rob field

Peachtree Road Race

2007-07-04T15:31:00.000-05:00

I rolled out of bed in the wee hours of the morning and ate a Cliff Bar. It was that time again, July 4th, time for the 38th Running of The Peachtree Road Race, the world’s largest 10K with 55,000 runners. The race starts at 7:30 am. I am lucky in the fact that I don’t have far to travel to get to the starting line. I drove approximately a half mile to the Lindberg Marta Station, parked my car in the lot, and then walked to the start of the race.

To handle such a large number of runners, the Peachtree divides folks up into time groups of about 5000 that start in waves. To get into the top time groups you need to submit a qualifying time with your race application. In the front of the pack, you have the seeded and sub-seeded runners expected to finish in less than 42 minutes. Behind them in time group 1A and 1B, you have the folks expected to finish in 55 minutes or less. In the remaining time groups, there are slower runners and runners that did not include any documented times on their race application. They release a group about every ten minutes, so the folks in the back have a bit of a wait until they get to run. (Been there, done that!)

I have been fighting multiple injuries this year, and it has just been in the last few weeks that I have felt that I have returned to any kind of running form, so I was looking forward to this race. Then last night as I got in the car after work, I found I had managed to do something to my elbow, causing a burning pain when I bent it too far. I was in a foul mood last night wondering if it was going to affect my race the next day. It did cause me some discomfort, but less than it might have. I still wish I knew exactly what I did. On the other hand, maybe I don’t because if it were the wrong thing then there is a good possibility that I would still keep doing whatever it was, but would be sorry later that I did.

The weather was perfect for the Peachtree this year, sunny and warm with low humidity. The race started on time and the organization and support from the volunteers unbelievable. The crowds lining the course were terrifically supportive. Although I did have one wee complaint… Eye of the Tiger is a great song, but it is not the only song out there to run to. At a number of points along the course, folks were playing highly amplified music. I heard Eye of the Tiger at least 5 times. Come on folks!

I ran a very steady pace through the entire race. For once I showed some patience at the beginning of the race and settled into my pace rather than taking off too fast. At almost every water station, I grabbed a Dixie cup or two to pour over my head. For the first half of the race it felt like I was being passed a lot, but at about the midpoint of the race it suddenly seemed like I was doing a lot more of the passing. By mile six, I was steadily moving up. At the finish, I dashed across the finish line into Piedmont Park in great shape.

My final time gun time 52:46, chip time was 51:39. I ran at an 8:19 pace which put me at 3111th over all.

ATC Cross Country

2006-12-02T09:00:00.000-05:00

The course was a double loop around Jim Miller Park with one hill about two thirds of the way around. I got off to a good pace and was able to maintain it through the race, although I found the last mile difficult.

It was a great day for running. The rain which had been with us all week had vanished the day before and been replaced with cooler temperatures and a clear blue sky. Even so, the ground was not particularly soggy.

To me, my time seemed slow, 23:25, but I have been training for the marathon and have been upping my mileage and the number of days of the week that I am running. My focus right now is definitely not racing, but it was a great way to kick off the weekend.

Atlanta Thanksgiving Half-Marathon

2006-11-25T04:29:00.000-05:00

You wake up on a chilly Thanksgiving morning, put on a skimpy running outfit, and make your way in the dark to the start of the race. You look back over your shoulder just before the race starts at seven and see the dawn breaking directly behind the 7,600 runners who fill the bridge. It’s a magical sight. Finally after what seems eons of waiting, the race starts. The runners in front start moving, as you stand hemmed in by the crowd it seems like forever before the wave of movement reaches you and you are off. The crowd surges ahead, then pauses, then surges ahead again. You start trying to find space in the crowd so you can get into your rhythm, but you find yourself constantly checking up, moving left and right trying to find a clear path. Everyone else is doing the same thing. Some are patient, some impatient. Some folks clearly started too close to the front for their abilities and some faster folks started too far back. It seems to take forever for the pack to sort itself out and you can finally start searching for your pace in earnest. However, really, it is only about a mile.

The Half-Marathon runs south down Peachtree (this being Atlanta, when I say south down Peachtree that means south on Peachtree Industrial Blvd which almost immediately becomes Peachtree Road which in turn becomes Peachtree Street) through the Buckhead and Midtown. For the first have of the race, it’s either flat or downhill. However, once you cross over Peachtree Creek near the halfway mark, it is time for the hills. The first and most significant hill is Cardiac Hill, which takes you past Piedmont Hospital. Once you are past that hill things ease up a bit, but more often than not you will find yourself gaining elevation for the rest of the race. You will run through one of the most beautiful sections of the city, past the High Museum of Art, past the house where Margaret Mitchell wrote Gone with the Wind, and past the Fabulous Fox Theater. The race then turns left onto Mitchell and goes past the State Capitol. This incidently is where you will find your last significant hill, known as Capitol Punishment. Once past this, it is a short half mile to the finish, but not before you pass under the Olympic Rings and pass the tower, where the flame burned during the 1996 Olympics.

I had a great race this year. I was walking to the starting line from my apartment this year, but some folks stopped and gave me a ride. The weather was in the low forties, but not particularly cold. There was not much of a wind, the sky was clear and the starts were bright. I started near the front in the appropriate time group and because of the crowd did not start at too fast a pace. The first few miles were ridiculously pleasant. Forced to run just a little slow I was able to take in and appreciate the beautiful morning. By mile two, I was running at my race pace reflecting for me how races bring out an effort that no amount of solo running can.

It was around mile five that I started to doubt myself. I felt like was going to run out of energy, that I had already come five miles and there was no way possible that I was going to be able to sustain my pace for another eight miles. A little voice in my head that urged me to drop off the pace so I would be sure to finish. I had to remind myself that I have been training solidly. I have the necessary runs in the bank. That I am fit enough to do this. I have done the work. I have prepared properly. I can do this.

I kept going, keeping my pace. It became even more of a challenge around mile ten, the hills had their chance to work on me and my energy was starting to lag. My legs were beginning to feel a bit rubbery. I began thinking that plans to run distances longer than a half-marathon might be a bit grandiose, that running a half-marathon might have been a bit grandiose, and where did all these hills come from anyway. I was positive I had not seen any hills when I glanced at the course elevation in the days before the race. I ran this race last year and did not remember all these hills. Despite all the internal angst, I kept going and crossed the finish line with a time of 1:42:53 and an average pace of 7:51. I was 68th out of 448 in my shiny new age group of 40-44. That put me in the top 15% of that age grouping.

