Showing posts with label Hills. Show all posts

For you non Facebook peeps out there, here is the "event" (something you create on FB and tell everyone about and see if they show up) that I "posted" (something you write on Facebook) on my Facebook "Page" (a page for...) oh never mind!







From my Facebook Page:




Just in case you can't read what this says, here it is:

 This could be the most pathetic attempt at a trail run with elevation ever, but we do live in the Lowcountry. 

Meet at the small parking lot at the Patriots Point Trail Head (across from the Shriner's Temple) at 5:00am (that's a full 30 minutes of extra sleep).

Route: Run the trail out and back twice (.8 miles one way or 3.2 miles total), stopping at each lookout stand and running the steps (twice). Then run to the Cooper River Bridge (via Harry Hallman Blvd) and do two repeats to the top (first bench) and back. Run back to the trail head and do it all over again. Each loop is about 5.6 miles.

Four hours of running is the plan, but you can run as long as you want. Bring headlamps for the first few hours on the trail.

This is unsupported and at your own risk (seriously, if you're dumb enough to do this no one will take your case anyway).

So if you are local and not doing anything Saturday from 5:00am to 9:00am (and out of your mind), come join us!

 If you are on Facebook here is the link to the event: http://www.facebook.com/events/562802003738045/



For more "stuff" checkout my Facebook Page and Twitter Feed.
3/06/2013 07:24:00 AM
Why would anyone want to run two marathons in two weeks?  Why would anyone want to run a marathon after spending a week in Las Vegas?  Why would anyone want to run a marathon with so many hills that afterwards it would be hard to walk for a week???

After breaking four hours at the Monumental Marathon on November 6th, I was ready to rest a little and then get set for my second marathon of the month.  Coach Greg had worked out a recovery plan for me and I was sticking pretty close to the schedule.  I walked and then started to run slowly until my legs were feeling back to normal.  Fortunately for me, I am able to recover quickly after long runs and races.

After a week of recovery, I boarded a plane for Las Vegas.  That's right - not only was I going to run another marathon, I was going to spend a week in Vegas before the run (now that's hardcore)...

My father in law (Stew) and I spent the week exploring the casinos, going to a comedy show, betting on sports and even going to a UNLV / Air Force football game.  We visited Hoover Dam, Lake Mead and then drove around Red Rock Canyon the day before the race.  It sounds like a lot, but I was sitting most of the time.

Not only was I lucky enough to have my father in law traveling with me, part of my wife's family (Kelly and Cynthia) live in Las Vegas as well.  They made me a pasta dinner the night before the race and really made me feel at home.  This would be the first marathon I ever completed without my wife, Jennifer, and my son, Peyton, at the finish line...

Stew and I woke up at 4:00am (Vegas time) and headed down stairs.  I was shocked when the elevator doors opened and I was standing in what looked to me like the aftermath of a night club party.  I must have looked strange standing there in my running gear!

Stew and I had rented a car and we drove about forty-five minutes outside of Las Vegas.  We took the exit for the Valley of Fire State Park and drove eighteen miles in the desert.  The sun started to rise and we could see the mountains in the distance.  My stomach was starting to turn.

The temperature was perfect (45-50 degrees), but it was really windy.  When we got to the park entrance, the park ranger told us that the marathon had been canceled due to a high wind advisory, but that I could still run the half.  I was in shock!  I had not come to run a half, I was there to run a full marathon!  I decided that I was running the full course no matter what and we headed to the parking area.

When we arrived, there was a lot of confusion.  I finally heard the race director announce that anyone who wanted to run the full marathon could do a double out and back of the half course.  This seemed reasonable (until I actually ran the first half) and I headed to the start.  Stew was going to do some rock climbing and then volunteer at the start/end until I finished (how cool is my father in law?).

And this is where the fun begins...

At 7:00am I lined up with about twenty to thirty runners and waited for the start (some of the other marathon runners started later, but we all had start/finish chips on).  The other races (5k, 10k and half would start at 8:00am).  I don't even remember how the race started, but we all headed into the canyons.

The first half mile of the race was straight up hill.  It was brutal and I realized right off that this was going to be tough.  The hill seemed to go on forever until I reached the top and saw the most amazing view!  I was staring at huge red rocks shooting into the sky, it truly looked like a valley on fire!

Throughout the race I would continue to be overwhelmed by the sites that appeared before me.  At every turn and at every hill top I was blown away with the vast beauty of this place.  Unfortunately, my body was being ripped to shreds at the same time!

I had planned to take it easy and run a slow pace for the entire race, but I was caught up in the moment and was running decent splits.  After mile two we headed off road and ran on gravel (big rocks and a lot of sand) for a mini out and back.  I was hoping for some flat area to run on for a while, but it was just one hill after another.  After the out and back, we hit the road again and made a descent to the valley below.  This was not a gradual descent.  It was steep hills going down, followed be grueling climbs back up hills.

