Annual Physical Today

I went in for my annual physical this afternoon. I'm okay, pending completion of all the blood work. I went straight from the doctor's office to the park to run with the group. We had a new person running with us and she only wanted to run three miles. So, we only ran three. The humidity was very high after a good rain at the park. Three was enough.

Bought an MP3 Player

Chris Wilson called me the other day to tell me about an article he had read in a magazine. The article reported on a study of runners who run while listening to music. Apparently, some music makes runners run faster. He is suppose to loan me the magazine and I will do a story on it in my Running Shorts column in the local newspaper. I have been running and racing for nearly 30 years and I have never worn headphones. I know that there are a lot of devices out there and many runners who run with headphones. However, I have seen runners wearing headphones in situations where they should not be and I think they can be outright dangerous. I remember going to the track at 11:30 at night to run and seeing a girl walking on the track all by herself wearing headphones. Or, people running with traffic on the streets. Mariah Reynolds and I were running trails last week and she told me everything I needed to know about what is available. I bought an MP3 player today. I surprized non-technical self and was able to load some music on it. Now, when do I use it? When I'm running trails, I like to know what is going on around me. Also, I fall once in a while and I would surely break it. When running a marathon with a lot of runners, I like to interact with others and sometimes watch for traffic. Then, I think about the upcoming Marathon 2 Marathon on October 16. We will be running along Highway 90 from Alpine to Marathon, Texas. This is a remote area of southwest Texas and from what I can see on Google Earth, there are no buildings or intersections for the entire 26.2 miles. Also, it is a small race and I can see myself out there by alone for a long time; it may get a little boring. Surely, I will wearing the MP3 player for that race. Maybe for the Surfside Beach Marathon in February, also.
In the meantime, I ran 3 miles on the roads in town this evening. With so much traffic now that school is back in session, I certainly did not use it today.

20 for the Weekend

Counting the 10K race yesterday and 13.8 miles on the trails at the park today, I got in 20 miles for the weekend. Given the heat and humidity, that will have to do.

Lake Houston 10K

Got up early this morning to get down to Kingwood (northeastern part of Houston) for the Lake Houston 10K. There were 246 finishers in the 10K and at 69, I was the oldest. Even though it was hot and humid, the course was relatively flat. I finished in 1:09:29, slightly off my 1987 PR of 49:49. Actually, it was only my 10th 10K race in the last 5 years and it was my best time in those 5 years.

Run, Beer, Run

I went out to the park this evening and ran the roads. Chris Wilson invited me to a party at the park lodge. So, I ran one mile to the lodge, had a beer at the party and then ran back to the Nature Center. At the party, I got to visit with Anne Domonoske, who use to run trails with us years ago before moving to Kansas. She is now a nurse in Houston. We shared schedules and found that she is also running the Mississippi Blues Marathon in Jackson in January.

Fall Must be Near

I ran 4.2 miles on the trails at the park this evening with the group. The low humidity makes it feel like fall is near. Except for a knee issue, running almost seemed easy.

No Sweat

While the temperature was still in the 90's today, the humidity must have been low. I ran 3 miles on the roads in town this evening and hardly broke a sweat. Dry socks and shorts for a change. Other than that, I spent most of the afternoon sanding and preparing a used VW fender for painting and taking the old fender off (see the photo from a couple days ago). I bought the used fender in College Station yesterday and ordered a new bumper and tail light assembly today.

Signed up for Marathoning for Miracles in Abilene

Today, I signed up for the Marathoning for Miracles in Abilene on October 30, which will be my fourth marathon in October. The following Saturday, I will be doing the Rocky Raccoon 50K at Huntsville State Park. That will complete the Texas Marathon Challenge (any 5 Texas marathons between October 1 and May 31) for the season. Hopefully, I will be able to do it three more times during the season.
James, a friend of mine who has been working out at Nautilus for years, finally accepted my invitation and ran trails with us this evening. He had previously gotten up to one mile on the track. I agreed to run with him this evening. He ran the first two miles and most of the third. That's good and I am sure he will be back.

