8 days to go.

Until the Milwaukee Marathon, that is. I feel like it should be here, like NOW. I want to get running it, and get through it, get it done and have time to sit back and reflect on all the training, and miles, and to think about how I stayed motivated this long. I must say, long distance endurance training is tough, both physically and mentally. My buddy and I talked about this some time back, when we were talking Tri's and racing over beers. We were wondering how the pros do it, day after day, week after week, and how they handle the off season, and then start all over for the next year. Yeah, I know money is part of it. But money only pays the bills. Life is so much more...

I say this as I sit here sipping on a cup of tea, listening to some John Ondrasik after a 14+ hour day at work. I'm sitting here, tired myself, with everyone else asleep, thinking and typing in the blog while flipping back to watch the UCI men's elite time trial world championships-which, I must say, I know how it ends-Fabian Cancellara wins his 3rd Worlds TT title, awesome! And he says he going for the road title this year too, incredible. I'd like to be able to see inside his head, or to sit down over a beer and talk about motivation and the mental aspect of training. I think this might not be a shocker, some of the athletes are probably positive by nature, and have some super genome to make them fast, maybe. But what about the mental aspect for these athletes? I wonder how they get motivated, and how it affects their personal lives. I bet there are plenty who's lives are a train wreck, they are crappy people, and yeah, they might be a super athlete, but a piece of crap as a human being. This is probably the case more often than not, I'd bet.

But, I guess that's the beauty of the human nature, every one of us is different in our likes, dislikes, what motivates, and what depresses. I was listening to a U2 album in the car today, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, and was just digging a few of the songs. In particular, I love, "Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own", the love/hate (or maybe, more aptly, lust/scorn) comparisons and being hard enough to tough it out-it is inspirational to me. And "Miracle Drug", I dig this tune. I love the lyrics about looking inside someone's head, someone close to you, to see what they are thinking, what they are feeling-the ever present tug of war inside ourselves between love and logic.

There is no failure here sweetheart
Just when you quit
I am you and you are mine
Love makes no sense of space and time
We'll disappear
Love and logic keep us clear

Ahhh, sweet music, the complex, sharp lyrics and the synergy it gives me. This is one thing, I must admit, which reminds me of being a young teen, listening to music and the lyrics and the guitars, almost like the guitar itself could speak, and feeling, well, sort of "plugged in". Like sometimes listening to music made you understand what was happening around you better, made you feel more, even when you felt mad, or depressed, or joyous, or when a relationship was ending-even if it took months and months to figure it out. Like the feeling I used to get, looking forward to going out on the weekend with friends-the music I played in the car made it, well, real and more enjoyable, more like life should be like. This one thing is still the same after all these years. I think this is why I enjoy my 7 year old playing piano, and doing as well as she is doing. I remember playing around on the acoustic guitar, wishing I understood the sheet music better, wished I knew more cords. But I can live vicariously through her now, because she does understand it. Awesome, I say. Ahh, yes, the beauty of being a little sleep deprived + having worked too much this week + plugging in the iTunes for some jams while trying to remember what you felt like 20 years ago=serendipity! Yeah, I'm really hoping I will be plugged into the music (musak towards the end!) for the MM-my playlist is almost done, I need to shuffle it up and make some last minute adds, but I might just post the whole thing later this week. I love the power of music!

So much more to talk about, but it is getting late and I have one more day to work yet. I will need to type every night this last week leading up to the MM, just to keep my sanity, to get the thoughts out about all that is rattling around in my squash lately. Some good, some not so sure about, much about the MM, and how it should get here already!!

One "first" for the week, here are a couple pics:

Riding to Maddie's school together-for the 1st time!

Yeah-it was a blast! Maddie really got a kick out of this, she said we need to do this every week when I'm off weekdays and the weather cooperates. Monday might be ride to school day #2!

