New Shoes, New Minor Injury and a Fuel Belt

I have previously commented that I barely remember my first NY marathon.  I wasn't blogging, I did not keep a running log, and really don't remember much about it.  And as my recent training has been going on, I haven't been blogging, and have missed providing some of the crucial details that allow me to remember and be more invested in the travails of my training to learn from the good and the bad.

First -- a couple of weeks ago I served as a pace leader for a long run in Central Park.  I had planned to pace for 11 miles, and that worked great.  I was spot on.  They needed pace makers for miles 11-16, and though I had originally planned to bail, miles 5-11 felt great, so I figured, .. Why not?  Well, now I know why not.  I had a...ummm.. GI issue at mile 11, and missed the gel and food station, so I had zero calories in me.  Fluids yes, calories no.  About mile 14, I turned to my co-pacer and said...I don't feel good.  As in I REALLY don't feel good.  Felt nauseous.  Could hardly run.  I cracked off the back of the group and walked half a mile or so, then trudged home in a slow mile 16.  Ugh, not a good ending to an otherwise great day. Note to self -- eat calories during long run.

Last weekend I decided to run 15 miles in a long run.  By the way the day worked out, I had to go at 2 pm. It isn't boiling hot here this summer, so I really didn't pay much attention to the weather.  Plus I had just bought a fluid belt, so I knew I could carry water with me. (More on this later.)  BAD plan for a run.  I ran 6 miles over hills and then a flat 10 or so.  The first 6 hilly miles blew up my legs, and I did Ok on the flat part until about mile 11 or so.  And then I noticed,  Gee, it is kind of hot out here.  And humid too.  In fact, it was actually 86 degrees, with 80% humidity, heat index of 91.  And I had not eaten much the couple days before (still on a diet trying to lose weight).  I was sweating like CRAZY.  I drank 20 ounces at mile 6.  Drained 20 ounces from my fluid belt over miles 6-11, refilled at mile 11 (thanks Dunkin Donuts!), drained another 20 ounces on way home in miles 11-16.  And still felt terrible.  I am hitting the wall around mile 13 or 14 or so.

These long runs make me think...no way can I run a marathon in two months.  Doing a post mortem, I am not so harsh on myself; I can see the heat was really brutal.  And the fact I basically ate about 2000 calories total in the two days before really did not set me up well to run 16 miles in the heat.  Thankfully, I had my fuel belt with me.  Seriously, it was the first time I had run with one ...ever...and it really saved me.  I was never in real danger or anything, but if I had not been able to consume 40 ounces of water over the last 10 miles, I would have had to abandon the run and found water.  And it wasn't that cumbersome or jiggly or anything.  Very good addition to the gear repertoire.

So after that shitty long run on Saturday, I took Sunday off, and ran on Labor Day.    Labor Day last year was the day I hurt my calf so I kind of have bad karma for runs on Labor Day.  This run started off super strong...I was crushing the pace.  I started to feel something in my right high ankle/shin but kept running through it, figuring it was just one of those running pains.  Ran 6.3 miles in 51: xx; great run.

Except for that shin pain.  And when I stopped...oooouccch.  Hmm.  This is bad.  Stress fracture? Overtraining injury can you say?  Ice all day.  Compression sock.  Elevation.  Very sore to the touch.  Some Dr. Googling, and it is either a shin splint or the beginning of stress fracture.  Felt MUCH better Tuesday, so I am guessing shin splint.  And I think I am right, btw.  But what could have caused it?  I have never had a shin splint in my life.

The victim: a new pair of shoes!  My trusty Gel Kayano 19s, are worn out.  I felt the worn out-ness in the last run, so I brought home my gym shoes to run in (I keep a pair of shoes at the gym.)  Those are Nike LunarGlide5.  Really comfortable, cool shoes.  And I had run both Labor Day weekend runs in them (23+ miles) in two days.  Hmm, and one of the causes of shin splints are shoes not appropriate for foot and pronation type.  Hmm, doesn't take Sherlock Holmes to connect the dots...So LunarGlides are out.  Back to Asics (order new pair of GT-2000s (more support) and Brooks GTS 19 (Have run in Brooks before and love them).

So, this weekend...a 4 mile race in Central park.  I plan to tack on another 10 miles or so to get my long run in at the same time.  I have never done that...run a race and then add more to get miles.  The pace and adrenaline from a race messes up the "long run mentality" for me.  So I will see if I can do it...But I will eat today.  And not wear the LunarGlides.

