"By failing to prepare you are preparing to fail"

July 2011

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15% off for Fast Running Blog members at St. George Running Center!

Location:

Springtown,TX,USA

Member Since:

Feb 02, 2009

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Age Division Winner

Running Accomplishments:

Firsts:

  • First marathon - White Rock, Dallas, December 2005 (4:01)
  • First BQ - St George, 2007 (3:20)
  • First Boston - 2008 (3:30)
  • 1st Place Clydesdale - Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon - 4/2007
  • 1st Place Ultracentric 6-Hour Champ 2007 - 38.75 miles
  • 1st Time Leading Pace Group, Cowtown '09 (3:39:41)
  • 1st Place Overall, Porcupine Promenade 5K (20:10) - 4/2011
  • 1st Trail Race. Grasslands Half Marathon. 1st Overall Masters (1:53) - 3/2013
  • Leadville LT100 MTB '16 - on a mountain bike, but the toughest challenge, so far!

Marathons Run (27):

  • Dallas White Rock ('05, '07,'09,'14)
  • Chicago ('06, '08)
  • OK City Memorial ('07)
  • St George ('07,'09,'11)
  • Waco Miracle Match ('07)
  • Ft Worth, Cowtown ('08, '09,'10,'11,'12,'13,'15**)
  • Boston ('08 '09*, '10, '13)
  • Park City ('08)
  • San Antonio Rock 'n Roll ('08)
  • Steamboat ('09)
  • Utah Valley ('10)
  • Houston ('12)
  • * - PR

Ultras (3):

  • Ultracentric 6-Hours ('07 - 38.75 mi)
  • El Scorcho 50K, Ft Worth (('08, '09)

PRs:

  • 5K - 19:27 (6/2008)
  • 10K - 41:49 (5/2008)
  • 15K - 1:04:14 (9/2011)
  • Half Marathon - 1:33:12 (1/2011)
  • Marathon - 3:19:47 (Boston 4/2009)
  • 50K - 4:35:53 (7/2008)

Short-Term Running Goals:

Keep injury-free.

2016 Races

Ft Worth Cowtown Half Marathon

Long-Term Running Goals:

Be age-group competitive for many years!

Have fun running!

Make some great friends along the way!

Personal:

Married to the same wonderful woman since March 1988. 3 adorable kids.

Look for me at www.facebook.com (I'll be your friend)

Favorite Blogs:

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Miles:This week: 0.00 Month: 0.00 Year: 0.00
Asic Nimbus 8 Lifetime Miles: 502.00
VFF Trek Lifetime Miles: 98.10
Kohls Asics Lifetime Miles: 234.74
Asic Trailshoes Lifetime Miles: 82.36
Nike Air Lifetime Miles: 10.00
Saucony Lifetime Miles: 508.16
Brooks Ravena Lifetime Miles: 117.75
Asic (orange) Lifetime Miles: 83.75
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
106.6516.00122.65
Kohls Asics Miles: 91.50Asic Trailshoes Miles: 22.15Asic Nimbus 8 Miles: 5.00
Weight: 186.50
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
8.000.008.00

Went trail riding with mountain bikes with Darin and Curtis. This is the first time I've ridden on trails in...well, I can't remember. Curtis had an extra bike he loaned me. The trails were narrow and winded through lots of trees which provided nice shade. The surface ranged from hard-packed dirt, to sand, rocks, roots. It was a lot of fun, and I was happy that I wasn't holding Darin or Curtis back and was able to keep up. After 2 hours of riding we ended our workout with about a 2 mile trail run. It was about 95 degrees during the run, but it didn't feel too bad in the shade. It was a great workout and a welcome change of pace.

I'll call it 8 miles.

82-95F, sunny


Kohls Asics Miles: 8.00
Weight: 187.00
Comments(1)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
5.500.005.50

Easy 5.5 miler w/ Darin before work. Started at 6:30 to beat the heat. 

82F, 5S, sunny

AP: 7:45 

Kohls Asics Miles: 5.50
Weight: 190.00
Comments(2)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
3.003.006.00

6:30AM run w/ Darin and Dave. Nothing special, just 6 miles.

 

82F, 5S, some clouds

Kohls Asics Miles: 6.00
Weight: 190.00
Comments(1)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
6.000.006.00

Ran trails at Lake Grapevine w/ Darin and Dave. I could really get used to single-track running. You really need to pay attention to EVERY STEP - you have to watch for roots, rocks, branches, sand on every step. I had no problems and got a great workout! I'm looking forward to the next time we hit the trails (on bike or foot).

