Location: Greer, SC
Date: April 24, 2010
Placing: 3rd Overall
Format: 13.1-mile run
Race Photos
Results: Click Here

Maybe I should just quit. I mean, the saying goes "quit while you're ahead", right? The problem with that saying is that each good race leads you to believe that if you were a bit faster today then maybe you could be even a bit 'more faster' tomorrow. I don't know how many more years I can keep looking at my race results and saying, 'I can beat that'. I'm sure that the day that I can't beat it will come long before the day that I admit that I can't beat it. Quit? Are you kidding? Nothing gives you the urge to race more than "being ahead". As a matter of fact, if I'm ever going to retire from competition and start living like 'normal' folk, I'd better start slowing down soon...although it's not looking promising.

I've done this event twice before - in 2006 (5 days after running the Boston Marathon) and in 2007 where I won the event and set a standing PR until September of last year at the very flat Virginia Beach Half Marathon. But all that was before my new training and racing methods. For the 2nd time in 3 years, I set my half marathon PR here in Greer. I now believe a sub-1:16 is possible on a flat course. (Kiawah Island '10?)

So far this year, I've come up against some pretty good competition in the Master's field of my running races, but I am by no means a 'short-distance' guy and was looking to possibly level the playing field today. It's always a bag of mixed emotions when you see that your toughest competition doesn't toe the line. You want to be happy that your day will most likely be easier and less stressful but at the same time, you're here for the competition. I love races that end up being true races - and I've had more of those this year already than I've had in years. Not today. Hopefully, with a state championship designation, this event can draw a bigger breadth of talent next year. But that didn't mean I was prepared to run with any less fire in my legs and desire in my heart.

There were tons of people I knew at this event - quite a few triathlete 'crossovers' like myself as well as lots of veteran runners. I had several Fleet Feet running teammates present as well as a handful of TeamKattouf-trained athletes and even some fellow employees who have picked up the running gauntlet and well...ran with it. Ironically, for the first time in 3 events my team photographer (aka my wife Janis) was present and the camera battery was charged. Problem is that I left the camera sitting on kitchen counter. Janis has tons of pictures - they're just all in her head so you can't see them.

The ground was damp and the skies were gray as the 450 or so runners made their way to the start line in downtown Greer. It was here that I noticed the absence of master's runners like Chris Hicks and Dean Whitis. I also noticed the absence of a start line just a few minutes before the race was to begin. And then suddenly, like a scene from a MacGyver episode, a small band of men constructed a start line complete with timing mats, some barricades, etc. in a matter of a minute or two. I thought they would be at it for several minutes so I stepped to the side to get out of the way and chatted with Kevin Mosteller who is in fact, 'most steller' (what a great name for a good runner). We were just yapping away having a good-ole' time...right up until we heard the announcer yell, "Runners take your mark" - or something to that effect. I'm glad we were near the start line because we jumped into the street and 3 seconds later we were running. It certainly kept the stress time down to a minimum but I don't recommend it.

I'm the one looking to my left and joking with Kevin Mosteller about how we just about missed the start of the race

Nobody really took off hard, but my teammate Jon Stoehr began to seperate himself from the group almost immediately. I just settled into a very calm and easy first 2 miles. Shortly after the start one of my other teammates, Steve Pearce ran alongside me. He asked about my goal and if I minded him pacing with me since it had been a while since he had run a half. I never mind the company but I warned him that racing by heartrate can seem like a lot of back and forth (although in actuality the effort level is very steady). In the first mile, I backed off on one small hill but caught back up to Steve after we crested. I would learn after the race that we crossed the 1-mile mark at exactly 6:00, side by side. The two of us were already running in about 5th & 6th position. I flew through mile 2 and the start of mile 3 which were predominantly downhill, passing 3rd and 4th place and gapping Steve. Somewhere around this point, I could see waaaay up the road and it appeared that Kevin had caught (or was near catching) Jon and that they were already about 2 minutes ahead.

Teammate Steve Pearce and I crossing the Mile 1 mark - as relaxed as can be

Steve caught back up as I dialed it down on the climb to the end of mile 3. I had kept the HR to just a max of 142 to this point. Miles 3-9 I was allowed to jump up to a 149-or-less HR and I did - slowly pulling away from Steve. I would run alone at this pace for the next 6 miles. I was running so efficiently at a sub-150 HR that I never once thought about where the next mile marker was. This is always a good determinant of how exhausted you feel. When you start looking for the 'Mile 8' marker just 30 seconds after passing the 'Mile 7' marker, you'd better gear up for things to get very bleak. This was not the case at all. My average heartrate for miles 4-9 were 148, 149, 148, 149, 149, 149. It just don't get any steadier than that. I enjoyed the occasional banter I received from Ed Hughes on his electric bike. Ed - the ever creative photographer - had rigged a board complete with mounted video camera onto the handlebars of the bike. If you've never seen one of his videos, I suggest you check out http://www.youtube.com/user/greenvillehughes (his 'T-Shirt Song' is a favorite). I couldn't wait to open things up when I passed the Mile 9 sign.

This is a great shot of me racing the traffic. You can see the patch on my arm where they had to replace some of the bionic circuitry (photo: Brightroom Event Photography)

Mile 10 was the longest stretch of the race in the sense that you could practically see the end of mile 10 from the start of it. It appeared flat, but my time - and later, my Garmin - would tell me that miles 10 and 11 slowly made up for the descending in miles 2 & 3. During the mile 10 stretch, I swore I saw someone up ahead but just kept thinking it was someone on a bike. As I got closer to mile 11, I could see it was Kevin again. Little by little, I allowed my HR to ascend above 150. Although I am wearing my Garmin which tracks everything from my pace to the atmospheric pressure on mars, I only have it set to show my heartrate which keeps me honest to my plan. If the HR is where it is supposed to be, the pace will follow. But when I get to the end of a race and my heartrate is allowed to be 'whatever the hell I can stand', I flip my screen over to show me average pace and time. I did this as I started the last mile and it was at this point that I had to quickly call upon my math skills to see that I was headed for another PR. I was nearly maxed but was holding enough inside to let out a good finishing sprint when the time came. I planned to kick it when I saw the Mile 13 sign, a little over .1 miles from the finish and about 45 seconds out. I never saw the sign and before I knew it, someone appeared in front of me and directed me to turn onto a sidewalk. The finish banner was just 30 yards away. I sprinted in for a 1:16:34 and 3rd place.

Pumping down the finishing stretch for 3rd place and a new PR of 1:16:34 (photo: Brightroom Event Photography)

As usual, I never once thought about the weather during the race but janis said it actually rained a bit at the start/finish. I just remember being fairly cool. Near the end of the race, I noticed a hot-spot on my left foot that wanted to become a blister. It was no wonder with the humidity. I looked like I had just gotten out of the bath as I crossed the finish line; my shoes all sloshy and squeaky.

I don't often get to hang around after finishing a race but Janis and I were in no rush and I was glad to stay and see so many of my friends finish. I was extremely proud of my co-worker Marisa Marshal who just started down the path of a healthy lifestyle about a year or so ago. I helped her with a schedule because she wanted to break 2 hours on her first half...she finished in 1:49:12. She'll be under 1:40 in no time.

Race Notes:
* I felt like a piece of me was missing as my shadow, Stephen Sykes was not present.
* Jon (Stoehr), my Fleet Feet team captain, won the event with a 1:12:00. He would have broken 1:12 but he had to weave his way through the 5k finishers the last few yards.
* Team Fleet Feet took 1st (Jon), 3rd (myself), 4th (Steve Pearce) and 5th (Brandon Southern).
* Finishing in the small park near City Hall was a much better venue than in years past. A comfortable way to spend some time after the race.

Next Up: Well, by the time I finished this race report, I already completed my first of 4 half-iron events for the year. You'll have to wait til I finish that race report...now I have a few weeks without an event and then my second half-iron event in Connecticut

Location: Charleston, SC
Date: March 27, 2010
Placing: 62nd Overall, 1st 45-49 (33,057 finishers)
Race Photos
Results: Click Here

I love racing. But you know what I love almost as much? Not racing. Because NOT racing gives me time to think about how much I love racing. It's a not-so-vicious cycle that when done properly - creates a happy athlete. Race, rest, recharge, repeat. This is my way of explaining why after the first 6 races of the 2010 season, it took me 2+ weeks to write this particular race report. It was my time to NOT race; and not to think about it too much. I spent the first 'trimester' of the season (Dec-Mar) concentrating on running events. Considering the aggressively cold Winter this year, a wise decision. I spent less time outside training on my bike this year than any of the past 30 years. Six races of varying distances from 5k to half marathon. And if you read any of the reports you know that I had little to complain about...don't get me wrong, even though I don't feel 45, I still maintain - and exercise - my right to complain about anything. It is a rite of passage. Who am I to try and stop my 'bitter old man' destiny? But I feel like with 4 PR's I was able to keep my complaining to a minimum.

I've mentioned before that neither Janis nor I are big fans of the HUGE races. We are laid back people and it rarely feels laid back when a race triples the number of people in a city for a weekend. No matter which website you visit, the Cooper River Bridge Run will be ranked in the top 10 largest running events in the US with around 35,000 participants (not to mention all the friends, family and support people that aren't counted). That's almost as many friends as I have on Facebook. Wow.

Oh yeah, I'm real fast. I can beat like everybody. What? Who? Thay guy wearing #9 behind me? OK, maybe not him ;-) (photo: Ed Hughes)

But the Bridge Run called to me this year. It said "Chris, you are running well...and aren't you getting tired of people asking you if you've done THE Bridge Run?" Why yes, I am. But there was another obstacle with this event. Apparently, all the hotel rooms in Charleston are made of gold during this weekend. That's right. A room worth $60 a night is suddenly worth $150+ a night because of, well, as a student of both logic and economics I have to assume that this is the price people are willing to pay. PEOPLE are willing to pay this to run 6.2 miles...not me. With the new bridge, I can show up and run over it anytime I want; maybe when the rooms are no longer made of gold. I guess it's all part of the bitter old man lifestyle. But still, the Bridge beckoned.

I made a half-hearted attempt to find a cheap floor to sleep on but was not too hopeful until my Fleet Feet teammate Tim Briles suggested I contact the person in charge of invited/elite runners. Tim himself is a 31:00 10ker and competes as an elite at this event. If not for the Kenyans, Ethiopians and other professional runners who show up to gobble up the prize list, he would be one of the top runners (Tim was 27th overall - but the 6th American). I let them know about my anticipated finishing time and inquired as to help with lodging. It turns out that since I am old - and they have prize money for Masters - that they considered me an elite runner. They provided me with a hotel room right at the base of the bridge and free entry. What a fantastic stroke of luck and a great experience. I'm not gonna lie - it always feels good to be considered a little special for being a better runner, just so long as you don't mistake 'being a better runner' with 'being a better person'. Let me just say that we should all strive to be better people no matter how fast you run.

