Before & After
My teeth actually are the same color…
Last night, a chip from my front tooth fell out. (My wife jokingly called me Mr. Pumpkin!)
Less than 24 hours later, a trip to the dentist, and I’ve been reset!
Thanks Dr. Potts, YOU ROCK!
Training Journal – 10/25/12:
My mom would have turned 80 today. Wow, 80.
I miss her terribly. As I’ve written before, I have a folder on my laptop called “scans” – I took a look at it today and smiled and remembered my mom.
One photo that caught my eye today was the one above. We went camping a lot when I was young – often by a lake or river. I remember we each had our own tire tube – including mom who WAS NOT a swimmer.
There were two sureties about any photo of my mom in the water: 1) she was always touching the bottom with at least one foot and 2) she was always facing the shore. Certain male children who are known to enjoy running and blog quite often would make attempts to ease her away from the shore (all in the name of fun), only to come to their senses in very short order…
She loved to float in her tube. Yes, her tube; you see, it was personalized with the words “Morning Glory” in it. I can visualize all of us having such a great time and her laughing and nervously calling out, “Den-nus, stop! Den-nus, stop!” or “Rudy! Rudy! Rudy!” to my dad (which she was known to do quite often.) You see, she lived with a bunch of people who loved to tease each other…
Such good times. Such wonderfully cherished memories.
Happy birthday, mom…you are loved and missed.
Training Journal – 10/24/12:
As usual, when I got up this morning for my run (0400!), I looked out the window. It’s part of the process…
What did I see: wet pavement, partly cloudy skies, and a light rain.
I weighed my options:
Of course, I went with option three – throwing on my trusty running rain jacket and my older pair of Kinvara 3s.
Sometimes Ya Just Gotta Go…
The best part was that by mile 2 of my planned 5, the skies cleared!
Booyah!
Training Journal – 10/23/12:
Training Journal – 10/22/12:
This morning, I ran my longest distance yet: 20.08 miles. This was the first of two planned 20 mile runs on my Honolulu Marathon training program (which is based on the Higdon Intermediate 1 Plan.)
I forced myself to keep it slower than normal, targeting between an 8:45 and 9:00 pace. I was pretty successful, ending up with an 8:51 pace (which included a stop at a 7/11 for a water/GU mix refill.) Average pace for the final 5 miles was 8:34, with mile 20 at 8:25.
Total running time was 2:57:47, equating to about 2300 calories burned.
The legs were tired after I got home, though I wasn’t exhausted. I could have definitely gone another 6.2, but that’s being saved for December 9!
Training Journal – 10/21/12:
Weekly mileage: 10/15-21/12:
Sunset Silhouette, downtown St. Petersburg
Training Journal – 10/20/12:
Some photos from my after-dinner walk last night in St. Petersburg…
North Yacht Basin from Bayshore Drive
Panorama of North Yacht Basin from Bayshore Drive
Awesome cloud formation
Tampa Bay at sunset
Downtown at sunset
Movie night at Straub Park
I didn’t watch…had to pack.
Training Journal – 10/19/12:
This past Sunday, I ran the 2012 edition of the U Can Finish 5 mile & 2 mile race in Orlando, FL. Yes, Orlando. I had to travel there for business and, since I needed to travel on Saturday for a Sunday PM meeting, I checked the web for Sunday morning races in the area and found this one! I thought, “why not!” So, after checking with the organizer to make sure it was open to “out of towners”, I registered.
The race, held at the University of Central Florida and organized by a running store called Track Shack, was actually three races in one event: a 5 mile, a 2 mile, and a combined time of the two called the “Distance Dare.” They timed the 5 & 2 distances so people could run both – the 5, then the 2 mile. Finishers of the “Distance Dare” got a special medal. They also had a few races for kids as well. The overall event drew a good crowd: 1,385 for the 5 mile, 831 for the 2 mile, and 417 runners took the “Distance Dare.”
The weather was nice and clear. The announcer kept saying that the weather was cooler for this race; but, that is relative. Being from California, “cooler” to a Floridian is a lot different than someone from the San Francisco Bay Area! Still, it was good running weather.
I think I cried off at least a pound!
The course was flat and made its way through the central part of the UCF campus. There was a slight breeze on most of the course, though running through several of the quads was pretty stifling because of the close buildings or covered walkways. They had a great amount of volunteers staffing the course making sure people didn’t take wrong turns and, at the same time, cheering everyone on. Because of the course’s layout, I saw many families at multiple points on the course cheering on their runners…which was pretty cool!
The finish line had a great supply of water, bananas, sports drink, and such; as well as a few vendors. They also had a VIP option (for a few extra dollars) that had better food options as well. I hung out for a bit, but left to go back to the hotel…and escape the heat!
The U Can Finish was a great race. It is actually part of a whole series of races put on by the Track Shack and supporting sponsors. From the looks of their website and the draw at the race, they know how to put on a great event.
My Race
Results:
I’m happy with my times! Just over an 8 minute pace for the 5 mile and just under 8 for the 2 – I’m not gonna complain! My splits for both distances were negative, so I’m happy with that – since it means I was pacing slower at the start as I need to do better at all around (based on my last two races.)
Not one to take too many photos during races, here are a few from the race:
Start crowd for the 5 mile race
Start line for the 2 mile (“let’s git dis ting started!”)
I didn’t intentionally cover up the “t”… 😉
Finished! (get me to an air-conditioned environ!)
Bib, shirt, & bling!
Did you catch the “UCF” race name & location tie-in?
Pre-race & race-day fuel: Since I was on travel and these were not long distances, I didn’t do any carb load or specific pre-race nutrition. I did eat a pack of GU Chomps and drank 20oz of GU Brew during both races.
Wrap-Up
Bottom line: It was a blast to run, though I prefer California weather conditions. Having said that, I bet the weather for the Honolulu marathon will be similar…
Post-race meal: After the race, I ended up eating a Panda Bowl and heading back to the hotel…only to then head out for my planned, Monday, long run of 18 miles. I was pretty drained after that (running 25.38 miles total in upwards of 85-degree weather) and ended up having my “fun” post-race meal that evening – the special at Cracker Barrel:
Giddy-Up!
Training Journal – 10/18/12:
One guess: Which roll presentation is from the Ritz-Carlton & which is from the Hampton Inn?
Coming tomorrow: U Can Finish race report
Training Journal – 10/17/12:
Training Journal – 10/16/12:
DENNARR(dot)COM 