It's Enough To Give Ya The Gawkes........

 "We're just some wild hearts chasin' something that could tear us apart"

Tear Us Apart Sam Barber

Not the week I had planned/hoped for but that's why my schedule gets written in Pencil.....

Tuesday Feb 18th

Remembering the old adage " listen to what your body is telling you" I made a game time decision not to run on Monday, both my knees were bothering me and having just gotten back into a routine of training on a regular daily weekly basis it would be foolhardy to risk missing a week or two by being gung ho so I sat Monday out.....that coupled w/ below freezing temps made it a no brainer to sit that one out

The temps hadn't gotten any warmer come Tuesday but I knew I had to get after it, I deliberately  didn't look at the temps b4 leaving at 2pm, sometimes ignorance is bliss, "what you don't know won't hurt ye" the old expression goes so rather than fixate on how cold it was I chose to focus on getting the run in

37.07.3 off 9.17 mile pace, modest enough in below freezing temps w/ a strong headwind on the outbound 2 miles, mercifully it was at my back on the inbound 2 miles, splits:8.36-9.37-9.53-9.01 not earth shattering but I felt I used up so much energy fighting the wind on the way to Boathouse Row that I didn't have the reserves to drop the pace on the way back and down Ben Franklin Parkway

Wednesday Feb 19th

Still ber, still below freezing but a little quicker than yesterday, mercifully not as windy as yesterday which was reflected by my time 34.49.3 off 8.42 mile pace w/ splits of:8.05-9.07-9.16-8.20

Still early days but little by little I feel my strength and conditioning is returning and the time honoured Three S's Speed, Strength, Stamina are coming back, off the extended lay off I took at the end of last year and the beginning  of this year I believed it would take a good four to six weeks to get back to where I was, I'm not there yet but I'm starting to see green shoots of a return, I'm not huffin' and puffin' like I was, yes I still slow/stop to take red lights but I noticed now I'm not waiting till they turn to green b4 starting up again, hopefully in another couple of weeks I'll be speeding up to beat green lights turning red

Thursday Feb 20th

Still below freezing, still windy but to quote the always quotable Monty Python "still I was getting used to it by now"......

Glass half empty slower than yesterday 35.12.4 off 8.48 mile pace, glass half full negative splits: 8.29-9.18-9.11-8.14 out in 17.47 back in 17.25 this lends considerable weight to yesterdays claim my S&C is returning , sadly this would be the highlight of my week.......

Sunday Feb 23rd

I had the option of trying to make up Mondays lost 4 miles on Saturday but didn't,

 Another old adage from my former coach " you can't chase lost miles" last week I managed four 4 mile runs but blew my long run so I'd happily sacrifice  one of my  four milers this week for a long.....don't get it twisted as I channel my "inner Barbie" I want it all  four four miles and the long run but I'm not quite there yet

Mercifully the below freezing temps from during the week were long gone mid 40s at 1pm and going up to the mid 50s this week, since that was the case I opted for the South St bridge, Schuylkill River Trail, Kelly Drive out and back  route for my 10 miles.....and judging from the volume of other runners out there at lunchtime I wasn't the only one singing from that hymn sheet........

Based off of my 7 and 8 mile runs I was aiming for 9.35 mile pace so when I opened in 8.58 I was reasonably confident I was on pace, this was followed by a 9.19 b4 I hit the trail and then a 9.28, it was evident this was almost deja vu from  two weeks ago on my 8 miler when each mile got progressively slower.....difference being that day I was confident of seeing it through to the very end....not so much today

9.44 at mile 4 just passed Lloyd Hall at the start of Boathouse Row followed by 9.54 at the turnaround for mile 5......I wasn't exactly brimming w/ confidence I was going to complete the inbound 5 miles.....CLUNK the all too familiar  sound of the wheels coming off on a planned double digit long run, b4 reaching Lloyd Hall I had stopped  to walk and after a brief breather tried to get going again.....once again the ghosts of long runs passed came back to haunt me and after rounding up to mile 6 in 9.49 I did the all too familiar " walk of shame" down Powelton Ave home

What truly gives me the gawkes is I've now lost back to back long runs the past two weekends, I only have 4 more on tap b4 the Love Run in 5 weeks time, there is little to no margin of error

57.13.1 off 9.32 mile pace but the nagging fear it's either mental or physical that I struggle w/ anything above double digit milage ....a concern w/ a half marathon on tap in 5 weeks not to mention one eye further down the road at another in September at PDR and a potential 40th anniversary marathon at the end of November..... hopefully today was just " one of those days" and I can correct things next Sunday w/ another crack at a 10 miler....at a time when Country music rules the roost I'd sure hate to have  start singing the blues........

