Wow,June 30th,we're half way through the year already,January 1st seems like it was a while ago.
The last Wednesday of June is a red letter day for the storeroom....the dreaded annual inventory,a whole day stuck down in the storeroom counting,I only had to do it twice b4 moving up to the loading dock but it's a mind numbing day.
I had to man the fort alone today, Chris was off at orientation for his son Mel who'll be enrolling at West Chester University this fall having just had three days off I could hardly complain about being by my lonesome and I must say the day passed w/out incident.......more or less......
I've mentioned in my blog in the past how I feel Chris and I tend to get overlooked up on the dock,the term "red headed stepchild" has been used more than once by yours truly but until it's proven otherwise it's a term I'll keep using..........
I'm not big on rhetorical questions but I had to ask Chris yesterday if anyone came up to the dock on Thursday or Monday when it was 97 degrees outside and therefore probably over 100 degrees on the dock......the look I got from Chris was the classic"if a picture could paint a thousand words"and NO I didn't expect anyone to inquire if Chris and John were ok up on the dock in all that heat.
So when someone was dispatched from the storeroom to inquire if I wanted to come down stairs for pizza at lunch time I replied"thanks but no thanks"....the politically correct answer when what I wanted to say was"piss off,I'd rather choke on my own bile than brake bread w/ you arseholes"
Seriously this so called "team building" our boss is so happy to try and create kills me,the Material Management Team t shirts that were made last fall,I never wore mine,in fact I threw it down the outside of my filing cabinet in my office as I refused to wear it,I don't know about there being no I in team,I just feel there's no Chris and me in Material Management's team.
I clocked a 63 minute 10 miler this evening,w/ the temps back down to comfortable level I'm able to run and breath a lot easier,I realize I'm breaking new ground this week running 6x10 miles but at this stage of the season I'm more than ready for that challenge as I look to hit my high arc of mileage this week three weeks out from Nationals and begin to taper.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Back To Semi Normal
W/ Lynn and Chris now back in London it was back to getting up at 5.25am and getting to work by 6.25am this morning.
Strewth! 63 emails while I was off for three days,granted they weren't all work related but I still has to sift through them and delete where applicable,and answer the ones that needed answering.
There was of course the oh so small matter of talking to my footballing peeps about England and USA,one of the great questions of the day was if Capello is on six million a year for two years.....how much is Bob Bradley the USA coach making???
The final two round of sixteen games today and a penalty shoot out between Paraguay and Japan.
Penalty shoot outs are great drama......if your country isn't involved,I've seen England fall too often at the hands of the dreaded penalty shoot out and I've also witnessed both sides of a penalty shoot out w/ Ireland,winners in Italia 90 vs Romania in the round of 16,losers in Japan/South Korea 02 vs Spain also in the round of 16 so my heart goes out to the unfortunate Japan player who saw his penalty rattle the crossbar today.
Spain beat Portugal in the Iberian derby which means my choice of Spain to win the World Cup is still on.
Back to work also meant back to running at 4.40pm and thankfully the brutal heat of the past few days was gone as was evident by the return to 65 minutes for my 10 miler,I felt I ran well w/in myself and could've upped the pace if need be.
Given this is my long week I feel it's prudent to pace myself this week,cranking out 63-64 minute 10 milers won't mean much if I fail to deliver the goods in Sacramento in just over four weeks time.
Strewth! 63 emails while I was off for three days,granted they weren't all work related but I still has to sift through them and delete where applicable,and answer the ones that needed answering.
There was of course the oh so small matter of talking to my footballing peeps about England and USA,one of the great questions of the day was if Capello is on six million a year for two years.....how much is Bob Bradley the USA coach making???
The final two round of sixteen games today and a penalty shoot out between Paraguay and Japan.
Penalty shoot outs are great drama......if your country isn't involved,I've seen England fall too often at the hands of the dreaded penalty shoot out and I've also witnessed both sides of a penalty shoot out w/ Ireland,winners in Italia 90 vs Romania in the round of 16,losers in Japan/South Korea 02 vs Spain also in the round of 16 so my heart goes out to the unfortunate Japan player who saw his penalty rattle the crossbar today.
Spain beat Portugal in the Iberian derby which means my choice of Spain to win the World Cup is still on.
Back to work also meant back to running at 4.40pm and thankfully the brutal heat of the past few days was gone as was evident by the return to 65 minutes for my 10 miler,I felt I ran well w/in myself and could've upped the pace if need be.
Given this is my long week I feel it's prudent to pace myself this week,cranking out 63-64 minute 10 milers won't mean much if I fail to deliver the goods in Sacramento in just over four weeks time.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Saying Goodbye Never Gets Easier
No not a reference to England's departure from the World Cup,thankfully after the frankly.....emm what's the word????I know.....shite performances served up I think we're all better off they're no longer in the tournament.
As for Don Capello"I don't wish to step down from the England job"....I bet you don't when you're making 6 million a year!!!!
But this tired old excuse every time England fail at a World Cup or Euro C'ship"the players were tired"is bollocks!!! and scant consolation to the millions of England fans who made their way to South Africa,frankly England football/soccer fans deserve better....from the players and the coach.
Anyway w/ that off my chest today saw me bid adieu to my sister and brother in law who flew back to London after a six day visit.
It's always fun to hang w/ my big sister and brother in law,in the almost 23 years I've lived here we've seen a lot of each other w/ visits here,London,Ireland and Athens in 05 when I ran the Athens Marathon but no matter how often we see each other having to say goodbye still smarts as we go our separate ways but rather than dwell on the negative I prefer to think of six days of hanging out,talking,eating together and watching the World Cup together....unequivocally good times.
Got my 10 miler in early again to accommodate my family schedule and given the heat I was happy to be running at 9.30am not 4.40pm as I kicked off the week w/ a 67 minute time,as it was even at 9.30am it was hot,trust me my sleeveless running shirt,shorts and bandanna were drenched in sweat,no more am 10 milers now till Saturday but hopefully cooler conditions will move in for the next few days as I go back to my afternoon/early evening routine
As if the Argentina Germany 1/4 final isn't enough to make the pulse quicken now two more heavyweights are set to meet Holland and Brazil and after tomorrow we'll know the final 1/4 match ups.....not sure what I'll do Wednesday and Thursday when there's no World Cup footie to enjoy.....catch up on Wimbledon maybe???
As for Don Capello"I don't wish to step down from the England job"....I bet you don't when you're making 6 million a year!!!!
But this tired old excuse every time England fail at a World Cup or Euro C'ship"the players were tired"is bollocks!!! and scant consolation to the millions of England fans who made their way to South Africa,frankly England football/soccer fans deserve better....from the players and the coach.
Anyway w/ that off my chest today saw me bid adieu to my sister and brother in law who flew back to London after a six day visit.
It's always fun to hang w/ my big sister and brother in law,in the almost 23 years I've lived here we've seen a lot of each other w/ visits here,London,Ireland and Athens in 05 when I ran the Athens Marathon but no matter how often we see each other having to say goodbye still smarts as we go our separate ways but rather than dwell on the negative I prefer to think of six days of hanging out,talking,eating together and watching the World Cup together....unequivocally good times.
Got my 10 miler in early again to accommodate my family schedule and given the heat I was happy to be running at 9.30am not 4.40pm as I kicked off the week w/ a 67 minute time,as it was even at 9.30am it was hot,trust me my sleeveless running shirt,shorts and bandanna were drenched in sweat,no more am 10 milers now till Saturday but hopefully cooler conditions will move in for the next few days as I go back to my afternoon/early evening routine
As if the Argentina Germany 1/4 final isn't enough to make the pulse quicken now two more heavyweights are set to meet Holland and Brazil and after tomorrow we'll know the final 1/4 match ups.....not sure what I'll do Wednesday and Thursday when there's no World Cup footie to enjoy.....catch up on Wimbledon maybe???
Sunday, June 27, 2010
How Long To Sing This Song?
God bless the rest day,I know some runners who train seven days a week,I know some who only train four or five,proving once again that"running is NOT one size fits all"
For me I enjoy one day off,a chance to recharge the batteries both mentally and physically,I know what's ahead this coming week so an off day today was most welcome.
NOT so welcome was England's 4.1 mauling by Germany at the World Cup today,I was not expecting The Three Lions to win the World Cup b4 it began and clearly based on their group stage play that was NEVER going to happen but to go out the way they did that just isn't acceptable,at least yesterday USA went down swinging.
As for the goal that wasn't......and the first Argentina goal vs Mexico......and the handball by Brazil vs Ivory Coast......and the USA goal that wasn't vs Slovenia.....and the handball by France vs Ireland that kept Ireland out......FOR FUCK SAKE FIFA,let's have some goal line technology,"Splatter"{Fifa pres Sepp Blatter}needs to get off that high horse of his,maybe it'll be different if his native Switzerland came up short on one of these awful decisions.
