4 Weeks to Akron

<- The VR group before the 20 miler run on Saturday in Akron (photo courtesy of Nick B.)


Yesterday I joined the VR group for another 20 miler along the Akron course. I knew that this was a mistake because I had already done too many miles this week, plus I ran on Friday. Normally, Friday is a rest day and it has been like that for a long time. But, I dropped my car for service in Independence and I decided to run back home (I like to combine running with errands). Total of 9 miles, and I was tired.

I drove to Akron via Riverview Road (no highways). The weather prediction was “sunny” but there was thick fog covering the valley. Driving was a challenge. I met the “usual suspects” at 6:30 am in downtown Akron. A large group, maybe 40+ runners. After the first slow mile, I picked up the pace and joined the lead group. Things were going well at first, but when I stopped at the first water station in the Sand Run Parkway (about halfway), to my surprise, no one else stopped. So I got separated from the group and ran the rest miles alone.

I was gradually getting tired. The last water stop was at the Firestone HS. I could see the running group in front. At Stan Hywet we crossed paths as they were coming back and I was going up. At this point I thought I would catch them, since last week this section was the strongest for me. But this week, it was actually the weakest. Someone had said earlier that this stretch (From Stan Hywet to Market St) is called “Death Row” because a lot of runners are struggling to run it. I smiled when I heard this because I ran it strong last week, but this week I was out of strength and started walking. So it was indeed “Death Row” for me. Nick B. was behind me but he was having trouble too, doing the run/walk thing. Maybe the high humidity (I was soaked in sweat) was a factor too.

Going down Market Street (last week I had my fastest miles here) was no fun. The sun had finally come out and I had forgotten my hat, and that did not help either. I was happy to get done with this run!

My mile splits tell the story: 9:09 8:06 8:14 8:07 7:59 8:05 8:13 8:18 8:28 8:14 8:46 8:49 8:33 9:09 9:45 9:04 10:55 9:56 10:36 10:30. The first 10 miles are not much different from the previous week, but in the last 4 miles I averaged over 10 min/mile while last week these were faster than 8 min/mile.

At the end, it does not matter. I am happy I put a lot of miles this week (57). I am only concerned about my weight which is going up (I have already gained several pounds since Greece). The Buckeye ½ M is next week. I am planning to run it strong and maybe set a PR. We’ll see…

5 Weeks to Akron Marathon

This year I have decided to run the Akron Marathon. This is a first for me. In the previous 4 years I have run the Towpath marathon instead. Since the Towpath marathon is so close to my house and I always run in the Towpath, I felt that the right thing to do was to support the Towpath marathon. But this year there are two weeks between the two marathons so I have decided to try both. I used to think that people who attempt two marathons so close to each other are crazy. Now, I am getting close to being one of these crazy runners myself. :)

I have heard good things about the Akron marathon. I like the course, and the free pair of shoes is an extra incentive. So we are 5 weeks away and our group (part of the VR training group) decided to run a 20 miler in the actual Akron marathon course this past Saturday.

This was a great training run! The weather was perfect, cool and sunny but we ran in the shade mostly, the course was beautiful and the company was very nice. We managed to stay together as a group for most of the run. We started at 6:15 am (had to wake up at 5:15, ouch!) There were several stops with water and Gatorade. My pace was fast (8:07 average with several miles under 8 minutes). I ran the hills strong. I felt great. I was not really tired towards the end (20.5 miles total distance). As a matter of fact, my times the last 4 miles were among the fastest for the entire run (the fact that the last miles are downhill helped too).

Here are my mile splits: 8:39 8:25 8:22 8:07 8:05 8:09 8:11 8:12 8:12 8:23 8:05 8:29 7:43 8:23 8:07 7:49 8:20 7:45 7:23 7:34 8:04. Last year I ran the same course and my average pace was 8:19 (also good, but this year it is even better!)

After such a good run I am confident that I will do well. My goal time is 3:30.

Finish Line Sprinting – Does it Annoy You?

<- Finish of the "Perfect 10 Miler". I am sprinting, finishing ahead of Susan and another female runner. Bad running etiquette?

