Going Native

"Sick of the bullshit  sick of the lies the bastards screw ye for the price of a pint,the rich get rich and the rich go blind and pure greed wins every time,one for sorrow two for joy I'd rather put my faith in the fuckin' magpie pretend to play the pipe of peace they're singing  tiocfaidh ar la in the fields and the streets"

T.a.L-Chasing Abbey

Not the week I had hoped for but even so in 7 days this month I've logged 35 miles......in the entire month of September I only logged 40...........

Monday October 12th A slow enough time of 44.14.1 off 8.38 mile pace but as I often say not every workout has to be  an Olympic final, the way I had drawn up the week was easy run today, a bit quicker Tuesday,quicker again Wednesday, easy run Thursday........ we make plans and God laughs  as the saying goes....A pleasant 74 degrees at almost 5pm,Hal the bollox Garmin  was up to his auld tricks when mile 2 came up too early so the subsequent splits were all off,I ended up running 5.12 to get to where I know the 5 mile mark to come in at the corner of Springfield and 50th St rather than take Hal's word where he was indicating 5 miles came in today.......lying lil bollox!!!!!

Thursday October 15th No runs Tuesday & Wednesday as work gave me the biggest arse fuckin' since Sodam & Gomorrah, fuck sake I couldn't see straight let alone run straight after those two days, the pounding migraines both days didn't help any either.........Given I'd lost my two chances for a bit of speed work along the Schuylkill River Trail and Sundays race was coming up I opted for something mid tempo today and got under 44 mins w/ a 43.55.5 off 8.47 mile pace.68 degrees and sunny....worked up a nice little sweat for my trouble,I have two more weeks of these conditions and the daylight as the clocks go back here in the early hours of Nov 1st, it will be a culture shock when I have to start running home in the dark  and to that end I'm pulling out half zip running tops and 3/4 length bottoms to get ready for that..... To my untrained eye it would appear the new swing bridge over the Schuylkill River to connect the Schuylkill River Trail to the Bartram Garden Trail is in place......how long we have to wait for it to be officially opened is anyone's guess.....if the city are involved fuck knows how long it'll take.......two and a half fucking years to work on the MLK Drive/W.River Dr bridge below the Spring Garden St bridge b4 it opened, the website continues to state " open in 2026".......newsflash boys there are only 11 more weeks in the year......., once that opens it gives me the potential to tack on another 2 miles to this route which would be nice

Sunday October 18th Fair to say I have a love hate relationship w/ the Market St 5 Miler/Run For The  Blue race,since it's inception in 2018 in mid to late October, in 2018 I finished 7th overall and 2nd in my age group, the following year I finished 3rd overall.......in 2021 I was runner up in the age group, I skipped 2022 and in 2023 I began to encounter  their utter bollox re bag check.Most if not all race supply the most basic necessity of a bag check, at a time of year when the weather is beginning to turn colder it's almost a given ye'll rock up for a race in warm up clothes b4 stripping down to race wear and then throwing on warm dry clothes after ye finish.........these hoors assume everyone who races/ walks the event  either A has a car to leave their gear in, B has someone to hand said clothes/bag  to while their running/walking or C lives w/in walking distance to the start/finish..........that's a hard NO for this wee Fenian bastard on all 3. When I last encountered their strict no bag check policy{their pre race literature  states in categoric  language "There wiil NOT be a bag check"!!!!!???? in 2023 I had to ditch an auld t shirt b4 the start that of course wasn't there when I finished which compounded the fact that sans phone I had no way of knowing the results till they eventually got around to the 50-59 mens results over an hour after I crossed the finish line.........4th, weeks b4 turning 60  where I would've walked the 60-69 age group.....2024 was right b4 Dublin marathon when I was on #249 and FUCK NO  I wouldn't give these hoors the satisfaction of being #250 and last year I went back out to Radnor for the much hillier but lo and behold a bag check Radnor Run  5 Miler......which sadly wasn't on the schedule this year, were I not on a mission to hit #300 in Cork in June and needing the medal today I would've continued my boycott of the event.