Training is good, taper time is here. I will run tomorrow, maybe a 10k at a easy pace. I did a 13.1 early in the week, faster than MM pace, and felt good. I did a 10k at 8:13 pace, and felt good. I have about 100 miles in this month. I feel that I have prepared fairly well physically, and I'm going through the mental preparation now, telling myself, " I am ready!". No injuries, no surprises, no doubts! I just want Oct 4th to get here!

A 10k run-Garmin Style!

I'm trying out this App from Garmin Connect, sharing on FB and here on blogger too. I will add more soon (if this one works!).

Garmin Connect -
Activity Details for
10k run

Shared via AddThis

Tech Update and longest run.

Well, here we are, just over two weeks until Milwaukee Marathon. Thought I'd post a quick update on training and some new gadgets I've recently purchased to help me in my quest to run the MM.

The first thing I got was pretty cheap, and works fairly well, at least for me. I was getting tired of carrying the Fuel Belt around my waist, the water or Powerade seems to slosh around, so now I carry this:

It has a neat little pocket, so I can carry my gels, ICE #s, and even the car key.

But the big purchase was this:

I mentioned I was having ongoing problems with my Polar F6, so after researching some other HR watches, and listening to friends who have the Garmin, I opted for the Forerunner 305. My wife even gave me the green light, so I drove out to Best Buy at like 8:45 the other night to make a late purchase. Her reasoning was sound enough, saying that I would pour over the owner's manual for like 2 hours, have to charge it up, then set it for my preferences; I wanted to use it on my long (LONG) run on Wed, so I pulled the trigger and bought it. And I did go over the manual, but only for like an hour, and the 305 charges in only 3 hours. It has a run time of about 10 hours, has so many options and features that I'm still learning them, but all in all, I could sum it up so far like this, "It is the BOMB". I love it. Here is a shot of the data from my 1st run with it:

Here is one of the screens you can view while running, or biking (I need to purchase the speed/cadence sensor ASAP!)


So, I love the Garmin, I love the GPS, and the huge amount of data you get from each workout! I'm still trying out various software options, to see what will work the best for me, but I will post more on this later. But in short, you can load your data (including your mapped route) directly to most of the sites I use, including mapmyride.com. Pretty sweet, I must say. Also pretty sweet- my longest run, ever, in my life:

Name: 18.25 mile run
Type: Long Run
Date: 09/16/2009
Start: 09:52:00
End: 12:39:00
Time Taken: 02:47:26
Workout Weight: 192.0 lbs.
Workout Route: 18.25 mile run
Total Distance: 18.25 mi.
Burned: 2,749 (kcal)
Effort: Hard
Quality: Ok

Timing:
Time:02:47:25
Avg Pace:09:10 min/mi
Best Pace:07:13 min/mi

Yeah, I put my arms up after passing 15+ miles (my previous longest run), like I had just won some major race, but hell, to me, I had won!!

The software will break everything down by lap, if you want. Lap #1, for example, was my 1st loop prior to stopping at my car for a new bottle and to towel off:
Lap #1
Energy Burned 1,521 (kcal)
Total Distance 10.10 mi.
Time Taken: 01:28:49
Pace: 16:04 (min) 08:47 (avg) 06:23 (max)
Speed: 3.73 (mi/hr) (min) 6.82 (mi/hr) (avg) 8.15 (mi/hr) (max)
HR: 89 (bpm) (min) 155 (bpm) (avg) 185 (bpm) (max)
Actions: View Data Chart

Needless to say, I did not hit 185 for a max HR (my max this run was maybe 157 bpm, if that). I think I took off too fast, and did not give the Garmin a chance to sync with the HR strap (post run, I read you are supposed to wait until the display shows it is properly synced, guess I didn't read that manual good enough!) And, I ran the 1st 10 miles way too fast. I felt awesome, really, really good, prior to this run. I had taken the previous 3 days off from running, and I biked about 11 miles at an easy pace, just to stretch the legs, on Tue. So, I ran too fast, and paid for it later in the run.