And I haven't even discussed the new Garmin.  All I can say, new Garmy is like old Garmy ...finicky, unpredictable, but a thing of beauty when it works.  Like an old friend, but one that is crotchety and one you have to invest care, time and energy to maintain the relationship.

And I need to keep blogging so I can recall the details, the ups and the downs of training.

Father's Day 12 miler

As part of my Father's Day, I got a free morning pass to run long.  It was a beautiful day and I enjoyed getting out.  This time, though, rather than turn around at 4.5 miles, I decided to stretch out further, and ended up turning around at 6 miles (after some wandering and getting slightly lost because the trail ended at 5.5 miles).    I had been reading a lot from McMillan and his training paces, and desired to keep my training pace in accord with his suggested pace of Marathon pace +45.  For me, that would be approximately 8:45 miles.  It didn't turn out that way.  I ended up way too fast -- averaging 8:20.  I was monitoring my pace and consciously trying to slow down, but just sort of went with that comfortable long run groove.  Took about 12 oz of water in my Loksaks and 2 Gu chocolate gels. (ate one around mile 5.) I even managed to negative split the run thanks to a 7:50 mile 11.

Garmy worked great for this run, by the way, and I take back all the bad things I said about him.  I couldn't really get good meaningful heart rate data because my HR monitor was giving me crazy numbers -- as in north of 200 bpm for long stretches.  One thing I have learned is that I have to wash my heart rate strap to get good data.  I don't know why an unwashed strap affects the measurements, but it really does; maybe washing flushes salts and grime out of the sensors that interfere with the electrical readings.   

And then back home to a very nice and relaxing Father's Day.  We are still in school, and my older daughter has a big test today (Monday) so we spent the bulk of the afternoon and evening working on her test.  And then she is off to camp in six days.  Wow, the "summer" goes quickly.

I had planned on running the Fairfield Half Marathon on Sunday June 24 (signed up and paid even!), but I have been pressed into kid watching duty while my better half does camp drop off.  Alas, it is not the first time family obligations have gotten in the way of racing, and that is the breaks.

Last Long Run

Today was the day for the last longish run before the marathon next week. I also wanted to prove to myself that I could do it. That I could do a longish run at a solid pace. Mental toughness was one of the main goals.

The idea was to run 10 miles at marathon pace. Well, that didn't happen. I ended up running ten miles at under half marathon pace -- about 40 seconds per mile faster than my planned marathon pace. That, of course made me smile, but my heart rate was pretty high throughout. And I am not sure that it was wise to push myself that hard before the marathon. But it really wasn't that hard. I mean I felt ok, and I wasn't racing or anything.

I did find my marathon shorts - a pair of Asics. And I think I am going to run in my Gel Kayanos. (Under Armour socks). Now I need to settle on a shirt.

One last comment, what gives with the supposed fall in New York. Today was mid-60's, 100% humidity. I ran in a light drizzle and fog in some places. This is crazy! I sure hope the marathon is cool, and not the hot humid haze that has been here since June.

Distance Time Split time Elev. chg.
0.50 0:03:28 3:28 +324
1.00 0:06:54 3:26 -91
1.50 0:10:31 3:36 +94
2.00 0:14:11 3:40 -169
2.50 0:17:56 3:45 +32
3.00 0:21:44 3:47 +71
3.50 0:25:24 3:39 -21
4.00 0:29:07 3:43 -81
4.50 0:32:54 3:46 +125
5.00 0:36:41 3:47 -3
5.50 0:40:35 3:53 -185
6.00 0:44:17 3:42 +12
6.50 0:47:54 3:36 +12
7.00 0:51:41 3:47 -14
7.50 0:55:29 3:48 +15
8.00 0:59:09 3:40 -6
8.50 1:02:55 3:46 +18
9.00 1:06:32 3:36 -19
9.50 1:10:14 3:41 +16
10.00 1:14:08 3:54 +54
10.14 1:15:44 1:35 +6

Not the way I had it planned. Or, how not to run 20 miler

Well, that's not the way I had it planned. Saturday morning I was set up to run 20 miles at 8:00 mile pace. That's my marathon pace and the last truly hard long run on the schedule before the taper.