Although the packet pick-up on Friday afternoon helped to enforce why I don't like big races - where 5,000 cars tried to negotiate 100 parking spaces on 3 city roads - it was my first benefit to racing elite. I got to pass GO and head directly to the elite registration room. No lines. No waiting. Ahhhh. Janis and I escaped the mobs unscathed and were at our hotel in no time. We stayed in a Quality Inn literally 20 yards from the base of the Bridge. If I DID have to pay for a hotel - this location could not be beat. We were on the less-crowded, Mt.Pleasant side of the bay (where the race starts) and the race would pass close enough to our hotel that Janis could roll out of bed, throw on her bunny slippers, and watch 35,000 of her closest friends run by. I can imagine what this would look like if somehow you were staying at the hotel and had no idea about the race in the morning (which would be near impossible, but you'd be surprised). You would see what would look like a mass panic and exodus. You're only hint that it wasn't doomsday would be the guy dressed in his Superman outfit and the rock band set up in the median. Although on doomsday, I might just appreciate a rock band setting up and jamming out. That's just me.

Friday evening I had to do a 4-mile warmup run and what better way than to test out the Bridge. I instantly became aware of the fact that the wind was blowing in my face at gale force. I mean - if I had been wearing a windbreaker, I might have actually been airborne. I estimated that if the wind were blowing like this in the morning, that the race would take about 24 hours. When I turned around, I actually ran faster UP the other side than I ran DOWN it against the wind. Fortunately, we would all have to fight the same wind; I was just hoping for a fast race. I felt pretty good from my run and the rest of the evening was more relaxed than expected thanks to us hitting dinner before the crowds developed.

For a bunch of fast runners, we sure look like a mixed and motley crew. Just goes to show you that you can't judge a book by its cover. I had no qualms about starting at the back of this group. (photo: Ed Hughes)

Race morning. This is where Elite status really made life easy. Once again the hotel location was a great advantage...I was able to sleep in much longer than most people and then run the 1.5 miles straight down the road to the start as a warmup. Elites also got their own porta-potty which was patrolled by race personnel. No elite number - no potty. Since I didn't have to get bussed to the start extra early, I didn't have to partake of this advantage but it was nice to know it was there if I needed it. There was also a bus for the Elites parked about 100 yards in front of the start line. We could sit on the bus to warm up (it was right at the edge of "chilly" and "cold" that morning), we could also wait till the last minute to strip off our warmups and put them on the bus to carry all of our gear to the finish. We didn't have to merge into the mass of humanity either. The 60 or so Elites lined up about 10 feet in front of the wall of 35,000 people and we got to warm up right until the last minute. As I stood there trying to stay warm, I glanced back once and it was like looking into the eye of a tornado. I wish I had never looked back. It was almost terrifying to think what would happen to someone who tripped in the first few yards.

With the road being 5-6 lanes wide at the start, we looked like such a small band of runners just spread about 2 layers deep. In the mix were the Kenyans and Ethiopians, some amazingly fast women runners and a pretty good who's-who of SC Open and Masters runners - including my Fleet Feet teammates Tim Briles (31:45, 27th) and Jon Stoehr (32:15, 33rd). Unlike the previous evening, the gods were smiling upon us with a tailwind on our way up and over the bridge. It would be a quick pace. After a quick word from the Mayor (who flat out asked us to be sure and spend a lot of money while we were in town), the horn sounded. I swear I heard them yell, "Release the hounds!" I noticed pretty quickly that the HR I was scheduled to hold for the first 2 miles leadng up to the Bridge seemed a bit more of an effort. My pace was good - right where I wanted it to be - but a bit of worry slipped through my mind for an instant.

In what seemed like an instant we were 2 miles in and about to climb the Bridge. I passed Janis cheering her heart out for no other reason than the fact that she is a good wife who would probably rather be doing anything else other than standing there in the cold to watch me run by. I was allowed to take my HR up at mile 2 but someone had mistakenly put the 2-mile clock more than a hundred yards shy of where it should have been. The small group I was with chuckled when one runner said "Wow - 2-mile PR's for everyone!". I allowed myself to slow down a bit in order to stay in my correct HR zone. I knew that once we crested the top at mile 3, I would gain it all back and hopefully more. Several runners passed me slowly and I just watched them go. At this point, the leaders were already 3 minutes ahead of me and well out of sight but that's not a surprise. The winner ran nearly 1:00/mile faster than I did and was probably born running.

I look more like I'm shuffling as I keep my effort level a bit lower on the way up the climb. On the other side...SHAZAM!

The instant I got over the top, I basically started sprinting down to keep the HR the same as when I was climbing; a recurring theme with my new racing strategy that coach Rick Kattouf has successfully instilled in me. I'm pretty sure I reeled in more people than had passed me. I was flying - a sub-5:00 mile. As I passed a couple of runners, they sped up and tucked in behind me like a water-skier in my wake. We hit the bottom at mile 4 and I was so looking forward to my last raise in HR for the final 2 miles. It was not to be. I could barely muster an additional 2 beats all the way to the finish. This was the foreshadowing that reared it's head in the first mile. The good news was that I could still maintain this HR. The bad news was that I would miss out on an opportunity to kick a few extra seconds the last couple of miles. I was comfortably with a good group of four runners that all kept themselves in check at this point in the race. The two things that I really remember as we ran into downtown Charleston were:

1. At the very bottom of the Bridge, one runner got really close to me and clipped my foot from behind as I ran. I didn't hear what he said to me, but it sounded more like "give me some room" than "sorry about that". Since I wasn't sure, I half-shrugged it off. If you want more room, then get in front of me. So, about a quarter-mile later, he bumps shoulders with me. OK. We are now in a group of four on a road that is 5 lanes wide. The third time, I nearly lost it..."Dude!". This is a running race, not a hockey game! I ended up beating him to the line by a second. I wish I had felt better; that made me want to dust him. Oh well. Turns out he was from the Ukraine. Maybe they have 'proximity issues' there.

2. Gregg Cromer (or, "Double-G" as he is called) is one of the fastest triathlete-runners in the state. A few years ago, he won nearly every run portion of every triathlon he entered. He's back. I passed him on the way down the Bridge and thought that I would not see him again. Something made me look back just before mile 6; maybe it was the irritating guy who kept bumping into me. Whatever it was, I had to laugh. As I looked back, Gregg was about 10 feet behind us and looked like Forrest Gump with his arms pumping and his legs ahead of the rest of his body. To make matters worse - he had to be the only guy running that fast in a regular shirt (not a racing top), a baseball cap, and longer, baggy shorts. He actually looked like a cartoon. But he caught us. I'm betting he couldn't bear to see me ahead of him. As I mentioned, I had little to give at the end and he beat me by one second. At least he didn't try to deny that he had been training a lot. I would've had to call 'bullshit' on that one.

My 34:27 was yet another PR this year but I felt I left 20 or so seconds on the table the last 2 miles. That's good - it gives me something to strive for. Gregg and I grabbed our gear off the Elite bus and after chatting with him and my teammates, I sat on a return bus for 45 minutes. The logistics of a point-to-point race is already bad for racers and spectators but when the only short way back to the start is via a bridge that you have completely closed...well, it was a bit of a hassle. I would have loved to have Janis at the finish but the organizers made this virtually impossible. They could have allowed foot and bike traffic to traverse the Bridge before, during and after the race, but they didn't. I was not going to partake of the finish line festivities while Janis was stranded back in the hotel. For a race of this magnitude, it's a shame that they don't consider the spectators at all.

It's fun to slice and dice your placing a bit. It makes us all feel better when we compare ourselves against our peers. Here are some facts with regards to my placing at this race:

34:27
62nd Overall/31st American/19th South Carolinian - 33,057 finishers
11th Finisher over the age of 40 (5th American Master...yes, the Kenyans bring their old guys too)
1st Finisher in the 45-49 age group (1165 finishers)
Longest last name in the top 100 finishers (HA!...take that, South Africans)

Race Notes:
* I was hoping to get to break out the new Rudy Project sunglasses for the race but alas, it was yet another overcast day. Perfect for my 'racing red' lenses. fortunately, the rain stayed away for the entire day.
* Unbeleivably - for those still keeping count - Stephen Sykes finished just 3 places and 6 seconds behind me.
* The light dusting of yellow pollen that showed up our car this weekend may well account for my inability to get my HR maxed today. My chest congestion would grow pretty severe in the days that followed the race and is still present nearly 3 weeks later. I was wise enough to take a short break at this time of year since I anticipated allergy problems.
* Thanks to Ed Hughes who stood in as my photographer for the race. If I'm not mistaken, Ed ran the race carrying his camera. I hope he didn't hack a lot of runners off as he ran by them "Say cheese!"
* When I called to request assistance from the Elite athlete representative, I told her that I anticipated running a 34:30. I was off by 3 seconds.

Next Up: I finally switch gears a bit and turn towards triathlons, starting with the inaugural Paris Mountain triathlon. My racing break is over and it's time to add some swimming and cycling!...

Location: Greenville, SC
Date: March 6, 2010
Placing: 17th Overall, 4th Master
Race Photos
Results: Click Here

I'm happy. I'm mad. I'm happy. I'm mad. OK - I'm really happy with a little bit of 'mad for fun' sprinkled in. Here's the conundrum: I PR'd again. 5 races so far this year...3 PR's. What do you mean you don't see the conundrum?! Well, if getting older means I'm supposed to be getting slower - but all my times are now faster - then that means if I had applied my new strategy for training and racing 5 years ago I would have been much faster. According to age-grading physics, I calculated that a 35:05 10k at age 45 is the equivalent of a...let's see...divide by pi...carry the 3...a 26:17 at age 25. Damn. Well, maybe my math is a little wrong somewhere but it's hard to deny that my times 5 years ago would've been faster than they are today. Apparently, I used to think I was good - but I really sucked (or at least that's how Janis likes to phrase it ;-). OK, maybe not 'sucked' but I'm just a little mad when I think about how fast I 'might have been'. I'm just glad I found out well before I was trying to explain what a 10k was to all the other guys at the bridge tournament...

It was quite an eventful week leading up to the race this time. The prior weekend I came down with a horrible cold and my thoughts immediately turned to my history with the Reedy River Run (more on that in a minute). I shut my body down so fast - and pumped it full of vitamin C and Sudafed - that by Monday my self-impossed science experiment worked and I had it whipped. Janis would then catch the bug on Monday night and carry it for the entire week (she always has to 'one-up' me). Aside from building my energy back up over the following days, it was a great week. I received word that I was ranked first in the country in Duathlon for my age group for 2009. On Thursday night, I got to socialize and celebrate the accomplishment of fellow runner John Johnson who recently completed 50 marathons in 50 states. On Friday, I had the opportunity to be on Blog Talk Radio to talk about working towards negative-split running (which you can listen to by clicking HERE). On Friday night, Janis and I volunteered to help out at the Reedy River Kid's Run and Fun Run. I love watching kids do this stuff. If you've never seen it, you need to. You will get a cramp in your face from smiling. I got to lead the "fun run" and let me tell you what: little kids are FAST. And they have very little concept of distance...nothing is "too far to run to". One boy told me he could run "all the way to the North Pole". I didn't doubt him for a second.

Fun run? FUN RUN?! I had to haul ass to stay ahead as I lead the group on a quater-mile run at Linky Stone Park.

After helping out at the run, we picked up my race packet. Normally, my Fleet Feet team would cover my entry at this event, but this one was free courtesy of a raffle at a Greenville Track Club meeting (another great reason to show up at the meetings!). Thanks, GTC. Then to top off the week, The Living Pixel event photography had used my image on their Reedy River poster and cards. That was kinda cool. Although what looked like a 'little' pain at 600 x 400 pixels, looked excrutiating at 5000 x 3000 pixels...if I had known, I would have trimmed my ear hairs...