In the September issue of “Runner’s World” there is an article titled “Don’t be annoying”, listing some of things that runners find annoying. I agree with some of them. For example, when people yell “you are almost there!” at mile 20 of a marathon. Well, I’ll be “almost there” when I can see the finish line, so please don’t give me that nonsense, OK? :) I still have an hour to go and I can barely move my legs.

But what I don’t get is this: A reader from Tallahassee FL writes: “What annoys me? Guys that can’t handle being beat by girls and try to sprint by me at the end!”

Excuse me?

Why do you think you are so special and guys are trying to beat YOU? I bet most guys are like me. I always sprint by the finish line. I am trying to improve my time and I think it is a good running practice to give everything I have left, when I see the finish line. I am running against the clock, trying to improve my PR, or break the course record. That’s what I like about running. I am not running against other runners, but against myself.

One exception is if I see someone who I know is in my age group and we are both competing for the same age award. So, I don’t care about any woman that happens to be around me because we are not competing for anything in common.

Case in question, the “Perfect 10 Miler”. See that attached picture. I sprinted at the end and passed Susan. Did I do it because I cannot stand to be beaten by a woman? Of course not! I was already beaten by a bunch of women. Everyone was sprinting at the end. This is the right thing to do. Granted, if there was no one in sight, I would be less inclined to sprint at the end. Having runners around me is an extra incentive. But if Susan was Joe, I would still be sprinting. Sex, age, race, are not important.

Now, here is the interesting part… Looking at the 10 Miler results, there are 5 runners finishing around me within 3 seconds:

41 4/25 John Sobolewski 34 M-30-34 35:28 1:09:56
42 7/43 George Themelis 49 M-45-49 34:41 1:09:57
43 2/33 Lisa Robertson 38 F-35-39 35:00 1:09:57
44 3/33 Susan Louis 38 F-35-39 34:54 1:09:57
45 8/43 Ron Disidoro 46 M-45-49 34:25 1:09:58

John is too young, but Ron, finishing one second behind me, is in the same age group. Of course at 7 and 8 in our age group, we have no chance for an award.

But Lisa is the same age as Susan and finished first in her age group, while Susan finished second with exactly the same time. I bet Susan would have sprinted a bit harder if she knew how close she was to getting first place in her age group.

Here is a funny story that happened a few years ago. I was running a local 5K when someone caught up with me. I looked at “him” and “he” appeared to be younger. "How old are you?" I asked. "41" “he” said. "OK, I am 46, we are not in the same age group, you can pass me."

So “he” passed me and when we hit mile 3, “he” was a few yards ahead. At this point I went into an amazing sprint, passed “him” and finished well ahead. After I finished, I looked at the “guy” and he appeared to be a woman (short haircut, flat chest, etc). Later I looked at the results and indeed she was a woman. I could think of some smart things she could have said to me when I said "you are not in my age group”. "I am not even the same sex, you moron!". That would have been quite embarrassing.

Perfect 10 Miler 2008 – Race Report

Yesterday I ran the "Perfect 10 Miler" race in the East side of town. I ran this race last year for the first time and I enjoyed it. My time last year was 1:08:31, which is also a 10 mile PR for me. Before the race I tried to figure out a reasonable time goal. I know that I have lost speed the past few months so I knew that a new course record was impossible. Plus, instead of resting, I ran 15 miles yesterday. So I figured that I would be happy with a pace of 7:30/mile, which gives a time of 1:15.

Traditionally, the weather is always rainy for this race but this year it was an exception with nearly “Perfect” weather, cool temperatures and sunny. The race started at 7:30 am. I hooked with a couple my “buddies”, Susan, Rose, Mike, and Brett for a short time in the first mile but I felt good and pulled ahead. Mike passed me around mile 3.



The race is on residential streets, following a rather complicated pattern (see picture here and also in this link where you can follow the race route: http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/player/6539979)

The first 4 miles are rather flat but for the next 2 miles there is a gradual uphill. Last year this uphill slowed me down, but this year I was running it strong and comfortable with a nearly constant pace of 7 min/mile.