The Atlanta Track Club knows how to run a race. They keep this one simple; you will not find any post race food, celebration, awards, or amenities. It is all about going for a long run on Thanksgiving morning, which for me is part of the appeal. Everything is well organized and well thought out. The thing that really makes the race work however is the hundreds of volunteers that come out to make the race a great experience. Small crowds of people come out to line the course. The roads are not completely closed to traffic, but the lanes for runners are coned off and there is someone staffing every intersection. I cannot think of a better way to spend Thanksgiving morning.

Chickamauga Marathon and 10 Mile Run

2006-11-12T05:48:00.000-05:00

Chickamauga, GA

I am not up for a marathon just yet, but I was hungry for a longer race this weekend so I decided to check out the Chickamauga 10 Mile Run. It’s a two-hour from Atlanta, so I was up and on the road by 4:00 am for the easy drive up I-75. I was there before they even opened registration. Watching all the marathoner’s show up, I felt a little like I had shown up to run the kid’s fun run. Everyone seemed to be wearing the shirt from his or her last marathon, ultra marathon, or adventure race. I suspect that once I join the club next March, I will not feel so self-conscious around that crowd.

Registration and packet pickup was inside one of the out buildings of the Oakwood Baptist Church, warm and dry. And there was coffee! An overcast sky seemed to promise rain, but held off until long after the 10-mile race was over. At race time, the temperature was 55 degrees, which was a little warm for this time of year.

Three hundred twenty-five marathoner’s got started a half-hour before the ten-milers, just after 7:30. The race was ready to go at 7:30, but the race director politely waiting for the port-a-potty line to clear before starting. The ten-milers, a smaller crowd of about two hundred and fifty, left promptly at 8:00.

The ten-miler was an out and back covering the first five miles of the marathoner’s route. They do not close the course to traffic, but race personal or law enforcement staffed all intersections and for the most part drivers were both polite and considerate. (I cannot speak for the full marathon course, as I was driving home; I saw marathoner’s dealing with a lot more traffic than the 10-milers.) The course itself winds through the woods and vast fields of the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park. It’s a beautiful place for a race. The many and sometimes spectacular monuments to the men who fought and died on those fields lends a both elegance and a somber note to the course. (Over 34,000 men perished during the battle of Chickamauga.)

It was a hard race for me. I was in good condition, but not in peak condition (where I would always like it to be!) I kept a good pace through the first half of the race. The course was just slightly rolling with no real hills to speak of. Still, it was a major relief and psychological boost to get to the turn around point and I was able to pick up my pace a bit. Of course, I was not the only one reaching the midpoint had that effect on. Other runners picked up the pace as well. One runner in particular dogged me for the next five miles. Either she would pass me and it would take me a mile to catch me, or I would pass her and a mile later would find her returning the favor. We traded words of encouragement while inside I wondered how in the world I was going to keep going and wondered with each stride where the next would come from. I crossed the finish line at 1:17:53. I felt I should have done better, but I did feel good that I had given, or had coaxed out of me, a 100% effort.

It was a nice race, well run, and well organized, with a solid crew of volunteers. The post race spread was wonderful. (Fresh coffee!) It was a small race that did not feel small at all. I suspect I will be back next year.

Stone Mountain

2006-11-04T21:41:00.000-05:00

I ran 15 miles! Correction raced 15 miles today and finished in 2:05:58! A slow 8:24 pace, but we are talking 15 miles. In addition, I took home my first bit of hardware. I was 2nd place in my age category. (Okay, so with the temperature at 35 degree and the other options being a 5 miles or 10 miles, the 15 mile was not exactly the most popular distance.)

It was a beautiful, if cold, morning. The sky was clear, the sun sharp and bright, and the autumn leaves full of color. It was a great morning for a run. The route around Stone Mountain is rolling with some moderate hills. For a welcome change, today I was able to pace myself almost perfectly from the very start of the race. At the start, I managed to ignore the other runners, most of who where doing shorter distances, and find my own pace which I felt I would be able to maintain through the race. That is exactly what I did. The first mile I ran in 8:30. My pace for the entire race averaged out to 8:24/mi.

I was strong and steady for the first 10 miles, but by mile 11 I was starting to feel some weakness in my legs and it was difficult to keep the pace going. However, some strong runners around me pushed me to keep going. There is nothing as motivating to me as hearing the rhythmic sound of running shoes slapping the pavement just behind me. At one point, I was ready to turn and say just pass me already, put me out of my misery, trying to stay ahead of you is killing me. Nevertheless, I kept slogging ahead and after awhile I realized I was not hearing those sneakers behind me anymore.

I was very surprised when I finished the race and was filling out my time card to see that there was only one card ahead of mine in the basket. Only one, but that would mean I had placed second in my age group. Yes me, 35-39 year old male, second place. And just for the record, there was a third place.

Run For The River 5K

2006-10-28T12:57:00.000-05:00

Duluth GA 22:30

I did not have a good training week. I worked too much and ran too little. I did get in one good run and one day in the gym, but that was it. I had three goose eggs in the training log for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. So I was not feeling that great about running a 5K this weekend. I didn’t even sign up until late in the week, but I thought the motivation of a race might get me going.

I chose the Race for the River (http://www.runfortheriver.org/) mostly because it benefited the Upper Chattahoochee River Keepers (http://www.chattahoochee.org/), an organization whose mission is described as "to advocate and secure the protection and stewardship of the Chattahoochee River, its tributaries and watershed, in order to restore and preserve their ecological health for the people, fish and wildlife that depend on the River system." Just for the record, "Chattahoochee" is a Creek Indian word meaning "river of painted rocks".

It was a cool morning out, the temperature in the mid-50's. The sky was overcast and the wind was really whipping up. I was able to sleep in since the race start was only about twenty minutes away from the apartment. The course itself runs through the main drive of a multi-building office complex in sort of a giant horseshoe shape and back again. It's a very flat course, although not flat enough for the woman I was chatting with after the race.

I did have a several gripes about the race itself. There were many non-runners at the race and before the race, they lined up in front of the starting line. The race officials then backed those folks up into the runners that had lined up according to their pace behind the starting line. The result was that many folks that were running for time started behind folks that were just running. As a result, there was a lot of jostling and some hurt feelings at the race start. An attempt should have been made at the start to sort folks out according to their expected pace. It makes the start a lot smoother. My 5K pace is just over 7 minutes which usually puts me about 5-10 feet back from the runners in the front.

Gripe number two was that although the splits were marked, they chose not to staff them. Gripe number three also relates to staffing. The course itself was simple, an out and back in a big horseshoe shape. Traffic cones divided the four-lane road into two lanes. Going out they said stay to the right, but after the turn around nobody was sure what lane they were supposed to be running in and there was no race official there to remind people. (If you are running a great big horseshoe shaped course, it makes quite a difference if you run in the inside or outside lane of the horseshoe.)