The Reedy River Poster child; courtesy of The Living Pixel. Some would say I'm photo-genic...other would say I'm photo-degenerate.

Saturday. Race morning. Four days earlier, it snowed here all day. Today it was gorgeous and Spring is sticking it's neck out. Let's jump into the G-Man time machine and take a trip back one year. Reedy River Race, 2009. A beautiful Spring day - and only a week earlier we had a snow storm. Sound familiar? Well I remember it all too well. It was THE day that my allergy-induced asthma awakened and was really pissed off. The asthma had only just developed the prior year but I had never gone through a Spring season with it. Before that day, a 6:00 pace was an effort. On that day, I turned a 6:13 pace and for the next 6 weeks, running under a 7:30 was nearly impossible. It blind-sided me like Sarah Palin's nomination...I never saw it coming. [Back to present day] After a year of getting my asthma under control, I expect this month to be the real test. So far, so good. But keep in mind that I felt no different when I started last year's race. Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men - or in the pollen of flowers...only the shadow knows. And if that reference means nothing to you then you're probably ready for bed after a bottle of warm milk.

Now I'll admit, after soooo many years of racing, I'm not one of those people who believes that you can "do anything you set your mind to". As a matter of fact, I can be a pretty big skeptic at times. But don't let that fool you. I don't have to believe that I can or can't do something. All I have to believe is that I can go hard. Real hard. I may not believe that I CAN do anything but I also don't believe that I CAN'T do something. Don't get me wrong, the mental aspect is HUGE and plays an unbelievable part in your performance. But to really tell it like it is, what I believe is that my body can do amazing things. On the start line, my teammate Steven Pearce asked me what my "plan" was for the race. Without a flinch, I responded "150 max heartrate the first 2 miles, 155 the next 2 miles and anything goes the last 2 miles". He sorta chuckled and said what he meant was what time was I shooting for. I told him that I don't really race that way, but when forced I broke down and said that I was hoping to set a PR by a few seconds - maybe a 35:40. Now he really chuckled and told me "Seriously? C'mon, you can break 35:00". I was glad to see Steven had that much faith in me. Turns out, sometimes the people watching you have a better idea about your ability than you do. I didn't even give it a second thought. If going hard produced a 30:00 then that's what I believe I can do.

A great shot of teammate Matt Pryor as he gathers his wits before the start.

It was really awesome having nearly the entire Fleet Feet team at the race today in our new team singlets. I'm such a cold-weenie that I normally would have worn an extra shirt today but I was bound and determined to finally wear just my singlet. I am 100% sure that I look like a dork when I have to wear a shirt under my singlet. To set the record straight - contrary to what you might have heard, it IS how good you look and NOT how good you are. A singlet it was. I still opted for my Fleet Feet gloves because my hands remain cold. And because they match my ensemble so nicely.

It may have been a bit chilly out but it was obvious that each year, the race brings more 'heat'. Let me show you some 'race math'. Good race => fast guys. Good race + prize money => REALLY fast guys. And when I say 'guys', I mean runners. The 4 men and 1 women racing for Zap Fitness stuck out like a sore thumb in their bright orange racing attire and coach on the start line. Zap Fitness is basically a camp for Olympic+ level runners. The camp is typically in North Carolina but the runners are now spending time training in the Greenville area. Not a big concern for me - they are not my competition. But they did manage to take 4 of the top 5 places and push me 4 placings further down. In case you're wondering, their one woman also won the wonen's race. In case you're wondering more...no, she did not beat me (whew!). But just to make matters worse for little ole' me, the promoters also invited 2 elite Master runners. Thanks, promoters.

I'm just behind teammates Matt Pryor and Brandon Southern...teammate Jeff Gibbs is leading us out.

We bolted off the line precisely at 9am. Somehow, once again, I mysteriously went from being in the second row to being in about the 5th row without even moving. It's a scientific enigma. I spent the first hundred yards or so passing the children, baby strollers, dogs and fish who somehow started ahead of me. Now I'm not a hypocrit; if the fish can prove he has a reasonable shot at breaking a time of 40:00, then I would not begrudge him a spot on the front line. Hell, if a fish could break an hour I'd run with him just to see it.

After a brief, shallow uphill we shot downward. I constantly kept glancing at my HR as it slowly caught up to my effort. Running down in the first mile was pretty wide open but as soon as we bottomed out and headed up, I found myself backing down to stay under 150. Some runners who seemed to be keying on me began to pass me. I'm sure one or two of them thought "what is he doing?". I would've thought the same thing of myself a few months ago. 5:29 at mile 1; faster than I might expect but not harder. Until mile 6, this would be the only time I even noticed the mile clocks. Just after mile 1, I found myself enveloped in a group of runners containing three of my teammates (Matt, Jeff, Steven), Tim Stewart and several others. We ran nearly the entire second mile together but for a little advantage I gained running down to the start of mile 3. The start of mile 3 instantly rose upward; sharply at first and then gradual for a half-mile. I was allowed to jump into my next HR zone and this mile was to be very different.

Not this year. This year, I was all good. I put it into 2nd gear at the top of this hill and away I went.

Since I was able to jump HR zones - but the road was up - it appeared that I was keeping an even tempo. A couple of runners came around me and had a few seconds as we crested the top. And then it was 'game on'. Just like in weeks past where I haven't been maxed out, I did not need time to recover at the top. As a matter of fact, I went into nearly a sprint down the half-mile desecnt in order to keep my HR close to 155. I shot past 5 runners in that half mile and passed Janis with a big grin and a solid thumbs up. I locked into this pace as I ran into Cleveland Park and started to slowly reel in some more runners...but I didn't get too excited. I knew at the end of mile 4, I would drop it into my last gear. I was like a little kid as I watched the banners marking the end of mile 4 get closer. I had passed no runners during mile 4 and remained in no-man's land. The course doubled back on itself at this point and I wondered just how many runners ahead of me I could still catch once I let it all hang out. Racing had always been fun, but this was like 'video game' fun.

The gap that I was slowly closing in mile 4 blew shut in mile 5. One, two, three, four, five runners down. Mile 6 was a wicked mile. Not as bad as it used to be several years ago when we climbed straight up for over a half-mile, but it still had 2 good-sized hills - one at the beginning of the mile and one at the end. I worked hard to pass one more runner as I started up the first part. I noticed that my HR would not go higher than 158. In an instant I wondered if this was still a bit of backlash from my sickness last weekend. I had no clue what my time was but I knew I had left behind some pretty fast guys. I held it together through the middle of mile 6. I was deserately chasing 2 more runners and one of them looked as though they could be Masters age. I couldn't do it. My HR peaked at 159 and that made the very end of this race just a little different than my last few events where I was able to empty my tank in the finishing stretch. As a matter of fact, the runner I passed at the beginning of mile 6 passed me in the finish stretch the way I had expected to pass others.

The top of the hill marked mile 6 and left us just about a minute's worth of downhill to run. I finally noticed the race clock positioned at mile 6...33:53. My brain screwed up the math; I thought "wow, if I can do the last .2 miles in just over a minute, I'll break 36:00". In fact, I DID do the last .2 miles in just over a minute and almost broke 35:00! My 35:05 was a PR by over 40 seconds. I coughed a good bit when I was done, but not like last year. I managed to escape any allergy catastrophies...and I live to run another day.

Finally! ...with this glass my place setting is complete!

It was hard to imagine that with a 17th overall finish and a time of 35:05 that I would be the 4th runner over the age of 40 to finish. As I mentioned early on, 2 of those runners were invited elite runners. The other runner was from Georgia so that did mean that I was 3rd in the state. As a matter of fact, the fastest master took 7th overall which put him into the overall placings and I ended up with the 3rd place Master's award. As for my age group (45-49)...let's just say that things are looking really good for my bid at the Master's National Marathon in Minneapolis this October.

I have no idea who this guy is, but I'm guessing if you can make that face at the end of a race - you've got yourself a PR.

Race Notes:
* As always, thanks to Fleet Feet, TeamKattouf, Rudy Project and my wife...
* Congrats to my Fleet Feet teammates: Jon Stoehr (8th overall, 1st 25-29), Tim Briles (11th overall, 2nd 30-35...Tim is nursing an injury and just ran for training!), Jeff Gibbs (4th 30-34), Matt Pryor (3rd 35-39), Brandon Southern (2nd 15-19), Steven Pearce (4th 25-29), Mark Wilson (8th 35-39...Mark helped set pace for Susi Smith to annihilate the Master's Women), Kelly Boone (2nd 25-29) .
* Benjamin Stoner took 14th in the 5k event. I have no idea who Ben is but that is just a great last name.
* There were lots of impressive performances out there today but the one that I happened upon that got me was 64-year old Bart Smith who turned a 40:03, destroyed his age group and beat everyone over the age of 50 except for 3 guys. If Bart had been 1 year older, he would have won his age group by nearly 13 minutes.
* A huge shoutout to my fellow ScanSource employees. When I started there 10 years ago there were a couple of us that 'did this stuff'. We had a huge contingent out at Reedy this year!
* I hadn't planned to run the Cooper River Bridge Run in a few weeks but I'm running well so I'm hoping that it works out.
* To finish off a great week, I got to spend a beautiful Saturday and Sunday afternoon with Janis; a great party on Saturday night, and an awesome training ride with Gail Kattouf on Sunday.

Next Up: Either the Cooper River Bridge Run (10k) or my first Triathlon of the year - Downtown Columbia Triathlon...

Hanging out with Fleet Feet owner Sheila McCullough before the masses of people realize she has Mimosas at her tent.

 

Location: Greenville, SC
Date: Febrauary 20, 2010
Placing: 4th Overall
Race Photos
Results: Click Here

It's not much of a redemption, but I'll take it. I say it's a bit of a redemption because last weekend, me and 6,000 of my closest friends got 'snowed out' at the Myrtle Beach Half and Full Marathons. I was hoping to take a Master's victory at the highly visible event but wasn't 100% sure of my fitness. I'm a little more sure of it now but who's to say if the chips would have fallen into place at Myrtle Beach? Different day; different race. There are only 3 constants at any race: a start line, a finish line, and the chance to prove to yourself that you can do it - whatever 'it' is. Whether it be finishing first or just plain finishing, the only person you should be trying to impress is yourself. I've been doing this for so long that I'm no longer out to impress myself but I'm still looking to impress just one person - my wife. I learned right away when I met Janis that she was not easy to impress, and that's one of the things I love about her. She keeps me down to earth when I need it. She doesn't say "nice try" when she knows it wasn't...rather, she says "you didn't even look like you were trying to catch him". Was she impressed with my race today? I don't know. She made sure to tell me that 3 guys 'kicked my ass' ;-)

This was the 3rd time in 4 years that I've run the Green Valley 10-miler. It's one of my favorite local events because it's small, the course is challenging and it it doesn't start before the roosters get up. It's also a good gauge right before Spring hits as to my fitness level. Although I preach a lot about trying new events and adding variety to your schedule, you've also got to keep some mainstays that allow you to be comfortable with the venue and the organization. Plus, doing the same event lets you compare yourself against, well, your younger self. My younger self would be very surprised to find out that 3 years later, I would be even faster at age 45 than at age 42. I have to say that I REALLY revel in this fact because last year, before I learned that I had developed allergy-induced asthma, I had quit counting the number of people who's first reaction to my sudden drop in speed was..."well, you ARE getting older...". I was surprised that this comment came from both couch potatoes AND athletes. To the couch potatoes I say "No wonder you have no motivation, you just assume that one day your body will fall apart regardless". To the athletes I say "go check the 50+ and 60+ results from the last big race and then come and talk to me". Yeah, I get a little bent out of shape when someone insinuates that age is a deterrent.