There was a water stop at mile 5. I was getting ready to grab a cup, when the guy in front of me dropped a cup and then took the last cup so I was left without water! This made me a bit mad, and I stormed ahead. At this point I passed Mike and did not see him again.

Miles 7 and 8 are downhill and then mostly flat from there. I was getting tired after mile 8 but I did manage to maintain a fairly constant pace. I got passed by a couple of runners towards the end and suddenly I saw Susan passing me. This motivated me to run a bit faster to keep up with her. We entered the High School stadium for the final 50 yards on track. I started sprinting, along with everyone around me. I managed to pass Susan right before the finish.

Final Time: 1:09:57 (pace of 7:00)
The pace was fairly even with 34:41 in the first half and 35:16 in the second half.
Placement: 43/405 overall, 7/42 age.

Overall, I am happy because I exceeded my goal. Actually, my time in this race is better than the Hermes 10 miler earlier in the Spring where I won 3rd place in my age group. I now see that I can run 7 minute miles in long runs. If I can maintain this pace I can improve my 1/2M and Marathon times.

Comparing the races in 2007 and 2008, I see that even though I was 1 ½ minutes slower than last year, this time loss came mainly in the first 4 miles:

------- 2007 - 2008 ------
Mile 1 - 6:25 - 6:49
Mile 2 - 6:43 - 7:07
Mile 3 - 6:34 - 6:51
Mile 4 - 6:46 - 6:57

The next miles are about even, which means that I have gotten stronger in the later part of the race:

Mile 5 - 7:02 - 7:03
Mile 6 - 7:14 - 7:10
Mile 7 - 6:57 - 6:52
Mile 8 - 6:50 - 6:58
Mile 9 - 7:11 - 7:12
Mile 10 - 6:56 - 7:02

Next race: Buckeye half marathon, September 7.

Greece 2008

If I have been “missing in action” for the past 4 weeks it is because I was in Greece, enjoying a 2 week vacation… (and I was busy before and after)

<- Group shot from our July 28 run, courtesy of Nick B. I am the 3rd from the right.

The week after the Buckeye 50K was mostly recovery week. I went for short runs (1-3 miles) on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. By Wednesday I was feeling better and did 5 miles, and 8 miles on Thursday. I joined the VR group on Saturday for a 12 mile run. Here is a group picture taken by Nick B.

We left for Greece on Thursday July 31. We took Delta to NY and then switched planes for a direct flight to Athens. The flight was uneventful (everything was OK). We stayed in Athens for 3 days and on Sunday we flew to Santorini, a popular Greek island. We stayed in Santorini for a week (with my family and our 3 older nieces), enjoying the sea, sun and good food. We then returned (by boat) to Athens and stayed for 4 more days. We returned back to the USA on Thursday August 14.

<- Santorini (also known as Thira) is a very popular Greek island, famous for its volcano and beautiful scenery. We stayed in Perissa in the south end (green mark). Shown here is my running route along a stretch of 2 miles by the beach that I did almost every day (4 miles back and forth).

While I was in Greece, I ran every day (except for one) but shorter runs, from 3 to 5 miles. In Santorini there was a long stretch by the beach from our house to the end of town. This was 2 miles. I would usually run it once back and forth (4 miles) early in the morning (around sunrise). One time I ran it twice (8 miles) and one time I took side roads for an extra mile. The weather in Santorini was beautiful, sunny with not a single cloud in the sky. Temperatures were in the 70s (hotter in the sun) with a nice breeze. Definitely ideal vacation weather. In addition to running we did a bit of hiking (two times, several hours each time), enjoying the beautiful scenery and taking plenty of stereo pictures (I returned with 42 rolls of film).

In Athens I found a loop, starting from our house, up to Acropolis and down by Thesion. Then back to the bottom of the street near Acropolis, and back. (You can "play" my route by going ito this link: http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/player/6540217) This was a total of 3 miles. Athens is a big city with narrow streets and lots of traffic, but this route was on pedestrian only streets so I did not have to deal with traffic. Overall, it was a fine family vacation.

