Tapering Time

It was back to the park this evening. After a quick workout at Nautilus, I went out to the park and ran 4.2 miles on the trails with Hans, John, Ron and a new guy, Jason. The trails are really in good shape after the recent rains. I suppose it is time to start tapering for the Bataan Death March Memorial Marathon in New Mexico on March 29. That's one thing about running another marathon in two weeks, it is not necessary to do a long boring training run.

Recovery Day

Except for a sore right knee, I felt okay by later today. I did a 2.5 mile loop on the trails at the park this evening. After my run, I ran into Curtis and Phillip. We visited for a while and talked about running and stuff.

Seabrook Lucky Trail Marathon

I drove down to Seabrook yesterday afternoon for the Seabrook Lucky Trail Marathon today. The starting time was 7:15 this morning (too early). The course is a flat crushed rock trail, mostly along the bayous in Seabrook. It is a 6.55-mile course and you run it 4 times for the full marathon. It was overcast for the whole marathon and the temperature I suppose in the low 50's. Not bad at all. Jon Walk from the Seven Hills Running Club was there as the race announcer and no one else from the club ran. I finished in 5:50:15. Lately, getting under 6 hours is always a goal. So, I'll take it. With the completion of this race, I also received the Texas Marathon Triple jacket for the second year in a row. It requires completion of the Texas Marathon in Kingwood in January, the Surfside Beach Marathon in February and Seabrook in March.

Resting Up

I am resting today and tomorrow for the Seabrook Marathon on Sunday. It was cold and raining late this afternoon, so I went to Nautilus and ran one mile + on the treadmill. That's the first time I've done that in over a year. I could not imagine running distance on a treadmill. I have to get out and dodge traffic and trip over roots on the trails

No More Sunmart

The Sunmart web site officially announces that the Sunmart Texas Trail Endurance Run at the Huntsville State Park will no longer be held. That's bad news. The race has been held for the last 19 years and I have done it for the last 13. Speaking of the park, Lavonne and I ran a 5-mile loop at the park this evening. Even with the recent rain, the trails were in good shape. Curtis and Phillip were finishing up their run when Lavonne and I arrived.

Avenues 5K

Thank goodness the rain today washed some of the pollen away. My head is still stopped up, but I did not do all the sneezing and coughing. Norman and I ran the Avenues 5K this evening.

Large Group on the Trails

Seems like everybody showed up for a trail run this evening at the park. We did the 4.2 mile loop. Norman and I ran together. I felt fine, except for my sinus problem. Hopefully, the rain tomorrow will wash away the pollen. I sure want to clear up my sinuses before the marathon on Sunday.

Texas Independence Relay Report

My van-mates, Gary Kunkel of College Station, me, Natali Davis of Huntsville, Kori Estrada of Lufkin, Norman Langwell of Huntsville and Pat Morein of The Woodlands.

I got up at 2 a.m. on Saturday and drove down to Spring with Norman Langwell, Adrienne Langelier, Natali Davis and Melissa Stelter to meet up with our team leader, Jon Walk. We left his house in a van and drove down to Gonzales for the start of the Texas Independence Relay. I was on one of two 11-member Battling Bloggers of the Texas Republic teams. Our team started at 8:04 a.m. The whole team ran a 1.2 mile loop around Gonzales. This is called the "Prologue" run. After that, we divided up into two vans, six in ours and five in the other. Runners from our van ran the first six legs. We headed east for the 203 mile run to San Jacinto. My first leg was number 4 (4.66 miles) and most of it was on a rough gravel road with a strong wind in my face. It ended in Shiner, home of the Shiner Brewry. My next leg was number 16 (5.88 miles) at 7 p.m. on Saturday. It was on the shoulder of a highway and ended in Columbus. Of course, it was dark and I wore lights, blinkies and reflectors. While the other team van were running their five legs, we went to a hotel, took a shower and slept for one hour. Our van picked it up for the next six legs. My next leg, and my last, was number 27 (6.51 miles) and was on the shoulder of a highway. Including the prologue run, I did a total of 18.2 miles. I did not personally keep track of my time, but I think someone else did. I'm sure I ran fast. The two night runs were more pleasant, because it was cooler and the wind had died down. My van-mates were very supportive and appeared often during my legs to offer their encouragement, water or Gatorade. We finished up at the San Jacinto Monument Sunday evening. There were over 150 teams participating. I'm not sure where we placed, but who cares? We had a blast. Since you have to spend two days in van with sweaty runners and virtually no sleep, it is important to be with a good group. And, I did. We got back to Huntsville about 7 p.m. last night. Our team leader, Jon Walk, did a super job in organizing the team effort. I have headed relay teams in the past and I know how much work is involved. Thanks, Jon. After getting home, my first priority was to take a shower and sleep for an hour. I was too sleepy to blog last night, so this blog entry is for two days. The pollen is heavy now and my allergies have been acting up big time. Since my last run was at 4:30 a.m. yesterday, my legs were well-rested. So, I did a 2 mile loop on the streets around the campus this evening. It's back to trails tomorrow. Next Sunday, I will run the Seabrook Marathon, which will give me the Texas Marathon Triple. The others were the Texas Marathon in January and the Surfside Beach Marathon in February.

