The Fence

Team Bay Hundred with Johnny U. at the Baltimore Marathon Expo, Ravens Stadium. Wood Frog fancies himself a QB...

How is it we are supposed to figure out what qualifies as the small stuff that we are not supposed to sweat? This past week, I couldn't get my health back where I wanted it to get running. Then the President of the United States decides to make an announcement at the Museum where I work, so there is a two-step backburners running for the week (at least half of the two-step was a cool excuse, though!).

Finally got a 5.5 - 6-mile run in Sunday morning, so it was nice to re-break the ice. Still can't shake the cough, but I'll take progress at this point. Post-marathon, the rational/sane brain says coast it out til the end of the year, enjoy a Backyard Burn 10-mile trail race, and settle in to 5 - 15-mile winter runs. And that sounds great. Yet there is the part of me that signs up for a race, and despite health and poor training, says it's still on the books, so get the miles in, and get ready for JFK. That would mean a couple more long runs; practice with the Succeed caps; practice the walk-run combo; work to cross JFK off the to-do list. A 5-hour marathon could translate to a 12-hour JFK, which is the time limit requirement.

It's way too easy to over think. In the meantime, I just have to run. And SLEEP (tough for me). And eat right. And train the brain. Sounds simple, but each of those steps poses it's own challenges for me right now. What I really want to do in the running department, is get back on the trails.

Bay Hundred Bruisers: Baltimore Marathon Report

Four Bay Hundred Baltimorons: Mike "Tucks" Valliant, Mike "Wood Frog" Keene, Jim "Postmaster" Richardson, Pierre "Gel-in-his-hat" Bernasse, post-race, Oriole Park at Camden Yards for backdrop.

One week ago, I finished a 10-mile run, out of breath from having been sick, and was sure I couldn't have run a marathon. After one more 4-mile run during the week, I went to Baltimore on Saturday with the goal of simply finishing the marathon. I accomplished that goal. The better story is the camaraderie and accomplishment, that our group of Bay Hundred banditos came away from Baltimore with. The short story version is:

Mike Keene - 3:52:00
Pierre Bernasse - 4:17:04
Jim Richardson - 4:35:21
Mike Valliant - 4:40:18

Jim Richardson earned two significant awards: 1) best time vs. goal (he guessed about 5 hours, first official marathon), and 2) coolest bib number: #2345.

Pierre ran his second, and hilliest, marathon to date, and set a PR on a tough course.

Keene went up with the hope of breaking the 4 hour barrier. He signed up at the expo with a 3:50 pace group, and straight took care of business. Baltimore is not an easy course to set a tough time goal against. Mike went out hard and kept it going.

As for me, I feel good when I complete a marathon. I am thrilled for where I ended up Saturday vs. a week ago. And it made the race and the day to be there and have all four of us finish. A moment like that, shared, is sublime.

By way of a race report, the Baltimore Marathon was, for me, a tale of two races. There is the 18-mile race, that I ran well for--walking only at aid stations to get water or Gatorade. I ran with or ahead of the 4:15 pace group for the first 17 miles of the race. My splits for the race were (clock time, not chip time, which was about 1 minute, 15 seconds faster): 59:34 at mile 6; 1:36 at mile 10; 2:06 at half-marathon; 3:09 at mile 19; 3:36 at mile 21.

Then there was the 8.2-mile race, after the 18-mile one, that I limped through. At the half-way point, I was feeling good and on pace for a 4:10 finish. Everyone who runs Baltimore is well aware that the race begins at mile 16, after you have gone through Fells Point, and then turn uphill for miles 16 - 23. It is only truly "all downhill" when you hit the 25-mile mark.

For my compadres: I was able to catch a glimpse of Mike K. at an aid station outside Fort McHenry at mile 10, as I had just passed mile 9. Pierre came up behind me between miles 14 and 15, looking fresh, we chatted a bit, and then he trotted ahead, looking like 4 hours might be in the making. I looked up and saw Jim as I was grabbing Gatorade at the mile 17 stop. We ran together for a good part of miles 18 and 19, he went ahead, then I started catching up to him after we rounded the lake at mile 21, only to have to let him go.

Two years ago, when I was well trained, I hit the half-way mark in 1:55 and was crushed by/at mile 15, for various reasons. This year, I past the mid-mark slower, but held pace until almost mile 19. Much better in that respect. Also on the positives I should note that I really didn't have muscle cramping like I can get. I tried to drink more, and took one Succeed S-Cap every hour or so. Two other notable occurrences: 1) I picked up speed consistently on the last mile, running at a good clip through Camden Yards, and then finishing the race down the chute at a full sprint, whipping by baffled runners over the last 100 yards, and 2) I finished 3 minutes or so faster than the last time I ran Baltimore.