It was chilly when I left out at 6.30am and frankly not much warmer when I arrived at the Marriott Hotel at 7,10am........oh did I not mention the event starts and finishes behind said hotel??? are ye feckin' telling me ye can't set aside a Meeting Room,Ballroom,Conference Room for bags..........cop the fuck on!!!!!! It was that chilly that I along w/ a large number of other runner sought the warmth of the hotel hallway  to warm up and stretch pre race b4 finally braving the chilly 43 degrees that felt like 37 degrees when the siren sent us on our way at 8am.Given this like other races on the schedule  was a 10 year  age group 60-69 rather than 60-64/65-69 meant an age group award/bonus medal was about as likely as these cunts providing a bag check.........sorry not sorry but it was low hanging fruit!!!,to finish top 3 I'd probably need to be clocking 7 min miles.....which was never on my bingo card, I can get back there but sadly between the achilles issue in late July/early August and the daylight issue banajaxing morning runs not only has my mileage nosedived in August/September, but speed work has been wishful thinking.........bit like these hoors providing a bag check...............Because Hal the lil Bollox Garmin  and the race mile markers were on two separate pages there's no point  reeling off mile splits......when I crossed the finish line of a 5 mile race Hal informed me I'd only ran 4.73 miles....g'wan ta fuck ya wee bollox... Off a 40.00.2 finish I think it's fair to say it was 8 min mile pace, sadly this was my first 5 miler not under 40 mins in 25 races since  1990.......I'm getting to that age where slowest ever times are more likely now, as the auld saying goes "the older I get,the faster I used to be!!!" Since I wanted to avoid a repeat of 2023 of waiting around freezing the hole off meself for over an hour for the results I ran w/ my phone which wasn't ideal but it confirmed  I had finished outside of the age group awards/bonus medals so w/ my finishers medal in hand I made my way home.Medal #13 for the year,#282 for the career Cork #300 is still on track, to that end no races next weekend......which is grand hopefully a long run next Saturday or Sunday as there's a simulated half marathon at the Rocky Run in 4 weeks time and an actual half marathon the following week,Bridge Run 10k in Camden up next in a fortnite......hopefully less Sodam & Gomorrah and more 5 mile runs in the build up......and if ye fuckers w/ the swing bridge can get yer fingers out of yer arseholes maybe the 5 mile run home can become 7........not too much to ask is it?............bit like a bag check at a race  ye hoors #G'wantafuck
 

Wee Fenian Bastard Doing Wee Fenian Bastard Things{Again!!!}

 "And isn't all our purpose in the things we can't avoid, isn't it a wonder and isn't it a waste isn't it to sacrifice the things you can't replace and isn't it a wonder oh isn't it a joy, isn't all our purpose in the things we can't avoid, how lonely how lonely do I have to be to mean anything to you? how lonely how lonely do I have to be to mean anything to you?, woah woah, don't hold me, don't hold me if I'm not the thing that you're terrified to lose"

How Lonely-Kingfishr

Ye can  keep a wee Fenian bastard down......but ye can't keep a wee Fenian bastard down for long......back at it this week w/ a bang and right on time  as there are nine weekends of races in the next twelve weeks, two in October, four in November and three in December...... wee Fenian bastard start yer feckin' engine!!

