64 CLASSIC

A Rockin Week and a Race Report

2011-03-21T16:51:00.005-05:00

It is awesome to be able to get online and post about a rockin week. I hammered a 26.5 miles last week running all seven days in a row. Yes, I know, 10% rule.... but if I follow the darn rule, I don't get a 20 mile week until like September!!

I kicked out 5 Sunday, 3 on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, 5 again on Thursday, 4 on Friday, and 3.1 on Saturday.

Saturday was the St. Patrick's Day 5-K at Murphysboro, IL. I ran a very pedestrian 27:38 but was generally pleased with the effort. Mile one was an 8:31, mile two was an 8:49. Then the legs entered the point of no return (Kansas Reference) and the last 1.1 was a killer 10:18. Hence, I think I lost my SUB 9 minute pace somewhere in there.

The right hip feels unusually good and the feet also feel quite peppy so we'll just see where we can take this. Myself and the Mrs. went to Cape Girardeau Friday evening to watch the start of an ultra. A friend of mine (and local running phenomenon) hosted a second annual 12hr/24hr endurance run. It also had a midnight 5-K and a One Hour category to involve as many people as possible.

I want to be healthy folks. I want to be healthy. For the second year in a row.... this has been there as a local event. This year--I watched the start. Last year, I ..... huh.... refused to go anywhere near. I just didn't want to see it. I desire to participate.

Much of this goes way back to college and a legendary local runner who I plan to blog on in the near future. Hey--hope all is going well. I plan to do some work on the blog layout and update the blogs that I follow a little. Got some house cleaning to do and some updating....

Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

Broken Toys

2011-03-05T17:28:00.004-06:00

As I was searching for a title for today's post, I googled "broken toys" hoping for a GI Joe with a leg or hip problem. I got close!! I think this is Captain Marvel. He'll work event though my workouts don't qualify me to be "captain" and sure aren't "marvelous."

What the heck? Shazaam anyway. The body does feel pretty good. This week I made it on the bike once for 7 miles, to the pool once for 450 yards and hammered the legs for 16 running miles with a long run of 5 on Thursday.

I am keeping things gentle and short. I want to push the envelope but the hip feels VERY unstable. As I told one of my running buddies, it just feels like it could go out at any point so.... I have to take things slow and cautious. It DOES feel good to be moving without pain so short and gentle it is at least for now.

I've picked up a couple of followers lately even though I haven't been blogging a lot which is really cool. Barefoot Johnny O and Jim...50 after 40 have both joined me recently since I started back in on the blog trail. It almost makes me feel a little pressure. I do need to update my margins to properly reflect my reading and need to get on the ball at being more apart of my readers blogs.

I want to do a post later and hit on some of my favorite reads and get props out to some of the blogs that I follow. I may even do a give away if I can come up with something cool. Maybe a canned ham or something.

Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

WHEN I GROW UP, I WANT TO BE.....

2011-03-03T07:26:00.003-06:00

Ok, no I don't want to be a monkey. But when I googled the phrase, this was one of the best pictures. March has roared into Missouri bringing great temperatures so far and hopefully a good running month.

The Classic hopes to improve the running totals and still make a run at the St. Louis Half. January and February brought a total of 83 running miles and 89 biking miles. Not impressive totals by any standard but hopefully there is enough base to train seriously in March.

I just got back from a Teacher Conference at Lake of the Ozarks. I stayed at the Tan-Tar-A Resort at Osage Beach. That is actually where the conference was hosted. Over the three days, I got in some quality workouts during my free time so I feel pretty good at this point entering the month.

June brings a couple of ultra options during the weekend of the 11th so this time period is the beginning that training cycle. Hope the weather is improving for all you guys up north and March finds you healthy and motivated.

Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

I'M BAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK !!!!!!

2011-02-17T19:07:00.007-06:00

EXCUSES, EXCUSES, EXCUSES

With the return of the Classic to the blogging world, I must first apologize for my absence and be up front by stating that I have no real excuses for my disappearance. I can throw some stuff up on the wall just to see what sticks and make at least some attempt to explain my whereabouts. Here we go!!

After the passing of my Father in November, I searched a little while for something to focus my attention on as I moved into the new year. I needed a training goal. I instead suffered an injury during the very first week of training for the St. Louis Marathon. I have some right hip issues which the trainer at school FINALLY took a look at two or three weeks back.

I have a pull or tear in the groin region as well as bursitis in the hip. He is suggesting a shot in the hip which sounds wonderful if the Ibuprofen doesn't soon fix the problem. Each problem is irritating the other and being somewhat stubborn...... my willingness (refusal) to set on the couch and allow it healing time has made things worse. I have major weakness in the hip itself and honestly, even though I'm getting back to being somewhat functional but it still feels shaky.

BASICALLY, BLOGGING WISE...... I JUST DECIDED TO TAKE SOME TIME OFF AND WOULD WRITE AGAIN WHEN I FELT READY. I think I'm there. I really planned to take a couple of months off.

2010 YEAR RECAP

The 2010 running year came to a close with a fairly nice total mileage.

January 72. 7
February 63.8
March 79.5
April 73.6
May 51.2
June 60.2
July 84.4
August 92.3
September 73.4
October 58.5
November 58
December 50.1

2010 Running Total: 817.7 miles

This running included 16 races which were mostly of the 5-K variety. I did have one Half Marathon in the mix back in October (Lewis and Clark). My times were not great under any circumstances but much of that comes back to my overall fitness and weight.

What The Future Holds

At this point, I don't know what to say on this one. I downgraded from the Marathon to the Half Marathon at St. Louis. It is SEVEN weeks away and I'm going to make a go at the training but I don't know.... The body is responding but very slowly and the stability of the hip is questionable at best.

I really want to train for an ultra-marathon. There are two in June that I've already done one time each and one in August that I've also done once. We'll see. I've got an itch but I'm afraid to even think about scratching it!!

CYBER-STALKING ROCKS!!!!!

I will let you know that even though I haven't posted even as much as a comment since just before Christmas, I have been stalking many of you from a distance. I have continued to read and stay somewhat up to date on your daily lives.

I hope to get the mileage up to par, get the body in order and get back to a normal fitness routine as well as blog somewhat periodically as I had been in the past. I hope that my return will be somewhat welcomed and that forgiveness will be granted for my transgressions.

AS ALWAYS..... EVERY DAY IS A GOOD DAY, SOME ARE JUST BETTER!! THANKS FOR READING. WOW--THAT FELT GREAT!!!!

Twas The Run Before Christmas.....

2010-12-20T13:28:00.003-06:00

Week 17 for St. Louis was a very gentle, loving, caring week. The right hip/groin/thigh is very tender and hurts on pretty much every run until I get warmed up. I'm wrapping it to provide strength and support and hope to survive the early weeks before the miles get big. I'd like to be hitting more miles but......

My total for the week was a very pedestrian 17 miles. I did three short runs totalling 3 miles each and threw in a long run of 8 miles on Saturday. I also rode the mountain bike once for about 30 minutes which came out to about 5 miles. It was single digit windchill so 5 miles was about all the body would tolerate and honestly all it needed.

I'm pretty excited about St. Louis and want the Full Marathon for which I am entered. I have the fitness to do the program if the body will heal and permit the longer miles. I'll be very forthcoming, you Triathlon guys are gaining my attention. I think the training variety would be excellent for my body. The muscle balance and recovery time that it would provide is starting to look more appealing all the time.

Its going to be interesting over the next few weeks to see how well I do at moving forward and making a run at the full monty in April. I hope everyone is doing well. Its cool to read your blogs and check out the weather conditions that many of you are functioning in. Especially those of you who are to the north in climates a bit less friendly than what we have here in Missouri.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good run!! Thanks for reading!!

And the Winner of the Free Trip to the Chiropractor is....

2010-12-11T20:18:00.005-06:00

Ok, haven't headed there yet, but.....

I had a great first week of training up through the first three runs. I kicked in a 6 mile trail run last Sunday followed by a 3.5 miler on Monday.

After taking a couple of days off, I came back Thursday with another 6.5 miler this time on pavement. It felt great. No pain in any manner.

However.... the best was yet to come. Or the worst? Wow. Friday was lousy. Right hip, leg, glute, groin. Alignment issues according to the trainer at school. He lined me up and I felt great but later on in the day it was back.

Today, I wrapped the right hamstring nice and firm and high and went out for a 3 miler. It loosened up ok. Not the best. But ok.

All together, I got in 18.5 miles for the opening week of the St. Louis Program. I'm very pleased with the total but a little concerned with the leg. Tomorrow, I plan to cross train which I need to do a little more. Hopefully a little muscle balance will result as well as some active recovery.

It pretty good right now. I've done some of the trainer stretches and have also worked really hard to work on the IT Band. (Can of Corn) Its pretty good right now.

Gonna settle in for a nice quiet Saturday night with a Ham and Cheese from Subway and The Expendables. Check in later for my review.

Hope this finds everyone well. Happy Holidays.

Lock and Load Baby

2010-12-06T18:37:00.007-06:00

I have been searching for the last two or three weeks for the big event of the spring. As one of my teaching buddies says, "Lock and Load!!" Its Week Eighteen. Here is the story.

I was talking with this gentleman today (we teach across the hall from each other) about whether his wife was going to run the Little Rock Half Marathon. She and I ran Lewis and Clark together. He said she was kind of wavering on it and that I needed to call her. We had both been kicking around the L.R. event....

We got started talking about different events and she got me to thinking. I checked the calendar on my phone and the Go St. Louis Marathon Weekend was eighteen weeks away. Exactly eighteen full weeks. Wow! Do I hear my Running Daddy (Hal Higdon) calling my name again? I went to the park and ran a leisurely 3 miler to have a little think time (while sitting on a rock).....

KEEPING IT NICE AND SIMPLE, THE $86.20 REGISTRATION FEE HAS BEEN SPENT.

Soooo..... its week eighteen. Remember, I count DOWN as I move toward the event. This helps me with how far away I am from the actual event. This will be my 3rd regular marathon and my first since St. Jude in December 2005 which I ran in 4:28:58.

I have no goals in mind at this point other than finishing but those will come as the training progresses. I have a goal weight in mind. That mission starts tomorrow morning at the official weigh in. (Picture a big heavyweight title fight. Complete with reporters.)

I'm pretty excited as you can tell. I have to thank my former student and running buddy (T.C.) for her conversations this afternoon. She is the one who mentioned St. Louis and got me to thinking. After seeing the 18 week thing, having some brief thoughts and a great talk with with Hal while sitting on the rock in the park, it was inevitable. Thanks Girl. Decision Made.

It feels good to have an event planned which I feel passionate about. I'm looking forward to the challenge and the demands of the long runs but I do have some "feet" concerns but that simply means to be careful and proceed with caution. I'm really looking forward to making this a RUNNING BLOG again!!

Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

Christmas In Cobden 5-K Race Report

2010-12-05T13:44:00.005-06:00

We made the trip to Cobden, IL yesterday for the second time this year for a 5-K run. We went there for the Peach Festival 5-K back in August so when the flyer came in the mail a couple weeks back, I thought this would be a great finishing event for the year.

The race itself was on almost the same course as the Peach Festival run. If you went to Cobden, you would understand why. Its a pretty small place with not a lot of room for variety in terms of running routes. The start-finish line was in an old feed store which a couple from town have set up as their residence. Talk about history. You are stepping back in time in this old building. It was pretty nostalgic.

The race itself started out with a nice uphill start which meant the finish was downhill (duh). It was an unbelievably small group. I would estimate 30 to 40 at most. I went out to push the pace a little on the first mile. Once you got to the top of the first climb right at the start, you had a long gradual downhill on the other side to make the first mile a relatively quick (for me) 7:59 split. It was an out and back course which made it excellent to determine your overall placing following the turn around point. I was excited to be running in the top ten at this point so I had some motivation to compete a little over the last half of the race.

I hit the two mile mark recording an 8:46 split. The tenth time was around 55 seconds setting up a final mile attempt to keep myself in the top ten overall. Approaching the final climb and subsequent descent to the finish, I was holding my place but was followed closely by the first overall female runner and another racer running with her. There was a group of about three runners directly behind them.

Too make a long story somewhat short, I aggressively attacked the final climb and hammered the downhill finish to place 9th overall. Even more impressive--I forged to a tie for both first and last in my age group. (Insert smiley face here!) Hey, they don't print this stuff on the medals. It looks good hanging in its spot!

The final mile split came in at 8:50.... so the splits go: 7:59, 8:46, :55, and 8:50 for an overall time of 26:31. Not super fast but definitely not too bad for my current level of fitness. This was my 16th running event of the year so 2010 has been a pretty decent year as far as activity. As 2011 approaches, I would like to get back to a little more disciplined diet, get the body a little more functional and add both a little speed to the runs as well as some endurance.