Lap #2, wasn't really a lap at all. This was my rest stop/water stop at the car, so I was standing there for 1m 25s before taking off.

Now, lap #3 is where I 'hit the wall' and slowed down, way down to a 9:20/avg pace. I was still able to run in the time I wanted to hit, despite the problems late in the run. Now, this was no bonk, my legs just got tired and heavy, not to mention the pain in my hip flexors was killing me! I had taken 2 gels and 2 bottles during the run, but I knew I did not have enough fluids with me, and I kind of conserved later in lap #3, and I paid for it. It started heating up towards the end of the run as well, which didn't help. So, the combination of too fast a pace early on, and the lack of fluids later, gave me some leg cramps post run, and I was beat. Here is what my hat looked like:

It was worse, I dumped some water on the brim, to take out some of the white sweaty, salty residue!

But, I'm glad I learned this lesson in a training run and not during the MM. I will for sure drink at every aid station during the marathon, and I will keep my pace at the pace group pace, no faster! I am also planning on carrying my Nathan water bottle, with my gels, and I'm doing some nutrition research as we speak; my buddy emailed me a link from Hammer Gel products and for a great endurance athlete nutrition guide. It is well written, informative and very detailed. I have used some Hammer products in the past, but I might lean towards trying some more of them in my last 2 weeks of MM training, to see how I react and how well my digestive system will process them. I just started reading this manual today, so I will post more about my findings later this week.

In the meanwhile, I am going to play around with the Garmin and change some of the screen display options, man, this thing is SO COOL!! I wish I would've had it on the FLETC ride for the data and elevation changes!!!

09/09/09

Its a weird numbers day with the day/date/year thing. I've seen a few stories online about the numerologists, mathematicians, statisticians, and some general crazies commenting about the importance of the #s, the meaning of the #s, weird stuff about the #s.

I don't know about any of that, I never liked math all that much anyways. What I do know about #s is this; my running #s are looking pretty good so far this month, and as far as 09/09/09 goes, it kicked my butt, or more aptly, I kicked my butt.

For the month, I'm up to 45.2 miles as of today, in only five runs. Here are the past three days:

Mon 9/07: 7.5 miles in 1h 04 m 29s
Tue 9/08: 7.5 miles in 1h 06m 11s
Wed 9/09: 13.1 miles in 1h 58m 45s

The 7.5 mile runs are becoming, I can't believe I'm saying this, easier. My plan this week, leading into today, was to really test the legs and stress them out, which, I think I've done over these past three runs. I definitely ran slower each day, and today's corrected time should be about 2 minutes less (about 1:56:35 or so), as I stopped at the car to swap bottles and towel off. I decided to let the clock run, just to see how much time I took at the stop. This is still way slower than my 1/2 Marathon race from last summer (just under 1h 48s), but again, back to back days of 7.5 mile runs at sub 9 min pace and then running a 1/2, well, you're not going to get your fastest time on that 3rd day! This was used to build up the endurance in the legs, pushing them a little harder than last month, getting ready for that 26.2 in 3-1/2 weeks.

I tried something new today as well; I parked my van at the end of the street, and ran a loop of 4 miles, so I could stop to refill water, grab gels, towel off, etc without stopping home. I can't leave a bag lying somewhere with my stuff in it, it will get swiped, that much I do know. And overall, I liked how this worked out! Stopping helped freshen up the legs for that 3rd loop, so I might even consider walking at the aid stations during the Mary-especially when the miles get way up there.

Tomorrow (my day off) will be a rest day, nothing planned at all, other than to hang out with my youngest and head over to my mom's to see how her canning is coming along. I need it-work this week was long, with a 12hr shift the 1st day back, and having to run at work that day on my 'rest day'; my partner and I chased a burglary suspect we caught in a huge warehouse. Although running with 20+ lbs of duty gear, radio, vest, work shoes, through the woods and over fences is not my idea of a great workout. I twisted the heck out of my left ankle in the woods, and was a bit worried because it was hurting a bit that night. But I've run on it since several times with no problems, so I think I just tweaked it a bit. I would have been pissed if I wrecked my ankle and not been able to run the marathon, especially because the 'suspect' is already back on the streets.