<- My running loop in Athens (click to enlarge). Starting from our apartment, by Acropolis, I headed to the left through Thesion, ending with a small loop by a park and back, running in front of Acropolis, followed by a small loop (right) by Plaka and then back home. An enjoyable route.

I was afraid I had lost some running fitness, definitely speed (I had not run fast for weeks now, due to the 50K training) and possibly some endurance since I did not do any long runs in Greece. So I decided to join the VR group last Saturday for a 15 mile training run, even though I had signed up for the “Perfect 10 miler” race on Sunday. I figured that a long run was more important for me than a good race.

For the 15 mile run we did this popular route: From Peninsula to Boston Store via the Towpath, then up Boston Mills Road (difficult uphills) then on the Bike and Hike trail, all the way to the road connecting to the Carriage Trail, then back to the Towpath and from there to Boston and finally to Peninsula. A total of 15.6 miles. At first I was afraid that the group was too slow for me, but I hooked up with two new guys, both faster than me and had a good run. My mile splits: 9:04 8:37 8:34 8:30 8:20 7:56 7:53 7:52 7:48 7:49 8:21 8:23 8:29 8:26 8:28 8:06. This run gave me the confidence that I needed. I have not lost any endurance, thanks to my daily runs in Greece.

BT50K - Aftermath

I woke up on Sunday with pain in every muscle and tendon in my legs! From hip to toes. Clearly my quads were hurting, but also my hips and my lower foot. What a difference from last year!

Last year I ran the BT50K and I was fine the next day. A few months later I ran the Towpath Marathon and then I was in pain for a week. So I concluded that a Marathon is much harder on the body than a 50K. Others agreed, and different theories were proposed to explain this: The 50K is run at a slower pace, with walking breaks (“It is not the distance but the speed that kills”.) There is a variety of terrain, leading to a variety of muscle work, which is much better for the body than the monotonous constant pounding of the pavement during the Marathon.

All this sounds good, but how do you explain what happened this year? My Cleveland Marathon was a piece of cake. I was ready to resume running the next day. And now, 2 days after the 50K, I can barely walk. With great pain (and lots of swearing) I can get down the stairs. I am suffering!

This leads me to believe that it is all relative. I was well prepared for the 50K last year and the Cleveland Marathon this year. I was under-prepared for the Towpath marathon and the 50K this year, and I tried hard in these two races. The 50K felt harder this year because I put (a lot) more effort to it. And now I am paying for it. It is that simple.

<- This picture (of me finishing) was taken by LloydT. My wife is in the back holding a camera (click to enlarge). Thanks Lloyd!

Photos and reports on the BT50K are coming in… The unofficial results are posted with 25K splits (new this year). There is some interesting information from the 25K times.

First, it appears that there are only two negative splits (someone actually did the math and posted the info in Vertical Runner's discussion list). You must make a special effort to go very slow in the first half, in order to have a negative split (run the 2nd half faster than the first). I think Vince mentioned that last year Jeff Hirt had a negative split. Maybe he was running with friends in the first half and then decided to go ahead alone. But this year, looking at the first page of the results it looks like the closest to an even split is a 4 minute difference. 2nd half times are from 4 minutes to over an hour slower. This from just looking at the first page. (Correction: finisher #84 Roy Heger who finished in 5:42 actually has a negative split: 2:55/2:47)

My 25K split is 2:33, so I ran the 2nd half 15 minutes slower than the first. No surprises here. I knew this was going to happen and I did not care. I thought I would be much worse than others, but, looking at the results, it appears that my second half was better than most.

Another good piece of information from the 25K splits is how many runners passed me and how many runners I passed during the 2nd half. Everyone who finished ahead of me had a faster 25K time, which means that no one passed me in the 2nd half. From the 9 people who finished after me, 7 had a faster 25K split, which means that I passed these 7 runners in the way back. That makes me feel good. :)

Since this is only my 2nd Summer BT50K, I am trying to figure out how I did, compared to last year. My time this year (5:21) is 7 minutes slower than last year (5:14), but my placement is better (19th vs. 28th). I see that Kam Lee ran 15 minutes slower this year. If I reduce my time by 15 minutes, my placement is about the same in both years, so I conclude that 15 minutes will account for the weather difference between the two years.