I have yet to run a complete race in a marathon or longer race. This year, inconsistent training, then bronchial sickness, made me work for my finish. The last two races (Holiday Lake 50K and Delaware), debilitating leg cramps stopped me to a hobble, until I could push through them, but where I had good paces going through 17 miles in the 50K and 20 miles in the marathon. And my first shot at Baltimore was a similar story to this year.

I feel like I have been in shape to run a sub-4-hour marathon, though not on Saturday. I do feel like I have unfinished business--food on the table--with the distance. But that business will go unfinished, the food will go cold, for a while. Maintaining a balance with family, work, house, etc., is too much right now with long race training. The 2008 race calendar, for me, will peak at 13.1 miles, with a goodly number of 10s thrown in for good measure.

Race times aside, Saturday was the best race experience I have had--where everyone felt such a sense of accomplishment; so much a part of a community who have done something remarkable in its own right.

A Woody Sighting

Wood Frog explains the quirkiness of a a draketail workboat to our boy Woody, the AT thru-hiker, who made a detour to Bay Hundred.

Returning readers may recall that Wood Frog and I encountered a southbound Appalachian Trail thru-hiker on Crawford Path during our White Mountain adventures. Attentive returning readers may further recall that said thru-hiker, James "Woody" Woodring, had grandparents who lived in St. Michaels; had a deep-routed interest in sailing and wooden boat building; and anticipated a stop-off in Maryland.

This week, we got a call from Woody as he was making his way from Annapolis to St. Michaels. After a tour of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum (aka my place of employment), a meeting with our Boat Yard Manager Richard Scofield, a tour of Higgins Boat Yard and log canoes from Mike Keene, a sandwich from Lighty's, a tour of the Keene boat shop in Wittman, a quick boat ride aboard the draketail workboat Dora, and a feast of a dinner at the Keene residence, our pal Woody is picking back up where he left off in Harpers Ferry. He anticipates finishing the AT in December, and who knows, we might see him back in St. Michaels again after. Great to catch up and hear about his adventures in thru-hiking. If you are curious to follow along at home, you can check in at Woody's online journal.

In other news, the Baltimore Marathon is tomorrow morning, with kindly running weather in the forecast. Pierre Bernasse, Jim Richardson, Mike Keene, and I went up for the expo and packet pick-up this morning. I have no idea what tomorrow holds--hopefully something good! And to all, a good night.

Trials and Tribulations

"A child said What is the grass? fetching it to me with full hands;
How could I answer the child? I do not know what it is any more than he."
--Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass

I have come to realize that breathing is an important part of running. Funny how that works. So when I get saddled with a bronchial infection that keeps me from taking deep breaths and sidelines me for almost two weeks leading up to a marathon, I shouldn't have expected much good from my first run back.

The training schedule called for a 10-mile run a week out from the race (never mind that I missed a 15, 8, many others). So my hope was to run it fairly easy in 90 minutes for 9-minute miles.

I got out the door at about 3:20pm or so and ran to Baileys Neck (on Oxford Road) and back. My legs felt fine and went out at their normal pace, trying to keep it slow to assess where I was after such a long layoff. I hit my 2-mile mark faster than normal, and ended up hitting the halfway point on pace in 44:10. The problem: things were going downhill fast.

My legs always felt great. But I had NO breath. My doctor mentioned this as what would happen, and I had the same experience playing old-time baseball last week. I couldn't get a full breath anywhere and was literally running out of breath. I walked for 5 minutes after the turnaround, then ran until Waverly Road, walked for a couple minutes, then ran from the "downhill" to the other side of five-corners light, walked until Rails-to-Trails, ran to Brookletts Avenue, walked to Dover Road, then ran the rest of the way home. My time in the end was 1:39:44, so just shy of 10-minute miles, with a combined 12-15 minutes of walking counting towards that total. Frustrating is not the word for having your legs work fine, but your lungs not able to keep up.

So I'm in a bit of a dilemma. If the marathon were yesterday, I wouldn't have been able to finish, at least not likely. My thoughts of a PR are long past last call. And I am back to the point of wondering whether lungs and body are in shape to even finish this Saturday. In February, I was probably in my top endurance shape, certainly 4-hour marathon or better, and pushed through the hilly Holiday Lake 50K trails.

A lackluster training regimen and ill-timed bronchial infection later, it's reckoning time with running and health trials and tribulations. I am giving myself a few days and couple more runs to see where I am for the weekend. I'll let you know.

"So Much Things to Say"

In theory, running only requires a pair of shoes, clothes, and a place to run. The reality for longer runs is that there is all kinds of nutritional guesswork and gear.