As I ran the course I saw a large rock structure in front of me and, for whatever reason, I was drawn to it.  I held it in my sights for what seemed a lifetime until finally I reached the top of an unbelievable steep climb and found myself face to face with the most amazing rock formations I had ever seen.

I made it to the turn around point and emptied my shoes of sand and rocks.  I also had to tighten my shoe laces.  I really had never run on so may hills and had no clue that my feet would be moving so much inside my shoes.  I made the adjustments and headed back down the five miles to the end of the half.

The return trip was just as hard.  Every downhill I had enjoyed was now a new challenge to overcome.  I was still distracted by all the sights and felt incredible as I ran down each hill, but my legs were already starting to scream!

I made it back to the end of the first half and was wiped out.  Stew was waiting for me with a full bottle of Gatorade.  I stopped to drink it and blurted out, "This is the hardest thing I have ever done in my life!".  I think Stew thought I was ready to collapse.

I had completed the first half in 2:15 (way faster than I wanted and I knew that if I didn't slow down I was going to hurt myself).  The thought of stopping at the half way point had crossed my mind at around mile eleven and I knew if I stayed at the end for more than a few seconds I might not keep going.  I cut the power to my brain and made the turn back up that crazy hill...

At mile fifteen I headed back off road again and was really starting to hurt.  My calves started to cramp and I stopped to rub them out.  I drank everything I had and took in more salt, then I just kept running.  By the time I hit the road again I was past the eighteen mile mark and knew there was no turning back.

I ran down the hill and could feel my left hamstring cramping.  I did the best I could to hold it together and just cut back my pace.  I was not trying to beat a time, I would never be able to compare this race to any other race for a PB (personal best).  This one was going in its own category (hell race, I mean hill race).  The cramping faded for the most part and I was able to run the downhills and walk/run the up hills.  I noticed this was what most of the runners were doing (much sooner than me) so I felt good about my chances of finishing.

At the turnaround point I fueled up and headed back.  All the runners were spread out at this point.  I could see a few runners in front of me and behind me each time I crested a hill.  We were like an ant colony marching down this red sandy road.

The last five miles were by far the hardest part of the race, but I felt so good!  My legs felt like crap, but I felt great!  This was an adventure of a life time and I was going to finish it!

I made it to the top of the last hill I had to climb and was filled with joy as I saw the steep slope to the bottom and the finish.  I ran at full speed (hoping I would not cramp and tumble to the bottom).  There were a few volunteers ringing bells and cheering me on.  I ended the race at 5:11:50.  It was hard not having Jen and Peyton waiting for me at the end, but I saw Stew, Kelly and Cynthia at the finish line and was grateful to have family waiting for me at the end of such an amazing experience.

Why would anyone want to run two marathons in two weeks?  Why would anyone want to run a marathon after spending a week in Las Vegas?  Why would anyone want to run a marathon with so many hills that afterwards it would be hard to walk for a week???

Because its freaking awesome!  That's why!!!
11/23/2010 08:17:00 AM
It was noon and I was just starting my run.  The conference was over and it was time to find Balboa Park and the trails at Florida Canyon in San Diego, CA.  

I ran down Broadway Street towards Park Street.  Although the streets seemed a little less touristy and a little more gritty, I felt okay as I made my way to the park.  I missed my turn and ended up running up and down hills near San Diego City College until I made it back to Park Street.

I was not sure where Florida Canyon was located, so I started running around the park until I saw a group of military or law enforcement trainees running in cadence.  I saw them go over a hill and disappear and knew that was where I needed to go.

I ran over a pedestrian walkway and saw the coolest sight ever!  I was staring at a canyon with tons of trails up and down and all over!  There was cactus and brush everywhere.  The trails looked awesome; they would be my first true trails with hills I had ever run.

I ran down the trail and felt comfortable right away.  The trail went down to the bottom of the canyon and then moved back up using switchbacks.  There were tight turns, loose rocks, and steep hills to climb.  This was everything I had hoped for...

These trails would be pretty easy for the experienced trail runner, but they are a blast.   I would suggest them to anyone visiting or living in the San Diego area.

I ran several trails until I noticed that I was out of water and I had run over ten miles just on the trails!  I was on a huge high, but knew I needed to get back.  As I ran out of the canyon and back to the streets of San Diego, I could not keep the smile off my face...

