Why April?

I’ve learned from my history … I am not repeating my previous horrible Aprils.

• April 2008: Faced with foot problems, I ran just a little more than 30 miles total with 6.2 coming in one race.
• April 2009: I was happy to take a “rest month.” I logged a little more than 30 miles. Two weeks later I was at the doctor finally figuring out what was wrong with my feet.

But honestly, I have headed into those two Aprils ready to take a break after doing the Shamrock Half. This year is different — I want to keep pushing and build on the momentum of that race. I’ve never, ever, ever capitalized on my training before. I train for ONE race and I’m done. Well enough of that.

That’s why this month I am committed to running every day in the month no matter what. Yes, my health comes first, but it’s going to take something crazy to pull me off the road.

But there’s been something nagging at me for a while with wanting to do more than streak. I love racing and better yet I love a good challenge. So thanks to various factors, I am going to be running the Blue Ridge Half Marathon on the Parkway in Roanoke on April 24. It promises to be one of the most challenging races I have ever done with a total elevation gain of nearly 1,400 feet and a total elevation gain/loss of nearly 2,800 feet. Check out the course map and elevation change here. Basically it’s all uphill for more than 5 miles before coming back down.

For more information on this race, visit www.blueridgemarathon.com. Details are also on Facebook; you can also get updates on Twitter by following @BRM26pt2. If this sounds familiar to you, I did write about this on my blog back in July, but there’s been so much change in my life since then that I had ruled out doing the full marathon a long time ago and had pretty much ruled out doing the half considering it was so close to Shamrock. But things change …

So, April, take that.

Looking back while looking forward

It’s nothing unusual to think about what’s next after a big race, especially one as satisfying as this one. But I already know what’s next — the Richmond Marathon. At least that’s what I signed up for four months ago. After setting a PR in a half marathon, I’m still on Cloud 9 with my speed at a long distance.

While I’m celebrating my success, there’s part of me that knows I can go faster. I know that getting in the 1:30s is very much reality — shaving just three minutes off my time puts me at 1:39. Is it worth it training for a marathon? In 2007 when I had some of my best running going on, I was training for the marathon … after that though, I was filled with a whole lot of disappointment.

For now, I’m not making any decisions. I just know that right now I can capitalize on what three great months of training has already done for me. Waiting until November for the next “big” event just seems weird. Community races in between will be nice and I have some times I’d love to beat … but I love the half marathon.

Anyway, here some more thoughts following this past weekend’s Shamrock Half Marathon …

* I am the owner of a Power Balance wristband. Take a look at the website for yourself. In looking up things on the Internet, some say it’s a scam. I say it works. If it’s just a mental thing, so be it.

* I bought a new pair of Brooks Ravenna even though I don’t need them for a while. They were 20 percent off and I saved about $5 from what I paid for online earlier this winter. The nice thing is I’m set for shoes until mid-summer probably. I hope longer — these shoes tend to have a good life on them more than other shoes have worked for me. I’ve stayed injury free since I switched to these, so no reason to change.

Speaking of being injury free, a little more than a year ago I went to the doctor about my lingering foot problems that started at the end of 2007 (after the, um, marathon). After wearing a special insole for a couple of months and then switching to nothing at all, my feet haven’t bothered me much. I’m not putting anything else into my shoes again. I didn’t have any problems for a long time, and then for some reason I put gel insoles in. While it was initially comfortable, they haven’t really “worked.” And by “worked,” I’m not really sure what good they do anyway. It’s a personal thing, I think.

* The Shamrock event expo is great. After some issues with it in my first Shamrock in 2007, they’ve made drastic changes to the layout of the floor plans and picking up the race number and T-shirt. It’s been mostly flawless ever since. The Virginia Beach Convention Center in general is just a good place for a race expo — even as much as I’ve complained about the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half event, the expo is always great there.