Students are Back

The students are back at Sam Houston State and the traffic is heavy again. I ran a 3-mile loop in town this evening. I suppose I need to find some quieter streets for my runs in town. I keep hoping for some cooler weather, but the temperature keeps going over 100. It's hard to do long runs with my shoes full of sweat to train for a October marathon in Texas. Slosh, slosh.

Bad Day

This afternoon, my wife was backing out of the driveway and backed into my 1974 VW Bug Convertible. Besides putting a big dent in the back of her car, the back fender, tail light and bumper were wiped out on my bug. Darn. Right after it happened, I went to the park this evening (in my truck) and ran 7 miles on the trails and another 3 on the roads.

Heat Wave 5K

I ran the Heat Wave 5K in Huntsville this morning. At about 2 miles, my right hamstring started hurting and I assume it was from the fall on Thursday. After a quarter mile or so, it eased up and I finished okay. My time was 34:33. After the race, I joined Ben Harvie, Pam Smithwick, True and Esther Cousins and Barbara Chenette at the Cafe Texan for breakfast. We had a good time. While there, a classmate of mine from Tyler HS Class of 59 came in. She was down from Tyler to get her grand daughter enrolled at Sam Houston. That was a nice surprize; I had not seen her since the last class reunion. Later this afternoon, Marilynn and our son, Ben, drove up to Lake Palestine near Tyler for a family get-together at my nephew's lake house. Just got back.

Recovery Run

I still had some body parts sore from the hard fall at the park yesterday, so I went to the track this afternoon and ran laps. 5K race tomorrow morning; I think I'll be okay, but no PR.

Hard Fall

I took a hard fall while running trails at the park this evening - first time I have fallen in a long time. Darn root. I was about a mile into the run and landed on my right knee and hip. Running was painful and I started to take a shortcut back, but went ahead and completed the 4.2-mile loop - slowly. Rather than ice it, I had a cold beer after the run. It feels better now.

Laps in the Rain

After working out at Nautilus this evening, I went over to the track and ran laps in the rain.

Signed up for USA Fit Marathon

I signed up for the USA Fit Marathon in Sugar Land (near Houston) on January 16. I think it will fill up fast with all the runners not selected by the Houston Marathon lottery system. That will give me three marathons in January, good training for the 50-miler on February 5.
This evening, I met up with the group at the park and ran 4.2 miles on the trails.

Rain, Finally

We finally got rain today, the first in nearly a month. I sat on the back porch and watched every drop come down. Now, I will have to mow the grass again in a few days.
I worked out at Nautilus this evening and then did a 3-mile run on the roads in town. Even though the rain cooled things off a bit, it was still hot and humid.

10 Miles in 105 Heat Index

I met up with Melissa Boone at the park this evening and ran 10 miles on the park roads. The heat index was 105 when we started. Melissa got in 6 miles on the trails before I got there and she ran 12 on the roads. I weighed 197 when I left the house to run. I drank five 20 oz bottles of water at the park and a bottle of Gatorade on the way home. With all that, I weighed 196.5 when I got back home.

Run the Woodlands 5K

I went down to The Woodlands this morning and ran the twice-a-month Run the Woodlands 5K. I finished in 34:21 When I got home, I took a nap, mowed the yard and then went to the Seven Hills Running Club picnic.

This Year and Last Year

With my first marathon of the season coming up on 10/10, I have been worried about getting my distance up and doing it in the heat. Last year, I ran my first marathon (actually a 50K) on 10/31. During the period 7/1 to 8/12, I ran a total of 122.5 miles. My first training run over 10 miles was not until 9/27, just over a month before the 50K. During the period 7/1 to 8/12 this year, I ran a total of 146.3 miles, a significant increase over last year. With all that said and considered, I am not so worried about being behind in my distance training. I will find days when it is not so hot to do my longer runs. Come early September, though, I'll being doing those long runs once a week regardless of the temperature.
Today was Friday, so I skipped my workout at Nautilus and ran 3 miles on the roads in town.