I honestly haven't decided my focus as to my next big event but it was good to go out for a good workout, compete a little and give the heart and lungs a good test. There are a couple of local runs still on the calendar but this is most likely the final run (race) until the Snowman Shuffle comes up January 8th.

As always.... Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading!!

Turning The Page

2010-11-29T18:59:00.007-06:00

Turning the page. Getting life back to normal. How in the world does one do this after the loss of a loved one. I'm working on it. I don't have my exact path figured out yet but I'm on it. I was going to train for the Little Rock Marathon which is March 6. I lost a couple of weeks of training so now I'm really not sure. I want a big spring event.
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There is a local ultra in Mid-March which has my
attention. It is a 12 Hour/24 Hour Endurance Weekend. It goes toward a scholarship fund to benefit students with disabilities. I like that. The proceeds definitely serve an excellent purpose.
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I'm most certainly a race junkie as I have openly admitted in the past. Yes, the first step...... admitting there may be a problem. So, how about hitting the 5-K circuit and really placing a focus on getting back to times I was running 4 or 5 years ago. Without a doubt, I could do that. (The times were not that fast so I feel confident I could regain that form.) Hmmm......... if that was so great 5 years ago, why did I move on to other things, boredom, burnout?

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As you can tell from the pictures, I want a little adventure but I also want to feel the pain of training for a real event. I want to call on that inner toughness to complete a training program and I want to compete a little. I will admit that I have ran more than my share of events with the primary goal being to run to the best of my ability on that day. Very often, I trained to complete the event, not compete the event. I have a slight edge and I want to take it into my training and event schedule as I enter the new year.
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Here is where my blog friends step in. I'll take suggestions. Feel free to critique my blog post. Be harsh. Throw out the kid gloves and give me the the straight poop. I'm really at the point where I want to attack an event but I'm just kind of at a loss as to the distance and nature of the event.
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Things are going well. School is back in session after the Thanksgiving Holidays. I'll be honest, it's fourteen days until Christmas Break. We then get another couple weeks off which I plan to use wisely. We may try to sneak in a little travel time that has been neglected and I most certainly want to make use of the time off to boost the training miles before school starts again in January. The ball is in your court, provide some input. Challenge me. Question my toughness, go on, make my day. (Can I say that? Is there a copyright?) Seriously, hammer me with some suggestions to guide me along. If it's your words which strike the chord and propel me on toward my next event, you will get major "props." Maybe even a guest blog post or something. At the very least, I'll hang your picture in our family room during the holiday season.
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Every day is a good day, some are just better.

Things Just Won't Be The Same

2010-11-22T19:57:00.005-06:00

I can easily say that the last eight days have been the most difficult eight days of my 46 years on the planet. As most of my loyal readers know, my dad has been in poor health for quite some time now. My phone rang at around 4:30 a.m. on November 14. It was my mom. My dad was having problems breathing and she needed help.
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As you will remember, my dad recently finished a 17 day stay in the hospital. That Sunday was to be his 17th day home. He willingly to my surprise went home with the help of hospice which I blogged about a couple weeks back.
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On this particular Sunday however, our time with Dad came to a close. I arrived to the house right around 5:00 a.m. I honestly hadn't much more than walked into his bedroom and said a few words to Mom when he left us. I honestly believe deep down inside that he waited for me to get there so Mom had someone with her. He knew I was coming and as I pulled into the driveway, Mom had said, "I believe Mark is here."
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We have had two years to get ready for this event to take place. Two years ago when he spent time in the Nursing Home, I prayed for God to make him better or ease his pain. Simply put, take him if necessary. It was an unbelievable time. The amount of suffering that I have watched this man endure is beyond what words can explain. He worked so hard to get back home to my mom. They have been married 55 years with their anniversary coming up on January 29th. She was truly the love of his life. They went to church together as kids and first dated when they went on a hayride together when they were 16. They later met and went out for a burger. Three kids and fifty-five years later, here we are. As I stated, we've had two years to prepare for this. You tell yourself over and over that you know its coming and then dad won't be suffering and won't be in pain. Preparation right? Lord no. Not at all.

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My dad was a great guy. He had a quick wit and the man could tell a story. And when he started, don't get in a hurry. He took his good old easy time getting you all the necessary details. He had numerous little sayings which I already tend to use in my daily verse. In all of his struggles, he kept his sense of humor. He had his dark moments but honestly, they were few and far between. The doctors and nurses who took care of him always commented on his sense of humor and general wonderful personality.

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Growing up, we generally traveled or took a family vacation each summer. Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon, the Badlands, Mt. Rushmore, Branson, the Smoky Mountain National Park, Las Vegas, Daytona Beach, the Florida Keys, Grand Teton National Park. Dad loved the mountains. He loved to travel. He had been a store manager for International Harvester. When sales were good, they earned a trip. He and Mom went to Hawaii, Acapulco, Las Vegas, Florida, and an Alaskan cruise. Wonderful times.

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We always cut wood for our winter heat. He had two weeks of vacation. We cut wood one week and traveled the next. As I got older, we learned to cut a little more early in the summer so as to get finished earlier. Finishing earlier meant we could leaver earlier. We always packed a cooler with ham or bologna and stopped at rest stops to eat a family meal or grab a snack. Things I've done with my kids now. We always seemed to find a good diner for breakfast. I would be screaming and hollering to stop at McDonalds. That seldom happened. Dad liked a good sit down breakfast. I now have that curse! I love breakfast and the more "down home" the diner, the better.

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I could keep this post going all evening as you can tell. I have so many memories and stories that I could share. I honestly just don't know how to say goodbye. It has been so tough. My brother and I have been so fortunate. I look forward to working my way through these early stages. I may take time to tell a story once in a while or share an occasional picture. Its going to take a while.

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I gave you two pictures today. The first is our final Thanksgiving together. We thought we would still have Pop this year. It suddenly became a very emotional and sentimental picture with his passing. The second picture isn't of great quality. Its actually a picture of a picture. I couldn't get the original to copy. It is of Dad with Mom standing in the background. Folks, my Mom can flat cook. Her kitchen is THE gathering place when you go to their house. Its going to be tough with Pop not sitting at the end of the table in his normal spot.

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Dad, I love you and I thank you for all of the many things that you taught me and did for me during our time together. I just don't have words to express how bad I miss you and how much I dread having to learn to live life without your presence. Its most certainly going to be a difficult adjustment to make. You were a great husband to mom, dad to me and Roger, and papaw to my children. We will honor you memory in many ways over the coming holidays as we try to move forward. I know you are in a better place, that you are no longer suffering, and that you are having a great reunion, a joyous celebration unlike no other.

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I would like to give a special thanks to all the individuals who read and follow my blog. I wish you and your families all the best as we enter the holiday season.

It's About Passion

2010-11-10T17:16:00.005-06:00

We needed a little break this week in my Physical Science Class. After a big Unit Test last week and a 3 chapter Math Test Monday, they wanted a video.
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So. Its character building time. I broke out my Aron Ralston video--Suvivor. You know the story. Aron is the guy who got his arm pinned by the huge boulder while hiking in Southeastern Utah. After being trapped there for several days, he amputated his right arm and hiked out.
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The video, which I purchased off of nbc.com for a measly six dollars is fantastic. The first day sets the stage and is ok. The second day is where Aron gets into the actual amputation process which includes the breaking of his forearm bones, the drinking of his own urine, and his amazing hike back to civilization.
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Two really cool things happened in class over these two days:
DAY ONE
On day one, they are talking about how Aron quit his job at Intel so that he could go on a mountain climbing adventure instead. We had discussed that this was a job with a fantastic company which most likely included a wonderful salary and terrific benefits.

Right in front of me, one student asked another: "He quit his job? Why? To go mountain climbing?" The other student, a young lady looked back at him and simply said:

"ITS ABOUT PASSION."

That was it. I was all in. SOMEBODY GETS IT!!

DAY TWO
We finished the movie today. At the end of my last period class (which is the group that I couldn't really tell if they were enjoying the video or not), two young ladies went to the library and checked out Aron's book; "Between a Rock and a Hard Place." I walked into the library after school just in time to see the third and final copy of this book being checked out. Again, by a student that I wasn't real sure if he enjoyed the video or not.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.
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I tried to clue them in a little as to "How bad do you want to live?" and "What could you do to survive?" I didn't expect the parade to the library to get the books nor the extra special passion comment. Again, one of those little things in education we don't get paid for.
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The picture above is myself and Aron. He spoke at Southeast Missouri State University last year as part of the University Speaker Series. I was on the front row sitting with our librarian. She beat me there and saved me a seat. Meeting him and getting the picture was well worth the stand in line. He is truly an inspiring individual. His movie came out last week. I don't know if it will make it to Southeast Missouri movie theatres or not.... NETFLIX anyone?
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As always, EVERY DAY IS A GOOD DAY, SOME ARE JUST BETTER. THANKS FOR READING!

What? Fall Back? I HATE TAPERING!! No Way!!

2010-11-07T07:24:00.010-06:00

We almost have all of the clocks set back. Ok, coffee pot, microwave, stove, bedroom, cell phone (wait, that one did itself), once we get the cars done we can start replacing batteries and hit the furnace filter. I only wish the transition to having one less hour of daylight was as easy!
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This was an excellent week of school and a great week of training. I logged 21.6 miles for the week including 16 miles on the bike. The bike rides were Sunday and Monday with 9 and 7 miles coming on those days.
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My running total was very pleasing. I hammered out 3.5 on Tuesday and 3 on Wednesday. On both of these days, I mixed in some fartleks to liven up the workout and get the feet moving. Its just fun to say fartlek. Thursday was a day off. Friday was a K-Mart Blue Light special or a Schnuck's Double Coupon Day. I woke up to an easy 4 miler at 5 a.m. That evening, the wife had a basketball game (remember she is the cheer coach), her fourth night out this week. After getting home, watching some ESPN, rearranging my sock drawer, contemplating world hunger, and playing with my toes for a couple of hours, I decided to wrap up the week by doing an 8 miler in the park. Nothing like a good 12 mile day. She and I actually kicked out an easy 3 yesterday to top the twenty mile mark which is ONE of my training goals each week. I like to track how often I top 20 and how often I top 30 miles as I progress through a training program.
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I'm basically counting this week as Week 1 (or Week 18--I usually count down to create a sense of urgency) toward a big time spring event. I'm really leaning toward the Little Rock Marathon which is exactly 18, excuse me 17 weeks away. I've run the half marathon there 3 times. As you can see from the picture, the full marathon medal is HUGE. I could make weiner jokes here but being in public education it just wouldn't be appropriate. (Ok, I'll save them for the teacher's lounge.) And just to set the record straight, that's not my bed, or my medal, or my weiner....dog. Sorry, couldn't resist that one! There is another event in March which intrigues me. There is an ultra which a friend of mine hosts. It includes a 12 hour and a 24 hour event. I'd love to add the 12 hour to my list of accomplishments. Its a new event. Last year was the first year and 52 miles won it. Hmmmm.......
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The blog has been under construction a little. I've added a quote which I created with the help of a blog that I've been reading. More on that on a later post. I've added some information as to some of my running history. There are a bunch more races that need to go in the Classic Racing Section but I'm thinking of changing that section.
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Best wishes to all as the holidays approach and as always......
EVERY DAY IS A GOOD DAY, SOME ARE JUST BETTER. THANKS FOR READING!

Long Time No See....

2010-11-03T01:46:00.004-05:00

Hello Blogging World. Things have been just plain hectic since my last blog post. As you may remember, the Lewis and Clark Half Marathon went extremely well. I was pleased with my overall time as well as my age group placement and overall finish.

I had plans to go to Wynne, Arkansas and run the Mid South Half Marathon this weekend.... but, plans change. My dad recently spent 17 days in the hospital. I took two and a half days off of school at the end of his stay to help my mom with decisions that had to be made.

I'm not sure how much you may be familiar with our fam's history here so hang on..... Pop or Ralph as I usually call him (he calls me the same), has been through it all. He has Parkinson's Disease, Congestive Heart Failure, and Emphysema. All are in the advanced stages. We went through lung cancer about ten years ago. At that point, the doctor in St. Louis gave him three years due to the Emphysema. Obviously, we beat that one!

Over the last ten years, there have been numerous angiograms, stints, a gall bladder surgery, shall I go on? Dad has been cat-like definitely utilizing all of his available nine lives! Two years ago he had open heart surgery and went back and forth from the Hospital, to the Nursing Home, to Therapy, to the Hospital, to the Nursing Home.... got the idea?

We nearly lost him on one occasion but after five days on the Ventilator, he stayed with us. He actually went home on election day TWO YEARS AGO TODAY after having surgery on August 1st. Happy Anniversary DAD!

