I Feel The Need....The Need For Speed

I went out for a short run tonight to test out my foot. I haven't been running much since URINEO because the left side of my arch on my left foot has been hurting. I'm pretty sure it's just tendinitis. I decided to run 4 miles out and back to City Hall from my parents' house. I felt great and couldn't hold back (even though maybe I should have). I was really happy and shocked when I got back and looked at my watch: 24:24 (6:06/mile)! I definitely didn't think I was going that fast, but it's good to know I still have my speed. I just have to work on my endurance and getting my foot better for Cleveland. My foot started hurting a couple miles into the run, but never got any worse to the end. I wore the Smartwool Adrenaline Multisport Light Cushion socks my parents got me for Christmas. They felt great!

Carlos Jones at the HOB

Tonight my brother and I went over to the House of Blues in Cleveland to see Carlos Jones and the Plus Band play. We both couldn't wait for this concert since we had a good time listening to him at the Cuyahoga Valley in the summer. Plus, the HOB is a great venue to see concerts because you can get really close to the stage.

Before the concert, we ate at The Corner Alley on the corner of East 4th and Euclid Ave. I got 4 cheese macaroni and Brian got 4 cheese pizza. Guess we were both in the mood for alot of cheese :) Their food is really good and the atmoshpere is great! They even have a bowling alley inside with big screen TVs at the end of the lanes.

The doors at the HOB opened at 7 and we got in around 7:15. Greg Murray showed up not too long after and we talked with him. Before we knew it, Mifune, the opening band, started playing around 8:00. They were pretty good and had a different sound.

Mifune

Mifune played for about an hour or so then Carlos came on at 9:30. Some other runners showed up while Mifune was playing including Steve Hawthorne, Kellie Truesdell and Jim Christ. I never met Jim or Kellie but have seen Steve at VR before as well as the other Carlos Jones concert we saw.

Brian, Kellie, Greg, Jim, Steve and Me (left to right)

As always, Carlos' music was awesome! I love reggae music...it has a nice relaxing flow and is fun to dance to. Carlos played for close to 2 hours!!

After the concert, Brian and I went back to The Corner Alley and bowled a game before leaving.

Below are some videos of Carlos and the Plus Band playing. Enjoy!

Leave A Trail

Catch A Falling Star

Barack Obama, Barack Obama

6 Miles in 6 Degrees

Thug life meets trail life

This evening Jamie, Brian and I went for a run starting at Boston Store. The temperature was 6 degrees with wind chills from -15 to -20 degrees F!! I wore tights, shorts, a shirt and a long sleeve shirt. I also had a sweatshirt and sweatpants on top that I was going to leave in the car but decided to wear them after I stepped outside.

We headed out towards Pine Lane on the Buckeye Trail. We decided to cut the run to 6 miles instead of 8 and turned right down a road to Peninsula. We ran the last 2 miles on the Towpath back to Boston Store. The trees in the woods blocked the wind very well, but the Towpath next to the river was freezing!! Jamie and I both had bandanas on to keep our faces warm. I never really got cold the whole run except for a few times when we got strong gusts of wind. I had a great time out there knowing we were one of the few kooks running in this weather!

My bandana was frozen after the run

Spring Marathon

Well today, with only two days left to use the $10 online entrant discount, I decided to sign up for the Cleveland Marathon in May. This will be my third marathon and I've been itching to get back training for a road marathon since Boston. Even though conditions in Ohio usually make it very difficult to train for a Spring marathon, I'm hoping to get in really good shape and run a PR.

Recovery Run

Tonight I went for an easy 5 mile run with my brother, Bob and his son Shamus riding his bike with us. Starting out my calf was really tight and felt like it was going to pull, but it loosened up throughout the run. I felt pretty good and recovered from URINEO, just a few sore areas on my legs. We ran around our neighborhood then did some loops around Packard Park.

2008 URINEO FA 50K

Me, Jim Harris, Joe Novicky, Frank Dwyer and Mike Dobies (from left to right)

The annual URINEO FA at Mill Creek was upon us again and I had verbally committed to it. However, I have only been running 15 to 20 miles tops a week so I knew it would be tough. The official name of the event says it's a 50-mile FA, but you can run how ever many 8-mile loops you want to. Even with the low mileage training, I wanted to at least attempt to do my first 50 miler.

So, I decided to wake up early and start with the 5:00 group to give myself ample time if I decided to go the distance. There were 5 other early birds at the Lily Pond including Jim Harris, Mike Dobies, Joe Novicky, Frank Dwyer and Bob Combs who arrived a little late and caught up to us. The temperature starting out was freezing around 15 degrees, but other than that the weather and trail conditions were great. Other runners were starting at 6 and 7 also.

The full moon provided alot of light but headlamps were still very useful in tree covered areas. We did the first loop purposely slower in 2:00 hours. About a couple miles into the first loop I see Bob running up from behind and find out he had a pretty vicious fall back a little bit tripping over a rock and landing on his chest. He had a wicked gash in his hand to prove it.




I felt good after the first loop and sped up on the second. We finished this one in 1:40. I had a good time running with people I usually don't see too often and met a couple of new people. I ran with Frank for most of the run and he kept my pace in check!

Frank Dwyer

I can't really remember the 3rd loop much, just that it seemed to take forever to finish! We got back to the cars in 2 hours. For a majority of this loop, I ran with Bob, Kim, Frank, and Rich Vrboncic. I knew at the end of this loop that I only wanted to do a 50K today. The lack of training mileage and lack of motivation contributed to this decision. I think Frank was a little disappointed as he tried to convince me to go a couple more loops.

Going down a Monkey Hill

Before I started the 4th loop, I took a much needed bathroom and fuel break and then headed on my way. Since this would be my last loop, I wanted to see how fast I could do it in.

At around Pioneer Pavilion, I met up with Frank and Pat Dillon. Pat was also on his last loop so he decided to join me. I knew any pace I went would be alright with him since he seemed to be feeling good. I also see him at many local 5Ks and know he puts down some great times.

Wild turkey (or something) we saw on our last loop

I didn't feel too bad pushing it this last loop. I had to stop a few times to stretch, though, when I started to feel my calf pull. That's the last thing I wanted was finish the last loop on a pulled calf!

We finished at 12:35 PM, running the last loop in 1:35 and a total time of 7:35 for 50K which is a new PR for me. So far I have run 4 50K's including 2 URINEOs, 1 Art Moore's FA, and 1 Covered Bridge FA. Congrats to Slim Jim for being the only one completing the entire 50 miles. What a beast. Also, congrats to Pat Dillon for finishing his first ultra.

I had a great day running with so many different people. It was a great turnout of 18 people!! Afterwards, Mike, Brian, Bob, Jim and I hung around to rehydrate and talk. Then once Kim completed her 50K, five of us went out to Jib Jab to chow down on some dogs. A nice finish to a great day!

More Swimming

Tonight I ran 2 miles at the rec then stepped it up and swam a mile in the pool (64 laps, 1600 meters). I was able to swim longer intervals this time by pacing myself and controlling my breathing. I swam 30 laps consecutively, took a couple minutes break, then swam 34 more. What a workout!