Still lots more "footie" to enjoy at the World Cup,I said b4 a ball had been kicked that the winners would probably come from the "usual suspects"Brazil,Argentina,Germany,Italy,three of the four made it to the last 16,two have advanced already to the 1/4 finals,my pick to win it Spain are still there,my dark horse for the cup Holland are also still there.
For me I enjoy one day off,a chance to recharge the batteries both mentally and physically,I know what's ahead this coming week so an off day today was most welcome.
NOT so welcome was England's 4.1 mauling by Germany at the World Cup today,I was not expecting The Three Lions to win the World Cup b4 it began and clearly based on their group stage play that was NEVER going to happen but to go out the way they did that just isn't acceptable,at least yesterday USA went down swinging.
As for the goal that wasn't......and the first Argentina goal vs Mexico......and the handball by Brazil vs Ivory Coast......and the USA goal that wasn't vs Slovenia.....and the handball by France vs Ireland that kept Ireland out......FOR FUCK SAKE FIFA,let's have some goal line technology,"Splatter"{Fifa pres Sepp Blatter}needs to get off that high horse of his,maybe it'll be different if his native Switzerland came up short on one of these awful decisions.
Still lots more "footie" to enjoy at the World Cup,I said b4 a ball had been kicked that the winners would probably come from the "usual suspects"Brazil,Argentina,Germany,Italy,three of the four made it to the last 16,two have advanced already to the 1/4 finals,my pick to win it Spain are still there,my dark horse for the cup Holland are also still there.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
End Of The Line
"And there's Batman and Robin looking into my room through a hole in the wall
And there's Jane and Tarzan w/ their favourite monkey what's his name?
I say hey! to the girl in the moon there's a mad clock ticking inside of my brain and the colours don't rhyme
I'm gonna stand here waiting till the girl in the moon comes back down"
Girl In The Moon-Icehouse
Yes while most everything else comes to a standstill for the World Cup my love of Karen Gillan goes on!!!
Up at a reasonable hour to conduct my 10 miler this morning,though I know for a fact one of my opponents at up coming Nationals was up three hours b4 me to get his run in,he'll be easy to identify at Sacramento,he'll be the one yawning at the starting line!!!
68 minutes for my run,the heat even at 8.40am was already kicking in,not to mention the downed trees along Cobbs Creek Parkway as a result of Thursdays storm,wow I had no idea the storm we got was that severe as my sister and I were over at the Camden Aquarium,initially to avoid the heat and humidity!!
45 miles for the week and a rest day on tap tomorrow b4 the third and final phase of my prep for Nationals begins Monday.
The knock out stage of the World Cup got underway today and both South Korea and USA are on their way home following 2.1 defeats,I'll talk about this at more length tomorrow but for now let me salute you Bob Bradley's red white and blue army,you did the nation proud and it's been one hell of a ride,till Brazil 2014.
And there's Jane and Tarzan w/ their favourite monkey what's his name?
I say hey! to the girl in the moon there's a mad clock ticking inside of my brain and the colours don't rhyme
I'm gonna stand here waiting till the girl in the moon comes back down"
Girl In The Moon-Icehouse
Yes while most everything else comes to a standstill for the World Cup my love of Karen Gillan goes on!!!
Up at a reasonable hour to conduct my 10 miler this morning,though I know for a fact one of my opponents at up coming Nationals was up three hours b4 me to get his run in,he'll be easy to identify at Sacramento,he'll be the one yawning at the starting line!!!
68 minutes for my run,the heat even at 8.40am was already kicking in,not to mention the downed trees along Cobbs Creek Parkway as a result of Thursdays storm,wow I had no idea the storm we got was that severe as my sister and I were over at the Camden Aquarium,initially to avoid the heat and humidity!!
45 miles for the week and a rest day on tap tomorrow b4 the third and final phase of my prep for Nationals begins Monday.
The knock out stage of the World Cup got underway today and both South Korea and USA are on their way home following 2.1 defeats,I'll talk about this at more length tomorrow but for now let me salute you Bob Bradley's red white and blue army,you did the nation proud and it's been one hell of a ride,till Brazil 2014.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Now For The Fun And Games
So,the group stage of the World Cup has come and gone and now it's knock out time,lose and go home be it in 90 minutes,120 minutes if extra time is needed or God forbid the dreaded penalty shoot out{between now and possibly the final I'm willing to bet on at least one game going to pens}
Today also saw the first deadline for Nationals,granted the very final deadline is next Saturday so it may be Tuesday of the following week b4 we all know who we'll line up against in Sacramento but for now I'm sure Sacramento bound athletes are looking at the status of entries and sizing things up.....I know I am.
I was at Temple's track at 11am this morning to conduct my 4x1mile repeats and by 11.30am I was ready to have at it following my warm up and stretches
#1 mile,1.15-1.18-1.18-69-5.00.2.A brisk start if I say so myself,I wasn't expecting to open in 75 seconds and had it not been for the fact that not once but twice I was forced into lane two to swing wide past one runner I'm confident I'd have gone sub 5.
#2 mile,1.15-1.19-1.17-68-4.59.4.Another 75 second opener and a fairly consistent repeat compared to #1,who knows when if ever I've opened mile repeats w/ back to back 75 second opening laps?
#3 mile,1.16-1.17-1.17-73-5.03.0.It was right there for the taking another sub 5 as I came through 1,200m in 3.50 and yet somehow all I could muster was a 73 second closing lap,I did feel my legs get a little heavy after the opening lap,maybe the heat was taking it's toll as we got close to noon.
#4 mile,1.17-1.20-1.20-67-5.04.2.Anytime 1.20s creep in you're not going sub 5 and back to back 80s killed me off,credit where it's due I didn't mail it in and dropped a 67 second closing lap to at least make it semi respectable.
While I'm disappointed that things started so well but then got away from me I haven't spent too long analysing why,somedays it doesn't go to plan,you accept it and move on.....hoping to do better next time out.
Tomorrow is another day,a 10 miler on tap and then the USA Ghana game w/ one eye on the Uruguay South Korea game,after all if the Stars And Stripes make it by Ghana they'll face the winner of Uruguay South Korea in the quarter finals.
Today also saw the first deadline for Nationals,granted the very final deadline is next Saturday so it may be Tuesday of the following week b4 we all know who we'll line up against in Sacramento but for now I'm sure Sacramento bound athletes are looking at the status of entries and sizing things up.....I know I am.
I was at Temple's track at 11am this morning to conduct my 4x1mile repeats and by 11.30am I was ready to have at it following my warm up and stretches
#1 mile,1.15-1.18-1.18-69-5.00.2.A brisk start if I say so myself,I wasn't expecting to open in 75 seconds and had it not been for the fact that not once but twice I was forced into lane two to swing wide past one runner I'm confident I'd have gone sub 5.
#2 mile,1.15-1.19-1.17-68-4.59.4.Another 75 second opener and a fairly consistent repeat compared to #1,who knows when if ever I've opened mile repeats w/ back to back 75 second opening laps?
#3 mile,1.16-1.17-1.17-73-5.03.0.It was right there for the taking another sub 5 as I came through 1,200m in 3.50 and yet somehow all I could muster was a 73 second closing lap,I did feel my legs get a little heavy after the opening lap,maybe the heat was taking it's toll as we got close to noon.
#4 mile,1.17-1.20-1.20-67-5.04.2.Anytime 1.20s creep in you're not going sub 5 and back to back 80s killed me off,credit where it's due I didn't mail it in and dropped a 67 second closing lap to at least make it semi respectable.
While I'm disappointed that things started so well but then got away from me I haven't spent too long analysing why,somedays it doesn't go to plan,you accept it and move on.....hoping to do better next time out.
Tomorrow is another day,a 10 miler on tap and then the USA Ghana game w/ one eye on the Uruguay South Korea game,after all if the Stars And Stripes make it by Ghana they'll face the winner of Uruguay South Korea in the quarter finals.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Substance Over Style
No I'm not talking about England vs Slovenia yesterday,though in some respects I could be I refer to having to grind out my 10 miler this morning in the heat.
Back tracking slightly,the official times from Tuesday's 800m at Icahn were posted today,2.03.7. right on time for me to post my entries online for Nationals a day b4 the first deadline closes.
Following the days high jinx at the World Cup where USA topped group C and now face Ghana while England renew World Cup hostilities w/ Germany.
After clocking 66 mins yesterday in the heat I was back out there this morning{I have a few days off to spend w/ my Sister and Brother in law who are visiting}to log another 10 miler.
Even at 9.30am it was hot,I took a Brad Gilbert "Winning Ugly"approach to the run,just get through it,it wasn't pretty to look at,next to no knee lift but I got through it,68 minutes is hardly earth shattering but I was just happy to get through the run.