But, enough rant about the failings of our criminal justice system. Friday I will run a 7.5 mile post run, commemorative 9/11 run, as I do every year now (either biking or running on 9/11). Saturday, maybe another 7.5 miler, Sunday is a 7a-7p shift, so a rest day will be in order. Next week (the 14th-20th) I will be limiting my 'long' run to probably 12 or 13, with no hard back to back days before that longer run, simply more miles of at least 10k to 7.5 milers.

The week of the 21st-27th, this will be the bread and butter week; the week of the longest training run to date, and the peak of the Marathon training. I was reading some training articles online, and found a site where the author claimed you should try to go over 20+ miles for your longest run pre-mary; the reason being if you limit yourself to 20 miles, you've got another 10k to run on race day, and you might be hurting with this extra distance. I can see his point, and I can understand some other points of view saying you do not want to kill yourself pre-marathon, lest you risk injuring yourself or peaking too early and race day will find yourself flat and not at the peak of your game. I'm not sure on this one yet, I'll mark it, "Long run on 9/21 or 9/22, 'TBD' ".

The week leading into the marathon will be exciting for sure! I've got two days of training scheduled at the end of the week, so I don't have to worry about foot chases, fights with the crazies or OT. Friday Oct 2nd, our friends, my wife and I are going up to Milwaukee to pick up the MM race packets, and heading out for a nice dinner. Sat Oct 3rd, we have a kids birthday party with our same friends, and a night to relax and socialize prior to the race. I'm really starting to look forward to the marathon, especially the lead up before it. I'll be posting a bunch the week of the marathon, that's for sure!!

The 10-43

(that's 'the info' for those not in the know) For August, I need to post my run totals. There are no bike totals to post, because, other than riding my bikes to the back yard to wash them, and ride 'em back to the garage, that's it, got nothing for ya, no rides! So here we go:

137.5 miles
15,802 kcalories

The longest run for August was just over 15 miles, I did it in 2h 17m at a 9:07 pace, which is about the slowest I want to run for the marathon. Oh, it rained for that entire run too, poured at times, so much that I had to stop home before the start of the 2nd loop to put on a fresh, dry coat. Overall, the month of August was my first EVER entire running month, where I concentrated on nothing else but running. And I would say the month was fairly satisfying, maybe a B+, if I had to grade it. 9 days out of 31 where I did not run, 22 runs logged. I could have run a few more days, skipped a few rest days, but I wanted to make sure I don't push it and wind up with an injury that blows up my marathon chances. Err on the side of a little more rest, easy does it for this 1st Mary.

Today was my 1st run of Sept, after taking the last 2 days off. I intended on only one rest day out of these past two, but circumstances (read: work) shot Sept 1st down, and I knew I'd be doing a longer run today, so I said "what the heck" and took lat night off too. Today's run was a decent run, just under 11 miles in 1h 35m, doing it at a 8:48 pace and feeling pretty good afterwards. I could have run further, but it was getting late, dinner was getting close and I had to run more errands, plus take the kids out for a bike ride after dinner. My goal for Sept is to log about as many miles as I did in August, maybe a few more, and build up to at least 2-3 longer runs yet, at least one 15+ miler, one 17 miler and a long 20 miler, the real test run. This is before starting to taper down on or about Sept 26th-27th. I am leaning towards two full rest days before the Marathon, and the 3rd day before, it will be an easy, short run, maybe only a 5k at a jog, just to loosen up the legs a bit. These two rest days before today's run made my legs feel nice, rested and fresh.

