Running Chick

Josh and I ran the five mile race at the Canal Run yesterday.  It was my first time doing this event, and considering that the event is almost as old as I am and practically in my back yard, I don’t really know why.  I’ve been a worker bee a few times and spectated a few other times, but never a participant. So, when Josh suggested we do it a few months ago, I figured it was probably time to scratch it off my bucket list.

Our respective training plans for the Fox Cities HM in September don’t have us doing enough mileage for the ten mile event, so we opted for the five which I’m glad we did, because it was hot yesterday morning.  The majority of the course was shaded with some rolling hills here & there, nothing major.  I was feeling slightly overheated, but the aid stations had plenty of water so I was able to take two cups (one down the throat, one over the head) without feeling like the people behind me were going to get screwed.

We ran out of shade with about a mile and a half left to go, which wouldn’t have been a problem, but half that last stretch is uphill.  It’s one of those hills that, as far as you can see, it just goes up. Then you round a corner and the hill continues on, but only gets steeper. Ugh.  I was feeling okay for the first portion of the hill, but the sun was starting to get to me when we hit the steep climb.  The fire department had opened up a hydrant and my first thought was wet shoes = blisters, but then I decided that there was only about a half mile to go and I probably wouldn’t blister in that short span so I ran right into the cold shower.  My shoes, and the rest of me, got soaked but I felt infinitely better. We finished in 54:34, which was around a 10:53 mile, and met Josh’s finishing goals.

In other news, Pippen turned one a few weeks ago.  Here he is at 10 weeks or so when we got him.

And here he is now, spilling out of his bed.

He likes to really stretch out when he lays on the floor. One of these days, I’m going to make him a little red Superman cape.

He can be pretty sassy, though. Especially when he does things like take the roll of toilet paper from the bathroom and drag it all over the living room. Or, chew my foam roller to pieces.

Oh well, I was looking for an excuse to buy a bigger one.

This week’s running totals were 13.25 miles @ 10:39 made up of one pathetic hill workout on Monday (note: do not do hill workouts in 80 degree weather), one speed session on Thursday and the Canal Run on Saturday.  I tossed in one 25 mile bike ride out to McLain Park because it was too hot to run on that day.

Next week, if the weather cooperates and it cools down, I’ll log around 21 miles. Fingers crossed!

Remember the song “The Final Countdown” from way back in 1980-something by Europe? They were a hair band from Sweden and pretty typical of all the other hair bands in the 80’s – big, teased blonde hair & tight leather pants. I never really liked the band or the song, but I heard it on the radio the other day and it’s been annoyingly rolling around in my head ever since.  However, it’s conveniently apropos, so here’s hoping that using it as the inspiration for my title will purge it from my brain.  Or, at least pass it into yours. Ha!

My first tapering week has come to a close. Thanks to a bout of food poisoning (thanks a lot Pilgrim River Steakhouse), I was only able to complete two of my runs – Monday & today.  Oh well, I suppose the extra tapering can’t hurt.

So, weekly recap: Monday,  @ 10:08; Saturday, 5 @ 11:08.  Monday’s run finalized the month of April where I logged 77 miles.  That’s my highest monthly running mileage ever, which is pretty major milestone for me.  Usually at this point in my training, I’m usually injured and looking at the upcoming race with a “fingers-crossed I hope this works out” mentality.  But today, I’m healthy and injury-free.  Oh, and looking for some wood to knock on. Or, as Josh mentioned, a bubble to walk around in.

Next week, we have two very short 2 mile runs and that’s all until race day.  Feels good to be (almost) done!

Random, we used to have a dog that slept with his legs straight out behind him, but I’ve never seen a cat do it until Pippen.

He also chews on sticks, plays fetch and makes “barooo” noises like a hound.  Maybe he really is part dog?

I can now officially say that I ran from Calumet to Houghton.

Josh and I were doing our final long run together and we picked up the railroad grade, which is actually the old Mineral Range Railroad, in Swedetown around 9:30 Saturday morning.  It was sunny, but windy and cold. My poor nose didn't stop running until the half-way point.

The trail is also known as Trail #17 - Jack Stevens Trail to the snowmobilers.

The trail was in good running condition, being mostly hard-packed gravel/stamp sand. There were a few sections around Boston Pond that were full of golf ball sized rocks, which made things a bit unpleasant, but still manageable. 

Just outside of Swedetown, we came across a quarry (gavel pit?) run by Moyle Construction.  There were a few folks poking around with metal detectors, I think they were surprised to see us.

There were points where I was certain I could see all the way to South Range. It was neat & depressing all rolled into one.

I believe there were three bridge crossings along the route, which surprised me. And also made me realize that it would probably be fairly miserable in mosquito season.

Clearly we were heading in the wrong direction.

This is where things got interesting. We knew that the Sisu Shuffle was happening on Saturday morning, but neither of us knew when it started or where the route was until we came around a corner and found their turn-around point.  Good grief what a quagmire of strollers, wheelchairs, dogs, people walking 6 abreast and kids running amok. I think we added an extra mile to our run weaving and bobbing through that mess. I was so glad to leave them behind at the fairgrounds.

I told Josh to stand by this sign & I’d take his picture (his long run was 12 miles), but he was running on fumes and he had all he could to do keep his feet moving. I believe he responded with a grunt and that was that. Photo opportunity gone.

After 11 miles on gravel, I was so happy to see pavement.

Josh’s run ended at 12 miles and I continued on, finishing up at the bridge with 14 miles.  Since we didn’t have the foresight to leave a car at our end point, we had to hoof it across the bridge and up the hill to get home. Let me just say, oof.

And with that, the bulk of my training is over and now I get to taper into race day.  I ended this week with a couple of milestones: highest weekly mileage ever (24) and highest run mileage (14).  Whew!

My goals for the next two weeks are to eat healthy (which includes cutting our beer GASP!) and remain injury-free. Fingers crossed!

* Myles, Joshua. Long Run. Mile 4, Jack Stevens Calumet-Hancock Rail Trail. 28 Apr 2012.