Once More W/ Feeling

Another 5 day/50mpw......and final one as this week sees the time honoured taper going into effect as Nationals are just over two weeks away

Monday 12 Miles
I was fully aware this week that once Thursday was in the books there'd be no 12 milers on my docket till the end of March as I prep for the "Triple Crown" Allstate 15k,Big Sur Marathon Relay and Broad St.
Highlight of the run.....home and hosed b4 6pm....in daylight,it's been coming and w/ the advent of shorter runs the next few weeks and  the clocks going forward soon I'm probably done my runs in the dark

Tuesday 12 Miles
As is my won't w/ back to back runs a change of  venue,Powelton Ave and West River Dr,other than my 8 mile tempo runs I guess I won't see much of West River Dr for a while,seemingly the "poor relation" to Kelly Dr I've grown to be fond of the "isolation" along West River a time and place to think about the challenges ahead

Thursday 12 Miles
Mercifully a rest day inbetween 12 milers this week,that said at this stage of my build up to Nationals back to back to back 12s are easier then they would've been in mid/late December
After warmer temps Monday & Tuesday Thursday was a reminder that we are still in Winter and the heavier long sleeve running shirt was under my half zip jacket along w/ the hat and gloves today,I've worked too long and too hard to play fast and loose w/ the weather now at the business end of my preparation for Nationals

Saturday Repeats
A slightly later start than I'm used to, a 7.30am Spurs game stuck a fork in my 8am rendezvous w/ Haverford but w/ hindsight prehaps a blessing as it was a tad feckin ber again first thing in the morning,at least by lunchtime things had warmed up as I tackled my repeats

Mile
1.28-1.34-1.34-1.26=6.02.5
Another "so so" opening mile,yes 4 seconds up on last week but still not sub 6 like weeks 2 & 3

1,200m
1.27-1.31-1.25=4.23.3
Glass half empty that 1.31 second lap....glass half full  7 seconds quicker than last week......

1,000m
1.25-1.28-40=3.33.8
My second fastest 1,000m this season,while my opening mile time still rankles w/ me the trend of getting quicker 400s per shorter repeat is pleasing.....since I'm not Barbie I guess I can't have everything!!

800m
1.24-1.21=2.45.6
I knew heading into the two lapper that in recent weeks I've managed negative splits so opening in a lively 1.24 I wondered if that trend would continue....81 seconds later I got my answer w/ another negative split and seasons best 800m repeat

600m
1.29-39=2.00.3
Another slower opening lap than I'd have liked but still another seasons best time,is a sub 2.00 600m on the cards b4 Baton Rouge?

4x400m
1.18.0-1.13.8-1.14.8-1.13.4
Where do I begin to unpack this....
Thought I'd "shat the bed" on that second quarter only to rebound w/ only  a second slower on #3 and then drop another 1.13.4 on the finale which is my fastest 400m time this season

Sunday 8 Mile Tempo Run
Another glorious afternoon to out running around the Art Museum Loop
Time:56.05.6 off 7.01 mile pace
Splits:6.43-6.45-6.49-7.01-7.10-7.07-7.27-7.02
GER!!!!
Only 8 seconds off of last weeks time but that soddin' 7.27 split on mile 7 fecked it all up, as each mile/split clipped off I believed I was going to improve on the previous weeks 55.57.7 only to finish in front of the Art Museum steps and see 56.05.6....and then check my splits to see that mile 7 was my undoing
Again glass half full no room for complacency going into next weeks tempo run.

It's Official......

Yes dear reader I can confirm yours truly the Shamrock Warrior has thrown his bandana into the ring for this years Indoor Nationals in Baton Rouge
When I took my running sabatical between June 2016 and May 2017 the plan was always to return to track and Nationals....in running as is in life sometimes things don't always go to plan,lest we forget the  cock up of biblical preportions that was the 2017 Philadelphia Marathon and then the Bursitis issue in 2018 that delayed my plans to return to the track last season.
Anyways that's all ancient history now and while most of the 2019 season was about closing in on medal #200 the plan of attack was always two fold,get to 200 but also prep for Indoor Nationals.....