It was not my best race, despite the fact it was supposed to be a fast course. I could tell that I had taken a few days off. At the start, I had trouble getting clear of the slower runners. I was unsure what lane I was supposed to be in for the last half of the race. I finished the race in 22:30.

Most of the energy of the organizers of this race went into the goodie-bags and the post-race festivities which where probably the best I have ever seen. They had Starbucks, bagels, fruit, beer, pizza, energy bars, and bottled water. They had a silent auction to raise money for the River Keepers. I generally like to hang out to wait for the results of the race, but today I almost gave up. Remember I mentioned it was windy? They were just about ready to tabulate the results of the race and start announcing the winners when suddenly a great big cloud of time cards appeared from the direction of the scoring table and flew across the parking lot fluttering in the wind like confetti. For a while, I was wondering if they would be able to announce any results at all. Eventually they got their act together and awarded some nice trophies, river rocks with small brass plaques.

There were many FREEBIES! I ended up taking home a New Balance water bottle, Princeton Tec Pulsar keychain light, Nalgene unbreakable water bottle, Duravision Pro night-time safety flasher, a coffee table book (The Riverkeeper's Guide to the Chattahoochee River, 6 HoneyBar natural energy bars, another New Balance water bottle, a Subaru water bottle, a Fleet Feet water bottle, a genuine boxed Swiss Army Knife, and a partridge in a pear tree. Okay I did make up that last one. No t-shirt this race.

To sum up: I wish that they had spent just a little more effort on managing the race than having the most goodies for after the race. No matter how nice the goodies and your expo if you neglect the race itself, then next year I am probably going to look for a different race.

ATC Cross-Country 5K

2006-10-22T11:00:00.000-05:00

Boling Park, Canton, Georgia

I woke up, got dressed, grabbed a protein bar, walked outside around 6 AM and found it was pouring down rain. It had not occurred to me to check the weather before leaving the house. I turned around and went back inside… changed in my old pair of running shoes, grabbed my hat, and headed off to the races.

By race time the pouring rain had transitioned into a drizzle and finally into nothing at all. The course was nice and wet with puddles along the gravel path and some slick, muddy sections in the grass.

I was a bit apprehensive about doing well, having run a 15K the day before, but I got off to a fairly strong start. By the end of the first mile, I could tell that I had raced the day before. For the last two miles, I felt like I was really struggling to keep the pace. I was glad the race was not any longer than 5K.

I finished with a time of 22:40, hardly my best 5K time, but given it was a cross-country race and I was tired from day before, it was a time I am pretty happy with.

Peachtree City Classic 15K

2006-10-21T11:10:00.000-05:00

15K (9.32 mi)
13/71 Age Group
102 Overall
Time: 1:10:22.35
Pace: 7:33/mi

The Peachtree City 15K is a wonderful race. It takes place mostly on paved golf cart paths that wind through the trees, through short tunnels, and besides some lakes. It is a beautiful course. The 15K race is RRCA Southern Region Championship and the USATF Georgia Association Championship.

Peachtree City is a little less than an hour and a half away from my mom’s house in Roswell. We left early so we would be able to park close to the starting area and have easy access to the car to ditch our outer garments before the start of the race. With about 15 minutes to go before the race started, we shed our coats and headed towards the starting area. Within about 5 minutes, my teeth were chattering away (the temperature was around 40 degrees) and I was wondering if I was under dressed. About sixty seconds after the start I was perfectly comfortable, not noticing the temperature again until about thirty minutes after the race was over, so in retrospect I was dressed correctly in shorts, a light weight long sleeve shirt, and gloves.

The race started at 9:10 AM with about 500 men and 400 women in the 15K event. The first two miles of the race are on wide streets to give the runners a chance to thin out a bit before switching to the narrow golf card paths. From the start to the second mile marker is gently uphill. I ran those first two miles at close to a 7:00/mi pace and was a little worried that I was starting too fast. I had made the mistake of wearing sunglasses thinking the sun would soon be out and I kept fogging them up with my breath, an annoying and needless distraction. Eventually I ixnayed the sunglasses idea and hung them on my shirt collar, they just were not worth the hassle.

Not far after the second mile mark, the course transitioned to the golf cart paths. For me the feel of the race completely changes at that point. Things seem to be moving much faster and I was much more aware of the folks around me. A lot more of my attention was on navigating the path’s twists and turns. I find trail running, or even golf cart path running a lot more interesting than running on the open road.

At this point, I kept fretting about my pace. I did not want to run slower than I was capable, nor did I want to run so fast that burned out before the end. I tried to ease back a bit, but not so much that I felt I was taking it too easy. I was still worrying about this about mile five when another runner passed me. I passed her back, she passed me, we’d run stride for stride for a while, one of us would pass the other, and then the other would return the favor. We ran miles five and six at a 7:00/mi pace or better. Finally, she dropped off the pace a bit and I pulled ahead. A good thing, because I thought that pace was going to kill me. I am not sure which was worse however, being matched stride for stride, or feeling for the rest of the race as if she was right behind me waiting to strike.

By mile eight, I felt I was slowing significantly and I was sure folks were going to start passing me left and right. But when I went back and looked at the numbers, I ran the last mile and a third at exactly the same pace I had run the rest of the race. (7:33)

The last part of the course is particularly beautiful as it winds its way past several lakes. I cannot say that I was able to appreciate it however, by that point I was just thinking over and over, "Where’s that damn finish line."

The Peachtree City Classic is a very well run event. I am not sure I have ever seen as many volunteers stationed along a course to make sure things ran smoothly, safely, to see that runners did not get off the course, and provide traffic control. Veteran folks called out the time splits every mile and there was plenty of food, water, Gatorade, and sweatshirts, even for the late finishers. They used timing chips and the results were available online right away. They gave away an attractive high quality sweatshirt.

A great race.

Currahee 10K

2006-10-14T11:00:00.000-05:00

World War II Paratroopers went through basic training at camp Toccoa at the base of Mount Currahee. As part of their physical training, recruits were regularly required to run up and down the mountain, approximately a 900-foot change in elevation.

When I woke up Saturday morning, I found the first real frost of the year. I had to dig around to add my gloves and hat to my running bag. It was a pleasant 2-hour drive to Toccoa, watching the sun come up, sipping my coffee, and wondering what the race was going to be like. The flier for the race said the following:

CAUTION; This is a strenuous race with the 5K following an out and back course on the mountain Forestry Service road while the 10K goes out and back to the top of Currahee Mountain.

The reason I signed up for this race was that I was looking for something that would be a bit of a challenge. Some of my recent reading material has included Dean Karnazes Confessions of All Night Runner and Kira Salak's The Cruelest Journey, and Four Corners. Reading those books has the effect on one of making you want to do something out of the ordinary.