Four Fifths Of Reckless, One Fifth Of Jack.......

 "Road road ,Roadrunner Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arizona, Road road roadrunner rollin' down the road tryna find me another" Road Runner Lainey Wilson

Not quite the week I had hoped for but as Mick Jagger always says "you can't always get what you want"

Mon Feb 10th

Easy/recovery 4 miler to kick off the week, while most of the city was nursing a hangover from the Eagles Super Bowl victory a semi respectable 36.38.6 off 9.10 mile pace w/ splits of :8.09-9.30-10.02-8.57, bit po'd w/ that 10.02 not sure if I switched off mentally after the turn on Kelly Dr on the way back to the Parkway but it was a slow split, that said I've come a long way from the 10.33 split on my season debut run on  Jan 13th and last week I only logged a 39.11.3 off 9.48 mile pace on my Easy/ recovery run 2 days after my long run so it's progress and sometimes as a runner that's the best currency  you can have

Tue Feb 11th

Didn't set out to try and brake my Jan 30th seasons best time for 4 miles 34.33.1 but came awful close, IF I didn't know what my Seasons Best was pre run I damn sure did post race.........

34.35.9 off 8.39 mile pace w/ splits of:8.16-8.48-9.10-8.21( no feckin' 10.02 mile 3 split today!!!) 2 seconds off my Jan 30th 34.33.1

There's an old adage about the shit that goes on behind the curtain the audience never sees and that feels true right now, I'm not going into detail if and when the time comes to purge my soul I will for now it's hard running, a lot of soul searching in my journal and a steady diet of Country music, say what you like about Country music but ain't a god damn emotion you or I have felt in our lives that doesn't surface in a Country song, don't believe me listen to any number of Country songs and you'll hear shit you can relate to........

Wed Feb 12th

Seasons Best!!! Having gone close yesterday I was determined to go one better today and 1.3 inchs of snow wasn't going to stop me....

Thankfully it began snowing overnight and hadn't a chance to freeze so the sidewalk up Ben Franklin Parkway and along Kelly Dr were just damp when I set out at 2pm

W/ an opening mile of  7.35 the proverbial genie was out of the bottle, question was could I hold onto that pace?....... I knew when I clocked 8.30 at mile 2 this had the potential for a fast time.....providing I didn't tie up/ blow up on the inbound 2 miles back to 16th St

W/ three weeks of training under my belt now I feel my strength and conditioning is returning....don't get it twisted I still have a ways to go but it's " trending in the right direction"

9.07 for mile 3, whatever I had left in the tanks was getting left on the Parkway to 16th St............

8.02 final mile for a 33.14.6 time off 8.17 mile pace.......#CowboyUp

It's good to know the fast twitch muscles are still working and that my levels of  S&C are coming back, while my next three races are over 1/2 marathon, 15k and 10 miles ain't nothing wrong w/ a little speed work

Thur Feb 13th

Following 2 "pedal to the metal" runs an easy run was in order no need going to the well too often, gonna be a long season{ain't they all?}someone one said and I quote "gotta know when to hold em, gotta know when to fold em".........

36.54.4 off 9.14 mile pace w/ splits of:8.50-9.28-9.31-9.04 respectable enough, next week is a whole new week and a whole new ball game, little did I know this would be my last run of the week.......

Sat Feb 15th

The plan was to buck the trend of the last few weeks/months of not getting up to run long on Saturday and get out there for a 10 miler and resume double digit mileage, best laid plans of mice and men or whatever auld shite they say.....

I did actually get up b4 7.30am, got dressed and stretched and out the door so far so good.....