Back to today.... 17 days. I do believe his second longest stay only to be overshadowed by his stay following open heart. Going home was kind of happy-sad. A good-bad thing. Dad accepted hospice which means we most likely don't go back to the hospital for lung related issues. It was his decision. It felt weird walking out of the hospital for maybe the last time. I can't explain the things I felt. I'm not sure what I feel at this point or how to place it into words so lets talk running.......

Good Idea, Change The Subject. As I stated, the run this weekend is OFF. It was a cheapie. Only 25 to enter so I don't feel bad there. I really feel like I could do the run but just need the time to relax and kick back.

I am hoping to train for a spring marathon. My options are the Little Rock Marathon, the Country Music Marathon, and the St. Louis Marathon. There is also a local ultra which would be excellent as well.

I'm leaning toward the Little Rock event. I haven't preregistered yet which is the final commitment but I've charted out the training. Its most certainly leading the way in my thoughts.

THE MEDAL IS FREAKING HUGE AND I LIKE BLING!!!

I am going to continue to build my base adding a little strength work and cross training and using the next week or two to officially decide. Ok, TRUTH-----I'm going to do the training program for the next couple of weeks in case that is the way I want to go. There! I feel better. Honesty. The program is much like the half program I used. Short, Medium Long, Short, Medium Long, LONG. Depending on the day, mixing in some fartleks, hill work, and maybe some YASSOS.

We'll see where this goes. I honestly won't know till I get there.

Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

IT'S 5:00 SOMEWHERE!!

2010-10-12T19:30:00.003-05:00

With Lewis and Clark in the books, my softball season finished up, and almost a quarter of school down, hey....its 5:00 somewhere!!

My half was a great success. I finished as you can see from my last post in 2:02:00 which was very pleasing. I had somewhat of a shot at a sub two and never in my dreams was that a goal on my first half back.

My next event is the Mid South Half-Marathon in Wynne, Arkansas on November 6, 2010. I took last week pretty easy. The next three I want to turn it back up tapering the last one before the next event.

I am contemplating the FULL MONTY. St. Louis or Little Rock. Little Rock has a MONSTROUS FREAKING MEDAL and hey, what can I say.... I like bling!! It is 21 weeks away. Plenty of time.....

Major props to Laura at Frayed Laces for completing her first Ironman last weekend in Kona. Awesome job. My wife and I actually used the online tracker to follow her progress throughout the day. Wow! I got tired just running up and down the basement steps to update the computer. She has a great post with her finish video included. If you don't follow her blog, drop by and give her a shout out for a job well done. Great Job Frayed Laces!!

As I stated, our softball season finshed up last week. We ended the season at 8-15 which is absolutely below my expectations for the group. I really wanted more both for and from these girls. As for high points, we earned the number 3 seed in our district, opened the district tournament with a win before bowing out to the 2 seed, won 5 of our last 7 games, and had 4 girls make the all district team and one additional earning honorable mention. There were definately bright spots to our season. We lose only one senior but she is a dandy and may move on to play at the next level. We have some talented eighth graders who will come in next year to help solidify our lineup. Now the big decision to make over the winter. I have to decide my role; return as the trusty assistant coach or a return to the role of interested observer..... lets see.... the first ROCK AND ROLL ST. LOUIS is in October 2011, Hmmmm...

One Final Journey

2010-10-04T19:10:00.006-05:00

In case you didn't know this, the Lewis and Clark Marathon in St. Charles, MO will next year become part of the Rock and Roll Marathon Series. The birth of Rock and Roll St. Louis thus makes the Ninth Edition of the L&C Marathon the final running.... hence the name, ONE FINAL JOURNEY.
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I can't start to tell you how well this trip went. Every aspect. We went up Saturday, did our packet pick up and proceeded to go shopping (Dick's Sporting Goods, NIKE Factory Outlet) before finally checking into our hotel later that afternoon. We stayed at a Studio Plus at the Earth City exit approximately two miles from the start line. After checking in and catching a quick nap, we got out and shopped a little more (Sam's Club) before grabbing a Tex Mex supper at Chevy's.
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Sunday morning, after a quick order of toast and coffee at Denny's, we headed to the start line arriving at around 6:00 a.m. It was a nice, clear, cool morning. Around 39 degrees or so at start time. The traffic was pretty hectic but no real problem. We had plenty of time to do the bag drop and hit a porta-potty before finding our place in line.
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Next up comes the event itself: I'll keep it simple and go straight to the splits and numbers.
Mile 1: 9:02
Mile 2: 9:47
Mile 3: 9:11
Mile 4: 9:46
Mile 5: 9:26
Mile 6: 9:11
Mile 7: 9:50
Mile 8: 9:26
Mile 9: 9:18
Mile 10 9:13
Mile 11 9:07
Mile 12 8:53
Mile 13 8:50
.1 :54
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Final Time: 2:02:00
Overall Finish #1779 of 5973 Runners
Age Group Finish #130 of 303 Runners Aged 45-49 Years
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I'll be honest. I couldn't be happier with my effort. I looked at my clock at the ten mile mark and was like ok, run a 25 minute 5-K and dude, you've got a 2:00 half-marathon. This was nowhere in my thought process. It was at no point a consideration or goal. I didn't think my fitness level was anywhere near putting me ready for this effort. Again, I was very pleased.
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All the little things during the race went pretty well. It took 3 or 4 miles to get the pace adjusted as you can kind of tell at the start. It was a little chilly but I got comfortable pretty quickly. I actually changed from two shirts to one shirt during the early stages of mile six. Energy was never a problem. I popped a GU a few minutes before starting and then 2 or 3 more during the race. I hydrated at each stop choosing Gatorade or Energy Drink at each station it was provided.
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Looking at my splits, check out from Mile 7 on---9:50, 9:26, 9:18, 9:13, 9:07, 8:53, 8:50. Check that out baby! Faster each mile with my last two miles being my fastest. I was surprised by how much energy I had at the end. The familiarity of the finish area really helped. I had done a 5 mile run that started and finished in this area back in August. It really helped to know the area.
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One of my former students was running the half also. We started out together but she had been ahead of me from about mile 5 on after I slowed to change shirts. I caught up with her with about two miles to go and tried to pull her along a little. She was laboring somewhat but form wise, honestly looked really good. She went on to finish around 17 seconds behind me. Very good in both the overall and her age group. Great job Tara!!
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After grabbing my bag and exchanging my shirt for a better fitting size, I boarded one of the school buses (shuttles) and headed back to the start line where my wife was waiting. I showered at the hotel and we hit Jimmy Johns for a sandwich that actually had meat on it! WOW! What a treat!
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This event was overall just a great success. My last Half was at the Country Music in Nashville in 2009. I ran a very painful 2:27:20. It was horrible. I had a really bad day. My training had been ok but I had lower leg problems and just crashed. It was bad. I still have no explanation for what went wrong. That event made this one really stressful. I really wanted to prove to MYSELF that I could get back to my old form and old times.
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THE FUTURE YOU ASK?

I am already registered for the Mid-South Half Marathon in Wynne, Arkansas on November 6, 2010. It is a great little event that I did a few years back. Instead of 7000 people, it might end up hosting maybe 400 total between the half and the full marathon. I already booked the hotel. Of the 3 or so hotels in Wynne, I booked the Nationwide 9. Its a nice little hotel snuggled carefully in between the Wal-Mart and the Chinese Restaurant.

I feel kind of beat up but hope to get out tomorrow or Wednesday for a little leg loosener. I would like another five pounds off before Wynne. I woke up this last Saturday and weighed in at a cool 185 before leaving for St. Louis. I couldn't have asked for better. I also want to pretty much continue my training with few changes. I do want some mile repeats and some 800's to improve my foot turnover and maybe shoot my time down a little.
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In general, I just want to continue my journey back toward consistency and possibly a spring marathon attempt. I was considering the half in Memphis in December, but it it full so I am open for suggestions for a good December event.
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Thanks for all your support. I've had several comments and even a few emails from various individuals. I know other people had events this weekend and I look forward to softball finishing up so I have time to sit down and read and get caught up with your activities.
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Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

THREE THINGS THURSDAY

2010-09-30T05:45:00.003-05:00

FOLLOWING IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF SOME GREAT BLOGGERS, THIS IS MY FIRST EDITION OF THREE THINGS THURSDAY. NO PROMISES AS TO THIS BEING A WEEKLY EVENT. LIKE WITH A NEW CAR, GOTTA TEST IT OUT AND MAYBE KICK THE TIRES.

1. Some news is out this morning on Alberto Contador testing positive for a banned substance. Hmmm.... don't I remember a little incident last summer of someone not stopping and waiting for a fellow competitor. Hmmm..... unwritten tour sportsmanship practices? Stopping for downed cyclists or mechanicals? Theres just nothing better for breakfast than a good cup of hot carma.

2. Woke up early this morning. Came downstairs to hop on the computer. Posted a reply on Patrick's blog at The Road. The west coast post time? A very impressive 3:11 a.m. Now the official purpose of comment number two.... THREE DAYS OUT FROM THE RACE..... BODYWEIGHT.....186 POUNDS!! Finally!! Another step down. Remember, last Christmas I was at 214.

3. I'm at a crossroads again. We are nearing the end of our Girls Softball Season and I have to decide if I want to continue as Coach P's right hand man, trusty side kick, or Boy Friday. (Take your pick.) It has been a difficult season. We are sitting at 5-14. If we play well, we have a shot at winning Monday and Tuesday to close out the regular season. We also have a good shot at a Wednesday win to open district play. This would put us at 8-14 playing in the semifinals of districts. This is my third season back and has been VERY difficult for various reasons. I am feeling A LOT of pressure to make the correct decision regarding my return. The time requirement is always an issue. More importantly--on several occasions this fall, I've been running very high stress, and haven't been a very good husband, dad, friend, teacher, or boy friday. (Again, take your pick.) Decisions, decisions, decisions.

Weird Wednesday

2010-09-29T22:03:00.002-05:00

264 Hours and Counting......

2010-09-22T20:26:00.004-05:00

264 Hours and counting until the Lewis and Clark Half-Marathon in St. Charles, MO. (Give or take a little.) Week 3 running went well with 19 miles. I backed things off a little bit running my 12 miler early in the week due to scheduling conflicts. I ran two 3.5 mile runs and pretty much had to pack it in for the week. Softball and school commitments have been unreal. Every single day since last Friday has been daylight to dark and then some.

I feel pretty good. This week has been crazy but the mileage is on pace. I am going to do one more ten miler Friday afternoon to wrap up the double digit running and taper next week with the big event coming up on Sunday, October 3rd. I'm very excited but extremely nervous which is cool.

I think I had lost some of the fun of actually being nervous for the "big events" as weird as that sounds. I had gotten my fitness to the point of coasting through a half marathon with honestly very little concern. My goal is very hard to establish for this event. Ultimately, I want to finish and improve on my 2009 disaster at the Country Music Marathon. I had leg problems and really struggled to finish. I now know the feelings of dealing with an injury that you can't just ice, stretch, take a few Ibuprofen, and fix.

I have really kind of looked at this event as somewhat starting over. Reading Kenley's blog at The Essence of Running has really helped. He just recently finished his FIRST half marathon and his excitement and enthusiasm has helped to kind of push me along a little. I haven't posted much on his blog due to a very busy schedule-----so, Kenley gets his own paragraph and a special THANK YOU for his fantastic race report. You can tell from his race report that the dude was PUMPED to successfully complete the event that he had trained diligently for. Eleven days man, eleven days.....

As for the goals. One, finish and be healthy. This race is my first back from injury (PF) which I will officially quit mentioning after successfully completing this event. It is also the site of MY FIRST EVER HALF. I ran this event (be it a different course) in 2002 with a time of 2:14:28. So----I will officially place this as a goal time. I want to match or beat this time. I ran it again in 2003 with a time of 2:06:44. So---this is my secondary goal time. If I am feeling well and the body is working, who knows. These are my TWO time goals.

Thanks for the occasional feedback and support. All comments, regardless of how brief are fantastic. Once softball is done, I get to be human again so you will get actually get some feedback from me. After I complete L & C, I will let you know about another little fee, or should I say ENTRY FEE that has already been paid for November. Oh yeah!

Every day is a good day, some are just better.

OUTWIT, OUTLAST, OUTPLAY

2010-09-15T18:20:00.010-05:00

Ok--Life is good again, SURVIVOR is back. Many of you may not or may not like the show and we have went some seasons without watching it as well but tonight its on again and we are thrilled.
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It has become a THING at our house. The last two seasons I think my children (Little Bit 18, and The Chief 13) have been a little worried about myself and their stepmom.

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We don't take phone calls during Survivor. I mean--Hey, I try not to call their house during Grey's Anatomy.

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Its a night of festivity.

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Yelling and Screaming IS permitted.

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Cursing at the T.V.--ok, not appropriate but sometimes permitted.

