In Tomball most of the day

I spent most of the day at Tomball Ford trying to buy a new truck.  We finally made a deal late this evening and they are suppose to deliver the truck to me in Huntsville tomorrow afternoon.  I made it to the track about 10 tonight and ran laps.  I felt like I was fully recovered from the 10-mile race yesterday, but I was not mentally ready for a long run tonight.

Texas 10 Series, Katy

I was so sleepy last night, I forgot to post.  I left at 5 a.m. yesterday to drive down to Katy (west of Houston) for the Texas 10 Series, Katy 10-mile race.  It was a 2-loop 5-mile course, all on concrete streets.  As expected, it was well-organized and a first class race.  However, the humidity was brutal and I ran slower than expected.  The last 10-mile race in the same series was in Huntsville.  I finished that in 2:05 something.  Yesterday, my time was 2:21:24.  In any case, it was good for 2nd place in the 70 and over.  I got beat by a young 70 year old.  The next race in the series is in Waco on November 3.

Bulldog Dash 5K

I drove about 40 miles over to Iola, Texas this morning to run the Bulldog Dash 5K.  Had a great time.  Got to visit with Sara, who use to run with us years ago when she was a college student at Sam Houston.  The course was flat and looped the small town.  I think they had about 50 runners and there was no age group competition.  I finished in 37:43.  After I got back to Huntsville, I took a nap and then went to the Sam Houston State - Eastern Washington football game.  Eastern Washington is ranked number 2 in the FCS and Sam Houston State is ranked number 4.  Just as I got to the stadium for the 2 p.m. start, it heavy storm came through, with plenty of lightning.  They delayed the start of the game until nearly 3:30.  There was flash flooding on the street below the stadium and at least two cars got wiped out.  I moved my truck to higher ground and waited until the game was getting ready to start.  Sam won 49 to 34.

Friday

Since it is Friday, I skipped working out at Iron Works.  Late this morning, I ran laps at the track.  Two races this weekend, 5K tomorrow and 10-Miler on Sunday.

Signed up for the Soldier Marathon

I signed up for the Soldier Marathon at Fort Benning, Georgia, to be held on November 9.  I ran this last year and enjoyed the beautiful course along the river.  I went to jump school at Fort Benning in 1967 and my wife lived there while her father was stationed there when she was young.  She has not been back since, so we will drive there and enjoy the visit.  That completes the schedule of my final marathons.
Number 97 - Tyler Rose Marathon, Oct. 13
98 - Soldier Marathon, Fort Benning, Nov. 9
99 - BCS Marathon, College Station, Dec. 8
100 - Texas Marathon, Kingwood, Jan. 1
101 - Love.Run.Marathon, Huntsville State Park, Feb. 15
In the meantime, I went out to the park this evening and ran 3 miles on the park roads.

Shorter run

After running 16 miles yesterday, I ran 1.7 miles in the avenues this evening.  The humidity was low and that felt great.

Stretching out the distance

There are two weekends before my marathon on October 13 and I am running other races or have other plans.  So, I have to do my long runs during the week.  It was 90 something this afternoon, but I went out to the park and ran 2 miles on the park roads and 14 miles on the trails, for a total of 16.  Luckily, my knee held up okay.  I found 2 lost and dehydrated ladies in the back of the park.  I gave them directions and part of my water.  I barely had enough to get back to my truck and replenish before running another loop.  I assume that they made it back okay.

Knee

My left knee was sore again today, so I ran 1.9 miles on the roads in town this evening.

Running of the Bulls 5K

I got up early this morning and drove down to Houston for the Running of the Bulls 5K at Reliant Stadium.  This is the Houston Texans annual race.  I am not sure how many runners they had, but there must have been a couple thousand.  The race started outside of the stadium and finished on the field inside the stadium.  I finished in 37:23 and was 5th of 9 in my age group.

Tyler

I ran laps this morning before driving up to Tyler for a family affair.  I ate too much and got back to Huntsville about 10 tonight.

Wet run

I thought I found a break in the rain this afternoon and went out for a run on the roads in town.  I ended up running 5.2 miles, some of it in heavy rain.  No lightning, so it was not bad.

Back to normal

With the trial over yesterday, it is good to get back to normal today.  I went to Iron Works this evening to workout, but ran into an attorney friend of mine.  We ended up talking about the trial and I only had a short workout before meeting the group at the park.  I ran 3 miles on the park roads.

Finished in court

We finished the trial a day sooner than expected.  The jury came back with their verdict after 5 this evening.  My son and I did very well and it is a relief that the 7 1/2 year old case is over with.  It was close to dark when I got a chance to run, but I got in 2 miles on the roads in town.

Long day

I was at the courthouse today from 8 a.m. until after 5 p.m.  I am not use to sitting all day, so it seemed like a long day.  I managed to get home, change clothes and get out to the park to meet the group at 6 p.m.  I ran 2 miles on the park roads.