So, I'm feeling pretty good in these last 4 weeks leading up to the marathon. I was reading one of my race mags today, there was an article on the importance of the mind/body connection, and the real importance of mental preparation for a race or major goal; the author said something I found interesting, and also I realized it was dead on to my own attitudes about lining up for a major race or some big event. She wrote, "I like to think of a race as the celebration of all the hard training that goes into it. It is time to enjoy the fruits of your labor". I think this was my attitude in heading out for the FLETC ride, and for many of the shorter run races I've done in the past year. I never felt pressured, never felt uneasy about how I'd do, I just thought, "Man, this is fun, lining up with friends and racing together, at our age", and my results were better than I thought they'd be, more often than not. That is exactly how I'm approaching the marathon-it should be a blast lining up and waiting to start that long journey, even going up to the Expo to pick up our race packs the night before and to head out for dinner with our good friends who are running the Mary. It will be one of the 'Life List' things I'm talking about with our friends, it's one of those things we just have to do at least once, before we get too old...

Speaking of that, I just sent out an email to a bunch of the guys and gals I run and ride with, after I saw the latest addition to my 'must do at least once before I die' list; The Leadville 100. I saw a short video clip on FaceBook today, Lance Armstrong posted it (yeah I know, all the LA hype, some people are always critical, saying LA this, LA that, he wants the publicity, he will run for public office, etc. But I think he draws the right kind of attention to bicycle riding, racing and even marathon and triathlon now, as well as Livestrong. And, what can you say about this last one?) for an upcoming documentary entitled "Race Across the Sky", coming out in Oct '09. This looks like an AWESOME event to race in the near future; I know, my friends were probably like, "Oh, boy Hav has blown another gasket on this one. The last one was L'etape de Tour in France, the Door County 50 miler before that...."

But seriously, these are things that I feel are worthy of making my personal goals to do in life, like one of my dreams for as long as I can remember since riding my bikes, to mountain bike on Vancouver Island. A little history, since I'm rambling now. I had started my infamous riding life like many kids, on a BMX that was stolen from my front yard, not too far from where I live now when I was living in the 1st house my dad built. So, I went up to a Schwinn World Sport multi speed, had one of those stolen too (it's a Racine WI thing, crime stats off the chart!) and got another Schwinn until I got run over by some guy in his big Cadillac. The Cad man did stop at the crash scene, and he even gave me a telephone # so I could call him about paying up to get my bike fixed (not to mention, my bloody legs and arms). Yeah, he gave me a bogus #, and I did not even think to write down his license plate # (youthful optimism...or naive).

So, I quit road biking for a few years and got into the MTB scene, big time, jumped in with both feet. We used to ride at Kettle Morraine Southern Unit, near Eagle WI, where they have some very nice MTB trails, with lots and lots of hills. We also road Petrifying Springs and UW Parkside trails in Kenosha WI as well. So I racked up several thousand miles on my trusty Trek 820 MTB, which I still have, by the way (it's hanging in my garage as I type, complete with street slicks for pulling the kids in the Burley, when they used to fit in the Burley that is!). My girlfriend (now wife) even got the MTB bug, as did her dad and her brother, so we all used to go tear it up on the trails, along with a bunch of my friends, having a blast, coming home covered in mud when it rained, drinking some beers right on the trail along the way!

So, then I started having low back problems, and the docs told me, "No more MTB riding", so I listened, and got back into road biking again. Well, the docs told me I'd never run again too, and here I am, 30 days out from my 1st Marathon! And almost 9,000 miles later on my road bikes since 3.16.06, when I started my '2nd' road bike life. I guess I think my back will hold up to the trail rides and MTB, which gets me back to the Leadville Trail 100 race, before my topic derailment. Pencil the Leadville 100 in on the 'must do before I die' list...and I think I'm adding cyclocross racing to that list as well...I've been watching some CX races the past few years, yeah, got to try it. Something about running and riding a bike in the mud, I guess, it looks like a blast! Maybe not this fall, the season starts very soon now, and I don't have a CX bike, and there is NO way my wife is letting me buy another bike right now-she told me to 'liquidate' some of my other toys, like the Harley, the jet ski, what else can you sell, she asked??

