SRRC group run -- Sun. November 30

Icy day and heavy cloud; a bit cold for running, but not *too* low a temperature. Arrive at D&D just in time, to find Amy, Bill, then Andy and Jay: just the five of us enfin, so we talk a bit then head off for an 8-9 miler, with Bill planning 14. Route is an Enfield extended, starting through the high school, up to town center, then Jabish and Enfield, coming back via Allen, Hamilton, and Jackson to Howard, then under the road and in. As we came down Allen, Andy and Bill planned the extra loop, so at Bay, those three set off right and Amy and I went left to Hamilton. Pace was steadily comfortable, with a bit of pushing on the hills.

Time: 1:09:11
Distance: 8.69 miles
Pace/Speed: 7:58/7.54 mph

Comment: nice loosening run -- made it in shorts, but also hat, gloves, jacket, plus two layers. Sleet came on as we did the last three miles or so, but still quite nice; short sprint at the end for good measure, too.

Talking with Amy afterwards I learned that numbleg/foot (of which no sign today) comes from lower back trouble, probably disk-related. Ouf. Hoping it will fade away again as I get back into good mileage.

Talking Turkey 6 miler -- Sat. November 29

Strangely, this was my first run at this distance -- not quite a 10K. The start was late in the day, 1 p.m., so I had a normal breakfast, then did chores etc. and left about 11:45. Milder day after a frozen night, but a chill wind at times. The usual problems finding my way round Holyoke, but eventually arrived at the reservoir site of the run: lots of cars parking at the bottom of the hill going in, so I did similar. Jogged up to the Elks place--major crowds, but picked up my number and the nice jacket they had for early entrants, then jogged back to the car. Changed and with shorts, hat and gloves, decided to stay with two layers on top. Jogged back to the start area, and all 1,000 or so runners were mobbing up. No sign of anyone from SRRC, though lots of familiar faces. Near the start, spotted Nick from the club, so one other Swiftie at least. Feeling quite good, and so took off orange top leaving one layer only. False start (cannon fired prematurely!) before the anthem, so all had to back up -- still, we were off in pretty good time, just after 1 p.m. First mile, tried not to go too fast; still, it was about 6:10, so not slow. Figured I could handle 6:15-20 or so, and pushed on, keeping Abby W in sight as I know she's just a bit faster than me. All went very well until middle of mile four, when I felt numb-leg coming on -- really early, I thought, only 3.55 miles on the clock. Gah. It got worse, and by 4 miles I knew I had to stop before I fell over. Of course this meant lost places, but I stretched and shook the leg back into some sort of feeling and plugged on. I stopped thre times in all, at approx. 4.5, 5, and about 5.4, then I managed to push on to the end. Of course mile 5 was very slow, 7:47, and I actually fell down once (at the second stop, I think) but I ended up with a surprisingly good pace overall, placing 78th:

Time: 39:06
Distance: 6 miles
Pace/Speed: 6:31/9.2 mph

Comment: as with the Monson, this one left me with very mixed feelings. Very psyched to make the sort of pace I was making, but super-bummed to get numb-leg in a race. Argg. As it was, this would have been on par with my PB for a 10K, so I'm happy there. If I'd done even a reasonable race-mile at mile 5, say a 6:47 instead of a 7:47, this would have been a *super* time. So, that's my target for the snowstorms -- get close to this again.

Re the numb-leg, it looks as though I can avoid it by keeping my mileage high. One low mileage week is not too bad, but two or more really seems to make me susceptible (maybe constant running keeps the swelling down?). Meh. Keep working.

Easy 4 - Fri. November 28

Day before a race, not a brilliant plan, but I'm more interested in getting total miles up than in setting new PBs, and with a cracked rib I'll not be doing any wonders tomorrow anyway. Also the race tomorrow is at 1 p.m., so I had more than 24 hours after this morning's run in which to recover. Headed out about 10:30 a.m. (after a light breakfast) in full gear (jacket plus two layers, hat, longs, gloves) in damp but no rain/snow. Did a standard Hamilton *gently* and added the VFW loop at the end to be sure I'd reach 4 miles:

Time: 31:22
Distance: 4.11 miles
Pace/Speed: 7:38/7.86 mph

Comment: good to warm up and burn off some turkey and desserts(!), though my rib was pretty sore (from the Tuesday run?). Meanwhile, I'm working on a revised set of paces, both training and competition, so I can see what my general targets are as I prepare for the marathon in '09.