Now on to the weekly recap (from www.damilymile.com):

Sunday - Rest
Monday - Six mile afternoon run to the Citadel and back to my office (9:18). Can not believe how hot it was today. Looks like the temp may come down later in the week though.
Tuesday - Ran four miles - negative splits this morning (9:15, 8:50, 8:30, 8:05). Felt pretty good.
Evening track workout - 1x800 warm up, drills, 4x1600 (mile repeats 8:25, 8:20, 8:21, 8:20), cool down (5 miles total).
Wednesday - Rest
Thursday - Ran by feel without looking at my Garmin. Was a little fast but it was an easy four miler before my twenty in the morning (8:52).
Friday - 20 Mile long run -  First ten miles were fine, then the humidity and heat took off and I didn't. I had the worst run of the entire year (I was going to say summer, but its fall now). Not sure what happened other than starting later in the day and the heat getting to me. I did my same routine otherwise. Flying at to San Diego tomorrow and I just hope I get to run in some cooler weather for a change.
Saturday - Traveling - Rest Day 

Total for the week = 39 miles

Sunday - Rest
Monday - Six miles around the San Diego Harbor.
Tuesday - Six miles around the San Diego Harbor.
Wednesday - 15 miles of trail running in Florida Canyon.
Thursday - Traveling - Rest
Friday - Rest 
Saturday - Rest

Total for the week = 27 miles
10/02/2010 03:55:00 PM
Completely random - I found this old picture of my son and I from five years ago.



Now on to the weekly recap (from www.DailyMile.com):

Sunday - Rest Day

Monday - Nice ten mile recovery run mix from my office downtown, over the Cooper River Bridge, out to the end of the Mount Pleasant Water Front Park pier and back. First six miles were at a slow recovery pace (10:00+), last four miles I pushed marathon pace (8:50 -). Storms followed me the whole way...

Tuesday - Hardcore evening track workout (5 miles): 1x800 warm up, drills, 4x200 (:48) - 100 rec, 4x300 (1:12) - 200 rec, 4x400 (1:37) - 300 rec, 1x800 cool down. I hit my splits within +-2 seconds. I was good on my rest intervals until the last two 400's (I rested about 20-30 seconds too long). The pace was around 6:30 so I was really pushing it in the heat. I was wiped out!!!

Wednesday - Eight mile run over the Ashley River Bridge and back from my office.  My pace was steady (9:33).  Special note: I was lucky enough to meet the nastiest gas station attendant in Charleston at the Circle K off Hwy 61.

Thursday - Five mile afternoon tempo run.  Warm up mile and then four tempo miles. I was going out for eight, but it was just too hot!!!

Friday - Easy four mile afternoon run Downtown (10:00).

Saturday - Twelve mile long run out to Sullivan's Island and back to the Old Village. First mile was a slow warm up, then four quick miles at half marathon pace (8:24). Slowed down for five miles coming back (my knee was hurting). Then ran two fast miles (8:30) to end the run.

Total for the week = 44 miles

That's about it for the week.  The heat is still killing me, the track workout was killer, the long run was nice, and I was fortunate enough to meet the nastiest gas station attendant in the entire world.  Not a bad week...

Oh, who else uses Daily Mile?  I love that site! 
8/29/2010 08:12:00 PM
After a pretty pathetic week of running, I literally ran out the door to get started this morning!

I was running a 16 mile out and back and was hoping for a break in the heat.  What an amazing morning!  Although the humidity was 95%, the temperature was only 79 degrees and it was cloudy all morning - perfect long run weather.

I met my running group at St. Andrews and started running at 5:00am.  It was a smaller group this morning, only eight of us showed up.  Cathy R is traveling in the Outback (not the restaurant, the real place) and Ninja Stuntman must be at home nursing his beat up body.  Marine Nicholson (I will come up with a better nickname later) joined us for the second time.  He is crazy fast and is working on a BQ (Boston Qualifier).  No doubt he will get it soon.

Coach Greg had us running a route that would take us over the Cooper River Bridge (this is one of my favorite routes for a long run).  I ended up running with Annie P and Torre (sp?) for the first 3.5 miles.  Everyone (except me) was running seven today so after that point I was on my own...

After the other runners turned around I kept running over the the bridge to Downtown Charleston.  I stayed on East Bay Street and headed to the Battery.  I ran on the upper wall this morning (have not done that in a long time).  The wind felt great coming off the harbor and the waves were splashing against the wall making loud crashing noises.  It was an amazing experience as I ran in the dark in such a cool place.  There were only a few people out that early and they all seemed in such a good mood (thats what happens when the weather in nice around here).

I followed the road to the Coast Guard Station and waved to the guys as they were heading out on patrol.  I went around to Lockwood Blvd and headed to the Marina.  My plan was to stop there and get a drink for the return trip.  I was a little over my eight mile turn around, but close enough to the store that I kept going.  As I arrived I noticed that the lights were off (the store does not open until 7:00am on Saturdays) - ugh...  I headed back and tried another store, but it too was closed.  I was completely out of water so I headed over to some tennis courts that have a water fountain and restroom.  The water fountain was on, but the water was hot!  I ended up getting water from the restroom sink (a little cooler).

I ran back around the Battery and up East Bay when I saw Coach Greg's red truck coming down the road.  Big shout out to Coach Greg for finishing his run and then heading over to help me out.  I refilled my water bottle and was ready to go.

The trip back over the bridge was great!  Its amazing how much the bridge changes from 5:00am to 7:00am.  It was packed with walkers, runners, and bicyclists.  I even ran by a huge group of cross country kids.