Signed up for 50-Mile Run

I mailed in my entry today for the Rocky Raccoon 50-miler at Huntsville State Park on February 5, 2011. This will be a new distance for me. I figure that at least 10 marathons and 2 50K's before then will prepare me. I have been running those trails at Huntsville State Park for about 16 years, so I know them well. Besides, they give you 29 hours to finish the 50 miles. I may need most of it.
In the meantime, I ran 4.2 miles on the trails this evening with the group.

Waiting for Cooler Weather

I know that I need to be running longer distances, but it is so hot. I did my 3-mile loop around town at 6 this evening. The temperature was in the high 90's and I suppose the heat index was well over 100. I hope for cooler weather soon.

Crowd at the Park

We had a nice crowd at the park tonight. We split up by speed and distance and all finished about the same time. I did the 4.2-mile loop.

Back to Normal

It was great having family visit this weekend, but they left this morning. Then, I spent most of the day in the garage on a building project. This evening, I worked out at Nautilus and then did a 3-mile run on the roads.

Marathon Training

I visited with Melissa Boone after church this morning. She is the only other Huntsville runner signed up for the Tyler Rose Marathon on 10/10. This will be her first marathon and she is taking her training seriously and getting in some long runs. She even got in a 12-mile run on the treadmill. I don't think I could ever do that. However, I have to get in some long runs soon. It's hard to do when it is in the high 90's with high humidity. I had relatives visiting all day, but I slipped out this evening and ran 5 miles on the roads in town.

Visitors

I did yard work most of the day and then my son, George, and his family came in from Wylie for the weekend. We were all going out tonight, so George and I went to the track about 5 p.m. and ran laps. I did 2 miles.

Late Start

I did not get out for a run this evening until about 7:30 p.m. By the time old slow poke finished with a 5.3-mile run on the roads in town, it was getting pretty dark and I was not wearing anything reflective. And, people driving with cell phones stuck in their ears scare me.

Short Trail Run

The heat index was 105 when we met up at the park for a trail run this evening. We decided just to do a 3-mile trail run and then get hydrated.

Still Hot

After a relatively cool summer and lots of rain, it is really hot and dry in Huntsville. I worked out at Nautilus this evening and then ran 3 miles on the roads in town in the 6 p.m. heat.

Hot

Gosh, it was hot on the trails at the park this evening. The temperature was near 100, with high humidity. We ran 4.2 miles and I was soaked in sweat when we were done.

Marathon Plans for Season

I have been working on my marathon plans for this season (October 2010 - March 2011). Running 13 last season, including 2 in one weekend, gave me more confidence. And, I know how important the mental game is. My game plan includes marathons for 6 consecutive weekends starting October 10 and my first 50-miler in February. I am also thinking about Grandma's Marathon in Minnesota in June, right after my 70th birthday in May. I also plan to add Larry Yeagle Trail Marathon in March, if they schedule on an open weekend. In the meantime, I worked out at Nautilus this evening and then ran 3 miles on the roads in town in temperatures near 100. Here is my list (* means that I have already registered):

October 10 - Tyler Rose Marathon, Tyler, Texas*
October 16 - Marathon 2 Marathon, Alpine to Marathon, Texas*
October 23 - Frankenthon Monster Marathon, Cedar Park, Texas*
October 30 - Marathoning for Miracles, Abilene, Texas*
November 6 - Rocky Raccoon 50K (31 miles), Huntsville State Park*
November 14 - Fort Worth Marathon
December 5 - White Rock Marathon, Dallas*
December 11 - Texas Trail 50K, Huntsville State Park
January 1 - Texas Marathon, Kingwood*
January 8 - Mississippi Blues Marathon, Jackson, Mississippi
January 16 - USA Fit Marathon, Sugar Land, Texas*
January 30 - Houston Marathon*
February 5 - Rocky Raccoon 50-Miler, Huntsville State Park*
February 20 - Austin Marathon*
February 26 - Surfside Beach Marathon, Surfside Beach, Texas*
March 12 - Gusher Marathon, Beaumont, Texas
March 20 - Seabrook Trail Marathon, Seabrook, Texas

Sunday Night 5K x 2

I drove down to The Woodlands this evening to run the Sunday Night 5K (97 degrees at the start). My time was 34:33. I had so much fun running the flat course, I ran it again alone, before driving back to hilly Huntsville.