Solo (sort of) intervals -- Tue. November 25

After a long day at work, felt I just had to get out on a damp and chill (but still, fortunately) evening -- no moon, but cloudlit. Went out in shorts but hat gloves and jacket, and road shoes: aimed to take first mile gently, then push hard for a few minutes, and then alternate as best I could thereafter. Went on a route I've used in evening runs before: down GeoHannum, all the way to Stebbin, then left to 202, up to Boardman, and along to go back on GeoHannum -- I knew that was about 7-8 miles. As it happened, I did a solid first mile, easy but good pace; then pushed hard for about half a mile (checked GPS), then slowed up for the rest of that mile and one more, then pushed hard again for just over half a mile, and then slacked off again, at which point my leg was going numb. So at five miles I had to stop for a minute or so, then did another couple of miles at a regular training pace, at which point numbness threatened again. Stopped clock and reset, then jogged another 0.78 of a mile home. Here's the first bit:

Time: 49:35
Distance: 7.19
Pace/speed: 6:54/8.7 mph

Then add 0.78 miles @ 8:12 pace

Comment: apart from the numb leg problem, this was an interesting run. Rib was a bit sore, maybe because the pace was harder than Sunday. My "intervals" gave faster miles for 2 and 4, thus: 7:09, 6:39, 6:51, 6:30, 6:57; then 7:04 and 6:56. Useful experience, and I'll have to keep working on it. I noticed that half a mile feels about right for max pace, but in the second "interval" I definitely felt much more tired. I need to try and work a run with three intervals. . .

SRRC group run -- Sun. November 23

A week of not running - -combination of soreness from the fall I took in the last half mile of the Nov. 16th run, a head cold, and sheer insane busy-ness at work. The fall was a failed attempt at running along the bank round a puddle on the railtrail: I was wearing my road shoes, as my trail shoes were still drenched from the Sat. run, and my feet went sideways, with me landing hard on my left side/underarm. Seemed okay right after, but night was rough, and I couldn't cough,/sneeze etc. without sharp pain. Cracked rib, I figure. So, a week of not running, despite my plans to have a go at interval running. Ah well.

But a week later I was set to try again, and so I turned up at D&D in good time. Andy, Jay, Jay's father, Eddie G., Amy, and Nick from the highschool -- a good crowd. Nick had never run more than four miles, so we planned a gentle 5 -6 miler (Jay and his dad doing a shorter run). Very gentle, but that was good for me -- rib didn't hurt, really, and it was nice to get warmed up and loose. It was *very* chilly in the wind, though not too bad in the sun. We did Howard, Jackson, GeoHannum, and then 9 and 202 back up to the common, and then looped back down through the highschool, thus:

Time: 49:52
Distance: 5.51 miles
Pace/Speed: 8:56/6.72 mph

Comment: Training interrupted, but a useful outing anyway. Wore full gear, hat gloves, long training pants, and light jacket! Yes, winter is here.

SRRC group run -- Sun. November 16

Still sore from the 13 miles (especially the total 900' climb and then similar descent), I slept in until after 8:30, but got more or less awake and moving in time to head off to D&D on a chilly gusty day. Big crew there: Andy, Jay, Bill, Dawn, plus Amy and a friend of hers from GSH and Cyclonauts, Steve L (I knew him by sight from the Snowstorms). Then Ken arrived too, so EIGHT of us all together: pretty awesome. We chatted a bit, and set off after 10:15, all together on the rail trail. Took it nice and slow, dodging puddles and fallen branches. At trail's end, paused to regroup, and the we split up: Dawn directly back, A J and B on to Sears for an 11 miler, and the other four of us back up 181 to Jabish Canal, aiming for a 9.5 miler. Steve L set a faster pace, so he and I moved ahead, Ken and Amy following at more of a 7:45. We paused at the canal entrance to regroup again, then more of the faster running. This went on to the end pretty much, and I took advantage of the tow, although I didn't feel very springy. Steve L has a big stride, and his rhythm is different from what I'm used to, plus he was just running a bit faster. Good workout:

Time: 1:12:17
Distance: 9.59 miles
Speed: 7.96 mph / 7:32s

Comment: a bit more than I'd bargained for pace-wise, but at the shorter distance I should be able to handle it and still work this afternoon, inshallah. Hoping the week can stay as productive. Steve L is a good training match for me as he's younger (39), so I have to work hard. . .