.93 of a mile in on 46th and Walnut I stopped, I just knew I didn't have it and the further out I went inevitably the further home I was gonna have to walk home so I cut my losses and stopped and turned around to walk home, for the record I was on for 8.56 mile pace

Can't quite put my finger on why I didn't have it, I know it's been a hot minute since I did a long run period muchless on a Saturday morning and maybe it was a shock to my system but moving forward that has to be the way it is, I can't always rely on the Sunday afternoon long run as was the case this weekend

So a bit of a mixed bag for the week another 16 miles in my legs 75 for the year, a seasons best time over 4 miles but sadly no long run/ return to double digit mileage back to the drawing board on Monday

No Threepeat, No Worries

 Another five day training week, another Sunday long run, first race of the season first medal #257 as the countdown towards #300 continues

Tue Feb 4th Easy 4 mile recovery run, after the 7 miler on Sunday I did plan to run again on Monday....however getting up from my desk after penning my blog on Monday lunchtime I could feel how heavy and sore my legs were, a 4 miler would've been hard work let alone another 7 miler so I opted for a rest day w/ a view to going long Sunday after Saturdays race

Knowing this was a recovery/easy run I wasn't overly concerned about time, speed, pace which was subsequently reflected in my time 39.11.3 off 9.48 mile pace w/ splits of:9.41-9.57-9.51-9.42 to be honest I was just happy to get a run in  and hopefully get the crap out of my legs for the rest of the week, not that long ago missing a Monday run and having sore legs on a Tuesday might have seen me blow the whole week off.......safe to say that corner has been turned....

Wed Feb 5th Slightly more effort and a reduction in overall time, speed and pace.....not  too difficult after the previous effort! 35.08.5 off 8.46 mile pace w/ splits of:7.32-9.07-9.38-8.48

W/ a race only  4 days away there was no need this week to " leave it all out there" on the Ben Franklin Parkway/Kelly Drive there will be ample time to push for fast times post Cupid's Chase 5k and the Love Run 1/2 marathon in seven week time

Thur Feb 6th Fairly similar time and pace to Wednesday 35.56.0 off 8.41 mile pace, splits:8.00-9.10-9.40-9.06

As for Saturdays race....I'm in the best shape I can be w/ so little training under my belt, I should have started sooner but when all's said and done the Cupid's Chase 5K is a building block towards the Love Run 1/2 marathon, w/ out Saturdays race I may not have started training on  Jan 27th, better late than never they say.......

Sat Feb 8th If the alarm is going off  at "Silly O Clock" it must be a race, that said hopefully next week and the subsequent  five weeks after it I'll be getting up early on a Saturday for my long runs

A tad" nippy around the gills" at 6.45am as I made my way up Haverford Avenue to 34th St and the Philadelphia Zoo a brisk 28 degrees which meant race attire was gloves, long sleeve shirt and running tights under my vest and shorts, this is the third year Cupid's Chase 5k at the Zoo has been my season opener which helps otherwise it's a long haul from the season finale Schuylkill River Loop in early December to the Love Run at the end of March

A decent turn out 400 plus runners for a race this early in the season, got a clear start and clocked 8.04 for the opening mile, I was figuring 24 mins plus at 8 min mile pace was a fair return for the small amount of training pre race, sadly a lack of signage, flags or race marshalls meant I and several other runners cut a section off of the opening mile and why my Garmin only recorded  2.99 for a 3.1 race

I'm well versed in the loop outside the perimeter off the Zoo as I've used it for an out and back 8 miler, I did pick off a couple of runners on the back straight b4 reentering the Zoo 8.12 for mile 2 and eventually finishing in 24.10.21, the third mile split obviously came up short due to the fuck up in the opening mile

33rd in a field of 408 and 3rd of 9 in the 60-69 age group, technically on the podium however like last year they only gave one medal to the winner of the 69-69 so no bonus medal this year....I had said in the build up to the race that if I somehow won the age group the extra medal would have a been a bonus, I have no qualms w/ not winning the age group w/ the meager amount of mileage under my belt in the run up to the race, as I said b4 and stand by Cupid's Chase 5k was a stepping stone towards the Love Run 1/2 marathon in seven weeks time, I'm still looking at #300 in early 2028 so one less medal today doesn't alter that, that said winning my age  group three years in a row at Cupid's Chase would've been nice but I didn't put the work in in December and early January so I have no axe to grind there

Sun Feb 9th Having gotten a 7 miler under my belt last Sunday the plans was to go 8 miles today, set off at 1.30pm conditions were grey and overcast but at 43 degrees mild enough

Took the road well travelled up Powelton Avenue to Mantua Ave, had considered swinging over to the Art Museum and Kelly Dr but at the junction of Spring Garden and Mantua kept going straight towards 34th St and eventually over Girard Ave bridge to Girard and Popular and turned there to head back