Looking back, the problems began during the week. This was a long week of work for me - 60+ hours. Historically that meant a terrible diet, in that hard work meant eating junk around the office. Also, sometimes when I get engulfed in work, I lose my appetite. That happened this week. I noticed on Friday that my weight was 179 - the first time I have been in the 170's in probably 15 years.

And I haven't been sleeping much. Combination of work stress and a sick baby. Thursday we were up a good chunk of night with her, but still got some sleep. Friday night - the night before big run, she was sick most of night. I was up from about midnight until 4 am. I remember looking at the clock and thinking I can't believe I am going to go run 20 miles in like 3 hours on no sleep.

And again I left all of my Garmin gear in my office charging the battery. And my brand new iPod nano was dead too - it wouldn't take the charge, so I have to return it. I ended running with my wife's iPod but we have different taste in music. (I thought I was in a 1970s disco circa 1984. Patti LaBelle "New Attitude"? Please - that's not running music for me.)

And then Saturday I woke up and it was 65 degrees and 100 humidity, again. What gives with this NY fall? Where are crisp mornings and smell of leaves, etc. Nada. Humidity meant slick roads, rain and just a tougher run.

Even with all of this, I knew I had to tough it out. I had been looking forward to this run and getting through it all week. And thought it would set me up well mentally for the coming race. And I've run in humidity, rain, etc all summer and fall. And I'm tough and what doesn't kill me makes me stronger, right?

I took off, having studied my mile marks from a previous run on this route, so I would know almost exactly where the miles were so I could judge pace. Through 5 I was doing OK: too fast at 7:30 or so, and I had no idea how I was going to keep up the pace for 13 more.

I felt terrible. I've never thrown up during a run, but had to stop twice due to vomit attacks. And my gut was killing me. And I wasn't in groove at all. I decided to cut it to a 14 miler (two loops)at about mile 5. And then I had another vomit attack. And it started to rain. Nauseous, stomach in a knot with pain, and wet from the rain.

So, I said to myself: screw it. Packed it in at the end of that loop, at 7 miles. Ran 7 miles in 54 minutes and change. My stomach felt terrible - like a knot. After showering, etc., I was wiped out. And my teeth were chattering and all afternoon I fell asleep every time I sat down or laid down, even when I wasn't trying or letting myself fall asleep. Periodically, I'd be watching a football game and doze off.

Looking back, the seeds of my downfall were laid Thursday and Friday. I in essence didn't eat a meal until Friday dinner (I think Thursday I had 4 energy bars all day). And two nights of basically no sleep led to a terrible body condition. Instead or carbo loading, I did the opposite. And running on no sleep just doesn't work well for a 41 year old. Still not sure why I was throwing up during the run, but maybe
because I had taken my vitamins before I headed out and they upset my stomach. I really wish I had my heart rate monitor so I could see if the pace was too hard and pushed me physically too hard. Maybe my lack of running caught up with me. I don't know.

At any right, I figured I would live to fight another day. I've done all my long runs, and ought to be in good shape. If not doing this one costs me, c'est la vie. My time will be what it is going to be and I didn't want to push myself in the rain throwing up for 20 miles.

Today is Sunday -and its beautiful day to run. All the people running today in Staten Island half marathon or in Chicago, I hope you are having a great day!

Weekend Update

A short race report from Grete's Great Gallop Half Marathon:  I didn't run it.  As Mrs Wolve pointed out to me on Friday, we had a "brunch" for our 19 month old daughter at her pre-nursery school at 9 a.m. on Saturday -- the same time as the half marathon.  I miss enough things because of work, so I skipped the race.  I made a deal with my wife that I could run after it, so I went back to the FIRST workout -- 15 miles at marathon pace plus 10 seconds.

One big, big, problem:  I had left all of my Garmin gear at the office.  That meant no watch for pacing, no heart rate, no data of any kind.  I almost didn't want to run.  I have grown so dependent on it, that running without it seemed like running half naked. 

