A veg day today. Not really motivated to write the race report for yesterday’s race.
This came in the mail last Friday – WooHoo!
Training Journal – 5/6/12:
Number two in the books – my second “half” in seven days.
A few lessons learned this week as well. Full race report tomorrow.
i go lay down now…
Training Journal – 5/5/12:
Not much to write about today, though I did realize that this post is #800 – WooHoo!
Training Journal – 5/4/12:
One product of what you get when you cross a wannabe spreadsheet nerd, a compulsive planner, and a runner:
To do:
BTW: I also have spreadsheets for strategic vacation itinerary planning, strategic travel attire planning/packing, and a few others… [nerdy snort]
Training Journal – 5/3/12:
April was my eighth month as a runner and was full of lessons and training program refinements – to include experimenting with my diet (caloric intake/weight maintenance & pre-race carb loading) and the completion of my first half marathon!. It’s weird to think that my first Couch-to-5K workout last September was a grueling 1.53 mile run/walk at a 14.52 mile pace and last Sunday I did 13.1 at an 8:11 pace. I’m having fun and continue to learn.
Anyway, here are the stats for the month that was April 2012:
Mileage:
Pace:
Total Running Time:
Training Program(s):
Caloric Stats:
Races Completed:
Upcoming Run(s):
GIDDY-UP!
Training Journal – 5/2/I12:
The Flashback
Sunday, as I drove home from the Pleasanton Half Marathon, I had a flashback…
After I graduated from high school, I worked in Pleasanton for a short time. The job isn’t important – the flashback involves my daily “I think I can, I think I can, …” journey home in my 1971 Dodge Demon – my first car, purchased for $700 (down from the asking price of $900 due to the cracked windshield and various interior “issues.”)
Anyway, heading to San Jose on Interstate 680 South, there’s a section called the Sunol Grade that took its toll on my nerves each day – again, in my 1971 Dodge Demon: equipped with its slant six, 225 engine, Non-synchronous, three-on-the-tree transmission, baby moon hub caps, and probably the third front bench seat I’d swapped out from a local junk yard for a nominal price and significant sweat/effort.
You see, planning strategy was everything:
Ah, the good old days…
The First
I can say with about a 98% confidence level that this morning was the first time I’ve worn dayglow neon…
Training Journal – 5/1/12:
This past Sunday I ran the inaugural Pleasanton Half Marathon – which happened to also be my “inaugural” half marathon as well. When I saw the ad for the race, I thought it would be cool to make it my first. The race benefited the Pleasanton Partnerships in Education (PPIE), a community organization that supports local public schools. They also held a 5k “fund” run that started about 30 minutes after the half marathon – it looked like there were quite a few participants in that race as well. The event is part of the California Running series, which includes two other events: The NORCAL Marathon & Half and the Morgan Hill Marathon & Half.
The course was a flat one that looped through several sections of Pleasanton, including neighborhoods, industrial areas, a portion of the Alameda County Fairgrounds, part of their downtown, and about 4 miles of trails. The course was well marked and there was plenty of volunteers and police to control traffic and manage the course. Some of the community even turned out to cheer! The weather was excellent.
The post-race expo was really nice, hosting a variety of vendors, other organizations, and food. My favorite SWAG item was the free samples of Wrips Wipes. They actually work pretty good and I ended up buying a box. They had a band playing and people hung out for a while enjoying the weather and community.
All in all, a great inaugural event and one that I think will grow in popularity. Hats off to the Racemine, South Valley Endurance, the City of Pleasanton, and the tons of volunteers who made the event a great success.
The bummer next year will be if the race is scheduled for the same weekend – my goal is to run the Big Sur Marathon in 2013…
My Race
FYI: this is a long post – mostly for me to record what I did… So, here we go
Did my first half marathon this morning in Pleasanton! Extremely pleased with my results – did better than my plan!
Full race report tomorrow… Early morning + 13.1 + celebrating my in-law’s 57th anniversary = Tired me!
shhhh…don’t tell the SF 1st Half – it was supposed to be my first.
Training Journal – 4/28/I12:
…sorry, I meant “carbing.”
Training Journal – 4/27/I12:
DENNARR(dot)COM 