* The Shamrock Half Marathon is the first event that I’ve done four years in a row. I have also done the Bedford Christmas Classic four times, but one of those events was a 10k. It’s pretty cool to look at my race times since 2004 and scroll to the end and see this:

1:42.52, March 2010 – Shamrock Half Marathon
1:44:23, March 2007 – Shamrock Half Marathon
1:46:53, August 2007 – Lynchburg Half Marathon
1:49:07, March 2008 – Shamrock Half Marathon
1:49:30, March 2009 – Shamrock Half Marathon
1:55:28, August 2006 – Lynchburg Half Marathon
1:59:19, September 2009 – Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon
2:06:16, August 2008 – Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon

All four of the Shamrocks are in the 1:40s. It’s kind of weird to think that I beat last year’s time by almost 7 minutes. It’s also very satisfying to know that I’ve done eight half marathons since 2006.

* Lastly I wanted to give a big thanks to the Shamrock organizers, the hundreds of volunteers, the sponsors and all the people who lined the course this weekend. This is always a special event no matter what the time was on the course and each year it seems to get better.

Top 5 Moments of the 2000s

Last week I got into a brief argument on Twitter that this is not the end of the decade, so why are news stories saying such things? Well, debate all you want – maybe there was no year “0,” but that was 2,000-plus years ago. I didn’t celebrate the end of the 1980s at the end of 1990 or the end of the ’90s at the end of 2000. So this decade, to me, is ending. If you want to celebrate it next year, then go for it. Just don’t invite me to your party at the end of 2020 to celebrate the end of the ’10s. To me this decade began Jan. 1, 2000, and ends in about two weeks. A decade is a period 10 years – you can’t deny the definition of the word.

Anyway, enough of that rant. It’s time to reflect. When looking back on this past decade of my life, it’s easy to say that my adventure into adulthood has been full of changes. I’ve graduated college, gotten married, changed cities a few times, had a son, bought a couple of houses and started running after a long layoff. To have a “Top 5 Running-related Moments of the 2000s” is kind of weird since I’ve only been running since 2004, but running helps define who I am today. It’s important to me to highlight the top events since this adventure began. It’ll help lead me into the next 10 years.

#5 – My first race
After getting married in 2004, I had to do something to keep me motivated so I signed up for the four-miler in Lynchburg that was part of the Virginia Ten Miler event. I’ll never forget standing at that starting line being so nervous. I had those weird thoughts of finishing last or falling down or something crazy like that. What happened, though, was this amazing feeling of accomplishment at the end of the race. It was almost overwhelming. Most importantly, it kept me going. Forty races later, I’m still running.

#4 – The right gear
Getting properly fitted for shoes, getting a Garmin, discovering non-cotton attire and getting an iPod – all these rolled into one at various points in the past six years – have transformed my running experience.

#3 – 13.1 as a father
I revisited this post earlier this year in my top highlights from the year, and there’s no reason it shouldn’t be on this list too. In fact, I debated whether or not it should be No. 2 or No. 3. The feeling of just doing that race so soon after my son was born is still indescribable.

#2 – 26.2 miles
Two-plus years later, I still can’t explain this feeling to you. If you haven’t read my post from that day, click here to check it out. I can’t wait to go on that journey again.

#1 – Jan. 1, 2004
A hike up to Crabtree Falls in Nelson County was the beginning of this journey. While I had a goal to lose weight for my wedding, this picture of me changed everything. It could be the most important picture of my life. I saw it and knew I had to change. Little did I know how much change it would bring, but I’m so glad it did. This photo helps remind me of where I came from and where I never want to be again.

Honorable mentions
For six years of running, it’s hard to pick a top five. I wrestled with certain things to put in here, such as starting this blog. I started as “Running in Lynchburg” in the spring of 2007 to document my Richmond Marathon training. Blogging is right up there with gear — it’s helped keep me motivated in the past few years.

This year alone has been full of memorable moments, but I didn’t want immediate hindsight to play a role in this list. It’s hard … very hard … to keep “Stung in the eye” off this list. To me, though, the decade list was more about my accomplishments rather than the negative things. Moments like the Virginia Ten Miler and my first Shamrock Half Marathon that happened before my blogging days were great, but didn’t quite make it to the top 5.

