Training for 5/31/19

I wanted to get in a long-ish run today, since we’re going out of town this weekend, so I did a lap of the 10.1-mile loop.

I got started the latest I did all week, but fortunately, it was also the nicest morning we’ve had all week. Still warm and sunny, but the humidity was all the way down to 70 percent. Breathable!

In spite of the decent weather, it wasn’t the greatest run. My legs felt heavy and I just never got into a groove. A few of the middle miles were really slow. But I plugged along until I finished it in 1:34:33, a 9:22/mile overall average.

Anyway, that was my last run of May, so time to sum up my month.

Mileage:

• Week 1 (May 1-4): 19.9 miles
• Week 2 (May 5-11): 39.8
• Week 3 (May 12-18): 34.3
• Week 4 (May 19-25): 17.5
• Week 5 (May 26-31): 32.7

Total: 144.2 miles

I was happy with my mileage this month. I had a few lazy days but I wound up with a decent total.

Racing was meh. I only did two, the St. Michaels Half Marathon and the Masser 5-Miler, and neither of them went like I’d hoped thanks to hot weather, the 5-miler especially.

I also put in 113 miles on my bike. I think that new seat I got for my birthday is finally broken in.

In June, I’ve got at least two summer series 5Ks to run, and Steamtown Marathon training officially begins June 10. I’m also volunteering at the finish line at Eagleman again.

Anyway, tomorrow morning, Clark and I are flying out to San Diego for a short work-related trip, and staying through Monday.

Training for 5/30/19

Yesterday afternoon, I brought down from the sweltering attic the Swiss exercise ball, medicine ball and adjustable dumbbells, so I could do some strength training where it didn’t feel like the inside of an oven. I did push-ups, ab exercises, invisible chair-sitting and the lifting routine with the dumbbells.

This morning, I didn’t get out for my run as early as I did yesterday, but I still managed to go before it got too bad, around 7:30. The sun was much higher by that point, obviously, but I had some good stretches of shade after the first couple of miles.

I did a speed workout, six 400-meter repeats, aiming for 1:45 (7:00/mile pace) on each.

After a 1.5-mile warmup, I ran the six repeats in 1:47, 1:47, 1:39, 1:42, 1:40 and 1:45. Not bad, but I really needed the recovery already after each!

I did another mile to cool down and finished the 5.5-mile loop in 48:16, an 8:46/mile overall average.

Training for 5/29/19

It got HOT here. Yesterday, I put off running too long, which meant past 9 a.m.

Today, I woke up as soon as it started to get light out and knew I better leave for my run immediately. I was on the road just after 5:30 a.m.

It wasn’t too warm out yet, but, as is usually the case in the mornings, the humidity was at its peak.

The run itself went fine — I ran 4.6 miles at an 8:49/mile average — but my GI tract was not happy. Not sure if it was because it was so early or something I ate last night or what, but I had to stop in a wheat field less than two miles in, and I had to skip the usual cool down walk at the end and sprint all the way back to my house (hence why it was a little farther than the 4.5-mile loop) because I had to go again. I felt fine after that though.

I’ve been hunkered down in the air conditioned house with Pepper since I got back. Clark took his bike and other gear with him today so he could go to Cambridge after work and do some training in what is currently a perceived temperature of 96 degrees. Gross!

Masser 5-Miler recap

Well, if I’d gotten the first taste of summer at the St. Michaels Half Marathon last weekend, I got punched right in the teeth by it at the Masser 5-Miler this weekend! I ran a horrible race in what turned out to be sunny, humid and 86-degree weather.

However, the rest of the weekend was pretty fun, so this post will only be 50 percent whining.

Our weekend started a day early. Thursday night, we stayed at the beach house in Fenwick, so we could go to Assateague first thing Friday.