Thankfully, though, I run the same loop fairly regularly, and I basically know where the various mile marks are.  The problem is that the difference between a 7:45 mile and 8:15 mile is really only about 50 yards, so even though I knew...I really didn't know the pace.  I would know if my pacing was way off, but not exactly, and not with degree of exactness like Marathon Pace plus 10 seconds.  I knew my route was almost exactly 7.5 miles, so I could also know how I was doing at the end of the loop.  And then part of my loop was blocked off and I had to  improvise.  So I kind of had to guess on that too. First loop was 1:00:41, or about 8 minute miles.  Second loop was 1:00:07, which was pretty phenomenal for me.  And when I came home and worked on Gmap pedometer, I realized that my make around on that part of my loop that was closed was actually about 0.3 miles longer than my normal route.  So I ended up going 15.6 miles in 2:01 -- that made me smile.  Nearly 7:52 pace.  Of course I have no idea what my heart rate was because of no Garmin, so I don't know how hard or easy it was.  But I wasn't completely wiped out later that day, and felt OK.  Today, I am stiff and a little sore, but nothing out of the ordinary after a long run.   I certainly had some fuel left in the tank at the end of 15 miles.  Next week is 20 miles at Marathon Pace, so we'll see how that goes.  So, I am optimistic...

Everyone out there running Chicago... Good Luck and get ready for it!  I am jealous... Be safe, smart and fast!!!

Day for Atonement

Today is Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. I am not Jewish, but living in new York always makes one contemplate Jewish holidays and today was no exception.

It was an unusual weekend. Another crushing week of work, family and client obligations all conspired to limit me to only one run, on Monday. I had decided to run long on Saturday, but Friday rolled around and at the end of the week, ended up having drinks with friends. Running Saturday was out. And Saturday was the homecoming football game, a tailgate and friends. Running Sunday was out. And Saturday I think I consumed more calories than any day in 2009. Pizza, fried chicken, cocktails, chips and beer. Mmmm. When you let go, you let go. When I was on my diet, I was so fastidious that I ate nothing bad for me. Nothing. It was like being an alcoholic and staying sober by refusing to drink. But now that I am training, and not trying to lose weight, little holes in the dyke of resolve have appeared.

And another thing: committing to training and really pushing hard require a great deal of mental focus and commitment. When I am working hard, it is very, very difficult to maintain that focus in running. It is very hard to maintain that intensity in the gym or running when I leave the office. Eh, so this week was hard.

Anyways. It is basically a three day weekend around here because of Yom Kippur. School is closed. Work is about half full. And so I decided to come in late this morning. I got up this morning and ran 15 miles to atone for lazy weekend. All in all a pretty decent workout. First half was difficult -- just didn't feel perfect. And then had some Gatorade and a gel at the 8 mile mark, hit the bathroom, and second half was much, much smoother. Ended up doing 15.25 miles in 2:03, for average pace of 8:07.

But I am getting worried. I need to run more than twice a week. Hopefully, work will allow me to at least get out and exercise so I can maintain my cardio, even if I can;t do all the FIRST workouts. On one level I am stoic: My marathon time is what it will be. But I want to finish training on a strong note so that I feel confident come November 1.

15 Miles, Accidentally

This was a long week of work. I didn't get a chance to run Wednesday, Thursday or Friday. I kind of had my eye on the Queens Half Marathon on Sunday, but logistics to and from were killing me. The race begins and ends on College Point in Queens, a very picturesque spot. But that is far from the subway, train or bus. And parking is a nightmare. NYRR had buses, but you to be at NYRR in the city by 5 a.m. -- which meant like a 4 a.m wake up for me. Ummm, no way that was happening. If was going, I was was going to have to drive and hope. And its on a Sunday, and I don't like to run long on Sunday -- I like to enjoy my Saturdays during college football season. Already thinking about the beer and chips during Florida/Tennessee. So, I was unsure if that was going to happen. That left me running long on Saturday, but Friday night happy hour/dinner crushed that. I am no fan of drinking and running, so I slept in. Saturday I was trying to summon the courage not to drink and just get up and run long around here Sunday morning.

Saturday, though, was beautiful here. First really Fall day. Temp in sixties, sunny and bright. A great day to run. So after errands, I decided to blow off the first half of Florida/Tennessee and go run. And what a run it was. Fast, felt great and just ZOOM. I had it in my mind I could run my normal route twice if I felt good and maybe get in 14 miles. But I hadn't planned on running, so I had no water or gel on my route. I felt great and decided not only to go twice, but three times to run the 20 I gave up on last week. Loop 1 was in can and really fast -- averaged sub 8 minutes. Stopped at the end of one loop (7 miles), got water and a gel and went out again. Another super fast loop, again sub 8 pace. I was hoping for 8:30 pace, but just felt great. And I still had remnants of alcohol in me, with terrible sleep in the middle. And I hadn't eaten right or planned on this run at all. I had to stop at 15 miles because I ran out of time and had family obligations. But what a run it was. I did miss the Florida/Tennessee game, but got to see end of USC/Washington..which was much more exciting. All in all, worked out well: a great run, ended up with no beers in the afternoon, and a make up for my blown 20 last week.