Rainy 13 -- Sat. November 15

Wanting to get some solid miles in, I looked at a route using the Jucket Hill trail -- a loop I've used before, goin up Gulf Hill. Decided to do it the other way round this time, starting past VFW to 202, then up Allen to Juckett and up that hill all the way--at which point the drizzly rain become heavier, even to thunder briefly: I got well soaked for a bit, but it was so mild I didn't really mind--down the other side and left on the Gate 8 roadway up to 202 again, cross over on to Packardville, and along to Gulf; all the way down to 9, straight over to Federal and left to the rail trail (to avoid a bit of a hill), then back out onto Federal and up past Tilton's to 9 and home. I aimed at a negative split, and was consequently getting a bit tired and sore by the end, so I stopped just after 13, conveniently right at the Road House, thus:

Time: 1:39:08
Distance: 13.2 miles
Speed: 7.99 mph / 7:30s

Comment: after last week's experience I decided to eat a bit before going: a piece of bread and Nutella. This seems to have been fine; just to be sure, on stopping I also had a PowerBar gel, and then ran (slowly) the mile or so home after that. No problem. So, I should be okay food/fueling wise, though I'll have to keep experimenting to be sure. The negative split was fine, partly because of the heavy downhill miles at Gulf, miles 8-10 or so. Pace overall was a bit faster than I'd expected; aimed at 7:45s, but I think that was the pace for the first 7, and then I sped up.

Campus laps -- Tue. November 11

Still pretty sore after Sunday, but wanting to take advantage of the surprise vacation day, I met Mark at our usual spot and we headed out for a couple of pretty brisk laps. Chilly -- I had hat and gloves on, and longs, with collared fleece on top. Chatted plenty, and stopped at exactly two laps, thus:

Time: 35:11
Distance: 4.54 miles
Speed: 7.74 mph

Comment: still getting over the digestion problem, and Mark was clearly feeling peppy, so this was a bit more exercise than I'd expected. But a good basic run.

Monson Memorial RACE -- Sun. November 9

There are two races to report, the one that could have been, and the actual recorded one. First the recorded one:

Time: 1:32:15
Distance: 13.1 miles
Speed: 8.52 mph / 7:03s

That was enough to get me 38 place, 10/62 in my age, which is fine. But I was close to so much better, this second set of figures, the race as it was until my crash. The time of collapse if clearly visible from these splits:

MIles 1~11 = 6:40, 6:53, 6:37, 6:23, 7:06, 6:39, 7:13, 6:45, 6:24, 6:33, 6:42

and miles 12~13.1 = 8:03, 8:24, (+ final section at 7:48 pace)

Though I think the 11th mile was a bit of a tailing off too -- I was already gettin gvery distracted and desperate for food by then.

So, my pace and speed up until my crash were 6:44s and 8.92 mph. I was on track for a half marathon PR, despite the tough course. Well, now I know I can do that speed, as long as I'm fueled up. Better luck next year, and this convinces me that for marathon prep I need to work on eating while running.

Quiet base running now until the Turkey trot, and then we're back into the winter season proper with snowstorms -- though I may not touch them until after Christmas. I'll be setting up my marathon prep schedule, and that will take priority in 2009.

Monson Memorial STORY-- Sun. November 9

[Long entry -- long story; details of the run in the next entry]

The long awaited year ending big run, and the weather was worth waiting for. Mark called to say he couldn't make it, and Ivan said he'd meet us there, so it was just Ken and me in Ken's car off to Dunkin at 10. I'd had half a banana, and wondered about what else if anything to have; I got a coffee for the road, and we exchanged greetings with the small crew at D&D (Jay, Andy, Amy, and the young lad --Nick--from the BFC run on Sat.). Then we drove the 15 miles or so to Monson, and arrived before 11, found a nice parking spot and looked around. No hall this year (it was being used for a play, evidently), so there were a couple of tents set up across the road. We registered and waited to connect with Ivan. There were only three port-a-potties, not a good sign; the queue built up very quickly. Ivan arrived and we got kitted up and then headed to the D&D -- Ken wanted food and we all availed ourselves of the facilities (I knew I'd spend money there after the run). The place was packed, the town too, and everyone seemed set for a good time. The three of us took a short slow mile warmup, dodging crowds, and then got ready for the off. Lots of familiar faces, including the winner of the BFC (あっまり好ましくないやつ、下品で南ボストン出身みたい) and with him the orange-hatted Bill R from Snowstorms. They were talking doing 6:30s, so I stayed a bit behind them - my target was 6:50s, if I felt good.