I did ride my bike after all, after swapping out rear wheels (my Trek had a flat, with some large chunk of metal stuck into the tire). I went around the pond tonight with my 4 year old, who was pedaling along on her bigger purple Trek, while my wife walked with my 7 year old. I miss riding, and can't wait to get back on the bike soon. But it won't be much until after Oct 4th, that much I do know.

Quick off-topic: Beck and I went to see Five for Fighting (John Ondrasik) in Chicago last Friday at the Lincoln Park Zoo, for an outdoor show. Wow, awesome times at the zoo, and what a performer Mr Ondrasik is. The zoo has free admission, so we will be bringing the kids back there to see the no cage/no glass lion and tiger pens, as well as all the cool attractions. I posted a video clip from the show on FB, I will see if blogger will let me load it here too. The video is not the best, was shot in the dark from 150 feet from the stage, but the audio is pretty good. Here is a pic of the stage, at least (video, not so much on the loading!):


The lion pit:



And, we had a birthday party for our four year old bike riding star! She upgraded bikes in under two weeks!!

Me and my birthday girl:

My oldest, riding with her pet dog stuffed in her sweatshirt!

Buds, at least for the moment!

Six weeks to the Milwaukee Marathon!

Yes, Sunday, actually marked the 'six weeks to go' milestone. Yeah, six weeks is NOT a lot of time to get my training in. It makes me want to run everyday, because I know, like everything else we highly anticipate (or we dread), I will be waking up one morning soon and it will be Mary Day!

Marathon Training update;

Training is progressing good to above average, IMO. No injuries to speak of (knocking on wood desk as I type this), standard aches and pains, shoes feel decent, my average HR has been progressively getting lower, even on longer runs. My weight, well, still about the same, I've lost about 3-4 lbs this month, I wanted to knock off another 10 lbs, but that will be easier said than done. I would really like to come in around 186 (OK, I want 185 on race day), but I just don't have enough time to get long, long distance slow calorie burning workouts in at this point. I mean, I could hit the bike on my 'rest day', and do a 3 hr ride, burn of like 1,500-2,000 kilo calories. Or I could schedule some trainer time, ride at night late before bed, or do some bricks and burn the legs up with a one hour ride after a run. But, I feel like I really have to get maximum run miles in at this point in my training.

That is one thing I've noticed, in the running vs. bicycle training topic again, I seem to burn more calories during a long bike ride than on a long run. Now it might be a little like comparing apples to Coors Lite, because for me, a long slow base ride might last anywhere from 2.5 to 4 hrs. My longer runs, well, even my longest to date was only about 55 min and 57 min, back to back, only about a 5 minute rest, respectively. And on longer runs, I'm running a much higher average HR than when I am biking for 40-100 miles. For a run, after training as much as I have, the avg HR is 150-155 bpm. For the bike, I might avg only 143-147 bpm, not a huge difference, but when you are looking are fat calories burned, the low range I hit in the bike rides takes more of these calories, instead of heading towards the slippery 'red zone' and anaerobic territory. On that note, I'd like to hop on the bike and do my out and back test route to I94 now, and compare the HR I hit versus earlier in the year when I was training for FLETC PUT. I'd be willing to bet my HR on the bike would be lower now too, even though I haven't been on my bike in almost one month! That in of itself, is astounding to me, that I'd even want to run more than be out on my bike riding the western Racine CO roads, in search of the ever elusive hills. But marathon is calling, it is close...must concentrate...