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I had NO troubles deciding who should be worthy of blog pictures for this post.

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The past two seasons have been awesome. I will miss Parvati, Russell, and Rupert. Yes, even Russell. He has been very easy to dislike but I can EASILY state that he is one of the best players ever. PLAYER--period. He could certainly manipulate the game. Last season, he darn near single handedly dismantled things from time to time. He had little chance to win the overall due to simply ticking eveyone off but the dude played the game. Rupert, I will miss simply because he sported the tye-dye, hated Russell and again--you may or may not like the dude, his personality, or his rugged "good looks," but he really spices things up when he's on the show.
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It will be awesome to watch Jimmy Johnson play the game. It will be cool to see a major celebrity on this type of show. I hope he gets to stick around a while. It will be weird to see his hair messed up though!

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Hey--Quick post here, gotta run!! Show comes on in 12 minutes. Time to make popcorn. The half-marathon is two and a half weeks off. Body feels great and the weight is 187.

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Every day is a GOOD day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

Ugh, Ugh, Ugh, Ugh

2010-09-12T10:32:00.013-05:00

Lewis and Clark, Week 4 went extremely well. After a quiet, but busy week last week, I got back to business. I kicked out 11.4 miles on Monday, followed by 3 miles on Wednesday, 3.5 miles on Thursday and came back with a cool 5 yesterday. The week total rounded out to be a very comfortable 22.9 miles.

Saturday's five miler included a trip to Chester, IL for the 31st Annual Popeye 5-K run. This is easily one of the best runs in the area with approximately 300 runners pre-registered. After a few select photographs, the warm up process began. I felt great and decided to check the engines on mile one and see what I had in the tank. I couldn't have asked for better. The course consists of an out and back in both directions. You start out going north, circle the high school and head back south through the start finish area (where they announce your name). You then proceed south before turning around in front of the court house to once again head back to the finish. You are for the most part either going slightly uphill or slightly downhill the entire way.

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I kicked out Mile One in 7:38. I pushed through Mile Two in 8:19. This put me at the two mile mark in 15:57. I was pretty pleased. On Mile Three, I faded a little back to 8:47 (most likely due to the uphill stretch after turning around at the court house) followed by the 46 second finish on the final tenth of a mile. Over all--25:31. Good for my best 5-K of the year. Not bad considering I hadn't pre-registered and didn't decide to go until 9:45 p.m. Friday night.

Now for the trip home. We stopped to eat at one of my favorites. Al's Place in McBride, MO. Hole in the wall doesn't describe it. I first discovered this fine establishment in the summer of 1991 when I worked for Pepsi Cola. This place is GREAT. They even catered our Family Christmas meal one year. It was amazing.

The left side of the building also doubles as the community Post Office. The sign fell down a few years back and is propped up near the left corner of the building.

You quickly grasp the concept of atmosphere when you walk in the front door and just to the right are the bathrooms. It often confuses occasional city folk who stumble into the place unknowingly.

I looked over the Menu and carefully studied the Specials........

Before deciding on the Open Face Roast Beef Plate. Simply stated, It is as good as it looks. Maybe even better. I have not been eating much meat or very much in the line of animal products on many meals. So..... this was awesome. I actually have a picture of the cleaned plate but thought you'd get more of a kick out of the bathroom and post office sign. Our girl's cross country team stops at this place to eat every year when they go to Chester for their first meet of the year. The freshmen girls who haven't been there before are fun to watch.

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The body is phenomenal. My weight last week was around 187-188 pounds most of the week. Monday's 11 miles were great. The added rest has really worked well and the diet has been amazing. I haven't been totally vegan or totally vegetarian but have just avoided a lot of the fast food we normally consume. On several occasions, I have sat down to a plate of veggies with a bagel or piece of bread and maybe some fruit. I've eaten my weight in Red, Yellow, Orange, and Green Peppers. Two cantaloupes in one week? Yep.

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Three weeks from today, the race is on. Lewis and Clark. I'm getting excited. (And a little nervous.) Mostly excited. I'm really close to being ready to go. I have a couple more 10 milers planned and then its go time. I'm working on polishing up the form, a little core work, some climbing..... all the little prep stuff to hopefully make this event work.

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Hey guys, gotta run. Going to go upstairs and fix a Roast. Oh yeah, no meat though. New Red Potatoes, some Cabbage, some Onions, and Baby Carrots all thrown in the roasting bag with the seasoning mix. I'll let you know how it turns out.

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Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

School Days, School Days....

2010-09-07T20:14:00.007-05:00

Week five is in the books and to be totally honest, I have very little to write about in the field of running. I had a monstrous week of softball with five total games and I also worked the concession stand for Friday night's home football game. Running took a backseat and much needed rest was taken.
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For the week, Mr. Kotter (me) ran a measly total of only 12.5 miles. I know, I know, I'm kind of upset about it myself but, what can a guy do? Actually, I'm not upset about it and have already jump started this week with a week opening run of 11.4 miles. What did you do with your labor day? Huh? Rest?

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I have to admit to having very little time to blog read or comment. When I am sitting in front of a computer, I am generally checking my e-mail or putting grades into the computer or putting lesson plans online. Whoops! Forgot to do that one today! Guess I'll get on that one tomorrow. Hope the little tikes were listening today or at least reading the board when their work was assigned. There are just soooo many things that go into the average teacher's day that it is just amazing. Sometimes the actual process of teaching in the classroom is the easy part. Notice the lesson on Mr. Feeny's blackboard is on inventions. Ha! Science and Technology, I'm just that good!

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It does feel good to be staring year 23 in the face though. I do have to admit. I realize that it kind of makes me somewhat OLD but what the heck. It does a body good to know that in five more years, I can retire at the ripe old age of 52. (I can go in two more but the retirement at 25 years just isn't that great.) Yeah, you pretty much have me pegged. When the Breakfast Club came out, I was the Jock, or the Geek..... now I'm the detention guy. Go figure.

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I've already promised the wife (a much younger and way prettier teacher than I) that after I retire, I will check in daily if I'm not in the area. She knows that if the money is available and the health is good, I may occasionally ramble across the countryside in search of a marathon or even the occasional 5-K. As any of my devoted readers know, I love a good 5-K. I may not be fast but I can hammer out the events! I wouldn't mind to be a 50 states runner but I want the events to be at my discretion. Not just marathons.

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I hope everyone's training is going well. I promise to sit down and catch up with my blog reading and at least try to touch base as soon as possible. I do want to welcome two new followers, Nicolle and Forward Foot Strides to my blog. I know I don't always welcome new followers and I hope no one feels slighted. I do love to watch the number of followers slowly grow and enjoy reading about other people's lives and training. Keep the new followers coming!

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Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

Mid-Week Milestone--Mr. 7000

2010-09-01T07:46:00.011-05:00

After finishing my middle of the week six miler this morning, I got a very nice treat. I was walking in the door and thought wow, its September.... I have to flip the calendar. As I was adding up August, I thought to check the career mileage since I started back running in 2000-2001. I received a very pleasant surprise. After yesterday's 5 a.m. three miler, my running mileage was setting at an EVEN 7000 miles.
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I started back running and working out simply to get back into shape. I had raced bicycles in the late 80's and early 90's when I started teaching. After ending the bike racing career, I very slowly got up to almost 240 pounds. I'm hovering now around 190 pounds and run best in the low 180's. I do however feel so much better than I did at 230 plus pounds. My hope is that this continues for many years to come. I really don't care to be that person that you READ about in Runners World as long as I live the life. I do want to be that old man in about 30 years who is still kicking out events and hanging medals rather than sitting on my front porch in a rocking chair wondering where my life went.
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People start running, lifting weights, swimming, or biking for many reasons. Each individual has their own story. I hope that this post serves as motivation for new runners as well as any veteran runners who are struggling with injury or fitness. Whether you are trying to qualify for Boston or meet some sort of personal goal, remember why you started. Keep things in the proper perspective and enjoy your sport. Train and prepare for each event to the best of your ability. On race day, bring your best. Good or bad, its most likely not your first race and it probably won't be your last.
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Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

LUKE, I AM YOUR FATHER

2010-08-29T10:28:00.012-05:00

When I posted last week, I was pretty much disgusted with my week's efforts (21.5 miles but a long run of only 6.5 miles) and I stated that I planned this week to strive toward four quality workouts and a little time off. It was rough but I took Sunday and Wednesday completely off. No running or biking at all.

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Jeff at Dangle the Carrot was kind of enthused by my Hal Higdon comment so I actually decided to just go with Hal this week as my "Running Daddy" instead of Darth despite the obvious Star Wars reference on the post title. Actually, I don't think Darth ran anyway. The helmet would NOT have been comfortable.

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As stated, 4 runs was the goal. Two shorter, one mid-range, and one long. All relative to my fitness level and current goals. Let's skip any further appetizers and get to the main course. The week went well. Two complete days off. NOTHING. It was tough. I completed five runs for the week for a total of 25. 5 miles. Monday, I started the week with 3.5 miles. I came back Tuesday with 3.2 miles. Thursday, I returned with 5.2 miles with another 3.5 miles coming on Friday right after school. Saturday, I started to do a mid-day run but didn't feel very well so I took a NAP instead! (Yes, I said a nap!) The nap worked because I went out about 7 p.m. and kicked out an EASY 10.1 miler to finish the week.

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I went kind of old school with the 10 miler. I really like to run point to point for some reason. So..... I strapped on the Gatorades and started out Highway 72 which has a NEW lane on each side of the road (Thank you MODOT!!) toward the country. I had my lovely bride pick me up at Millersville which was about 6.5 miles into the run. Upon arriving back into town, I took off on what I call Megan's Circle (it's a course me and my daughter ran several times together back when she started running, hence--special route) and wrapped up the 10-spot. It went very well. I had no foot pain and felt strong the entire ten miles. So, anyone reading this can most likely come up with the schedule for this week's running. Four solid runs. Two short, one medium, one long. Again, all relative to the event and current fitness level.

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Props this week go out to Kenley at The Essence of Running for registering for his first official race, The Capital Blue Cross Half Marathon in Harrisburg, PA. He has been running for about a year and a half and definitely deserves a "shout out" for jumping on that first race. Stop by his blog and throw out some quality first race motivational kindness!!

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Every day is a good day, some are just better. As always, thanks for reading.

I COULDN'T CATCH MARGE, MUCH LESS BART!!

2010-08-21T19:30:00.019-05:00

Week Seven Running and the First Week of School:

Hopefully the title and picture kind of have you prepared for the report on this week! Actually, the week overall was pretty good. I logged 21.5 miles on the ground. The early week runs went very well. I logged three miles per day Sunday through Thursday with the week day runs coming at 5 a.m. I took Friday off and had planned a 10 miler today to cap the week. As you can see to the right, I just didn't have it today. I kicked out 6.5 miles and scrapped the workout for the day.

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I've been generally pretty displeased today with the ten spot going south. It has just been general disgruntlement. (Is that a real word?) Next week, due to school and softball practice, I'm going to try to go a little Hal Higdon on you. I'd like four good workouts. I hope to go short, mid-range, short, and long for my four runs and give myself a little rest and recovery time.

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Best case scenario, I may ride the mountain bike a little. It just depends on how I'm feeling throughout the week. Something needs to kick in and jumpstart my butt though. I'm a little concerned that the long runs just are not progressing as well as I would like. I can actually feel a little self-doubt kicking in and I've not had to deal with that before when preparing for a half-marathon. The full monty--yep sure as well as an ultra but generally I've always felt very comfortable that I could go out and kick the dog out of a two hour run. I need that back.

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On a side note, I want to wish Amanda at Caratunk Girl and Jon from SwiCycloRun lots of luck tomorrow. They are both competing in the Timberman Ironman 70.3 in New Hampshire tomorrow. If you are up and about early in the morning, you can follow them online as they compete in their respective heats. Go to their webpages for their full names and bib numbers as well as motivational and entertaining videos. Good luck to both of you!!

Week Eight Training, A Week of.......

2010-08-15T16:12:00.005-05:00

Hello faithful readers. Week eight training, a week of..... softball, bicycle wrecks, softball, soreness, softball, more soreness..... Lets get to the devil in the details.

As many of you know, I am in my third year as a high school assistant softball coach. I had been the head coach from 1992 until 2002 but was away from the game for a few years before returning as an assistant in 2008. This past week consisted of two-a-day practices at 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Wednesday. We had single practices on both Thursday and Friday. The heat most days was miserable. We tried to keep track of this daily for the safety of the players. Most days, the heat index especially for the afternoon practice was in excess of 110 degrees. Literally, almost too hot to even function.

You can figure it out by now that my mileage for the week dipped. To be honest, I took it in stride and used it as a step back or recovery week. Here are the numbers for the week.