TIR Eve

Gotta get up at 2 a.m. tomorrow to head south for the Texas Independence Relay. Since I normally do not go to bed until 12:30 to 1 a.m., I will not get much sleep. I'll try for 10:30 p.m. and see what happens. My toe was better today, but I still only ran one mile at the track. I should be well-rested for the weekend. We lost one our team members, Edwin Quarles, so we will all have to take up some slack. Edwin's father is seriously ill and he needs to be with him. He will be in our thoughts and prayers as we run the relay.

Another Track Run

My big toe joint was still sore and stiff today, so I did another one mile run at the track this afternoon. It feels better tonight and I am confident that I will be okay for the Texas Independence Relay this weekend (Jon lets out a sigh).

I Need a Toe Truck

I am not sure what I did, but I woke up early this morning with pain in my big toe joint. It has been sore and stiff all day. I ran a limpy and painful mile at the track this evening. However, I've learned that pains that come on quickly seem to go away just as quickly. I'm doing 15.6 miles total this weekend at the Texas Independence Relay and am confident that I will be recovered by then. If not, I'll do a limpy and painful 15.6 miles.

Me and an Armadillo

I went out to the park this afternoon and ran a solo 7-mile loop. I never saw anyone else or anything else on the trail, except for one armadillo. I just can't waste this cool and dry weather hanging around the house. Before I started my run, I did run into Beth Caillouet, who just finished a trail run. She is a former club member and graduate student at SHSU, who moved to Mass. Beth was back here on business and had to revisit the trails at the park. Click here for a photo of her and I at the 2004 Austin Marathon. It was good to see her again. After the trail run, I went to the Sam Houston baseball game with Rice U. (Sam won) and then to Nautilus about 10 p.m.

Recovery Trail Run

Since it was the day after the Armadillo Dash Half Marathon, I ran 3+ miles on the trails with Mariah. Hans, John and Phillip finished up their longer run about the same time as we did. Mariah had to leave, but Hans, John, Phillip and I stayed around a while to get hydrated and solve some world problems.

Armadillo Dash

If I had not pre-registered for the Armadillo Dash Half Marathon in College Station, I probably would not have gotten out of bed at 4:30 this morning. It was cold and windy. The wind chill was 24 degrees at the 7 a.m. start. I dressed warm, but too warm when running with a tailwind. When running into the cold wind, I was glad to have on the extra clothing. I saw a lot of friends at the race. Natali Davis from the club was also running. Others from Huntsville were there, including Rachel Greene and Elaine Minton. I finished in 2:37:25, nearly a whole minute faster than last year.

Sweetheart 5K

I ran the Seven Hills Running Club's Sweetheart 5K run this afternoon in Huntsville. Windy and cold. My time was 34:10. I have to get up at 4:30 a.m. for the Armadillo Dash Half Marathon in College Station. I hate 7 a.m. starts, especially when the wind chill temperature is suppose to be 27 degrees.

Glow 5K

Norman, Mary Sweeten, Tom Reynolds and I went over to Texas A&M tonight for the Glow 5K. This is a non-competitive run around the campus. I ran a 32:31. With all the curbs, you had to be careful not to trip (Ask Norman). There were at least 1,500 runners.

Quiet Afternoon at the Park

I went out to the park this afternoon and ran 7 miles. Only saw one other runner on the trails and no hikers or bikers. The big S bridge was open, but only about one third has been replaced. There is still a lot of construction material there, so I presume they intend to replace all of it. It was in the low 80's this afternoon, but the wind and low humidity made it very comfortable.

Wednesday 5K

Mary, Mariah and I did the Avenues 5K this evening. A bunch of others ran the other hills in the avenues.

2.9 on the Roads

After a workout at Nautilus this afternoon, I ran a 2.9 mile loop around town. The traffic was heavy, but I survived. Then, Ben and I went to the Sam Houston baseball game with Prairie View (Sam won).

Sluggish Monday

I don't know if it was all that family food I ate up in Tyler yesterday, but I sure felt sluggish when I ran this evening. I met up with Hans, John and Andrew and Karen at the park. I did a slow 6.2 miles. The long S bridge down at the end of the lake was official closed for reconstruction; however, with a little climbing we were able to cross.