Tuesday 12 Miles
After the epic 15 hour round trip to Staten Island on Sunday{for just over 10 mins work......} I was a little tired to begin w/ so when the heavens opened that sealed my fate for Monday,now in this my second to last full week of 50 mpw I was faced w/ the prospect of another back to back to back 12 milers.......water off a ducks back at this stage
After a down week in mileage the week of Staten Island I was cognizant how much faster tonites run was,usually I aim for 9 min mile pace so it's give or take 1.48 for 12 miles,tonite I was back home w/in 1.40......at the time I put it down to eagerness to get a run in as it had been over a week since I'd gotten out there......

Wednesday 12 Miles
As is my won't w/ back to backs I switched things up tonite and hit West River Dr,another evening where the "loneliness of the long distance runner" mindset seemed to ring true as my 6 miles along the drive from the Art Museum to Strawberry Mansion bridge never presented another runner......but to quote a line from a Monty Python sketch"still I was getting used to it by now"......
Evidently Tuesday increase in pace wasn't a one off,out by 4.20pm home by 6pm,maybe now in week 9 of my training I've bulit up the required speed strength and stamina I've been aiming for

Thursday 10 Miles
Slight change in plans,a slightly later start than I'd have liked due to a trip to the bank to transfer funds into my checking account for tomorrows deadline for entry for Nationals meant I was closer to 4.30pm when I set off so mid run I envoked my inner paddy and said "Feck It".....10 miles today and just tack on an extra 2 miles after the tempo run on Sunday
Daylight had gone by the time I arrived back on my doorstep at 6pm but it's looking like I could be getting home before dusk next week, as of Saturday sunset is now 5.38pm.......

Saturday Repeats
Jaysus!!!!! 15-17 degrees at 7am when I left home to hit the track at Haverford,fuck me it was cold!!
I did have the option of a slightly later start then 8am as Spurs didn't play till Sunday but I'm a creature of habit and I've grown used to getting up at 6.30am and being out the door by 7am and on the track by 8am and done and dusted just gone 9am,as my mentor the late great Villanova track coach Jumbo Elliot famously said to his athletes" eat at the same time,train at the same time,sleep at the same time......and goddammit shit at the same time if possible"
My concession to the cold was to abandon my usual 3/4 length compression shorts and  bottoms in favour of running tights and tracksuit pants,this coupled w/ the cold air may've been why my times/splits were slightly off

Mile
1.31-1.33-1.34-1.28=6.06.6
Last time out I was miffed that my mile wasn't sub 6.....2 weeks ago it wasn't this feckin' baltic out here!

1,200m
1.29-1.33-1.28=4.30.4
Christ,after 2 repeats I was already at +13.....it was going to be"one of those days" I could tell!!

1,000m
1.26-1.28-43=3.37.9
At least my splits were getting quicker or I was getting used to the cold......

800m
1.26-1.23=2.47.2
As has become my won't a negative split for the 800m and the 800m was the highlight of my workout

600m
1.24-41=2.05.8
Always a plus to see semi decent times in the 400 splits

4x400m
1.20.6-1.21.8-1.21.7-1.19.2
Not earth shattering by any means but frankly I was just happy to have faced the below freezing temps and gotten my repeats in
The +36 doesn't sit well but hopefully things will be warmer next Saturday

Sunday 8 Mile Tempo Run
Christ!!! after the Baltic cold of Saturdays repeats my Sunday tempo run at 3.45pm was  conducted in mid 50 degree temps
Last time out 2 weeks ago in my season debut over the tempo run I went 58.43.6 off 7.20 mile pace,today:
6.43-6.52-6.48-7.08-7.06-7.10-7.11-7.00
55.57.7 off of 7 min mile pace
2.47 quicker and a nice rebound off of somewhat disappointing splits on my repeats

Another 5 day 50mpw......thanks to an easy 2 mile jog down Powelton Ave post Tempo run,one more week of 12s and 50mpw before I taper for Indoor National......all roads lead to Baton Rouge

It's All Part Of The Masterplan

Well it took nearly five years to run at Ocean Breeze on Staten Island but I can add it to the roll call of places in NYC I've ran
Sunday saw the USATF NYC vs NJ Open/Masters meet a meet I considered last year but didn't do....12 months later I was signed up for the 3,000m
Unlike meets I've run at The Armory & Tom's River in NJ  the field was set by time and not age which was a double edged sword, I'd be in w/ the open runner and runners from 30-54 but in theory this would pull me to a faster time
Had they split the field at open/49 I'd finish higher up the field but probably slower{for the record the winning time of heat 2 was 11.30.48}
10 of us toed the starting line and it would be the first and last time the field would be close......
Going to the rear of the field I realized w/in 100m I was going to get gapped if I didn't move up and moved into 8th but the lead 1-7 were already strung out,w/ hindsight prehaps I should have gone w/ them......