I love these race start photos; it's like you can almost hear the gun firing as everyone leaps off the line. I'm the one on the front row who looks like they will be too hot...but won't.

Well that's enough with the philosophical stuff - let's talk race. I firmly believe the promotors of this race have some sort of mystical deal with Mother Nature. I missed the race in 2008, but the photos from 2007, 2009 and 2010 reveal the exact same weather day. A little too eerie if you ask me, but I'm not prepared to argue with sunny skies and warmer temps. It is a bit funny however that everyone looks at a day when the temps start to break and they only focus on the high for the day. "It's going to be 60 tomorrow" - as if we are going to wake up and go to bed and the thermometer will not move a tick from 60. At 8:45, it still wasn't quite 40 - although to see some people dressed you'd have thought it was 80. I warmed up in full Winter apparel and on the start line, I opted for shorts, a long-sleeved shirt under my Fleet Feet team singlet, gloves and a headband...and for the first time in a while, my dark lenses on my Rudy Project sunglasses as the sun was shining bright!. In looking back at the start photo, I was the only one in the first couple of rows wearing this much. I thought to myself that I might take off the headband if I got warm, but during the race I was so comfortable that the thought never occured to me. I'll definitely be using that low body temperature to my advantage when the South Carolina Summer sets in.

I started training with Team Kattouf just over 3 months ago and so far I have done 3 races this season. 3 races that have been run so very differently than the 300 before them. 3 races that have opened my eyes to a different way to race; a way that I hope will see me through some successful events this year. I've always been 'fast' - and left to my own conventions - I would most likely still be 'fast'. But now I'm becoming 'smart fast' and I like it a lot better (it certainly hurts in a more comfortable way, if that's possible). Today, I stuck to the new plan yet again and in my opinion, annihilated my old 10-mile time.

Several of the usual suspects were in attendence but part of my new 'smart fast' is to not care who is there. Because if I take note of who is present, I will be inclined to try and stay with the really fast guys; run THEIR race. I didn't go into the race with a hard and fast dictation of heartrates and mile splits so I just made some rules in my head that follow the methodology I'm learning. Under 145 HR for the first 2 miles, under 150 to mile 7 and after that, all bets are off. The gun sounded and I 'strolled' off the line. About a minute in, my HR started to catch up and I slowed down a bit and settled into a rhythm. A half-mile in and I counted the runners in front of me. Eight. I stuck to my guns the first couple of miles and I watched the runners ahead of me spread out more and more. There seemed to be a very even seperation between 4th and 9th places - each of us about 30-40 yards behind the other. I was comfortable and continued to resist my age-old urge to 'be at the front'.

Halfway into mile 3, I began allowing myself to go above 145 HR. It was as if I had been carrying a brick and jettisoned it. At 3.5 miles, I caught the runner in 8th. We stayed together until just past mile 4 at the top of a climb. We reached the top and he appeared to have to catch his breath. Since I was keeping the HR under 150, I didn't need to catch mine. And then there were 7. I repeated nearly the exact same thing for the next 2 runners. I would catch them ever so slowly and in an instant when recovery would typically be necessary, I just kept right on going. I pulled up next to the 5th place runner just past mile 6 and we ran side by side for a bit. Unfortunately, he had no idea that at mile 7 I would be jettisoning my last brick, and changing gears one last time.

Some great showings today from the Fleet Feet team (l to r) Jon Stoehr, Brandon Southern, Steven Pearce, Matt Pryor, G-Man (missing: Jeff Gibbs, Kelly Boone)

At this point in the race, the 3 leaders - including my FLeet Feet team captian, Jon Stoehr - were long gone. Somewhere invisibly up the road. Me? I had slowly and methodically caught and passed 4 runners and there was just one more left in my sights. I took full advantage of a long downhill and unlimited heartrate to close on him. When you race by heartrate, you begin to realize how much speed you are leaving on the table for downhills. I was nearly sprinting to keep the heart at 150 beats. If I am making this sound dramatic, well that's because it is. And do you know why? Anybody who has read my running race reports for the past several years might be able to guess the identity of the runner I am now chasing. He is as close to an 'arch-rival' as a person can have. 23-year-old Stephen Sykes, aka 'my shadow'. Last year, Stephen beat me at this race by 9 seconds. Two weeks ago, I beat Stephen at the Downtown 5k by 13 seconds. That's not even close to wierd - check out the results of the last 4 years of the Sunrise run, or any other run that we have done together regardless of length. It will scare you (it kinda scares me).

The 'Finish Line Face'

Since I was looking only at my distance and heartrate on my Garmin, I had no idea that unlike last year when I was hanging on for dear life the last 3 miles...this year my miles were actually getting faster. I caught and passed Stephen just as the course topped out on a long climb; mile 8.5. I was able to keep the pressure on and maintain my gap all the way to the finish with what I would find out later was a 5:36 last mile split (my fastest of the day). I thought for sure there was a mistake as the finish clock came into focus and it had yet to cross 58:00. After a quick glance over the shoulder, I coasted in. My watch read 58:10. Official race time: 58:13. I took 8 seconds out of Stephen; giving us a cumulative time seperation of just 1 second in two years of this race. The funny part is that he beat his 2009 time by 40 seconds...I beat mine by 57. MOST importantly, another PR (personal record) falls. My previous 10-mile PR was 58:47...3 years ago at this very event.

I obviously feel great about my first 4 events of the year but I don't want to get too excited; I've got a long way to go to impress Janis.

Takin' home 'the socks' for Fleet Feet, Team Kattouf and Rudy Project...

Race Notes:
* Okay, maybe ONE guy 'kicked my ass', Janis, but I'd have to argue the other two...
* My slowest mile was a 6:05...mile 2.
* I had several Fleet Feet teammates in the mix including our team captain Jon Stoehr who took 3rd overall, Kelly Boone - 3nd in her age group, Brandon Southern - 1st in his age group.
* Fleet Feet was also well-represented in the 8k event: Jeff Gibbs - 2nd overall, Matt Pryor - 4th overall, Mark Wilson - 2nd in his age group.
* This year's awards were a pair of black socks...the perfect thing for an old guy like me. Now I have something to wear while cutting the lawn in my loafers and Bermuda shorts ;-)
* Team Kattouf teammate Ashley Long completed her first marathon in Jacksonville this weekend in 3:33!
* Friend and sometime training partner, Kristi Arledge won the women's race.
* With the beautiful weather, I opted to do a 40-mile bike ride after the race and ended up meeting a new friend, Chris Adams. We had a great ride and I predict much success for Chris in the future.

Next Up: The Reedy River 10k (State Championships)...

Location: Myrtle Beach, SC
Date: February 13, 2010
Placing: Cancelled
Photos
Results (prior years): Click Here

I've always loved irony. It's as if life is trying to make a cheesy pun and then going "Do you get it?" Yeah, I got it. We act like it's stupid but inside...we always laugh a little. The Myrtle Beach Non-Half Marathon was like that for me. I'm sure a few people may have laughed more than me - and a lot more probably didn't even laugh a little inside, but their situation was probably a bit less ironic (irony is in the eyes of the beholder).

If you haven't read this report header thoroughly - or heard it online or through friends yet - the race was cancelled. The race at the beach was cancelled because of snow. The race at the beach was cancelled because of snow. The race AT THE BEACH was cancelled because of SNOW. That in itself carries a weightly irony but let me make it a bit more personal. Over the past 3 years, I've told a good many friends that they should 'follow me' to marathons and half-marathons becuase I have an uncanny knack for having the most perfect weather. For instance, I did the Boston marathon in 2006. The years leading up to - and following - that year were plagued with weather problems; cold rain, extreme heat, gale-force winds. Not in 2006. Low 50's and sunny all day. Perfect running weather. This past Fall, that exact same weather was duplicated at the Marine Corps Marathon and the Virginia Beach Half Marathon (both attended by yours truly). The list goes on. Oh yeah, follow me and Mother Nature is your friend.

I also passed on a friend's invitation to join them NEXT week at a half marathon in Jacksonville. Janis and I have never been fans of large events but I have to do them every once in a while and for this half marathon I decided that Myrtle Beach would be a more 'prestigious' half than Jacksonville - and it would carry some weight in the SC Runner of the Year rankings for 2010. I'm guessing Jacksonville will be in the low 50's and sunny next week.

And the 'piece de resistance'? I am known for my unforgiving attitude towards the weather people around here. I beleive it's their goal to over-sensationalize a pending snowstorm. And when their forecast for 3-5" of blinding snow materializes as barely a freezing trickle, I simply shake my head. As a numbers guy, I like to say that they will predict snow 10 times a year...and be right once. The REALLY funny thing about this past weekend is that we have had multiple forecasts that have fallen short in the past month or two, but for the first time all season nobody was in our face proclaiming snow and BAM! There it was. Across the entire state.

I knew a lot of people who were planning on doing this event and was looking forward to seeing them out on the course. Janis and I arrived Friday afternoon and made our way to the Expo to pick up my race packet. I had only recently found out that the race was slated to start at 6:30 in the morning. It's not even light at 6:30! If I had known that - coupled with the fact that the race course would not be completely closed to traffic - I could easily have surmised that the people of the city didn't really want us there in the first place. I mean really - it's a beach town in February for goodness sake; it's not like we are going to block hoards of beachgoers ready to spend their money on surfboards and swimwear. It was almost a slap in the face that they were announcing the start had been moved to 7am...but I would've taken 6:32 if they had offered it.

We heard talk of a meeting with city officials to take place at 10pm - and that they would make any change announcements after that. Janis and I spent a quiet evening in the hotel; taking advantage of the pasta buffet. I went to sleep at 9:30 fully expecting to race in the morning, albeit a little later than 7am. When my alarm announced that it was 5:30 the next morning, I fired up the laptop while getting dressed. Janis had turned on the TV and almost immediately told me not to bother getting ready...the TV was flashing that the race had been cancelled. If I have my facts correct, the race promoters were prepared to move forward but the city cited 'safety concerns'. I logged into Facebook to see a most unusual trail of postings from my other running friends who were there from the race. Apparently, several of them had stayed up to hear the verdict; after which time they descended into a drinking and partying frenzy.

The scene in the hotel parking lot on 'non-race' morning. Those poor bikes - somebody call child protective services...

There had been about 5+ inches of snow that fell overnight as evidenced by the roof of my car but Janis and I headed out for breakfast about 8am. We determined at that time that the roads were completely safe - at least they were safe from the threat of ice on the roads. As for them actually being safe?...read on.

