kids were doing. Jon Short joined me, and we headed off back into the wind and snow, both sporting some serious ice beards. We made it all the way around Black Point, through the ruins, and back on the beach. I caught up to one friend and their 9 year old daughter, but never up to my family. I was happy to hear they all had finished without incident, and seemed rather proud of their accomplishments in such a crazy weather day. I hung around the boiling water pot for awards, but most people had smartly headed home. The snow was sticking to the roads, and coming down hard. I began shivering uncontrollably, so I had to bail as well. Long ride home, but uneventful. The Galoobs did it again! Another race I will never forget!! <br />
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Jackson and Ellie and their friends at the start</div>
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Photo by Annie Campbell</div>
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ice beard post race and cool down</div>
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Photo by Maria MacLellan</div>
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end of the race: FiveK with me in the background</div>
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Photo by Shara Bousquet</div>
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Huddled around the boiling pot of water post race. </div>
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Photo by Leslie O'Dell</div>
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Me at the starting line. </div>
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Photo by Annie Campbell</div>
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And the race begins!</div>
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Photo by Scott Mason</div>
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Sunday: 8 miles - 1:07:01. Local snowshoe run mostly in Burlingame. GPS had me at 5.3, but with about a foot of new powder to blast through, I'm giving myself credit for 8. It's my blog and I can do what I want :). I began by slogging out Shumunkawall Trail on my property. After less than a half mile at 22 min/mile pace, I jumped onto the road and ran along the snow covered edge. I then veered into north Burlingame by the beaver pond - breaking trail again, but at least downhill. Just as I had hoped, the main loop of double track in this management area, had fresh 4x4 truck tracks on it (DEM or just someone out joy riding). I hopped into a wide track and the going was much easier. I stayed in the track for a mile or so, before deciding to again blaze trail - this time the single track portion of the River Trail. This was tough, but I knew I just had to make it to the canoe camps, and the double track up the hill should be tracked by the 4x4. Along the way I spotted a Yellow Bellied Sapsucker which was exciting to me. Unfortunately no 4x4 tracks at the canoe camps - just a lonely fox or coyote track that was not remotely useful. The long climb was a soul crusher, and I had to walk a lot. After forever, I reached the top, and the 4x4 tracked main loop. A couple of minutes later I took a digger on a downhill and shouted loudly. Right around the corner, I spotted two skiing humans on the Ledge Trail who must of heard me. We didn't acknowledge each other. I took the loop back to the beaver pond, and then slowly climbed out to my road using my previous tracks. Despite the cold temperature (high teens and cold wind), I was a sweaty mess. This was also after I spent an hour shoveling, so I was really pooped by the time I came back inside. Hunger ensued. I took a couple of Go Pro videos (thanks for the motivation Seth!) on my Shumunkawall adventure that I might post on the next blog update. <br />
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Weekly Total: 50 miles<br />
January to Date: 50 miles<br />
Year to Date: 50 milesJonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-72940583540395627492016-09-09T11:32:00.000-04:002016-09-13T12:12:39.203-04:00September 1st through the 11thHi there. I will try my best to revive regular postings on this thing. Running over the summer months went decent. I seem to be speed workout adverse in my 40's. I continue to enjoy plodding along on trails and hills of any kind. Work is much busier this year, so sometimes my options of lunch runs is smaller. That is kind of a bummer. I also seem to be busy doing other fun things on weekends, and don't get in all the long runs I'd like. However, when I get the chance, I'm satisfied with my fitness. Hills work. I also haven't been bothering to keep a "real" tab of my miles this year. I just upload my activities to Strava, which has my mileage (through 9/8/16) as 2,168. Obviously, I disagree with this, but since I don't want to go back through every run, I came up with a rough estimate. Strava has my hours of running at 312. I'll multiply that by a conservative 7.5 miles per hour (8 minute miles). That puts me at 2,340. Good enough. <br />
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Running conditions this summer were a bit frustrating. I got a ridiculous tan thanks to the poor leaf cover in the woods. The poor trees had to deal with infestations from winter moths, tent caterpillars, and then gypsy moths. It was eerie at times, running through sections of forest that looked dead, including pines, shrubs, and ground cover. The forest floor was brown and orange. You were exposed to the sun. And at times, you would have incredible views of the surrounding countryside - views not even possible in winter due to evergreens. This made for hot runs, even though the summer was dry and the temperature moderate. </div>
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As September begins, we are dealing with tropical conditions. Still waiting for cool mornings and dry pleasant days. I'm trying to motivate myself to mix in speed work. Still haven't made it to the track. I have continued to run hills as much as possible. Here's a rundown of the days: </div>
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9/1 (Thu): 5 miles (41:33) - Glacier Park trails. I snuck in this quickie after an obnoxiously busy day at work and right before a WTAC board meeting. I kept the pace easy, but had fun roller coastering around the moraine. I tried to hit every trail. I also tried not to get too sweaty, but it was humid! </div>
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9/2 (Fri) 27 miles (3:53:27) - Arcadia trails. Epic solo run as a test for the upcoming Pisgah 50K. The office was closing early, so I decided to just take the morning off too and get in this long run that I really needed before the 50K. It took some planning (aid station drop), and I used a similar course as a 3:15 run I did here during the summer. I've been running in my uber comfy Nike Flyknit 3.0's (older model that I found a few pairs left on a website) and decided to experiment using them today. I ran with my fuel belt with 4 small water bottles that I also find comfortable. I debated wearing a singlet since it was a nice morning (about 60's), but after my first climb on the defoliated side of Mt. Tom, I'm glad I didn't wear it. No Gu's in the house, so I packed 2 small Cliff bars and had salty bbq chips stocked in my "aid station" cooler at around GPS mile 16. The loop course I had mapped came to 26.6 miles, with many opportunities to cut short after 20 miles if necessary. The first 10 miles went well except for spider webs. I did get more hot than I planned. After 2 ascents of Mt. Tom on mtn bike trails, Escoheag Hill via Escoheag Trail, and Old Voluntown Rd, I was ready for some flat sections. However, miles 9-13 were brutal on the Pachaug Trail around Beach Pond. This trail is the most technical I can think of in southern NE. At GPS mile 10, I stopped to briefly cool off in Beach Pond, with the trickiest of trail just ahead. It did not disappoint. It feels like forever, scrambling over rocks, up and down, up and down. I had some slips. Ripped off most of a shoelace on a branch (good think my shoes fit like slippers!). I cursed frequently (I encountered ZERO humans the entire 4 hours on the trails). I was happy to finally reach a old dirt road, but fatigue was creeping in slowly. And I was looking forward to my "aid station". Another good climb up Escoheag Hill via Canonicus Trail and then a screaming descent down the road. I could rest, drink (Pepsi, Gatorade), and eat chips. I had been running 2 hrs and 39 minutes. I was in good spirits knowing that at most, I had about 10 miles left. My quads did cramp a bit when I sat down. That I didn't like, but I was able to stretch. I also refilled my water bottles. I was ready to get back on the trail. Pretty quickly things got hard again as I climbed Escoheag Hill (again!) via a steep old ski trail. I switched to power hike mode briefly. The climb was so hot, sitting exposed to the bright sun on the grassy slope. It took a while to recover, but I had a nice gradual downhill to get to the start of the Breakheart Trail. I had another monster climb up Penny Hill on this trail that found me walking a very short steep section near the top. At this point I was toast - hot and burnt out. I was mentally not loving this long run anymore. As I continued on the Shelter Trail, I noticed a couple of pings of quad cramps. At least it took 3 hours and 15 minutes to run into my cramping problem. Well, it never became a problem (at least until my ride home), I just knew it was ready to attack. I rambled on, feeling fatigued and hot. I forced myself to run up the double track from Breakheart Pond to my secret soaking hole. Man the water was so cold and delicious. I sat in the pool for a couple of minutes, feeling my core temperature drop. I was refreshed, but done running. I still had 3 miles left on my planned route, which included 2 good hill climbs. I instead opted to just do the climb up the Bliven Trail and then work my way down the hill directly to my car. I finished with exactly 25 GPS miles. I'll call it 27. Strava had the elevation gain as 2,527. Once in my car (now cramping and annoyed with having to drive to pick up my "aid station") thoughts of emailing the Pisgah race director and switching to the 23K were in my mind. A day after, I felt like I'm in good shape for the 50K. I'm sure I'll struggle at times, but I'm ready. </div>
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9/3 (Sat): 1 mile (45 min) - family hike at Pitcher Mountain. Nice relaxing time with great views. Then a 30 minute SUP on Highland Lake. I'm not sure what the data means, but I was working hard!<br />
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9/4 (Sun): 1 mile (1 hr) - family hike in Arcadia. Another pleasant stroll with kids and cousins around the hatchery. <br />
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9/5 (Mon): 0 - Hermine day on the hill. Strong NE winds all day. I attempted to go out late in the afternoon, but it seemed silly and probably dangerous. <br />
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9/6 (Tue): 13.5 miles (1:40:20) - East Greenwich roads (short trail section) lunch run. Sticky tropical air. Overcast, sometimes rain, sometimes sun. My watch seemed funky, always reading much slower than how I felt. I took 3 days off from running, I think I was moving pretty well. Whatever. Also, it mapped on Strava to over 800' of climbing, but Strava gave me only 666'. Whatever. I mixed in some speed the last 1.5 miles on the slightly down hill terrain. <br />
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9/7 (Wed): 10.5 miles (1:20:09) - Exeter/Richmond dirt and trail out and back. A repeat of a fun run I did the week before, but I found a side trail this time which eliminated most of a short paved road section on Rte 3. Good Pisgah prep with gnarly double track climbs. I felt like I was moving well, but again GPS wasn't showing it. Sprint down hill finish (5 min pace for 2/3 mile). <br />
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9/8 (Thu): 11 miles (1:23:41) - Wickaboxet Trails and 2.5 x Plain Meeting House Rd climb. Good workout. This mapped out as 1,500' of climbing on Strava (result was 1,339'). I ran through Wickaboxet, first on double track then on single track, crossing into the Pratt Preserve. The steep hill here was challenging, and the tropical air made it hard to breathe. I then had to motor up the last steep 1/3 of the road to the top of Bald Hill (yes another one). I then went down, up, down, up on this 1.15 mile section of road (360' elevation change - yes, the biggest mile road climb in the state). I performed well, keeping the pace under control and steady. Peppy finish back through the woods to my car. I'll do this one again. <br />
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9/9 (Fri): 11 miles (1:26:30) - Exeter dirt and paved roads out and back. I again parked on NLT near the baseball fields and ran the 2 miles of hilly terrain out to Rte 3/165. I then ran paved roads (Black Plain Rd and Austin Farm Rd - which turns to dirt) to Arcadia, near my favorite soaking spot. It was scorching hot out when exposed to the sun and ultra humid. My legs were tired and I used the mid run soak as motivation. It was fun exploring a couple of new miles and I survived. 951' of elevation gain. <br />
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9/10 (Sat): 0 - busy day with the kids that began with a 8AM soccer game. Not easy getting out the house for that one. <br />
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9/11 (Sun): 17 miles (2:10:20) - long run on local roads and trails. This will be my last real run until Pisgah next Sunday. I began by running down my road and Kings Factory Rd cheering on the Firmman Half Ironman participants on their bikes (usually I do this from my house). I ran about four miles of roads out (with trail diversions in Schoolhouse Pond and Charlestown Moraine Preserves). I was having so much fun cheering, that I opted to spend more time on pavement than planned, and did shorter trail sections in Burlingame (but kept it nice and hilly). I couldn't resist a swim in the Pawcatuck River at the canoe camps. The water is so refreshing and deep. More hills to get home. I'm feeling good about my fitness and I think I got my body ready to suffer. 1,100' of climbing. <br />
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Family trip to Galilee in the afternoon once the weather broke - sunny, dry, and fun little waves to body surf. Champlin's for dinner. Yum! <br />
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63 miles for the week with about 5,000' of climbing (probably closer to 6,000'), and 8 hours of running time. My plan is to barely run at all the next 6 days until the race. Maybe mix in a little fun cross training. </div>
Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-57339056006661785392016-06-14T10:06:00.000-04:002016-06-14T10:06:07.188-04:00USATF NE Trail Championship 2016Earlier this spring I was able to race the USATF NE Trail Championship in Andover, MA aka the Merrimack River 10M Trail Race. Usually the race conflicts with other things, but I had no excuses this year to skip out. It is a trail race, but races like a track meet. Because it is the trail championship, part of the ATR series, and also the first trail race in the established Grand Tree Series, this race attracts a ton of fast runners. Because the course is easy, it attracts a bunch of fast road runners. I had no expectations in regards to finishing place, even for just the Masters division. I instead focused on my overall time, settling for a number I thought made sense based on comparisons to other runners - 64 minutes. My brother Greg who has experience at this race, set the bar higher for me: 61 or 62. He was adamant that I could be that fast here. I had plenty of trail racing under my belt already this year. I was pumped! <br />
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I made the trek up with Mike Galoob. We got there early, signed up, and decided to walk the first part of the course. The race begins in a parking lot, but in a matter of feet, narrows to a muddy single track section (that becomes quadruple track during the race). I made the note to not bother to try to get across on the bridge and just aim straight through the mud. The trail then meets the river and is a very pleasant path along the shore. It was more of a trail than I was led to believe, but still very fast. After our hike, we then headed back out for a warm up, change into racing gear, and strides in the parking lot and grass. The vibe was more machismo than friendly trail venue. Super focused speedsters not messing around. I was a little underdressed for the chilly start temp, but I knew I would be working hard and never cold during the race. I snuck into the far right hand side of the starting line. I didn't want to be up front, but I also didn't want to get stuck behind people tip-toeing through the beginning mud bog. <br />
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The race began and it was a quagmire. Some people fell. I remained upright and stuck to my plan. <br />
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Here we go! Tucked into the left corner. </div>
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Straight through the mud I go. Stink eye from blue shirt. </div>
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Ended up next to Galoob who took the bridge. </div>
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Things quieted down. I was in a decent spot (20th?) of a long single file line, although I felt a little out of place, seeing some of the runners I was with. <br />
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I shouldn't be near that guy in front of me!</div>
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The running felt fast. I was pushing myself pretty hard, but trying to keep my pace to something I could reasonably maintain for 10 miles. I thought the sorting out was done after a mile or so, but I got annoyed as people continued to pass me at the two mile mark. I felt like I was in 50th place (exaggerating). I decided to increase my effort and stick with a group of three runners who just passed me by. After 3 miles, I anticipated the hills. I was told there were three in each direction. I hoped this would be my strong suit, but honestly I also preferred a slower grind to a fast sprint at that point. The hills went well, but it was hard to catch my breath at the top and crank down the other side. There were a few tricky descents. I was reeling in the group of 3. Then, on the steep hill at the powerline, I snuck by two of them after the pace dropped to a crawl (they actually power hiked and I ran). Check out the 2:15 mark of this video for the action. </div>