I had visions of the race being a little challenging. Scoping out the first part of the course before the race, it certainly look doable. I was a little concerned about my footing running on the gravel roads. The first part of the course was a short steep uphill followed by a long rolling section that slowly gained elevation. Just before the mile and a half mark, there was a short, steep downhill. It was about a half mile after that, I was doing okay, getting used to the footing and trying to find my pace when suddenly the road started going up. I slowed my pace a bit and focused on getting up the hill. Unlike the hills on my regular runs however, this hill kept going and going. My run slowed to a jog, then slowed to a shuffle. I began gasping a bit for air. My shuffle turned into a walk. Fortunately, for my pride, pretty much everyone else was in the same boat. Only a select few made it up the mountain without walking at least a bit.

The sensation at the turn around point at the top of the mountain was exactly like when you get to the top of that first hill on a roller coaster. All of a sudden, the gravity that had been working against you completely takes over. As I plummeted down the rough gravel road, I found the trick was to take full advantage of gravity, but not to the point of losing complete control of one's descent. The steeper sections I navigated by taking short rapid strides. When the grade was not too steep, I was able to open up my stride and really set a blistering pace.

By the time, I got down the mountain my legs were a wreck. My calves hated me. My quads felt week. Even the small hills on the way back humbled me into walking parts of them. By the last mile, I was starting to recover a little bit and even managed to hold off several challengers.

I finished the race 44th in a time of 48:34. Given the difficulty of the course, I was nothing short of amazed.

It was a relatively small race and didn't have many amenities. However, the hospitality of the folks from Toccoa more than made up for it.

ATC - Cartersville 10K

2006-10-07T17:35:00.000-05:00

Atlanta Track Club Cartersville 10K - This course winds through scenic farmland near the Etowah Indian Mounds. Moderately rolling, the course is mainly blacktop and finishes with one and one-half laps on the Cartersville track. It was a new course this year, moving off some now busy roads and instead incorporating wide scenic running trails making one of my favorite races even better.

It was a crisp fall morning, about 50 degrees, clear skies, and a full moon just above the horizon; a perfect morning to jump in the car, and head off for a race. The race was in Cartersville, about 45 minutes north of Atlanta up Interstate 75, near the Etowah Indian Mounds. The race started in Dellinger Park and wound its way down surface streets before moving onto the wide asphalt of The Etowah River Walk near mile two. I was running about a 7:12 /mi pace and by that second mile was beginning to feel it. I have been feeling under the weather the past couple of days dealing with long hours at work and what is either seasonal allergies or the beginning of a cold. For the first few miles of the race, I was completely congested and felt like I was having difficulty breathing.

About the two and a half mile mark I fell in with someone running about the same pace and for the next two miles we made a contest of it, passing each other several times. Eventually he was able to pull ahead and put a little bit of distance between us, about twenty yards, which I was not able to make up before the end of the race.

The River Walk is a beautiful trail running through and around a large farmer’s field although there are a couple of minor rolling hills and a short section where some misguided person decided to use cement instead of the more knee forgiving asphalt. Even so, Dellinger Park and the adjacent River Walk are tremendous community resources and a great place to run.

For me those last two miles of the race were an exercise in willpower. About mile four, I realized that the physical conditioning was there and the only thing standing in my way was the mental toughness to keep pushing and not drop off the pace. I find it hard to tell sometimes in races what is a mental wall and what is a physical one.

The race moved back onto blacktop for the last couple of miles before turning back into the park. Once back in the park, cones directed us onto the running track for one and a half laps. With just a lap to go, a fast runner fell in beside and then passed me. I passed her back then she passed me back. Around the final turn I let her have the inside lane, but sprinted it out with her for the finish. I was surprised to find how much kick I was able to muster at the end, but she nipped me by two seconds.

My time was 45:32, a personal best. The post race analysis also shows that I kept a steady pace the entire race. My average pace was 7:20, almost exactly what I ran the first mile at.

On an unrelated note, as we were walking around before the race trying to keep warm, we came across a pull-up bar. I have not done a pull-up for years. However, just to see if that work I have been doing in the gym has paid off at all, I jumped up there and surprised myself by easily doing several pull-ups. The glow of that success might have been one of the factors that helped me have such a successful race.

ATC Singleton Stone Mountain Races 10 M

2006-09-16T10:00:00.000-05:00

Time: 1:18:59
Pace: 7:54/mi

Two laps around Stone Mountain. A solid run. I was a little disappointed in myself because at the end of the race I did not feel like I had pushed myself hard enough. I ran the race pretty much at the same pace I did the year before.

Fuzz Run

2006-09-09T10:30:00.000-05:00

Covington Georgia
#528 5K 22:02.9
Age Group: 4th Overall: 94th
results map photos 1 photos 2 (none of me though)

It was an exceptionally pleasant morning and I had plenty of time to enjoy my Starbucks during the hour drive over to Covington, about 30 miles east of Atlanta. I found parking in a church parking lot just a few blocks from the event, right next to the downtown area.

They gave the T-shirts out when you picked up your number, which for me meant turning right back around and trekking back the car to stow it which gave me the chance to warm up a little bit.

I’ve found that if I line up about ten feet behind the start line I seem to fall in with runners going about the same pace. Although at this race, there seemed to be a lot of kids and other runners in the front who quickly dropped off the pace.

I probably had my best start to a race this time around in the sense that I immediately dropped into 5K pace and was not caught up with passing or keeping up with folks. The only hill to speak of in the race was a slight incline at just over the half-mile point. After the first mile, the course was flat or a slight downhill. For the first mile, my pace was 7:13, when I heard that I was worried that I might be pushing just a little too hard. However, the second mile was mostly a long gentle downhill, and I pushed my pace to take advantage. When they called the time of 13:52 at the second mile marker, I exclaimed in surprise. I have never been under 14 minutes at the two-mile mark and I was excited that I might have a good finishing time. The last mile was hard. I had to fight to keep on my pace and it felt like the race was slipping away from me. At the third mile mark, I thought I might have had a change to break the 22-minute mark, but I crossed the finish line at 22:02.9, a personal best! In my age group I finished 4th out of 67.

The Fuzz Run has a beautiful course winding though neighborhood streets in Covington. There were plenty of volunteers, splits called at every mile, the course was completely closed to traffic, there were two water stations, and plenty of after race sustenance, both water and PowerAde. One of the best non-Track Club races that I have run. It a popular race, with over 1300 runners this year. (But the bobble-head trophies are all for the kids, the awards for the adults were all plaques.)