I finished back at St. Andrews feeling really good.  I had stayed hydrated with water, Gatorade and BaNa (I took salt pills at miles five and ten).  I stayed fueled with gels at miles six and twelve.  My hydration plan is really working great.  I am looking forward to testing it on a twenty plus run soon.

The weather made a huge difference on this run.  When ever I start beating myself up over a bad run or doubting that I can ever break four hours on a marathon I have to remind myself that the weather in Indy will be much cooler.

Stay hydrated and keep running everyone, it won't be long before I am back to complaining about the cold...
8/07/2010 11:55:00 AM
This heat is killing me!  I thought the heat was fine for the first thirty straight days of above 90 degree temps, but now its getting old...

I have been reading a lot about hydration (before, during and after running).  There are a ton of articles out there that have suggestions that range from drinking salt in slurppees to eating frozen fruit after a workout.

- "Take time to hydrate"
- "The truth about Hydration in the heat"
- "What do you mean when you talk about hydrating"

My plan is pretty simple:

- I drink a lot of water before I run
- I drink sports drinks during my run (I add gels and salt pills if the run is more than 6 miles)
- I drink low fat chocolate milk after my run

What ever you do, have a plan.  Don't wait until you are at six mile on a ninety degree day and start thinking about what you need to do to get or stay hydrated.

Training Recap:

Saturday - I ran a 12 mile long run.  First four miles were fast (9:30); next four miles were slower (9:50); and then I pushed the last four up to marathon pace (8:50).
Sunday - Rest day.
Monday - Five mile recovery run (9:45).
Tuesday - Track Workout: 1x800 warm up, drills, 4x200 (:49 - 100 recovery), 4x300 (1:12 - 200 recovery), 4x400 (1:39 - 300 recovery), 1x1200 cool down.
Wednesday - Bridge repeats (ran to the top of the Cooper River Bridge and ran repeats between the spans - 8:40 average)
Thursday - I was supposed to run a seven mile tempo run, but I felt like crap and made it a rest day...


As always, please remember that I am not a certified trainer, doctor, nurse, expert or anybody else qualified to tell you what to do...
8/05/2010 09:08:00 PM
Happy National Running Day!

I celebrated by running seven and a half miles in the blazing heat of Charleston, SC, and almost passing out...  Could be worse, I could have actually passed out :)

I learned a good lesson today.  Don't be an idiot, bring water when running in hot weather...

I have several races this Summer before my marathon this Fall, but I needed a break after the Palmetto 200 and the Warrior Dash.  I took it easy for a few days and then went on vacation.

I was in Winston-Salem, NC, this past weekend and found out first hand that running ten miles there is very different than running here.  I knew it was going to be hilly, but I had no idea how tough it would be.  I ran the whole ten miles on and around one of the hilliest golf courses I have ever been on.  My legs were toast...

Anyway, I hope everyone made it out on the road or trail today and celebrated National Running Day!
6/02/2010 10:49:00 PM
There are races and then there are adventures.  The Palmetto 200 was an adventure...

After months of training, the time had come to run the Palmetto 200.  I spent the last week before the race tapering and ensuring I had everything I needed.  Thursday night I spent packing and double checking my supplies.  I reread the Palmetto 200 web site at least fifty times and then I went to bed.

Friday morning I woke up at 4:30am.  I ate a light breakfast, showered, loaded my car and kissed my wife and son goodbye (they had both woken up early to see me off - very cool).

I was picking up "Cathy's Mom's Van" (I love saying that) in Mount Pleasant and then driving over to Folly Beach to pick up the rest of the team.

Our team of twelve people was split in half and we had a van for my half (Van #2) and an SUV for the other half (Van #1).

Team members in order of how we ran:
(Van #1): Annie, Jen, Jeff, Michael, Cathy, Stacey (and Jeff's wife Lauren - the driver).
(Van #2): Me, Daphne, Heather, Jon, Betsey, Richard (we took turns driving).


The adventure started pretty early.  One of Van #1's runners, Stacey, was late; so she met us on James Island and road up in our van.  I drove first and of course we stopped at Starbucks before we even left James Island.

We made it to the starting line at about 8:15am (15 minutes to spare).  The race started at the old Columbia Speedway right outside of downtown Columbia.  It was not much to look at, but it was really cool to be starting our 200 mile race on an old race car track (actual race mileage was 201.7 miles).

Our first runner was Annie and she made a lap around the track with the other runners and then headed out on to the road.  It was so strange standing there watching the start of the race, but knowing that I had over five hours before I would start running.

With that in mind, Van#2 made our way to breakfast.  That's right, we had breakfast at the start of the race.  We went to a cool little place (Cafe Strudel) and I had a bagel and coffee and just enjoyed being with the team.  This was a really easy going crew and I was already having fun.




Before we got back in the race, we stopped and bought decorating supplies for the van.  We put the new name of our team on the van - IHNBTDTR200MTW (I had nothing better to do than run 200 miles this weekend) on the back. We then made the van into the Mystery Machine from Scooby Doo (it was so cool and should have won the van competition - just saying...).