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I continued to trail the last of the 3 in a yellow SRR singlet. I figured it was only a matter of time and I remained close. I definitely had put good distance on the other two behind me. Then as the turnaround neared, I began seeing the leaders coming in the opposite direction. I was very wary of making way for them. I was bummed to see that Galoob wasn't as high up as I thought he would be. I reached the end and had to ask what I was supposed to do (just turn around and run duh!). I think my split was 30:40ish. Running against traffic was a bit nerve wracking. At first, it was scary to see all the competition not far behind me. Then it was a bit frustrating to not always get cooperation from slow runners much later. I wasn't as aggressive as maybe I should have been here. I let the SRR guy get too far ahead at time during the hills, and missed my opportunity on the powerline hill in the opposite direction as I got very close to him. Check out footage from the above video at the 6:20 mark. </div>
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Honestly I remember thinking that I wasn't giving it my all on my return trip through the hills. It was somewhat because of oncoming traffic, but really I was tired and I had no pressure from behind. I couldn't see anybody. I actually was looking forward to the last 3 miles of flatness. I knew that I would be able to pick it back up and finish strong. The SRR guy was putting distance on me and I gave up that fight. That is until I reached the flat riverbed again. I clearly was catching up to him. I found a comfortable gear with quick turnover and just tried to stick with it. His lead on me was shrinking, but at a painfully slow rate. My best hope was to make a surge near the finish. Then I caught a glimpse of someone gaining on me from behind - another SRR jersey being worn by Eric Ahern. I know him from the TARC 50K (well 40K for me) and few years ago, and that he is a great ultra runner who looks fast. I wanted to beat him. There was about two miles left. Running scared now - I was moving even faster. With about a half mile to go he caught and passed me. I tried to hold him off, but I think my speed was pegged. I could only watch in disappointment as he then battled his SRR teammate the last stretch to the finish. I made my way gingerly through the mud (almost slipping) and crossed the finish line. See 9:40 mark of video. </div>
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The finish. </div>
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1:02:12. I was really happy with my time. Greg nailed it! Turns out that I was 14th overall and 3rd master! Results <a href="http://www.coolrunning.com/results/16/ma/Apr9_Merrim_set1.shtml">here</a>. It felt good to compete so well on a big stage. The race was more "traily" than I thought going in. I enjoyed the sprint-hills-sprint format. I definitely feel like I need a little more speed (complete lack of speedwork probably didn't help) for the flats, but I really can't complain. </div>
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Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-77856636055600574132016-05-18T13:32:00.000-04:002016-05-18T13:47:11.769-04:00Wapack 21.5 Mile Trail Race 2016Saturday, May 7th, I ran my second consecutive Wapack trail race. Last year I surprised myself with a 2nd place finish that was the third fastest all time on this course. I led the first 17 miles before fatigue in my lower legs (calf cramps!) set in, and I lost 10 minutes over the final 3.5 miles to the race winner Ryan Welts. I was determined to finish stronger this year. I also wanted a rematch with Ryan, but he didn't enter. I was slightly bummed, but I rallied to still put up good training over the last couple months. Hill repeats. Technical trails. Trail races. Long trail runs (well not as many 3 hour ones as I hoped for). I felt ready. I felt like I could put up a sub 3:30 time just by finishing the last 3.5 miles running. My goal was to not be too aggressive on the first (and biggest) climbs and descents of the day. Last year I was definitely pushing it trying to stay ahead of Ryan. It was very possible that no one would be with me this year anyway. <br />
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Race day. It was cool (mid 40's) but muggy and overcast. It looked like there might be some showers during the race, but no major downpours. The trail would be wet this year. I opted for my sturdy and extremely sticky Inov8 Roclite 295's that may be from 2009. I don't wear them much, but they are still very grippy, and my go to choice on wet rocks. I know I can trust them. Despite the cool temperature, I just wore a singlet and short shorts. I carried 7 Gu's (ate one on the bus ride to the start) in my new fancy fanny pack. It is super comfortable and has 4 small water bottles. No hat, gloves, or sunglasses. I stuck to myself and stayed focused on my plan. After the bus ride to the start (northern end - finish and parking at southern end) I ran some strides and scoped out the competition. Despite being ranked #1 on ultrasignup.com, I knew there are always surprises. That were a handful of other guys doing strides as well. I don't remember anyone doing them last year. There was a younger friendly guy who introduced himself and asked my name. He then exclaimed to another runner that he had found Mr. Hammett. His name was Ben (didn't remember a Ben on the registration list) and he was hoping to run 3:30 and stick with me. He reminded me of Boj. <br />
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The race began and I took the lead immediately. Once in the woods, I tried to not rush, but sure enough, Ben was right with me. The climbing soon starts (almost a 1000' climb) and he continued to stick to my heels. He said the pace was perfect. I slipped a couple of times on steep mud sections and he took the lead. He was moving really well, and I decided to not give chase. I needed to save my body for later. Who knows what this kid is capable of? This first climb is steep and technical. I felt like I was doing a good job with it (later confirmed on Strava that it was only 7 seconds slower than last year). No sign of Ben. I began the tricky descent. The wet rocks made things dicey, but I thought overall, it would help my race by taking it slower than last year. No sign of Ben - lots of 50 Milers coming in the opposite direction though. I then climbed South Pack. This climb is still long, but not nearly as hard. I ran every step which I did not do last year. I wasn't rushing and felt really strong. No sign of Ben. Time for the hardest descent of the day. So many wet boulders! I fell once. Eventually I could hear traffic on a road. I was getting close to the bottom. Then I heard cheering from the first aid station. Probably for Ben. I was anxious to get down, but missed a blaze and descended a bit before realizing my mistake. I backtracked back up and then found the blazes. It's hard to look up for blazes when your tiptoeing on wet rocks! This year I stopped at the aid station. I drank Coke and had one of my bottles filled with some more. I was told I was 45 seconds back, but it seemed to me it was more like 2-3 minutes. Whatever. I needed to run my own race. Looking at Strava, my South Pack climb was 23 seconds faster than last year, but my descent was 2 and half minutes slower. Crazy! <br />
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I crossed the road and began the third climb of the day, which is a rather long one, but up a service road. Good footing. I again didn't walk a step (I briefly did last year) - beat my time up by 12 seconds. Now I was on a fun part of the course. The trail runs along a treed ridge line, with some small ups and downs for a couple of miles. You can really crank here. I felt pretty smooth. No sign of Ben. Or humans really. Eventually, I reached the longer descent down to another road. Somewhere here I slipped and fell onto my hands and knees. I had a good puncture would in my left palm, and tore skin off my left pointer finger. There was a good amount of blood and swearing. I ran on. I reached the road, this year knowing which way to go (down the road!). No Ben. Felt pretty good though. I reached a long not-steep double track climb. I remember being confused by the lack of blazes last year, but this year hey were brightly painted. Thanks! I also was climbing really well. No walking breaks. I knew I was making up quite a bit of time in this section. The climbing does seem endless though. Finally I hit the descent and reached the 2nd aid station. I was at 2 hours which I thought was close to last year. The volunteer said I was like 5 minutes back. Come on! I grabbed some more Coke and water and headed back out. <br />
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I crossed another road and was now in the Windblown XC trail system. At first, it is very runnable and fun. Then you hit this ridiculously steep double track climb into the deep woods. This is where things turned ugly for me last year. I tried to have a better time of it, but it is terrible. I hiked up, purposely trying to get my breathing under control, and not rush things. I still was focused on being able to run the last few miles in. Things were not going as planned however. My running on the flats and downs was slowing down. On the next climb I felt the twinge of a calf cramp coming on. Oh no! I did my best to make positive movement, albeit slower, and not let my race fall apart. This section has many small climbs and descents. I kept thinking I was close to dropping back down for good and getting to the final aid station. Where is the photographer? Finally, I hit open ledges in the fog and there was the camera. My face shows how I was feeling <a href="https://northeastracephoto.smugmug.com/2016-Races/Wapack-and-Back-Trail-Races/i-wfDsqvd/A">here</a>. Soon after passing by, the trail began descending. This is what I was waiting for, although the pain going down was awful. Then I tripped and fell on my side and back. As I fell my left calf locked up on me. I shouted in pain as I tried to free my stuck calf. I wondered if the cameraman could hear me. I stretched out both calves before commencing running again. It seemed to help. I reached the bottom and soon was on the double track to the final aid station. My spirits were up. Last year this was my lowest point. I wasn't hurting as bad this time. I stopped and the awesome volunteer refilled my bottles with water and Coke while I sat on the ground and stretched some more. I was ready to rock out the relatively easy double track up the backside of Mount Watatic. I left the station at the 3:04 mark. I believed I was 3 or 4 minutes behind last year, but I was going to make up the time. I was running! <br />
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The running went well for two miles or so. I felt like it was taking too long to reach the summit. Then I began to crash mentally and physically. I had to slowly walk the last 100' or so to the top. I thought I still was okay. I could still finish just a tad faster than last year. No shame in that. I tried to jog down the mountain - less than a mile to go I hoped. I couldn't do it. I was feeling out of it and my calves were screaming at me to not use them anymore. I hiked down and ate another Gu. I wasn't hungry, but I thought this would help me get down. I felt woozy. Was I going to make it to the finish line? I passed by a group of 3 hikers. They asked if I was running a race. I said I was, but I couldn't run anymore. They asked how long the race was and told me I was almost done. Just after passing by them I fell to the ground with a powerful calf cramp in my right leg. I couldn't get it to release the tension. I was screaming in pain, and afraid I might pass out. One of the hikers made her way down to me. She asked if it was okay if she touched my leg. She didn't massage it, just held her hands on it. She told me to breathe slowly. This grandma figure saved me! My calf felt better. I stood up, thanked her profusely, and marched on. After a minute or so, my energy came back. I had survived the bonk! I tried to jog, but my legs wouldn't have it. I made it to the finish line though. <a href="https://ultrasignup.com/results_event.aspx?did=34930">3:46:36</a>. 12 minutes slower than last year! I was happy to just have made it off Mount Watatic without medical assistance. According to the Strava segment for the Watatic descent of .5 miles, it took me about 18 minutes. That has to be a course worst! This was 7 minutes slower than my pathetic 11 minutes last year. <br />
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Limping to the finish. Photo by Jesse Veinotte.</div>
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Ben had a very good day. He was all smiles at the finish. He just set the course record by 3 minutes! We chatted for a while and then his friend came in (3rd place in 3:57). I ate some food, drank lots of water and Coke. I finally hobble to my car to change. My calves and quads now were cramping. This sucked. I did my best to loosen up and decided to just start driving home. It wasn't fun, but not terrible. <br />
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Post race chatting with Ben. Photo by Jesse Veinotte. </div>
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<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="405" scrolling="no" src="https://www.strava.com/activities/568805959/embed/77eb177ab75bfb935075946eb18a7a542ac01fce" width="590"></iframe><br />
<br />
Some time has past since the race. I'm okay with it. This course is a known butt kicker. I climbed really well. I descended slowly - partly due to conditions, partly due to not being chased. My body fell apart again. I'm blaming lack of long runs in mountains. I felt good on long technical trail runs leading up to this race. I can't mimic the pounding of 5K of elevation gain and loss. Fueling and/or hydration played a role. Even though the weather was cool - never got higher than 48 degrees - it was very muggy. I'm a novice when it comes to this stuff. I rarely carry anything on my local long runs. Oh well. I now have two top 10 finishing times on this course.<br />
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<h3 class="widget-title">
Top Performances</h3>
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<strong class="unit-1-8" style="color: #47991f;">'16</strong><br />
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<a class="topten_name" href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Thomas&lname=Thompson&age=0" target="_blank">Thomas Thompson</a> <span class="topten_age">(25)</span></div>
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3:19:36 </div>
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<strong class="unit-1-8" style="color: #47991f;">'11</strong><br />
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<a class="topten_name" href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=David&lname=Herr&age=0" target="_blank">David Herr</a> <span class="topten_age">(46)</span></div>
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3:22:29 </div>
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<strong class="unit-1-8" style="color: #47991f;">'15</strong><br />
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<a class="topten_name" href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Ryan&lname=Welts&age=0" target="_blank">Ryan Welts</a> <span class="topten_age">(34)</span></div>
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3:24:42 </div>
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<strong class="unit-1-8" style="color: #47991f;">'15</strong><br />
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<a class="topten_name" href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Jonathan&lname=Hammett&age=0" target="_blank">Jonathan Hammett</a> <span class="topten_age">(39)</span></div>
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3:34:24 </div>
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<strong class="unit-1-8" style="color: #47991f;">'14</strong><br />
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<a class="topten_name" href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Samuel&lname=Jurek&age=0" target="_blank">Samuel Jurek</a> <span class="topten_age">(27)</span></div>
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3:38:04 </div>
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<strong class="unit-1-8" style="color: #47991f;">'14</strong><br />
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<a class="topten_name" href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Brandon&lname=Baker&age=0" target="_blank">Brandon Baker</a> <span class="topten_age">(27)</span></div>
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3:41:39 </div>
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<strong class="unit-1-8" style="color: #47991f;">'11</strong><br />
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<a class="topten_name" href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Chad&lname=Denning&age=0" target="_blank">Chad Denning</a> <span class="topten_age">(35)</span></div>
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3:43:31 </div>
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<strong class="unit-1-8" style="color: #47991f;">'16</strong><br />
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<a class="topten_name" href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Jonathan&lname=Hammett&age=0" target="_blank">Jonathan Hammett</a> <span class="topten_age">(40)</span></div>
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3:46:36 </div>
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<strong class="unit-1-8" style="color: #47991f;">'14</strong><br />
