Could not resist the trails

After a trip to Conroe this afternoon to meet with a group putting on a new race in a couple of weeks and then to the doctor to get the stitches removed from my face, I went to the park to run.  I intended to run on the park roads because of my muscle pull, but could not resist getting back on the trails.  I did 2.5 miles, very carefully.  No problem.

Off the trails for now

Until I am sure that my muscle pull is healed, I am going to stay on the roads.  After Iron Works this afternoon, I went to the park and ran 2 miles on the park roads.  No problem.

Texas 10 Series Boerne

I ran laps at the track on Saturday and then drove over to Boerne, west of San Antonio to run the Texas 10 Series 10-miler this morning.  I was really worried about my pulled groin muscle and did not get much sleep at the hotel last night.  I finally got out of bed at 5 a.m., got dressed and went to the race.  I got there at 5:45 and and the race did not start until 7 a.m.  The course was relatively flat and smooth.  My injury hit me just before reaching the 7-mile marker.  I almost fell, but recovered okay.  It hurt a bit during those last 3 miles but I made it okay.  I finished in 2:09:51 and was 3rd of 3 in the 70 and over age group.  My time in this same race last year was:2:10:11, so I made a slight improvement.  What's more, I won a $100 bill in the door prize drawing.  I look a little grubby in the photo with the bandage over my stitches and no shaving for a week.

Cautious road run

I went to the park and cautiously ran 2 miles on the roads.  My pulled muscle from the half on Sunday starting hurting as I finished going up the steep hill to the finish.  Another short run tomorrow before the 10-miler on Sunday.  There will be no steep hills on Sunday, so I should be okay.

My bug is gone

I have had this 1974 VW bug convertible for nearly 20 years.  For the last few years, it has just been taking up space in my garage.  I sold it today to a local police officer.  Now I look forward to seeing it again on the streets of Huntsville.
After working out at Iron Works, I went out to the park to run trails this evening.  After a little over a mile, a groin muscle started to hurting, so much that I had to stop and walk a bit.  I finished up what has become my normal 2.5-mile loop, but walked several times when it hurt.  While it has not bothered me this week until today, I think it was a pull at the half marathon on Sunday.  When I got home this evening, I took some Ibuprohen and put heat on it.  I have a 10-mile race on Sunday, so hopefully it will be okay by then.  The next weekend, I have a 5K and a half marathon.

Back to the trails

After working out at Iron Works early this afternoon, I went to the park and ran 3 miles on the trails.

More surgery

I went down to Conroe this afternoon and had another spot removed from my face with an incision about an inch long.  At least I will not have to shave for a couple weeks.  After getting back to Huntsville, I worked out at Iron Works and then carefully ran 2.5 miles on the trails at the park.

Here it is after midnight

Here it is after midnight and I realized that I forgot to blog.  I went back to my routine.  Worked out at Iron Works and ran 2.5 miles on the trails at the park.  Nice weather.  Clear and temps in the 60's.

3M Half Marathon

I drove over to Austin yesterday (my first time there for anything for several years) to run the 3M Half Marathon is this morning.  The only other time I ran this race was on 2/1/1998, when I finished in 2:16:50.  The race is point to point, starting in north Austin and finishing in downtown near the state capitol.  Overall it is downhill and generally in a north to south direction.  It was very windy today, mostly from the northwest.  So, we were either running with a strong tailwind, crosswind or headwind.  I felt a little beat up at the finish.  The temperature was in the 50's.  My finish time was 2:53:10, which was 50 seconds faster that my last half marathon 2 weeks ago in New Braunfels.  There were over 5,000 finishers today, so it was a big race.  I finished 3rd of 6 in the 75-79 age group and received a nice trophy.  This was my 84th half marathon and 934th race.

Frost Your Fanny 5K

I ran our club's Frost Your Fanny 5K this morning and finished in 39:11.  A couple minute slower than my normal lately, but the course is very hilly.

Laps

Since it is Friday and I have a 5K in the morning and a half marathon on Sunday, I ran laps at the track this morning.

Dryer weather

Looks like the heavy rains have passed for now.  I went to the park and ran about 2 and a half miles, about half on the roads and half on the trails.

And more rain

More rain last night and much of today.  Assuming that the trails were probably muddy today, I ran 3 miles on the park roads.

Rainy day

It rained off and on all day and the temperature was in the 50's.  I ran 2.5 miles on the trails at the park this evening.  The trails are starting to get a little muddy in places.