So it's late, I'll post my updated workouts, the post reunion celebration made me take THREE days off, that was bad:

8/18: 4.5 miler, 37:16 at 8:19 pace
8/19: 10k, 53:09 at 8:01 pace (fast for me right now)
8/20: 10k, 54:15
8/21: rest day!
8/22: 10k #1, 55:13 at 8:43 pace; 10k #2, 57:54 at 9:07 pace
8/23: 10k, 52:52
8/24: 10k, 53:00

So, not bad mileage in the past 7 days, 42.73 miles and 4,673 kcals burned up. I will run tomorrow, and then I need to plan the rest of the week and weekend carefully. I'm off Fri and Sat, but we're going to Chicago to see John Ondrasik on Friday night and Say afternoon is Ab's four year birthday party. Hmmm, going to have to juggle some things by Friday to run, as I'll be busy!

60 Posts.

Wow, 60 posts already since the start of 2009 (or so, maybe it was Dec '08). Well, actually it's 61, counting this one. But close enough for govt' work. And to think I almost gave up my blog, just about threw in the towel at one point this summer. AND, to think, everyone is in bed while I type this tonight. Kiddies are fast asleep, wifey went to bed at 7:30. So its just me tonight, and I don't feel like watching TV. So lets BLOG while I jam the iTunes DJ for a cool mix.

Anyway, I was looking over some training records #s on maprmyride.com, where I track my running stats and info. I ran a 10k last night after work, and put in a time of 53:09 and a reported pace of 8:01/mile. Tonight I ran the same route, and did a 54:15 and a 8:34/mile pace, the legs were just a bit fried today. Yesterday's run was great, I was feeling the energy from somewhere let me tell ya! There was a guy running in front of me, probably 1/4 mile out or more when I first saw him. I gradually gained on him, and right near my self imposed turn around point, I was nearing him. I know I could've easily caught him before the parking lot around the corner, but this would throw my 10k run up to a 7.5+ mile run. I actually passed my turn around point a bit, before my better side of my pysche and common sense caught up and said, "You'll hate that you did this. Don't do it, just stick with the 10k plan".

Now, when I'm biking, I will be rolling along at 18 or 19 mph and be at a comfortable HR, not pushing it or trying to make the whole ride a, "Hang onto the seat by your bike tights interval". But then, sometimes, I see a rider up ahead, and something just clicks in me. I just have to try and catch them. So I will push it into the red, and hammer down until I catch and pass them, they turn off before I can, or I simply blow up because they are stronger than me. Oh, I make sure I say 'HI' as I pass them too. I say 'HI' to all the riders I pass, either coming or going, doesn't matter if they're riding a $10,000 full out custom Parlee or a $50 hybrid from Kmart, I just think biking is just the type of sport where everyone should wave, yell 'HI' or hi-five when going past a fellow rider. We are like one big band of brothers and sisters out there, we understand the riding thing, the wild drive that pushes us to mount up and ride in the rain or snow, or in 32 mph headwinds. It's just that kind of sport, and I like that about the sport of bicycling. Not everyone will agree with me, but hey, it's IMO anyway!

Running, however, is a bit different. I am not a great runner, not an efficient runner. Chasing someone down while running is not an option, not at this point in my training. Nope. I just feel like I'm starting to get a grip on my running, more comfortable and focused. My HR has been gradually coming down, even on longer runs, which used to stress me into the near red (or full blown red); the past two days of 10k runs have seen my average HR come in at 156 and 154 bpm, respectively. My weight has remained consistent which, I must say is a bit disappointing. But I've cut way back on the night treats and sweets, and I feel better, like I've got more energy even after blowing my legs up on a 10k. I think the 6 a weeks are paying off-Sunday will mark the 6 weeks to go point to 'Mary Day' as my kids call it! My running stats for July/Aug are like this:

July runs: 29.75 miles
August runs: 72.4 miles (as of today)

My SuperNova Glides have just over 60 miles on them already, and they feel really good now. I don't think my shoes will be an issue for a long run. I'm going to put that one to the test this weekend, here is an exert from an email I sent to a few buddies:

So, Sat AM I'm going to try a 12-14 mile run, I will probably park the car at Wind Point and use that as a refuel/rehydrate point and do 2-3 loops. So between Sept 18-25th, my goal is to do a 20 miler, at or near marathon pace, which needs to be about 9:05. The week starting Sept 27th will be the taper week, a few 5k or 4 milers and easy paces.