Midnight Flight 10K

2006-09-02T00:00:00.000-05:00

Anderson South Carolina
#73 10K 48:08
Age Group: 9 Overall: 102
results - map

Okay, it was really more like an 11 PM start and I was done with the race before it actually turned Midnight. Still, it does bill itself as the Southeast’s largest nighttime 10K. It was challenging to get in the car after a long week at work and make the 2-hour trek to Anderson. I almost didn’t make it. I left Atlanta dead on eight o’clock and the instructions said packet pickup closed at the same time as registration, 10:15 PM. Mapquest, Google Maps, and everyone else said it was at least a two hour drive and I was not leaving much room for err and those real world conditions that all the map sites warn you. So the plan was that if everything went perfectly, maybe I would make it with a couple of minutes to spare.

Real world condition number was the traffic on I-85 coming out of Atlanta on Friday evening at the beginning of Labor Day weekend. It was discouraging to sit there watching the dashboard clock ticking off the minutes as we crept along at twenty miles per hour trying to calculate in our heads if it had become a mathematically impossibility to arrive in time. This went on for about three quarters of an hour. Despite the pessimism of my co-pilot, we pressed on. It was the better part of an hour before the traffic started to clear up and we were able to start making decent time. When we were about fifteen minutes out and it had become clear that we might make it, suddenly the heavens opened up and it started raining. Not just a little bit of rain, but a full-blown cannot see a thing windshield wipers at max where the heck is my lane/road gully washer. Our speed dropped down back down to about twenty miles an hour and things started looking grim again.

Despite the pouring rain, we managed to find our exit, and then find our way to the Anderson YMCA. We missed the 10:15 PM cutoff by about ten minutes. Fortunately, they were still allowing runners to pick up packets, although they were starting to run low on T-shirts.

As I walked up from the YMCA to the starting line at the corner of Reed Road and Greenville Rd, a light rain was falling. The rain continued right up to the start of the race but lightened in to a kind of a misting drizzle as the race progressed. I enjoyed starting in the rain and running through the darkness. The only lights, streetlights and traffic lights that reflected off the rain slicked streets. Each runner’s footsteps would break the surface tension of the water with a splash and leave a quickly fading footprint as we ran.

The course was a little deceptive in its difficulty. It was an out and back course down Greenville Rd with just a short dogleg onto N. Main St for the turnaround. The first mile and half was downhill, the second mile and a half was uphill, and then the reverse. The grades were not very steep, but were always there. Because the first quarter of the race was mostly downhill, I found I finished the first two miles in about 14:20 despite trying to pace myself. I stayed strong as we climbed the remaining mile or so up to the turn around. After the turn around, I did my best to sustain a good pace on the long downhill, but I was starting to feel that fatigue that hits me in the second half of a race. The rain had lightened to a mist and despite the relatively cool conditions; I felt hot and sticky. The final quarter of the race seemed to last forever. Towards the very end, I had to struggle to maintain my pace. I had terrible side stitches as I crossed the finish line, but my time was just shy of 48 minutes. A time remarkably close to what I managed during the Old Soldier’s Day Race a month ago. However, if I factor in the waterlogged shoes, the race conditions, and the more difficult course, it was not a bad performance.

It would have been ideal to stay in a hotel room instead of facing the two-hour drive back to Atlanta, but that was not in the budget. On the drive back between midnight and about 3 am, we had to dodge one clearly drunk driver. Dodge one idiot merging onto the Interstate and into out blind spot. We saw a terrible accident caused by a tree falling onto the Interstate. We saw two cars racing who were recklessly weaving in and out of traffic. Finally, we saw one overturned vehicle resting on its side on an exit ramp. We were extremely glad to get home in one piece.

Criticisms of the race: No food or water left for folks that ran the 10K. They only offered splits every other mile. It would have been nice to have each mile clearly marked.

Notes to self: Add to running bag post race snacks and beverages in case race fails to provide, ibuprofen, and a full change of clothes (not just a shirt).

Midnight Flight 2006

Sep 1, 2006 - 2 Photos

Habitat for Humidity 5K

2006-08-26T09:30:00.000-05:00

Marietta, Ga
#1321 5K 22:55
Age Group: 5 Overall: 77
results - map

Weather conditions were, as they say, hot and humid. Running this race was a last minute decision. I thought seriously about going down to Stone Mountain to do a long run, but I decided to put that off a day and get in a speed workout instead. The sky was overcast and the temperature already climbing when the race started at 7:30. The race started in the parking lot, then turned left (east) on Lower Roswell Road. The race makes a left onto Woodlawn drive, turns right onto Johnson’s Ferry, and then turns right back onto Lower Roswell Road to return to the church, and finally right into the parking lot to return to the finish. The section of the course going in and out of the church parking lot seemed a bit constricted, but the course itself was mostly flat with just a few gentle hills. Part of the course is the same used by the Polar Bear Run I ran in January.

The race was well organized, good facilities, plenty of voulunteers, and good traffic control. Although I had a few gripes. They gave the shirts out before the race, whihc meant a return trip to the car to stow them. (And part of the fun of finishing a race is to go claim your shirt AFTER finishing. I was really annoyed that the volunteers calling out the split time did a poor job. The one at the first mile marker in particular seemed more interested in watching the runners than calling out times. The second gripe was the way they scheduled the morning: there was no way I was going to wait around for the awards. They did the 5K at 7:30, a fun run at 8:30, and then a tot trot at 9:00 I suspect very few of the 5K runners were willing to wait.

I was happy with my performance. I ran a steady 7:21 pace the entire way and had enough kick left at the finish to pass some folks and fend off a fellow runner who really put some pressure on me for the last half-mile or so. We high-fived each other after we crossed the finish line in recognition of each other's efforts.

ATC Grand Finale 5K, 8 a.m., Ansley Mall, Midtown Atlanta

2006-08-19T10:00:00.000-05:00

#10370 5K 23:54

They described it on their website as a one-loop course starting and finishing at Ansley Mall, runs through the "Sherwood Forest" neighborhood, a bit of a rolling course but not overly challenging.

Well it turned out to be a challenge for me. It was a warm sunny morning and the race was only a few minutes from my house. Registration and the starting line were in the Ansley Mall parking lot. The course ran out the Piedmont side of the parking lot, turned to the right running uphill for a fair distance, and then turned right into a neighborhood of rolling hills. This part of the course eventually formed a loop, which returned runners to the beginning part of the course on Piedmont. From there it was downhill to the finish in the mall parking lot.

I tried to start at a reasonable pace and I thought I had done a good job. At the first mile, I was running a 7:14 pace. By the second mile that had dropped off to 7:31. That is when something got to me. I don’t know if it was those rolling hills, too fast a pace, the warm day, working out too hard the day before, or what exactly factored into it. However, just after the second mile I started really struggling and dropped way off the pace. For a while, I was very concerned about finishing the race without stopping. I was getting very frustrated as my pace got slower and runners started passing me. I am not sure which hurt worse, the stitches in my side, or the people passing me. (Well, okay I do know, but to say would not make me seem very sporting.) My pace on that 3 rd mile dropped to 8:15 although it seemed much slower to me at the time. I did get it together towards the finish and finished with a surprising burst of speed over the last 100 yards or so.