8/8 5 miles Tywappity Lake (2 Laps)
8/9 2.5 miles Tywappity Lake (a.m. run)
8/9 2 miles Before Practice (p.m. run)
8/11 Mountain Bike Ride 5 miles Tywappity Lake Trail
8/12 2 miles Mom and Dads
8/14 3.1 miles Jour de Fete 5-K Run

The week total: 14.6 miles

The week wasn't as uneventful as you might think. On Wednesday, I rode the lake trail with my principal. We hammered the first lap pretty smoothly. Its very technical single track with lots of good climbing and descending. On the second lap, I was in the process of dismounting to cross a bridge when disaster struck. I couldn't get off the darn bike, and I couldn't get back on either.

I was hammering along behind the boss (trying to keep up) as we approached a bridge. I went to dismount while moving a little too quickly. The balance went astray and it was over. I had my first actual bicycle crash in about twenty years. It was much easier at 26 than it is at 46. After getting up and figuring out that my bike was still intact (the obvious first concern), I found the right calf to be screaming in pain. I was somewhere between sick to my stomach and just flat ticked off. I thought, "holy cow--you idiot, you've just wasted five good weeks of training to come out here...." Long story short, I iced and stretched and all is good. The body is a little sore, part from the ride, part from the crash. I'm not really sure what pain is coming from what activity.

MY WEEKLY RACE REPORT:

As you may have guessed, I ran a 5-K yesterday. The Jour de Fete 5-K in Saint Genevieve, MO yesterday went pretty well the first two miles. I was really sore from the weeks activities and wanted to try to hold about a 8:30 pace if possible. That was about my AVERAGE pace for last weeks event.

The miles were not marked but I was running with a guy from the area that knows the course and he identified the two mile mark as we crossed it. (Two mile time: 17:18) That works out for an 8:39 average split. Not too bad. The last 1.1 however was much more UGLY.

You know a race course has a good hill when they advertise it on their flyer!! Maxwell Hill rears its ugly face right when you want to push hard on that last mile and power toward the finish line. It is really a dandy. It broke me. (It broke several of us.) I'd like to leave out the part about having to walk some of Max. I think I will. Pretend I never mentioned it. I managed to drag my tired oxygen-in-debt butt up Max and actually had some fun racing some of the other fellow mid-packers on the final stretch. The time was 27:44 which averaged out as an average split of 8:56. Not really what I wanted but it was about all I had yesterday.

THE MOST AMAZING THING--WHEN I TURNED IN MY STICK AT THE FINISH I SCANNED THE MALE 45-49 AGE GROUP RESULTS. MY AGE GROUP INCLUDED THE 3RD, 5TH, 7TH, AND 9TH PLACE FINISHERS! WOW. We're supposed to be old right? Rocking chair material? Not these guys!! I was the 55th place finisher. They had 96 pre-registered runners so with race day registrations figured in, I was solid middle of the pack.

AVERAGE--story of my life!!

School starts tomorrow so its back to the real world. Or at least my version of it. We have one more week of practice before games begin so we have a lot to do with the softball team to get them ready to go.

My half marathon is SEVEN weeks from today. I feel that the first 6 weeks of training have gone well. I'm averaging just under 20 miles a week running. That will pick up some now that my long runs are going to be pretty much in the ten mile range if possible. I am going to start running of a morning to alleviate being too tired or too busy due to the school schedule.

****I want to welcome several new readers over the course of the last few weeks. Barefoot Neil, Emz, Kenley, Barb, Tricia, Barbie, Jon....

****I started my blog around the time that summer was starting. I can honestly say that it is really cool to get on your blogs and read about your lives and your family activities as well as your training and that YOUR COMMENTS REALLY MEAN A LOT!! Please keep them coming, if nothing else but just to say Hi. I try to read and throw a word or two out there as much as possible.

Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

Week Nine was Fine

2010-08-09T07:29:00.004-05:00

I could do some Muhammad Ali or some Dr. Seuss and maybe a little Sam I Am and throw in some rhyme but hey, its Monday morning. I'm going to keep it simple. Week 9 training is in the books. I had a great week of running. I ran six of the seven days last week. On my one day off, I did what I think you tri-guys and tri-gals call a brick workout. I took my mountain bike out for a 12 mile ride and followed it up with a 450 yd swim in the pool. It was a pretty good workout for a day off. In kind of a strange twist, the week also included two races. We were in St. Charles last weekend for a Sunday morning 5 miler and Cobden this past weekend for a three miler. I love running local 5-K's. They just have a great atmosphere.

Here are the numbers for the week.

8/1 5 miles St. Charles Flat Five 45:44
8/2 3.2 miles 800 repeats--Pullium Pride, parked in family cemetery
8/3 3.2 miles Hill Repeats--Maple Hollow, Cape County Park
8/4 Mountain Bike ride and Swim
8/5 10 mile run--City Park
8/6 3.2 miles--At Parent's House
8/7 3.1 miles Cobden Peach Festival 5K 26:35

All together-----27.7 running miles.

TWO-A-DAY Softball practices this week. Its gonna be busy. Everyone have a good one.

Cobden Peach Festival 5-K Race Report

2010-08-07T12:11:00.022-05:00

Has anyone noticed that I can be somewhat of a race junkie? Just wondering. We had another early morning today. We left around 5:30 a.m. for Cobden, IL for the Peach Festival 5-K. Cobden is a small town of around 1100 in Southern Illinois about 15 miles south of Carbondale.

Part of Cobden's claim to fame is very evident by the continued recognition of their 1964 high school basketball team. This team which was known as the Amazing Appleknockers was a finalist in the state basketball playoffs. They finished second losing to Pekin in a heartbreaker 50 to 45. We snapped a picture with the sign honoring this team at the entrance to the city park. Check out the website to see the real picture and to learn more about the team. Its actually a pretty cool website.

The sign and the website definitely give you the feel of a different time period in our country. It most certainly has a Hoosiers feel about it but we were in town about four hours and I didn't see Gene Hackman or Jimmy Chitwood any where around. I do have a feeling that this team maybe did run the Picket Fence and maybe even the Swinging Gate though.

Finally to the race itself. I had already decided to have some fun with this one. In the past (in times of better fitness), I have been known to go out and run with the rabbits at the front of the group just to see how long I can hang on. Its maybe only for a half mile or so but its still really fun!! I just kind of throw caution and the thought of "negative splits" into the wind and take off.

I kind of had that in mind today but didn't pay close enough attention at the start of the race and managed to get myself boxed in. It was Steve Prefontaine all over again.

Like I said, I was boxed in at the beginning which slowed down the first 300 or 400 meters, really not that far. I hit the one mile mark at 8:02. The race course seemed flat but was run for the most part either going slightly uphill or slightly downhill. Nothing drastic. Mile two was completed in 8:50. I meant to back off a little but not quite that much. I ran the last 1.1 miles in 9:42 which isn't blazing but is better than the 10:12 I ran at the Homecomer's 5-K last week.

Overall, my time was 26:35 (8:35 pace) and was good for a third place medal in the Men's 45-49 age group. I'm pretty pleased except for the fact that I think the top two guys in my age group were fairly close in front of me. They caught me on mile two and slowly pulled away. In general, I'm pretty tickled with my effort. My weight is lousy but my feet feel great so I guess you have to take what you can get. I had a great training week which I will blog about later and overall just feel pretty solid about where things stand.

Other Thoughts for the Day:

****We were stopped on the way there by a guy with very long gray/white hair, and a very long gray/white beard, wearing a tye-dyed shirt. (Jerry Garcia??) We thought there had been a wreck. Two or three cars were pulled over and a car was in the ditch. Jerry greeted us with the question, "HEY, WOULD YOU HELP US PUSH THESE GUYS OUT OF THE DITCH SO THEY WON'T GET IN TROUBLE WITH THE LAW?" I was wearing my Spenco sandals and only had my race shoes with me. Any suggestions as to how to say NO nicely?

****At the last few races in Southern Illinois, an older gentleman who is one of my favorites has been missing. Mr. Stinson is 75 years old and had quadruple bypass 6 weeks ago. Today, he made his way back to his favorite hobby by walking the 5-K. He received a big round of applause when his name was called to receive his second place medal. Welcome back Charles!! It was awesome to see your return.

**** This last thought is both difficult and inspiring. The race course made a left turn out of the park and headed out of town past a cemetary. After the turn around, on the way back into town, I noticed a tombstone with the name Walker on it. As I got closer, I could read the first name. I then figured out that this was the gravestone of a teacher with whom I had taught with for 3 years at the start of my career. She passed away a few years back of an illness of which I'm not familiar with. She was somewhere around my age. I knew that she had passed away but had NO idea of where she was buried. It was so weird to stumble on to her burial site in the middle of a race. We had actually shared an office at one point.

I spent the next mile and a half thinking back to my first few years of teaching and to the faculty that I worked with during that time. There have been 4 members of this group to pass away up to this point. It brought on a very sad feeling during the race but also a special determination to keep plodding forward, one step at at time, gathering race shirts and occasional bling, while living life to the fullest, and being the best husband, father, teacher, and friend possible.

Best wishes to all. Thanks for reading.

10

2010-08-05T09:48:00.025-05:00

The number explains itself. Right? No explanation required. Many of the guys who read this will immediately think of Bo Derek running on the beach headed straight for Dudley Moore in the 1979 movie classic.

Ok, truth be told.... Bo was a TEN, but the movie itself.... not so much. On a popular movie website, it only rates a 5.8 out of 10. I should have used the photo of Bo running on the beach but what can I say? This is a family website!!

THIS POST..... 10...... WHY YOU ASK?

BECAUSE 64 CLASSIC JUST ROCKED HIS FIRST 10 MILER FOR THE 2010 CALENDAR YEAR. It is actually my first ten miler since May 30, 2009 when I was in Paducah, KY running an ill-advised ultra marathon with not enough preparation/training following an injury during a half-marathon in April.

It wasn't pretty by any standards. I hit the road at 5:45 a.m. this morning. I drove down to the city park and ran most of the run in the park. This makes water stops and bathrooms very convenient.

It was already 87 when I started the run with a heat index of almost 100. The first five miles were terrible when a front moved through just to the north of town. I thought it was going to rain me out but instead, it just cooled things off perfectly. By the time I got finished, the temperature had actually dropped from 87 to 79. Now how often does that happen?

The run itself was a struggle. Part of the problem--mental. Part of the problem--physical. The mental part--after being injured, I just don't trust the body to hold up. I do have to say, the feet are great. A little tender but only from a little too much moisture and almost building to the blister stage. The physical part.... crap I was running ten miles. No explanation needed. Right?

I hate to be a Sissy but this half-marathon is pushing me harder mentally and physically than the first one I did back in 2002. Having completed around a dozen of these things, this just should not be the case!!

As I have posted previously, I had developed a comfort zone where I knew that I could go out and easily push through a two hour event.

This is great. I love it. Its why I run. Why do you run? Why do you TRI? Lets hear it.

Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

Way Back Wednesday: The Hawthorn Half-Day Relay 2008

2010-08-04T19:55:00.009-05:00

As I have done a couple of times thus far in my relatively new blogging life, I'll use today's post to reflect back on an excellent event for all to consider who live in the mid west or just really like a road trip. The weekend of June 14, 2008 provided the opportunity for anyone who was willing to make their way to Terre Haute, IN to complete an ultra-marathon.

The Hawthorn Half Day Relay is a 12 hour event (hence half-day) held in Hawthorn Park which is a 256 acre (68 of which is water) park and wildlife refuge just outside Terre Haute, IN. Inside the park is a campground, archery range, playground, and trail network to fully satisfy a variety
of needs.

You can participate in the event itself by entering a two man team, six man team, or as I did in the Superman division which means you are running the whole darn thing. I think the idea of entering the Superman division was part of my thinking process which led me to do this event. I think just saying, "Yeah, I'm running in the Superman Division" maybe made up for some abuse that I took on the playground as a young child in elementary school. Who the heck knows. It sure makes for a good story though!

We left on Friday morning and drove to Terre Haute. After checking in at the Super 8 and grabbing a quick lunch at Fazolis, we headed to the park to do the packet pickup and while there decided to walk/jog the course. Why you ask did we decide to walk/jog a course that I was going to travel 13 FREAKING TIMES the next day? I have no clue!! It seemed like a good idea at the time. It most certainly was NOT necessary.

Now for race day.... the course itself was a 5-K loop through the park which was mostly trail, with some grass, and a little pavement. You were to complete the course as many times as possible while taking all the breaks you desire. The more breaks you take, the less you are moving forward.... duh. The last 30 minutes, instead of starting a new lap, runners were to run a half mile loop out and back to add mileage.