Tomorrow is not only another day but a track workout{4x1mile}it also sees the final group stage games at the World Cup and set the round of 16 and the first deadline for Nationals as we're now 5 weeks away from Sacramento.
Back tracking slightly,the official times from Tuesday's 800m at Icahn were posted today,2.03.7. right on time for me to post my entries online for Nationals a day b4 the first deadline closes.
Following the days high jinx at the World Cup where USA topped group C and now face Ghana while England renew World Cup hostilities w/ Germany.
After clocking 66 mins yesterday in the heat I was back out there this morning{I have a few days off to spend w/ my Sister and Brother in law who are visiting}to log another 10 miler.
Even at 9.30am it was hot,I took a Brad Gilbert "Winning Ugly"approach to the run,just get through it,it wasn't pretty to look at,next to no knee lift but I got through it,68 minutes is hardly earth shattering but I was just happy to get through the run.
Tomorrow is not only another day but a track workout{4x1mile}it also sees the final group stage games at the World Cup and set the round of 16 and the first deadline for Nationals as we're now 5 weeks away from Sacramento.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Eight Is Enough Part Two
As is my won't eight races is my limit in my build up to Nationals,in my rookie year in masters track in 06 I made the rookie error of over racing in the lead up to Charlotte,a mistake I learnt from in 07 in Orono and again in 08 in Spokane,I don't doubt had my 09 season not've gotten wrecked by my achilles injury I would've only raced 8 times leading upto Worlds last summer in Lahti.
So last nite the stage was set for my eighth outdoor race of the season and my last race b4 Nationals,exactly one month b4 Nationals,how it became an 800m can best be explained thus......
I never said I was done w/ the 800m,when the decision in Febuary was made to go after the club records for 3,000m and 2 miles I kind of knew there was every chance I'd go after the 5,000m club record come outdoor season,others made the assumption I was done w/ the 800m not me,I always said this was the year to experiment outside of my "comfort zone" of the 1,500m and 800m but in upping my mileage to run 5,000m I found a new strength level I hadn't felt b4 in my repeats and frankly when I dropped 5x1,000m in 3.06.9.3.03.7.3.04.9.3.06.6.3.00.0. on May 29th I began to think that a 2.02. 800m was well w/in my grasp so I switched up my race plans to include an 800m.
W/ the deadline for entries for Nationals this Friday the Tuesday Ichan meet was my last chance to post a seed time for Sacramento,since my silver in Spokane in 08 I'd only ran one 800m outdoors,a meaningless Labor Day meet last year as I began getting my wheels back under me after my injury,I hardly felt a 1.59 or 2.10 served as a seed time even though I'm allowed a two year window and I wasn't using an indoor time either,my only indoor 800m came at the end of Indoor Nationals having ran a 3,000m and mile the two days b4.
I lined up in a 12 man field hoping to run 61/61-2.02. which quickly went out the window as I was pulled to a 59 second 400m split in 7th place.
I was a tad peeved that the 8th place runner cut in in front of me going into the first turn after the bell,I felt I was forced to lose momentum but quickly recovered.
1.30 at 600m I looked up at the chase pack ahead of me and saw one runner going backwards,now I had someone to catch coming off the final turn and did so w/ 50 meters to go,7th in 2.03.
I'll have to wait till either Thursday or Friday for NYRRC to print the results,just in time for the 5pm deadline on Friday but I'll either have a high 2.03 or low 2.04 seed time for Nationals,for those of you foolish enough to write me off over 800m you may want to re think that.
So last nite the stage was set for my eighth outdoor race of the season and my last race b4 Nationals,exactly one month b4 Nationals,how it became an 800m can best be explained thus......
I never said I was done w/ the 800m,when the decision in Febuary was made to go after the club records for 3,000m and 2 miles I kind of knew there was every chance I'd go after the 5,000m club record come outdoor season,others made the assumption I was done w/ the 800m not me,I always said this was the year to experiment outside of my "comfort zone" of the 1,500m and 800m but in upping my mileage to run 5,000m I found a new strength level I hadn't felt b4 in my repeats and frankly when I dropped 5x1,000m in 3.06.9.3.03.7.3.04.9.3.06.6.3.00.0. on May 29th I began to think that a 2.02. 800m was well w/in my grasp so I switched up my race plans to include an 800m.
W/ the deadline for entries for Nationals this Friday the Tuesday Ichan meet was my last chance to post a seed time for Sacramento,since my silver in Spokane in 08 I'd only ran one 800m outdoors,a meaningless Labor Day meet last year as I began getting my wheels back under me after my injury,I hardly felt a 1.59 or 2.10 served as a seed time even though I'm allowed a two year window and I wasn't using an indoor time either,my only indoor 800m came at the end of Indoor Nationals having ran a 3,000m and mile the two days b4.
I lined up in a 12 man field hoping to run 61/61-2.02. which quickly went out the window as I was pulled to a 59 second 400m split in 7th place.
I was a tad peeved that the 8th place runner cut in in front of me going into the first turn after the bell,I felt I was forced to lose momentum but quickly recovered.
1.30 at 600m I looked up at the chase pack ahead of me and saw one runner going backwards,now I had someone to catch coming off the final turn and did so w/ 50 meters to go,7th in 2.03.
I'll have to wait till either Thursday or Friday for NYRRC to print the results,just in time for the 5pm deadline on Friday but I'll either have a high 2.03 or low 2.04 seed time for Nationals,for those of you foolish enough to write me off over 800m you may want to re think that.
Eight Is Enough Part One
2.03. for the 800m last nite in New York at Icahn.......that's correct an 800m race by yours truly,my first meaningful outdoor 800m in almost two years.I'll have to wait a day of two for the official time from NYRRC,hopefully by Thursday at the latest as I need last nites time as my seed time for the 800m at Nationals...............yes you're reading that correct I plan to run the 800m in Sacramento in five weeks time.
Later on today I'll recap last nites race and explain the decision to race the 800m at Nationals and I hope be able to exalt in both England and USA advancing to the knock out stage of the World Cup..............much tooting of my own horn/Vuvuzela if you like??!!
Monday, June 21, 2010
Last Chance
Tomorrow is my final race b4 Nationals,we're still looking at just over 5 weeks till Nationals but next week marks the third and final phase of my preparation.
Tonite also saw my last 6 miler leading up to Nationals,obviously w/ no more races on tap there's no need for any six milers but given the 90 degree heat I was grateful for 4 less miles.
Today saw the last of the second group stage games at the World Cup,tomorrow begins the final group stage games,by Friday afternoon the last 16 teams will be known and Saturday starts the knock out stage,lose and go home
Portugal,Chile and Spain all won today,France could be put out of their misery tomorrow and the hosts South Africa could bow out too,and me I'll be looking to run one last race b4 Nationals in New York.....act locally,think globally!
Tonite also saw my last 6 miler leading up to Nationals,obviously w/ no more races on tap there's no need for any six milers but given the 90 degree heat I was grateful for 4 less miles.
Today saw the last of the second group stage games at the World Cup,tomorrow begins the final group stage games,by Friday afternoon the last 16 teams will be known and Saturday starts the knock out stage,lose and go home
Portugal,Chile and Spain all won today,France could be put out of their misery tomorrow and the hosts South Africa could bow out too,and me I'll be looking to run one last race b4 Nationals in New York.....act locally,think globally!
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Have A Day Off Will Ya
Whenever I can I take Sunday as my rest day,World Cup or not,but the fact that today saw three games on the schedule and I didn't have to train,or for that matter do anything or be anywhere suited me down to the ground.
Paraguay continued the South American roll at this years finals while New Zealand produced perhaps the performance of the finals holding champions Italy to a 1.1 tie/draw.
Brazil beat Ivory Coast but it'll be a game remembered for yet more bad officiating by the ref.....who's French................like they're not having a bad enough World Cup......seriously they're making England's World Cup look fantastic..............after the"Hand Of Henry"goal in Paris in November that kept Ireland out I feel they deserve all they get.
One final thought/observation on Friday's mile,while I'm disappointed w/ the fact I was forced to run a time trial the fact remains my 4.33.1. is a far cry from the 4.51. I ran on January 7th,if I don't get the chance to lower my mile pr till the indoor season,so be it.
Big week on tap,final race b4 Nationals,first deadline for Nationals and the end of the group stage and beginning of the knock out phase of the World Cup.
Paraguay continued the South American roll at this years finals while New Zealand produced perhaps the performance of the finals holding champions Italy to a 1.1 tie/draw.
Brazil beat Ivory Coast but it'll be a game remembered for yet more bad officiating by the ref.....who's French................like they're not having a bad enough World Cup......seriously they're making England's World Cup look fantastic..............after the"Hand Of Henry"goal in Paris in November that kept Ireland out I feel they deserve all they get.