We made our way to the exchange zone of the fourth leg in time to talk with the Van#1 runners and watch Jeff hand off the bracelet to Michael (each runner wore a yellow bracelet and had to hand it off to the next runner at the end of their leg).  Funny thing is that I found out that this was Michael's first race (no joke, he had never even run a 5k).  After the exchange we left and made our way to the end of the sixth leg where our van would be taking over.  As we drove the course we were amazed at the hills.  I had no idea it would be this hilly.  We saw Annie from Team Happy Feet coming down a hill on leg #6.  We honked and waved and she was smiling.  As we drove on, we hit a massive hill and everyone in our van just went (ooohhh).  We knew how hard that hill was going to be on the runners (sorry Annie)...

We stopped at the exchange zone and looked at all the team vans.  It was so cool seeing so many groups of runners doing this crazy race.  We were getting text messages from the other van and could see that we were ahead of our projected pace.  My first run was a short sprint (1.7 miles).  It hardly seemed like a real run.  I was actually a little embarrassed to be doing such a short distance...

I saw Stacey coming down the road and knew I needed to power through this leg as fast as I could.  I started strong going down hill.  The road went up a hill for half a mile and then turned through the town of St. Matthews.  I maintained a sub 7:00 pace the whole way and ended up doing the leg in under twelve minutes.  It felt good to get going in the race, but twelve minutes was not even long enough to get me sweating much.  I ate a sandwich to ensure I was fueled for my next run.  We drove ahead and supported our runner, Daphne, with water and cheers.  The road was still hilly and the temperature was really heating up.  Daphne handed off to Heather and she handed off to Jon (super fast kid with an incredible attitude).  Jon handed off to Betsey and she handed off to Richard (did I mention they are married?).  Richard ran a long leg that ended in the Santee State Park.  He handed off to Annie from Van#1 and our van was ready to rest.

The park had showers and we had rented a camp site for our teams (brilliant idea Richard and Betsey).  Most of the group took showers and talked about going to get BBQ.  I was checking the camp area for places to buy ice and as I was coming back to the site I could see Jon holding up a big fish!  Apparently, while he was standing in the camp site a bird flew over and dropped the fish right next to him (how crazy is that?).  Can you imagine telling people that you were injured in a 200 mile race by a fish flying through the air?

After that excitement, everyone sat around eating or just trying to rest.  I was still feeling a little out of place at this point (I barely ran).  Everyone else had run hard legs in the crazy heat and I had only sprinted 1.7 miles.  I was not even thinking about taking a shower, so I laid on my bag and tried to rest.  I was getting anxious to start my real running and ended up just talking with everyone and laughing about stuff we had already experience (forgot to mention that a semi truck almost killed us at the beginning of the race as I was checking my text messages - forget you read that Cathy and don't tell your mom)...

I finally got up and headed to the bathroom to change clothes for my night run.  I was stoked to get started, so we loaded the van and headed to the exchange zone.  The first thing we noticed was that we were in the deep country.  We had already heard that this was a dangerous area and the locals thought we were crazy for running through here at night (comforting)...

I was running first again and had a reflector vest on with blinking lights on the front and back.  I also had a hat with a spotlight (I looked like a Christmas Tree running down the road).  This was a 7.7 mile leg and I felt good right away.  It was crazy being out on a busy road and jumping to the side as cars blew past me, but I was having a blast.  This is what I had imagined when I first started thinking about this race.  This was an adventure!   At one point a car pulled over and turned off its lights ahead of me.  Our van pulled up next to it and the car took off (freaky).  Near the end of my leg, a car pulled along side of me and a lady stuck her head out the window and asked me why all these people were running.  I told her that it was a relay race from Columbia to Folly Beach and she just said, "but why are you running?".  I said, "to get to Folly Beach."  She seamed to take this as a good explanation and said good luck.  I waved and said have a good night and she drove off.  I ran harder for the last part of my leg and ended at Cross High School.  There were volunteers there cheering us on (all the volunteers working this race were incredible!).

I changed clothes, had some chocolate milk and then we headed out to support our next runner.  We were really staying close to Daphne and Heather during their legs of the race.  We dealt with some strange cars and noises and even saw Heather fall down when she hit a pothole.  Even though I was finished running, this was one of the more stressful parts of the race (it was hard to relax when knowing our teammates were running in the dark with a bunch of people around that were crazier than us).  Jon ran his part of the race really fast and seemed to really be enjoying the freedom of running on a country road in the middle of the night.  Betsey ran next and had a great leg through downtown Monks Corner.  It was nice to have some light as she made it through town.  She handed off to Richard for a short 2.3 mile leg up hill.  There were a few rain drops at this point, but nothing major.  Richard handed off the bracelet to Annie and we were done for a few hours.