I now have two runs of +-20 miles in the books, both in the last 10-14 days. The first one anchored the only week in my training for Baltimore where I actually ran three days, which is the training regimen.

The first run was from my house to the Oxford Market and back, and was to encompass 23-ish miles. Mike Keene joined me for stellar weather, and a fantastic 11-12 mile run to Oxford. Just past Trippe Creek and Spring Road, we caught up to Talbot County's top bench-pressing runner, Jon Fox, and ran and chatted for 4-5 miles. Mike and I then saddled up to the Market, grabbed more Gatorade, water, and a sandwich. Whether the sandwich (which was tasty) or my lack of long runs was my undoing, I'm not sure. I started in with some stomach problems at probably mile 15, gutted it out with a couple walk breaks, and then completely hit a wall at roughly mile 20, or Kings Woods Road toward Easton. By this point my legs were cramping and I had accomplished everything positive that I could out of the run, and walked the remaining 3.5 miles back to my house. No pain post-run, cut the grass, fine to run the next day.

My other two runs that week were a 4.5 mile lunch run, then an 8-mile run in 68 minutes, which felt great. My next run came this past Saturday morning as Mike K., Team Claiborne charter member Jim Richardson, and I went to Wye Island for a 19.4 mile stroll.

"Super Jim" (with his trademark cape/bib) set the pace for the first 9.7 miles. There are many great things about running at Wye Island. The first is the mostly dirt roads and scenery. The second are the trails available and scenery. And a third is that you can park your vehicle such that you can pass it a number of times and refuel.

After my samich scare last long run, I opted to stick with more traditional/synthetic fuel for marathon distances. To squeeze some protein in, I tried a new drink called Accelerade, which throws carbs and protein at you. I cycled that with water, pretzels, and a Power Gel. And I drank more fluids than I normally do. Something worked, because my legs never cramped (they often do on long runs) and my energy level stayed fairly consistent.

After our first full loop, Mike, Jim, and I hit our own strides and spaced out a bit from each other, ultimately collecting ourselves at Mike's truck, a.k.a. "The Mother Ship." My 19.4-mile time ended up being 3 hours, 28 minutes, 44 seconds. I could have pushed some speed, but was content for a long SLOW distance. Post-run weather, conversation, and vittles, the latter thanks to Mike "Captain Picnic" (also Wood Frog) Keene, were excellent and rejuvenating. I got home, dug up a stump, and planted a crepe myrtle, among other things.

I have been averaging about one run per week, sometimes two, and only once the prescribed three. I am not in marathon good time shape, but could argue that I am smarter than when I ran my two other marathons. I am hoping I can ramp up a consistent string of runs, and run smart during the race, to pull off a PR (both other marathons had snags).

As for the JFK, I am not there, and don't know that I have time/drive/schedule to get there. It's a mental and psychological struggle, but I think I could let it go this year and be okay with it. One thing is for sure, you create some time to think during long runs.

When You Can

A view of the White Mountains from Osgood Trail. My camera won't do night running shots, so you get a cool, scenic photo, rather than downtown Easton at night.

Running and writing for me are both best done whenever I can, rather than waiting for the perfect time or opening in my schedule. Those times rarely show up these days.

I am supposed to be in the heavy part of marathon and JFK 50 training, but can't seem to get the miles in. There is one notable exception worth sharing.

Monday, 9/03 I was hoping to get a longish run in, and realized I had too much to do, too many obligations to make it happen. I realized this after macking down hot wings and pizza for dinner Sunday night. So I did what any runner off his or her rocker would do during marathon training: put on a reflective vest, ipod, water bottles and went for a 2 hour, 11 minute, 52 second run at 10:30 p.m.

I created an extended loop around Easton--Chapel Road to Washington Street, to Aurora Street, up to Washington Street where it connects past Dutchmans Lane, back up to Peachblossom Road, past the YMCA, turn at Thread Haven, back onto Washington Street, past the hospital, all the way back down to the V-intersection of Washington and Aurora. That's the loop, which I ran three times through before heading home. I got some odd looks from folks sitting on their porches, but really, who sits on their porch at 11:30 at night? It was a 14-ish mile run, which I greatly appreciated for all the ways it was fun and different.

My next run was a 7-mile run in 59:51 with Mike Keene up the Easton Rails-to-Trails and Oxford Road and back. And those are my only two runs since the Annapolis 10-miler. So I've got the sweet once-a-week training plan going.

