T minus 8 and counting!

As I publish this blog post I am about 8 days (and several hours) away from my end of season “A” race – the Bay Bridge 10K! At this point I almost wish it was THIS Sunday! (Almost!) The main reason is because I have been sick twice in the past month so I’m *almost* ready for this to be done and I can spend a month or so just running and racing for fun and hopefully getting healthy before my first spring “A” race!

Seriously! I had a sinus/cough thing happening at the beginning of October. Not that I let that keep me from Sherpa/Pacer duties at the Can Lake50 on October 11! I had a blast running/walking the last 15 miles with Carol as she completed her first 50 miler! You can read the Team Rabbit rap about  it, here! Anyway, I recovered from that (though my ribs are still sore from coughing – whatever) to get some other kind of ‘bug’. After a really fantastic weekend of training this past weekend, I started this week with a low grade fever accompanied by a headache and general achiness. Wednesday I saw the doctor and it is not the flu or anything contagious. So this week I have taken it quite easy! My dog and cats have appreciated having me around a bit more!

Last weekend’s training really was fun! I started on Saturday with a swim/run brick. I did a mostly laid back swim workout – except for the crazy kick set! Perfect before a run, I think! haha I swam and did the first four run miles with Carol and Kathy. We ran a two mile out and back on the trail from Audrey Moore towards Lake Accotink, After they did their run, I headed back out for more! My plan was to get anywhere from four to five miles in, depending on how it was going.

Starting off in the same direction, after about four-tenths of a mile I veered off onto the single track trails! I've ridden some of this before, and run a very small part of it, but was excited! The part I ran along for about a mile and a half was familiar…then after that point I was running on uncharted territory! I’d never even mountain biked it before! For at least one mile I was on paths I’d never been on before, and it was quite liberating! I knew ‘where’ I was but not ‘exactly’ where! As I reviewed the Garmin data afterwards I was able to determine that I ran backwards on a portion of the course that this Sunday’s Backyard Burn is on!

Sunday morning I met Lisa and Jeff back at Wakefield Park. This time we were on our mountain bikes! We rode the loop around Lake Accotink, then as we headed back to the park we veered off onto the same single track from the day before. Later on I realized that while I’d not been on my mountain bike for over a month I still felt like I had not lost too many of the skills / bike handling I’d gained. This was Lisa’s first time off the beaten path onto the single track and she loved it, so I look forward to more rides with her back there in the future!

So this Sunday will be my first BYB – I’ll be doing the 5.5 race at Wakefield Park. I’m excited! While I've not run the entire course, I at least feel somewhat familiar with it. Check back for a race report to see how it really goes!

Next Up:

11/2 - Backyard Burn Race #3

11/9 - Bay Bridge 10K – my “A” race!

Happy and Healthy Training!

Rogue Report

Last weekend I went to Auburn to visit my younger son and watch some Tiger football. You might have read about it in the latest Team Rabbit rap. War Eagle! Auburn is pretty close to the Georgia state line so the week before I wondered if there was a Saturday 5K I'd be able to do. The game wasn't until 6:00 PM central time, so I figured I could swing a race if it was within an hour driving distance. My research found two! I emailed both race directors to find out about race day registration and picked the one that responded first. The race was to start at 9:30 AM...Eastern time! 

My older son and I flew out bright and early Friday morning through Atlanta (which is only a 90 minute drive to Auburn) to Huntsville (a 3.5 hour drive). Crazy logistics, but their dad was picking us up and we were driving down to Auburn for the weekend together. We had a bit of a delay in ATL and played gate change roulette a few times, but finally we were on our way! Once in Huntsville we stopped for a quick lunch then headed on our way. Arrived at the younger son's house and caught the end of the Nationals first playoff baseball game. After that we picked up his roommate and headed off to dinner and to celebrate their October birthdays! We ended up at Shakey's Pizza of all places for dinner because our chosen location was packed. Oh well - maybe next time. Shakey's was just fine and I have not had their pizza in many, many years. 