It was a beautiful day, warm and sunny. Unfortunately, it was also very windy, and it was blowing straight off the land and out to sea. We got pelted by a steady stream of windblown sand the whole time we were on the beach, and while I managed to get the standup paddleboard out, it wasn’t a lot of fun. I had to paddle as hard as I could just to keep from getting blown to Europe.

Jeep with my SUP and two surfboards.

Clark’s coworker Brody went with us. He’d never surfed or SUP’ed before. He tried the SUP first and had a really hard time getting it back to shore because of the wind. It was not the best day to take a SUP in the ocean for the first time, that’s for sure. Then he and Clark took out the surfboards while I sat on the beach with Pepper.

On the way back from Assateague, we stopped at Smoker’s BBQ Pit for the first time this year. The barbecue there is amazing, but I had to go with the fried softshell crab sandwich while it was available.

We went back to Fenwick, straightened up the beach house and went home.

Saturday morning wasn’t too bad for a run. So of course, we slept in and waited until it got hot to do anything.

Clark ran first, and then I ran an easy lap of the 4.5-mile loop at an 8:40/mile average.

Later that afternoon, we were finishing up laundry and thinking about getting in the shower soon when the freaking power went out. We were supposed to go to Bart’s house that evening, but it didn’t look like our power was coming back anytime soon. We wound up taking the last load of laundry, which had been in the middle of the wash cycle, to Bart’s house to rewash and dry it, and showering there too. Total pain in the ass.

Anyway, we grilled some steaks, salmon, corn on the cob and fresh pineapple slices, which were all delicious. It was almost 12:30 a.m. when Clark and I got home.

I didn’t sleep much that night, thanks to a combination of Pepper wanting to go out twice and just knowing I had to get up early to run a race.

My alarm went off at 5:30. I was exhausted. I honestly considered skipping the race. There’s another series 5-miler in July; I could run that one instead to qualify. But then I thought about how much hotter it will probably be in July, and I’d already paid for this race… fine. I’ll run it.

By some miracle, Clark and I were able to get up, get packed and leave the house only a few minutes later than I wanted to. Then the drive to Lewes was faster than usual, and I got to Cape Henlopen High School a few minutes early. I even managed to clear out the ol’ GI tract as soon as I got there.

That was where the good luck ended though.

I ran two half-hearted laps around the track for a warm up, at what was probably a 10:00/mile pace but felt like race pace in that heat. Why the hell was it so damn hot already??

When we were called to the starting line on the track, Kelly and Susan tried to convince me to start closer to the front with them. I told them I didn’t want to get trampled, and placed myself farther back. I’d already decided this race was going to suck. Spoiler alert — it did. I don’t know for sure if it sucked so bad because of a case of a self-fulfilling prophecy, the awful weather or both. Probably both.

Pretending to be happy to run in the starting pack while Richard took pictures of everyone.

Anyway, we got the start commands and took off.

At the start. (Fredman photo)

We did part of a lap of the track, left the stadium, looped around the school, left campus, crossed Kings Highway and got on the paved biking/walking trail along Gills Neck Road.

We were running directly into the blazing sun, not even to the first mile marker, and I wanted to die. I finally finished the first mile and saw the split on my Garmin — 7:30.

Based on the 7:32/mile pace I’d run in that 4.25-mile race in Lewes last month, which had a “hill” (bridge) we’d had to climb, I’d hoped to be able to run 7:20 to 7:30 pace for this race on a totally flat course. Here I was, one mile in, and barely holding on to the low end of that range.

We crossed Gills Neck Road to continue along the paved path. There was a water stop right there, thank God. I gulped one cup and dumped another over my head.

The path continued along a field. Honeysuckle bushes along the edge were in full bloom and it smelled amazing.

Mile 2 beeped on the Garmin — 7:54. UGGGGHHHHH. Three more miles to go!

The path took us along Route 9. Fortunately, we got to run under that bridge from the 4.25-miler, rather than over it. Mile 3 was 7:46.