Hadn't given any though to overall time and pace when I set out when I clocked 9.07 at the opening mile I spitballed 1.12-1.15

9.15-9.27-9.45 for miles 2,3 and 4, 37.34 outbound, at the turn I was  cognizant that each mile was getting slower but I was more concerned about getting the miles in for now, fast times/splits will come in time

9.47 for mile 5, managed to reverse that  trend w/ a 9.41 split for mile 6 b4 my slowest split of 9.50 for mile 7 however last week over 7 miles I had 2 spits over 10.00 10.06-10.19 so this feels like progress

9.48 for the final mile  38.16 for the inbound for a 1.16.41 off  9.35 mile pace

Another semi long run that I was able to conduct w/out having to stop and or walk....progress in the coming weeks I hope my red light brakes will become less and shorter

Hopefully starting next weekend not only am I getting up early on a Saturday for my long run but I'm also back into double digit mileage, little by little Philadelphia Marathon is 42 weeks away, hopefully I can put the disappointment of Dublin behind me

In closing  my homage to my good friends The 2 Johnnies my dirt of the week, at the junction of 40th and Powelton I had to wait for the red light to change " homie" hits me up " yo my man, spare any change?"......cuz I'm out for a run last thing I carry is a pocketful of change...muchless my phone to Venmo you some spare change..... fuckin' gowl.......

{Therapy} Couch To 5K 2025

Monday January 27th

Welcome to the next few weeks/months, lunchtime 4 mile runs out and back along the Ben Franklin Parkway and Schuylkill River Trail/Kelly Drive

Temps were in the low 40's just gone 2 pm when I made my way westbound on the Parkway, there were still patches of snow and ice from last weeks snow as temps failed to get above freezing till the weekend, thankfully they were patches and not sheets of ice, I just had to exercise a little caution as I navigated them.......not that I had a full head of speed up......

I had no time target for this run....hell I wasn't sure I'd get 4 miles in but I did.....sucked a lot of air in doing so but I got there

36.17.9 off 9.02 mile pace.....hardly gonna strike fear into the hearts of my opponents but for the record an improvement on my previous 4 miler on Jan 14th of 37.23.7 off 9.20 mile pace......all great journeys have to start somewhere I guess this is mine

Tuesday January 28th

Three things ye can rely on.....Death, Taxes and my Garmin acting the bollix!!!!

When the opening mile came up way too early on said little bollix I knew mile 2 would be off also, to combat that I paused the fecker at mile 2 but continued my way along Boathouse Row and turned where I turned the day b4 to at least give me a fairly accurate closing 2 miles

For the numberphiles  out there among ye:34.31.4 off 8.38 but w/ a huge feckoff * next to them

Wednesday January 29th

First three in a row in long time and to mark the occasion a bastard wind to contend w/......nowth like adding a degree of difficulty to proceedings eh?

8.08 to open things, maybe a tad too brisk as mile 2  was 9.19 2 seconds slower than Monday,mercifully mile 3 is coming down as my levels of S&C {Strength & Conditioning} begin to slowly  return since Jan 13th my splits have been:10.33-10.01-9.51-9.57-9.42

The final mile down the Parkway to 16th St is getting easier and quicker:9.42-9.23-8.50-8.53-8.7 overall my time was 35.37-4 off 8.53 mile pace, IF Saturday was the Cupid's Chase 5k I don't think I'd be pulling up any trees, however I have another 6 runs till then hopefully I can continue to lower the 3S's...Speed,Strength,Stamina

Thursday January 30th

4 in a row hasn't happened in almost a year but so I could've been forgiven if I'd just " mailed it in today" and logged 4 easy miles.......nah.....feck that auld shite!!!!