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<a class="topten_name" href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Thomas&lname=Thompson&age=0" target="_blank">Thomas Thompson</a> <span class="topten_age">(23)</span></div>
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3:51:54 </div>
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<strong class="unit-1-8" style="color: #47991f;">'13</strong><br />
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<a class="topten_name" href="http://ultrasignup.com/results_participant.aspx?fname=Stas&lname=Trufanov&age=0" target="_blank">Stas Trufanov</a> <span class="topten_age">(34)</span></div>
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3:52:00 </div>
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<br />Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-42409657989946429562016-04-08T10:31:00.002-04:002016-04-08T10:31:30.550-04:00Brrr-lingame 10 Mile Trail Race 2016Saturday, March 26th, I ran my 5th Brrr-lingame trail race in the very nearby Burlingame State Park. I was looking forward to pushing myself around snow free fast trails. Conditions seemed to be very similar to the <a href="http://www.coolrunning.com/results/14/ri/Mar22_Brrrli_set1.shtml">fast race</a> here two years ago. I completed the two lap course in 1:06:09 (write up <a href="http://southcountytrails.blogspot.com/2014/03/brrr-lingame-trail-race-2014.html">here</a>) and was very pleased with my time at the time. This year I wanted to PR, but didn't have a strict time goal in mind. Despite being on local trails that I know well, I never place as high as I'd like. The fast guys can be fast here, and a bunch had preregistered or showed up on race morning. <br />
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I didn't arrive quite as early as I'd like, but still had plenty of time for a group warm up. The race field certainly looked fast despite not being huge. I was feeling well rested (no midweek workout) and ready to rock. I did a couple of field sprints right before the start. <br />
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I always get carried away at the start of this race. I just want to hammer the rolling single track and the adrenaline let's me keep up with the leaders. I really tried to hold back (my current racing theme), but after we crossed the field and enter the woods, I got really itchy to move up. I settled into 5th place. The front of the train was already pulling away, and I did my best to just try to keep up with Steve Brightman (in 4th). We hit the one steep hill during the first mile, and I closed the gap on all the leaders as they didn't seem comfortable with the climb or screaming descent on the other side. This was short lived and all four of them (Pat Moulton, The Erics (L and N), Brightman) pulled away from me. I wasn't surprised by this at all, although annoyed that Brightman is in such good shape these days. There was no let down in pace after losing contact with the lead pack. I had Bob Jackman and Muddy close behind me. My goal was to now discourage Bob, and I really hammered the climbs to create distance. This didn't work. I thought he might pass before we reached the ridge at around mile 3. This is a rather technical section and one that I hoped favored me. I worked it hard, Bob in tow. Suddenly as we neared the end, I realized we had caught back up to the lead pack. This was pretty exciting. I wanted to blast by all of them, but the terrain wasn't really conducive for that. Finally, as well spilled off the ridge, all hell broke loose. Just as I was going to make my move, Bob came crashing around me and most of the others. I made my way around some of the leaders as well. It was a great feeling. I knew this would be short lived as the trail widened and got a lot smoother. The top 4 again went by, and I found myself trailing Bob as well, with Muddy right on my heels. I was already mentally feeling drained by the fast race start and racing in this spot for the next 7 miles seemed daunting. Oh well. I just kept going trying to keep in front of Muddy and passing Bob on a steep little climb. After the descent on the other side, the trail opens up to wide double track for quite some time. Muddy went by me saying he was going to try to reel in Brightman. I wasn't surprised by this - Muddy crushed this course two years ago, and this distance is right in his wheelhouse. I then felt someone else pull along side of me, and I made a comment to him assuming it was Bob. Nope. A stranger. Who was this guy? I picked it up, not wanting this stranger to pass me before entering the famous bog bridge section. He stayed close though. Right before the first bridge Muddy (who was a few seconds ahead) took a digger in some mud. He popped right up and stayed ahead of me. He seemed to then run angry and increase his lead on me again. I got away from the stranger. Now running in and out of the camp roads, I seemed to be heading for no man's land. I just tried to do my best watching Muddy put distance on me, then he fell again, this time jumping over a high tree obstacle. It looked bad, but again he popped right up and kept moving. However, after a few moments he let up and let me go by him, in obvious pain/discomfort from his accident. I wasn't happy to pass him in this way - I hoped he wasn't too hurt and even wondered if he would drop out after the first loop (that was almost completed). My first lap was 32:02 - a PR. I knew I'd have trouble matching this on the 2nd, but I was feeling confident and rejuvenated. My first mile of lap 2 was lonely, and not as fast as the adrenalinized first time around. About a mile in I was surprised to hear somebody behind me, and at a corner I could see it was Muddy! I was happy he was still racing and now concerned for my place. I picked it up on the rolling hills (both ups and downs). I reached the ridge and tried to hammer it again, hopefully catching up to whoever was in 4th place (I never could see anyone ahead of me). No dice, but I did see Muddy closing in by the end. Ugh. Or was it? I realized that I was running hard and feeling really good. I only had 2 miles left. I had plenty left in the tank. Time to push. That's what I did, finally seeing 4th place on the wide double track before the bog bridges - Pat Moulton. I only know him as a super fast road marathoner (the fastest in RI with Matty P in CT now??). I've never seen his name in the results of a trail race. Maybe he was hurting or dejected - another victim of a Mike Galoob course. He was pretty far ahead, but I was motivated, picking my pace up to almost sprint mode. Maybe I could catch him on the bog bridges? It was awesome to feel like the hunter with something left at the end of the race. At the end of the bridges, I could see that he was only 10 seconds or so ahead now. One mile left of intermittent single track between camp roads. He seemed effortlessly fast on the road parts, but I kept closing the gap on the trail sections (which I was absolutely blasting through). The closest I got was the weird section that goes through thick leaves and berms down to the beach. I got to within a couple of seconds before he noticed me. Damn. Now he knew I was there and stepped it up. I was still moving fast. I desperately tried to catch up on the last two short single track sections. We finally spilled out onto the last stretch of open grass to the finish and it wasn't going to be. I finished in 5th, 5 seconds behind him. I did PR, with a final time of <a href="https://www.webscorer.com/racedetails?raceid=65373&did=71530">1:04:44</a>. My second lap was a semi-even split of 32:42. <br />
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This was a great race. The trails are easy enough to go fast, but challenging enough in spots to keep it honest. I'm looking forward to racing 10 miles of trails again two weeks later. <br />
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Fun article in Level Renner about the race<a href="http://levelrenner.com/2016/03/27/hot-paces-at-brrr-lingame-trail-races/"> here</a>Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-74548585543362031142016-03-24T12:15:00.000-04:002016-03-24T12:15:53.353-04:00Catching Up - Last Month of WinterInsert lack of blogging excuses here. <br />
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The rundown: <br />
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<br />
The Analysis: <br />
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Seems like the February mileage total is a little low, but whatever. March is shaping up nicely. <br />
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The week of 2/22/16 was spent on the Belleville Pond Trail 10K course (4 out of 5 weekdays) and then the race was on Saturday. See separate write up <a href="http://southcountytrails.blogspot.com/2016/03/belleville-pond-trail-10k-2016.html">here</a>. I began incorporating yoga into my morning routine. There is a block of time between when my son gets on the middle school bus and when my daughter and wife get up for school and work. I could (and have) do short runs to really pump up my mileage, but I'm getting in plenty of miles without it. Instead, I've begun dabbling in yoga, and I'm finding it a really nice compliment to my running. I just do easy yoga workouts on You Tube that have the philosophy I like (mix of relaxation, stretching, and strength). Nothing crazy or fast. My body has been responding extremely well. I feel less tightness and soreness from my normal running. My body feels stronger. I still like to mix in some morning pushups and planks, but not as often now. <br />
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Week of 2/29/16 recap: the first three days I got in a lot of hill climbing on mostly trails. Good Wapack prep. I'm always a little frustrated with the elevation gain on Strava, especially when I run with somebody with a barometer watch and they bag so much more than me. I need to forget about it and just know that I'm putting in a lot of quality hill work. Strava had the week as 4,272' of gain. Easy day on Thursday, followed by an unplanned (but no big deal) rest day. <br />
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Saturday morning I jumped into the Kelley's Pace Hare Hop 5K in Mystic. It was race #3 in the WTAC <a href="http://www.westerlytrackclub.org/clamshell.html">Clamshell Series</a>. The early morning start and close proximity worked best for the family schedule. I had hoped to travel up to the An Ros Mor 5K (USATF-NE event) with Galoob on Sunday, but it was too much of a time suck. I also considered jumping in the Ocean's Run Half and trying to run with Muddy. It was a little pricey and turned out to be a debacle, so I'm glad I skipped it and went with the Hare Hop. I arrived early, signed up, and then headed out on an early and long warm up along the course. I saw two fast looking guys also warming up early. When I got back, I could see that there was going to be a good sized field. I was impressed with how well the race was organized. The course was no cupcake. An out-and-back with a 80' hill climb in the middle and a couple of sneaky hills at the start and finish. I was feeling pretty good. I did some strides in the parking lot and lined up. It was cold, but I knew I'd be fine when racing. The two guys I saw warming up were there as well as a pack of fast looking teenagers. You never know what to expect with them. Oh, and to my surprise, Matthew Walker was there. Uh oh, there goes my Clamshell win. Nothing to do now but just race. I could use it. It will be good for me. The start was fast and I tried to keep myself in check. After we rounded the parking area (1/4 mile?) we had hit a small annoying hill. At the top I was now in third. Where's Matthew? I continued on the flat open road trying to not go too fast. There was a guy in blue already establishing a clear lead and then 2nd was a few seconds ahead (these were the two guys I saw warming up). I reached Mile 1 in 5:41. This was not my plan. Too slow. I wanted to not go out too fast, but apparently I went too far. Then I reached the big hill. I dug down and climbed hard. I quickly caught 2nd place and motored by. I tried to keep pushing myself, but I couldn't wait for the hill to end. It did, near the cone turnaround, and I made eye contact with the leader (probably 10-15 second lead). I rounded the cone and then got to see my lead on third (5 seconds) and Matthew gaining in 4th. I tried to let it fly down the hill. It was great to get support from my WTAC teammates and others as we passed each other. It was clear that the leader was going to win. He significantly increased his lead. But, based on the cheers behind me, I had put a nice gap on third. 2 Mile split was 5:36. Not bad considering the hill. Back on the flat straight for the last mile. I felt under control and smooth until I hit the small hill before the parking lot finish. I was excited to still be ahead of Matthew (for Clamshell points), but also scared. I felt like there was still a good gap, but not big enough for him to out sprint me to the finish line. I hammered the hill and felt sick to my stomach at the top. I didn't descend well. Matthew was coming. The stupid parking lot took forever to get to the end. Finally I could see the finish and knew that I was going to hold my place. I wasn't thrilled with my finish time (17:24 but add 2 seconds for SNERRO again!!), but it wasn't a flat course. My Mile 3 split was 5:28 and the final .1 was 5:20 pace (this should be way faster). Negative splits. I'll take it. I watched the finish until I got cold and then returned to my car for extra layers. I then did a cool down mostly on a new to me trail system that Crutchley alerted me to across the street. I had enough time to get my award: new GPS watch! <br />
I really enjoyed this event. Again, very well managed. Thank you Kelley's Pace. <a href="http://www.coolrunning.com/results/16/ct/Mar5_Kelley_set1.shtml">Results</a><br />
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Sunday I managed to sneak in a long run in three parts during the morning. <br />
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Week of 3/7 recap: huge training week. Lots of hill work, miles, trails, and even roads. Thursday I did a combo workout: 2 x road mile (Waldron) and then 2 x trail mile (yellow dot loop in Rome Pt). My goal was to get used to running fast again, no matter how tired I was. 5:17/5:17 on the road miles - very pleased. 5:44/5:36 (CR) on the trail loops. This is super fun single track that twists and has a decent climb. Then on Sunday I got the invite with Muddy to do an organized run on the Boston Marathon course courtesy of Ryan Davenport. Everything was graciously taken care of for me, all I had to do was run. After a mile warm up from Ryan's house to the start line in Hopkinton, we met up with many others and headed off. My plan was to follow Muddy and Ryan's plan. 7 miles easy then 10 at a spicy marathon pace with others at 6:10 pace. Followed by 2 miles easy to the Newton Town Hall at Mile 19. The first miles were fun and fast (8 miles at 6:55 average pace). I talked with different people, but ended up with Ryan and Muddy at mile 8, waiting for the 6:10 group to meet us. They arrived and we were off. It became apparent that they were going faster than advertised (my watch was showing 6:07 average pace). I was feeling good, and since I'm not actually doing a marathon, welcomed the challenge of sticking with these too fast 4. After a few miles, I decided to take a turn leading (strong headwind) but I got carried away on some hills and we went even faster (and dropped someone in the process). The road began getting busier and more confusing, and I let the other two take the lead the last couple of miles. We stopped after 9 miles (for me, 10 for them) in 54:08! We chatted and then they headed back and told me how to continue on the course. I had one big hill to contend with (Firehouse Hill?), but I kept a 6:32 average pace for the last two miles which felt slow and easy. I ended up covering the first 19 miles of the course in 2:02:32 (6:27 ave. pace). <br />
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Week of 3/14 recap: another big week, similar to last week minus the roads, adding in even more hills. The highlight of the week was a 3 hour out-and-back solo run on the Narragansett Trail. I kept a steady pace throughout, pushing the pace in a couple of places (Strava segments). I ran from Ashville Pond to Tom Wheeler Rd where the trail has a road block at the Groton Gun Club. I instead continued on down the road which turned to dirt and dropped pretty far. At the 1:30 mark, I turned around and went back. At the 1:47 mark, I tripped and fell, smashing my left knee on a rock. It stung. And hurt. I stopped for a drink of water and a Gu, feeling sorry for myself. I regrouped and carried on, pushing the Green Fall ravine trail segment pretty hard. I was very happy to not have any fatigue issues with my feet or legs. This is a very technical trail, so that is a good sign! <br />
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So there it is. Until next time. <br />
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Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-65022887882855444312016-03-17T11:02:00.001-04:002016-03-17T11:02:52.989-04:00Belleville Pond Trail 10K 2016Very late on this write up so I will keep it relatively brief. Saturday, February 27th was the fifth annual Belleville Pond 10K in Ryan Park. I was particularly excited for this year's rendition because there would be no snow on the course. This has only been the case the first year. The second year only had an inch or so, but the last two were snowy sufferfests. I longed to get to race fast on my (one of many) home courses. RD and training partner Mike Galoob couldn't resist tinkering with the course this year to include some of the many new single track trails that have sprouted up in the park the last couple of years. This would make a relatively easy course a bit more tricky. I also hoped this would improve my chances in the race - slowing down the speedy road guys and favoring my trail and hill experience. Realistically I thought a podium finish might be possible for me. It was clear by the almost 150 pre-registries that this race would be chock full of competition. This is was not going to be a walk in the park! <br />