The path made a couple turns and continued back through Lewes. The heat was really getting to me, to the point I felt lightheaded. I walked a bit. When I started running again, I gave up entirely on trying to run hard.

There was another water stop around mile 3.5. Again, I chugged a cup and dumped another on my head, then resumed a slow slog.

We left the paved path and got on the shoulder of Kings Highway, heading back to the school. This is the worst part of the course; you can see the turn into the school campus up the road, but it never seems to get closer.

Mile 4 ended on this stretch of godforsaken highway. 8:41. 8:41!!! I only ran one mile slower than that in the half marathon the weekend before!

One more effing mile. We ran back onto campus, directly back to the track, retraced the partial lap from the beginning going the other direction and crossed the line.

Mile 5 was 8:08, and my chip time was 40:17, an 8:03/mile average, nowhere near what I’d thought I was capable of running.

At the moment, all I really cared about was the fact I could finally stop running. Kelly and Susan were waiting just past the finisher’s chute to commiserate about the heat. Kelly said at one point she was also running slower than in the half marathon a week earlier — and she’d been leading a pace group there, not even racing!

We did a cooldown mile. Well, Susan and I did. Kelly took three steps with us and decided she’d had enough haha.

When they posted the results, for the first time that day, I was glad I’d bothered to show up and run. As awful and slow as that race had been, I’d still won my age group, which is important in the summer series standings.

With one of the other winners in my age group.

Kelly and Susan both won their age groups too. We’re all five years apart in age, so we’ll never have to compete against each other in races with five-year groupings. Lucky for me, since they’re both faster than I am!

I felt a little better when I saw my results on Athlinks, with evidence of just how hot it really was!

After the awards, we went to the Lewes Bake Shoppe for coffee. Then Kelly and Susan went home, and I waited for Clark to make his way back to Lewes. While I’d been running, he’d driven to Fenwick to swap the truck for the Jeep and get the surfboards and SUP.

That afternoon, we met another of his coworkers, Paul, to go out on another guy’s boat, so they could go spear fishing.

Yes, spear fishing! We left Anglers Marina in Lewes, followed the canal out to the Delaware Bay and then cruised out to where the bay meets the ocean, off the point of Cape Henlopen State Park.

There’s a rock wall there, with a lighthouse. That’s where they dive and look for fish.

Harbor of Refuge Lighthouse, with the point of Cape Henlopen behind it.

Paul all geared up.

The Cape May-Lewes ferry passing by.

The guy who owned the boat puttered around the wall while Paul and another guy dived. They didn’t wind up spearing anything.

The rest of us sat on the boat. Poor Pepper did not have a good time. He’s been on a boat before, but in the river. He was pretty freaked out by the constant rocking of this boat due to the waves in the ocean! And when he finally found his sea legs and started to settle down, he got attacked by flies. Clark and I spent most of our time swatting flies off Pepper and trying to keep him covered with towels so they couldn’t get to him.

We were out there maybe a couple of hours, and then we made our way back to the marina in Lewes.

View from the canal on our way back.

Pepper was very happy to be back on dry land! We took him to Big Oyster Brewing and had lunch there.

We’d thought about trying to surf somewhere in Cape Henlopen after that, but by that point, Clark and I were both exhausted and wanted to take a nap. So we went back to Fenwick and, after a shower, I did just that while watching the beginning of the Coke 600. It felt so nice to be in air conditioning again for the first time since we’d left our house that morning!

That evening, we stayed in Fenwick. We had dinner at Rusty Jimmies. The service was incredibly slow. The only reason we stayed was because it was the only place within walking distance we could take Pepper. It worked out though; the waitress seemed to appreciate our patience and only charged us about half of what our tab should’ve been.

We made one more stop. Vanderwende’s, a local dairy farm that makes its own ice cream, recently opened a shop in Fenwick. I got mint chocolate chip in a fresh-made waffle cone. We will definitely be hitting up that spot a lot this summer!