Hmmm...I'd be at mile 10 right about now instead of eating this omelet if the race hadn't been cancelled

As we drove 'into town' to eat, a strange phenomenon began to occur. It started out slow, but stared to grow. 2 runners...8 runners...10 runners. Runners, runners, runners. I felt like I was in one of those movies where the underdogs just got their pep talk before rushing in to attack the enemy...or for those of you that are a little older...the scene from Planet of the Apes where Caesar shouts, "Now! Fight like apes!". It was unexpectedly inspiring. As I looked out the window of the Friendly's restaurant on the strip - eating my omelet - hoards of runners were passing in groups as little as 1 and as big as 15. Some were even wearing their race numbers. My brain said "that's crazy" but I couldn't help feeling like a kid sitting in time out. I wolfed down my breakfast and announced to Janis, "uh, I'm going to get the hell out there and run". It was invigorating, surrounded by snow and runners - both of which had taken over the city. The sun was out and the temps were great. I didn't want to make Janis wait too long so I opted to do 10 miles at near race pace. When traffic allowed it, I (and hundreds of my friends) ran down the road. When necessary, the sidewalk. It was like one huge AA meeting for obsessed runners. Each one understanding how the other felt and offering up friendly words. Some poeple even drove around the course offering food and water from their own vehicles. The truest irony of all was that hundreds - maybe thousands - of runners were taking to the course; all at different times and some in the opposite direction...and the streets weren't even partially closed! What they had succeeded in doing was creating a MUCH larger safety issue by NOT letting the race go on. The only difference is that the city had absolved itself from responsibility.

Those cones aren't marking the course, they are marking a construction area. Make no mistake, the roads are wide open...and the runners have taken over

I finished my 10-mile run by crossing the original 'finish line', where several race personnel stood by and handed out medals to those who would take them for the audacity to run a 'non-existent' race. I laughed hard as I crossed the imaginary finish line and two people made the phoney, high-pitched 'beep' that we are all so used to hearing as our chips typically cross the finishing mat. My 6:01 pace made me even more happy that I had ventured out.

For me, I was more disappointed that I wasted a vacation day, money for a hotel, etc. than the fact that the race was cancelled. For me, it is just one of 30+ races I will do for the year and I pretty much did my normal training leading up to the race. Others were not so forgiving - and that's understandable. Had this been my first half or full marathon, I would have been much more upset. Or if I had trained specifically for this race, I would have begrudged the city more.

Waiting for a bus that will never come

One last note: you might want to reconsider following me to any half or full marathons in the future...

Race Notes:
* I met a guy who flew in from Michigan; he was not real thrilled to find out that the same conditions he had been training in for months would be considered 'unsafe' here in SC
* Thanks to Janis for being such a good sport. Neither of us are beach lovers and this didn't make it any better for her (although she DID get her photo of snow on the beach)

Next Up: The Green Valley 10-miler and the Reedy River 10k...

Location: Greenville, SC
Date: January 23, 2010
Placing: 13th Overall, 1st Master
Race Photos
Results: Click Here

Does anybody else play the race number game? Maybe it's because I have this fascination both with numbers and coincidences, but whenever I go to a race (especially a larger one) and pick up my race number, I'm always looking for some weird, "Magic 8-Ball" interpretation of my number. I don't analyze it as 'good' or 'bad' but rather, for what coincidental meaning it may hold. Three weeks ago, I was #316 at the Resolution Half Marathon. I'm not an overly religious person but it dawned on me pretty quickly that John 3:16 is a very noted passage in the bible..."For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son...". This week, I drew #625. Maybe this number has some hidden meaning for you but for me, it is my mother's birthday (6/25). The funny thing is that it doesn't take a mathematician to see that it is actually the number of brain cells I kill at a race...

Although today is actually the 3rd race of my 2010 season (which for me starts around Thanksgiving each year after a break) it was really quite important on several levels. But the most important thing was it kicked off the answer to the question "Is G-Man really uncoachable?" Many years ago when I was a bike racer (shortly after the wheel was invented), I raced for a few different teams who each had a coach...and who each told me that I was basically 'uncoachable' for any number of reasons not the least of which was my stubborn demeanor. Over the past 30 years, I've developed my own ideas, theories and strategies that appear to have served me well. But I've matured now; or that's my story. So out of the blue one day I just decided it was time to listen to someone else's ideas. I mean, writing your own training schedule is almost as draining over the years as the exercise itself. Plus, when you fail you have nobody to blame but yourself. Now I can blame my coach (just kidding ;-)). This event also serves as the South Carolina 5k State Championships and I had my eye on the Masters title for 2010.

I figured at age 45, what do I have to lose if it doesn't work out? But I also made the commitment to be "all in" if I was going to give it a fair shake. The long and the short of it is that I formed a relationship with Rick Kattouf and he has been coaching me for 3 months now. I have followed his schedule nearly to the letter and although we shared a lot of the same workout ideologies, he definitely does some things different than I have ever done. The first 2 races of the season were 'C' level races and my results were good but I considered them negligible in my assessment of my new coaching. But this past weekend...well, let's just say that Rick was about to get his first report card. Read on.

Saturday morning was what we Rudy Project athletes call a 'racing red' day. With overcast skies and a slight breeze, my racing red lenses were a perfect choice to brighten my view of the course. Temps were in the low 40's and although I've acclimated well to living in the North here (well, it's the North if you were raised in San Antonio, Texas), I'm still a cold-weenie and really have to suck it up on the start line to not over dress. As for my warmup...long tights, hat, gloves, and a couple of long-sleeve layers up top and I felt completely comfortable. Watching people standing around all morning in shorts made me think about how lucrative the knee-joint reconstruction business probably is.

As much as I like to warm up with my Fleet Feet teammates, I've learned that everyone has their own pre-race ritual and schedule and you don't need any more stress before a race trying to make it work for everyone. I had decided last year that the exact perfect warmup for a 5k is to run the course once and that's what I did. It also gave me the opportunity to view the new course which was a welcome change from last year. I couldn't say for sure, but I believe the course had just about the same amount of climbing - it was just positioned a lot differently with a long steady climb in the first mile instead of what felt like a near-vertical wall in mile 3 of the old course. It was a perfectly timed warmup and I finished with just enough time to stop at the car, change into my race clothes and head to the start line.

Since I anticipated finishing in the top 30 or so runners, I lined up in the second row next to my friend Kristi Arledge who I hadn't seen since she broke the 3-hour mark at a marathon a few months earlier. This is Kristi's first year as a female Master...that's something that I'm sure will take some people by surprise (she finished 3rd female on this day). It was once again amazing to me that my second row somehow became about the 5th or 6th row by the time the gun sounded, which is why I at least try to line up near the edge of the road that is most likely to give me an 'out' if I need it - in this case, the left side of the road. The Greenville News sponsors the event and has a video of the entire race, start to finish, on their website. The camera was a bit of a distance in front of the start and zoomed in; so you can't hear much of what's happening. But you don't have to hear them say "On your mark..." because all of a sudden on the video everyone on the front line bends over, reaches for their watch and remains perfectly still for about 5 seconds. It's almost as if they all were suddenly taken over by mind control and given the exact same order.

I thought I might play a version of Where's Waldo with this one, but I helped you out a bit. Originally, I was on the 2nd row.

The instant they say "go", it goes from very quiet to a non-stop barrage of beeps that must have gone on for minutes after I was gone. Between our electronic chips activating as we crossed the start line - and the beeps of watches starting, it sounded like mechanical microwave popcorn. The first 100 yards was downhill and we all took off fast. I was about to run into the guy in front of me and I used my 'out' to the left. I suddenly found myself behind 2 young boys no taller than my stomach. If either of them had stopped or slowed down in that instant, the 3 of us would be sucking our dinner through a straw right now. I somehow managed to pull off a double-axel with a half-cartwheel twist and for the next 5 seconds I thought about how lucky I was and how stupid those kid's parents were. It's all fun and games till someone puts and eye out...

We began the 3/4-mile long ascent and per my race instructions, I did NOT attempt to hang with the lead runners - an maneuver that is hard for me but in the last several months has already proven to be highly beneficial. I set it on cruise control with the thought that mile 1 should be my slowest mile and my most relaxed. By the top of the hill, I had caught and passed a few runners who forgot how long 3 miles is and I was positioned about 50 yards behind the lead group (which was already starting to string out) - but ahead of everyone else. Since I never look back in a race, it felt like it was just the lead group and then me. I was absolutely blown away when I crossed mile 1 at 5:30. It felt more like 6:30 to me. I was calm, smooth, comfortable and already dreaming about mile 2 which was predominately downhill. I was so calm that I waved hello to several friends lining the streets and I noticed two new storefronts in the West End; Carolina Tri's new store location and RoadWaves - a new fitness/coaching center put together by my friend Jeni Schumacher (who also cheered for me).

I kept telling myself not to chase people down but to stay steady and strong and they would come back to me. I passed a runner at mile 1.5. I actually had enough energy to question whether I should surge around him or not. I opted to gently glide past him. By now, the real speed demons had separated themselves and there were only 3 runners ahead of me within striking distance. I try to look at all competitors the same but I have to be honest, I wanted to be sure I was the first place Master today and 2 of the guys ahead of me looked like they could be 40+ from behind. Of course, this almost never pans out because I picture myself looking as though I am 20 - so everyone who looks 20 could possibly be 40 ;-)

Mile 2 and no 'ugly face'?? What's going on here?

Mile 2 clock read 10:48...that was a 5:18 mile and I had made up hardly any ground on the 3 ahead of me. But I knew how well my HR can drop on a descent and I hoped I could mount my attack when the course bottomed out at mile 2.5. As I reached that point, I was still in disbelief at how, for the first time ever, a 5k race felt the same kind of hurt as a half marathon. And believe me, G-Man is a distance machine. If I can make a 5k feel more like a marathon then you just might see something special. I was focused but calm at mile 2.5 and had no problem giving coach Rick the thumbs up as I ran by.

We started to climb to the end of mile 3 and I had 3 different situations going on ahead of me. Runner 1 was falling back and had him on the radar. Runner 2 refused to speed up or slow down. It was like he was taunting me. Runner 3 seemed to have another gear and pulled away. I approached runner 1 as the course reached the high point again and it was Stephen Sykes! He fooled me by not wearing his favorite customary light blue shorts that he ALWAYS wears. He was apparently incognito! Stephen and I have a very funny history that you can read about in some of my past race reports but basically he is almost exactly half my age...and exactly the same speed. I've probably competed against Stephen in 2 dozen races of all lengths and the cumulative difference in our finish times can't be more than a minute. Today looked to be no different but it was looking like it was my turn to take the win in our own personal battle.

Finally, I rounded the corner with about .2 miles to go - all downhill to the finish. Runner 2 was still about 6 seconds ahead of me. I remembered last year how long this stretch can feel when you can see the finish banner from so far back. I started to really push and close in but stopped when I realized that I would only have one chance to pass him with everything and I'd better wait till the last minute. Well, he had glanced back and knew I was coming. He picked it up and so did I. I felt maxed out as we hit about 100 yards to go and I simply told myself that he would not be beating me. I don't care if my heart, lungs and legs think he is going to beat me - he is not. And he didn't. It was probably the hardest running sprint I have ever done. Turns out he was 37. Runner 3, who I thought might be a Master? 19 years old. So much for judging ages when you barely have enough oxygen for your legs. The fine folks at The Living Pixel captured my finish sprint in all its glory here. It may loo like I had the 'ugly face' but it was a lot less ugly than it has ever been in a race this short and it only showed up in the last 100 yards and not at mile 2!

Me and Joe Hammond display our watercolor awards. Joe took 3rd place master.