We were all exhausted and had decided to go to Richard and Betsey's house to shower and get a few hours of rest.  We drove about forty-five minutes to Downtown Charleston and dragged our selves into their house.  I took a shower and laid down on a bed and fell asleep for about an hour.  I heard my phone and checked the text.  It looked like Van#1 was ahead of schedule.  I just sat there staring at my phone.  I could not even think straight...  I heard other people moving around outside my room so I got up and made my way downstairs.  I could not eat anything (my stomach was a mess), but I did drink some coffee and started to feel ok.  It took awhile, but we finally realized that Van#1 was actually still on time and we could have slept another hour (our brains were fried).  We loaded the van again and headed to Mount Pleasant for the final part of the race!

My last leg of the race (7.3 miles) was a great section (I run in this area all the time).  I ran down Rifle Range Road to the Isle of Palms Connector.  I passed one runner on that road and could see another runner about one hundred meters in front of me.  I could feel my pace picking up and I pushed it to the bridge.  I passed the runner and pushed it to the top.  As I came over the IOP Connector Bridge I saw my team at the bottom and could hear them cheering.  It was sick!  They gave me water and then I ran down the road to Sullivan's Island.  I handed off to Daphne and could not believe my part of the race was over.

We followed Daphne over the Ben Sawyer Bridge (we found out later that the bridge had opened a few minutes after she ran over).  Daphne handed off to Heather in front of my son's school (Mount Pleasant Academy).  It felt good to be back in familiar territory as we went through the Old Village.  Heather ran to the Mount Pleasant Water Front Park and handed off to Jon who ran over the Cooper River Bridge.

While we were waiting at the Water Front Park Richard had taken his shoes off and put them in front of the van to air out (you know what came next... we left them)...

Richard jumped in another van and drove back to the park and luckily found his shoes.  The trip over to the next exchange was a little crazy as we weaved through Downtown Charleston traffic (I think my driving was annoying Betsey a little)...

We made it to the exchange and Jon handed off to Betsey.  Betsey ran over the Ashley River and then to James Island (she did get stopped by the James Island Draw Bridge).  The heat was brutal again, but she made good time and finished her leg.  She handed off to Richard and he made his way to Folly Beach for the end of the race.

We all lined up and waited for Richard.  It was cool to see him running down the road and turning for the finish line.  The whole group got behind him and ran through the finish line together.

Team IHNBTDTR200TW finished the 201.7 miles in 29 hours and 20 minutes and made the top ten!

Finisher medals were given to the whole group and we took some team photos and then we all just kind of stood there amazed at what we had just done.

Even though this was the first year of this race it was unbelievably well organized; the route was great (although some parts were a little sketchy); the volunteers were awesome and the experience was priceless.

This was an adventure...
5/04/2010 10:15:00 PM
This is going to be short (maybe)...

My right foot has been hurting for a while so I decided to take it east this week and just try to give it some time to heal.


Monday - I went out for a short run and ended up running eight miles.  I ran around the Battery, in front of Rainbow Row, in and out of old Charleston neighborhoods and then down by the docks.  The Celebrity cruise ship was in port so I ran right next to it.  It was so huge!  I had so much fun just running I did not even care where I was going.  I knew where a few water fountains were, so I just headed for them so I could get water.

Tuesday - When I got home, Peyton asked me if we could go on a "road run".  Apparently, he is intrigued by the idea of running on the road like me.  So I told him we could run half a mile down a road in our neighborhood and back.  He was pretty excited so we had to change into our running clothes for our one mile "road run".  Some of his friends (on bikes) saw him running with me and were very interested in what we were doing.  I told them they could do it with us next time we went on a "road run". 

Wednesday - Tempo run on the Bridge.  I met the group in the morning and decided I was only going for a short run.   I ran to the top and back (slow first mile and two fast miles as the end).

Thursday and Friday - Nothing, I just rested my foot.

Saturday - Peyton and I went to the Bulldog Challenge at the Citadel to volunteer.  This was the first time that either one of us had volunteered at a race.  He was so excited that he woke up at 4:30am and was ready to go.  We worked our butts off until 12:30pm.  We were both exhausted (I now have a much better appreciation for race volunteers).  Even though we were both tired, Peyton wanted to run a mile on the "Citadel Track" (let me make that clear - Peyton wanted to run a mile, I would have been happy to just go get lunch).  So we walked over to the track where the Citadel Football Team had just finished practicing and he ran a mile (I ran the last two laps with him).  As I was standing there, a football coach asked me if Peyton was going to run all the way around.  I said "no, he's going to do it four times".  He was pretty amazed.   I got home and rested for a little while and then went for a ten mile run.  I ran down to the waterfront park and back.  It was a windy day, but beautiful.

On another note, my son Peyton will finish his "Kid's Marathon" on March 17th.  He has run 22 miles as of today and will finish at the "Catch the Leprecaun 5K Race".   I had a finishers medal made for him and I am making a T-shirt for him.  He is raising money for the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund and we made a web page for him.  The link is: www.active.com/donate/SemperFiFund10/peytonsmarathon

If you make a $1.00 donation, I will put your name on the back of his shirt as a sponsor! Donations have to be in by Tuesday at 9:00pm so I have time to make the shirt. Thanks for your support!