All in all I was a little disappointed with my performance, but proud of the way that I got it back together and managed to finish fairly strong. On a kind of odd note, my average pace was exactly the same as the 10K I ran two weeks ago.

The Old Soldier’s Day Race (10K)

2006-08-05T09:00:00.000-05:00

The Old Soldier’s Day Race
Willis Park, Alpharetta, GA
#379 10K 47:47.6

I had a milestone run on Thursday, dropping the time that it takes me to complete my regular running route under the sixty-minute mark. Even as I was celebrating that performance, I was worried the effort would leave me in less than ideal shape for the race coming up Saturday morning. I was definitely dragging a little Friday and skipped most of my workout in the gym, just doing an easy half-hour on the elliptical trainer.

The weather has been oppressively hot here all week, even in the early morning hours, but I caught a break when a front moved in Friday night and Saturday dawned with the temperatures a bit milder and the air seeming just a bit fresher.

The first half of the course was over city streets. I found myself running the first couple of miles at an almost 7:00 pace. I was feeling pretty bushed as I hit the 5K mark and we turned into the park for the final half of the race. Who would have thought that the rolling asphalt trail would be that much harder? I had to exert a lot of effort to keep the pace up.

The last couple of miles were especially hard for some reason. There were just a couple of people visible in front of me and I was just able to hang with them, and I was just hanging on for dear life. When we turned on the final stretch I attempted to give a final kick toward the finish and pass one more person, but I had left it all out on the course. The runner I was attempting to pass however had plenty left and was not going to hear of it.

I did manage to meet my goal of running a 10K in under 50 minutes. That qualifies me for placement in Time Group 1a again in the Peachtree next year!

Etowah River Run 5K

2006-07-29T15:59:00.000-05:00

Etowah River Run 5K
(Boling Park, Canton, GA)
#80 5K 22:48 (results)

It was a stressful week at work with long hours and I spent Friday night mostly tossing and turning before waking long before planed at 3:00 AM. I sipped a sports drink and flipped channels before heading over to my parent’s house to pickup my mom.

The race start was actually at Cherokee High School, after running out of the parking lot the first half-mile consisted of a short downhill, a short uphill, and a longer sweeping downhill. After that, the course was fast and flat, mostly on asphalt, with short sections over dirt and grass. I started better than usual. I did not feel like I was moving that fast, but when I get to the first split I discovered that I did the first mile in 7 minutes. This race my focus was not to drop off the pace in the middle of the race. I would lock in on the next runner in front of me and mentally pull myself past them. If someone tried to pass me, I would try to project an invisible wall to either side of me that a competitor might push on, but would not be able to get through. Towards the middle of the race, I fought off one such runner for almost a mile before my wall crumbled, my pace faltered just a bit, and he pulled ahead. I did not let him out of my sights and almost caught him at the finish line. It was interesting study in contrasts. For everyone he passed he had words of encouragement. An attitude I have the utmost respect for, and even perhaps a little envy. Everyone I pass makes me feel a bit like a pilot in the Rebel Alliance who had just taken out another Tie-Fighter.

My pace did fall off on the final third of the race to an 8:00/mi, giving me a finishing time of 22:48 with an overall average pace of 7:20/mi. That makes this race one of my fastest to date.

Note: It was mom however, that took home the first place trophy in the age group-which-I-am-not-allowed-to-divulge. I did win one of the door prizes however, a four pack of two-liter diet cokes.

Atlanta's Finest 5K

2006-07-22T18:13:00.000-05:00

#518 5K 24:28
A race around Piedmont Park to benefit The Atlanta Police Foundation.
I took Marta from the Brookhaven Station down to the Midtown Station, and then walked through the misty drizzle down 10th street to the park entrance. I took a warm up jog around the park, and did some stretching. I fretted about were to line up for the start. I have had a tendency to line up too far back, so this time I positioned myself closer to the front than I would normally. By the time the race started the drizzle was gone and while overcast, the day was starting to warm. The race started up a mild hill moving west on 10th street. Then we turned onto Piedmont and climbed a long serious hill. I kept a good steady pace up that hill and was able to take advantage of the long downhill. My split at the first mile was just over 8:30. At just over the halfway mark, we turned right onto Monroe and more hills. I was able to keep my pace although I was feeling pretty out of breath. I tried to focus on not fading too much in the mid part of the race. (I have a tendency to back off in the middle of races because I am afraid of otherwise not being able to finish.) This week I spent the middle of the race passing people rather than being passed. From Monroe we turned back onto 10th street and headed towards the finish. I held off a runner who made a strong move to pass me just before the finish and as a result finished strong. My time was 24:28 which meant my average pace for the race was under 8:00 /mile. Overall, I felt it was a good race. Certainly, it was a great way to start my weekend.

ATC Decatur-Dekalb YMCA 4M

2006-07-15T11:26:00.000-05:00

#9853 4M 32:36

I noticed this race on the Atlanta Track Club schedule on Thursday, but had not really intended on doing it so I ran my normal 7.25 miles on Friday morning. As the day wore on however I started to get that itch to go run a race. Then last night when before I went to bed, I decided to go give it my best shot. I figured that I would probably have a hard time, but I would give it my best effort. I run every other day runner and always take the day off before a race (or do a short easy run if I absolutely have to get out there.)

The race is over near the Emory University Campus, just down the street from the Rainbow Natural Food Store. I got there in plenty of time, signed in, got my race number. I lined up in a decent spot near the front. I did not want to be right at the front because I was not figuring to be very fast. I was just out to have a good time.

The race started promptly at 7:30 AM and I promptly forget that I was planning to take it easy. I fell into a good pace and was shocked when at the first mile they were calling out time to find that I had done a 7:34 /mi. It was already well over 80 degrees at the start of the race and I began to feel both the heat and the miles from the day before. The course was also a very hilly one. By the end of the second mile, my pace had fallen to over 8:30 /mi. I had passed many folks on miles one and two, but by the third mile, folks were starting to pass me. I had to suck it up, let them go, and focus on just finishing the race.

I was tired as I rounded the last corner and headed for the finish. I felt a lot more worn out than when I finished the Peachtree. I could not have been more surprised that my time was 32:36, which meant my average pace was 8:09 /mi. (My pace on the Peachtree was 8:47 /mi; my goal 10K pace is 7:53/mi).

It is a pretty course through tree shaded neighborhoods, but there were some significant hills. The Track Club, as always, did a wonderful job of organizing and hosting the event. (#9853)

Peachtree 2006

2006-07-04T14:21:00.000-05:00

54:27 53:29

The Peachtree did not go as well as I might have hoped, but certainly better than I had any right to expect. I had a bout of food poisoning just three days before the race and had just been able to start eating solid foods again the day before the race, so my plan was to take it easy. That was the plan, which I forgot about completely as soon as the race started.