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I deliberately had a very easy race week. Sometimes I find it challenging to give up miles during the week of a race. I hadn't raced in quite some time and I wanted to be fresh. In the future I hoped to remember the race - I certainly won't care if I ran 50 miles that week or 60. I spent 4 out of 5 weekdays on the course. I kept the going easy and the mileage low. I liked the flow of the new course. It mixed in some pace changing tight single track and also a bunch of small hills. Then on Friday, I met Mike in the park to flag the far end of the course. He was already out when I arrived, so I ran around the course to find him. I found his pack ditched on the trail in the powerline and I immediately knew what he was up to - tinkering with the course less than 24 hours to race time! Sure enough he had just scouted an idea and liked it. I did too, so we went ahead and marked it. This change mixed in a decent hill on the powerline as well as part of the fun "middle" trail. I was excited for tomorrow. <br />
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Race day! My brother Greg was in town and going to race as well. He was convinced that this would be the race I finally beat him, but I never count him out. His plan was to stick with me, and the prospect of racing with my brother was a fun and comforting feeling. I figured he would both push me and make me run smart. I decided to rep Wild Endurance with him at the race (yet still scoring for WTAC). The morning was nice - sunny and a bit chilly. The course was in top shape. We arrived early and got settled in, chatting with many familiar people. I led a group warm up on the beginning and finishing stretches of the course. I then returned to my car for last minute prep and headed off to the starting area. Besides the competition I already was counting on, there were some surprises as well - namely fit looking fast road guys. I had no idea what to expect. <br />
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At the siren, I tried to keep it under control. I watched 20 something people shoot out ahead of me. I tried to find the balance of conservation and not falling too far behind. I hoped to be in the mix when things most likely slowed down on the first single track shortly into the race. I moved up as the sprinters fell back, but honestly, I felt like my body was tight and or working too hard way too early. I entered the single track in 6th place. Ahead of me were knowns Eric Narcisi, Eric Lonergan, and Steve Brightman, and unknown fast looking road guys (later figured out to be Geoff Nelson and Christopher Cluett). Greg was on my heels. The pace remained fast and the pack did not stick tight as I thought. Eventually I made a move by Cluett before reaching the rail bed. Now Geoff and the Erics were pulling away with Brightman doing his best to keep up. I was not close to them. Greg moved up along side of me and I could hear more footsteps behind. Again, I noticed that the hot pace didn't feel great to me. Shouldn't I feel fresher? I thought Greg would continue to push on ahead of me, but it didn't happen. When we reached the end, he let me take the lead again. I thought it was just a courtesy, but that was the last time I would run with him today. I ran through the field and up the awkward powerline hill. For a few moments I forgot what was going on behind me, and focused on a fading runner ahead. It was Geoff Nelson. I passed him on the steep incline onto the Rte 4 trail. 4th place now! <br />
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Quickly my focus turned to the runners behind me. Someone was now "pushing" me. It didn't take long to realize it was Muddy. Here we go again! Does this happen in every trail race we run together? I knew he was super fit and wouldn't put up with me lollygagging out there. I had to hammer. The thought of it was more tiring than the physical act of it. I pushed hard on the ups and downs of this trail. On a tight turn I could see that we had put some distance between us and Greg. The next couple of twisty miles were the same. Negative mental thoughts as I tried to stay ahead of Muddy. Sometimes I wished he just went by so I could relax. Other times I surged hills or obstacles hoping to create space. No dice. I was sure he was just biding his time until the end. It also was frustrating to not see 3rd place (presumably Brightman) in the woods. How can he be so far ahead? <br />
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I reached the open rail bed again. I made sure to increase my turnover. Muddy remained close. Brightman looked to be a minute ahead. The battle was for 4th place. I still felt like Muddy was waiting to make a move. I thought about the new WTAC Clamshell series and how we would be tied if he beat me or I would have a decent lead if he didn't. Willing myself to stay uncomfortable for just a few more minutes. Off the railbed, I hammered the next two small hills before hitting the "roots" trail. Did I create some space? Adrenaline was pumping as the end got closer. I reached the open parking area and now just had to run around the "broken field of dreams". I began sprinting. Don't get passed I told myself over and over. Finally I could see the finish and found yet another gear. 4th place! Two seconds ahead of Muddy. One minute 19 seconds ahead of Greg. <br />
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I missed my podium finish by one place, but I was very happy with my race. I think the early tightness and uneasiness can be chalked up to a lack of racing. My body was not ready for it. However, my training let me push hard on the trails and finish strong. I outsprinted everyone on the Field of Broken Dreams Strava segment - even the race winner Eric Narcisi by 4 seconds. <br />
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The new course was a smashing success. It still is fast, but way more interesting now. Everyone seemed to enjoy it. I managed a group trail cool down and then stuck around for my cruel 4th place award - a can of O'Doul's! Thanks again to everyone who makes these 4th Season Trail Race Series events so awesome. <br />
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Results <a href="https://www.webscorer.com/racedetails?raceid=63218&did=68818">here</a><br />
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Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-83377078103575553692016-02-22T16:25:00.002-05:002016-02-22T16:25:44.046-05:00Road Running: Week of 2-15-16 to 2-21-16Another good bye to the snow. This is how I like winter. Play in the snow for a couple of days and then have it disappear. Because of messy trail conditions, I opted to stay out of the woods this week (except on Monday). This was also a chance to test my fitness on roads. Slogging around in snow makes me feel exhausted and slow. It's nice to see it correlate to road speed. <br />
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Monday: 12 miles - Burlingame snow covered trails in the morning. Presidents' Day. Just a great run in the woods. It was cold. The trails were packed down in most places by fat bikes, 4x4 trucks (north camp), and others. I wore trail shoes with Yaktrax for just a little extra grip. Hit up all the fun single track in the NE corner of the park. My pace felt peppy throughout. Total time: 1:33:35 with 635' of climbing. <br />
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Tuesday: 10 miles - Saunderstown roads alone. It was windy, foggy, and wet. The temperature was in the low 50's - almost 50 degrees warmer than at the start of my run yesterday! My plan was a normal run with some good hills mixed in, hoping not to get splashed by cars. My legs felt tired on the climbs, but I managed a good pace overall (7:21), considering I got 1,025' of elevation gain. Total time: 1:13:30. <br />
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Wednesday: 13 miles - flat roads of NK workout. Workout Wednesday. No Galoob (Quebec), so I was going to go solo. It was too nice out to do the indoor track. I opted to do a block of marathon pace (T pace didn't seem appealing to me). My plan was 2 mile warm up, 10 miles @ 6:14 ave., 2 mile cool down. I parked at the Quonset bike path lot, and ran around Allen's Harbor as a warm up. Warm with the wind at my back, but cool running into it. My first few miles would be mostly into the wind and very exposed on Quonset roads. I began the M block. I peeked once at my watch near the 1 mile mark to check my pace (6:08 at that point). I wanted to make sure I wasn't too fast or too slow. I then ignored my watch for the next 6 miles. I just ran by feel. I reached Rte 1 and then ran east on the bike path to Potter Rd. At the intersection with Quidnessett, I checked my watch - almost 7 miles averaging 6:13 pace. I was feeling a bit tired at this point, so I tried to pick up my effort so I wouldn't fall off pace. I reached Mount View and finished on the 10 miles on the far end of the bike path - 1:01:17! 6:08 average pace. I guess I picked it up too much the last 3 miles, but I feel good about this workout. I shortened my cool down to just one mile. Total time: 1:22:46. <br />
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Thursday: 11 miles - roads with hills. My legs didn't feel beat up at all. I decided to park on the NLT near Rte 102 and run roads from there (mostly paved). I began right away with a hill. I felt sluggish, but it warmed me up fast. I continued west on Old Ten Rod Rd, hitting the big hill up to Rte 3. I then ran south on Rte 3 with the wind at my back to Dawley Park Rd. I continued to Tug Hollow, Hillsdale, Hoxsie, and Gardiner roads. This included another 3 hill climbs. Total time: 1:19:59 with 839' of elevation gain. <br />
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Friday: 10 miles - more roads with hills. I'm still not feeling beat up from Wednesday. Good sign. Today I parked on Congdon Mill Rd. I again began with a brutal hill climb. I checked my watch at the top and my ave. pace was 7:52. This was going to be a slow run. I meandered on down Robin Hollow Rd and back up the other side. I turned north onto Fry Pond Rd then east on Sharpe Street (soon turning into Weaver Hill Rd). Eventually I hit Rte 3 and had to run into the wind up a big hill. I was very surprised at the finish to see that my average pace ended up at 7:07 (total time 1:11:06). Another 806' of climbing. <br />
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Saturday: 17 miles - long road run/workout with Muddy. I was happy to get in a quality long run this weekend and not do it alone. I was nervous about Muddy's plan of 3E, 6M, 1T, 5M, 3E. I didn't think my legs could hold up to this, but guessed that he was also not feeling fresh after another monster week of training. It turns out we were in the same boat physically. After our hilly warm up of 3 miles, we got to work. Immediately, the pace felt too spicy to me and unattainable. Muddy soon after was expressing his displeasure as well. I pushed on the best I could thinking we just needed to get to 5 miles and then reassess. Somewhere in the 5th mile I began feeling better, and mentally I felt like I may be able to knock out a few more miles at this pace. The key was to just make it up the hill on Pine Hill Rd in one piece. At the top of the hill I heard Muddy shout out behind me that he was going to stop. It was at exactly 6 miles (37:07 - 6:11 ave. pace). We got moving again, this time at a pace that felt easy (but was in the high 6's). We then began another undetermined amount of marathon pace work. We were running into the wind on Pine Hill Rd and I couldn't wait to turn north onto Switch Rd. I pushed hard, too hard, and had to back off a bit. We turned down Sandy Pond Rd and my watch began acting up (bad GPS signal in the pines?). Despite my best effort, my average pace kept showing slower and slower. I was frustrated. Another turn onto Woodville Rd with the wind at our back and bright sun. Unfortunately it was mostly uphill back to Switch Rd. This was tough, but I felt good about my effort. We were closing in on 3 miles as I began fighting the strong wind in the turf fields. I wanted to get to 4, but I noticed I couldn't hear Muddy behind me, so turned around to see he had stopped. I decided to stop as well (3+ miles @ 6:15 ave. pace). We then had 4 more miles to go to get back to my house on top of the hill. I was tired, but ok. Muddy was bonking, and suffering. Glad we made it back in one piece. Total time: 1:53:11 (6:40 ave. pace) with 516' of elevation gain (Muddy's barometer based watch had 816'). <br />
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In the afternoon, I took my son on a long hike (he picked) in Wickaboxet (the blue loop). It was advertised as 4 miles, but my GPS watch measured it as 4.5+. We walked clockwise, saving the highlight - Rattlesnake Ledge, for last. Still snow in the darker spots, but it was a warm day (mid 50's). Total moving time of 2hrs 8 minutes. Spirits were high and fun was had on the ledges. <br />
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Top of Rattlesnake Ledge. </div>
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The full ledge from below. </div>
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Sunday: 0 - rest day. After 73 miles in 6 days, plus over 4 hours of moving time yesterday, I was happy to not run today. I thought about it a few times, but I just wasn't motivated. I still spent plenty of time outside working in the yard and also walking for about 40 minutes in Ninigret with my wife as the kids biked. Good enough. Thus begins my taper for the Belleville Pond Trail 10K next Saturday. <br />
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Weekly Total: 73 miles<br />
Last Week: 63 miles<br />
Year to Date: 510 miles<br />
February to Date: 197 milesJonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-72132018921145311062016-02-17T11:07:00.001-05:002016-02-17T11:07:53.733-05:00Cold Week: 2-8-16 to 2-14-16This week was a mixed bag. I got in two track workouts, slogged around in snow, braved frigid cold, and dealt with a nuisance head cold. Ideally, I'd like to be in the low 70's for mileage every week except race weeks, but with winter, you can't be too picky. <br />
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Monday: 8 miles - Burlingame snowshoe run. Another day home with snow. This time it was much colder and the snow was light and fluffy. After a lazy day inside working on a puzzle and checking work emails, I headed out in the late afternoon for a run. I donned my trusty snowshoes and ran down the road (not plowed at this point) to Burlingame off of Burdickville Rd. I was breaking trail and the going was slow. At the intersection with the main loop, there were very fresh 4x4 truck tracks (the gates are open during hunting season). They were wide enough for me to run in which was a surprise bonus. I followed them all the way down to the canoe camps where I saw the pickup truck parked on the trail. I just kept my head down and motored past, not wanting to know what they were up to. I was now breaking trail again, this time on the hard to follow white dot single track. Very tough going for a while until I reached the main loop again. I quickly was passed by the pickup truck (the people were friendly and told me that I was moving fast). It was nice to climb the hill in the wide tracks again. At the top of the hill, I encountered a family out sledding (this is the middle of nowhere!). I was quite impressed. I pushed on to Buckeye Brook Rd. I crossed over and ran single track (mostly untouched) to the bottom of my road. I then ran the road back (now plowed). I stuck to the sides since I still had my snowshoes on. I decided to bushwhack the rest of the way to my house. There isn't a trail yet, but I'm beginning to take the same route every time. Soon enough, I'll have a trail. Fun, tough run. Total time: 1:10:09 with 464' of climbing. <br />
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Look at the pacing! Slog city up Shumankawall at the end. </div>
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Tuesday: 9 miles - snowy Exeter trails/dirt roads with Galoob. We met at Cuttyhunk Preserve. I waited down the road for him to drive into the snowed in lot first, since my car may have gotten stuck. We decided to just wear trail shoes, even though the conditions looked snowshoe-able. We ran the trails to Stony Lane, which was snow covered and extremely wet. We crossed over to Pardon Joslin Rd and then did the very snowy north Fisherville loop. There was an unbelievable amount of animal tracks here. No humans. We then did 3 repeats of Pardon Joslin hill. Luckily there were 4x4 tracks on it, or the conditions may have been unbearable. Mike had to shoot home, so I took the long way back down Stony Lane and Cuttyhunk. I ended up with 1,009' of elevation gain. Total time: 1:15:51. <br />
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Wednesday: 10 miles - URI indoor track workout with Galoob. Mike had 3 possible workouts to do, and we agreed to do this one: 2 sets of 6x500 @ 5K pace with a 300 float. 4 minutes rest between sets. My target was 1:42 (5:28 5K pace), but got into a groove of 1:39's in the first set and 1:38's in the 2nd. This equated more to my 3K pace (5:15). The floats were kept to a peppy pace in the low 7's. This made the workout challenging. In the beginning, I thought there was no way I could complete 2 sets of this, but my body acclimated and the second set felt way easier. Confidence booster! Total time: 1:06:01. <br />
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Thursday: 8 mile double (sort of). Cold day with a chilly breeze. First I parked at the RI Desert (part of Big River) to look for my daughter's gloves she left here over the weekend when we went sledding here with friends (best place to sled ever BTW). I couldn't find them. I ended up just slogging around in the snow on the dunes on both side of Division Street. Felt like the arctic. I should have worn my snowshoes. Many, many climbs up steep dunes were exhausting. GPS only gave me 200' of elevation gain however. Stupid technology. I stopped after 45 minutes. I then decided to bag a few more miles, this time doing an out-and-back on the roads. I began into the wind which was mind numbing. Very cold. Way back wasn't much better. 3 miles in 21:11. <br />