The start of the event was much like any run you go to. Everyone seemed to take off like their tails were on fire even though it was 7 a.m. and we were going to be circling this lovely trail until 7 p.m. You can see from the action photo above, I was in no hurry. The other gentleman in the picture and I were actually wondering what the heck was everyone's hurry. It was actually a relay event which meant runners on a six man team only ran every sixth lap (sissies) so they definitely needed to go out hard. The 12 hour guys.....

Ok, now for lap times. Remember, this is a 5-K loop which we are traveling for 12 hours. So pace is very important. For normal people like myself, finding the right run/walk ratio was key so as to assure that you could function for the duration of the 12 hour period. Alternating running 2 minutes and walking 2 minutes worked really well.

Lap 1..... 37:38
Lap 2..... 38:49
Lap 3..... 40:49
Lap 4..... 43:24
Lap 5..... 40:01
Lap 6..... 43:33
Lap 7..... 54:08
Lap 8..... 57:34
Lap 9.... 1:13:00
Lap 10.... 40:55
Lap 11.... 48:54
Lap 12.... 1:06:00
Lap 13.... 1:03:00

Alright, now nearly 12 hours later.... lets talk. You would think that over a 12 hour period you would get bored. Yep. But not like you think. Your focus is so strong on completing the lap and doing the run/walk thing that time moves along. Focus, concentration, and relaxation is so important. The 12 hours was probably worse for my support team. That would be the wife. She was the one stuck in the park all day long while I was running.

Laps 10 and 11 are the really weird laps. I had wanted to run with a couple of gentleman who were veterans of several hundred marathons each. I had Googled their names from the entry list. On lap 9, I met up with Ray Scharenbrock. (Google his name if you have some free time. His numbers are phenomenal.) I had the privilege of doing most of lap 9 with Mr. Scharenbrock who is now 77. He was still in recovery from a very serious illness and was running an ultra-marathon. Geez. I'll be honest. We started off the lap walking the uphills, jogging the downhills and mixing up the flats. When I found out who he was, I was like a kid in a freaking candy store with a handful of cash. I soaked up more information in that lap than you can imagine.

I finished my lap with Ray and sat down with my wife to change shoes and socks. Have you seen the monster blister on the upper right portion of my blog? Yep, its from this event. It was just starting. I was so pumped from my lap with Ray that I was totally fired up again. My next two laps (10 and 11) were back to nearly what I was doing eight to nine hours earlier. Then... the blister. My final two full laps were back pretty slow. I was mostly walking. At around 6 p.m., I had to decide what to do. I decided...... BREAK TIME!! I was afraid I couldn't finish another full lap so I changed socks and shoes again and waited around for the 30 minute out and back finish.

Now... you guys have seen my 5-K times. Last Tuesday, my Homecomers 5-K time was 28:12. Not blazing I understand. A couple of you most likely snickered a little when you saw it. Well.... after logging 40.3 miles in eleven hours (remember, I took a thirty minute break), the 30 minute out and back loops began.

I comfortably ran 3 miles (6 loops) in the final thirty minutes or so to finish my day with 43.3 miles. I had set a goal to run a minimum 40 if the body would allow. It was really weird how easy the 3 miles was after having already logged over forty miles. 43.3 miles was good for 27th place out of 42 individual runners. One would always like better, but hey--I had just logged over 43 miles. I was pretty pleased with myself.

I learned many things over the course of this event. Too many to mention. Enduring 12 hours of moving forward gives you time to ponder many things. I learned that a REDBULL and a HANDFUL OF GUMMY BEARS is like running super unleaded in your car. This became a ritual for the start of each lap. I learned that S-Caps are great for maintaining hydration/electrolyte balance. (12 hours and clear pee, WOW!) I learned that blisters suck.

I was honestly getting close to taking a major break and lowering my goals for the day until my lap with Mr. Scharenbrock. I don't think he had any idea how much our visit helped to calm me down and get me back on course. My wife was very patient throughout the day. I honestly had my cell phone in my little belt pack with my supplies. Any time I needed fresh socks or a snack, they were waiting when I arrived back at the start line. Go C !!

After the event, they fed all the participants for free as well as family members who purchased a meal ticket. The event concluded and we headed back to the Super 8 for an icewater bath and a nice soft bed. The blister of mammoth proportions stopped any activity in its tracks for a couple of weeks. Ultra-marathon #2 was in the books.

As always.......... THANKS FOR READING!!

Race Report: The St. Charles Flat Five

2010-08-02T08:34:00.003-05:00

Alrighty Blogees, last week failure... Sunday Success!! We went to St. Louis Saturday to spend the night, run the St. Charles Flat Five on Sunday morning, and attend a Cardinals game.

This was my second running of the Flat Five. There has been such a large gap in between the running of these events, its cool to compare the numbers. This year, I wanted to focus on running a 9:00 minute pace. I could have started out a little faster and actually felt pretty good along the way but I wanted to set the cruise on 9 flat and go for it. No, I'm not wearing a Garmin. I'm totally running by feel. Here are the numbers:

Mile.....2003...... 2010
1..........9:00.......9:04
2.........8:58........9:17
3.........9:39........9:03
4.........9:16........9:12
5.........9:14........9:07

Time..46:09....45:44

Now, I know for you speed burners 45:44 isn't fast by most standards. I think its pretty cool though, at 46 to run a better time than I did at 39. My honest focus again was pace and consistency. At one point in my running career, I was a little too comfortable (cocky) with the fact that with moderate effort, I could go out and cruise a half marathon and at least be NEAR the 2 hour mark. I lost a lot of fitness due not running much following my dad's surgery (Open Heart Surgery 2 Years Ago YESTERDAY!! Happy Anniversary Dad!!) and my foot injury. I now know as I have posted on a couple of comments on other blogs--its never just a 5K or its never just a half marathon. Take nothing for granted.

Sorry, I rambled a little there!! Yesterday's race went well. My splits are pretty consistent. Again, totally by feel--no Garmin. I had more at the start but kept it in reserve and actually felt great at the end and had plenty left. I had a little pain in my feet which concerns me but I felt ok afterward and things are good today.

After Tuesday's effort, I was kind of scared what would happen in this event but I ran a better overall pace over 5 miles and the effort was great. As to my thoughts and approach. This was the finishing location and general area of my half coming up in October. So, I wanted to practice my pace, inspect the starting area, parking, ect... and start working my way toward event mode.

As for my place in the herd.... I was number 137 of 284 runners overall. I'm ok with that considering my goals for this event. I would want to be higher if this event were my primary focus. In the male category, I was number 102 of 156 runners. I would like to be a little higher here also but again, my goal was 9 Flat so when I set my sights on using this event to practice for the bigger one, I can't complain.

As for the game--Cards 9 Pirates 1

Pujols went yard in the 5th. Unfortunately, his drive went into the left field bleacher area. We were sitting in the right field bleachers. Oh well, we didn't make Sportscenter. Save that one for another day. Thanks for Reading!!!!

Week Ten Failure: A Test of My Blogging Skills

2010-08-01T18:01:00.012-05:00

Ok campers, here today I come before you to test my blogging skills. How can I put a good spin on a really lousy Week 10 training? I can't come up with anything. Any suggestions? I should keep it simple and just omit blogging this week, pretend the blog was posted and maybe lost, tell a little white lie......

Its like this, I have nothing. I should listen to the dudes above and keep this to myself. It may drag you down as a blog reader. You may drop me. You may say, "This dude could rub off, I'm not taking any chances."

I'm definitely not going to get a Man of the Year Award by any standards but here goes:
Sunday 7/25 3.5 miles
Monday 7/26 3 miles
Tuesday 7/27 3.1 miles Homecomer 5-K

Yep, you guessed it. I've started my half marathon taper. In freaking July!! I have no other way to explain it. Week 10 is in the books with 9.6 miles.

I had softball camp this last week every morning at 9:00 a.m. We worked them a solid two hours pretty much every day and then finished with come "coach talk" discussing lineups and positions. It is a very important week for us from a early season preparation standpoint.

To give you some background, I was the Head Girls Softball Coach from 1992 until 2002. I stepped away after 11 years and handed the position to one of my former players. She kept the position for around 5 or 6 years or so before passing it on to another one of my former students who was also one of my former players from a different sport. Hey, what can I say? This is my 20th year at the same school, my former players and students are everywhere!! I returned to the sport three years ago as this young man's assistant. (This is a position I take very serious. Its very hard to be a GOOD assistant coach.)

I was concerned that my mileage would dip some but I really didn't want it to go to single digits. I did quite a bit of running in practice Thursday during a drill but I have no idea of the distance and don't record workouts where I have no concept.... of what exactly to write down.

TRAINING LOG POST: THURSDAY JULY 29, 2010--RAN BASES WITH GIRLS IN PRACTICE. DISTANCE UNKNOWN. Nah, I'll leave that one out.

So..... after a week of softball camp, 9.6 miles of half marathon training and a lot of sitting on my butt, I will get myself back moving pounding the roads of Southeast Missouri because (pause reading for dramatic effect) after this next week, guess what? Come on guess what is coming up? Yep!! You got it. SOFTBALL PRACTICE!!! TWO-A-DAYS!! And I thought it was tough to get miles in this week.....

Everyday is a good day, some are just better!! Thanks for reading.

Jackson Homecomer 5-K Race Report

2010-07-27T20:44:00.005-05:00

I was heading to Cape Girardeau today to do a 5 mile run. Honestly--I didn't feel the best and decided to cancel the run for the time being. I went to Sam's Club and got my tires rotated, hit the store for a few groceries and headed home. On the way home, I was feeling a little better and got the bright idea to run a local evening 5-K to get a workout in, see some friends, and run with a group.

I had no major goals for the race other than to test my fitness level in general and see where I am in regard to the half-marathon pace I desire to hold in October. It was a very low maintenance approach. I wanted to hold around a 9:00 minute pace.

I hit mile one at 8:40. No major problems. Mile two came up at 17:59 which made the pace around 9:19. I did the last 1.1 mile stretch in 10:12 to come in at 28:12. Looking at my previous races for the year--it's about what I expected and pretty much par for me at this fitness level and weight. I usually run MUCH better when my weight is in the low 180's or high 170's (it's 191 today) and also when I've been doing some repeats to help with my TERRIBLE foot turnover.

In the past, at better levels of fitness, I could hit the nine or slightly sub-nine pace and hold it pretty comfortably and have a punchers chance at running a sub 2 half marathon. I don't think that will be back by October but...... its not October yet!!

Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading!!

**Sunday, its the ST. CHARLES FLAT FIVE. All runners completing the race get a small trophy instead of a t-shirt. So, I get hardware for the man cave and another fitness test.

**On another note, a friend that I have known all my life ran his first 5-k this evening as did his wife. It was great to be there and be part of their first running event. Go Kevin and Janice. Theirs was actually a family affair with both of their boys running as well.

Mad Dogs, The PO PO, Car Problems and Week 11 Training

2010-07-24T18:31:00.010-05:00

Week 11 training for Lewis and Clark is in the books. The training week went extremely well as far as running is concerned. Other events of the week kind of make you want to stop and ask, "Am I living right?"

On Monday, I went to Chaffee to run the Tywappity Trail loop around the lake. I ran it with Coach P from school week before last and actually ran a pace below 10 minutes per mile which is very tough for me at my current fitness level. It was my year P.R. for the lake trail run. I was almost done with the 2.5 mile loop and was crossing the dam heading for the parking lot when I noticed a dog wondering the parking lot with only one vehicle other than mine in the lot. As I approached the lot, the dog took a keen interest. She charged up to about 10 feet in front of me to cut me off. I had to stop and make several attempts to TRY get past her before finally yelling HEY!!!!!!! I couldn't see the lady sitting in the truck because of the sun reflecting off the windshield. She cracked her window to politely tell me, "oh she won't bite you!"

I very adamantly pleaded my case for her to exit her vehicle and get her dog. I was starting to get ticked. She then got out of her truck (finally) to again say, "Oh she won't bother you. Don't pay any attention to her." By this time, I'm fuming. I have an excited Pitt Bull (or some type of muscular psycho dog) standing a few feet in front of me, teeth bared growling at me and my wife is getting ready to finish her run coming from the other direction into the parking lot. Great, the dog can have seconds!! The lady FINALLY got her dog into the truck and promptly left knowing that I was furious.

I don't smoke. None of my family smoke at this time. I'm an excellent driver. I'm not often exposed to second hand smoke. I have a few guns which are unloaded and locked in a separate closet from the ammunition.

This one's EASY!!!! Ok, yes--probably cigs but humor me would you, I'm still traumatized!! And sorry if you are a Pitt lover. I love dogs just not really freaking mean ones that chase runners.

I'm a teacher in this town and don't know if she knew me or not and really don't care. I didn't use any foul language and behaved pretty appropriately under the circumstances. Oh, BTW--the stupid dog wouldn't let me into the parking lot to stop my clock and I missed setting a new time P.R. for this year on the lake trail by 6 seconds. Stupid dog.