So now, I need to start working on my iPod play list! I'm going to need about 4.5 hrs of music, yikes, that will be a tough one!

I'm starting to think a 4 hr Mary is a possibility.... positive thoughts ... positive karma ... yeah just keep telling myself that!


The iPod play list will be a challenge, really it will. I mean, try to come up with 4.5 hours of music that will keep you motivated, make you dig deep, make you think about your life, about why you run, about why you are running 26.2. I mean, I don't know about other people, but for me, the running music is a very personal thing, a very real part of my run and of...me. I cannot simply push shuffle and go; I simply cannot use the beat box muzak pieces that are out there for runners, to keep your pace at a certain bpm. To me, the songs are about the run, they are about my life, they make me dig deep. They make me think back to how I was before I began running and biking, before I hurt my back, things at work that have gone 'sideways' over the years (I like that, sideways! you know it's bad if it went 'sideways'!), old relationship(s) (one in particular, after running into her by sheer chance after like 14 years, and not really being ready for it), old friends, people I wish would have kept in touch with me or me with them. I think about how the music applies to my life, how does it motivate me, how does it get me angry to run for that PR?

I mean, doesn't every runner have an 'angry' run list? I have one, at least, not all angry but with some 'angry music' plugged in (yeah, it's like the sideways thing, I'm coming up with my own vocab here). I've been juggling my playlists, since I've been running so much more in the past 3 or 4 weeks. And when I say 'angry music', maybe I should clarify a bit. I am pretty sure everyone's opinion of what is hard, angry music will differ. For me, the Offspring are one of my favorites, even though I believe they are classified as 'alternative'. Man, I had to stop and shift to my iTunes, now Offspring are playing, quite loudly I might add, for everyone being in bed and out like lights! Yeah, and I'm making side trips to FB to update stuff there, I'm quite the multi-tasker tonight, FB is bumping tonight, not just me thats bored apparently! I've got about 7 tabs open here...wow.

Back to the music-I mostly mix it up fairly well. I've got Pearl Jam, Jackson Browne, Counting Crows, The Fray, Augustana, Chris Cornell/Soundgarden, ColdPlay, U2, REM, Red Jumpsuit Apperatus, 30 Seconds to Mars and everything in between on the lists, even some softer, non traditional running songs. I even have a Beatles run list, it is a blast running to 'Eleanor Rigby' strings only and LSD, it is a nice break from all the new stuff once in awhile! What I might do is put the entire compilation of my 'Milwaukee Marathon' song choices on here, when I get it started. I've named the playlist in my folder, just gave to fill her up.

Well, back to the running thing. I was looking at the map of the route listed in mapmyride, and realized that I mapped it out all the way to the lighthouse. I have done this in the past, but I now turn around at the road, cutting the run down to an effective 6.33 mile run, instead of the 6.61 mile listed. Yeah I know 3/10s of a mile, whats the big deal. But still, I want accuracy in training for Milwaukee Marathon.

So the map thing was corrected. Now, I need to map another loop, using the Wind Point lighthouse (yeah, we've got a lighthouse in Racine WI, hard to believe I know) parking lot as a start/finish point. It is nice scenery running around the point, we used to race around it (my buddy lost his for one night's offenses) and at night, we'd park in the lot on dates to, uhmm, watch the moon over the lake! WHOO HOO, the glorious days of youth!

Well, I will update on my long run for Saturday, and hope my legs are holding out as well as they have been so far! For now, I'm thinking some reward snack is in order, maybe a little kettle corn and net surfing till I fall asleep at the mac. Cheers!