And no, I am not going to get up and run the Queens half. Enough is enough and I got my miles in!

I suppose sometimes the best runs are those we don't overplan and overthink.

Distance Time Split time Elev. chg.
1.00 0:07:35 7:35 -26
2.00 0:15:37 8:02 +28
3.00 0:23:21 7:43 -43
4.00 0:31:02 7:41 +36
5.00 0:38:34 7:31 -109
6.00 0:46:47 8:13 +14
7.00 0:54:41 7:54 +23
8.00 1:02:37 7:56 +36
9.00 1:10:48 8:11 +56
10.00 1:18:35 7:47 -29
11.00 1:26:25 7:48 +5
12.00 1:34:12 7:47 -68
13.00 1:42:25 8:13 +90
14.00 1:50:06 7:41 -127
15.00 1:58:28 8:21 +84
15.06 1:58:55 0:27 -26

20 Miles Fueled by Taco Bell...Not

Before I embarked on my long run, I had already thought about what I was going to post. Friday I had a business trip and ended up getting stuck in an airport for about 5 hours to get home. Thankfully I was in the airport club, so not a bad place to be.. and free drinks! But I didn't touch one because I knew I was running the next morning. That was hard. Finally got home about midnight, and set alarm for 6:30 to get up and go. My Garmin also died suddenly - battery completely drained, so I had to make some strange arrangements to get my charger, which was in my office.

Anyway I had to eat dinner in the airport Friday night. My choices were a pizza from Sbarro, a Philly cheesteak or Taco Bell. Taco Bell had a big sign promoting their healthy choices -- basically the soft chicken fresca taco. OK, 190 calories, 6 grams of fat. It is chicken, a tortilla, lettuce and tomato. And Salsa and some kind of sauce. OK, give me 3. Tasted great, too. I kind of chuckled that would be last meal before my run.

In New York, the reason my flight was delayed was because of the terrible weather. It had rained all day Friday and was forecast to rain all Saturday too. That's Ok I have run before in the rain -- anyone living in New York this summer has. I thought about running on my treadmill, but I had been inside all week and just wanted to be outside. So outside I would go.

6:30 came early, but I got up, ate a slice of bread and away I went. First bad thing: Garmin had reset itself -- it had died, and all data lost. My profile, previous run, all of my settings, everything gone. Thankfully I had uploaded all my data so I didn't lose any data, but everything else had to be reset -- my profile (male, DOB, weight, etc.); my screens showing time, pace, etc.; Auto Scroll on/adjust senstivity, etc. Ugh.

And it was raining. Not drizzling, not misting -- rain. Yuck. Streets were also flooded, but not so bad. I actually looked at the weather and radar showed no major storms so I thought it would pass. It didn't. Off into the rain I went.

I felt bad, but struggled for several miles. And then it hit. A cramp in my stomach turned into an absolute I have to go to the bathroom NOW feeling. And not the kind you can duck into the woods and take care of. I had to find a bathroom soon, like immediately. I was running a series of loops, but I was at the exact opposite end of my loop from my home, so I would be back by my house in 3 miles or so. I tried to hang in there. Nope. I had to go. And I had to stop running -- just too much and made the feeling slightly less intense. Thankfully, my course also took me around by our tennis club, and I made an emergency 7:00 am pit stop, literally dripping wet, to the amazement of the cleaning crew. I just barely made it.

That feeling sucks, btw. It makes your gut just ache. And I knew it causes dehydration too. And it was 100% humidity. So I packed it in. I ran home and called it a day. 6 miles, I have no idea what pace. I'll just skip this run. No way am I going to suffer over 15 miles more in humidity, risk serious dehydration to run a 20 miler ..in the driving rain!

Thatis the first time I have ever bailed on a run before -- I may not make my goal pace, but always get to the end.