Milestones

I have three major milestones coming up within the next year or so.  One of my goals is to run 1,000 races.  I am at 932 with 68 to go.  I ran 79 races in 2016, so I should reach my goal by next December.  Another goal is to run 101 half marathons.  I will complete this season (thru April) with 91.  That will give me 10 more in the 2017/18 season.  Tentatively, I plan to run my 101st half marathon at the Love.Run.Marathon in February 2018.  That is the race where I ran my 101st (and last) full marathon in February 2014.  The third milestone is my 50th wedding anniversary on October 28 of this year.  That falls on a Saturday, so I will run a half marathon that day.
     In the meantime, I went out to the park this afternoon and ran 3 miles on the trails.  We had a heavy rain earlier today, but there was no water or mud on the trail.  The holiday crowd has cleared out of the park and for the first time in a while, I saw no one else on the trails.

Early morning run

I had to drive up to Tyler today to visit family, so I got up early this morning and ran a little over 1-mile on Veterans Memorial Parkway.  I did not get back until late tonight.

Run the Woodlands 5K

For the 82nd time, I ran the Run the Woodlands 5K this morning.  I finished in 36:38.  After getting back to Huntsville, I went out to the park to adjust the Love.Run.Marathon course for February.  I walked about 3 miles with an engineer wheel and got it done.

Short road run

Since I have 5K in the morning, I went out to the park this afternoon and ran 2 miles on the park roads.  The warm weather continues.

Heatwave

It was 19 degrees when I ran the half marathon on Sunday.  When I went to the park this afternoon to run, it was 84 degrees.  I ran 3 miles on the trails.  My workout at Iron Works and run were earlier than normal.  We had a running club meeting, including election of officers.  I will continue to serve as the Treasurer.

Got the stitches out

Running in the morning is not my favorite thing to do, but this morning I worked out at Iron Works and then went to the park and ran 3 miles on the trails.  This afternoon, I had a doctor's appointment in Conroe to get the stitches out of my face.  The lab results confirmed that it was a cancer spot, but it was entirely removed.  Then, he found another spot on my face that need to be surgically removed.  That is scheduled for January 24.  That will be the 5th surgery on my face.  Maybe all these scars will give me a rugged look.

Same park run

After Iron Works this evening, I met up with the group and ran my usual 2.5-miles on the trails.

Routine Monday

After Iron Works, I went out to the park this evening and ran 2.5 miles on the trails.

Back to the trails

No sore spots or other problems from yesterday's half marathon in the cold.  I went out to the park this afternoon and ran 2.5 miles on the trails, my first time on the trails in a week.  The temp was in the 40's, a contrast to yesterday.

River Road Half Marathon

I drove over to New Braunfels yesterday to run the River Road Half Marathon.  According to my truck thermometer, the temperature was 19 degrees when I got to the race.  I dressed appropriately and was comfortable during the race.  I finished in 2:54:00 and was 1st of 2 in the 70 and over age group.  Received a real practical age group award - a bottle of wine.  This was my 83rd half marathon and 10th this season.

Cold laps

I went to the track this morning and ran laps.  About 31 degrees and windy.  My face is swollen below the eye from the surgery this week.  The doc said to ice it.  Guess I did it while running this morning.

Getting colder

The temperature is getting colder.  It is suppose to be in the 20's for my half marathon this Saturday.  In the meantime, I ran 2 miles on the park roads this evening.

Surgery today

I went down to Conroe late this morning to have a cancer spot cut off my face under my left eye.  The incision was at least an inch long and was closed with 12 stitches inside and 15 outside.  So, I will have a big bandage on my face for a while.  The rest of the day was routine.  I worked out at Iron Works and then ran 2 miles on the park roads.

Park roads again

I met the group at the park this evening and ran 3 miles on the park roads.

New shoes

I put on a new pair of shoes out of the box this afternoon and ran 2 miles on the state park roads.  That half marathon & 5K on concrete yesterday really did in my old shoes.

Texas Half Marathon and Sunday Night 5K

I drove down to Kingwood (northeast Houston) this morning to run the Texas Half Marathon.  It was two loops on a concrete walkway through a greenbelt.  It was relatively hot for January 1st and humid.  I was soaked in sweat when I finished.  I forgot to start my watch and they have not posted the results.  So, I'm not sure what my time was.  I may have went over 3 hours.  There was no age group competition.  When I got back to Huntsville, I showered and then went to our club 10K/5K at 2 p.m. to take a few photos for our club web site.  I left the race at 2:30 and drove down to The Woodlands and ran the Sunday Night 5K.  I finished in 38:47, a couple minutes slower than my recent 5K times.  It was a good day.  I got a chance to visit with many good friends at all three races.