We got back to the house in time to see the end of the race, which Martin Truex Jr. won, before I fell asleep for good.

Monday morning, Clark got up at sunrise and checked the surf conditions. There was nothing going on out there, so we packed up our stuff and hit the road, to meet Dave in Cambridge for some Eagleman training in the heat.

We stopped by home first to unload our stuff from the beach and reload what we needed for training. We also had to leave Pepper alone for the first time all weekend. He was not happy.

We got to Cambridge a little after 9 a.m. Clark and Dave swam in the Choptank first, and then we all rode our bikes.

We did the 37-mile Six Pillars course, which shortcuts the middle of the 56-mile Eagleman course, but covers the first 14 and last 18 miles, including Egypt Road.

It was hot and windy, and the wind was right in our faces on Egypt Road, so, perfect Eagleman training conditions. I forgot my bike Garmin, so I don’t know how fast I rode, but it took us about two hours total, with a couple stops, to cover the whole loop.

Dave had to leave after the bike ride, but Clark and I ran six miles together to finish off the day. It was blazing hot by then. We did an out-and-back along the first three miles of the run course at what turned out to be an 11:19/mile average.

Back at the truck, I tore off my running shoes and dunked myself in the river. Much better!

Then we changed into dry clothes and went to RAR. When we got home, Pepper had destroyed the utility room.

The rest of the evening was low key. We just watched some TV, ate some leftovers in the fridge for dinner and went to bed early.

My next race is either the Father’s Day 5K on June 16 or the Jungle Jim’s 5K on June 22. Either way, I have a few weeks off of racing, but I definitely need to get in some speed work before they start. Today, I’ll do a short easy run and some strength training.

Training for 5/23/19

First and most importantly, last night they announced the 2020 inductees in the NASCAR Hall of Fame and they FINALLY VOTED IN THE ALL-TIME BEST DRIVER, BOBBY LABONTE!!!

YES!!!!

Even better, he will be inducted along with Joe Gibbs, the owner with whom he won the 2000 championship, and his teammate at Joe Gibbs Racing, Tony Stewart!

Congrats, Bobby, Tony and Joe!

Today, I finally ran again. I went out and did a little speed work to get ready for the Masser 5-Miler on Sunday.

All that nice weather from the last couple of days is gone. It was sunny, in the 80s and humid. Probably for the best though. It’ll be more like that when I’m actually running these summer series races.

Anyway, for this first race Sunday, I’m going to shoot for 7:20 to 7:30/mile pace, so today, I ran four half-mile repeats aiming for the top end of that range, meaning my goal was were 3:40 per repeat.

I did a mile and a half to warm up, then ran the four repeats in 3:42 (slow as usual for the first one), 3:33, 3:34 and 3:35.

I did a quarter-mile of recovery after each and another mile to cool down, to finish the 5.5-mile loop in 46:11, an 8:24/mile average.

By the time I got home, clouds were rolling in, and now Pepper is barking at thunder rumbling in the distance. It’s raining now too.

Training for 5/22/19

Monday evening, I waited out a brief rain shower and then ignored the thunder rumbling overhead (never saw any lightning) to run an easy 3-miler at an 8:45/mile pace. It was hot and muggy and generally an unpleasant evening for a run, but it got done.

Sometime overnight, the humidity and the temperatures dropped, and yesterday and today have been absolutely gorgeous.

So naturally, I’ve been lazy and haven’t been able to get my butt outside to run in it! I guess I just needed a couple rest days.

I did do something fun last night though. A few months ago, my younger sister asked if I’d go to a concert with her. Her exact words were, “Will you do me a favor?” A band she really wanted to see had announced a tour last fall, and she’d bought two tickets on a whim and wanted someone to go with her.

That band was Greta Van Fleet. I’ve  been a fan since I first heard “Highway Tune” on the radio and thought it was a Led Zeppelin song I’d somehow never heard. They are one of about three currently touring bands I want to see. Yes, of course I will do that favor!