The start was delayed by some problems with bib numbers. I got the feeling that not being in the hall had upset their normally very good operation, though everyone was pretty upbeat throughout. Finally got the off after 12:15, and away we went, a very fast crowd out front and a decent field (nearly three hundred) filling in all around. I took it easy but didn't want to lose too many places, then after the first two miles figured I'd go to work. I'd forgotten how hilly it is, but I was making good time. I wasn't pushing all the time, but on all the uphills, and constantly aiming for the cluster ahead. This kept a to and fro battle going with a couple of guys near me who were better on the downhill and flat.

By 8 miles I was on track: just over 54 minutes, which was my target. I'd even gained tow places as a girl and then a guy dived off into the bushes to take leaks. Just after that a beefy guy came up on me and I wondered if I was gong backwards, but then I figured he was picking it up a notch--a triathlete, probably. I knew I couldn't do that, but I tired to get a bit of a tow. The next two miles I still felt pretty comfortable, still able to push on the (now fewer) uphills, although as we came back out onto the main road I was starting to think hungry.

That rapidly became more than a thought. I was beginning to obsess, and a weird sort of lethargy was creeping up. Lungs and muscles felt good, but I was running out of fuel. I was into the eleventh mile when I had to admit it was really bad--I slowed right down, and muttered "need food" as people passed me with cheering words. No spectators, no sources of energy. This was the first such experience for me, and I was unprepared. I wondered if there were any plants I might eat, but pine trees and scrubby sandy grass was all that I could see next to the road. I felt light-headed, and then got really concerned I might fall down or faint completely, so I started walking. Jogged down hills, but walked the flats and uphills. Somehow made it without losing too much time, figuring that my PR was well gone but at least I'd finish as fast as I safely could.

Then just about three-quarters of a mile from the end, an apple tree--in fact several, outside a row of houses. Crab-apples? I didn't care: found one that looked more or less intact, about large egg size, polished off the dirt on my sleeve and bit into it frantically. Amazingly, it was sweet, a little past that even--energy, sort of, and with a few more bites I was ready to go on. I picked up speed gently and by the finish I was even able to put on a burst and finish as though I was fine.

I was not quite fine, of course, and I grabbed a banana and a cup of apple cider and sat a few minutes to let that enter my system. I was still a bit cold, but not faint, and I jogged back all the way to the apple trees to thank them and to see if there were any more of those special apples. As I started out, in came Ken looking very strong, so I cheered him on and went off thinking about Ivan. Found my apple trees and picked up a couple more apples, but no sign of Ivan. Ran back to the start, got some real food (pasta, hot dog, etc.) and met up with Ken --he'd beaten his previous best by more than a minute. We both ate and chatted, and I started worrying about Ivan. With two hours coming up on the clock, he must have had a problem.

Since runners were still coming in, I didn't want to disturb the time keepers to see if he'd come in and we'd somehow not seen him. Besides, I didn't know his bib number. As we'd been waiting and eating I had noticed the ambulance parked near the finish head back up the course, and now I saw it was back, and a couple of young Monson cops were standing nearby. Ken went up to one of them and explained we were looking for a friend. "Oh, they've got one runner in that ambulance. Ask the EMT what his name is." We did, and it was Ivan. He looked okay, but had indeed had a bad energy crash at mile 8, after eating his carried food at miles 5 and 7. The older EMT looked a bit worried still, but Ivan signed a waiver and we headed back to the car--it was chilly in the wind and I gave Ivan my jacket, as I already had other gear on. After Ivan got his stuff we headed to D&D and ordered up (the staff was very frazzled from the long day, so we nearly didn't get the 99c egg and cheese deal I'd been looking for. Coffee, donut and breakfast sandwich, and a warm place to sit. Ivan and I compared notes, and Ken felt generally good -- my pre-race advice for him to push himself harder rang a bit hollow now, though he said he had stopped twice for water, which was new for him -- he had pushed, but within limits.

I think my chief problems were two:
1) I pushed hard all the way up to my crash, and somehow achieved an output I've not managed before; combined with the very late start for this run, I simply hadn't got enough fuel on board (eat more breakfast next year!!)
2) I'd had indigestion all day Sat., and have a dodgy stomach because of a cold (from R, I think; the whole family has it in some form right now). Energy supply mechanism compromised -- 仕方がない、結局。

So, I've got to work on in-race refueling if I want to do tough courses like this at an improving pace. I'd like to go for 6:45 on this course, or 6:40 on a flatter one like Boston. And I need (of course) to keep up my base running, with higher weekly mileage. 15~20 is not enough.