Some real frustration, but with school starting back for Robin and Anna, fall events running full force at work, and other life stuff taking a front seat, it's all there has been (please see 5 - and 2-year-old daughter handbook). My next run is going to be a 22-ish mile run from home to the Oxford Market in Oxford--where they stock Gatorade for resupply--and back home. Hopefully that will answer some of the distance questions. Then I'd like to get 3-4 solid weeks before tapering for Baltimore. There may be some more night running in the forecast!

Heat Trumps Hills: the A-10 Report

Course map of the Annapolis 10-mile race, which treats runners to a stroll through downtown Annapolis, the Naval Academy, and the Old Severn River Bridge. From the Annapolis Striders website.

A couple things occurred to me today, while running the 32nd annual Annapolis 10-Mile Run:

1. Heat trumps hills
2. I don't like racing very much, at least not during the race.

The day started meeting Stephen Bardsley and his son Joshua at the Stevensville Park & Ride, and cruising to Annapolis to pick up another runner, John from Gaithersburg, and go pick-up packets at the Naval Academy's Marine Corps Stadium.

A year or two ago, Runner's World voted the A-10 one of the top ten 10-mile races in the United States. This is not without reason. Running through Annapolis and the Naval Academy is a great perk. The old Severn River Bridge is a rite of passage. And the folks who live across the bridge, as if to apologize for their hilly-arse neighborhood, are out in force with extra water stops, orange slices, and encouragement. That's the upside. The downside to popularity is that over 5,000 runners sign up to enjoy Maryland's capital city.

After a successful, pain-free packet pick-up, I snagged a pack of Clif Shot-blocks from a store set-up, talked shop and expectations with Stephen and John, and then each of us made our way through the starting gauntlet to find our place in the packing order. I wouldn't see Stephen again until mile 7 or so, coming back toward me on a turnaround, and would catch John after the race.

The silver lining to today's heat: we didn't run yesterday in the 90-degree-plus sweat box. The downside: Annapolis at the end of August is hot. Period. And heat sits like a howler monkey on my shoulders during races--it weighs my shoulders down, smacks the back of my skull, and laughs while I suffer.

Ten miles is not that far a distance for me to run, even these days, at the front-end of marathon prep. But it sprawled longer than advertised today. I hit the first few mile marks in the 8 minutes and 20 seconds range, which was where I wanted to be. I opted to carry an Amphipod waist bottle pack, since I needed the extra fluids in Chestertown this past May.

Funny, small-world running story: from about miles 2 to 6, I was running just behind and around an uber-tan lady dressed in black with an Amphipod waistband, black visor, etc. Through talking to folks around her, it became apparent that she was a triathlete. When I heard her talk, I recognized her voice, did the math, and picked her out as the same lady with whom I ran about 10 miles of the Holiday Lake 50K in February--Melissa Simmens from Columbia. I was pretty sure, but opted not to pipe up, since I figured I'd drop the pace before long. Checking race times, confirmed it was her. People look different when they aren't running outside in 12 degree weather!

Anyway, I stopped at aid stations, used some of my own Gatorade, ran in a trance through most of the middle of the race, then at about mile 7.5, had to duck into the woods as nature called and let me know I would enjoy the rest of the race more with an empty bladder. Consequently, I may be one of the few A-10 runners to get wicked leg scratches from thorns during the race.

The extra pit stop was a good call--the Severn River Bridge was not a problem, and I passed a fair amount of folks in the last mile of the race, with a will that felt bent out of shape by the heat, but thankfully legs that decided to run on their own. I crossed the finish line in 1 hour, 25 minutes, and 23 seconds, corrected time, for a per mile race pace of 8:32. Official standings make that 1093 out of 4376 finishers. The good news here is that my hungover 6-year-old time was 1:26:59, so I accomplished my goal. The mixed news is that this means I won't be training for future A-10s by partying the day before the race.

Catching up with Stephen, he finished the race in 1:17:31, corrected time, for a pace of 7:45 (446 out of 4376 finishers). He was pleased with his race, and slugged down all the water he carried on a Nathan belt, as well as grabbing water at aid stations. I don't know John's last name to look him up. For full results, visit the Annapolis Striders website and click on "2007 results" under the race name.

The real race day highlight came as Stephen and his wife Lauren hosted a post A-10 cookout/pool party, complete with a moon-bounce for the kids. A great mix of kids, runners, teachers, and more than enough food, Corona and Miller Lite to put back on what we sweat out. Many thanks and mad props to the Bardsley family--the next post race, or for no reason at all, get-together will have to be in Talbot County!

A painful, hilly 10-mile race leaves me in an interesting spot for the next couple months of running. I have to take the mileage of my long runs and stretch it like salt-water taffy to get ready for the Baltimore Marathon and the JFK 50 miler. I really don't know what the hell I was thinking signing up for a 50-mile race!