Temporary change of focus

My son had a minor wreck while driving my truck 7 1/2 years ago and he and I got sued.  It is finally going to trial tomorrow.  I spent most of the day preparing for the trial, which is expected to last 3 days.  So, for the next few days, I will focus on the trial and not do a lot of running.  I did manage to get in a 2-mile run on the roads this evening.

Darn bikers

Darn bikers.  I went out to the park this afternoon to run trails.  I got there in the middle of a big mountain bike race.  I drove to another trailhead and ran trails that avoided most of the bike course.  I am not sure of the distance, but I ran somewhere between 4 and 5 miles.

Gruene Hall 10K

I got up yesterday and ran a quick mile on the roads in town.  Then, I drove 50 miles over to College Station with my son for a meeting.  We got back about 2:30 p.m. and then I left with my wife for a 3-hour drive to New Braunfels for the Gruene Hall 10K this morning.  Of course, I had to drive back through College Sation to get to New Braunfels.  I ran the race for the third straight year, but finished in 1:22:42.  Both previous years, I finished in 1:16.  I am not sure why my time was slower this year; I felt okay.  The course was new this year and there were probably more hills.  I think the humidity was higher than normal for that part of Texas.  In any case, I was the only one in the 70-74 age group and picked up a first place win.  We drove back to Huntsville this afternoon.

Attended a presentation

I skipped the park run this evening and attended a presentation on running by Dr. Matt Wagner at the hospital.  He is an old friend, former owner of Nautilus and a Kinesiology Professor at Sam Houston State University.  Great presentation and a lot of my friends there.  It was over about 7:30 p.m. and I had my running shorts on under my walking shorts.  So, I ran 2 miles on the sidewalk along Veterans Parkway.  No lights out there and when I finished, it was totally dark.

Back to the park

After lunch today, I went back out to the park and ran 5 miles on the park roads.  Hot.

Copperhead

I ran 3 miles on the park roads this evening.  James came up behind me and said that I just ran past a Copperhead in the road.  I never saw it.  Thank goodness I am so fast that it did not have a chance to strike.

Rain, finally

We finally got about 15 minutes of rain this evening.  It was the first rain in weeks.  After working out at Iron Works after the rain, I ran 2 miles on the streets in town.

10 Miles

Although the distance is modest, I finally got some miles in on my sore knees.  I went out to the park this afternoon when the temperature was about 95 and ran 3 miles on the park roads and then 7 miles on the trails.  No trips or falls and my knees held up okay.  They are stiff tonight, but no swelling.

No race this weekend

This is one of the few weekends of the year when I do not have a race.  My knees were really sore today, so I went over to the track this afternoon and ran laps.  There were dark cloulds, wind and lightning and it seemed like it was going to hit any minute.  Must have been a mirage.  No rain.

Between the heat and darkness

The temperature was up to 96 degrees this afternoon, so I waited until evening to run.  It was still hot and humid, but I managed to get in 4.9 miles on the roads in town before it got dark.

Cut to Two

My knee was hurting again today, so I cut my run to 2 miles at the park this evening.

Stretching out the distance

I stretched out the distance on my sore knee this evening.  I ran 3.1 miles on the roads in town without much pain.  Gosh, I need to get my distance up quick; marathon on October 13.

Good day

My knee was much better today and I ran 2 miles on the park roads with this evening without sharp pain.  This morning, I went into town to get an expensive replacement key made for my truck.  Last week, someone took my key from the fence while I was running.  I decided to check with the Huntsville PD first, but no one had turned it in there.  I checked with the University PD and they had the key!  Whoopee.  Somebody turned it in and saved me 40 or 50 bucks.

Knee treatment

My left knee was still very sore this morning.  I spent much of today icing it and treating it with Topricin.  It was improved enough this evening that I was able to get in an easy, but painful, mile at the track this evening.  Gotta keep the streak going!

Westfest Challenge 5K

My wife and I and our friend, Leah, left my house at 5 a.m. this morning for the long drive over to West (north of Waco) for the Westfest Challenge 5K.  The race starts and finishes in the middle of the Westfest.  West is the small town that had the fertilizer plant explosion last April that killed 15 people.  It is a community of Chech people.  I finished in 38:42 and was third of six in the 70 and over age group.  Leah was second in her age group.  After the race, we attended a Polka Mass in a pavillion at the festival.  It is a regular Catholic Mass, except the music is provided by a polka band.  We have never been to a Polka Mass before and the music was most enjoyable.  During the last mile of the race, I developed pain and swelling in my left knee.  When I got home, I took a nap with an ice pack around the knee.  I intended to drive down to The Woodlands this evening for the Sunday Night 5K.  I had to go down and meet my son to give him something, so I went down to the race.  There was no way I could run, but I was there to support two other club members running the race, including Leah.  Hopefully, a good night's sleep tonight will help the knee.