All in all my running experience since 2004 has been great. I’m looking forward to what this next decade has to offer …

Coming in March: Shamrock IV

A couple of months or so ago, I said that in 2010 I would run the Shamrock Half Marathon again. But after unexpectedly getting a new job and all that, I didn’t know if I would do it again. Last night, though, I signed up for it. There’s part of me that knows I would have missed doing it if I skipped it and there’s also a part of me that knows that a good Shamrock Half will set me up for successful Richmond Marathon training later in the year.

Plus I feel like I have a lot to prove to myself over the next three and a half months. I have that infamous 10 pounds I want to lose, plus I really want to set a PR in this event. While my No. 1 goal will be to run my race to the best of my ability, I will keep a big focus on getting faster this winter. I’ll worry about focusing on the PR the closer the event gets here.

***

Speaking of 2010, I doubt that I’ll run the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half again. While the timing is good with training for the marathon, the money to travel to Virginia Beach twice in one year just isn’t worth it. Now that I’m back in the Lynchburg area, I’ll likely focus on many smaller races that I used to run. I had fun here a few years ago with these races and they’re a lot of cheaper. I’ll spend less money running a few races here vs. traveling on Labor Day weekend. There’s actually a half marathon in Lynchburg in August that I’ll likely do.

***

The Bedford Christmas Classic is this weekend, the fourth time I have done this event. It’ll briefly overtake Shamrock as the event I’ve done the most. Oddly enough, though, I’ve never blogged about this specific race since the other three events (twice as a 5k and once as a 10k) occurred before my blogging days. The forecast right now looks, well, a lot like Christmas. It’s looking like rain will turn to snow that day with temperatures falling during the day, but around here I’ve learned not to pay much attention to the forecast. Either way, I’ll be unprepared for any of those conditions, including really cold, so I’m just planning to go with the flow.

Travis and I ran the course the other night and I finished in just a little more than 25 minutes, which is actually in between my previous two 5k race times, so I’m confident I can set my course record. I felt like I could knock a couple of minutes off that time in a race. But we’ll have to see how I feel and how the weather plays out. Right now I’m still feeling tired from my Thanksgiving trip — there’s been very little down time since then. I’m hoping tonight though to get some extra rest.

The not-so-racy race report

Our hotel provided a great view for the little ants marching on the beach following the Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon.

Goal #1: Beat last year’s time. Check.

Goal #2: Beat two hours. Check.

Goal #3: Weather permitting, be close to 1:50. Uh, no check.

With very little speed work this summer, I knew heading into today’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon that I probably wouldn’t do any better than 9-minute miles, but it doesn’t hurt to wish, right? Usually for a race report I go mile by mile and recap different thoughts that occurred along the way. Today, though, there really isn’t much need.

It was a good consistent long run. All but one mile was slower than 8:45 and all but one mile was faster than 9:15. Final time: 1:59:18. That’s nearly 7 minutes better than last year’s heat debacle, so I’m very happy with that. A course record is always nice. But a mile into today’s race I knew there would be no extra pushing. At least not a lot of extra pushing. There were moments today in which I tried to go a little faster, but it just wasn’t going to happen. And I wasn’t about to go over the edge to do it. About half way through the race, my goal became simple – beat 2 hours. I knew if I kept the pace I was on I would do it within a minute or two.

The weather today was considerably better than last year, but there were parts of the course that were pretty hot in the direct sunlight. Then there were other parts that actually felt cool. All in all it wasn’t bad. It wasn’t great either … it was just a good day to have a nice long run in Virginia Beach.

Today’s race concludes the way my summer has gone — slow and steady. As far as what’s next, that’s another post for another day. Right now I am content with celebrating my seventh half marathon in two and a half years. No matter what my time, there’s nothing better than crossing a finishing line and doing what so many people don’t get a chance to experience.

As ready as I can be

This weekend marks the unofficial end of summer — a pretty bizarre but consistent summer for me when it comes to running. When training for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon got under way in June, I got sick; then it seemed like I just couldn’t get things going; and then I strung together a couple of good weeks of running in July to finally make me feel better about things.