This is from his web site:
Peyton's Marathon!
If my Dad can do it, so can I!!!

My name is Peyton and I am six years old. On March 17, 2010, I will complete my "Kid's Marathon" (26.2 miles) at the Catch the Leprechaun 5K. My dad ran a marathon and I wanted to do it too. The Marines really helped him become healthy and now I am a runner! Please help me raise money to help the Injured Marines.
3/14/2010 12:09:00 PM
5 exercises x 100 reps = worn out...

Yesterday was a tempo run and I ran it on the Cooper River Bridge.  We had a big group of about twenty runners and really pushed the pace the whole way (9:35, 7:46, 7:55, 8:48, 7:10).  I have been fighting a cold and was not feeling one hundred percent, but the run felt awesome!

Now back to this morning.  Boot Camp was just plain brutal.

We were all standing around waiting for the Marines to come in the gym to start our stretch (I was showing off my new crazy injinji socks) when all of a sudden the Marines run in and yell, "GET ON YOUR FACE!".  Something was a little different about today...

We immediately started doing pushups and then did four laps around the track for a warm up.  We came back to the gym to find a list of five exercises posted on the wall:

Body Squats
Burpees
Start Jumpers
Pushups
Crunches

We had to do 100 reps of each exercise (any order and in any amount).  This workout really tests your integrity, it would have been very easy to do less or just cheese the effort.  Although the Marines were walking around the gym "inspiring" us, this was about pushing yourself as hard as possible to complete the task.

I changed up the order of the exercises a little, but mostly did sets of 20 each until I was finished.  I was dead!  I  finished in a little over thirty minutes.  After that, we were sent to the track to start running.  I did a recovery lap and then picked up the pace.  As I was coming around the corner, one of the Marines yelled at me and three other people to get on the rowing machines.  We went max effort for about three minutes and then went back to the track and ran some more (my legs were numb).

We went back to the gym and did some more exercises (which I can not even remember at this point).  We finished by running to the center of the gym yelling our best war cry (I barely remember that)...

oorah!
2/25/2010 10:23:00 AM
Maybe its the big mob thing, but there is just something cool about running with a big group.

Yesterday, I ran six miles as a recovery to the eight I did over the Bridge on Monday.  I went out to the Citadel and back to my office.  At about two miles out, the rain hit me full force.  I love the rain, but it makes it a little hard getting back into the office when I am soaking wet (good thing I have a shower at my office).

The pace was slow with negative splits (9:53, 9:48, 10:00, 9:43, 9:24, 9:15).  I was deliberately trying to keep the pace slow so I would be fresh for my group run today.  There's something about running with a big group that makes you want to run better...

We had a change in plans and the tempo run I usually do on Wednesdays was changed to none other than a Bridge Run!  How lucky was I to get to run the Bridge three times in one week.

I really was looking forward to the run.  Last night, I finished "Once a Runner".  What a cool book.  If you have not read this book, you should!  It is so freaking good!  I was so psyched for the group run that I jumped out of bed this morning without hesitation.  When I drove up to the Bridge parking area I saw a bunch of cars and runners.  There is something about running with a big group that is so exciting.

I don't mind running alone (I do it all the time), but having a bunch of people running together is just so cool.  Even though we were all spread out by the time we made it to the top of the Bridge it was cool knowing we were all up there, attacking that run together. 

I ran at a pretty good pace, but my legs were really tired from my race and my last two runs.  I tried to keep the uphill pace fast and then attack the downhill (9:26, 8:03, 8:26, 8:47, 8:05).  There was an extra half mile at the end that I was running sub 7:00 pace.

There's something about running with a big group that makes you want to run faster...
2/03/2010 03:11:00 PM

Sunday was a rest day, so of course I ran the Bridge with my son...

All I really wanted to do on Sunday was sleep. But the life of a six year old boy's dad is not that restful. I was hoping that Peyton had forgotten all about wanting to run the Bridge. I was thinking that the cold weather would make him want to just stay inside. No such luck.

At 10:00am we were bundled up and heading out the door for a run over the Cooper River Bridge.

Now, you may be asking yourself why would a six year old even care about running over the Bridge on a Sunday morning. First, he is as crazy as his dad! Second, he has a running goal (a big one).

He tracks his running on a chart that has squares on it and every time he runs half a mile he gets to color in half of the square. When he is finished with all of his squares he will have completed 26.2 miles (his own marathon!). He actually wrote at school that his New Year's Resolution was to run one mile every week (he has not broken that resolution yet).

The Bridge is one mile up and one mile down. The wind was really blowing hard and it was cold! He ran about half way up without stopping (I was very impressed). He saw a group of tourist ahead of us and wanted to beat them to the top so he walked for a little while and ran the rest of the way to the top (13 minutes!).