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RI Desert map</div>
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The snowy desert. </div>
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Friday: 10 miles - URI indoor track workout alone. A really cold and windy day that was perfect for running circles inside. My goal was a 5 mile block of T pace, but I knew that 40 nonstop speedy laps might be way too much for me to handle physically (legs tired from Wed workout and snow slogging) or mentally. After a 2 mile warm up, I began the T block (5:52 pace - 44 sec laps). My legs were feeling heavy and the laps were not going by fast enough. I willed my way to 3 miles in 17:35 and then jogged for 800. I decided to shoot for a T workout that I've done in the past (3T, 2T, 1T). The 2 mile block was much better (11:42). I was fatiguing the last mile (5:51), but got it done. 1 mile cool down. Total time: 1:04:29. <br />
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Saturday: 10 miles - local roads in the morning. Forecasted to be wicked cold all day, I was happy to have a temperature in the high teens when I ran at 8:30AM. I decided to do an out-and-back on roads from my house, first heading into the wind to get the worst of the cold over with. I went out Burdickville Rd, down Rte 91 to Rte 216, then up Tomaquag Rd to Tomaquag Valley Rd (snow and ice covered dirt). The cold wasn't that bad as the sun was out and I was dressed appropriately. I thought this route was hilly, but it didn't feel like it as I ran. I was pleased to see that GPS had it at 802' elevation gain when I uploaded it. Total time: 1:12:24. <br />
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Sunday: 8 miles - mixed road/snow trails run from my house. I waited for it to warm up to single digits before heading out. I have to say that my North Face balaclava was a smart purchase last year. The thing keeps me warm no matter what. I ran down Buckeye Brook Road before veering off to test trail conditions. Most places had packed down crunchy snow which made running in just trail shoes nice. Total time: 1:03:13 with 472' of climbing. <br />
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Weekly Total: 63 miles<br />
Last Week: 61 miles<br />
Year to Date: 437 miles<br />
February to Date: 124 milesJonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-11441847056210878342016-02-12T10:11:00.002-05:002016-02-12T10:11:34.050-05:00Postponed Race Week: 2-1-16 to 2-7-16This week was going to be light on mileage and intensity to rest my body up for the Belleville Pond Trail 10K in Ryan Park on Saturday. My legs have been feeling rather tired from winter conditions running, so this was welcomed. The race ended up getting postponed on Friday afternoon due to a messy storm. So this ended up being a quiet running week which is probably not a bad thing. <br />
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Monday: 12 miles - Burlingame trails in the morning. The high temperature got up into the mid 60's today, but because of an appointment, I had to run when it was only about 50. Muggy! I did a good loop from my house that included all the fun stuff north and east of the pond. Total time: 1:33:10 with 737' of climbing. <br />
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Tuesday: 7 miles - Ryan Park trails with Galoob. We met up to tweak the 10K course since there has been so much single track added to the park over the last 3 years. The course is the same flow, but incorporates more single track and small hills. This is going to be fun to race! Total time: 58:53. <br />
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Wednesday: 8 miles - URI indoor track with Galoob. Just a tune up for Saturday's race. 3 mile warm up then 4x1000 @ T pace: 3:30/3:35/3:34/3:35 with 1 minute recovery. Added in 4x100 strides during 2 mile cool down. A little too spicy on the 1000s. Total time: 54:31. <br />
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Thursday: 7 miles - Ryan Park trails alone. I ran the new course mixing in a few strides near the end. Going over race strategy in mind. Total time: 52:28. <br />
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Friday: 0 - heavy rain overnight changed to heavy wet snow in the morning. What a mess. Luckily we didn't lose power like others nearby. Everything was drooping with snow. I was content to not run with the idea of a snowy sufferfest race looming tomorrow. Got the call from Galoob in the afternoon that Ryan Park was a disaster. Race needed to be postponed. Bummer. <br />
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Saturday: 16 miles - half beach half roads long run fartlek alone. I had a decent morning window to run, but wasn't sure where. Yesterday's wet roads would be very icy (low 20's overnight). The trails would all be blocked by drooping trees. Plus I would have to snowshoe. I decided that running the beach would be a good option. I parked at the top of Charlestown Breachway Rd not knowing if the beach lot would be plowed. I then ran the two miles of road to get to the breachway. The road was terrible and I hated every car that passed me by. Finally I reached the breachway and hopped onto the beach. It was a mid tide but receding. The sand was decently firm. It was cold out, but the sun was bright and the light breeze at my back. I warmed up quickly and took off my gloves. I tried to enjoy the solitude and scenery, but in the back of my head, I knew I had a lot of sand running to do and I wanted to get it done. The rocks of Green Hill were a little dicey and I wished I had done the road detour. Moonstone wasn't as stony as usual, and I was getting into a good groove. I saw my first human here. I kept moving along until I reached an unplanned roadblock - Cards Pond was breached and there was a raging deep river emptying into the Atlantic. I stopped and reassessed. I was only at 6 miles. I decided to make my way back, but I would run around the roads of Green Hill too. And while I was at it, I thought I would mix in some speed play. I ran back along Moonstone Beach at a tempo effort for 1.3 miles. I then slowed things down over the rocks and the icy streets of Green Hill for a mile or so and then did a hard road mile. My time wasn't great, but the road conditions were crappy. I jogged around for another mile or so, hopping back onto the beach, before running hard from Green Hill to the Charlestown Breachway (a distance of over 2 miles). This was challenging and I cursed every time I took a step in soft sand. More people and dogs out now. The tough part was seeing the breachway, but it taking forever to reach it. I was happy to be done with it. I then jogged for another mile on the icy roads back, before engaging in another hard icy road mile back to my car. I was at fifteen miles, 8 had been on the beach and 7 on the road. I figured 1 more road mile made sense. Total time: 1:59:37 with about 5.5 miles of tempo work mixed in. <br />
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Cards Pond Breach looking east</div>
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view to the west</div>
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jumping back on the beach at Green Hill</div>
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Sunday: 11 miles - early morning run on mostly roads from my house. The roads were not icy like I feared. I ran south down roads to the Burlingame Picnic Area. I then ran the VG trail out to Klondike Rd. Conditions on the trails were good to. Just an inch or two of crunchy snow and ice. The bridges felt a little sketchy though. I then ran hilly roads back to my house. Total time: 1:18:20 with 583' of climbing. <br />
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Weekly Total: 61 miles<br />
Last Week: 72 miles<br />
Year to Date: 374<br />
February to Date: 61 milesJonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-71699718746243297472016-02-02T10:20:00.000-05:002016-02-02T10:20:31.737-05:00Quick Thaw: 1-25-16 to 1-31-16Well that didn't take too long. This is the way I enjoy the snow. Play in it for a couple of days and then go back to normal. My plan for this week was to pack on miles early and then taper for Saturday's Charlestown Chili 5K. I hoped to have a good race while fretting about course set up and helping with directing. <br />
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Monday: 14 mile double. First light keeps coming earlier and earlier these days. I got out about 10 minutes after my son hopped on the middle school bus and ran a Burdickville Rd (plus a little more) out and back. Decent hills in both directions. 5 miles in 36:08 with 397' of climbing. In the afternoon I donned my snowshoes for the third day in a row and checked out the conditions at Ryan Park. I was happy to see a lot less snow than Burlingame and there were many snowshoe and other tracks already on most of the trails. I basically ran the 10K course in just over an hour. Not too bad. I then ran another mile on the road without the snowshoes as a cool down. <br />
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Tuesday: 15 mile double. Another early morning start from the house, this time out and back on Buckeye Brook Rd. More good hills. 5 miles in 35:54 with 379' of climbing. Things were melting pretty fast and trails and roads seemed like gross options. I opted to run up and down the straight hilly roads in Saunderstown despite exhausted legs. I felt slow and out of shape on the climbs. I also had a stiff headwind going up. The weather was nice though and I shuffled along my planned route. 10 miles in 1:13:07 (faster than I assumed) with 1,342' of elevation gain. <br />
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Wednesday: 9 miles - T paced mile repeats in Wickford. Work has been more demanding these days and I couldn't make the time to meet Galoob at the URI indoor track. I ended up doing a solo workout on a road loop mile near my work. The Waldron Mile segment was created 3 years ago and used a couple of times by myself, Mike, and Gunshow. It's a quiet neighborhood, with slightly undulating terrain. It's a fun spot for this sort of thing. My plan was 5 x 1 mile @ T pace with 1 minute recoveries. I was worried about how tired my legs have been due to mileage and snowshoe running, but this workout went extremely well. Results: 5:52/5:50/5:52/5:47/5:48. These felt smooth! Total time 57:47. <br />
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Thursday: 6 miles - Calf Pasture Point+ easy run. Tired. Most of this run was on sand along the bay. Total time: 50:19. Checked out Ninigret - looks like the 5K course has melted nicely and Saturday's weather is looking good! <br />
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Friday: 6 miles - Ryan Park sloppy trails alone. Some wet snow remains, but mostly just bare trails that are very muddy in many places. I zigzagged on the western side for 48:32. <br />
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Saturday: 12 miles - Charlestown Chili 5K - 1st overall, 17:51. This event was an overwhelming success. I began marking the course at 10:30 (1PM start). After finalizing the measuring last week, I now was concerned with this task. The issue is that Ninigret Park can be confusing - many unmarked paved lanes and open terrain. I really wanted to make sure no one got off course. This meant first driving around and putting out large cones in places, placing mile markers, as well as setting up arrows for turns. This was more complicated by the mostly frozen ground and also the wind (I searched around for rocks to keep the cones from moving). I then ditched my car and jogged the course with a backpack of flags (big thanks to Galoob for letting me borrow all his stuff!!). This process took way longer than I thought and by the time I was done, it was 12:15! I then grabbed my snow shovel to clear two corners of snow and ice (plowed in). Meanwhile the place was filling up with people. There were plenty of familiar faces both from the Charlestown Early Learning Center (the pre-school that the race was for) and WTAC runners (thanks for the support!). Things finally seemed good to go. I was exhausted!! I warmed up, but legs just felt shot. Oh well. Laura (the first time RD) got the kids race off just before 1PM which both my kids did. <br />
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Kids race start. All photos by Danielle Burbo Photography. </div>
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Jackson finished in 3rd. </div>
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Ellie was 3rd girl, 6th overall. </div>
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It was now time for the 5K. Somehow I found myself in the back of the parking lot at my car getting my kids settled in (my wife was also running the 5K). There was whining. Then I heard a horn. I looked up and noticed that the race had begun! For a second I thought about just forgetting about it, but then I took off across the parking lot to get to the race. <br />
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Race start. Great turn out! </div>
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I jumped into the back of the race and weaved my way up to the front. By the quarter mile mark, I took the lead. I wasn't feeling great, but the rush of adrenaline was helping me. By the half mile mark, it seemed that I was going to run the rest of the race as a time trial. Unfortunately, I never started my watch in the confusion, so I had no idea how fast I was going. I pushed along creating more space when I would get glances at turns. Despite two of my arrow signs blowing over, everyone was staying on course which was a relief. At times there was a stiff headwind, but you never ran in the same direction for long (which was my plan when I designed the course). I convinced myself that I was running fast. I was feeling good. I kept picking up the pace on the final mile and then got a visual on the clock. High 17:40's. Ugh. I motored through to a 17:51 finishing time. Not what I was planning, but the day was such a success that I don't really care. It is funny to think that about a month ago I ran the course relatively hard on a very cold morning in 17:43. </div>
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Finishing up. </div>
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Crossing the line. </div>
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It was fun to then watch the rest of the runners finish up the race. I was stoked for Jon Short to finish 4th overall and average in the 6's for the first time in years. My wife pushed herself harder than her usual runs and my dad did well as well. So many young kids did the 5K. I began getting chilly and then realized I had a long course clean up in front of me. Better get it over with. Off I went picking up flags and signs. It seemed to go by faster than set up, but I was gone a long time. Things were winding down back at the community center by the time I got back. In total there were 150+ participants in the races today. Laura did an awesome job directing this race! I'm glad I could help out. </div>
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<a href="http://www.coolrunning.com/results/16/ri/Jan30_Charle_set2.shtml">Results</a></div>
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Sunday: 10 miles - Grills Preserve trails alone. I wasn't feeling that chipper, but it was a nice morning and I wanted to run anyway. I decided to run around Grills Preserve, hoping that it wasn't too muddy. I perked up as I went along and had a great run on both sides of the river. Total time: 1:19:59. </div>
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Overall: I probably over did it early in the week and ruined my shot at a PR attempt at the 5K. Not that missing the start and setting up for 2.5 hours before hand helped either. I NEED to take it easy next week as the Belleville Pond Trail 10K is on Saturday. Looks like clear trails in (one of) my home park. Can't wait! </div>
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Weekly Total: 72 miles</div>
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Last Week: 67 miles</div>
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Year to Date: 313 miles</div>
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January Total: 313 miles</div>
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Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-68500285271142930432016-01-27T13:50:00.000-05:002016-01-27T13:50:40.128-05:00Winter Weather Week: 1-18-16 to 1-24-16Heading into this week I was planning for it to be a bit lighter in miles. I had the Charlestown Chili 5K to set up and run on Saturday, a holiday home with the family on Monday, and plus I needed a break from the last two weeks of heavy mileage. What I wasn't ready for was a change from seasonable cold but dry conditions to snow on the ground. Not thrilled about it, but trying to have as much fun with it as possible. <br />
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Monday: 9 miles - Burlingame snowy trails alone. The surprise storm from last evening left 1-2" of fluffy snow on the ground. I left mid-morning donning my Yaktrax for the first time of the season. I ran into Burlingame from Burdickville Rd and then made my way down to the canoe camps (empty) and around the River Trail. The snow wasn't right for Yaktrax and they were fairly useless. My traction wasn't great. Still, it was fun to be the only human for miles alone in the woods. The single coyote tracks weren't enough to sketch me out. I crossed Buckeye Brook Rd and ran Lenny's Lane and back on VG. I was surprised to still see no other human tracks. I made my way up to the middle portion of Secret and part of Sammy C's. The last mile home was on the road. Total time: 1:12:37 with 568' of climbing. <br />
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One of my favorite Burlingame secret spots. </div>
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Ledges near Buckeye Brook Road. </div>
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Before darkness, I headed down to Ninigret with my dad's bike for one last OCD trip around the race course. I wanted to settle on the finish line and mile markers. Not pretty but got it done. <br />