When "Life Gives You Lemons Make Lemonade", fair to say work has been a major source of irritation of late and today was no different so when I headed out at 2pm I had the proverbial " full head of steam up" and any thoughts of " mailing it in" went for a burton....w/ a 7.39 opening mile....which was always going to comeback to bite me in the arse

8.47 for mile 2 and 9.23 for mile 3....a far cry from the 10.33 3rd mile back on my debut on Jan 13th, closing mile was  a modest 8.44 as I finished in 34.33.1 off 8.26 mile pace

What I can continue to do next week w/ my times and splits remains to be seen? it's the week of a race where I need to "keep my powder dry" it may behoove me to take my foot off the gas a little and just focus on logging the miles

Sunday Feb 2nd

Somewhat churlish to call 7 miles a long run but when I've  only been logging 4 milers in January I guess this is a long run as I plan to up my mileage over the coming weekends to get ready for the Love Run 1/2 marathon in seven weeks time

Out the door by 1.30pm, hopefully in the coming weeks Saturday will be my default day to " go long"but given my struggles w/ that most of last year I'm just happy to have gotten out today,next Saturday is my race but from Feb 15th to March 22nd I hope to "go long" in prep for the Love Run 1/2 marathon

Opted for the "short loop" Baltimore Ave,South St bridge,Schuylkill River Trail,Powelton Ave,I may need to tweak it slightly to make it it 7 miles as a loop or make it an out and back 7 miles minus Powelton Ave on Monday but for today I threw in a slight detour to get it to the required 7miles

Time, speed, pace were secondary aims, the primary goal was 7 mile and...to that end it was a success 67.7 off 9.35 mile pace w/ splits of :8.48-9.19-9.32-9.20-10.06-9.43-10.19 the step up to 8 miles hopefully on Feb 15th should be a little easier

Overall a  good training week back to back to back to back for the first time in almost a year, a five day week also for the first time in almost a year and a weekend long run for the first time since 2 weeks b4 the Dublin Marathon in October, 24 miles for January,meager but a step up from the paltry 8 miles I managed in December { which was my race at the Schuylkill Loop} November was only 25 and 22 of that were my 4 races so the 23 I logged this week feels like a quantum leap, on a level playing field I could have 25 miles next week........more that I logged in the opening month of the year......motivation for the next  6 days....

 

Is It A Bird?....Is It A Plane??.......NO!!!!! Tis Only Himself Getting Back Into The Swing Of Things

 

 

 Greetings sports fans.....just when ye thought it was safe to check the blogisphere.....this auld bollix decides to start running and blogging again.....

A fair amount of water has gone under the bridge since my last entry and not much else, following the Penn Relays 5k on November 16th I failed to register a single mile in training and promptly got my arse handed to me in the season  finale Schuylkill River Loop,I got what I deserved....feck all ,a finishers medal and race t shirt and boot up the hole for not running for three  weeks it felt a fitting anti climax to a season that began so well w/ such high hopes only to unravel b4 my eyes over the course of the year, there were a few highs and a few age group awards but there were also some big lows including recording my slowest ever times over 5k, 10k,10 miles,  and the marathon and only the mother of all shit shows in the 2017 Oddyssey  half marathon spared me from the Love Run and PDR being my slowest ever half marathons......as the saying goes when you hit rock bottom there's only one direction to go and that's up.........

When I failed to be motivated to run on New Years Day so often in the past  my symbolic " start the year off on a positive note" mindset/mantra I knew I still wan't ready.....thankfully a pair of lunchtime 4 miler on Jan 13th and 14th, kicked off the shackles....albeit for 2 days,circumstances beyond my control scuppered the following two days then we got snow and below freezing temps on Jan 19th which stuck the proverbial fork in another week of training.....however things took a turn for the better last week and for the first time since Feb 19th-25th last year l logged a 5 day training week, also I managed a non race weekend run for the first time since October 13th, time for yours truly to stop feeling sorry for himself and for my opponents to start feeling sorry,I'm not saying 2025 is the year of The Shamrock Warrior kicking arse and taking names  but it is I hope  a return to better things for my running

Despite Dublin being my slowest ever marathon I plan to celebrate the 40th anniversary of my debut marathon in November at the Philadelphia Marathon on November 23rd,42 weeks, to that end I have 9 races lined up between Saturdays season opener the Cupid's Chase 5k and the Penn Relays 5k on Nov 15th I also need to reverse an annoying trend of seeing my yearly mileage drop well below triple digits  769 in 2025, 723 last year,I know when I'm fully motivated and training to the full range of my talent the sky is the limit for me, somewhere in the last 2 years that has slipped between the cracks......time to reclaim it, the blood of my forefathers that pumps through my veins, nothing came easy to them, they had to fight for what was theirs had gone cold...it happens,what happens next is up to me,time to reclaim what's mine, it won't be handed to me, nor do I wish it to be, I'll reclaim it the old fashioned way.....I'll fuckin' earn it...