以上

BFC Fun Run -- Sat. November 8

Tired after a long week, so I was only just in time to get out and drive down by 9:45 for the 10 a.m. start at the B'town Family Center. Nice, mainly familiar small crowd, with lots of Dunkin' T-shirts (Andy, Jay, Dawn, Amy, me, and at least 4-5 others from SRRC but not in T-shirts); I wore mine too for the whole run, as I was determined not to race it. Tony, the 70 (no, now 71) year old guy from various local races including the Peaked a couple of weeks ago, was there, as was Cliff R. Didn't really warm up, and set off trying to stay back with Dawn, but it was a bit too slow; I ended up doing about 7:40s for the first two miles, which felt (in a race) really unnatural! But then the third mile I did a few strides, surging up the hilly bits and then stretching out a bit more near the end. So, time didn't matter, but for the record:

Time: 22:15
Distance: 3.1 miles (5K)
Speed: 8.36 mph /7:10

Comment: hoping that this sets me up for tomorrow, and that we can be rain free and mild like today. Fingers crossed!

Campus laps -- Thu. November 6

Met up w/ Mark at 7:15 after (well, in the middle of , really) a long day. Dark and spotting with rain, but not cold; we set off and just figured we'd get wet. Chatted the whole two laps, with alternating faster and slower miles (7:30s and 8:30s), and stopped at two laps exactly:

Time: 36:03
Distance: 4.45 miles
Speed: 7.41 mph/8:06

Comment: a pleasant loosening up run, and at least some contribution to Monson prep.

SRRC group run -- Sun. November 2

Chilly morning, a well frosted car, even after the extra hour (daylight saving time ended), so after lectoring I was all for hot coffee and getting changed into lots of gear for the Swiftie outing. Hat and gloves included. Arrived a bit early, and found a church group (from St Francis) had our table, but Andy, Jay, Dawn and (new to SRRC) Amy were there; Bill arrived shortly after. Nice chat while we waited, but noone else showed, so off we set, target 8 miles or so on the rail trail. Aim was all to run together -- Amy is a hardy runner (we've evidently coincided plenty at Snowstorms, though I didn't figure that till Jay told me) and Dawn was happy with 8+ pace. At the end of the trail I was wanting a bit more pace, so suggested some of us going back by 181 and Jabish canal; all bar Dawn agreed, so we took off up 181 at a run; still not hard, but stretching out and warming up properly (as it was I kept hat and gloves on all the time). Into Jabish, all full of the joys of autumn running (no wind on that trail, and the sun was lovely). Once we got back to the rail trail we slowed it up again, and then at the very end Andy and Amy did a sprint which I was too late to notice, though I used it as an excuse to sprint a little bit. Here's how it ended up:

Time: 1:15:51
Distance: 9.52 miles
Speed: 7.53 mph

Comment: nicely under double digits, and just enough at a good clip to make it feel satisfying. Now maybe one more run before the BFC 5K and then-- Monson.

Home Ten -- Sat. November 1

Balmy couple of days after some colder ones, and *finally* a chance to get out again, so I decided to get some proper miles on. Aiming for 7-8 or a bit more, I took off around 11 and quickly found I didn't need an extra top on. Wanted to keep the pace slow, so took to the trails right off Austin Gaughan, instead of going along Hamilton; then out onto Hamilton, down to Allen and up over 9 and on to Enfield, then left right down to the Quabbin, round the loop at the water and back -- happy I was carrying a good bottle of water now -- then left on to Earley, figuring to head to the State Police station then back along the road. Went fine for a good while, but then, coming out on to Warner, I hit people and vans and wheelchairs: a hunting session for paraplegics, arranged by thoughtful MassWildlife. I'd run through one hunting zone, evidently. Gah. The officious woman wouldn't let me go on (more hunting there) and had no real advice as to how to go back, but I turned and took off before she could come up with something else. Instead of following Earley, I went up Warner, a long winding road that eventually took me back to 9, which I then followed all the way home. Quite a nice route, even if not what I'd intended: worth trying to do it the other way round as well. Here's the details:

Time: 1:15:04
Distance: 10.02 miles
Speed: 8.01

Comments: a good wakeup run to get me back to distance. Stopped as soon as clock hit 10, so then jogged home from supermarket. Deliberately slow first few miles, aiming at 7:45s: after slower miles (a couple of 8s) I did faster ones to catch up (7:30s and 7:15s). Fairly happy with the control of pace, though overall I sped up a bit too much; still it's easier to try this when you're running well inside your limits. One week till the Monson Half. No time to really prepare, but I'm cautiously optimistic my base condition is good enough. We'll see