I have had this GI issue happen once before in my first long training run for my first marathon. I thought I would die. But I got over it, and it never happened again..until Saturday. Looking back on my sleep, hydration, etc., it was all ok. Why could it have come back? Umm, then I remebered...Taco Bell for dinner? What was I thinking?

Last Summer run...

Labor Day has come and gone, and just like the seasons, a new school year, a new fall, a new season have come.

We were in Florida over the long weekend, and let me tell ya, it is hot down there. Nothing like what it has been in summers past, but still, 92 and humidity still feels awfully hot after the mild summer we have had here. In fact, it was very strange getting off the plane back in New York and feeling ... fall. The temperature in NY is now in the low 70s. So much cooler than Florida. And, if you watch the US Open night matches, the people in the stands are freezing. I ran once in Florida. That was the product of running on both the day I left to go to Florida and the day I got back (Labor Day), but neither day in Florida.

So Saturday, I ran 18 miles in Florida Saturday. I started at 7 a.m and finished about 9:45. Ended up finishing 18.24 in 2:32 for 8:14 average pace. Splits are below, and I ended up running the second half faster than the first. But heart rate was higher too. The sun was really bright and it was getting hot (83?) by the time I finished. I wouldn't want to start any later in the day. As I was coming home, feeling pretty good, this guy in triathlon gear was jogging the other way. He was serious, hard core, and absolutely flying. Waved and smiled at him, and he did the same. One thing about running near the beach in Florida -- people with boat trailers! I hope they realize that the boats are wider than the cars. Can get kindof scary seeing these boats come whizzing by...

One thing I did to prepare was to hide water along my route the night before my run. I had an out and back route, so I hid water at 5 different places along my route, and ended up with 10 water stops along the way. That helped tremendously, not only because of the hydration, but also because it broke my run up into small segments. I was constantly focusing on the next water stop ... where did I hide it again? Did someone see the water and, thinking it was trash, throw it away? (That happened to one of them.) It was a really positive run though, and glad I pushed through the heat to make it.

I formed a couple of conclusions, too. The Nike LunarTrainer experiment is over. They are kinda cool shoes, but for me, just not practical for long training. I have now run about 100 miles in them, and have decided they are nice for short distances, but not long ones. I wore them on this Florida long run, and finished with a massive blister on the side of my big toe, and a blister on the end of my second toe also. Today, when I ran at home in New York, I ran in my Gel Kayanos, and it felt so much better. Like meeting up with an old friend for lunch.

Second, I like using Gatorade Endurance for long runs. I have a bunch of Accelerade thanks to a sale at GNC, but I really like the Gatorade Endurance better. It is smoother, doesn't have any aftertaste or funky smell (I find Accelerade has this bad smell), and just goes down easily.

And anyone who hates Tim Tebow should read the profile of him in this month's GQ. If you don't like him after that, then I don't know who you would like. An admirable young man for sure.



Time Distance Split time Elev. chg.
0:08:03 1.00 8:03 -6
0:16:30 2.00 8:26 -2
0:24:48 3.00 8:18 +29
0:33:02 4.00 8:14 -14
0:41:16 5.00 8:12 +23
0:49:38 6.00 8:22 -1
0:58:02 7.00 8:23 -7
1:06:25 8.00 8:22 +17
1:14:44 9.00 8:18 -21
1:22:45 10.00 8:00 -10
1:30:49 11.00 8:03 -21
1:38:52 12.00 8:00 -5
1:46:59 13.00 8:07 -8
1:55:05 14.00 8:04 +28
2:03:12 15.00 8:06 +3
2:11:21 16.00 8:08 +11
2:19:29 17.00 8:08 -23
2:27:42 18.00 8:11 -5
2:30:58 18.41 3:16 +13
2:30:59 18.41 0:01 +0

14 Miles In the Soup

There are some days when I never want the run to end and wish it was marathon day. There are other days when I think I don't think I could run a 5K and wish I had stayed in bed. Saturday was the latter for me.

Saturday morning came early for me, 6:20 a.m. to be exact. It had rained the night before, and puddles remained everywhere. I glanced at my blackberry for the weather: 74 degrees, 100 percent humidity, showers. Great. I had decided on my route. A few hills, and totaling around 14.5 miles, and goal pace was 8:30. And it was going to be a rainy, humid slog. I had nearly a half gallon of water ready, and off I went.