I am now looking forward to the next 50K race!

Buckeye 50K - Summer 2008

<- After 5 hours and 21 minutes of running (some walking too) I am ready to cross the finish line - finishing in 19th place, a great accomplishment for which I am very proud :)


Yoo-hoo!

I am happy… for two reasons:

1. The ordeal is over. As I told my wife “this was the hardest thing I have ever done!” And I am glad it is over!

2. Despite inadequate trail training, I did great… a) Even though my time was slower than last year (5:21 vs. 5:15), because of the hot weather everyone’s times were slower by 10 to 20 minutes, so relatively to others, I did well. Last year I was in 28th place (out of 149 runners), this year I finished 19th. b) I finished ahead of all my running friends, including those who are younger than me and have faster marathon times.

The Weather Factor

Last year we were blessed with a cool weather and dry trails. This year it was hot (70F at 6 am, going up to near 90F with humidity). It has been like that for a week now. The good thing about this dry weather is that the trails were mostly dry. For most people this hot & humid weather was a problem, but, for me, I will take a hot day with dry trails any time, compared to a cool day with wet trails. Plus, it was cloudy and it felt cooler in the woods. So I did not have a big problem with the weather. Yes, cooler would have been better, but it could have also been a lot worse.

My Training

Why was my training inadequate? For some reason I was unable to complete a trail run over 12 miles. The unusually wet weather in June/July proved to be a problem for me. I get very tired running in the mud. For example, my last training run before vacation was scheduled to be 24 miles. While the rest of the group was running half the distance (Brecksville to Pine Lane, about 15+ miles) I decided to do next week’s run of 22 miles (Brecksville to Boston and back). The first 6 miles were fine but then I got really tired, got bitten by flies and bugs, and ended up walking in the way back from Boston and finally walked home after 15 miles, aborting my planned run. In short, it was a disaster! After this fiasco, I had doubts whether I could finish the 50K race.

We then left for vacation to California where I did a lot of (road/dirt road) running (see previous blog). In 5 days I ran 65 miles, including one 20 miler. This increased my confidence. After vacation I went to a conference. I came back on Tuesday, 5 lbs lighter. On Wednesday morning I was 160 lbs. For the next 3 days I did nothing but eat and sleep. On race day I was back to 165 lbs, rested and with full reserves. (I followed the same strategy before my succesful Cleveland Marathon - diet, then fill up). A proof that this "filling up" works is that, unlike last year, I did not need to eat anything during the race, I was filled. But I drank water… plenty of water!

<- This is the entire Summer Buckeye 50K course. We start at Brecksville at the top. First aid station (6 miles) is at Snowville Road. Then from Snowville to Boston is 5 miles. Then, 4 more miles to Pine Lane. And then we run back.

Race Day:

I got up at 6:00 am. The lights in the kitchen were on and I could smell something nice cooking. My 19 yr old daughter was up and she had baked a banana bread for me (I had a slice for breakfast). She said she stayed up all night long because she wanted to come with me to the race start to take pictures. How nice of her. She drove me to the start... She then met me at the first aid station (at Snowville).

The course is out and back and has three sections, with an aid station after each section:
1. Brecksville Park to Snowville Rd. (1.5 from my house) 6 miles.
2. Snowville to Boston, 5 miles
3. Boston to Pine Lane, 4 miles. Turn around, and 3, 2, 1 back to the finish.

The race started at 7:00 am. I positioned myself near the front. The first 6 miles felt easy. I caught up with Bob Clarke and Lindsey Loftus and we ran together at a rather fast pace of about 9:00-9:30 min/mile. Both these guys are better runners than me, so I was happy to keep up with them.

In a trail run like this, individual mile splits are meaningless. They are all over the place, depending on the uphills/downhills on a given mile. Most runners (myself included) walk the uphills. I was more interested in my average pace. For a long time this was around 10 min/mile which is very good, if not too fast for this kind of weather. But it gradually drifted to 10:30/mile.