Race Notes:
* Rick's report card for this semester? A+
* My time of 16:48 was a PR...and my first mile was in fact my slowest mile.
* I had several Fleet Feet teammates in the mix including our team captain Jon Stoehr who took 5th overall, Kelly Boone - 2nd in her age group, Matt Pryor - 4th in his age group. My Team Kattouf teammates also fared well with Gail Kattouf taking the overall woman's victory and Chris Olson - 3rd in his age group.
* I was impressed to see about a dozen of my fellow employees of ScanSource step up to the challenge today; it's becoming an epidemic at work!
* Always interesting local awards at this event. Last year - wine from a local winery. This year - watercolor paintings from a local artist.
* I would be remiss if I didn't mention the adjustment that my chiroprator friend Matt Eiken gave me this week. I had been dealing with some lower back fatigue and I never felt a thing on Saturday - even after my ride up Caesars Head!
* Kudos to my friend Ashley Foster who used to work at ScanSource (where I work) and now is an event coordinator that puts on the race. Great job, Ashley.
* We planned a Team Kattouf group ride for after the race. A small but brave group of us did a 60-mile ride to the top of Caesars Head and back in the cold mist. I believe I can call this an epic training day.

Next Up: The Myrtle Beach Half Marathon and the Green Valley 10-miler...

Look ma, no problem bending over after the race!...thanks to Matt Eiken of the Mauldin Clinic.

Location: Travelers Rest, SC
Date: January 2, 2010
Placing: 1st Overall
Race Photos
Results: Click Here

It was a day like any other day...if you happen to be a penguin. If you are simply a human being living in South Carolina, well, let's just say I hope everyone brought in their brass monkeys. This is my second running of the New Year's Resolution Half Marathon and apparently, there a few things that I can count on: 1. It will be COLD. 2. I will see lots of friends I haven't seen in a while (this event seems to be fairly popular with many triathletes as well) and 3. The course will be long. Yes, even though it was a new course this year - and incorporated a sizeable section of the newly paved Swamp Rabbit Trail - they still managed to keep the extra .2 miles on from the old course. It's not that big a deal, I mean everyone has to do the same distance anyway. But I find myself arguing in my mind out on the course "That was a mile", "No it wasn't". And you begin to wonder, will ALL the mile markers be off or will they suddenly come back in line with reality in the last few miles? (I've had this happen before). Oh, well - I guess it's just one more distraction from the pain, uh - I mean enjoyment - of the race.

The hardest part of the event was figuring out what to wear. Initially - after stepping out of my car - I planned to simply run with a light coating of gasoline drizzled on myself so that I could simply light myself on fire. People would probably have run as fast as they could just to stay near me; maybe even carrying marshmallows to roast along the way. This was obviously a bad idea because my hands would have been too cold to strike a match. The starting air temperature was about 27 degrees but this was hardly the whole story. The wind was moving at about 100 mph and felt like 1000 tiny darts hitting you wherever you had exposed skin. My guess is that this took the wind chill factor down to -50...or somewhere around there. I'm not sure I've ever done a running race in tights, but I did today.

The 'sponsor pose'...Fleet Feet, TeamKattouf, Rudy Project and ...maybe Erin Baker's cookies if I can swing it ;-) (YUM!)

My warmup was intense - consisting of sitting in the gym of the YMCA and shooting the breeze with Nicole Ramsbey and Jeff Walthew. I had several friends ask me where my ever-present wife Janis was. They were kidding, right? I married someone much smarter than me. When I asked her if she would be joining me today, I didn't even merit a "No". Instead, I got some sort of a snicker-grunt. Just enough to let me know that I was stupid and she was smart. I remember doing some bike races in the extreme cold years ago. We would sit in our cars parked as close to the start line as possible with the heat on and the bikes leaning against the car. When the starter would hold the pistol in the air, we would jump out, jump on our bikes and go. That honestly is about what I did today; darting from the building to the start line about a minute before the proverbial gun went off.

I said the obligatory 'Good Lucks' to everyone I knew n the start line including fellow GTC Master runner Ed Hughes. I had asked Ed earlier if he would be running the half marathon or the accompanying 5k. He had told me the 5k. I thought they had different starts but I guess not. Oooops. I guess so. Ed ran about 2 miles before realizing he started with the wrong group. Sorry Ed - but that's funny ;-). What's really funny is Ed's penchant for amateur video making. Check out his recent production on youtube: T-shirt song.

The race started way up at the top of a loooong driveway to the YMCA. Which means as soon as they said "go"...down we went. Being world renowned for my downhill 'windmill-style' running, I instantly flew towards the front and just 30 yards into the race, there were 2 runners just ahead of me, and one runner opened up a sizeable gap on all of us. On my out-of-control romp down the hill, I passed the 2 ahead of me. When we finally bottomed out, the second half of mile 1 was all uphill. My coach and I planned that I would stay below 146 HR for the first 3 miles so after whipping down the hill, I found myself gradually slowing down on the way up. Just before mile marker 1, I melded into a group containing 3 other runners; Master phenoms Joe Hammond and Tim Stewart, and my Fleet Feet teammate Matt Pryor. We were in 4-7th place and we ran together for just about the first 3 miles. I would pull away a little on the down sections and they would catch back up on the up sections as I tried to keep my HR in the prescribed zone.

BAM! Mile 3. Finally. From miles 3-10 I was allowed to take the HR up to 150; a small but significant difference. I could continue to run at the same speed on the flats and downs but would no longer have to back down on the ups as much. I slowly seperated myself from my companions and noticed ahead that the 2nd and 3rd palce runners had caught and were dropping the initial leader. I stifled my desire to really chase them down and at mile 5, I too caught and left the initial leader which moved me into 3rd.

We swung into the back gate at Furman. With all the long, gradual ups and downs on the course, it was hard to tell which miles were more up and which were down but so far I had mustered the following splits: 6:04, 6:12, 6:01, 6:04, 5:47, 6:04. I kept smiling to myself at the thought of the fun that I might have eventually. You see, the two lead runners NEVER looked back. I don't blame them - I never look back either (except maybe in the finishing stretch). Halfway through mile 7, one of the 2 runners dropped a bit; the first sign that he was getting tired. I threw down a 5:47 mile and was no more than 30 yards behind them when one of them finally looked back at a turn. I think I surprised them especially since they passed me going pretty slow up the first hill of the race.

They seemingly picked up their pace but I stayed about 20 yards behind them - one runner slowly dropping his buddy. Somewhere around mile 8, I caught 2nd place. Moments later, the course came out into the open and turned back on itself. Somewhere around mile 6 I had wondered if I had over-dressed. The answer smacked me right in the face as we ran up arguably the toughest hill because of the open headwind. I ran behind him and let him set tempo to the top. Once over, I came around him with plenty of HR. He stayed with me for another 30 seconds and then it was just me...and one runner who had opened up a decent gap when he originally saw me coming 2 miles earlier. But what he didn't know as we turned onto the Swamp Rabbit Trail - and more headwind - was that at mile 10 I was allowed to take the HR up as high as I wanted.

In my estimates, the leader had 15-20 seconds on my at mile 10. Once again, he had stopped looking back. His mistake. When he turned and looked back at mile 11, I believe he was expecting to see his friend a ways back. Instead, he saw me less than 10 seconds behind him. I felt great running up the slow incline into Travelers Rest. He kept looking over his shoulder as I approached. Finally, when I was no more than 20 feet behind him he abruptly did a u-turn and headed back down the trail. Both the lead cyclist and I were baffled. I was honestly looking forward to a true 'race to the finish'. All I could assume at the time was that he turned back for his friend. What I would be left to assume later based on the results was that he was racing as a bandit just to pace his friend. Tsk, Tsk. I'll let each of you pass your own judgement but I wasn't going to leave it out since it was vital to the story.

I turned out of the headwind and onto the final downhill mile. With a comfortable cushion, I had little to push me this last mile which could have been a sub-5:40 considering the terrain. My Garmin put my actual 13.1-mile finish at 1:18:55 (a 6:01 pace) while the race finish clock - another .2 miles up the road - had me at 1:20:09. Not ultra fast no matter how you look at it, but plenty fast for the conditions.

The runner I cought at mile 11.5 'disappeared' while his buddy hung on for 2nd place. My Fleet Feet teammate Matt Pryor took 3rd overall. Joe Hammond (4th) and Tim Stewart (6th) showed once again that the Greenville area has some of the most talented Masters runners in the Southeast.

I call this one..."Old Farts". I can say that. If you say it, you'd better be able to run REAL fast.

Race Notes:
* As I mentioned - too many friends to recognize them all but I will call out my friend Rob Dempsey who emceed the start and the awards and also ran in the event. Also, a shout out to Katie Malone and Brad Fraedrich who ran the race after driving straight back from Wisconsin the day before. Dang.
* I can't help it. I have to point out that I'm 45 now and the 2nd place was 21. * Ed, if you're reading this, Joe, Tim and I decided it might be time for an 'intervention'...

Next Up: The Greenville News Downtown 5k and then the Myrtle Beach Half Marathon...

Location: San Antonio, TX
Date: December 12, 2009
Placing: 2nd Overall, 1st Master
Race Photos
Results: Click Here

It seems like only yesterday that my 2009 season ended. When I was strictly a bike racer for so many years I completed a lot more races in a year...but I also went a good solid 4 months during the Winter without a race. This year will mark my 30th year of racing - which I'm sure comes as a surprise to some of you since I barely look like I'm 25. One really unique thing about kicking off my 2010 season is that I did it in the same town where I entered my first race; San Antonio, Texas.

Unlike back in 1980 when I was 15 and took 2nd place in my first ever bicycle race, this season would start with a running competition. My younger brother still lives in San Antonio and I decided to pay him a surprise visit while my wife paid her family a visit in Wisconsin (hmmm, who do you think the smarter one is now?) I had originally planned my shot at vengence this week - aiming to take home another coveted "Pelican" trophy from the Kiawah Island Half Marathon. Last year I struggled through a bit of sickness to take the 2nd place Masters award. Although my 2nd place Pelican looks exactly like the winner's, there is one subtle difference to the trained eye...mine says "2nd Place" and theirs says "1st Place"...but the race filled very quickly this year and by the time I went to register, it was already full.

That's OK. Plan "B" was nearly as enticing; the Paris Mountain 20k. The oldest and toughest 20k in the Southeast. Plan "B" looked good until I found a cheap airfare and a chance to visit my family. Family ALWAYS trumps racing (at least that's my story). As luck would have it, I would be able to have my chocolate bundt cake with a ribbon of chocolate pudding and cream cheese icing...and eat it too. I found a local 10-mile race in San Antonio - the "Mission 10-Miler". The race was so named because it was run on a paved running trail that followed the San Antonio river south of town and passed by several of the famous Missions.

Besides being my first event of the season, it would also be my first event in my new Fleet Feet team singlet, my first event being coached by - and representing - TeamKattouf, and time to break in a brand new pair of running shoes. Unfortunately, it was not also the first time I got to run in 70 degrees in December. No - that would happen the very next day. On race morning, it was unseasonably cold and wet in South Texas.

Probably the funniest story about this event was not the race itself. I had stayed up a bit late the night before with my family and my 5:20am alarm came early. I dragged myself out of bed, got ready, ate something, and went about finding the race. It started at 'pavilion #2' in a large park south of town. Finding the park was not such a problem but I had assumed once I got there, I would drive around the park until I saw all the cars. And drive around I did. It was a fairly good distance from my brother's house so I left with plenty of time to arrive by 6:30 - when packet pickup was scheduled to start. Here I was at 6:20 and there was no sign of anyone. Wow, I though; this IS a small race.