AP: 9:30

82F, 5S

Kohls Asics Miles: 6.00
Weight: 185.00
Add Comment
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
10.000.0010.00

Took a vacation day today and started it with my longest run in months. I know I need to run long to get ready for SGM -- but I've been lacking motivation. This was the boost I needed. I hope to run longer this Saturday. I walked a little and drank plenty along the way -- baby steps.

AP: 8:50

82F, E5, sunny

 

Kohls Asics Miles: 10.00
Weight: 0.00
Comments(5)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
2.002.004.00

4 lunchtime dreadmill miles. I progressively increase the speed from walking to 11.5 MPH (just to get it over with faster)

 

AP: 8:00

72F, 0 MPH (indoors)

Kohls Asics Miles: 4.00
Weight: 185.00
Comments(1)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
4.002.006.00

6:30 AM run w/ Darin. Homegrown cantelope tasted great for breakfast!

AP: 7:33

82F, W5

Kohls Asics Miles: 6.00
Weight: 185.00
Comments(7)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
8.500.008.50

My Brush With Bush

 Darin texted me on Friday night to go trail running with Jo, Dave, and him at the same place we ran last week. I was to meet at his house at 6:00. I woke up at 4:40 and, as usual, weighed the pros and cons of going back to sleep with the benefits of running. And is the case usually when someone else is waiting on me, I decided to get my running clothes on and head to Darin's (about an hour away from me).

When I got to Darin's, Jo was there, but Dave had to back out due to him having to take his daughter to a soccer game or something. No biggie. 

On the ride to the trailhead, Darin said that plans had changed, as the bridge to the place we ran last week was under construction, so we opted to head to the trail on the other side of the lake that he, Curstis, and I mountain biked from 2 weeks ago.

As we arrived at the parking area at the trailhead, there was a rather large guy wearing a white polo shirt and slacks blocking some of the shady parking spots (shade in Texas this time of year is a precious commodity). I was thinking, "that's kind of rude". So after we parked a little further down, I went and talked to the guy. I asked him if there was some special club ride going on -- as there were a couple top of the line Treks waiting on stands. He said, "yep, local club". And that was about that..

Just as we were about to head out on the trail for a 6 mile loop, two Suburbans pulled up. The few others at the trail head started murmuring that it was "him". It was George W Bush. Yes, the 43rd president of the United States. He was there to go for a mountain bike workout with about a dozen others (I'm sure some were security and some were local bike riders or friends of his). And Jo, Darin, and I were right there. He shook all our hands and looked genuinely excited to be our there for a workout on a hot summer morning. He said to Darin, Jo, and I, "you're the lean group" (or something like that).Within minutes, Mr. Bush's entourage passed us on their mountain bikes as we stopped running to step aside to let them pass. Mr. Bush was cruising right along at a nice clip. How cool was that!?

 After a few minutes, we started our jog, just a little star struck from our brief encounter. We chatted on the run and wished we had thought to take a picture. Darn it! Nobody's going to believe us!

At about the 1.5 mile point, the single track trail crossed a park road with a port-o-let. Jo had to make a pit stop. I saw the van that had the bikes, and the big guy that I had talked to earlier. Darin and I walked over to him, and I said "I'm sorry for being a bit of a jerk back there.". He said "You weren't a jerk".  I felt the need to apologize...so I did. We chatted for a few more seconds, then got back on the trail.

The trail system we were on has about a 14 mile loop with traffic designated as "one way". At about 3 miles out we hopped on the trail heading back toward the parking lot. Jo had to get back to teach an aerobics class. After we got back to the parking lot, we took a few pictures of ourselves with Darin's smartphone and said goodbye to Jo.

Darin and I saw that the Mr Bush's SUVs were still there, so we thought maybe we might have a chance to get a photo with him if we could be there when he finished his ride. We ended up hopping on the trail, headed in the opposite direction. At about 1.5 miles out, we encountered the entourage...it seemed like they picked up a few more riders on their train. We stepped off the trail and watched them pass. Then we followed them. They put a little distance on us, but we thought that perhaps we might still only be a couple minutes behind them when they finished, and if we were lucky we might meet him again and get a picture.

Sure enough, as we finished. There he was, mingling with about a dozen people at the trail head. I asked him if he'd mind if we took a few pictures. He said "Sure, go ahead", and he even congratulated Darin and I for a great run in the heat. Believe me, the feeling was mutual. Mr Bush had just celebrated his 65th birthday a few weeks ago, and I was very impressed by his commitment to fitness, and his ability to ride those narrow, even dangerous trails. It was a very cool encounter, one I doubt I will ever forget.

Here's my picture with "W":

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=1121750&l=70e976126d&id=1837428836

I feel really bad that Dave had to change his plans for a family commitment, and that Jo missed out on the photos after we finished. Maybe there with be a "next time".