My daughter met me at the first aid station and changed shirt. From Snowville to Boston I was following Bob and Lindsey. Right after we crossed Columbia road, Bob stopped to drop something (a bottle of water for the return?) I went ahead, thinking these two will catch up with me later, but I never saw them again. I ran the rest of the race mostly alone. The trail was not closed to the public, so we met walkers and other people enjoying the trail. I remember a group of runners that passed me in that section. All young males (local cross country team) all without shirts, running really fast. Later I met a (smaller) group of young female runners.

At Boston I was greeted by the helpful volunteers. Everyone was very helpful, asking if I needed anything. Howard Murray from our running group rushed to fill my bottle with cold water. I was very impressed by the efficient service and individual attention. Thank you guys!

As it turns out, I just missed my wife and daughter at Boston, by only a few minutes. I continued to Pine Lane. At some point I saw a young guy running in the opposite direction. Could that be the lead runner? Sure enough, a little behind was Kam Lee, the winner of previous year's race (and a number of years before that). These two guys were well ahead from the rest of the group (at the end, Kam Lee won the race). As I was getting closer to Pine Lane I got to see other runners in their way back. Around runner no. 6 I saw my friend Beth (mentioned in this blog) who was the leading female runner. As it turns out, Beth finished first and Elizabeth second. Elizabeth has improved a lot in the last year (she was well behind me last year and well ahead of me this year).

I reached the Pine Lane aid station, filled up my bottle and headed back. This year I tried to spend very little time at the aid stations. Saves a bit of time. In the way back I got to see all the runners behind me. Then I realized that I was doing very well, running ahead of Aaron, Jamie, Nick, and other runners who are faster than me. They were all very encouraging… Rose, Susan, Jen and Jamie were running together and got really excited to see me “way to go George!”, hi-fives, etc. That was really nice!

Even though I was running rather comfortably, I was not sure if I could even finish the race. My hip was starting to hurt from mile 13 and I was getting progressively tired. I had decided to run as I felt and if I had to walk the last miles, I would walk. If I had to quit, I would quit.

At the Boston aid station I met my wife and daughter. After that, my daughter went to sleep and only my wife followed me in the last aid station and the finish. It is nice to have a familiar face meet you at the aid stations in these long races. Makes you look forward to getting to the aid station. Plus it is nice to be greeted by the volunteers, encouraging you to go on.

The return from Boston to Snowville road was mixed. I did a fair amount of walking but also good steady running at some sections. I passed a couple of runners. I clearly remember when I was getting close to Snowville. This was one of the highs of my race, running fast and steady, not feeling tired at all.

Finally, I arrived at Snowville for the last leg of the race. These final 6 miles are the most critical. They usually make or break a runner. And, in a hot day like this, most likely break :)

I started this last leg very well and actually passed a few runners, but gradually I started to get tired. I was of course walking the uphills but soon found myself walking the flat sections too. I was running alone and was looking back but could not see anyone behind me, so, as I was getting more tired, my motivation to run was declining. It got to the point where instead of running with a few walking breaks, my run was reduced to walking with a few running breaks. I was afraid that people would catch up with me, but there was no one I could see behind me.

Finally, I reached a (unmanned) water stop with a sign "1.7 miles to go". I filled my bottle, drank plenty of water and poured water over my head. This refreshed me and I started running again. My times in the last two miles were surprisingly fast: 9:00 and 9:30.

I entered the park area looking good (looks are deceiving... I was feeling like s---t!)... My wife was there to take pictures. I crossed the finish at 5:21. My whole body was hurting. I could barely walk. My first reaction was to sit down, take off my shoes and pour cold water over my toes. I needed plenty of cold water. I told my wife " this is the hardest thing I have ever done" and "Why am I torturing myself like this? I don't think I will do it again next year".