At 7:30 when the race started, it was a balmy 74 degrees, but with no cloud cover to speak of, only a slight haze, it was only to get warmer from there. I had a great starting position in time group 1a, just behind the invited runners, the seeded and sub-seeded runners. There were maybe a thousand folks ahead of me at the start, but a good 65,000 behind me. I was a little nervous about that and of being able to keep the pace starting in a group where everyone where everyone had to submit a qualifying 10K time of under 50:00 to get there. I had done it, but it had been about 10 months and, at least for the moment, I am not quite that fast.

I started the race running at a pretty good clip. I passed the first mile mark after 9 minutes, which given the slow start of any big race, meant I was running at a fast pace. The temperature climbed steadily as the race progressed and the sun rose in the sky. I am usually not big on water stations, but given my recent illness and its dehydrating effects, I hit most of the water stations grabbing both water to drink and to dump over my head.

As we ran past the Catholic Church close to mile 2, they had the holy water sprinklers running as well as the priests splashing out blessing and holy water. I didn’t burst into flames, which I took as a good sign.

The Peachtree is flat or downhill until mile 3 and that is about where I started to remember that I was going to relax, take it easy, and just enjoy the run. In fact, what I had done was push as hard as possible and worked to pass as many people as possible. Suddenly it was as if someone turned of the energy spigot. I was exhausted. Much more exhausted that I normally get on my morning runs. The climb up the aptly named “Cardiac Hill” was tough. I slowed way, way down as I made my way up. I was not the only one. Many folks slowed way down or just started walking up the hill at that point.

I made the top of the hill without stopping, but after that, it became a real effort of will to keep going and my pace dropped way down. At least it felt like it did. In retrospect, I think the perceived effort went way up, and the pace only dropped of a little.

Mile 5 was the next uphill section, but only mildly so. At this point, my focus was on finishing the race without having to stop and walk. I hand no more time goals. My goal was just to finish, finish, finish.

Just after mile 5, the race makes its only turn off Peachtree onto 10th Street. I was past the hills and getting a little confidence back. I passed the photo bridge where the photographer’s were out snapping everyone’s photo. I stepped up the pace thinking I was just about at the finish, only to discover I had done so a few hundred yards too early. I was out of gas and was ready to coast on to the finish line until I heard someone call out a time of 53:00. I didn’t think I had any energy left in the tank, but as soon as I heard that, I kicked it up another notch and pushed it as hard as I could. I cussed, swore, and exhorted myself to get moving. I was determined to cross the finish under the 55-minute mark. And I did. In the men’s open division, I placed 1292. Overall, I placed 3061. My official finish time, as measured from the starting gun, was 54:27. My bragging rights time, as measured from when I crossed the starting line, was 53:29.

That's my mom in the picture with me. She ran as well, at an age that cannot be disclosed if I ever want a home cooked meal again. How cool is that!

course map (#12192)

18th Annual Polar Bear Run

2006-01-29T02:11:00.000-05:00

It was not nearly as cold as the name might imply, at least not this year. It was in the mid-forties when I left the house, slipped through the Starbucks drive-through, and headed over to the house to pick up mom for the race. The race is sponsored by a large area church which gives the considerable benefit that before and after the race you stay warm and toasty inside the church facilities. The 5K course was flat and fast, if a little boring, literally 1 ½ times around the block.

I was healthy for the race, but out of shape. I have let a promotion and new schedule play havoc on my exercise program. But things are about to change again to be a little more exercise friendly. Anyway, I decided to take it slow and easy so I hung back and ran with my mom. Which was probably a lot more fun than pushing it, risking injury, and probably being disappointed with my performance if I had tried to run for time.

The new work schedule is going to put a dent in my racing. On Saturdays I work from 6:30AM to 5:30 PM. I’ll have to try to trade shifts or take a day off if I want to do a race. It’s kind of a pain, but I really need to focus on conditioning, not racing, for the near future anyway. So I don’t know what my next target race is.

Madison Christmas Rush Classic

2005-12-11T02:00:00.000-05:00

It was a frosty 20 degrees at dawn, but with a clear sky and little wind by the race start around 10 AM the temperature must have risen 15 to 20 degrees making things much more comfortable. The race was held historic Madison Georgia about 75 minutes east of Atlanta. Madison is a beautiful old small town full of classic examples of Victorian and pre-Civil War era homes. The race had an out and back course that wound though some of those historical neighborhoods, across a set of railroad tracks, and out past some open fields before turning around.

The course was remarkably flat. For me it was almost too flat. In my training, I have fallen into a rhythm, slowing a bit on the hills, and adding a little speed on the long flats. The course was flat enough that I was pushing my max pace almost the entire way and the only times I pulled up at all was when I would start running a little short of breath.

It was a pleasantly small race. Once we started running, it was amazing how quickly runners sorted themselves out. For the first two miles, I pushed it and maintained a 7:00 pace. I might have pushed it too hard as I was not feeling particularly strong as we came to the turnaround point at approximately the 2 ½ mile mark. Just after turning the corner to start back toward the finish line someone tried to pass me. I was not having it. I clenched my teeth and pushed myself just ahead of him every time he came even with me. I kept that up for almost a mile, but finally I had to back off and let him go because I had a stitch in my side and was getting seriously out of breath. I eased off a little bit, but soon could hear someone else nipping at my heels. I picked my pace up as much as I could in an effort to stay ahead of the sound of their breathing. For the last mile, that’s exactly what I did. At the end of the race, I turned and I thanked what turned out to be a very nice woman (Sandra Smith who finished 2nd in her age category) for helping me have such a strong finish. There is nothing like hearing someone behind me to motivate me forward.

My finish time was 38:12.9 which made my average pace 7:40 which was about what my 5K pace (7:36) was back in October. Considering my training vicissitudes since that time, I am happy with the result. My hip is almost back at one hundred percent, but I am still having some pain in my lower legs. Best-case, tendonitis/shin splints, worst-case, stress fractures. I got a pair of new shoes yesterday, which I am hoping will help and I am trying to take it easy with my training and work on building a solid base. I have a feeling it is going to be awhile before I can start training up for longer distances again.

Next up? Probably going to do either a 5K or another 8K next weekend.

Race Results

Atlanta Thanksgiving Half-Marthon

2005-11-25T08:20:00.000-05:00

I experienced a lot of frustration in the three weeks leading up to the race. I injured my right hip flexor, probably tendonitis from overtraining, and I have not been able to run. If I had any sense I would have spent the time in the gym, but I let work and personal issues get in the way. Besides, compared to running, I hate the gym. A month ago, I was in great shape for a half-marathon, but Thanksgiving morning I was not feeling confident of my conditioning or of my hip.