One final thought/observation on Friday's mile,while I'm disappointed w/ the fact I was forced to run a time trial the fact remains my 4.33.1. is a far cry from the 4.51. I ran on January 7th,if I don't get the chance to lower my mile pr till the indoor season,so be it.
Big week on tap,final race b4 Nationals,first deadline for Nationals and the end of the group stage and beginning of the knock out phase of the World Cup.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Plus One
"Sometimes when this place gets kind of empty the sound of the breath fades w/ the light
I think about the loveless fascination under the milky way tonite
Lower the curtain down on Memphis,lower the curtain down on me
I've got no time for private consultation under the milky way tonite
Wish I knew what you were looking for,might have known what you might find
And it's something quiet peculiar,something shimmering and white
It leads you here despite your destination,under the milky way tonite"
Under The Milky Way-The Church
I have to say,having had a nite to sleep on things I still don't feel any better about last nites mile "race" at Henderson
Race would be a loose term,time trial might be a better description,at the risk of sounding arrogant it was basically me verses the clock as the 4.33.1-4.59 for second place result underlines.
W/ hindsight{which is a wonderful thing!!!}I would've done better to race my team mate and fellow World Record setter in the 800m Bobby Mac in the 800m and ran a 1,500m at Icahn on Tuesday,I didn't and both Bob and I won our respective races from the front w/out much opposition,oh well,them's the brakes I guess.
One thing I will say about my race/time trial was my ability to run fairly even splits,67,68,70,68,I guess that's something when you're out there all by your lonesome and w/ that I'll draw a line under last nite and move on.
I was faced w/ a unique run this lunchtime,due to a gaffe on my part Monday I was looking at only logging 44 miles for the week if I went w/ the tried and tested 10 miler,basically what happened Monday was I forgot to make my mile warm up/mile cool down six laps each,post warm up w/ a mile I though"I could do two miles to cool down to even things up".....that was all well and good till I got done w/ my fastest ever 5x1,000m and frankly just doing a mile cool down was enough and thus I began the week knowing somewhere along the line I was going to have to tack on an extra mile somewhere to round things out at 45 miles,it was always likely that today would be an 11 miler so I tacked on the extra mile at the start of my run heading down to Market St and back along Cobbs Creek Parkway b4 picking up the 10 mile route from Marshall St.
Surprisingly I clocked 69 minutes for 11 miles,I usually average 65 minutes for 10 miles,maybe some of yesterdays frustration was stoking the engine out there,either way 11 miles for the day,45 miles for the week and a rest day on tap tomorrow.
Much to Hobbes's delight Holland won 1.0 this morning vs Japan while a plucky 10 man Australia held Ghana 1.1,the Cameroon Denmark game is finely balanced at 1.1 w/ just over half an hour to go,a loss for either side sees the end of their World Cup.
I think about the loveless fascination under the milky way tonite
Lower the curtain down on Memphis,lower the curtain down on me
I've got no time for private consultation under the milky way tonite
Wish I knew what you were looking for,might have known what you might find
And it's something quiet peculiar,something shimmering and white
It leads you here despite your destination,under the milky way tonite"
Under The Milky Way-The Church
I have to say,having had a nite to sleep on things I still don't feel any better about last nites mile "race" at Henderson
Race would be a loose term,time trial might be a better description,at the risk of sounding arrogant it was basically me verses the clock as the 4.33.1-4.59 for second place result underlines.
W/ hindsight{which is a wonderful thing!!!}I would've done better to race my team mate and fellow World Record setter in the 800m Bobby Mac in the 800m and ran a 1,500m at Icahn on Tuesday,I didn't and both Bob and I won our respective races from the front w/out much opposition,oh well,them's the brakes I guess.
One thing I will say about my race/time trial was my ability to run fairly even splits,67,68,70,68,I guess that's something when you're out there all by your lonesome and w/ that I'll draw a line under last nite and move on.
I was faced w/ a unique run this lunchtime,due to a gaffe on my part Monday I was looking at only logging 44 miles for the week if I went w/ the tried and tested 10 miler,basically what happened Monday was I forgot to make my mile warm up/mile cool down six laps each,post warm up w/ a mile I though"I could do two miles to cool down to even things up".....that was all well and good till I got done w/ my fastest ever 5x1,000m and frankly just doing a mile cool down was enough and thus I began the week knowing somewhere along the line I was going to have to tack on an extra mile somewhere to round things out at 45 miles,it was always likely that today would be an 11 miler so I tacked on the extra mile at the start of my run heading down to Market St and back along Cobbs Creek Parkway b4 picking up the 10 mile route from Marshall St.
Surprisingly I clocked 69 minutes for 11 miles,I usually average 65 minutes for 10 miles,maybe some of yesterdays frustration was stoking the engine out there,either way 11 miles for the day,45 miles for the week and a rest day on tap tomorrow.
Much to Hobbes's delight Holland won 1.0 this morning vs Japan while a plucky 10 man Australia held Ghana 1.1,the Cameroon Denmark game is finely balanced at 1.1 w/ just over half an hour to go,a loss for either side sees the end of their World Cup.
Friday, June 18, 2010
Ho Hum
The good news is I ended my year long winless streak this evening,the bad news is I had to run by myself against the clock from the gun en route to a 4.33.1 time.
It's a seasons best and ranks #11 all time,who knows what I might've been able to do had I had someone to push me.
I'll go into more depth tomorrow right now I'm gonna relax,eat dinner and catch up on a crazy day at the World Cup,Germany lost a group game for the first time since 86 in Mexico....AND missed a penalty at the World Cup for the first time since 74 in Germany
USA came back from 0.2 down to tie/draw 2.2 w/ Slovenia but can feel hard done by having a game winning goal ruled out for a reason only the ref knows????
The less said about England's 0.0 w/ Algeria the better,.....Jaysus!!!/Fuckin ada!!!
Final note,Happy B'day Hobbes who's 16 years old today,the old kittie will no doubt want to watch his beloved Holland tomorrow at the World Cup,an Orange cat rooting for the Orange Crush.
It's a seasons best and ranks #11 all time,who knows what I might've been able to do had I had someone to push me.
I'll go into more depth tomorrow right now I'm gonna relax,eat dinner and catch up on a crazy day at the World Cup,Germany lost a group game for the first time since 86 in Mexico....AND missed a penalty at the World Cup for the first time since 74 in Germany
USA came back from 0.2 down to tie/draw 2.2 w/ Slovenia but can feel hard done by having a game winning goal ruled out for a reason only the ref knows????
The less said about England's 0.0 w/ Algeria the better,.....Jaysus!!!/Fuckin ada!!!
Final note,Happy B'day Hobbes who's 16 years old today,the old kittie will no doubt want to watch his beloved Holland tomorrow at the World Cup,an Orange cat rooting for the Orange Crush.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
6&6
Six weeks till Nationals and a six miler b4 mile race at Henderson tomorrow evening.
While tonite saw a drop in distance and pace{51 mins} it was by no means any less of a mental workout as once again I tried to visualize my race plan for tomorrow.
Based on my recent 4.11.8. 1,500m I feel a 4.28 mile is there for the taking,67 seconds per lap would give me a 4.28,easier said than done I know but that's the plan,alot will depend on conditions and who shows up but once I toe the starting line and wait for the starting pistol to fire the only thought I'll have is breaking 4.28.9.
An England win over Algeria tomorrow afternoon in their second group game at the World Cup would go a long way to firing me up,after a cautious start to the tournament things are heating up now,Argentina steamrollered South Korea this morning,Greece came from behind to beat Nigeria and Mexico beat France{whee!!!!}no Vuvuzelas for you!!!
While tonite saw a drop in distance and pace{51 mins} it was by no means any less of a mental workout as once again I tried to visualize my race plan for tomorrow.
Based on my recent 4.11.8. 1,500m I feel a 4.28 mile is there for the taking,67 seconds per lap would give me a 4.28,easier said than done I know but that's the plan,alot will depend on conditions and who shows up but once I toe the starting line and wait for the starting pistol to fire the only thought I'll have is breaking 4.28.9.
An England win over Algeria tomorrow afternoon in their second group game at the World Cup would go a long way to firing me up,after a cautious start to the tournament things are heating up now,Argentina steamrollered South Korea this morning,Greece came from behind to beat Nigeria and Mexico beat France{whee!!!!}no Vuvuzelas for you!!!
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
The Good,The Bad,The Ugly
Maybe it's been listening to The Cure of late but a trilogy"Pornography""Disintegration"and"Bloodflowers" seems appropo.
The Good My run,against a back drop of rain and a "tough day at the office" I cranked out a 63 minute 10 miler.