The concert was at the MECU Pavilion in the Inner Harbor in Baltimore. It’s a big open-air venue. The weather could not have been more perfect for an outdoor concert last night.

Julie and me behind the pavilion, overlooking the harbor at sunset.

Our seats for the show were pretty far back, and there was a giant pole blocking a lot of what we could see of the stage, so I didn’t take any of the obligatory blurry/heavily zoomed in concert pics from there.

But I did get one of everyone near me breaking out their phones to record a video when the band played one of their bigger hits.

When the band went off stage the first time, having not played two of their most popular songs, Julie and I took advantage of some closer seats abandoned by a couple people who apparently don’t know how encores work.

That got the giant pole out of the way, so I did get a blurry long distance shot of the stage after all.

There. That’s better.

Anyway, it was about 1:30 a.m. by the time I got home and went to bed. That probably had something to do with my laziness today.

I will try again tomorrow!

St. Michaels Half Marathon recap

The first taste of summer arrived this weekend, just in time to make things tough for everyone running the St. Michaels Half Marathon. The inevitable bathroom break at mile 10 didn’t help my race either. I did not get anywhere close to hitting my goal, but I did the best I could.

Pepper and I went to St. Michaels on Friday afternoon to pick up race packets for Clark, Clark’s dad and me. Again this year, they assigned bib numbers as runners checked in, rather than pre-assigning them. Seems to work fine.

I got some Chick-fil-A chicken strips and waffle fries for dinner on the way home, and ate pretty early, for me anyway. I was hoping more time to digest would help get things moving before I started racing the next morning.

Poor Clark was gone all last week for work and, due to a series of travel-related mishaps, didn’t get home until 2:30 a.m. Saturday morning — 90 minutes before we had to get up for the race! Somehow, he pulled it off.

Anyway, yes, my alarm went off at 4 a.m. Saturday. I drank some coffee and did my ab routine and — voilá! — was able to poop before we left home. I was feeling optimistic.

We left the house at 5, picked up Clark’s dad and dropped off Pepper to hang out with Clark’s mom, and were in St. Michaels a little after 6, about an hour before the race started. We had no trouble finding a spot to park on a side street between the start and finish line areas.

I had to pee really bad by then, so my first stop was the start area, to use a port-o-potty. Then I ran a mile and a half to warm up.

It wasn’t too warm yet, but it was super humid. I was running about a 9:25/mile pace for the warm up, and even that felt harder in the thick, soupy air. I tried to convince myself it wasn’t that bad.

I also hit up a lone port-o-potty outside a house under construction and got to poop AGAIN. That’s twice before the race started! I was really feeling optimistic.

I joined the first wave in the starting corral. A girl in fourth grade sang a very impressive rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner. And then we were off!

There was a drone filming the race start. It buzzed up from behind us as we made the first turn onto St. Michaels’ main street. Some guy running near me yelled “Wasps!” haha.

The first mile led us down that street, lined with little shops and restaurants, and out of town. My Garmin beeped the first split — 7:46.

Somewhere in the first mile.

Also in the first mile.

It didn’t feel unmanageable, but that would turn out to be the ONLY mile I’d run under goal pace all day!

The second mile ran along the shoulder of Route 33 and then took us into Harbourtowne. I really thought I’d maintained my pace, but the second split was 8:08. Crap.

The next few miles were in Harbourtowne. I ran 3 in 8:01, 4 in 8:09 and 5 in 8:05. A little slow, but not bad. Again, I thought the pace felt manageable, like something I could hold another eight miles.

It was really warming up though. Fortunately, the sun had not broken through the cloud cover (yet), but I was drenched in sweat that wasn’t going anywhere.

It was somewhere in the next mile I got passed by a guy running in a SWEATSHIRT. How?!

The Garmin announced the end of mile 6 — 8:21. Oof.