Wikipedia says this about humidity:

"The human body sheds heat by a combination of evaporation of perspiration, heat convection in the surrounding air, and thermal radiation. Under conditions of high humidity, the evaporation of sweat from the skin is decreased and the body's efforts to maintain an acceptable body temperature may be significantly impaired. Also, if the atmosphere is as warm as or warmer than the skin during times of high humidity, blood brought to the body surface cannot shed heat by conduction to the air, and a condition called hyperpyrexia results. With so much blood going to the external surface of the body, relatively less goes to the active muscles, the brain, and other internal organs. Physical strength declines and fatigue occurs sooner than it would otherwise. Alertness and mental capacity also may be affected. This resulting condition is called heat stroke or hyperthermia."

OK, I didn't get heat stroke, nor was I very close to it. But it started raining, drizzling really, almost as soon as I started. My glasses instantly fogged up, and I was drenched. My shoes and socks were squishing with each step. My hat was dripping water and sweat. And after it stopped raining (after mile 3 or so), it was just wet and humid. And it was tough. The first 5 miles went pretty easily, and I felt OK. But after that, it just turned into a gritty run, even though that was the flat part of my course. I drank all of my water and then some. I carried a small bottle with me at all times and had to carry another for part of the way. Carrying a water bottle in my hand is not ideal because it kind of throws me off balance, but I had to do it.

I ended up going 14.25 miles at average 8:18 pace. That was faster than my goal and it was too fast. My heart rate was way, way, too high towards the end (spiked to 90%). But I just couldn't get it down to lower levels. I had decided, though, that if my heart rate remained over 170 consistently and if I couldn't work it down by slowing the pace, I was going to stop and walk. But, every time I saw it spike to 170 (roughly 90%), I slowed and it came down. I stopped frequently to drink my water and Gatorade. I had to stop several times to avoid downed trees and cross several partly flooded roads. I stepped in too many puddles to count. When I hit mile 14 (my kind of internal goal), I almost just stopped in my tracks, even though I was a couple hundred yards from home.

When I made it home, I was wet and tired. Thirsty, too. My shoes still aren't dry 36 hours later. I was wiped out all day. I didn't get a nap in, and I was just beat. I hope it pays off later. I don't know how all you coastal runners do it, and my hat is off to you.

Time Distance Split time Elev. chg. Avg. HR
0:08:15 1.00 8:15 +70 144 (78%)
0:16:16 2.00 8:01 +75 153 (83%)
0:24:19 3.00 8:03 -59 158 (85%)
0:32:26 4.00 8:06 -64 159 (86%)
0:41:00 5.00 8:33 +85 159 (86%)
0:49:21 6.00 8:20 +44 163 (88%)
0:57:37 7.00 8:16 -43 165 (89%)
1:06:01 8.00 8:24 +38 164 (89%)
1:14:23 9.00 8:21 +109 166 (90%)
1:22:40 10.00 8:17 -151 164 (89%)
1:30:49 11.00 8:09 -24 166 (90%)
1:39:10 12.00 8:20 -65 166 (90%)
1:47:23 13.00 8:13 +23 169 (91%)
1:56:13 14.00 8:50 +38 170 (92%)
1:56:23 14.01 0:09 +2 168 (91%)

Look Homeward, Angel

Asheville, North Carolina is a beautiful place. Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge mountains, it has an eclectic, eccentric, artsy vibe. That, and it has a beautiful natural woody, mountainous setting. Hometown son Thomas Wolfe was captivated by a statue in a cemetery in nearby Hendersonville, NC, and wrote "Look Homeward Angel," an American epic about life and family. This is the angel that captivated Wolfe:

I stopped and saw the angel last year when we were down this way, and honestly, it didn't do much for me. Yes, it is pretty, but there are many, many statues that have grabbed me much more. In fact if it wasn't "Wolfe's angel," I am not sure I would have given it a second look. But it did enrapture Wolfe and inspire him to write an epic.

My Asheville epic was an 18 mile run. In addition to being the home of Thomas Wolfe, Asheville is also where Biltmore is located. Biltmore was built by George Washington Vanderbilt II in the 1880s as a grandiose American palace, and it is beautiful. In 1916, after a ruinous flood, to reduce maintenance and taxes, a large hilly plot of land next to Biltmore was sold to developers and became the town of Biltmore Forest. Biltmore Forest is beautiful, and located in rolling, wooded hills. Grand mansions and estates line Biltmore Forest's winding, hilly streets tucked around a Donald Ross golf course.