The alarm went off at 4 AM with the Black Eyed Peas singing “Let’s Get it Started.” While wandering about the apartment getting ready, I was pleasantly surprised when I turned on the television and found it was about 20 degrees warmer that I had expected, a relatively balmy 50 F (10 C). I was somewhat prepared for colder temperatures having had purchased some gloves and a hat when I picked up my number at the race expo the day before. I went with shorts, long sleeve jersey, and gloves which left me a little cold waiting for the race to start (okay by the time the race started my teeth had started to chatter), but dressed perfectly for the race itself.

I took the local metro transit train to the race starting line just a few miles north of my apartment. My plan was to start towards the back and run slow and easy. While this was the smart thing to do, it was also very frustrating. I don’t know the official count, but according to the Track Club’s website usually about 8000 people sign up for the race and from the crowd at the start I believe it. After the starting gun, it was a good ten minutes before I even reached the starting line and then for the first mile or more, the crowd of runners on the course made it very difficult to settle into any kind of pace. This had the effect of forcing me to stick to my plan and start very slow and easy. It’s probably why the race turned out to be such a pleasant experience. Next year however, I am going to get there early and nab a spot closer to the front.

It was a beautiful day. The race started just at the sun began to peak over the horizon starting the transition from a star filled sky to an unbroken field of clear blue. It was sunny enough so that by the end of the race, I was wishing I had brought sunglasses.

I was extremely anxious for the first part of the race worrying about my hip and being unable to settle into a comfortable pace because of the crowd. It was immensely frustrating to hear them call a split of 20 minutes as I passed the 1-mile mark still hemmed in. After about two miles, the pack of runners thinned out as much as it was going to and I was able to settle into some semblance of a rhythm/pace. Around mile three, I started to relax and enjoy the run.

The half-marathon is a beautiful run through Atlanta. You start just north of the Buckhead business district and run south straight down Peachtree. You run right through the city, past the Woodruff Arts Center, the Fabulous Fox Theater, Underground Atlanta, Coca-Cola Museum, the State Capital, and finish up at Turner Field.

After all that worrying about my hip, it did not really start causing me any difficulty until the last mile or so of the race. Going up the last hill next to the state capital is when I really started to feel some pain, but knowing I was closing in on the finish was a great motivator to keep going. Still, that last mile was tough. I did not have much in the way of reserves as I approached the finished.

When I finished it was with a sense of unreality. Although I did not have any goals for the race other than finishing, I crossed the finish line at 2:01:01 (which placed me 317 out of 600 in Men 35-39 age group.) That means somehow my average pace was around 9 minutes a mile. Given that my first mile took over 20 minutes and I felt like I was crawling the last mile, somewhere in there I must have been running at a good pace. It was not an issue this year because of the warm weather, but next year I am going to be sure that I have warm clothes waiting for me at the finish line.

Next up? I am not sure. I am going to try to get my hip healed up and then start training a little less aggressively. I am still planning on a marathon, but it looks like I am going to have to pick one on a later date.

post-race picture

ATC Run Around the Rock

2005-11-06T02:00:00.000-05:00

ATC Run Around the Rock 5M/10M/15M

This was an Atlanta Track Club race held on a Saturday morning out at Stone Mountain. The weather was cool, but not cold. Driving over to the park, we were treated to a beautiful sunrise. The course was a 5-mile loop around Stone Mountain. Runners had choice of competing at the 5, 10, or 15-mile distances. Initially I could not make up my mind which race I wanted to run. Doing the 15 mile race would have been good training for the half-marathon but I was worried that I would not be able to stick to my own pace in a race situation, surrounded by faster runners focusing on shorter distances. Running the 10-mile distance meant that I would not have to worry so much about pace and completing the distance and could just go out and have fun.

I’ve never run out at Stone Mountain before and although they mentioned hills in the race description, I thought it would be fine because my regular neighborhood run includes a couple of good ones. I started the race strong. (Okay I started the race wondering why in the world I thought I was able to run this morning and wondering if anyone would notice if I dropped out of the race less than 100 yards from the start. That’s how most of my runs start. I have learned to ignore my own litany of complaints and doubts, which generally fade by the first mile split.) I was surprised that despite the early uphill section of the race, when they called out the time at the first mile mark I was running at about a 7:30 pace. I kept that pace going until the next hill between 3- and 4-miles. Then it felt like I had run into a wall. When I finally reached the crest of the hill, I felt like my pace had slowed to a crawl, people were starting to pass me, and I was feeling discouraged. The last mile of the course was a long gentle downhill to the start/finish. When I passed the start/finish and 5-milers peeled off the course, the character of the race changed completely. There were a lot fewer runners out on the course. I finally settled into a groove of sorts and managed to pass a few people, and hold off some of the people that tried to pass me. The hills the second time around did not seem nearly as bad as they had the first time and my last mile down to the start/finish was probably my fastest mile the entire race.

I finished with a time of 1:19:23, which made my average pace 7:56. It was a nice improvement over the PTC 15K where my pace was 8:17 and Stone Mountain was certainly the more difficult course.

Next big race is Nov 24th when I do the Atlanta Half Marathon.

Training Milestone: 21Mile Run

2005-10-30T01:00:00.000-05:00

My legs have been sore from too much mileage, so I ended up spending a lot of last week not running at all. I got in a quality run on Wednesday and did my long run today. I got up a little later than normal, stopped for coffee, and drove to Roswell to run the 3.1 miles out and back trail there hoping it would be easier on my legs than running on asphalt. I intended to do a long run even though I was feeling a little tired and rundown. I was paying for my sins of the previous week: too much overtime, not enough sleep, poor diet, and no exercise.

My legs however, were feeling rested, and I had hopes of getting a good run in. I was a little disappointed when I started. Because I did not get going until 8:20 am, the trail was busy and crowded. I had forgotten the trail was an out and back trail, in my head I had been thinking it was a 3 mile loop trail which I would have much preferred. Many trees overhang the trail, so my GPS kept losing its signal. However, while I was grousing about the less than optimal conditions and thinking maybe it was a day for a shorter run, my legs got to the business of ticking off the miles.

I managed to take it nice and slow for the first part of the run. I thought I was taking it very slow, but in reviewing my run it turns out I was cranking out 8-9 minute miles for the first 15 miles. It was not until the final 10K that my pace dropped to about a 10-minute mile. I had to dig deep to finish those last few miles.

Passing the 20-mile mark seems like an important milestone in my training for the marathon. My legs felt like rubber after the run, but I did not have any serious soreness or injury. After getting home and soaking my legs in an icy bath, they felt better than they have all week.