Tuesday, to move on.... I went to Cape Girardeau to run the paved running trail through town. Flat, some shade, and ample water locations for a very hot, humid day. One half mile from the parking lot, BAM, SOCKO, WHAMMO!!!! My checking account took a hit when I was stopped doing 48 in a 35. Had I blogged on the Tuesday run alone, it would have been called "THE NINETY-TWO DOLLAR RUN." Hey what can I say, I fought the law and the law won. I'll pay this one with not too much.... complaint. I was 13 over. I deserved it. (But a warning or a good chewing out would have been nice.)

The worst part of this one is I notoriously don't speed. My wife tends to complain occasionally that I'm poking on my way to work. I just tell her I'm not in a hurry to get there. And--I went to a different parking place than normal. Had I went to my normal parking lot, I wouldn't have passed through the speed trap. Oh well.

Ok... rather than tell you about the DEAD BATTERY that I had today.... Boogity, Boogity, Boogity, lets go running. (Sorry... for you non-Darrell Waltrip fans--thats a NASCAR reference!!) Week 11 went well. Here are the totals.

7/19 5 miles Tywappity Trail 2 Laps
7/20 2.5 miles Tywappity Trail (The Dog Run)
7/21 Morning 4 miles Cape Trail
Afternoon 5 miles Mom and Dads
7/23 8 miles Jackson City Park 93 degrees, 98 degree heat index, HOT and HUMID

Total= 24.5 miles

This week went very well. The Hump Day Twofer was great. I rocked the 5 miler. The 8 from yesterday was very good. The feet are holding up well and I'm at a great place with ten weeks to go.

THE BIG TEST--WEEK TEN MEANS I START SOFTBALL CAMP. Theres an automatic 10 extra hours I'm on my feet this week first thing 9 a.m. each day. I have to get up and run early. I want some 800's and maybe a hill work out but I have foot concerns this week. It may be a step back week to allow for adjustment.

Hey--Hope all is doing well. Thanks for the comments on Howl at the Moon. Lots of feedback, I love it. Keep it coming!

****I guess I should fess up that Wal-Mart gave me a free battery since my old battery was only two years old and oh yeah, went to a local running store Thursday (Ghisallo Running) and they gave me a free running cap....and I took my son to St. Louis yesterday and went to the City Museum as well as the Arch. Sooooooooooo..... not all was bad!!

Monday Memories--Howl at the Moon Eight Hour Run

2010-07-19T21:12:00.001-05:00

Ok campers, with my training going very well I thought I'd take some time and let you know a little more about an AWESOME event from my running past. This event is an excellent one for all or you guys and gals from the midwest. So listen up! This event is called the Howl at the Moon Eight Hour Run and is held by the Kennekuk Road Runners in Danville, IL. Danville is about 120 miles south of Chicago, 180 miles east of St. Louis, and 85 miles west of Indianapolis. We made the trip for the event in August 2006.

This event was to be the focus of my summer training. Remember, I'm a Junior High Science Teacher. With my summers off, I will sometimes pick an event to help me stay on task with my training and provide a late summer or early fall treat (we get to travel) as we start back to a new school. This particular summer, I was very pleased with my training mileage. From the first day of summer break, until the first day of school with kids, I was able to log 382 miles. This includes the Howl event of course. The summer mileage challenge is kind of a little personal thing that I again often do to stay motivated and focused.

Howl is an eight hour event which is held on a 3.29 mile course which consists of about 75% trail, 20% fine rock, and about 5% asphalt. You check in and out each lap and are free to complete as many laps as time and your body will allow. The temps on this day vary greatly. I had trained to function in the heat of the day by doing numerous runs in the middle of the day regardless of temperature. I literally practiced using a cooler to keep my clothes wet and cold on my training laps changing caps and shirts each lap. On this particular day, the temperature was very moderate and the heat really wasn't much of a factor.

This was just a fantastic event. I still rank it as one of my all time favorites. We pulled into the park for packet pickup on Friday evening not really knowing what to expect. One of my favorite things from the race were the 3 basic rules to follow for this event. It had been written in marker on a piece of cardboard and was posted at the packet pickup. Rule #1 was simple: NO BITCHING!! Rules 2 and 3 simply said to refer back to rule number one. I loved it. (Now, there were more actual rules but this just kind of kept it simple!) I bought a pair of their club socks. They are again one of my favorites. They are white and yellow with a beer mug logo and their club name on the side. Hilarious! On the bottom, they keep the message simple: RUN & DRINK BEER! We were encouraged to have a brew at the packet pickup. The wagon was conveniently parted close by!

The event itself was awesome. Most of it was offroad as I described which was great for the body. Starting at 7 a.m. and finishing at 3 p.m. provides you with the chance to build some early miles before the temps and humidity get too bad hopefully. I completed 10 laps for a grand total of 32.9 miles. Here are my lap times.... they get interesting:

Lap 1: 34:20
Lap 2: 33:50
Lap 3: 35:00
Lap 4: 36:12
Lap 5: 39:58
Lap 6: 45:33
Lap 7: 48:12
Lap 8: 1:04
Lap 9: 1:06
Lap 10: 58:22

Yeah, I know... the last 3 lap times are kind of scary. I developed a blister which prompted me to change socks and shoes. That accounts for the LONG lap 8 time. Laps 9 and 10? I began developing leg pain and tightness which migrated from my knee to my hip to my knee to my ect. ect.... It kind of moved around as the last two laps progressed.

Following the event was the best awards ceremony I've ever witnessed. Awards, awards, awards, man they take care of their competitors. Looking at this years flyer, the Masters Men 40-49 Age group goes 25 places deep. I believe that year it went 20 places so they have actually increased the awards they give out. Other age groups are nicely supported as well depending on the general number of expected entries.

Besides awards, THEY FED EVERYONE THERE. They had fried chicken, bbq chicken, red beans and rice.... It was fantastic. Everyone there was fed with NO ONE having to buy an extra meal ticket. This was in addition to providing pretty much your beverage of choice as well as showers, camping for the night, and a band that played well into the evening.

It truly was one of the best events that I have participated in in my race career. I would definitely recommend it to any of you guys from the Midwest or to anyone who has saved up their frequent flyer miles. It is an event you have to register early for. They set a limit and it fills fairly early.

I was pleased with my distance. I had set a goal of accomplishing my first 50-K and did this with time to spare. I actually didn't take advantage of the last part of the time limit which has you going out and back on a shorter 1/2 mile loop. I did a little too much training on pavement and should have been in the city or county park a little more to change up my training surfaces. The trail and uneven surfaces worked me over a little more than what I expected. Being my first ultra, I was amazed at how relaxed the atmosphere was and how supportive the fellow runners were. Hopefully, this has been informative, maybe a little entertaining, and I've given you some insight into the completion the first ultra-marathon of my running career.

As always, THANKS FOR YOUR TIME and THANKS FOR READING!

Lewis and Clark Week 12 Complete

2010-07-17T09:30:00.000-05:00

Week 12 for Lewis and Clark is complete and was a fairly decent success. I hammered a 7 miler this morning to complete my training week (Sun.-Sat.) with an even 20 miles. In general, I am pleased with this total since I hit my "Gold Standard" of 20 miles for the week and got the long run distance completed that I was shooting for.

In general, the training is progressing. My running motion and foot turnover isn't progressing quite as smoothly as I would like. I am going to put in some 800's this next week and may combine them with some hill work along with the proper warm up and cool down of course.

I like to run at Trail of Tears State Park near Cape Girardeau, MO. There is an area there which heads out toward the river which is a solid mile of downhill or uphill (if you turn around) which I like to use for repeats. A local cross country coach uses this location to run a downhill mile. I have the half-way point marked and love to run a section on the upper half. It definitely takes you to the edge of functional and quickly. Most of the uphill is gradual with a nice incline at the finish for good measure.

My runs for the week:

7/11 3.5 miles Meg's Circle, Jackson

7/12 5 miles Trail Run-Tywapitty Lake

7/15 2 miles (Worst run of week, hot, humid, felt like crap--quit early)

7/16 2.5 miles Trail Run-Tywapitty Lake, HOT AND HUMID

7/17 7 miles Jackson, 6 a.m., Amazingly humid for 6 a.m., OK run, Meg's Circle--2 Laps

I'll be honest. I'm NOT one of you dedicated triathletes. I really don't have anything else planned for the day. The part that pains me when I say this is that this WAS to be my triathlon weekend..... until I suffered a leg injury in May, my first sprint triathlon was to be tomorrow morning in St. Louis. I had started a program and was about 2-3 weeks in when an injury made the swim part very painful and the bike part very difficult. Weird thing was, I could still jog lightly so I had to come up with another plan. Hence, set the base and go for a HALF. No, tribuddies... a half-marathon, not a half-iron!!

Week 2 is in the books. I'm calling it a success so far. Have been keeping up with my reading. Trying to throw out a comment here and there so everyone knows I'm here. Everyone have a good weekend and keep putting in the miles.

And remember, Every Day is a Good Day, Some are just Better!! Thanks for reading!!

Our Wednesday Stacation

2010-07-16T17:13:00.001-05:00

Hey Everyone.... yeah, I know. Long time no post. Well to be honest, not a heck of a lot is going on and its way more interesting to get online and read what everyone else is doing than to post on what I had for breakfast!!

Wednesday however, we had a cool day. We drove over into Illinois to look at a little male Chihuahua that I affectionately call Sweet Pea. This little jewel weighed about 10 ounces and had the personality of a German Shepard. The lady honestly had a decent price on him considering his petite size but we decided not to purchase him at this point. She was taking him with her to a sale tonight so I figure he'll sell pretty easy. He was most certainly a doll and had the Mrs. not been there.....

After departing the house of puppy with no Sweet Pea, we stopped in Murphysboro, Il at the 17th Street Bar and Grill. If you are ever heading through the area, its worth a stop. We heard about the place several years ago. I believe when Mr. Clinton was in office, they maybe provided a meal when he visited Southern Illinios and we heard about it on the news. We've been going off and on since that time. If you like ribs, this is usually the place to go. Wednesday's ribs were a little dry but I coated them with their sauce (which I love) and suffered my way through.

Our next stop was at the Bald Knob Cross in Alto Pass, Il. Again, if you are ever driving through Southern Illinois, It is very much worth a stop. This cross which is 111 feet tall, is viewable for miles around. We were there right at sunset which made for a pretty picture. It was constructed in 1963 and has been a site for Easter Sunrise services for many years. It has been in a state of disrepair for several years. The white panels which usually cover the structure have been removed and it is in the process of being refurbished. At one point, visitors could walk the steps to lookout area near the top. This was stopped due to liability issues. You can just make out the steps. It would be quite a haul to the top. We visited with the security guard on duty and eventually went on our way.

This is a picture of the cross with the old white panels in place. It is quite a site to see. You just can't appreciate the size of this structure without seeing it in person. The Easter sunrise services from what I understand are pretty awesome at this location. The cross sets at the top of a large hillside (elevation 1034 ft.) and overlooks the Mississippi River bottoms and surrounding areas. The large area around the cross is grass covered and is usually kept mowed down quite nicely. Easter morning in this area is often quite cool. The sunrise service will often be view by several hundred people sitting in lawn chairs covered by warm blankets. We haven't attended this service but is on my "to-do" list at some point. The security guard told us that they may allow people to climb to the top after signing a waiver and making a donation toward repair of the cross. We are going to watch the website and if the donation is reasonable, I'll most likely send you pictures from the top. Thats a post for a later date.

Tomorrow, I finish WEEK 2 of my half marathon training. I have a 7-8 mile scheduled for early in the morning. This week has went well but I will admit to a lack of discipline. I've spent too much time watching the Tour on Versus and the British Open has also been going the last two days... so tomorrow morning, I only get to check the weather before departing to ensure that I get out the door in a timely manner.

Everyone have a great weekend and as always, THANKS FOR READING!!!

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!!

2010-07-09T22:24:00.000-05:00

While getting everyone caught up on the last week's training and activities, I have to thank Patrick at The Road [A Multi-Sport Blog] for the cool T-Shirt that I recently received through a contest on his website.

The T-Shirt and I took my wife to Texas Roadhouse this evening for some fine dining (dead cow) and followed it up with a movie complete with 17 dollars work of sugary soda, buttered popcorn, and milk duds. Yep, I feel somewhere between great and terrible.

We had a great evening. Love the shirt Patrick, Thanks Again!! He may have more available folks so check out his site!! Its entertaining and comes with cool free stuff!!

Its great to be blogging again. I've tried to keep up with the reading this week and have done pretty well. I hope to get in a few posts here and there if anything notable is going on. If not, I'll kick into flashback mode and give you a couple more events to read about I think you'll like.

Thanks for reading.