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Final Charlestown Chili 5K course</div>
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Tuesday: 9 miles - Ryan Park snow trails with Galoob. We met up for an "uptempo" run with short hill repeats mixed in. We ran the Belleville Pond 10K course for the most part, which was holding just an inch at most of snow. I opted to just stick with trail shoes today. The run went pretty well. The pace was spicy for me, especially without optimal grip. The time for the course was about 44 minutes. We then tacked on another 2+ miles cool down for a total running time of 1:03:05. <br />
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Wednesday: 0 - unplanned zero due to unplanned car problems. <br />
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Thursday: 16.5 mile double. First run was a first light hill fartlek workout from my house. 5 miles in 34:05 with 456' of climbing. I hammered some small climbs and did the longer Burdickville Rd climb twice at a good effort. Nice little workout. In the afternoon, I parked at Rome Point and decided to do a mix run of trails, beach, and roads. I began on roads and wandered around the Waldron Ave area for the first time in more than a year. Finally I returned to Rome Point and ran trails and beach. My legs/feet are exhausted. I'm blaming the snow running more than the morning workout. Total time: 1:27:49. 11.5 miles. <br />
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Morning Hill Fartlek - look at that Grade Adjusted Pace!</div>
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Friday: 8.5 miles - Saunderstown snowy trails with Sandals. I met Aaron at his house and we ran trails on his property and the new TNC over to the Gilbert Stuart Birthplace. We then entered Camp Nokewa and ran in there, managing two decent hill climbs in slightly slippery conditions. We returned the same way. Good run! Total time: 1:07:48 with 524' of climbing. Sounds like TNC will be cutting new trails soon as well as putting in a place to park up on Rte 1A! <br />
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Saturday: 12 mile double. My Name is Jonas! <br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/yL1gXU_I6rg/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yL1gXU_I6rg?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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Fun video - I saw them at an outside venue in Atlanta the same year (1994). </div>
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So the Charlestown Chili 5K was postponed on Friday night due to the impending storm. The race director was pretty bummed, which I understood because she put together what seemed to be an awesome event. The weather today was terrible so it was the right call. In the morning I headed out at 9AM for a trail run as the snow began to fall. It was so windy at my house (faces NE, on top of a hill) that I debated even running. I decided to test out the conditions in a wooded valley (parked at Buckeye Brook Rd and ran south on VGT). The weather was okay, and I seemed safe. It was snowing the entire time, but only beginning to collect on the trail (Monday's snow was mostly gone by now here). I ran into quite a few hardy humans which was surprising. Before the campground, I followed the NST south over the bog bridges and then jumped off to run the ridge trail spur before heading back the way I came. Good effort throughout on tired legs. Total time: 1:08:20. Later in the afternoon, the whole family bundled up to get outside before dark. The storm was in full swing. Already 4-6" of snow on the ground and still coming down hard with crazy wind. I donned my snowshoes for my maiden run this winter. I ran (where I could) around my sloping property before exploring the wild spaces beyond. Fun stuff except slow and exhausting. Total time 35 minutes with 331' of climbing. <br />
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Snowshoe running dork. </div>
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Droopy trees somewhere behind my house. </div>
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I found this holly with berries somewhere. </div>
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Sunday: 12 miles - Burlingame snowshoe run alone. This was tough! We ended up with probably 8-10" of snow. After my wife's snowshoe with a friend and then a trip to town, I had a limited window to run before the Patriots game. I thought about running roads, but it didn't seem appealing or like a good idea (limited shoulder because of snow). Snowshoe running in the woods would be beautiful but demanding. I began by running from my property back into the woods and up through state land to the beaver pond gate. This was all bushwhacking in deep snow. I then was in north Burlingame on double track, but the going was still tough. At least there was one xc ski track to try and run in. I crossed Buckeye Brook Rd at the red gate and jumped onto the VGT. Luckily there was a set of snowshoe tracks on it, but unfortunately I immediately caught up to and passed the person making them. At the north camp road, there were the xc ski tracks again so I decided to do the loop and let the snowshoer get ahead of me again on the VGT to break trail. I briefly stopped at the pond, but then had to lay the first tracks back up via the single track to VGT. This was terrible. Back on VGT heading toward Kings Factory Rd, there were 3 sets of snowshoes! This made conditions decent. I ended up catching up to all 3 people snowshoeing though. I briefly chatted with them, and one couple had tracked Sammy C's. Hmm. I decided to go that way at the intersection. This was another struggle for a couple of miles before reaching the bottom of Shumankanuc Hill Rd. I took off my snowshoes at this point and ran the mile home on the road. My legs were so trashed at this point I felt like I was running 10 minute mile pace. Total time was 1:33:21 with 491' of climbing. I'm calling it 12 miles because of effort although it felt like double that. <br />
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Snowshoe run - check out those paces. </div>
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Overall: I made the best out of the week. Not much speedy stuff, but hopefully the snow slogging is making me stronger. The race got postponed until next Saturday (1/30). I'm planning to race that hard and see where I am. <br />
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Weekly Total: 67 miles<br />
Last Week: 77 miles<br />
Year to Date: 241 miles<br />
January To Date: 241 milesJonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-91769001622942186982016-01-20T13:37:00.001-05:002016-01-20T13:37:20.935-05:00First Two Weeks of JanuaryIt's been good to get back into the normal routine after the craziness of the holidays. My plan was to step my mileage back up while continuing to mix in speed, hills, and long runs. Even though it has finally gotten colder (which I don't mind at all), it has remained snow free. Scary hunting seasons are over, so I can comfortably run everywhere. Work has been very busy, so sometimes I can't venture too far for my lunch runs. <br />
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Monday 1/4: 10 miles - Ryan Park trails. Crazy first day back to work, but I was able to focus and organize. Treated myself to a later than normal run. Cold and flurries. Total time: 1:18:55. <br />
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Tuesday 1/5: 8.5 miles - Exeter dirt roads/roads/trails with Galoob. We met up at the intersection of the dirt NLT and Rte 102. It was surprising to see a coating of snow on the roads "up" here. Footing was a bit of an issue on the trails. We hit some good hills, explored a bit, and even got lost. Total time: 1:06:11 with 740' of climbing. <br />
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Wednesday 1/6: 10.5 miles - Saunderstown mix. Began from the Rome Pt parking lot and ran roads (Gilbert Stuart, up Snuff Mill, around Plum Beach neighborhood). I didn't feel like figuring out where else to go on roads so I jumped onto the beach and ran to the Rome Pt trails. Fun mix and I managed 606' of climbing in 1:16:03. <br />
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Thursday 1/7: 15 miles - double. First light run from the house. I ran roads for a while but the woods looked too inviting. Fun stuff. 41:05 with 328' of climbing in 5.5 miles, but my watch stopped recording me before I got back to my house. My afternoon run was at Calf Pasture Point. My plan was to do a solo speed workout on the bike path, but increasing the mileage, back to work, back to school, has left me rather exhausted. Instead I enjoyed the bright winter sun and calm winds. I mixed in 5 miles of beach, 2 miles of trails, and 2.5 miles of bike path in 1:12:44. <br />
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Friday 1/8: 11 miles - double. First light run from the house. My idea was an easy workout of sorts, by doing a few repeats of one of the many nearby road climbs. I chose Burdickville Rd. It climbs 150' in .6 miles. I did three repeats: the first two at a steady pace and third at a faster pace. Turned out I just bested my CR without meaning to (averaged 6:21 pace!!). 5 miles in 34:54 with 485' of climbing. At lunch I met up with Sandals at his house in Saunderstown. We ran his trails back into the new TNC land along the Narrow River headwaters. It was good to catch up and get a tour. 6 miles in 48:21. <br />
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Saturday 1/9: 17 miles - Burlingame trail long run/workout solo. I really wanted to get a long run in this weekend, but free time was going to be an issue. I had to do it today and early. I ran 5 miles easy in 38:18, then ran the Vin Gormley Trail at a comfortably hard pace (from the north camp area clockwise). This went pretty well. It took a while to get in a groove, but then felt fast for the full duration. Total time was 51:46. I then did another 4 miles easy (struggling) mostly in north Burlingame in 30:32. Total time was 2:00:37. My GPS watch completely lost me and I don't have elevation data. Overall, felt good about this run. <br />
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Sunday 1/10: 0 - total crap weather day. Went to the movies for the first time in 12+ years. Saw the new Star Wars with the family in 3D. I was skeptical but ended up really enjoying it. After the movie we went home and spent some time wandering around in the woods behind our house. <br />
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Weekly Total: 72 miles<br />
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Monday 1/11: 14 miles - double. First light spin around the hilly block. 4 miles in 29:14 with 326' of climbing. Afternoon run in Big River. Really fun loop of techy trails and some hills (Carr Pond area). 10 miles in 1:17:55 with 586' of climbing. <br />
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Tuesday 1/12: 15 miles - double. First light run mostly on trails from my house. Loving early morning trails! 5+ miles in 40:14 with 374' of climbing. Afternoon run in Ryan Park. I spent more time wandering around the east side than the west. Pretty good pace at times. 10 miles in 1:15:41. <br />
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Wednesday 1/13: 10.5 miles - URI indoor track with Galoob. Finally, the weather was terrible enough to renew my alumni membership. I met Mike for his prescribed workout of 6x1000 @T with 200 recoveries, 5 minute rest, then two miles with alternating 200's @ 3K and then fast float. This was high volume, but not high speed. Perfect for me! I ran the 1000's a bit spicy: 3:30/3:34/3:35/3:36/3:35/3:34 - target was 3:40. These felt smooth. The two mile block of 200's went really well too. I did the 3K pace 200's @ 38 seconds each and kept the floats to 48 seconds (6:26 pace). Consistent splits throughout. Total running time of 1:08:34. <br />
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Thursday 1/14: 10.5 miles - solo hilly road loop. Not very inspired today, but decided to just run roads with hills. I ran from the Cuttyhunk parking lot and did the loop of roads that includes Hopkins Hill, Henry Brown, Falcon Ridge, Widow Sweets, and my favorite dirt road - Pardon Joslin. I felt sluggish (expected), but was surprised at my pace when I finally took a peek. Total time: 1:14:31 with 661' of climbing. Note that I rode my dad's bike around Ninigret in the frigid morning conditions measuring the Charlestown Chili 5K course with a bike computer. 8 miles. Frozen fingers. <br />
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Friday 1/15: 9 miles - Great Swamp trails alone. First I rode my dad's bike on the SC bike path to check the bike computer's calibration. It was measuring miles consistently at 1.02. I need to go back and fiddle with the course one more time factoring in this .02/mile error. I then ran after locking the bike away in my car. I believe this is called a brick. I first did some exploring, following single and double track trails and even power lines in the fringes of Great Swamp. Finally, I figured out where I was and then ran a loop around the dyke. I was not feeling very peppy, and remembered that I've never had a good run here for some reason. Finished up on dirt roads back to the bike path and my car. Total time: 1:11:17. <br />
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Saturday 1/16: 18 miles - Daniels marathon workout with Muddy. I joined him for a few of these Boston training runs last year and was "happy" to do this one today. The plan was 2E-2x2T(2 min. rest)-60 min. E-2T-2E. We figured out a relatively flat place to run, that also allowed for some of the hour easy to be on trails (DuVal). I was nervous about the 2 mile T blocks on my tired legs. Everything ended up going pretty well, the best part being the time on the trails (obviously). 11:38/11:30 and then 11:38 for the 2T's. Total time was 2:03:45. <br />
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Sunday 1/17: 0 - traveling to MA in the late afternoon and my wife had a run scheduled at 8:30. I thought about squeezing in 3 miles to get to 80 for the week, but decided I didn't really care. Cross trained with stacking wood. <br />
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Weekly Total: 77 miles<br />
Year to Date: 174 miles<br />
January to Date: 174 miles<br />
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Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-10781434801399219162016-01-15T11:27:00.000-05:002016-01-15T11:27:56.441-05:00Resolution Beach & Trail 5K 2016Like others, I'm a little late in posting this race recap. Sunday, January 3rd, was the fifth installment of the Resolution 5K in Narragansett, RI. The course is extremely scenic and attracts a lot of runners. Unfortunately, the terrain (mostly beach, with some easy trails) does not cater to my strengths. It can be very fast. <a href="http://www.coolrunning.com/results/15/ri/Jan11_Resolu_2_set1.shtml">Last year</a> the top 2 ran sub 17 minutes. I ran a speedy for me 18:15 and came in 9th place overall, probably my worst finish in 4+ years of the race series. My expectations for this year were mixed. I felt great about OMF 5K two weeks prior, but knew I probably wouldn't finish as high (3rd) in this race. <br />
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Race day and the weather would be the story as it often is in these winter trail races. Last year featured frozen sand and trails making for fast conditions. This year it was super windy. Obnoxiously windy. The temperature was in the low 40's and the ground was not frozen. This sand near the water was nice and firm however. The trail section featured some mud (from the thawing ground). The start and finish of the race would be directly into the wind. <br />
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The notables in attendance were Jackman, Brightman, Lonergan, Muddy, Chris Fox and the ageless sand Gazelle. Also present was Level Renner's own Eric Narcisi. He was a wildcard. <br />
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Race time. I was hoping for another slowish start like at OMF. I also wanted to hide behind some bigger dudes for the first half mile into the wind. Yes, this meant Jackman. It was a very strange scene at the gun: a bunch of unfamiliar people darted out into the strong headwind. I hung back at what felt like an easy pace with everyone else I was worried about (mentioned above). This continued for a bit, but I couldn't help but move up as the pace was still too easy for a race. Besides, the drafting thing didn't seem to be working. I could still feel the wind in my face, even when I did my best to "hide" behind someone. The flag turnaround was nearing and I decided to make a move. I didn't expect to win this race, but someone had to do something. I pushed ahead of the remaining unknown runners and was now up front. Soon after I hit the turnaround and the wind magically went away. I tried to just run fast, letting my legs go. As usual, this was not fast enough for some others, and Jackman, Brightman, and Lonergan soon passed by. At about the 1 mile mark, still with the wind at our backs, Eric Narcisi went by, offering words of encouragement. He looked super strong. No chance sticking with him. I could "feel" others behind me. I didn't want anyone else to pass. I dug in. First GPS mile was 5:48. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZJsD7pM5oBjG_Yvj5c8C1ySJ59uHUEXKulMc_CRUnlLhYjGnXzWp3cQGbhugdsI2BELu4GJ2Rfmfn06HoVgtompvI9mS2LdwQCnTjchYSRhg8cI0y0fvUl8AjczDgNemKFE0fZNWPjdOQ/s1600/Resolution+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZJsD7pM5oBjG_Yvj5c8C1ySJ59uHUEXKulMc_CRUnlLhYjGnXzWp3cQGbhugdsI2BELu4GJ2Rfmfn06HoVgtompvI9mS2LdwQCnTjchYSRhg8cI0y0fvUl8AjczDgNemKFE0fZNWPjdOQ/s320/Resolution+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Hanging back at the start. All photos by Jana Walker. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgERDxo9fnmlab0AQGQd2gqNpYqf9aBaCg7bk4gpvPzcsiL5ByFQQI5I82QCjMiXrYoT7ytKvmi7ChXMkFfxfHY5BXf14L20T66t0yXfyK2_meEPz13qwuJx0kYEliF0FHXGaZUjxLGyXyY/s1600/Resolution+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgERDxo9fnmlab0AQGQd2gqNpYqf9aBaCg7bk4gpvPzcsiL5ByFQQI5I82QCjMiXrYoT7ytKvmi7ChXMkFfxfHY5BXf14L20T66t0yXfyK2_meEPz13qwuJx0kYEliF0FHXGaZUjxLGyXyY/s320/Resolution+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Taking the lead. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-q8yk957L91VbRdYHysUsOMCXsjBZNrduT8N_0Ves-ozaL3-cikBHXazRDl320ToBfNlFUpr2aV7N8j3dcyZm0T78n0vfh63041np4ZSIa0XkhNwiTncCrAyRAJUrYyF6CEJO_OwZyTOf/s1600/Resolution+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-q8yk957L91VbRdYHysUsOMCXsjBZNrduT8N_0Ves-ozaL3-cikBHXazRDl320ToBfNlFUpr2aV7N8j3dcyZm0T78n0vfh63041np4ZSIa0XkhNwiTncCrAyRAJUrYyF6CEJO_OwZyTOf/s320/Resolution+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Heading back. Looks windy! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhARMWT_35NZdR0zE24P_vDJryIK2rCVj7gaJJZ4WZrHVLOWifdI_PnJQ2cnZCrn1lgjoK275l5RyJ1ZUlt5Sn0mp2CyRWL3aTpNHlG-5w8ZR1t9vq26DIOPRNwt5MDvZX-ubgx8jRTFxDj/s1600/Resolution+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhARMWT_35NZdR0zE24P_vDJryIK2rCVj7gaJJZ4WZrHVLOWifdI_PnJQ2cnZCrn1lgjoK275l5RyJ1ZUlt5Sn0mp2CyRWL3aTpNHlG-5w8ZR1t9vq26DIOPRNwt5MDvZX-ubgx8jRTFxDj/s320/Resolution+4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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4th place, about to get passed by eventual winner. </div>