I've said time and again running in the rain doesn't phase me,as it turned out the rain held off but frankly unless it was pissing down I was going to be out there period,plus I don't want to burn my rest day on Sunday as A I have a race scheduled for Tuesday and B another fuck off day is on tap for Sunday.
The Bad Part one rough day at the World Cup for Honduras,Spain and South Africa,Spain are one of the favourites and while not the end of the world for them to lose to Switzerland they've made it a bit tougher for themselves
For the hosts South Africa they run the risk of being the first host nation not to reach the second round,they have to beat France in their final game and wait and see.
The Bad part two today is a year to the day I had to concede defeat to my achilles injury and not only see my 09 season come to a stand still but also miss out on Worlds where I still believe I had a legitimate shot at becoming a world champion.
I keep a little bit of that disappointment w/in me even now a year later to remind myself what's at stake,I've said all along this year is a blueprint for next years World Championships in Sacramento.
The Ugly The keen eyed among you will have noticed a lack of work WTF moments of late....much like waiting for a bus you wait for ages then three show up together......
WTF#1 As I mentioned yesterday I had to work alone today while Chris was off at his sons High School graduation which meant me having to carry the workload,no big,been done b4,it'll be done again.
When Ups and Fed Ex showed up together and dumped 170 pieces on the dock I knew it was going to be"one of those days"what I didn't need was my delivery person"three dollar bill" standing out in the hallway flapping his gums for ten minutes only to walk onto to dock and drop his patented line"they're fucking up my day".......................WTF you stood out in the hallway talking bollocks not me....as it was when I left for the day at 3.40pm he was finished for the day....90 minutes b4 he clocks out....if that's your day being fucked up I'd hate to see when you get finished on a really rough day!!
WTF#2 I realize if I turn side ways I tend to disappear but I was standing on the dock writing up the Moss deliveries when numb nuts backs onto the dock w/ a delivery for the storeroom.he walks right by me and goes out into the hallway....to find someone to take the delivery....DUDE I was the ONLY person on the feckin loading dock.....HELLO!!!!!
To compound the WTF element he then rolls the skid from the front of the truck to the back and wants me to lay a pallet on the dock to transfer them from the skid on the truck to the dock......I put the dock plate down on the truck and pulled the skid off w/ the jack.....not b4 telling dude to fuck off and don't come back!
WTF#3 Remember the whole Mailroom/Loading Dock debacle about Moss deliveries a few weeks back? on my way over to Moss this afternoon I was asked if I could take two Ups deliveries to the Mailroom....technically not my job but I'm a team player so I said yes,I take them down to the Mailroom and the same person who pulled the plug on the Mailroom delivering loading dock Moss deliveries says trying to be funny"oh you're making pick ups now?"
eat a bag a bag of shit you are not funny!!!
The Good My run,against a back drop of rain and a "tough day at the office" I cranked out a 63 minute 10 miler.
I've said time and again running in the rain doesn't phase me,as it turned out the rain held off but frankly unless it was pissing down I was going to be out there period,plus I don't want to burn my rest day on Sunday as A I have a race scheduled for Tuesday and B another fuck off day is on tap for Sunday.
The Bad Part one rough day at the World Cup for Honduras,Spain and South Africa,Spain are one of the favourites and while not the end of the world for them to lose to Switzerland they've made it a bit tougher for themselves
For the hosts South Africa they run the risk of being the first host nation not to reach the second round,they have to beat France in their final game and wait and see.
The Bad part two today is a year to the day I had to concede defeat to my achilles injury and not only see my 09 season come to a stand still but also miss out on Worlds where I still believe I had a legitimate shot at becoming a world champion.
I keep a little bit of that disappointment w/in me even now a year later to remind myself what's at stake,I've said all along this year is a blueprint for next years World Championships in Sacramento.
The Ugly The keen eyed among you will have noticed a lack of work WTF moments of late....much like waiting for a bus you wait for ages then three show up together......
WTF#1 As I mentioned yesterday I had to work alone today while Chris was off at his sons High School graduation which meant me having to carry the workload,no big,been done b4,it'll be done again.
When Ups and Fed Ex showed up together and dumped 170 pieces on the dock I knew it was going to be"one of those days"what I didn't need was my delivery person"three dollar bill" standing out in the hallway flapping his gums for ten minutes only to walk onto to dock and drop his patented line"they're fucking up my day".......................WTF you stood out in the hallway talking bollocks not me....as it was when I left for the day at 3.40pm he was finished for the day....90 minutes b4 he clocks out....if that's your day being fucked up I'd hate to see when you get finished on a really rough day!!
WTF#2 I realize if I turn side ways I tend to disappear but I was standing on the dock writing up the Moss deliveries when numb nuts backs onto the dock w/ a delivery for the storeroom.he walks right by me and goes out into the hallway....to find someone to take the delivery....DUDE I was the ONLY person on the feckin loading dock.....HELLO!!!!!
To compound the WTF element he then rolls the skid from the front of the truck to the back and wants me to lay a pallet on the dock to transfer them from the skid on the truck to the dock......I put the dock plate down on the truck and pulled the skid off w/ the jack.....not b4 telling dude to fuck off and don't come back!
WTF#3 Remember the whole Mailroom/Loading Dock debacle about Moss deliveries a few weeks back? on my way over to Moss this afternoon I was asked if I could take two Ups deliveries to the Mailroom....technically not my job but I'm a team player so I said yes,I take them down to the Mailroom and the same person who pulled the plug on the Mailroom delivering loading dock Moss deliveries says trying to be funny"oh you're making pick ups now?"
eat a bag a bag of shit you are not funny!!!
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
That's Why You Play The Games
Day 5 of the World Cup and the entrance of pre tournament favourites Brazil against minnows North Korea,making their first appearance since England in 1966.
Most people myself included expected the North Koreans to be on a hiding to nothing against the five time world champions and yet it took all of the Samba boys guile to squeak by 2.1,like I said that's why you play the games.
As for my run it was a comfortable 10 miler in 65 minutes as I get ready for Friday's mile at Henderson,more of the same tomorrow would be nice,yet again I'll be carrying the freight by my lonesome for the day as my partner Chris attends his son Mel's high school graduation,at the end of the month it'll be 30 years since my own high school graduation,where did the time go?
Most people myself included expected the North Koreans to be on a hiding to nothing against the five time world champions and yet it took all of the Samba boys guile to squeak by 2.1,like I said that's why you play the games.
As for my run it was a comfortable 10 miler in 65 minutes as I get ready for Friday's mile at Henderson,more of the same tomorrow would be nice,yet again I'll be carrying the freight by my lonesome for the day as my partner Chris attends his son Mel's high school graduation,at the end of the month it'll be 30 years since my own high school graduation,where did the time go?
Monday, June 14, 2010
Run Possum Run
First and formost,mad props and much respect to my mate Kevin at work who found this photo of a running possum,how could I not post it on my blog?
This running possum was on the track at Temple this evening for 5x1,000m repeats and looking to improve on May 29ths 3.06.9,3.03.7,3.04.9,3.06.6,3.00.0.
Following my mile warm up and core strenght stretches it was have at it time,and have at it I did!!
#1 1,000m 1.13-1.15-34-3.02.0.I couldn't have asked for a better start,the days of looking to run sub 3.10s have now been replaced w/ sub 3.05s.
#2 1,000m 1.15-1.15-33-3.03.5.Coming into today 1.15,1.15,-33 was my target time,sometimes theory and practice are the horse of a same colour afterall!
#3 1,000m 1.14-1.13-34-3.01.3.Fuckin' ada!!,when#3 is faster than #1 you know you're doing something right!
#4 1,000m 1.14-1.16-32-3.02.4.You know you're doing something right when 1.16 is your slowest split!!!
#5 1,000m 1.13-1.15-29-2.57.8.WDFPN.....who da feckin' Possum now!!!!!I told myself"on it from the start"and was pleased to see an opening 400 split of 1.13,when I came through 800m in 2.28 I knew whatever was left in the tanks had to be left on the track....it was!!
W/only 2 more 5x1,000m repeats scheduled b4 Nationals it might be too big an ask to start thinking about all 5 sub 3 but post Nationals,I'd say all bets are off!
This running possum was on the track at Temple this evening for 5x1,000m repeats and looking to improve on May 29ths 3.06.9,3.03.7,3.04.9,3.06.6,3.00.0.
Following my mile warm up and core strenght stretches it was have at it time,and have at it I did!!
#1 1,000m 1.13-1.15-34-3.02.0.I couldn't have asked for a better start,the days of looking to run sub 3.10s have now been replaced w/ sub 3.05s.
#2 1,000m 1.15-1.15-33-3.03.5.Coming into today 1.15,1.15,-33 was my target time,sometimes theory and practice are the horse of a same colour afterall!