Monday October  5th, when  I worked at the hospital between 99 & 20 I was no stranger to running home  to either Port Richmond between 99 & 06 and West Philly between 06 & 20 so now that circumstances have dictated I need to revisit that I laced em up again  to get back into the auld routine albeit on a new route home.As the proverbial "Crow Flies" I could  make a right coming out of work, hang another right on Chestnut St and run the three miles between 16th St and home......only issue w/ that is the number of feckin' red lights I'd probably encounter on route not to mention  all the pedestrian traffic.....SO I opted for a more "runner friendly" route, 16th St to the Ben Franklin Parkway and up towards the  Art Museum, left onto the Schuylkill River Trail and head west towards Greys Ferry Avenue bridge.I hit mile 4 as I crested the top of the bridge and opted to stop there and walk, but the walk home revealed I could squeeze out another mile which would be the plan moving forward.34.40.2 off 8.40 mile pace w/ splits of:8.45-8.43-8.40-8.30 in a comfortable 68 degrees.Far from earth shattering but a nice start off a fortnites lay off  and diminishing splits to boot.......when it starts getting colder there'll be  a  Guinness cap for that feather!!!!!

Tuesday October 6th Mile 5 came in as I hit the corner of 50th and Springfield, there's probably not enough real estate from there to my corner to squeeze out an extra 1/2 mile......w/out having to loop loops  etc but since I was logging 5 milers when I was getting up at the crack of dawn earlier this year 5 miles will do for now.42,47.3 off 8.33 mile pace,no diminishing splits today, in fact it was the polar opposite no thanks to a reckless opening split of 8.11 I went:8.18-8.25-8.33-9.19.........gassed as fuck on that last mile.64 degrees and sunshine again,need to make the most of these conditions this month come November the clocks go back and I'll be running in the dark so me and all the other members of the running fraternity are making the proverbial hay while the sun shines this month

Wednesday October 7th Fuck sake{wise up mate.......Kneecap fans will understand that reference!} 69 degrees I should've kept my running vests/sleeveless running shirts out instead of switching to short sleeves but given October can be running attire roulette  maybe switching to short sleeves wasn't the worst thing I could do......less we forget come November I'll probably pulling long sleeves/ 1/2 zip tops & 3/4 length bottoms out of mothballs so......Shaved 44 seconds off of yesterdays time w/ a 42.03.6 off 8.25 mile pace thanks to splits of:8.21-8.25_8.19=8.20-8.38.I'd already committed to only running Mon,Tue,Wed this week but moving forwards the plan is Monday through Thursday weather and work permitting then it's either my weekend race/races or a Sunday long run to hopefully round out a five day week.Having started the week at 8.40 mile pace and dropped it down to 8.25 mile pace is pleasing, losing two weeks of training shouldn't  undo  all the hard work and mileage I've put in this year since Jan 5th....if anything the rest should benefit me......runners don't subscribe to the less is more mindset but sometimes that's what the Docter ordered.

Saturday October 10th The first of the ten remaining races of the Wee Fenian Bastard Golden Jubilee  tour and it was back to the Camden River Front for the second of my up and back 10ks along the Delaware River between the Wiggins Park Marina and the Ben Franklin bridge and back ......four times ........god love anyone and there are several runners who commit to doing the 1/2 marathon on that route, I think it's eight and a half up and backs.........fuck dat! The organizers of these races prefer anyone doing the 1/2 marathon to do the 7.30am start, given we are running  along a path that is  narrow enough and is a shared public space  there are three waves, 7.30am, 8am  8.30am and judging from the fact only one other runner from the 7.30am wave crossed the finish line after I got done would indicate almost everyone else in the opening wave had opted for the 1/2 marathon......kudos to the girl in he second wave who ran the 5k and was a minute or two behind me.....granted I began half an hour b4 her but she only ran up and back twice I did 4......both of us were running by ourselves in fairness.Remarkably my fastest 10k this season in 48.20.3 off  7.48 mile pace thanks to splits of:7.36-7.43-7.40-7.59=7.52-7.59-1.30, conditions helped,at 7.30am it was a comfortable  54 degrees,I forget  what the temps were when I ran here on July 25th but I remember dripping in sweat after I finished  at the Philly 10 on Aug 23rd it was 68 degrees w/ 91% humidity and at the Freedom 10k on Sept 7th it was  64 degrees w/ 82% humidity.this was also the 70th 10k of my career, I still remember my 10k debut in Wimbledon on Sept 11th 1983 a month after my hero Eamonn Coghlan had won gold in the first World Athletic Championships over 5,000m in Helsinki

Not a bad week if I say so meself, at he risk of repeating meself I said a week ago maybe the two weeks off was a blessing period but also given my busier than usual Fall race schedule the auld  less is more mindset would be a benefit,full steam ahead now this week to next Sundays  Market Street 5 miler and hopefully medal #13 for the season and medal # 282 for the career.