<br />
<br />
The course then veered toward the dunes and a trail full of thick sand. It feels so slow and people were definitely gaining on me. I pushed harder and finally reached the short uphill road section. I was trailing the top 4 by a decent margin, but they were still within sight. I held off whoever was behind and ducked into the fine gravel trails of Black Point. No letting up now. The breathing I could hear was not Muddy's, and I wasn't sure who it was, but I hoped the trail section would be where I could create some more space. I hammered the downhill and ran the muddy spots as swiftly as possible. There was one tricky descent of all mud. I had scoped it out during my warm up and knew the best line. I barreled down this hill almost slipping at the end. Maybe this would do the trick. Nope. No let up from whoever was behind me. Was I hearing two people? Where is Muddy? GPS mile 2 split was 5:59. <br />
<br />
I kept pushing along the ocean side trail in Black Point. I made sure to surge on a wide area just before the stone building, knowing this might be a passing spot. I jumped through the building (no ice or standing water this year) and then spilled out onto the beach. Jackman and Brightman looked to be pretty close ahead of me and they looked really slow. Once on the beach I realized why - the wind!! So terrible and deflating at this point in the race. The screaming headwind killed any momentum and the last half mile stretch was going to be a struggle. On top of that, I glanced back and saw two yellow shirts behind me and then Muddy. I knew I was going to get gobbled up here. I just did my best to fight the wind and poor thoughts. Eventually, I decided to just start my "sprint". Jackman and Brightman continued to be just a few seconds ahead battling it out for third place. I decided it wasn't acceptable to be passed. I finished up in 5th overall, 6 seconds behind 3rd and 4th, and 2 seconds ahead of Mike Macedo (one of my yellow shirt chasers). <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf_SK4uz8Nja_x9zPC9nBFFu-aZ7nLftNCd3bZje_rMznF-V6keVJtsC3SPdykBDNOuBgR2y3WX7rkd3ZoWByV0Sr8pqiTQdN-xv6sWnEZXing-_bPxOUmEA7COUfMJ-jK3A80ClLk77Aq/s1600/Resolution+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf_SK4uz8Nja_x9zPC9nBFFu-aZ7nLftNCd3bZje_rMznF-V6keVJtsC3SPdykBDNOuBgR2y3WX7rkd3ZoWByV0Sr8pqiTQdN-xv6sWnEZXing-_bPxOUmEA7COUfMJ-jK3A80ClLk77Aq/s320/Resolution+5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The finish. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDNNeq_7Ii60GVlwCbnz9rElBcbCCFVIYR5eKuxQxoLB7dK5eR4W1_P2EwMVdBwgwZay-kcgMM8Mw0ELtck9H_9KPU452wVOlF6TQRuytL-B-fDr1BrXq2i0Nm569KnaNIt9lGaEF6Em74/s1600/Untitled.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="258" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDNNeq_7Ii60GVlwCbnz9rElBcbCCFVIYR5eKuxQxoLB7dK5eR4W1_P2EwMVdBwgwZay-kcgMM8Mw0ELtck9H_9KPU452wVOlF6TQRuytL-B-fDr1BrXq2i0Nm569KnaNIt9lGaEF6Em74/s320/Untitled.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
My <a href="http://www.webscorer.com/racedetails?raceid=59541&did=64314">official time</a> was 18:21 - close to my time last year (GPS mile 3 was 6:04). That made me feel pretty good. It seemed that this year's version was significantly slower for most, but I was about the same. I needed to do some research: <br />
<br />
Results of the top 10ish who did both 2015 and 2016 races<br />
<br />
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 410px;">
<colgroup><col style="mso-width-alt: 3527; mso-width-source: userset; width: 78pt;" width="104"></col>
<col style="mso-width-alt: 3441; mso-width-source: userset; width: 76pt;" width="101"></col>
<col style="mso-width-alt: 3612; mso-width-source: userset; width: 80pt;" width="106"></col>
<col style="mso-width-alt: 3384; mso-width-source: userset; width: 75pt;" width="99"></col>
<tbody>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl63" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0.5pt solid windowtext; height: 15.05pt; width: 78pt;" width="104"><strong><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Runner</span></strong></td>
<td class="xl63" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: windowtext windowtext windowtext black; border-style: solid solid solid none; border-width: 0.5pt 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px; width: 76pt;" width="101"><strong><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2015</span></strong></td>
<td class="xl63" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: windowtext windowtext windowtext black; border-style: solid solid solid none; border-width: 0.5pt 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px; width: 80pt;" width="106"><strong><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2016</span></strong></td>
<td class="xl63" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: windowtext windowtext windowtext black; border-style: solid solid solid none; border-width: 0.5pt 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px; width: 75pt;" width="99"><strong><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Difference</span></strong></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl64" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Eric Lonergan</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">16:52</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:01</span></td>
<td class="xl66" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(1:09)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl64" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Bob Jackman</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">17:14</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:16</span></td>
<td class="xl66" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(1:02)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl64" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Steve
Brightman</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">17:46</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:16</span></td>
<td class="xl66" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(:30)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl64" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Muddy</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">17:49</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:38</span></td>
<td class="xl66" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(:49)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl64" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Chris Fox</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:09</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:28</span></td>
<td class="xl66" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(:19)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl64" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jonny Hammett</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:15</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:21</span></td>
<td class="xl66" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(:06)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl64" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jeff Walker</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:34</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">19:08</span></td>
<td class="xl66" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(:34)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl64" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Seth Acton</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:37</span></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">19:55</span></td>
<td class="xl66" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(1:18)</span></td>
</tr>
</tbody></colgroup></table>
<br />
Results based on smallest difference of finishing time 2016 versus 2015<br />
<br />
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 410px;">
<colgroup><col style="mso-width-alt: 3527; mso-width-source: userset; width: 78pt;" width="104"></col>
<col style="mso-width-alt: 3441; mso-width-source: userset; width: 76pt;" width="101"></col>
<col style="mso-width-alt: 3612; mso-width-source: userset; width: 80pt;" width="106"></col>
<col style="mso-width-alt: 3384; mso-width-source: userset; width: 75pt;" width="99"></col>
<tbody>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl65" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0.5pt solid windowtext; height: 15.05pt; width: 78pt;" width="104"><strong><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Runner</span></strong></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: windowtext windowtext windowtext black; border-style: solid solid solid none; border-width: 0.5pt 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px; width: 76pt;" width="101"><strong><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2015</span></strong></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: windowtext windowtext windowtext black; border-style: solid solid solid none; border-width: 0.5pt 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px; width: 80pt;" width="106"><strong><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2016</span></strong></td>
<td class="xl65" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: windowtext windowtext windowtext black; border-style: solid solid solid none; border-width: 0.5pt 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px; width: 75pt;" width="99"><strong><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Difference</span></strong></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl66" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jonny Hammett</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:15</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:21</span></td>
<td class="xl68" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(:06)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl66" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Chris Fox</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:09</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:28</span></td>
<td class="xl68" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(:19)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl66" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Steve
Brightman</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">17:46</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:16</span></td>
<td class="xl68" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(:30)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl66" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Jeff Walker</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:34</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">19:08</span></td>
<td class="xl68" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(:34)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl66" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Muddy</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">17:49</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:38</span></td>
<td class="xl68" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(:49)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl66" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Bob Jackman</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">17:14</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:16</span></td>
<td class="xl68" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(1:02)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl66" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Eric Lonergan</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">16:52</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:01</span></td>
<td class="xl68" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(1:09)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.05pt;">
<td class="xl66" height="20" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext; border-style: none solid solid; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt; height: 15.05pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Seth Acton</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">18:37</span></td>
<td class="xl67" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">19:55</span></td>
<td class="xl68" style="background-color: transparent; border-color: black windowtext windowtext black; border-style: none solid solid none; border-width: 0px 0.5pt 0.5pt 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">(1:18)</span></td>
</tr>
</tbody></colgroup></table>
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I'm not Chris Garvin, but I think this means that I really won :) Not sure though. <br />
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Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-23760789640518613652016-01-06T10:38:00.001-05:002016-01-06T10:38:26.665-05:00Resolution Week: 12-28-15 to 1-3-16Another crazy week with running on the back burner except the Resolution Beach & Trail 5K on Sunday. <br />
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Monday: 11 miles on two runs. First, I awoke early to get my run in for the day before my wife had to go into work. I parked at the Burlingame picnic area at sunrise (just after 7AM). I ran down Sanctuary Rd and then did the usual campground bypass trails. Once I reached the VG Trail, I decided to try my luck at finding the bits of single track through the campground, which was easier than other times I've tried. I finished up trying to connect from the SE edge of the campground via old Kimball trails which I did, but got confused and torn up by briers. Finish back on Sanctuary Rd and then along the pond between the boat launch and beach. 8 miles in 64 minutes. Later in the morning my daughter wanted to go bike riding so I loaded up the kids' bikes and headed to Ninigret. We did two loops: first the proposed bike path that I've been working on (as a member of the Town of Charlestown Ad Hoc Bicycle Pathway Committee) and then another loop that would be better, but probably cost prohibitive. 3 miles in 28 minutes. <br />
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Tuesday: 0 - I forget why I didn't run, but it wasn't because I didn't want to. <br />
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Wednesday: 10 miles on two runs. In the morning I had plans to meet the RD for the upcoming Charlestown Chili 5K to go over my proposed course in Ninigret. I wanted to grab more miles so I got there an hour early and ran the course a couple of times. The first I did nice and easy, but even with tired legs (from Sunday's track workout?) I managed 6:56 average pace on the course. I then jogged some trails back and forth from a strategically placed bathroom. I then ran the course again, this time hard. A tired time trial I guess. I didn't feel particularly fast, but I managed a 17:43 which I was happy with. I still need to measure the course with a bike. My watch shows zero elevation gain. And with the numerous turns, you never are going to be stuck in a headwind for long (hopefully never, but I need to be realistic) or get bored (or discouraged) with long straightaways. I like it. Definitely a PR course, and I plan to measure using USATF guidelines to ensure accuracy. See you January 23rd!! Later in the day I talked the kids into biking again at Ninigret. I ran as they biked on some of the fun eastern edge trails. 3 more miles for the day. <br />
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Thursday: 7 miles - Westbrook Maine roads. Last day of the year. We got packed and out of the house relatively early and began our trek north. Once we arrived I was super antsy, and finally was told to go for a run. I didn't need to do anything fast and I'd rather just get in 10 fun miles, but the conditions up there were terrible for running: 6" of snow on the trails and new enough that they weren't "groomed", and icy sidewalks/narrow shoulders. Plus it was getting dark at 2:30PM! There are also so many segments right out my friends' door that I couldn't resist. I ran faster than I thought to a 5K Strava segment loop and then ran even faster on the loop. I was glad I was running fast because it just felt dangerous even being out there. I turned it up to 10 on a hill climb which is also a Strava segment that I lost the CR to last summer to another vacationer. I almost puked at the top (Mexican food and margarita for lunch), but regrouped and finished the 5K segment and added on more because I wasn't sure where it ended. I stopped my watch at 4.2 miles with a 6:03 average pace. My third day of speedwork in the span of 5 days. Definitely not smart and probably not good for Sunday's race, but whatever. It seems to be how I get my running fix when I can't do the mileage (and hills) that I'm used to. I then cooled down on a quieter side street before making the trek back up to the house. Happy New Year! <br />