Once back at the house I was thinking about my race the next morning. I had all my things ready, but suddenly realized "the race starts in Eastern time and I'm in Central time!" I had to plan to add an extra hour to my morning! Of course, I'd get that hour back after the race...haha Good thing I remembered though, or I might have been late! 

I actually woke up before my alarm and manged to get out of the house quickly without disturbing anyone. Hit up the McDonald's in town for an iced coffee and an extra bottle of water. I had a banana and a half a bagel for the ride. And a yummy sugar cookie! The race was in LaGrange, Georgia and started and finished near the Callaway Stadium which is part of  LaGrange College. They are the Panthers and there were big crimson panther paw prints painted on some of the streets we ran on. Cool! Not as cool as the Auburn Tigers paw prints around that campus though! 

The race, Smilin' Waylon's 5K, had been advertised as a fast course, but I'm not so sure I'd agree because right after the start you immediately go up a hill! Then there are some rollers and a good climb around mile 2, I think. There was a nice down hill after that, but I was happy to run the entire course and come in just barely under 30 minutes. It was my fastest standalone 5K of the year! The  volunteers were all very nice and there were some groups of folks cheering. I wore my rabbit ears but an Auburn shirt. And the ears did get some bunny love! Waylon's Run raised about $3,000 for the Ronald McDonald House of West Georgia and was a fun, little event. And I check the state of Georgia off my list! 

Next Up: Cheering and Pacing Extravaganza at the Can Lake 50! 

Happy and Healthy Training! 

Race Report: Perfect 10

This past Sunday I raced in the Perfect 10 - where you have a choice of 10 miles and 10K. I had a 6 mile run scheduled for the weekend long run so of course that made the 10K 'perfect' for me! Team Rabbit rapped about the race on Monday, but I wanted to write my own report. 

Earlier in the week I'd had a tempo run scheduled. When it came down to the workout I was just not feeling it! I actually had cut the workout short. I did little the next two days and had decided on race day I would make up the tempo run. The plan was to take the first two miles at an easy pace, then up the tempo for miles three and four, and maybe five. Then back off for the final mile point two. 

The day before the race I picked up a bunch of race packets: mine, Lisa's (running bug aka RBug), Kathy's (running buddy aka RBud), Jeff (aka no nick name), and of course Carol (SRab) my partner in Rabbit crime! RBug picked up her things from me on Saturday, RBud and Jeff were riding with me, and SRab was to meet us there! Sunday we arrived early enough and parked right next to SRab! RBug was doing a warm up loop through the parking lot and found us! Before we knew it it was time to gather at the start! Got to see Kim on the way there! 

The 10-miler and 10K all started together. The course was a nice rolling loop! As planned I took the first two miles easy and got to run with SRab. We hit the 2-mile mark and she was going to tone it down while I was going to amp it up. And I did! 

My third mile was right about on target, even with a hill / climb thrown in. However, the fourth mile was above the target pace as there was another longer climb. I decided I was ready to back off the pace a bit, but not slow down to my warm-up pace. And believe it or not, there was enough of a decline that my fifth mile was faster than my fourth! I kept at the pace and caught up with RBud just past mile 5. She and I traded off in the last mile and then at the end I worked on my finish kick. Thankfully when I got to the track it was good to see that I only had to run about a quarter of the way around, as opposed to three quarters, like some of the races that finish there. Just as I was nearing the finish line I was passed by a speedy gal who was finishing the 10-miler! Wow! This is nutty but I heard her tell someone right after we crossed that she had puked! I can only imagine how much faster she would have been had she NOT puked! 

Strong 10K Finish...just behind 2nd Place 10-Miler!

As posted on Team Rabbit, all of us regrouped at the finish for a photo-op against the cool "Seniors Wall" at South Lakes High School! 

Running Friends Post-Race as seen on Team Rabbit! 

Happy and Healthy Running!