Finally, I saw another vehicle pull up next to a gated driveway and stop. So I did the same. A few minutes later, another arrived. Two men exited from the vehicle and chatted for a moment in the near-darkness. They walked over to my car. I asked if I was in the right spot for the race. Their response? "Yes, this is it. But they won't open up the gate for us until just before 6:00". Uh, my watch says 6:35. If you haven't guessed by now...I own two watches and had only set one of them back to Central time. I had used the other as my alarm clock which means I actually woke up at 4:20am!! Aaaaaaarghhh.

I ended up helping the volunteers set things up before I picked up my packet and then went back to the car to warm up and take a cat nap. It was about 45 degrees and 'misty'. I struggled a bit about how to dress; reminding myself that I should be cold when I start in order to be comfortable during the race. I hate being cold. Without my wife Janis around, I had no team photographer, no team cheering section and nobody on the start line to hand off clothes to. I'm pretty much lost without her but I somehow managed to muddle through. Myself and the runner who turned out to be the eventual winner both made use of a post in the ground near the start to trust our headbands to. I was lined up near the front on a fairly narrow starting trail when the gun fired.

Yeah, I wish it was a giant check too.

My coach and I decided that I would stray from the "old Chris" and try running the race with a slight buildup in heartrate. My eyes were glued to my Garmin the first few hundred yards as my HR reached it's prescribed level. I fought the urge to stay with the lead runners and instead, focused on staying steady. As we crossed mile 1, I could see that I was in 6th place with the 5 runners ahead of me spaced out slightly. My Garmin beeped 5:54 which concerned me a bit. It was the anticipated time and heartrate - but it felt more strained than I would have expected. I pushed on and a half-mile later, I moved into 5th.

The course was flat to rolling so it was a bit easier to maintain a steady heartrate - and that's what I did. Little by little, I was closing back in on 3rd and 4th place who were now running nearly side-by-side. They had well over 15 seconds on me at one point but I was reeling them in. Closer and closer until I was only 10 feet behind them - at which point, something unexpected happened. The three of us reached a water station at mile 2.5 and right in front of me, the two of them swung a quick u-turn around a sign in the middle of the path. A second later, the volunteers yelled at me just as I read the sign "Relay Turnaround". The 2 runners I had just caught were doing the 2-person, 10-mile race. It only took me an instant to grasp what was going on and I let out a "Sweet!" loud enough for the people around to hear me. They were also quick to catch on to my elation as I was suddenly in 3rd place.

By mile 3, I could see the lead runner getting further and further ahead but I maintained my pace with a 5:52 and 5:56 mile. I also found myself rapidly gaining on 2nd place. It seems he was dealing with some harsh side stitches. I can't ever remember having to deal with those in a race - my 'iron stomach' has always allowed me to eat and drink anything with almost no consequence. As a matter of fact, I had only moments earlier sucked down a gel that I had hidden in the palm of my glove. Shortly before mile 4, I moved into 2nd place. It would've been a lonely run from that point on if the course had not been an out and back. As I made the 5-mile turnaround I could see how much cushion I had and felt fairly confident that I had 2nd place locked away. But could I break 59:00?

I kept my HR right on schedule through mile 7 but right at the point where I was really supposed to 'let it all hang out', my body really had nothing left to give. I seemed to be a bit prematurely tired. My last 2 miles were only a few seconds off of my other miles but I was expecting them to be a few seconds FASTER. I would cross the line in 59:16. 2nd place. The winner was a real speed demon taking almost exactly 3 minutes out of me...but he was a young pup. We were the only 2 to break an hour.

Because I was visting family (and had their car captive), I told the promoter that I needed to leave early. He not only obliged me by giving me my award, but he actually gave me a full blown presentation to the crowd over the loudspeaker and even let me speak a bit. Someone even volunteered to take a photo for me. The SARR (San Antonio Road Runners) really put on a great little event. I just wish I could've hung around for the rest of the awards, the door prizes and the Christmas party!

OK; this has nothing to do with the race, but it's a great shot of the instant my nephew hit my older brother with a snowball.

Race Notes:
* I got an email comment on my website the next morning that said "When a cycling legend comes back to his stomping grounds and is ranked #1 in the nation in the duathlon, he is supposed to do the "Hel of Du" out on your tuesday nighter loop and dominate and restore order to the progeny you have left behind. Not do the "mission 10 miler." Maybe I wasn't just a legend in my own mind?
* As I was walking away from the venue, I guy jogged up beside me and said that he had shown up to win the Masters - which he would've done if I hadn't shown up. That's me, the dream-crusher ;-)

Next Up: A fun New Year's 5k and then some serious running events including the Myrtle Beach Half Marathon...

Location: Washington, DC
Date: October 25, 2009
Placing: 41st Overall (21,211 finishers)
Race Photos
Results: Click Here

The human body never ceases to amaze me. Take for example the ability to run 26.2 miles...not really THAT amazing. But running 26.2 miles and having to pee the entire way and not stopping? How does the body do that? Unfortunately, that unsavory nugget of information is absolutely true. Lucky for me, the feeling came and went throughout the course of the race and only reached 'critical mass' 2 or 3 times - primarily on downhills. At one point I seriously debated jumping into a wooded area and told myself that I would only loose about 30 seconds. The day I was having, I wasn't willing to take the chance...

I have found through past seasons that an end of the year running race typically plays out well for me. I am usually pretty fit from the traithlon season but I suddenly only have to train for one sport and that makes for a perfect situation both physically and mentally. And since I knew it would end my season, I decided to pick a venue where Janis and I could enjoy a few extra days...and we have always loved the culture and history behind our nation's capitol. Of course, we are also not big fans of the 'uber'-large events but you've got to do some of these to see how you really stack up. I mean, first place at the "Country Bumpkin Festival 5k" is awesome, don't get me wrong. But for me, I gotta put that in perspective and the Marine Corps Marathon is the 5th largest marathon in the US...I figured that should do it.

An awesome view of a huge event. Notice the cannon in the lower left; I knew it was coming but it still scared the bejeezus out of me.

I'm going to cut right to the chase because this event was unlike any distance event I have ever done. It was one huge experiment. Now people experiment a lot when they do races - but usually in small chunks. Not me. Not today. I broke the biggest rule of experimentation; "don't change multiple variables". If you do, you'll never be sure which variable created which outcome. The way I saw it, I had 30 years of learning my body - as well as some empirical data from thousands of runners before me. In essence, I KNEW what things would most likely make me faster; I was always just too nervous to change my ways. But the stars aligned for me. Which basically means that this race had absolutely no importance to me. 2:30? 4:30? It did not matter. I wanted to do well, but truly did not care if I didn't. And that situation made for what I term as "The Perfect Storm".

In order to see my experiment through, I had to have an idea of what I was 'trained' to run. The last 3 marathons that I trained for ranged from a 2:52 down to a 2:42 and seemed to be comesurate with my training committment. On a scale of 1 to 10, I trained about a 6 for my last marathon (2:52), about a level 8 for my Boston qualifier in 2005 (2:47) and a level 9 for my Boston run in 2006 (2:42). I would call my level of training for this marathon right at about a 7 and fully anticipated to run almost exaclty a 2:50.

So, what was going to be different in DC? Let me give you a quick synopsis of my typical marathon: 1. Start out fast. My first mile is always under a 6:00 mile. 2. Take a gulp of liquid at every aid station - no food. 3. Slowly and methodically 'fall apart' in such a controlled manner that I manage to hang onto a great time even though my last mile is 1.5-2 minutes slower than my first mile. Most runners can spot some of what 'conventional wisdom' would call 'obvious flaws' in my strategy. Racing this way would most assuredly spell disaster for many people but the 2 things (I beleive) that have made it work for me are that I raced bikes for so many years; and in criterium racing you take off like you were shot out of a cannon with no regard for the miles ahead (recovery during a bike race is easier than recovery during a run). The other thing is that I seem to have a unique ability to suffer which translates to the fact that I rarely ever die suddenly. My body somehow manages to keep squeeking out miles (although slower and slower).

The single biggest piece of empirical data that I keep hearing over and over again is that every record ever set for every distance running event was done at negative splits. This means running the second half of the race faster than you run the first half. I'm still not sure that I beleive this works for everyone, but I do believe that a small difference between the first and second half produces better results. So my goal was to try not to slow down so much over the course of the race. To accomplish this, here was my plan:

1. First mile slower than 6:00 - could it be I over exert myself initially and have trouble bouncing back?
2. Eat a lot - my body has always seemed to burn more than most endurance athletes. Am I simply running out of calories to burn?
3. Run by heartrate - am I prematurely spiking my HR and building lactic acid too quickly?

Here's how it all went down...

Based on my submitted time estimate, I got one of the first 500 numbers and had the privelege of starting in the first coral. Being the 'cold weenie' that I still am, I was the last person still wearing tights, a long-sleeved top, gloves and a ear-warmer. With 2 minutes on the start clock, I slipped all of these things off, excet the gloves and threw my disposable clothing into the crowd. I was cold but knew that it would only last for a minute. I also knew the 50-degree temps and sunny skies were perfect conditions for me. The weather mirrored my Boston Marathon from 3 years earlier. I had all but forgotten the fact that the race began with the firing of a cannon, but "remembered" the instant it went off and I nearly jumped out of my skin. Away we went. I was wearing my Garmin as I always do in running races but instead of looking constantly at my pace, today the only screen I would be looking at was my heartrate.

I look like I'm about to start a polar bear run. Having a low body temperature is rough on cold days but it's a godsend when others start overheating.

Mile 1: The group charged ahead but for the first time ever, I pretended like none of them existed. I would not be sucked into a 5:45 first mile. Only once - when a small group came running by - did I have to remind myself that the race did not end at mile 1. As I ran by the first mile marker, they called out "6:12". I pretended in my mind not to hear it...but I smiled just the same. My first goal was accomplished and I felt as relaxed as ever. Mile 2: Since I was running purely based on HR, I never even looked at the elevation charts...and boy was I surprised to see a long climb in the second mile. I started glancing at the HR and made sure I never hit 150 on the hill even as others passed me. Mile 4: I passed the 5k mark at 18:55 and was happy with how 'easy' I was running. I caught the 2 lead women and stayed with them for a mile as the crowd yelled things like "looking good, ladies!"...I was pretty much invisible. At this point, I began implementing part 3 of my strategy. With the help of Rick Kattouf, we decided that I should eat early and often. I told Rick that I had an 'iron stomach' and that I could probably eat a pizza at mile 10 and keep running. With that in mind, he suggested an energy gel every 4 miles in addition to water (more than just a gulp) every 2 miles. That's 6 gels in 26 miles. I was used to eating 1 or none. It felt wierd to be eating so early in the race but in my head I knew that I was selling myself short on calories in the past so as the mile 4 sign came into view - I slammed my first gel.

Mile 6: For the 3rd time, I found myself next to a guy who was sporting sideburns and 'chops'. He had elicited several comments from the crowd as we passed and I made a little small talk with him; I told him "you shall forever be known as 'sideburns guy'". We traded small talk and laughed about it. A group of about 12 caught us and we merged in. Mile 8: A good hill forced me to back off of the group so as not to get my HR over 150. Although the group would dwindle much later in the race, I stayed within 15 seconds of them for the next 11 miles.