I slowed a little so I could eat a Huma gel as we ran up on the next aid station. (I stopped for water at every single aid station.) We left Harbourtowne and took Route 33 back toward town.

The next mile marker was on Route 33. A woman running near me asked what mile that was as we approached it. I told her it was mile 7 and she blurted out “Are you serious?? That’s it?!” and another guy near us said “You and me both!” Mile 7 was 8:35. Shit was getting tough.

On the bright side, I was more than halfway through and I hadn’t felt like I’d have to poop yet!

We ran back into town, then took a couple turns on some side streets to head out toward another little neighborhood near the water. Mile 8 was 8:28. I swear, it felt like I was running just as hard as I had been at the beginning, but my legs wouldn’t move any faster.

Around mile 8. My sunglasses had starting fogging up in the humid, overcast conditions.

I saw the leader on his way back in the next mile. I was at about mile 8.5 when he was around 12.3. Smoking fast.

Mile 9 was 8:38. This was getting ugly.

The next mile ran into the neighborhood, where we did a loop. That was when my butt made it presence known. I was not going to make it through this race poop-free after all.

I finished mile 10 in 8:37. There was an aid station past the mile marker. I came up on the lone port-o-potty there just as another runner was shutting the door. Crap. The next port-o-potty was at least two miles away. I had no choice but to wait.

So I stood there and waited for what felt like an eternity. The 1:50 pacer ran by while I could only stand there and watch. I could hear the other runner fiddling with the toilet paper a lot. Finally, she came out.

When I got in there, I saw what had taken her so long with that toilet paper — the roll was brand new, and it was that cheap single-ply that’s impossible to start cleanly, especially with sweaty hands. It was just coming off the roll in ribbons. It’s hard to clean up with a handful of thin strands!

I clawed at that damn roll until I finally got some actual sheets to start coming off, cleaned up and went on my way. I lost a LOT of time there. I felt much better though!

I finished the loop and started running back toward town again. I saw Kelly, leading the 2:00 pace group, on her way to start the loop. I also saw Bart.

By that time, the sun had come out. That finished me off. I was in survival mode. Just put one foot in front of the other until it’s over.

There was one more out-and-back on a back road before we could go back in town. Mile 11 was at the beginning of the out-and-back — 11:02 with all that lost time thanks to the port-o-potty situation. Whatever.

I made it to the U-turn. On my way back, I made the mistake of glancing at my current pace on the Garmin. 9:30!! Slower than my warm up, but I could not go any faster!

This is why I rarely look at current pace: My mile 12 split was 8:50. Slow, but not as bad as I’d thought it would be.

Just past the mile 12 marker was the end of the out-and-back. I turned right to go back to town.

There were a few more turns in town before we got to the finish line. The mile 13 marker was just before the last turn. I felt like I was running as hard as possible, but I only managed an 8:37 for that last mile.

Had to put the sunglasses back down for the last couple of miles.

Almost there!

Then I made the last turn and there it was — the finish line.

I ran 13.2 miles by my Garmin, but officially, I finished 13.1 miles in 1:52:52, an 8:37/mile average.

My new favorite finish line photo haha.

I was really glad to be done running! I got my finisher’s medal and a bottle of Gatorade, then hung out by the water bottle station. TK’s mom, who had run the 5K, found me in there. I bitched to her about the humidity while I waited for everyone else to finish.

Kelly was the first to come through, finishing in 1:59:48. Perfect pacing!

Melissa was next. She ran 1:46, but had been assigned to the third wave for some reason, so she’d started almost 15 minutes after I did. She’s training for a 50-miler in a few weeks and tried to convince me to run some more with her after the race. I successfully stood my ground on that one haha. No more for me today!

Clark’s dad was next, in 2:11. Bart was right behind him, running 2:12.