We hung out on the top and looked out on the Charleston Harbor, the Yorktown aircraft carrier and Fort Sumter. It really is beautiful. The group of tourist showed up and I got them to take a picture of us with my cell phone.

We headed back down -Peyton ran about half way, walked a few seconds and then ran the rest of the way (9 minute mile!!!). That was crazy! He was so excited.

We went home and hung out until Cub Scout time and went over to Fort Moultrie on Sullivan's Island. He wanted me to point out all the "rivers" I ran through the day before (he laughed a lot).

Today was another run up the Cooper River Bridge, but I was on my own this time (much more fun with Peyton). I ran eight miles from my office and back. The view was still beautiful, I just didn't stay as long...
2/01/2010 04:58:00 PM


I have always been pretty lucky when it come to gifts at Christmas, but now that I am on this crazy running adventure it seems like I get some pretty awesome stuff (this includes other holidays and other gifts - my Garmin 405, camel pack, water bottles, etc...)!


Socks - never liked getting them as a kid, but now they rock!  Who would have thought that getting two pieces of cloth would bring so much joy?


Glide - you can never have too much Glide!  Not sure if anyone ever gave me Glide or any other type of non chafing stick in the past (ok, maybe Vaseline)... 


Energy Bars, Jelly Beans, Vitamins - very cool and a great way to try stuff you may not normally buy.


Running Books - the best!  


My mother in law and my wife gave me the book Once a Runner.  My wife also gave me: Born to Run, The Runner's Rule Book and Pain (the book).  And my sister gave me a subscription to Marathon & Beyond.  How cool is that?


I recently read the book My Life on the Run (Bart Yasso).  It was amazing.  I even read a section to my son and he loved it.  I am now reading Meditations from the Breakdown Lane: Running Across America (the verdict is still out on that one).  Now I am trying to finish it as fast as possible so I can read Once a Runner.  When I was reading Bart Yasso's book I would force myself to put it down for a while just so I wouldn't finish it too fast...


Anyway, I was going to rest over the Christmas weekend but it was too nice out.  I ended up running eight miles on Christmas afternoon.  We were staying with my in-laws who live a few miles away.  I found this great new road to run on.  The developers are making an area called Carolina Park (tons of houses and businesses), but for now there is nothing there except roads and trees.  The temperature was around seventy degrees and even with the clouds it was a beautiful day.  I ran and ran.  I didn't want to stop.  


I did take a day off on Saturday, but I was back out on Sunday.  I ran a ten mile run from my house over the Cooper River Bridge and back.  There were a lot of runners out, but I noticed something odd.  When it's cold out, people are not as polite.  Everyone loves to talk about how nice people are in the south, but that's only when it's warm.  I said good morning to at least twelve people and only one person even acknowledged me!


Today was another cool morning, but it was sunny and there was a light breeze.  I ran six miles in the Old Village to the old Pitt Street pier and back home.  It must not have been too cold because people actually said good morning to me...
12/28/2009 04:05:00 PM
I love running in December...

Ok, granted it was a beautiful day with the temperature over seventy this afternoon.  After a few cold mornings, it was awesome getting out and breaking a sweat in the hot sun.  I got a little carried away and ended up running nine miles (that's about three more miles than I had planned).

I also changed my route and ran over the Cooper River Bridge.  I love running over the bridge.  Seeing the Yorktown in the distance, watching the tugboats pushing the container ships and seeing all the sailboats circling the waters is just amazing.  Looking up at the sky from the top of the bridge is not too bad either...

I wanted to keep a steady pace today.  The incline on the bridge and the wind made it hard, but I was able to keep a pretty even pace (9:03, 9:05, 9:08, 9:06, 9:07, 8:56, 8:45, 9:08, 9:04).  My legs were a little tired when I was done, but man did it feel good!  I am running a tempo run in the morning and it is probably going to suck, but it was worth it.

I put in some good runs over the last week:

Friday - I was back on the track.  I ran 1200's at below 5k pace with 2 minute rest.
Saturday - I ran with a small group for about 7 miles (9:46, 8:56, 8:58, 8:50, 9:00, 8:44, 8:27) and then ate pancakes!
Sunday - I went out for a six mile run (9:00, 8:50, 9:45, 9:40, 9:08, 9:00) in the rain, I love running in the rain!
Monday - I ran six miles (9:35, 9:32, 9:52, 9:46, 9:25, 9:33)

Friday was wicked cold.  I just wanted to keep running to get the workout over with.  I had a great time on the Saturday Pancake Run.  Nothing like eating pancakes after a run.  Sunday was really crazy.  I was feeling like I had eaten too much on Saturday and just wanted to get out and burn some calories.  I made it to the turnaround point and the skies just opened up on me.  It rained so hard I thought I was going to have to swim.  I'm also pretty sure that a few cars were intentionally getting closer to the larger puddles as they passed me!

The weather is a little crazy, but at least I am still running in December...
12/15/2009 10:24:00 PM
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