Mile 9: Out of nowhere, I heard someone cheer for me in the crowd and looked over to see Greenville runner Martine Mumford (who recently moved to DC). It was funny to see a familiar face this far from home. Mile 10: "Sideburns guy" pulled up next to me yet again. This time we chatted about our goals. He was a sub-2:30 marathoner but had not trained to be that competitive at this race. When I told him that I too had not trained for my fastest race but was expecting a 2:50, he responded with "you realize you are currently running a 2:39?". I responded that I hadn't really thought about it and was trying to run based on heartrate. He then imparted some wisdom on me just before he ran ahead. "just remember, there's no such thing as a cushion - only a sponge". Oddly enough, I had run all my marathons with the opposite thinking. Trying to build up a huge time cusion so that I could afford to slow down. Based on the outcome today, I'd say he knew what he was talking about.

I've said at this point that I was ahead of schedule. In reality, I was running by heartrate and had no time schedule. According to my average heartrate, I was right on time.

I still felt as though I was hardly working but my watch read just over an hour and 1 minute. Since I had to give Janis an estimated schedule and didn't know how successful my experiment would be, I had told her that I would pass the 10.25 mark at an hour and 6 minutes ...I was about 4 minutes ahead of that schedule when I saw her through the crowd. Miles 11-15: I hated this section. It was the flattest and straightest section with little change in scenery as we ran around a piece of land that jutted into the Potomac. I started the section staring at the backs of the runners in the group that had caught me at mile 6 - and next to 2 runners. After 4 miles, we were all in the exact same position. I crossed the half-marathon timing mat at 1:19:39. I knew this was a sub-2:40 pace...but I'd been there plenty of times before when my pace deteriorated rapidly late in the race. Would it happen today? I had no idea. All I knew was that my average HR at that point was 144 and I had already consumed more calories than I ever had in a marathon.

I would later come to learn that my splits through the first 20k (12.4 miles) were unbelievably even without even watching my pace once:

1st 5k: 18:55
2nd 5k: 18:53
3rd 5k: 18:50
4th 5k: 18:54

Mile 15-18: For the first time today, I started to feel it. I gave Janis a smile as I passed her in the crowd again at mile 16 shortly after sucking down energy gel #4 and I hoped that I could produce a result that she would be proud of by the end of the day. I noticed my HR creeping up very slowly. As I ran down the Mall towards the Washington Monument, I forcibly slowed down several times when I saw 148 or 149 on my watch. I felt like I was really slowing down but I stuck to my guns and found that I was also catching more runners. I knew my HR would eventually begin to climb but I wanted to control it at least until mile 20. What I would learn after the race was that my pace DID slow down from 20k to 30k but only 5 seconds per mile...and I held it even again:

5th 5k: 19:12
6th 5k: 19:11

Mile 16 was about the time I started feeling the effects of the effort. Fortunately, it was also the time that we were greeted with distractions of some inspirational monuments.

Mile 19-22: Halfway through mile 18, I saw Martine again and she made me smile with all her excitement. I also hit a short hill and glanced down to see my HR hit over 150 for the first time today. I had a feeling that the flood gates were opening and I immediately fell back into my old habit of thinking that my body would now deteriorate rapidly and that I would still do OK even if I averaged 7-minute miles. Apparently, some of the things I did today worked even better than I could have anticipated...but I wouldn't know that for several more miles. I was completely alone when I saw Janis for the last time at mile 20 and I hammed it up for her photo. I slammed gel #5 and for the next mile, it was almost like I found a little something extra in the tank. We had 2 good hills in this section and while I felt a bit slower, I was amazed to top the hill at mile 22 without feeling like I was working beyond myself. Normally by this mile, I am in 'survival mode'; almost in tears to push my body to the end. Here I was at mile 22 and so far...?? At mile 20, I could no longer keep my HR below 150. The distance was taking its toll but in a much more controlled way and my body was fine with my heart reaching higher.

7th 5k: 19:42

Even in a race of 20,000 I still manage to find myself in 'no man's land' at mile 20. I ham it up for Janis.

Mile 23-26.2: I remember these miles well in Boston. It was all I could do to keep moving. I made deals with myself just to keep from walking. Today, the thought never crossed my mind. It was tough - but I didn't feel like I had to dig so far down that I was ripping my soul out. I focused on runners that were ahead of me. One by one I ran down 6 or 7 in the final miles. When I hit mile 24, I skipped my last and final gel but took some calories in the form of energy drink instead of water. I distracted myself for a minute or two as I realized that my pace never really plummeted - at least not yet - and that unless I fell off a bridge, I was pretty much going to crush my expected goal. There was even a chance that I could set a new PR. That thought was in my head for no more than a few seconds when I reached the top of a ramp and was instantly smacked in the face with an unrelenting headwind for nearly a mile. It was a brutal thing to deal with less than 3 miles to go and it took a bit of the wind out of my sails. The last and final nail in the PR coffin was the final .2 miles as we passed the line where we started the race...and then climbed up to the site of the Marine Corps War Memorial; a pitch so steep, I might as well have been walking. As always, they fumbled with my name as I gutted out the final steps to the line. 2:43:13. 25 seconds short of my personal record and nearly 7 minutes faster than anticipated. 41st overall out of 21,211 finishers. I could not have been happier. Oh yeah, the first thing I did was find a port-a-potty.

8th 5k: 20:21

The last .2 miles of this race single-handedly robbed me of a PR. An unbelievably short, steep climb. At one point, I could reach forward and pick things up off the ground. OK, not quite THAT steep...

Did the experiment work? Hell yeah. To put it into perspective...at Boston, I was 3 1/2 years younger, had trained quite a bit harder for a course that is downhill (point to point). It was a great way to end the season and give me a new goal for next year: Master's National Marathon in October in Minnesota. By breaking 2:48, I earned Masters Elite status for the event and I think I have the ability to eclipse the 2:40 mark - and a good shot at a podium spot. But for right now...the season is over and it's chillin' time!

Thanks to our marines - and all members of the military for helping make the USA a great place to live, work...and RUN!

Race Notes:
* Racing around some of our nation's most cherished monuments was simply amazing.
* The day after the race, Janis and I did a night tour of DC...on Segways! What an amazing technology. If you've never ridden one, take the opportunity.
* For the 'umpteenth' time this year, I raced outside of the Greenville area...and experienced a huge drop in my allergy/asthma symptoms.
* Every chance I got - I made sure to personally thank the military volunteers. Not for their help at the marathon, but for their service to our country.

Next Up: Time to rest a bit and to enjoy some group runs and rides. Janis and I will do the Tree Greenville 8k on turkey day and my training partner Dan and I will do our "2nd Annual Ride to Atlanta" in November...

Location: Conyers, GA
Date: October 18, 2009
Placing: 1st Overall Team
Race Photos
Results: Click Here

I lied. Sort of. I said that after Duathlon Worlds that I just had one event left for the season but I actually kept forgetting about this event. I'm sure it's because I kept thinking of it as a more of a 'fun' event rather than a race. And quite honestly - although I put my heart into it - that's exactly what it was. Fun. With a capital "F".

This was the second time this season that the Greenville Track Club has managed to gather together a group of 'old farts' (aka 'Masters') to go out into the world and act like we are teenagers. Teenagers with jobs, mortgages, falimilies, etc. - but teenagers none the less. Our local club is fortunate to have some pretty talented Master runners who share some great comeraderie. We had such a great experience last month at the National 10k Trail Championships that we HAD to find another event...and Joe Hammond was just the guy to do that.

We were all 'pimped out' in our tent thanks to Joe.

An 'ekiden' is simply a long distance relay race. The term is Japanese and dates back to the early 1900's. The formats can vary widely and the Atlanta Ekiden's format was: off-road (trail) race for teams of four participants. The distance was 40k (24.8 miles). The course was 8 - 5k loops. You could opt to run your team however you wished. Some teams ran A A B B C C D D. We thought it would be faster to run A B C D A B C D so that each runner would do 2 legs seperated by a rest. Since we had the wisdom of the ages on our team, we decided on the exact strategy with as much logic and scientific thinking that we could muster..."Let's split up our legs because it will hurt too much to do them back to back...and Joe, you go first because it's cold and this was your idea...". Very scientific.

Because this was a team event, the age groups were determined by adding up the ages of all four participants. The ranges were set so that your average age mirrored the normal age groups. There was an 'Under 120' group (average age under 30), a '120-160' group (average age between 30 and 40), a '161-200' group (average age between 40 and 50), and a '200 and Over' group. We were in the 161-200 group. Myself, Ed Hughes and Joe Hammond were so far at the end of this age group that we were able to hire a 'Master-wannabe', Kevin Mosteller, to be our fourth member. At the 'baby' age of 37, Kevin was able to help carry our walkers and administer our Geritol when needed. We could have gotten someone as young as 22 years old and still met the 121-200 age requirement but then would would've ahd to deal with changing diapers and feeding schedules...

Joe wastes no time darting to the front of the group.

The close to 40 teams lined up in the 40-degree, sunshine and the start gun was fired. Joe immediately jumped up towards the front of the group as we watched them disappear into the woods. About 17 minutes later, Joe and another runner emerged neck and neck into the finish clearing with a 3rd runner not far behind. Joe went through the finish chute and quickly stopped in the transition zone while Ed grabbed the ankle strap from Joe's leg, affixed it to his own, an took off. The runner that finished alongside Joe did not stop. Apparently, his team had decided to run back-to-back legs and by not stopping he had opened up a 15-20 second gap on Ed.

No, Ed is not proposing to Joe. At least I think he isn't...

Ed would emerge from his leg almost exactly where he started - a handful of seconds behind the leader. I was up next. Still 20 seconds behind the lead team, who themselves had just transitioned to a new runner, I took off in pursuit. Once in the woods, I completely lost sight of my quarry until about mile 1 when I rounded a curve and he suddenly appeared. I closed in quickly; caught and passed him. This runner was not quite as strong as their first runner and I wanted to be sure and put as much time gap as possible in case their last 2 runners were really fast. I'm not sure how much time I gained but when I came into transition, the gap was sizeable...and I was about to hand off to our speed demon.

Kevin kept telling us that he didn't want to have to run too hard so we had better have a big lead when he took over. Anything else we can do for you, Kevn?

Kevin smoked his 5k lap - even after posting a 2:36 marathon time just a week earlier at the Chicago Marathon. From this point on, we never looked back. Our second laps were each slightly slower than our first but not by much. In the end, we took first overall with a time of 2:39:20 (a 6:25/mile pace) and had taken 6 minutes out of the second place team - a team competing in the 'Under 120' age division. The most impressive thing was how consistent were were as a team. Not a single one of our 8 laps was slower than 21:00. There was not another team out there that broke 21:00 on every lap.

Kevin Mosteller, myself and Joe Hammond enjoying the day...and the "V".

In our 2nd appearance in 2 months, the Greenville Track Club's Master contingent has managed to not only produce an awesome result, but have one hell of a great time doing it! We'll all be keeping our eyes open for more team events in the future...maybe the Greenville Track club can incorporate an event into next year; or tack one onto an existing event. These are way too fun to pass up.

One event left - the Marine Corps Marathon on October 25th. I'm anxious to try something new at this event