Hung Out To Dry On The {Florence} Road

" I broke my tooth on the way out of your room called you over, are you over you don't even look me over yes I lied I lied don't wait up, don't wait up.......just wait up.Trust me I'm not falling no supersonic heartbeats in the morning, don't trust me I might fall in I never think about at all leave me hanging out to dry yeah  I'm hanging around, leave me hanging out to dry"

Hanging Out To Dry-Florence Road

Another week of no running, I had two windows of opportunities  on Thursday and Sunday to kick start things,but my two auld nemesis Work and Weather scuppered that, glass half empty missed mileage, glass half full a lil respite period but given my schedule from next weekend to December 26 has 10 races in 12 weeks{I double dip  the weekend of the Rocky Run on Nov 14th w/ both the 5k and 10 miler} w/ only three non race weekend on tap maybe less is more?

However I can't rely on just races to remain in race shape.......I mean I can but I'd rather not I don't think it's  the way to go, granted big picture all I need to do is finish my races to continue picking off medals between 280 to 291 by years end to keep the Cork 1/2/#300 medal dream alive but I'd prefer not to go that route and therein lies the issue.....

Clearly morning running has now had to take a back seat till sometime next year when it becomes light enough again to do so,lunchtime runs have gone the way of The Ark and Rubix Cube which leaves two viable options, run home from work OR run when I get home..........Both have pratfalls, option A at best I can manage three 4 milers Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday as Thursday& Friday are compromised w/ chores for the home front......now granted I could tweak Thursday to make it 4 days and then have my races/long runs round me up to my preferred 5 days a week.........however come November 1st the clocks go back it'll be dark by 5pm and I'll be running home via the Schuylkill River Trail ........NOT that I haven't had to get my miles in undercover of darkness in the past. Option B is run when I get home, again not a new concept for the Wee Fenian but at almost 63 do I have it in me to come home between 5.30pm-5.45pm{on a good day!!!} lace em up and get out the door?

For now the plan is to try and run home Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday starting tomorrow first, again work is going to play a role in this IF it works I'll look at tweaking Thursdays but rather put the cart b4 the horse let's see if I can transition to running home first, again IF this becomes second nature maybe this will be the route to go for the time being?

Florence Road  were amazing last Monday, while The Bowery isn't a huge venue they managed to sell it out which is commendable period but considering they haven't released an album yet and only have two EP's and  a few singles to their name is impressive,I discovered Florence Road via  a Florence & The Machine interview almost a year ago when the new Florence & The Machine album "Everybody Scream" was due out.I mention this because at her second sold out Madison Square Garden show earlier this year Florence Welch mentioned  her first show in NYC  was @ The Bowery in 09.........IF  Florence Road have half the success Florence & The Machine have achieved they'll be well on their way to a successful career of their own, watching them on stage up close last Monday I was reminded of  a similar 4 piece all girl band from back in the day,The Bangles,again if Lily,Emma,Ailbhe and Hannah have a fraction of the impact The Bangles had  they will be ok.If I was in Dublin the same week in December I was there last year I'd be catching the at the 3 Olympia  Dec 14th/15th{and Kneecap @ 3 Arena on Dec 16th} sadly I'll have to wait  till their debut album  comes out and they return here to promote it........judging from the fan reaction to their show last week and the bands reaction to their audience  it won't be too long b4 we see them again

Slan Go  Foill