It was also where I ran my 18 miles yesterday afternoon. It was a difficult, hard run. In addition to its beauty, Asheville is at 2500 feet above sea level. Not Colorado, but still nearly half a mile higher than Central Park. It was not terribly hot (maybe 70 degrees?), but it was really humid. And, have I mentioned hills yet? Mountains? My Garmin had my run with a total an elevation climb of 6,500 feet. That is probablly way too much, but even if it was half that, wow. Wow. It was always up, down, up, down. So much so that there was basically no flat land. None. And I couldn't enjoy a downhill, because I knew I'd be going right back up shortly. But it was a gorgeous run in a gorgeous place.

And, in contrast to my last post, even the golfers on the course waved at me as I went by.

Ended up going 18.42 at average pace of 8:28. If last week's 20 miler was "easy", this was a hard 18. Super hard. As hard as a run I've had in years.Ii had to stop and walk a couple times, and really, really watch my fluids. The little town has a town hall, and I stopped to use their water fountain when I ran out of water, and I had brought nearly 40 ounces with me. (The town hall people were also super nice to me (even the police) and must have thought I was certifiably insane. I was dripping with sweat when I would stop and pop in their little town hall to use the water fountain, and they saw me running for hours up and down the hills on this bright sunny day.) It was just a difficult run, period. But 5 weeks of training are down, 11 to go until New York. Splits below, with a couple of distortions from water breaks and the like, and the elevation gain and loss really doesn't tell the story because of all the up and down (the gain in the chart is net over the split, so if you climb 100 feet then descend 100 feet in the split, your gain is zero in this chart.).

If you are ever in Asheville, my advice: skip the angel, and get ready to run.

Time Distance Split time Elev. chg. Split pace
0:04:12 0.50 4:12 +128 8:25
0:08:11 1.00 3:59 +33 7:58
0:12:13 1.50 4:02 +81 8:04
0:16:33 2.00 4:19 +4 8:39
0:20:27 2.50 3:54 -78 7:50
0:24:32 3.00 4:04 +34 8:09
0:28:40 3.50 4:08 +64 8:17
0:32:55 4.00 4:14 -33 8:30
0:37:13 4.50 4:17 -32 8:36
0:41:36 5.00 4:23 -30 8:46
0:46:08 5.50 4:32 -50 9:05
0:50:24 6.00 4:15 +126 8:31
0:54:37 6.50 4:13 -48 8:27
0:58:38 7.00 4:01 -157 8:02
1:02:52 7.50 4:14 +73 8:28
1:07:12 8.00 4:19 +63 8:40
1:11:27 8.50 4:14 +58 8:29
1:15:33 9.00 4:06 -63 8:12
1:19:27 9.50 3:54 +21 7:49
1:24:05 10.00 4:37 +12 9:15
1:28:32 10.50 4:26 +54 8:54
1:32:38 11.00 4:05 -56 8:12
1:36:47 11.50 4:08 -76 8:18
1:41:07 12.00 4:20 +123 8:40
1:45:09 12.50 4:02 -58 8:05
1:49:29 13.00 4:20 +75 8:40
1:53:21 13.50 3:51 -78 7:44
1:58:36 14.00 5:14 -54 10:29
2:02:52 14.50 4:16 -34 8:33
2:06:41 15.00 3:48 -47 7:36
2:11:08 15.50 4:27 +92 8:54
2:15:32 16.00 4:24 +89 8:49
2:20:29 16.50 4:56 -47 9:53
2:24:39 17.00 4:10 -17 8:22
2:28:54 17.50 4:14 +16 8:29
2:32:48 18.00 3:54 -119 7:49
2:35:56 18.41 3:07 -93 7:39

In Look Homeward Angel, this is how Wolfe described the angel that stood for years on the porch of his father's tombstone shop.

"No one knew how fond he was of the angel. Publicly he called it his White Elephant. He cursed it and said he had been a fool to order it. For six years it had stood on the porch, weathering, in all the wind and the rain. It was now brown and fly-specked. But it came from Carrara in Italy, and it held a stone lily delicately in one hand. The other hand was lifted in benediction, it was poised clumsily upon the ball of one phthisic foot, and its stupid white face wore the look of some soft stone idiocy." -- Look Homeward, Angel (1929)