#3 1,000m 1.14-1.13-34-3.01.3.Fuckin' ada!!,when#3 is faster than #1 you know you're doing something right!
#4 1,000m 1.14-1.16-32-3.02.4.You know you're doing something right when 1.16 is your slowest split!!!
#5 1,000m 1.13-1.15-29-2.57.8.WDFPN.....who da feckin' Possum now!!!!!I told myself"on it from the start"and was pleased to see an opening 400 split of 1.13,when I came through 800m in 2.28 I knew whatever was left in the tanks had to be left on the track....it was!!
W/only 2 more 5x1,000m repeats scheduled b4 Nationals it might be too big an ask to start thinking about all 5 sub 3 but post Nationals,I'd say all bets are off!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Honours Even
W/ the proverbial dust now settling on the historic England USA World Cup game yesterday it's a day to relax,finish off the last of my domestic chores and catch the action on day three of the World Cup including Germany vs Australia,like any Irish fan I'm rooting for Australia,not because of any anti German bias but because no doubt a number of my ancestors were deported down under back in the day for sheep stealing and cattle rustling and alike!!!
Running wise it's been a good week,my #5 fastest ever 1,500m and my best set of mile repeats in a while,but all that counts for naught now going into this week.
First up another set of 5x1,000m repeats and the hope of continuing where I left off last time on May 29th b4 hopefully notching another pr this time in the mile on Friday.
Running wise it's been a good week,my #5 fastest ever 1,500m and my best set of mile repeats in a while,but all that counts for naught now going into this week.
First up another set of 5x1,000m repeats and the hope of continuing where I left off last time on May 29th b4 hopefully notching another pr this time in the mile on Friday.
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Three Lions
"And I'd give up forever to touch you cause I know that you feel me somehow you're the closest to heaven that I'll ever know and I don't want to go home right now and all I can taste in this moment and all I can breathe is your life,and sooner or later it's over I just don't wanna miss you tonight.And I don't want the world to see me cause I don't think that they'd understand,when everything's made to be broken I just want you to know who I am."
Iris- Goo Goo Dolls
World Cup or not I still have to run so as soon as the final whistle blew on the Argentina Nigeria game I was out the door for my 10 miler to round out my week at 45 miles.
64 mins which was a nice mid to up tempo run,I can kick back and relax now till Monday b4 it all starts again w/ a 5x1,000m repeat to launch my week as I go after my mile pr of 4.28.9. next Friday.
For now it's time to kick back and watch the mother of all match ups at the World Cup England vs USA.
Thanks to that cheating French bastard Henry my beloved Ireland aren't in South Africa this summer so I'm left to root for the motherland and home,I'd like to see them both advance to the knock out stage and round of 16 and while a draw{or as you Americans love to call it a tie}would be nice I have a hunch the flag of St George and the Three Lions will be the ones smiling come 4.15pm....we'll see
Iris- Goo Goo Dolls
World Cup or not I still have to run so as soon as the final whistle blew on the Argentina Nigeria game I was out the door for my 10 miler to round out my week at 45 miles.
64 mins which was a nice mid to up tempo run,I can kick back and relax now till Monday b4 it all starts again w/ a 5x1,000m repeat to launch my week as I go after my mile pr of 4.28.9. next Friday.
For now it's time to kick back and watch the mother of all match ups at the World Cup England vs USA.
Thanks to that cheating French bastard Henry my beloved Ireland aren't in South Africa this summer so I'm left to root for the motherland and home,I'd like to see them both advance to the knock out stage and round of 16 and while a draw{or as you Americans love to call it a tie}would be nice I have a hunch the flag of St George and the Three Lions will be the ones smiling come 4.15pm....we'll see
Friday, June 11, 2010
All Around The World
"All around the world,you've got to spread the word tell them what you heard,we're gonna make a better dayAll around the world,you've got to spread the word tell them what you heard,you know it's gonna be ok"
All Around The World- Oasis
Yes,yes,yes it's World Cup time again!!!every four years,the world comes together for the greatest show on earth along w/ the Olympics and everything comes to a stand still,let's put it this way my weekend will be built around the three games at 7.am,10am and 2.30pm and thanks to Espn 3 on my pc at work I can follow the games during the week....God bless "The Beautiful Game"
Post work and the Uruguay France game it was off to Temple to use their track for my 4x1mile repeats.....you could say one form of worship to another....mile warm up and stretches taken care of it was business time
#1 mile 1.18,1.18,1.18,69-5.03.7.Picking up where I left off back on May 15th when I went:5.06.8-5.04.0-5.03.7-5.02.5. I ran a 1.18 clinic for the opening 3 laps b4 closing in 69.
#2 mile 1.16,1.18,1.16,71-5.01.6.For a brief moment when I clocked 3.50 at the bell there was a temptation to floor it for a sub 5,but looking at the big picture and knowing I had two more repeats to come I settled for a slight increase in pace to continue bringing my splits down.
#3 mile 1.17,1.18,1.15,69-4.59.4.Booyah sub 5!!I felt it was only a matter of time after closing in 5.02.5. 4 weeks ago,where the 1.15 split came from I don't know but the 45/50 mile weeks are doing wonders I'd say
#4 mile 1.16,1.16,1.15,67-4.54.7.Two sub 5s and frankly it could've been three,this was a workout to remember,when 1.18 is your slowest split and on #3 and #4 you can drop a 1.15 on lap three you have know you're doing something right.
On June 28th 2008 I clocked mile repeats of4.42,4.58.1,5.06.8,4.59.4.followed by 4.53.6,4.51.8,4.55.4,4.56.8. on July 5th,June 28th was 6 weeks b4 Nationals that year,due to my schedule it'll be two weeks b4 my next mile repeats on June 25th but I'm eager to see if I can go 4 sub 5 mile repeats.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
7,6,2.
For the record,I haven't run out of titles it's just that for the second day in a row the numerical route was the way to go.
7 weeks to go till Nationals,I booked my flight to Sacramento today meaning returning to Nationals is one step closer.
6 more repeats between tomorrow and July 17th.
2 more races,Henderson next Friday and the mile,Icahn the following Tuesday and the ....well I'm keeping that on the down low for now.
After yesterdays 10 miler in the rain it was good to be back to sun,sleeveless running shirt and shades this afternoon,I wasn't going to let the rain deter me yesterday,in fairness it wasn't that bad,I always think back to a comment a friend of mine from Belfast used to make about the weather back home"if I only trained on the days it didn't rain,I'd have never feckin' trained"early on I questioned my wardrobe choice of jacket and baseball cap....over the latter stages of the second half of the run I was happy to have them on as I splashed my way to a 66 minute time.
Given I'm switching up my 4x1 mile repeats from Saturday to tomorrow{not because of the England USA World Cup game on Saturday afternoon!} but because I have to be back on the track Monday to accommodate Friday's mile at Henderson I knew I couldn't go full tilt this afternoon,as it was I clocked 65 mins which was fine by me.
W/ only six repeats on tap I need to get every last ounce out each of them,I learnt a valuable lesson two weeks ago that back to back repeats w/ only one rest day tend not to go as well as I would like so it's 4x1 mile tomorrow b4 a 10 miler Saturday and a rest day Sunday b4 returning to the track Monday for another repeat workout.
7 weeks to go till Nationals,I booked my flight to Sacramento today meaning returning to Nationals is one step closer.
6 more repeats between tomorrow and July 17th.
2 more races,Henderson next Friday and the mile,Icahn the following Tuesday and the ....well I'm keeping that on the down low for now.
After yesterdays 10 miler in the rain it was good to be back to sun,sleeveless running shirt and shades this afternoon,I wasn't going to let the rain deter me yesterday,in fairness it wasn't that bad,I always think back to a comment a friend of mine from Belfast used to make about the weather back home"if I only trained on the days it didn't rain,I'd have never feckin' trained"early on I questioned my wardrobe choice of jacket and baseball cap....over the latter stages of the second half of the run I was happy to have them on as I splashed my way to a 66 minute time.
Given I'm switching up my 4x1 mile repeats from Saturday to tomorrow{not because of the England USA World Cup game on Saturday afternoon!} but because I have to be back on the track Monday to accommodate Friday's mile at Henderson I knew I couldn't go full tilt this afternoon,as it was I clocked 65 mins which was fine by me.
W/ only six repeats on tap I need to get every last ounce out each of them,I learnt a valuable lesson two weeks ago that back to back repeats w/ only one rest day tend not to go as well as I would like so it's 4x1 mile tomorrow b4 a 10 miler Saturday and a rest day Sunday b4 returning to the track Monday for another repeat workout.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
4,4,5,5.