Going in I seeded myself at 10 mins in order to run that pace I would need 40 seconds per lap or 3.20 per 1,000m
My splits finished:41.6-38.9-39.4-40.3-41.2-41.2-41.7-42.2-41.1-43.2-43.7-43.5-43.3-37.8 my 1,000m split was 3.21.7 and 2,000m in 6.50.4{3.29} and I covered the final 1,000m in 3.32

When the dust had settled my  takeaways from the race were as follows: slower than I was hoping for however I believe I'm capable of running faster, were  I not in "no mans land" I feel my splits would have been a second or two faster per lap putting me closer to low 10s
Yes I won the 55-59 age group by some 27 seconds but there are sterner and stiffer tasks ahead
Ocean Breeze while a bitch to get to is a fine track facility and I hope to run there again b4 the Indoor Season ends in March.

Back to the drawing board? no I have almost a month b4 Baton Rouge,come Saturday I'll have an idea of the fields for 55-59 and who I'm up against and where I need to sharpen my speed

Feelin' The Need For Speed

A wise man once said"it's not when you face adversity,it's how you deal w/ it when you face it....." so off the back of a triple let down the week prior I went into this week "armed to the teeth" to correct that......

Monday 12 Miles
Nice easy out and back along Kelly Dr to Colombia bridge to kick start the week and banish the previous days sub par repeats at Haverford

Tuesday 12 Miles
Act two of a "three act play" this time favouring West River Dr
As is often the case next to no one out on West River Dr,but in fairness when I looked across the Schuylkill to Kelly Dr I didn't see too much activity going on over there either
Nice touch by Boathouse Row to light up each boathouse in Purple to morn the sudden loss of local hero/legend Kobe Bryant....R.I.P.

Wednesday 12 Miles
Back to Kelly Dr this evening as I completed the "Triple Header"
One theme of each run so far, noticing how light it stays as we come to the end of  January.
I can pretty much get to mile 9 of a 12 miler by 5.30pm off a 4.15pm start b4 losing daylight
Knowing it'd be the weekend b4 I ran again I could officially call it for January mileage...206,back to the realm of respectability again after 218 in September and 194 in October

Saturday Repeats
After the "shit show in the snow" two weeks ago and being feckin windswept last week I was eager to nail these repeats period but w/ a Sunday race on tap the following week I wouldn't be back out to Haverford till Feb 15th......no pressure....

Mile
1.27-1.34-1.32-1.27=6.00.4
Pleased w/ the 1.27s to open and close,not so happy w/ the 1.34 on lap two which ultimately cost me a shot a sub 6.......

1,200m
1.28-1.32-1.23=4.23.5
Not feckin' sure where that 1.23 to close out the 1,200m came from but fair fuckin play to me
Having gone +3 to open after the mile my 1,200m now had me at -4........

1,000m
1.27-1.31-35=3.33.6
After battling the wind on the back straight and top turn a week ago it was a joy to be able to work on knee lift and leg turnover down the home straight this week

800m
1.26-1.24=2.50.7
When I opened in 1.26 I figured negative splits might be a stretch......I thought wrong!

600m
1.24-38=2.02.6
A solid opening 400m,get that closing 200m to 36 and lower and it's back to sub 2s........

4x400m
1.16.8-1.17.4-1.16.9-1.14.3
A little up and down like an EKG chart for my liking but all respectable quarters at the end of a solid repeat session

The previous week had seen me go +64 on the previous splits,today was -53......trending in the right direction as they say.....

Sunday 8 Mile Tempo Run
It had been a while since I'd last done the 8 mile tempo run around the river but w/ a decent amount of 50mpws under my belt since the start of the new year now felt like the time to resume them
7 min miles x 8 miles was 56 mins.....a tad too rich for my blood right off the bat,8 min miles x 8 miles was 64 mins.....setting the bar too low so 7.30 mile pace =60 mins was the target
7.00-7.21-7.13-7.32-7.22-7.30-7.30-7.16=58.43.6
7.20 mile pace
Not a bad way to open my 2020 account on tempo runs and a legit target to chase in two weeks time when I renew hostilities w/ the Art Museum Loop again