AP: 9:45

82F



Kohls Asics Miles: 8.50
Weight: 0.00
Comments(20)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
5.000.005.00

Morning run w/ Darin. It was hot. We were not motivated, but finished. We mostly talked about our chance meeting with Mr. President on Saturday. We're both thinking of sending the pictures we took with him, to him, in hopes we might get an autograph..

82F, 0MPH

Kohls Asics Miles: 5.00
Weight: 188.00
Comments(3)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
3.002.005.00

6:30AM run w/ Darin before work..

81F

Kohls Asics Miles: 5.00
Weight: 188.00
Comments(1)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
3.500.003.50

Just a short AM run w/ Darin. Saving ourselves for tomorrow's trail run. We're planning to run 1.5 - 2 hours in the morning - probably about 9-12 miles.

AP: 7:27

80F

Kohls Asics Miles: 3.50
Weight: 188.00
Add Comment
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
10.750.0010.75

We had quite a train on the trail this morning on a hot summer morning. It was a good run. Darin, Zachary (Darin's son), Ryan, Connor, Jo, Ruthie, and Cora, and I hit the trail at 6:30.

I led the first 3 mile stretch, then was fired for going too fast. Is 9:30/mi really too fast??? :) I went to the back of the pack and after 6 miles, the ladies left.

The guys went out for a different loop. It definitely got tougher. I was glad to see the end of the trail after about 2 hours.

80F

(didn't run into any ex-presidents today)

Asic Trailshoes Miles: 10.75
Weight: 186.00
Add Comment
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
4.000.004.00

I decided to head to Mineral Wells State Park this afternoon. Yes, at the hottest part of the day, and ride my bike on the trail. Ice water in the camel-back was refreshing. I only did about 10 miles (50 minutes). I'll call it a 4-mile run. I swam for a few minutes after the bike ride, and headed home...after stopping at DQ for a Butterfinger Blizzard...yum.

 103F, 0mph

Weight: 0.00
Comments(1)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
3.002.005.00

Progressive 5 miler before work w/ Darin.

AP: 7:30

84F, S5

Asic Nimbus 8 Miles: 5.00
Weight: 185.00
Comments(3)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
2.003.005.00

Very similar to Monday's 5-miler w/ Darin. Finished with a 6:41 mile -- it's been a while since we've run sub 7:00s...today will be 26 straight days with the high temp over 100 degrees...This 5-miler was tough (it was 84F - which was the overnight low), I can't imagine running 26.2.

84F, 5S

AP: 7:29

Kohls Asics Miles: 5.00
Weight: 185.00
Comments(2)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
5.002.007.00

Took a vacation days. Took the boys to tennis camp. Got there about an hour early so I could run some laps on the track and the boys practices their tennis. The spongy track felt great and flat. Did 7 miles, with the last one at 6:34 (just to stretch the legs a little).

The boys did great at tennis camp this week. Ethan (8) had to play in the final tournament with the older kids 11 and up, and lot both of his matches. Christian (7), who is rather used to his older brother beating him at everything, had his day and won all his matches! I'm proud of both of them.

Went to see the Smurf movie in 3D, followed by ice cream cones..it was a fun day!

Kohls Asics Miles: 7.00
Weight: 0.00
Comments(1)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
11.400.0011.40

After getting in at about 2AM from our friends' movie night, I woke up at 4:30AM, got dressed an met Ty (I haven't run with him in forever) in town, then we drove to Darin's..then Darin drove us to the trail head. The weather was about the same as its been for the past month...about 82F at start (6:30AM). Zachary ran 6.2, Ty ran 8, and Darin and I ran 11.4 miles. It took us almost 2 hours. After the run we swam a little at Darin's then headed home. 

82F, S5

AP: 10:00

Asic Trailshoes Miles: 11.40
Weight: 0.00
Comments(1)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
12.000.0012.00

3rd day of running in a row. Did 6 out and back at about 8:30 pace, then met Ty at 7:30AM at the trailhead and did another 6 miles. I was going to go back out for another couple miles, but noticed blood in my urine, so I headed home a bit worried, and have been drinking lots of water to flush my system. This has never happened to me before, so I'm a bit concerned. If it's still there this evening, I'll head to the doctor tomorrow. 

UPDATE:

Well, after about 4 hours of relaxing and drinking water and OJ, things seem to be back to normal! I'll continue to hydrate, and be sure to replace my electrolytes...I'll keep an eye on things, but I'm a bit relieved (so to speak).

82F

AP: 8:30

Kohls Asics Miles: 12.00
Weight: 182.50
Comments(5)
Slow milesFast milesTotal Distance
106.6516.00122.65
Kohls Asics Miles: 91.50Asic Trailshoes Miles: 22.15Asic Nimbus 8 Miles: 5.00
Weight: 186.50
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