"If I could open my arms and span the length of the isle of Manhattan,I 'd bring it to where you are making a lake of the East River and Hudson.If I could open my mouth wide enough for a marching band to march out,they would make your name sing and bend through alleys and bounce off all the buildings"
Marching Bands Of Manhattan-Death Cab For Cutie
The photo is from Friday's 5,000m at Henderson,since I'm sans digital camera I have to rely on pulling race photos off of the internet to spruce up my blog,maybe there'll be official photos at the final Icahn meet in two weeks time to add.
So last nite's 1,500m,a final chance to improve on the 4.15.0 I ran here 5 weeks ago,I learnt a vital lesson that afternoon,don't take the 3pm Bolt Bus from Philly if you want to be at Icahn by 6pm,catching the 2pm bus I arrived in Manhattan by 4.05pm and was on Randall's Island and at the stadium by 5.05pm,ample time to relax b4 the meet began at 7pm.
A bigger turn out than weeks 1 and 2{lest we forget I didn't make week 2 due to the rain}and idyllic conditions,sunny and warm,not too hot and thanks in part to the temporary stand on the back straight for Saturday's Reebok Grand Prix no pesky wind coming off the Harlem River,trust me in a 1,500m race negotiating the back straight 4 times w/ the wind coming off the river is a beast.
Warmed up w/ my good friend Conor O Driscoll,it was Conor who gave me a nugget of advice back in Febuary at The Armory,ironically after a 1,500m about the upcoming season that may well ring true.....
Warm up and stretches taken care of it was over to the starting line,some over zealous officiating almost resulted in a 40 man 1,500m.....madness,I've ran 35 man 5,000m races which are fine but 16 to 20 is enough for a 1,500m,thankfully common sense prevailed and a two heat race was decided.
22 of us toed the line,my reaction to the gun was good again,I've gotten better in recent races w/ that but yet again my positional sense needs some work,I got caught on the rail briefly down the back straight but was able to swing wide coming up the home straight and move out to the outside of lane one b4 going through 300m in 51 seconds in 5th.
I heard 68 seconds at 400m as I settled into my rhythm,1.58 at 700m and 2.15 at 800m.
The lead 3 made their move at 900m,this is where I paid for not doing a better job tactically as when they made their move I wasn't close enough to cover it,I moved into 4th w/ 5th right behind me but the gap between us and the lead three was too great to close.
3.05 at the bell and even though I was too far off the lead three I picked up the pace and shook off the challenge of 5th place.
Off the final turn I could see the clock at the finish{something sadly lacking at Henderson last Friday!}and picked up the pace,4th in 4.11.8.
My splits were:51,67,67,66 which bodes well for next Friday's mile at Henderson if I hope to lower my 4.28.9.
Tonite in finishing 4th I took 4 seconds off my previous time 5 weeks ago and ran my 5th fastest 1,500m of all time hence the title.
If I can take 4 seconds off in 5 weeks again I'm looking at 4.07. at Nationals in 7 weeks time,the road to Sacramento goes through Henderson and New York again starting next Friday
Brought To You By Mastercard
Round trip bus fare to New York City $20
4 trip Metro card for two Icahn meets $8
Entry fee for race $10
Running a seasons best 4.11.8. and 5th fastest 1,500m of all time......priceless
Full account coming this evening
4 trip Metro card for two Icahn meets $8
Entry fee for race $10
Running a seasons best 4.11.8. and 5th fastest 1,500m of all time......priceless
Full account coming this evening
Monday, June 7, 2010
Free Speech For The Dumb
Since yesterday was a FOD{fuck off day} I didn't bother to write anything for my blog,it was the first time in eons I hadn't posted an entry but frankly taking a very zen like attitude w/ my recliner for the day catching up w/ dvr'd tv shows,the French Open and touching base w/ family members back home didn't seem blog entry worthyFOD's are few and far between so I made the most of mine,who knows when I'll see the next one,plus knowing I've got to carry the freight all by my lonesome tomorrow at work it was prudent to get all the rnr I could.
Easy 6 miler this evening,keeping in mind an old comment my former coach often made about easy runs the day b4 or after a race "no matter how slow you're running.....it's probably too fast" I did my best to keep things even,I clocked 56 mins,I ran 52 on Thursday so hopefully those four saved minutes will come into play tomorrow evening over the 1,500m at Ichan.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Pretending To See The Future
"We keep our secrets to ourselves we live those lies for someone else
We rise above what we used to be don't get discouraged easily
That's when there's no more crying causing crying never makes no sense
When too much has gone on for it to ever be coincidence
Who's gonna take you to the moon,who's gonna take you to the stars
Who's gonna wait around for you,who's gonna bring you back from Mars
I'm gonna take you to the moon,I'm gonna show you round the stars
But if I take you to the moon will you come back the way you are"
Take You To The Moon-Big Country
It's Saturday....can't you tell?b4 I recap last nites race this morning I was out semi bright eyed and semi bushy tailed at 10.35 am along Cobbs Creek Parkway for my 10 miler.
Not sure if it was the heat,the effects of yesterdays race or both but this morning was the first time I can recall in recent months having to dig deep over the second half of my out and back 10 miler to see it through.
I had to call on all my years of experience to dig down mentally and physically to round out my week at 45 miles,I wasn't too surprised to see 67 mins for the run,hey it's done,it's in the books now and not only do I have a rest day scheduled for tomorrow but also a Fuck Off Day on tap{a fuck off day is any day I don't have to leave the house,don't have to go anywhere,don't have to be anywhere,and can just fuck everything off....ergo a fuck off day,they're few and far between so trust me I try to make the most of them when they do come around}
So last nites 5,000m at Henderson,conditions were hot and overcast by the time the 5,000m went off at 6.35pm w/ a field of 13.
Based on seed time I was ranked #7 only a second behind the #6 seed,the game plan going into the race was to work off the #3 seed who had a 15.45 time and I tracked him for the opening three laps b4 swinging wide coming up the home straight w/10 laps to go and settling into 6th.
My only criticism of the meet was the lack of a clock at the finish line,in my opinion any race above 400m should have a clock so you can tell what your pace is,not only was there not a clock nobody was calling out the time at the finish or at the start minus the few coaches calling out individual splits for their athletes.
The leader and eventual winner went out in 70 seconds a pace I've opened w/ in my prior two 5,000m but tonite I thought it prudent to take a little off the opening mile,instead of a 4.58 I came through in 5.06,sadly I never heard my 2 or 3 mile splits,oh well.
W/ the field well strung out after three laps I focused on the runner ahead of me as we worked well together in the middle part of the race,he pulled me,I pushed him and slowly we closed the gap on the 3rd and 4th place runners.
W/ three laps to go I moved into third,second was some 13 seconds ahead but 4th place was now sticking to me like glue,fair enough I'd worked off of him for a number of laps.
As we came up to the 600m to go his coach yelled"his wheels are coming off"referring to me,I understand the need for a coach to try and galvanize his or her athlete but he could not've chosen a worse thing to say in my mind.
The bell came, sadly no lap time,had I've known what my split was a la Swarthmore when I clocked 14.47 and knew I had to drop the hammer maybe last nite I could've gotten under my 15.56 pr,it wasn't to be.
Down the back straight the 4th place runner made his move,I was happy to let him go by me....I knew what lay in store w/ 200m to go.......booyah!
A hellacious kick put 5 seconds between us over the closing 200m....so much for my wheels coming off.....hey coach....that foot...must taste real good eh??
I was forced to swing wide of the 12th and 13th place runners w/ 120m to go,it probably added a second,the 12th place runner offered an apology as I went him,these things happen,no big.
Charging up the home straight oblivious to my time I finished strong and heard 15.59.62 as I crossed the line in third.
Obviously I'm disappointed to miss out on lowering my pr but I'm reasonably confident come Nationals I'll make a sizable dent in my 15.56.6.
All in all a good nites work,my third sub 16 5,000m in a row and the third place finish was nice,tonite unlike Penn in April and Swarthmore in May I felt I raced against the runners not the clock and while I'm still a ways off last years 3rd place finishing time at Worlds 15.38.2. I feel I'm doing what I need to do for this year,as the clock ticks down towards Sacramento and Nationals I feel I'm getting closer to where I need to be,next stop Ichan Stadium in New York City on Tuesday....you know me and races in NYC......
We rise above what we used to be don't get discouraged easily
That's when there's no more crying causing crying never makes no sense
When too much has gone on for it to ever be coincidence
Who's gonna take you to the moon,who's gonna take you to the stars
Who's gonna wait around for you,who's gonna bring you back from Mars
I'm gonna take you to the moon,I'm gonna show you round the stars
But if I take you to the moon will you come back the way you are"
Take You To The Moon-Big Country
It's Saturday....can't you tell?b4 I recap last nites race this morning I was out semi bright eyed and semi bushy tailed at 10.35 am along Cobbs Creek Parkway for my 10 miler.