Apparently, there was a line on the registration form where we were supposed to supply a “fun fact” for the finish line announcer. I didn’t see that. Most people wrote something about an upcoming wedding anniversary, or how many times they’d run St. Michaels. A woman who finished just before Clark had written she runs for her kids.

And then I heard, “Here comes Clark Andrews — he runs for beer!” as Clark came to the line haha. He finished in 2:17.

I went back to the truck to change into dry clothes, and then I rejoined everyone at the post-race party. The race bibs all had a ticket attached for one free beer, but it was only good for Bud Light. Fortunately, I’d invested $10 in an all-you-can-drink wristband, and we could also get Shock Top or Goose Island IPA with that.

It felt pretty good out there just standing around and drinking beer!

Clark’s dad, Bart, Clark, me and Kelly.

When they posted the results, I’d ranked pretty well, in spite of being so far off my goal. I guess everyone was affected by the weather.

I was 9th of 145 in the F 35-39 age group (and if I hadn’t lost so much time at the port-o-potty, and had finished around 1:50, I’d have been 4th!) I was also 52nd of 806 women, and 163rd of 1,270 overall.

Race shirt, bibs and medals. I used to think South Carolina residents were fanatics about their state flag, but I think Marylanders have them beat now.

We didn’t quite make it to the end of the post-race party. Clark was understandably beat. He and his dad went home, while I went to Julie’s house, to finally celebrate Christmas with my friends. We weren’t able to get together for that until July last year, so we’re doing better!

We had a good time there. Julie is renting a house on a farm now. We went to visit the cows. I found out cows can spray poop. (Good thing I hadn’t showered yet.) I also got to meet a yellow Lab named after Taylor Swift. All Taylor the Lab wanted was a good belly rub. I was more than happy to oblige.

I finally showered that evening, and then Clark and I met Kelly and Corey at 3rd Wave. We went straight to bed when we got home.

Sunday morning, Clark and I washed the truck and his company car. He also cut the grass.

In the afternoon, we met Dave for some Eagleman training. It was perfect conditions — hot and windy. Just like Eagleman always is.

Normally, we would go to Cambridge to train on the actual course, but there were powerboat races being held on the river, so we went to the Choptank marina.

They swam first. I hung out on shore for that.

Oh look, there’s the Maryland flag again.

Then we rode the bikes to Federalsburg and back. Fortunately, the wind was mostly a cross wind both ways, but it was definitely slower on the way back. We finished 20.5 miles at an 18.6 mph average.

Then we ran what turned out to be a 4.5-mile loop. Dave took the hell off, as usual. Clark decided he didn’t want to run the whole loop and he was going to turn around and do a 3-mile out-and-back.

I ran the whole loop, but it was hot and I didn’t feel like running anymore by halfway through, so I took a few walk breaks. I wound up finishing it at a 9:33/mile average.

I had a fly with me the WHOLE way. It buzzed around my head for the first two miles or so. I thought I’d gotten rid of it, but just before the end of the loop, I felt a little tickle behind my right ear, and when I scratched it, the fly came out! Apparently it’d been hanging out between the back of my ear and my headband for 2.5 miles. Gross!

Anyway, I took another much-needed shower when we got home from that, ate a big ol’ burger for dinner and then passed out. Clark and I were both absolutely exhausted.

As of today, I’m training plan-free until Steamtown Marathon training begins June 10. My next race is the Masser 5-Miler next Sunday though, so I should do some more speed work this week. I think today I’ll do some strength training and an easy 3-miler.

Training for 5/16/19

Today, I ran my last training run for St. Michaels, an easy lap around the 4.5-mile loop. Technically, it was supposed to be a 30-minute tempo run, but the race is only two days away and I already did a pace run and an interval workout this week, so that seemed like a little much.

The run was fine. I waited until the middle of the afternoon, when it was in the mid 70s, sunny and breezy, but it wasn’t humid, so it didn’t feel bad at all. I finished the loop in 38:50, an 8:38/mile average.

