Site of Adventures/Miles

Site of Adventures/Miles

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Race Report - USATF NW Regional Champs

Out at Oregon City HS was a crit-style cross country race, featuring many, many loops. Well, it was only 5 loops, but I still lost count and was in danger of running an extra loop. This time we didn't even see the clock until 100m from the finish line, so it was probably the most pure cross country race I've ever run. I ran 27:39 for 11th place and grabbed the final spot on the BAC club team. This means I'm headed to Charlotte, courtesy of Nike, to do some more racing. I love this, it's like being back in college.

Results: http://www.redlizardrunning.com/xc/2010%20XC%20Race%205%20Results.htm

Day/Week: 9/44

Friday, November 19, 2010

Leaving The Hay

Went to Nike and met up with Hoss and we ran two laps of the chips, plus a bit, and stretched. It was cold and rainy and threatening snow - cross country weather. Well, XC weather if you're from New England, which neither of us are. But I like it because I feel like the weather is an equalizer when it comes to racing. Of course, I'm a track guy, then a road guy, then a cross guy, so poor weather and footing really doesn't play into my hands. Also, considering my relatively high body weight (for a runner) I tend to sink a bit deeper into the mud and muck. Cross can be rough for me, but I find it fun because it is so different from what I'm used to.

Day/Week: 4.5/35

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Dawn Patrol!

But there's nowhere to surf in Portland? you ask. Well, this version of Dawn Patrol (DP for short), included a small Hawaiian person and a Wolf, running a loop around Portland. It was chilly and nice and relaxed and I came to the conclusion that I am shocked that I live in Portland. This city is amazing and I've been able to find nearly every opportunity I've wanted (and a few unexpected ones) in, or within a few hours, of Portland. I'm in heaven, but mostly because of the amazing people I've met here. I can't say enough about them, nor can I adequately put into words exactly what they mean to me either.

Day/Week: 5/29.5

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Palpating Paladins

No, I have no idea what the title means. I was just looking for some kind of alliterative word to go along with palpating. Palpation lab is my first class of the morning on Wednesdays and we're steadily moving through the body. I feel reasonably confident in my ability to feel people up. In a few more years I'll be able to do it legally, which I can't wait for.

Did the usual two laps around Glendoveer, solo, then added on 6 strides on some grass at the Portland Christian School. Their mascot is the Royals and their colors are purple and gold, so I like them by default. Hopefully running around in stuff that is of similar color will keep them from yelling at me when I attempt to take over their track in the springtime. Or, you  know, not being a jerk when I'm out there might help as well.

I ended up releasing the kraken, in close proximity to a backyard, prior to performing strides. I thought most Portland public parks had restrooms? Guess this one's not big enough for it. Anyway, the kraken trying to be released caused the run to be a little slower, 47:35, than normal.

Day/Week: 7/24.5

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Berm Tempos

How two reasonably intelligent people misread a workout is beyond me, but it happened. The plan was supposed to be 3xberm with 2 min recovery at 5:30 effort (The Nike berm is 3200m around). Somehow this turned into 3 consecutive laps of the berm at 5:30 effort, with no recovery. The workout actually went pretty well for me and despite nearly plowing through the BAC youth team I managed to run quite well. I hit 11:45-11:30-11:15 for my 3 loops, coming out to 34:30 for the total time. I have to be pretty pleased with averaging 5:45s, at night, on wood chips, in cold weather, and steadily increasing the pace. I think this has to mean that good things are coming and probably coming this weekend when I race.

Day/Week: 9.5/17.5

Monday, November 15, 2010

Transverse Arch

The recepie is calling for a gradual increase in mileage, which tends to increase gradually. I've read that that makes the 2nd derivative of my mileage positive. But I've never taken Calc, so what do I know.

I headed out with Nurse and looped Glendoveer three times, then back to school. It was a beautiful day for running, but the pain in my transverse arch just kept dogging me. Good thing I get free treatments and have access to doctors. I declined the strides this afternoon because of my foot, opting to check my initial Gross Anatomy grade. The grade was pretty awful, but I'm not hugely surprised. I didn't focus my studying on the material that was actually on the test, probably because I actually focused on what the teacher said was going to be on the test. Apparently, that was a mistake. I also spent more time figuring out what a majority of the questions were supposed to mean before I could actually answer them. At the end of a couple of hours I was pretty mentally exhausted. The grade ended up getting changed, but it was still disconcerting to work so hard for such a poor grade. Though it just adds fuel to the fire and makes me wantt to work harder to prevent this sort of thing from happening again. At least the lab and lecture tests are weighted evenly so I know I can dominate half the class.

Day/Week: 8/8

Sunday, November 14, 2010

SLR - But Not A Benz

The Sunday Long Run tradition continues........ One of my personal favorite sayings is, "God created the world in 6 days and on the 7th He did an easy 10." Sunday is generally a day for renewal and that's what the long run is for. It's a chance to run easy after a tough week or maybe it's a chance to catch up on a couple of miles missed during the week or maybe it's a chance to hammer and exorcise some demons. Regardless of the reason - Sunday is a chance to begin anew. Sunday ends my running week and it's always nice to end with a long run. They're usually relaxed and usually a lot of fun and usually involve breakfast with friends. Great food, great running, great company, decent coffee (we don't have Community up here, it gets mailed to me) - the SLR is the church I choose to worship in.

My weeks end, rather than begin, on Sunday because I like to have something to look forward to on Monday (other than two hours of Gross Anatomy lecture). It's also nice to know I can pick up a few miles if I have to because I generally have the most time on Sunday for running. This installment of the SLR featured Hoss, Ladd, and me going out and back on Leif Erikson Dr. It's a dirt/rock road through Forest Park and very popular spot on Sundays. The great thing is that is out and back, so if you run out you have to run back - it helps temper your resolve. We covered the 12 miles in a shade over 7 min pace and feasted on Kettleman Bagels (http://www.kettlemanbagels.com/) post run. Kettleman has a deal where you can add a 12-oz cup of coffee to a bagel for just $1.00. They also give free refills. So in typical grad student style I got a refill. It's hard to complain when you land 24-oz of Stumptown coffee (which is decent, but not Community good) for just $1.00.

After the joyousness that is Kettleman, I spent a couple hours holed up at school studying Gross Anatomy. My studying was punctuated by a trip to another Portland institution, BurgerVille (http://burgerville.com/), who was offering 10 cheeseburgers for $10 - a deal too good to miss. I loaded up and had plenty to eat for the rest of the day.

Day/Week: 12/54