But a week from now when I start the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon, I don’t have any lofty expectations. Overall, my running miles are less than where I was last year at this time, but when comparing the two previous months before a race, I’m about 10 miles or so ahead of where I was earlier this year for the Shamrock Half. I went into that race with no expectations either and ended up walking away having one of the most satisfying experiences ever. I’ve also had three runs of 10 or more miles this month, much better than my one 10-miler in February. Cross training, even just a little bit, has been an added bonus as well.

My goals for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half have not changed from a couple of weeks ago — if the weather is nice, I’d like to be around 1:50. If it’s humid like last year, I’d like to break 2 hours. With very little speed work this summer and no other races since late March, my eventual goal of breaking my half marathon PR will wait.

* * *

My long run yesterday was quite brutal – 10 miles in some of the most humid conditions this summer. It felt like I jumped in a pool and then tried to run in water-logged clothes. It would have been better running in the rain.

Like I mentioned above, this was my third 10-miler of the month. While I’d like my overall mileage to be higher for the month (around 70 miles), these long runs have left me feeling great. These runs have been the best long runs in quite some time.

Despite missing out on speed and some mileage, one great thing about this summer has been finding my consistency again. It’s been missing for a while.

Normal, but tired

The other day I asked for a normal week … well, four days into this week and I feel like it’s lasted three weeks. I’m just tired. I’m not a good traveler like I used to be. But that hasn’t stopped me from getting in two good runs (4 miles and 3.8 miles) and a good ride on the exercise bike last night at the gym (10 miles). At the same time, though, it’s felt a bit forced. Honestly I’m just ready for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon to get here and see how it goes. One more long run this weekend and I’ll be ready.

I hope the weather of the first weekend in September doesn’t follow this pattern of being threatened by tropical storms. While I wouldn’t mind rain, I think high winds and heavy rain would not be ideal. I would do it, but I sure wouldn’t like it. Right now, the really long-range forecast is looking good. Anything will be better than last year.

(And yes, I changed my layout again. The other one just didn’t do anything for me.)

Shamrock numbers and photos

Today I got the e-mail I always forget will show up a few days after the big race — the photos from the Shamrock Half Marathon are posted! Click here to view my photos. I have never purchased any race photo ever. I’m not sure why. Maybe I keep thinking that next year I’ll miraculously be 20 pounds lighter and be running in a skin-tight shirt showing off my buff body … but that’s a far-fetched dream. I do like that photo with the lighthouse — it’s always the coolest looking one. What’s funny is I knew that’s where the photographer usually is, but I didn’t see him/her this year.

The photo of me looking down at my watch is making the turn onto the boardwalk. I can remember doing that too and realized that I was going to beat 1:50. It’s too bad I had already taken my sock sleeves off for the photos. That’s one of my highlights! Glad I took that one of myself in the bathroom mirror beforehand. These photos also serve as a reminder to me that maybe next year I should buy some new shorts — I’ve worn those same green ones three years in a row.

* * *

Here’s a final look at the numbers from this year’s Shamrock Half.

Chip time: 1:49:30
Clock time: 1:50:05
(I was in corral one which was for runners 1:50 or better, so it’s reassuring to know I was in the right place.)
5 Mile split: 41:13

Overall place: 1,044 out of 5,996
Gender place: 741 out of 2,577
Age division place: 109 out of 356

Sham Rocked III

If I can take a non-racing approach to every race, I might just be able to get back to my 2007 form pretty quickly. Despite being 23 seconds slower than last year and just less than 5 minutes off my PR, this year’s Shamrock Half Marathon is by far my most satisfying race to date.

In looking back at last year’s race report and several posts leading up to the race, it’s easy for me to realize why I’m happy with this year’s time of 1:49:30 — last year all I thought about was breaking my PR from 2007 (which came just before I started blogging). This year the PR was not important. It did, however, cross my mind around the half-way point. But I know my body and I knew that I wouldn’t be able to maintain my pace or pick up the pace to set a PR. I didn’t exactly fully back off the gas pedal – I just settled in and stayed focused on beating 1:50, doing the math in my head each mile.