And that’s it! Tomorrow I’m gonna pick up Clark’s and my bibs, and then Saturday morning is race day. I’m really glad it starts as early as it does, just after 7, because it’s supposed to get warm Saturday, near 80, so it’ll be good to get it done early.

Speaking of races, I’ve signed up for a couple more things.

Yesterday, I signed up to volunteer at the finish line at Eagleman again. I did that the first year Clark did that race, and since the relay team missed out on registering before it sold out, I figure that’s the next best way to spend the day.

And today, I registered for the Masser 5-Miler, the race I’ve run every Memorial Day weekend since 2010 to kick off the summer series.

I haven’t registered for the rest of the series, but I’m pretty sure I’ve figured out which five 5Ks I’ll do to complete the rest of the qualification requirement. Hard to believe this will be my 10th consecutive summer doing this.

Training for 5/15/19

This morning, Pepper did something amazing. He pooped outside, like he’s supposed to, but he did it in the one place I had to clean it up anyway — on the back step, right in front of the door he goes in and out of all day. I’ll spare you the picture I sent to Clark to complain about it.

While I was scrubbing that up, Pepper claimed the spot on the couch we fight over all day, every day. I have to sit there because my junky old laptop has to be plugged in at all times, and that’s the only spot on the couch from which the power cord can reach. I’m not sure why Pepper likes it so much. Just to be a jerk, I guess.

Anyway, I had to sit in the floor for a while until he finally got up to get a drink or go out or something, and then I “stole” it back. This also happens at some point every day.

Spoiled brat!

Late this afternoon, I did something I haven’t in a while. I took Pepper to the trail for a short run!

I only had two easy miles on the schedule. They were SUPER easy with Pepper — our average pace was 12:19/mile.

I like the side-eye here.

I wore the trail shoes “Pepper” gave me for Christmas, so I made him pose for a bunch of pictures with the self timer until I got one to send to Clark. (Who I suspect actually bought those shoes for me, and put Pepper’s name on them so I’d take him for some short trail runs.)

When I got home, I picked a tick off myself and two off Pepper. The worst part of the woods this time of year!

Training for 5/14/19

Twenty years ago today, I bought my first car!

Charlie was my grandfather’s car until my family decided, without me, that I was going to buy it from him for $3,960. I was informed of this when I came home from my high school band’s spring trip. I wasn’t exactly thrilled with a “champagne beige metallic” (TAN) 1987 Honda Accord LX or my first monthly car payment. (Especially when, 10 years later, my aunt GAVE her car to my younger sister, but I digress…)

Three weeks later, I technically totaled Charlie when I sailed him through a ditch into a wheat field after I took a turn too fast on a wet road. But we used the salvage check to get him fixed as much as we could, and I drove him another four years.

Charlie was a total pile when I finally traded him in, but that was my fault. I was a horrible car owner when I was a teenager. (Big surprise.) But he always got me where I was going and never stranded me, except once when what turned out to be an 8-year-old battery died, so I traded him on another Honda.

It’s hard to believe I’ve had a driver license for 20 years. More than half my life. It felt like it took three lifetimes to get to 16!

Anyway, I’ve done a couple runs since I last posted.

Yesterday evening, I ran the easy 3-miler on the schedule. I guess I was feeling zippy, because it felt like my normal easy pace, but it turned out to be 8:31/mile.

Today, I had a short speed workout, six 400-meter repeats. I did my usual and just programmed the Garmin to measure out six quarter-miles, with a quarter-mile of recovery between each.

I did an easy 1.5 miles to warm up. My goal on the intervals was 1:45 each, 7:00/mile pace. My actual splits were 1:45, 1:45, 1:43, 1:42, 1:40 and 1:48. Not sure what happened on the last one. It felt as fast as the rest but I just couldn’t get the pace where it was supposed to be, and then it was over.

I did another mile to cool down, finishing the 5.5-mile loop in 46:35, an 8:29/mile average.