The Holiday Weekend and Week 13 Training

2010-07-09T21:29:00.000-05:00

Well, not sure where to start. Its been a few days since the last blog so I'll just catch everyone up with the Fourth of July weekend as well as the first week of half marathon training. First, the "holiday" weekend.

As everyone knows who has read my blog, my wife and I ran a fireworks stand for a local fireworks dealer. I'll give you the final numbers. Over approximately the last two and one-half weeks, I logged around 110 total hours in the fireworks industry. This started with setting up the massive sales tents which I blogged about earlier. We then set up the stand that we were going to be responsible for. The next seven days consisted of sales. This drew to a close last weekend with 10 hours Friday, 12 hours Saturday, and a nice 13 hours on the fourth itself. We then boxed all unsold merchandise, and took down all of the lights, signs, and tables for shipment back to the warehouse. This took a couple of days. We then thought we were done but got the opportunity to pick up a few more hours helping pack another location a few miles down the road.

Now having been paid, we have officially drawn the Fourth of July weekend to a close and are attempting to get life somewhat back to normal. Having worked so many hours in such a short time, it seems weird for it to finally be over. For anyone who is out to make a quick buck and thinks this is the way to go, THINK TWICE!! It is a TREMENDOUS amount of work. It would be something that I would not look forward to at all and would dread greatly if we were not working for such wonderful people who have been trusting and fair now for two years running.

Ok, lets make this a running blog. Even with the heavy flow of hours, I've mangaged to get my half-marathon training off to a good start. Here goes on the first nine days:

July 1 3 miles 8:30 a.m. (28:00)

July 2 3 miles 8:00 a.m.

July 3 3 miles 8:00 a.m.

July 5 3 miles 8:00 a.m.

July 6 7 miles 6:00 a.m.

July 8 2.5 miles 10:00 a.m. Tywappity Lake Trail (24:21) With Coach P.

July 9 3 miles 2:00 p.m.

Tomorrow--5 mile run to finish this week (1/4-1/11) with 20.5

Overall, I am pleased to get things off to this good of a start with the amount of time I've spent on my feet and the at times physical aspect of the work. There hasn't been much variety but I'm pleased to hit 20 on the first full week of running and so far (cross your fingers), the right foot feels great!! Next week, I plan to hopefully take the long run to 8 miles and bump the total mileage up a notch and hopefully, see some improvement in the realm of endurance.

Every day is a good day, some are just better!! Thanks for reading!

ONE DOWN

2010-07-01T09:55:00.000-05:00

I got up this morning, drank a cup of coffee and ate a bowl of cereal, laced up the shoes and headed down to the park. 3 miles and 28:00 later, workout number one was done.

I ran the Lewis and Clark Half-Marathon in 2002 and 2003. In 2002, I hammered out a measly 189 miles in the 13 weeks leading up to the event. Good for a 14.5 average per week. In 2003, I again ran a paltry 176 miles in the 13 weeks leading to the event. Good for a 13.5 average. Not impressive averages in either case. Hey, I was new!!

Weight and Finish... In 2002, I started at 207 pounds and ran the event at a svelte 200 pounds. I came in at a time of 2:14:28 good for a 10:16 pace and a finish of 617 out of 1025 runners. I was pleased. It was my first half-marathon and only my eleventh footrace. In 2003, I started at 204 but lost 15 pounds running the event at a very nice 189 pounds. This led to an improved time of 2:06:44 and a much better finish of 685 of 1657 runners.

THAT'S THE HISTORY--NOW ITS ON!! Run number one today was nothing special. Just run number one. You may wonder, why the drama? What's the big deal?? I am coming off the Country Music Half-Marathon FREAKING DISASTER of 2009 and several months of plantar fasciaitis. The 2009 event was awful. My training had been excellent and I had actually built up to around 16 miles because I had planned to do the marathon.

Race day was very, very hot. I dealt with that fine but had right foot problems and being male and macho, ran through the pain instead of stopping. My time was my worst ever by several minutes and the day was just unbelievably bad. I had started in the wave in front of one of my friends with whom I wasn't competing (yeah right!) only to get beaten by this lovely human being by nearly 10 minutes. He finished and found my wife waaaay before I did!! He hasn't let me live this down. I have stayed away from the longer distances since this debacle but am now returning to my roots.

GOALS: Number one, first and foremost.... finish and be healthy. Now as for numbers two, three, and four, we'll see as training progresses. I would like to hammer out a 20-25 mile per week average and would like to have a shot at running below 2:00. (My half P.R. is around 1:52.) My weight is kicking it at a starting point of 194. I would like this to be in the low 180's by race day. 13 and 1/2 weeks. Easily doable.

Since I provided so much information about these ancient events--you got it, its Flashback Thursday instead of Friday. I won't blog every run but I will periodically update my progress. I really hope my right foot holds up. (Boomer, if you read this, I understand your knee issue.) I am honestly as nervous starting this program as I was for my first one.

Flashback Friday--Country Music Marathon 2004

2010-06-25T21:19:00.000-05:00

One of the things that I like about reading other people's blogs is about their adventures and events that they are competing in. Since I am currently in training mode for what I hope is a busy fall, I'll write about a few of my favorite past runs.

My first marathon was the 2004 Country Music Marathon in Nashville, TN. Training had went very well for this event with my long run progressing to the desired 20 mile length.

Race morning, I arrived at 5 a.m. for the bus ride from Titans stadium to the start line near Vanderbilt University across town. This is where the fun began. I had been advised to take a trash bag or a rain poncho and an old t-shirt or sweatshirt in order to stay warm and dry. I didn't. Don't ask me why. I just didn't.

Shortly after getting off the bus, it began to rain lightly. I found a BBQ shack near the park in which to hover in misery (in an outside eating area) with several other unprepared runners. The weather soon went from bad to worse. It began to pour. We were thinking that things could not get much worse when another runner came jogging up and told us that they had just announced that the start of the race had been postponed due to an impending thunderstorm which was approaching. We were also advised to seek better shelter.

The McDonalds near Centennial Park and the starting area was at MAX capacity. We decided to walk to a nearby convenience store. There were about 70 people stuffed inside this little store. I had already called my girlfriend (now wife) to tell her what was going on. Several minutes and a nice April thundershower later, someone entered the store to announce that the race was on and would be starting in a few minutes. Everyone quickly rushed toward their starting corral and began the warmup process.... only to stand and wait another 45 minutes until the race finally began. I had serious doubts standing, waiting, and shivering that I would have enough energy left to complete this event.

I ran pretty well through the first half marathon hitting the half way point at about 2:13. Very close to the desired 10 minute pace. I then got a lesson on "the wall." And I don't mean Pink Floyd. I didn't drink enough. I didn't eat enough. I wasted way too much energy high-fiving the various cheerleading teams. The second half of the marathon was miserable. I was out of gas in a major way!! I remember someone offering me Bugles at around mile 17 and I turned them down. I almost turned around and ran back to them. Mile 22 took forever... or it seemed that way. I suffered throught the last half in 2:37. My overall time was a 4:50:33.

Brad Paisley performed that night but without me!! I was pretty much out of it!! We had a great trip. I finished the event, not in my goal time, but I finished. We hit some local establishments (Wildhorse Saloon, Hardrock Cafe, Waffle House...)and got to enjoy ourselves a little. I had completed an event that I never conceived possible. I was a marathoner!!

My overall finish place was not impressive. My overall pace was not real impressive. My gender placing, my age group placing, nothing to really brag about except.... I had just run 26.2 miles on a miserable April morning in Nashville, TN. I was a marathoner!!

As always.... Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

A Sad Realization

2010-06-22T22:12:00.000-05:00

Ok, very short, very sweet.

History first. I have had the privilage of helping a local fireworks distributor set up tents the last two days. Four hours Sunday. Four hours Monday. Two tents, one of which is 120' x 40' and the other which is 100' x 40'. My wife and I operate a local stand for them to make a little summer cash. As teachers, the extra income is nice as well as having a little something extra to liven up the summer schedule which can get a little humdrum at times. (I operate best with a schedule....) I helped with the tents to perk up my end of the cash!

The work setting up the tents is pretty physical. In the words of my mother, "I couldn't whip a cat without getting a mouthful of hair." (I AM WEAK!!) Simply dragging my end of the tent or using the sledgehammer to drive posts or the constant walking, lifting, and carrying tent poles.... I mean I'm a big stud runner right? Means very little in the world of upper body strength.

I think the stress (embarrassment) of only feeling somewhat functional or not performing as well as I would like my be enough for me to get my butt into the weightroom and maybe stay there somewhat consistent. The 100 Pushup Challenge.... The 100 Squat Challenge...... who knows where this may lead.

I was rolling through training for my first triathlon earlier this year and pulled up injured because of stupidity in the weightroom. (Got a little cocky doing squats!!) Yes, I know I'm 46, I may need to warm up, stretch, follow a plan..... ect.... ect....ect.... My Principal at school is an excellent athlete/triathlete. He lectured me on all of this.

I tend to make my way in there but not stay because I'm tired or I don't stick to a routine or schedule and it seems to drag down my energy level. Hmmm. The first lift came today. I went back to the schedule I was following last spring for my TRI training. I didn't lift legs today however.

HEY, I SAID SHORT AND SWEET!!!

Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

Miner's Memorial and the Sesser 5-K

2010-06-19T19:17:00.000-05:00

Today we traveled to Sesser, IL for their third annual Homecoming 5-K. During my warm up session, I noticed a very impressive memorial in the city park. This memorial turned out to be dedicated to the coal miners that have lost their lives working in the mines of Southern Illinois dating back over one hundred years.

In speaking with an area resident, I learned that there are nearly 350 names carved into this memorial. I also learned that there are no mines in the area today which are still in operation.

The name of each miner who has lost their life was listed under their respective mine. The shear number of individuals was astounding as was the number of mines in the area which were once in existence. Having witnessed some recent mining accidents through the media over the last several years, one has to stop and think of the pain and anguish that these families experienced in the loss of their loved ones.

The race itself went extremely well. Relatively balanced splits (8:32, 8:47, 8:18) led to an overall time of 26:38 which was good for 2nd place in my age group as well as an overall 41st place showing out of around 120 or so runners.

The busy day continued as we arrived home, picked up my children, as well as some chicken from the Colonel, and headed directly to my parent's house for a small Father's Day gathering. After finishing the meal, we had a great visit with the folks before finally heading toward the house. A fitting end to an excellent day.

As always..... Every day is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.

Fighting The Blog Addiction

2010-06-18T22:26:00.000-05:00

As I stated in my first post--I've been following several blogs for a couple of years but just sat down yesterday to create my own blog page. I went to my classroom to have access to more pictures and to have reliable Internet. 64 Classic "quickly" began to take shape.

Today, I have begun the fight with a terrible problem facing America today. Blog Addiction. WOW!!! It is amazing how many posts I have read in the last 24 hours. In the past, I had a blog or two that I would usually read. I might link to a few others but I usually kept it in check.

I hit it hard well into the wee morning hours as well as off and on much of today and this evening. But ALAS!! Tonight I must quit!! I have a 4:30 wake up to head for Sesser, IL for a 5-K run. I would like to be at least somewhat functional. I've read several great posts and look forward to finding more interesting people to add to my blog list.

Every day is a good day, some are are just better. Thanks for reading.

Frequent Listener, First Time Caller

2010-06-17T16:26:00.000-05:00

I will occasionally listen to call in talk shows and have many times heard the title phrase, "frequent listener, first time caller." I do have to say that this is the first time that I have actually used this phrase.

For my first ever blog on 64 Classic, you get background information. I am a married father of two who has been a public school teacher for 22 years. My daughter is 18 years old and just graduated from a local high school where she was a member of the Girls Cross Country and Swim Team. (More on that later.) My son is a soon to be Eighth Grader which kind of freaks me out considering that of the three grades I teach, Eighth is usually my favorite.

Also in the realm of personal information, I am very fortunate to have a wonderful wife (who I have taught with for 15 years) as well as a great ex-wife who is amazingly enough, my next-door neighbor. (You've seen the show "Reba" right? That's our street!)

About 3 or 4 years ago, a friend of mine from another local school (Rural Runner E) started a running blog. I've been hooked ever since as a reader but just now decided to begin my own blog. Running For My Life, Frayed Laces, I Am Boring, If I can't convince you--I'll at least confuse you.... are just a few of the blogs who provide regular reading.

I hope to chronicle my running efforts and family events in a manner that at least one or two people find entertaining. I also hope that as I begin to post race performances and training logs, I get both positive and negative feedback to make these adventures more meaningful.

I constantly tell the kids at school, "as you get older, you are going to have aches and pains whether you are sitting on the couch or running around town being active. You may as well be on the move doing something fun."

Everyday is a good day, some are just better. Thanks for reading.