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Friday: 10 miles - Portland Maine roads and icy trails alone. I drove into Portland the next morning with the idea of running the paved trail around Back Cove and then connecting up to the Macworth Island trail and back. Unfortunately, the Back Cove trail was not plowed and just icy uneven packed snow. I did have on my grippiest trail shoes, so I just went with my plan. The scenery was awesome. The streets were messy too with icy sidewalks or unshoveled snow which forced me into traffic. But it was worth it. The cold air and amazing views were great. Total time: 1:15:06. <br />
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View of Back Cove</div>
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Back Cove Trail conditions</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrRQxFaeVzzN0u1T1SLw_JziOxgy3HUxD76bdBNHr3UuwEIT959DysoIk7IqvGGCpV0q6RdBrIZ-wCdRKkbe8vQQnc3NyqAM1HyXZrbpJ6kVNRAnluskegZL9QfuuE7Ae9OaOLhg1J3Ycd/s1600/006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrRQxFaeVzzN0u1T1SLw_JziOxgy3HUxD76bdBNHr3UuwEIT959DysoIk7IqvGGCpV0q6RdBrIZ-wCdRKkbe8vQQnc3NyqAM1HyXZrbpJ6kVNRAnluskegZL9QfuuE7Ae9OaOLhg1J3Ycd/s320/006.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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Mackworth Island from Rte 1 bridge</div>
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view from Macworth Island trail</div>
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Saturday: 7 miles on two runs. Busy day shuttling the kids around to separate events. I ended up taking my son mtn biking in Burlingame in the afternoon while I ran alongside of him. He did great on a pretty technical trail (out and back from Buckeye Brook Rd south). 3 miles. I then dropped him off at home and did a run around the block. 4 hilly miles in 29:12. <br />
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Sunday: 8 miles - Resolution Beach & Trail 5K. 5th overall, 18:21. Another good race. Separate write up to follow. <br />
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Overall: It wasn't easy, but I ended up salvaging a decent week. I'm looking forward to getting back to normal running next week. <br />
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Weekly Total: 53 miles<br />
Last Week: 54 miles<br />
2015 Total: 3,476 miles<br />
December Total: 253 miles<br />
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Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-43907159271588626922015-12-30T10:34:00.000-05:002015-12-30T10:34:00.473-05:00Weekly Log: 12-21-15 to 12-27-15Very busy week interferes with normal running routine. <br />
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Monday: 8.5 miles - Ryan Park trails with Galoob. Fun to have a lunch run partner in Ryan Park. Hit up the good stuff on the western side before sticking with mostly wider easy trails on the eastern side. Total time: 1:08:31. <br />
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Tuesday: 0 - last day in the office for the year. Then I had to run a bunch of errands. It rained a lot too. Celebrated the Winter Solstice with a bonfire at my house. <br />
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Wednesday: 17 miles - long trail run in Burlingame. My wife and I began together and ran a techy loop of Sammy C's and Vin Gormley trails. After 55 minutes together, I then headed back out solo. I circled around Secret, Schoolhouse Pond and Sammy C's trails. I then did the north camp loop and Lenny's Lane for the next hour. I finished up on the wider and hillier trails north of Buckeye Brook Rd. The sun came out (the day was already warm and humid) and I ditched my shirt. This weather is crazy. Total time: 2:28:24 with 928' of climbing. <br />
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Thursday: 0 - too much going on. <br />
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Friday: 8 miles - Vin Gormley trail loop alone in the morning. Merry Christmas! I was able to head out after presents and breakfast for a HHH run in the woods. I parked at the red gate on Buckeye Brook Rd and ran the yellow dot trail counterclockwise from there. Uneventful run other than the fact that it was very steamy out and I again had to go shirtless for the end of the run. Total time: 1:03:26. <br />
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Saturday: 12.5 miles - Carter Preserve trails alone in the late afternoon. My running plans again took a backseat as I had hoped to run the Nooseneck 18K. Too much family stuff going on. I instead got out around 3pm for a cruise around Carter. I mixed up my routine to make it longer than usual. Pretty dark by the end. Total time: 1:31:48 with 731' of climbing. <br />
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Sunday: 8 miles - CHS track workout alone. I got a late start - 3:45pm. We were busy in the morning and then I wanted to watch the Patriots. I ended up leaving before the end so that I wouldn't end up with 3 zeroes on the week. I parked at the track and did a cross country warm up of 2.5 miles. I changed into my spikes (checking up on the game at my car) and then did two laps around the track with strides. My plan today was to do 200's. Hopefully a lot of them at 35 seconds. This first one felt hard but I was surprised to see it was a 31! Way too fast. I tried to take it down a notch, but then did 5 more in 33, 33, 33, 33, and 32. 200 rest. I did not and possibly could not do anymore at that speed. I jogged for 1000 and decided I would try to do 2 or 3 800's at I pace (2:40ish). These felt pretty smooth: 2:36, 2:37, 2:36 with 400 rest. I was stoked! 1 mile cool down on the track in the dark. Patriots lost. Total time: 56:02. If you're keeping track at home, I ditched my shirt again during the run! <br />
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Overall: Well I did manage a long run and a workout and I feel like my fitness is still there. It's weird taking zeroes however. <br />
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Weekly Total: 54 miles<br />
Last Week: 51 miles<br />
Year to Date: 3,448 miles<br />
December to Date: 225 milesJonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-49717730734425268182015-12-28T10:36:00.000-05:002015-12-28T10:36:39.903-05:00Old Mountain Field Trail 5K 2015Can this really be the fifth <a href="https://www.webscorer.com/8878">Fourth Season</a> already? Saturday the 19th was the Old Mountain Field Trail 5K. Experience has told me that I usually finish around 5th place in this race. Too many fast dudes come out and I don't have the speed to match them on such a short race, even though it is rather technical. My hope this year was that with RD Mike Galoob tinkering with the course to make it even tougher, adding 2 ascents of the "Old Mountain", I would fair better. But honestly I didn't feel like my training had been that great the previous few weeks. I was very uncertain how this race would pan out. <br />
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Race day and the weather was feeling rather wintery, at least cold compared to the extremely warm temperatures we'd been experiencing. The rain the previous two days left the course very wet and muddy, except on the "mountain". It was hard to keep my feet from getting wet on my warm up over the first 2+ miles of the course with Jeff and a young WTAC teammate. I decided to wear my Inov 8 Trailroc 245's rather than something lighter due to the conditions. I really hoped the messy trails and the additional hill climbs would help me. I was feeling good and strong. I chatted with many WTAC teammates pre-race and some rival team frenemies. I did a bunch of strides in the parking lot and tried to stay warm through a delay to the race start. Finally it was race time! <br />
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The start. Photo by Jana Walker. </div>
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My plan was to not go out fast. Usually this race is a mad dash to the single track, but this year the course ran around a field and then entered a wider trail up the mountain. It would be very easy to burn myself out on a layout like this. Luckily everyone else seemed content to not sprint at the gun. Brightman went out to the lead (which I assumed he would do), but not too fast. I settled into a chase pack with current Level Renner coverboy Eric Lonergan and Bob Jackman. We circled the field and then dashed up the hill in the woods. <br />
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Early chase pack (Brightman leading). Photo by Mwangi Gitahi.</div>
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Into the woods. Let the fun begin! Photo by Jana Walker. </div>
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Once in the woods, things got interesting. Steve led us up the hill at a pace that felt very confortable to me. We fell into a single file line once we got over the top of the "mountain". The trail narrowed dramatically and Steve really slowed down the pace. Bob and I (3rd and 4th) got antsy and we made our move around Steve and Eric as soon as possible on the more open downhill. Bob was up front now, but I felt the pace still was too slow. Throwing caution to the wind, I made my way around him to take the lead. I was feeling strong since I wasn't winded from a too fast start. I pushed the now technical single track to the best of my ability. I could feel Jackman staying right with me, but it seemed that Eric and Steve had fallen back a couple of seconds. I ran over the rocks and began with the wet and muddy trail I affectionately call "zero track" since it is barely a trail. I was slipping a lot, but I needed to be aggressive to keep the lead. I did well for a few minutes, but then had a hard fall on a wet rocky section. Luckily I braced my fall enough to not let my abdomen smash onto a large rock. I got up quickly and tried to regroup. Bob slipped by me, but I got going again before Eric and Steve could. Bob had a second or two lead and I heard Steve tell Eric to "not let Bob go!". Eric tried to pass me, but it was too passive. He found another spot and finally went by. I was still regrouping, happy that I didn't feel injured. Then Steve made a move around me. I had to laugh because it wasn't a great spot and I could have stopped him. I knew the course was about to get more interesting, if that was possible, and it would be in my favor, at least compared to Eric and Steve. I trailed a second or two behind a really wet section until we reached the river crossing. Even though Mike and I had opened up the dam to let the water drain faster, it was still roaring over the rocks. The three leaders stopped in their tracks and I was back on their heels. I wanted to just pass them since they were tiptoeing, but my only choices were to push them off the rocks or jump into the deep water and wade through. I was annoyed because if I could have made it to this spot in the lead I definitely could have created space on them. Anyway, we now were single file on the longish climb back up the hill. Bob was fading. Steve and Eric went by and then soon after I made my move. We crested the hill and then had a very treacherous steep drop. Steve and Eric again brought the pace down to what seemed a crawl. Bob was right back on my heels itching to hammer this downhill. So was I. Unfortunately there was no place to pass. Once we got down to the bottom, the trail flattened out and ran around the pond. This trail is rather technical too. Plenty of roots and slippery bridges. I trailed Steve and Eric by 2 or 3 seconds as Bob seemed to slowly fall further behind me. We spilled out of the woods at the bottom of the pond. I picked up my pace and had spectators and RD Galoob shouting at me to catch up. <br />
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Less than a mile to go! Photo by Jana Walker. </div>
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I did just that on the next steepish hill climb. I closed the gap, but was sucking wind at the top. I guess we all were, because the pace remained slow for the next minute or so. We then hit the single track descent. I again fell slightly behind. Finally we hit the bottom and had to take the slow switchbacks back up. I remembered at this point that the race was very close to being over. It was now or never. Duh! I tried to pick up the pace climbing the hill, but I wasn't closing. I was afraid I would get toasted on the last little descent to the skate park and the field around it. Surprisingly this wasn't happening. I was remaining the same distance behind, even when they had a sprint battle to the finish. Final time was 20:47, 3 seconds behind the winners (Brightman by a nose over Lonergan). <br />
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Results <a href="https://www.webscorer.com/racedetails?raceid=59167&did=63901">here</a><br />
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I was stoked! I had a great race and it was exciting. This course was really awesome and one of my favorites despite only being a 5K. I definitely wonder what would have happened if I could have remained upright when I had the lead, but that's trail racing. A huge thank you to the Galoob family for putting on the race and the RI trail racing community for coming out and supporting these great races. See you at the next one! <br />
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Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5509503848926866753.post-52810594405844360392015-12-17T13:06:00.001-05:002015-12-21T09:57:08.475-05:00Starting up the 4th Season! 12-14-15 to 12-20-15It's that time of year again! Saturday is the first race in the <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/4thseasonraces/">South County 4th Season Race Series</a>. The Old Mountain Field Trail 5K already has a stacked field<a href="https://www.webscorer.com/registerlist?raceid=57446&details=1"> registered</a>. It looks like WTAC will have its hands (feet?) full with many Rhode Runners and Turtles already signed up. I had the chance to scope out the trails at OMF a couple of weeks ago with RD Mike Galoob. This race has the reputation of being pretty tough for a trail 5K and he wants to make it tougher. We'll see what he comes up with! <br />
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In unrelated news, the <a href="http://www.runwmac.com/gt2015/gt15-races.html">Grand Tree Series</a> results are in for 2015. I'd love to run a bunch of these races every year, but I'm happy that I got to do 3 this year. Anyway, I was surprised to see the results based on Top 3 races for the year: <br />
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Pretty cool stuff! Not as impressive as my brother winning the Series (based on Top 6) multiple years, but I'll take it. <br />
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Monday: 0 - stupid car issues sucked up all my free time today. I got a flat tire the night before coming home from my company Xmas party. Apparently my car (2012 Hyundai) does not come with a spare - although it looks like there is one in the trunk. Surprise!! I had to have it towed to my house late at night, and then towed again in the morning to a tire place. What a debacle. <br />
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Tuesday: 10 miles - hill repeats on my favorite improved and unimproved dirt road - Pardon Joslin Rd. It was super windy today and running did not seem appealing. I figured that sheltered hill repeats would be my best option. I even broke out my headphones for this one and listened to a podcast to help distract me from the monotony. I ran out and back on the road 3 times and then ran up and down the longer east side an additional time. 1,354' of elevation gain. Total time 1:15:38. GAP 7:16. <br />
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Wednesday: 11 miles - 50/50 mix of paved/unpaved roads in Exeter. I began in the same spot as yesterday, but at the west end of Pardon Joslin Rd, I just kept running until I hit 5.5 miles (at the top of NLT on Pine Hill). Lots of uphill on the way out. It was in the high 40's, but felt cold (or seasonable). The way back was much quicker. Total time: 1:18:08 with 849' of climbing. <br />
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Thursday: 9 miles - Rome Point trails in the rain. At least it was mild and not windy. Mindless zigzagging on the trails. The tide was high so not too much beach running. Easy pace. Total time: 1:12:08 with 451' of elevation gain. <br />
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Friday: 3 miles - OMF trails alone, but then ran into Galoob. I did some shopping in Wakefield while it rained and then made my way over to OMF to scope out the new course for tomorrow. Very wet out there! I could hear the stream before seeing it and it sounded like a raging river. The north end crossing is high and dry however. I continued on the mushy trails until I saw Galoob jogging with a rake. We stopped to chat and then another runner came by. It was a Turtle. After the standoff, Mike and I made our way to the lower water crossing. This one was not high and dry. We moved some rocks around to let it drain faster which should do the trick. I then finished up the new course up the hill and back down, around the pond, and back up the hill and then down and out to the skate park. Running time about 30 minutes. Tomorrow is going to be awesome!! <br />
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Saturday: 8 miles - OMF Trail 5K -3rd overall, 20:47 (top 2 were both 20:44). Really great race. Separate write up to follow. <br />
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Sunday: 10 miles - Carter Preserve trails alone in the morning. Nice crisp run. The temperature was in the mid 30's, and there was ice in some spots on the powerline trail. My body was pretty beat from yesterday's race, but this run actually felt pretty decent. From the powerline I ran the grassland loop before climbing the hill and entering the woods. I popped out at Rte 112 to run the hill up to the school trail entrance. I made my way back to the grassland, did another lap, and then backtracked through the woods to the powerline. I was happy to get in my 1:20 of running before traveling up to Boston for the afternoon/evening. <br />
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Weekly Total: 51 miles<br />
Last Week: 72 miles<br />
Year to Date: 3394 miles<br />
December to Date: 171 miles<br />
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<br />Jonnyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05420496844245732968noreply@blogger.com1