Not sure if it was the heat,the effects of yesterdays race or both but this morning was the first time I can recall in recent months having to dig deep over the second half of my out and back 10 miler to see it through.
I had to call on all my years of experience to dig down mentally and physically to round out my week at 45 miles,I wasn't too surprised to see 67 mins for the run,hey it's done,it's in the books now and not only do I have a rest day scheduled for tomorrow but also a Fuck Off Day on tap{a fuck off day is any day I don't have to leave the house,don't have to go anywhere,don't have to be anywhere,and can just fuck everything off....ergo a fuck off day,they're few and far between so trust me I try to make the most of them when they do come around}
So last nites 5,000m at Henderson,conditions were hot and overcast by the time the 5,000m went off at 6.35pm w/ a field of 13.
Based on seed time I was ranked #7 only a second behind the #6 seed,the game plan going into the race was to work off the #3 seed who had a 15.45 time and I tracked him for the opening three laps b4 swinging wide coming up the home straight w/10 laps to go and settling into 6th.
My only criticism of the meet was the lack of a clock at the finish line,in my opinion any race above 400m should have a clock so you can tell what your pace is,not only was there not a clock nobody was calling out the time at the finish or at the start minus the few coaches calling out individual splits for their athletes.
The leader and eventual winner went out in 70 seconds a pace I've opened w/ in my prior two 5,000m but tonite I thought it prudent to take a little off the opening mile,instead of a 4.58 I came through in 5.06,sadly I never heard my 2 or 3 mile splits,oh well.
W/ the field well strung out after three laps I focused on the runner ahead of me as we worked well together in the middle part of the race,he pulled me,I pushed him and slowly we closed the gap on the 3rd and 4th place runners.
W/ three laps to go I moved into third,second was some 13 seconds ahead but 4th place was now sticking to me like glue,fair enough I'd worked off of him for a number of laps.
As we came up to the 600m to go his coach yelled"his wheels are coming off"referring to me,I understand the need for a coach to try and galvanize his or her athlete but he could not've chosen a worse thing to say in my mind.
The bell came, sadly no lap time,had I've known what my split was a la Swarthmore when I clocked 14.47 and knew I had to drop the hammer maybe last nite I could've gotten under my 15.56 pr,it wasn't to be.
Down the back straight the 4th place runner made his move,I was happy to let him go by me....I knew what lay in store w/ 200m to go.......booyah!
A hellacious kick put 5 seconds between us over the closing 200m....so much for my wheels coming off.....hey coach....that foot...must taste real good eh??
I was forced to swing wide of the 12th and 13th place runners w/ 120m to go,it probably added a second,the 12th place runner offered an apology as I went him,these things happen,no big.
Charging up the home straight oblivious to my time I finished strong and heard 15.59.62 as I crossed the line in third.
Obviously I'm disappointed to miss out on lowering my pr but I'm reasonably confident come Nationals I'll make a sizable dent in my 15.56.6.
All in all a good nites work,my third sub 16 5,000m in a row and the third place finish was nice,tonite unlike Penn in April and Swarthmore in May I felt I raced against the runners not the clock and while I'm still a ways off last years 3rd place finishing time at Worlds 15.38.2. I feel I'm doing what I need to do for this year,as the clock ticks down towards Sacramento and Nationals I feel I'm getting closer to where I need to be,next stop Ichan Stadium in New York City on Tuesday....you know me and races in NYC......
Friday, June 4, 2010
A.S.S. Another Sub Sixteen
I will do full justice to this evening's race tomorrow but for now the cliff notes:
15.59.6.
3rd out of 13
My third sub 16 5,000m this season
Yeah I'm disappointed it wasn't a pr but in terms of actual races as I'll reveal tomorrow it was a great race by me.
Till tomorrow
15.59.6.
3rd out of 13
My third sub 16 5,000m this season
Yeah I'm disappointed it wasn't a pr but in terms of actual races as I'll reveal tomorrow it was a great race by me.
Till tomorrow
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Game Face Time
Since Monday's mile repeats this entire week has been building up to tomorrow's 5,000m and the beginning of the stretch drive,not only four races in four weeks but also my final races b4 Nationals.
In the next four days I race at 5,000m and 1,500m,not only my distances at Nationals but also my last races at these distances and my last chance to improve my seed times b4 heading to Sacramento,I have the option of a second 5,000m here at Henderson again in a fortnite but I'd prefer to race the mile that nite so tomorrow represents my last chance to improve on my current pr of 15.56.5.,ditto for the 1,500m at Ichan on Tuesday,again I have the option of going for it again a fortnite later but would prefer a crack at lowering my 3,000m pr that evening so tonite and tomorrow are my biggest races this side of Nationals.
In spite of swimming against the tide all day at work I had the luxury of knowing this evening was an easy six miler which suited me having carried the freight all by my lonesome all day at work.
Another warm evening as I cruised to a 52 minute time,remembering the time honoured adage not to leave it all out there on the sidewalk tonite b4 my race tomorrow.
The countdown has begun.
In the next four days I race at 5,000m and 1,500m,not only my distances at Nationals but also my last races at these distances and my last chance to improve my seed times b4 heading to Sacramento,I have the option of a second 5,000m here at Henderson again in a fortnite but I'd prefer to race the mile that nite so tomorrow represents my last chance to improve on my current pr of 15.56.5.,ditto for the 1,500m at Ichan on Tuesday,again I have the option of going for it again a fortnite later but would prefer a crack at lowering my 3,000m pr that evening so tonite and tomorrow are my biggest races this side of Nationals.
In spite of swimming against the tide all day at work I had the luxury of knowing this evening was an easy six miler which suited me having carried the freight all by my lonesome all day at work.
Another warm evening as I cruised to a 52 minute time,remembering the time honoured adage not to leave it all out there on the sidewalk tonite b4 my race tomorrow.
The countdown has begun.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Eight And Eight
Eight weeks from today I'll be in Sacramento the day b4 this years Masters Nationals begin.
Tonite was an eight miler as my countdown to Friday's 5,000m race continues.
Eight miles is somewhat of an anomaly of a distance for me,more often than not it's ten miles,or a six miles the day b4 a race,in fact I had to check my log to see when I last ran 8 miles,April 14th two days b4 my 10,000m at Widener when I clocked 60 minutes.
Conditions were warm but it feels like the temperature is getting cooler since Monday,I'm hoping my recent run of weather effected races{cool at Swarthmore,rained out at Ichan}won't continue Friday at West Chester,there's talk of thunderstorms,all I can do is prepare as best I can and hope for the best.
Ran 58 minutes this evening,I was oblivious to my previous time until after the run,in fairness it was never about time it was about putting the miles in but two minutes faster is two minutes faster.
I look forward to an easy 6 miler tomorrow and getting ready for my race Friday
Tonite was an eight miler as my countdown to Friday's 5,000m race continues.
Eight miles is somewhat of an anomaly of a distance for me,more often than not it's ten miles,or a six miles the day b4 a race,in fact I had to check my log to see when I last ran 8 miles,April 14th two days b4 my 10,000m at Widener when I clocked 60 minutes.
Conditions were warm but it feels like the temperature is getting cooler since Monday,I'm hoping my recent run of weather effected races{cool at Swarthmore,rained out at Ichan}won't continue Friday at West Chester,there's talk of thunderstorms,all I can do is prepare as best I can and hope for the best.
Ran 58 minutes this evening,I was oblivious to my previous time until after the run,in fairness it was never about time it was about putting the miles in but two minutes faster is two minutes faster.
I look forward to an easy 6 miler tomorrow and getting ready for my race Friday
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Boo Hoo! I'm Not Popular.....Again!!!
I was giving the date some thought,June 1st,I graduated high school at the end of June 30 years ago....eek!time has not stood still.In adulthood,as in high school I find myself in the role of loaner/outcast,I'm ok w/ that,in high school I didn't run w/ the popular crowd and now some 30 years later I find myself reprising that role,like the title say boo hoo I'm not popular again,better to have a few good friends than a bunch of so called,would be friends, a wise man once said"keep your friends close,and your enemies closer"I've found popularity to be overrated at best but I'm reasonably confident b4 the sun sets this summer I'll have proven my point.
After a couple of days of seeing my schedule given the proverbial runaround it was back to basics today a 10 miler at 4.40pm.....b4 I drop down to 8 miles tomorrow and 6 miles Thursday.
Mercifully the rain at lunchtime cooled things down from yesterday,that's not to say I didn't sweat,having seen my weight hold at 138lbs again in May I'm curious to see if I drop any more weight through sheer sweat this month but if I don't 138lbs is a good race weight going into July.
Unofficially 63 minutes this evening,felt very comfortable,a nice moderate 8 miler tomorrow b4 a gentile 6 miler Thursday,fingers crossed the weather cooperates
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