This race started out fairly cold. The low the night before was 30. Instead of wearing long sleeves, I cut holes in the bottom on two old socks and used them as sleeves for much of the race. I also wore gloves that stayed on until about mile 11 or so. It was frosty for much of the race, but, thankfully, there was no wind. A rarity for this race.

Like usual with the Shamrock, the first couple of miles started a tad slower than I had hoped, but with the mass amount of people it’s out of my control, plus it’s probably a good thing to be in a group that’s at a steady pace. I wonder if the organizers should consider having smaller corrals to spread out the field a little more at the start.

The first 5 miles of this race were perfect. Each mile was better than the next and it was at this point the thoughts a PR crept in my head. My mile times were 8:34, 8:22, 8:13, 8:06 and 7:58. In the next couple of miles, I kept a steady pace with times of 8:03 and 8:05. At this point, being a little more than half way and the miles just ticking away with no problems, I KNEW that I could not keep that pace. Or could I?

I backed off a little bit intentionally the next mile because I could feel myself getting tired — legs, lungs, everything felt tired. I wanted to slow down enough to have a recovery and then see if I could pick it back up. When I hit mile 8 at 8:22, I did the math in my head to a PR and knew that physically it wouldn’t happen. So I pretty much ended the race in the opposite way I started — slowing down for each mile. It’s as if I started a recovery before the race ended. I didn’t want a repeat of last year when I had to stop and stretch. And I didn’t want the rest of this month and April to be like last year in which very little running occurred.

I said heading into this race that I wanted Shamrock to set me up for a good rest of the year, and all this came back to my mind in those last few miles. I hit mile 9 in 8:31; mile 10 in 8:32; miles 11-12 were in 17:17 (I forgot to hit the lap button at mile 11 due to a water stop); mile 13 was in 8:36; and the last tenth was in 49 seconds. As I rounded the corner to finish the race on the Boardwalk, I knew I was going to break 1:50. After a year of injuries and running not going anything like I had wanted, all I could think about was how great this race had gone.

Also during this race I thought a lot about my son, Conner, who is just 4 1/2 months old and seeing the beach for the first time. Four months or so ago, this race was kind of a stupid thing to just think about doing. But, as I’ve mentioned on this blog before, one reason I decided to do this race was because of him. It wasn’t always easy getting to the gym at night, or going out for an after-dark jog with my dog, or running in nearly a foot of snow in Ohio in January and here earlier this month, but I did it. This experience of doing a “big” race as a new father is the most satisfying experience in all the running I’ve done in the past five years. My time means very little to me right now; the experience is priceless.

* * *

As for what’s next, that’s an easy answer. I’m doing the Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k this coming weekend. Details to come in the next day or two. For now, I’m enjoying a brief, but enjoyable, two days of no training, no working out and no worries about what food to put in my mouth.

Because I can, that’s why

For the past two years I’ve moaned and groaned about training in the winter time for a race, yet once it’s over it’s been very rewarding. This year I have the benefit of being a member of a gym to avoid the cold weather, yet I said repeatedly I was not going to do the Shamrock Half Marathon again. Was it because I had a bad taste in my mouth for not training properly last year? Did I really dislike the cold weather that much? Was it possible that I didn’t want free Yuengling again? (Um, no.)

In 2007, I was thrilled at finishing the Shamrock Half at just under 1:45; last year I had unrealistic goals. This year, I just want to have fun again. So yes, I have signed up for the race that for many months I swore I wouldn’t do again. There’s something different though about my thoughts. Last year I signed up too early – I was unprepared after having injuries and being sick following my marathon. This year my life is in a different state with a relatively new job and a new baby – it’s like I want to prove people wrong who say they’re too busy to train for a race. I’m busier than ever, but I may be more determined than ever too.

The great thing about this event is the fact that two weeks after that I want to do the Charlottesville 10 Miler. Unlike previous races I’ve trained for, the Shamrock isn’t the end game. There’s no reason to stop after that race and gain back the 5 to 10 pounds that I plan and hope to lose while training. Sandwiched between Shamrock and the 10 miler is the Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k that I’d like to do as well. I don’t feel like I’m cramming in races and I’m not worried about an early year burnout – I just want to do these things because I can.