Chef Bill Bailey had prepared a nice meal for us but I was in no mood for food, other than a few bites of fruit that my wife brought and plenty of water. After resting for half an hour, my wife drove me home. I could barely get in and out of the car. At home I took an ice bath and felt better. I then got dressed and drove back... Jen had already finished ahead of the rest of the group. Rose finished a bit later, with a smile in her face, looking fresh as if she had just come back from a 10 minute leisure walk. Susan looked really tired. This was the first 50K for these three ladies, and maybe the last, if we can believe the after-the-race statements. :)

Finally, I was feeling better and ready to eat! Chef's Bailey's wrap was delicious! My friend Dan was there, so I had a good time eating and socializing with other runners.

When I got home I went for a long walk with my wife. I am already feeling better. And guess what? I am making plans for next year's 50K run!

A Vacation to Remember - July 2008

<- 4 runs to remember (Top to Bottom, Left to Right): 1) Outside Yosemite Park on a beautiful 5 mile dirt road, 2) Monterey CA, 3) San Fransisco downtown, 4) Grand Rapids MI downtown


We left for a 6 day family vacation to California on Thursday July 3rd. My wife had a conference in San Francisco and we turned it into a family vacation.

We started with two days in Yosemite. We stayed at a lodge just outside the park. We arrived on Thursday afternoon. Friday morning I went for a run on a local country road. It was 5 miles, mostly uphill from our lodge, ending in a campout site up the mountain. This was a dirt road with no traffic. Regular shoes were OK but trail shoes gave a bit better traction.

I started around 6:30 am, with the temperature at 50F. It was absolutely beautiful! I crossed streams, meadows, and beautiful vistas in the rising sun. I was inspired with this nice run that the next day I did the same thing but took my stereo camera to record the beautiful scenery and my audio recorder (Olympus LS-10) to record the sounds of nature (birds, etc). So I took my time combining photography and running.

<- Scenic Monterey CA run (click for a more detailed map)

Saturday afternoon we left for Monterey where we stayed 2 more days. On Sunday morning I went out running and right away I saw a group of runners along the seafront. I joined them for a long run. They were part of a local running club, doing their long Sunday run. One fellow (who happened to be Greek, like myself) was training for a marathon in 3 weeks so he was doing a 20+ mile run. It was again a beautiful route along the Monterey bay, a combination of roads and dirt trails, with the rocks and waves on our side. Part of the route was along the famous 17 mile scenic ride.

One runner expressed surprise that so many runners showed up in that “cold” and “rainy” day. Well, this day was perfect for running, beating the hot & humid days we often experience in Ohio. The next day (Monday) I went running alone, 10 more miles.

<- I would not mind running in SF every day! (click for details)

Monday July 7th we left Monterey and arrived in San Francisco in the afternoon. Another beautiful city! On Tuesday morning I went for a long run by myself. I followed Market street to the Bay, then towards Fisherman's Wharf and I ended up at the Golden Gate bridge. I ran half way through the bridge and then back. Total of 15 miles. Again, gorgeous run. This is the best way to see/experience a city: Run through it! I was again carrying my camera and stopping to take pictures along the way.

This was only the highlight of my runs, not including all the walking, tours, shopping, eating, and other family activities. Overall, a memorable vacation. I came back with 20 rolls of film (stereo pictures) and interesting audio recordings. In 5 days I ran 65 miles: 10 + 10 + 20 + 10 + 15. This must be a new record.

I returned to Ohio on Wednesday July 9th. The next day I left for Grand Rapids, MI, to attend the NSA (National Stereoscopic Society) annual convention. During the convention I ran a total of 4 x 5 = 20 miles in 6 days. This was fun too. I also did not eat much so I lost some weight, but gained it all back, while carbo-loading in preparation of the Buckeye 50K race tomorrow.

I have dropped all my film (20 + 17 = 37 rolls) for processing and I look forward to mounting the stereo slides and re-living this memorable vacation.

Bees 5K Cross Country 2008 – Race Report

The Bees 5K race in Brecksville is back! I ran the inaugural race in 2003. Then again in '04, '05. Skipped '06 because it was the same weekend as the Jim Klett race. The race was not held in '07, so now it is back under different management (apparently) in 2008.

This is a cross country race, using the Brecksville HS cross country course. It is TOUGH! In previous years my main problem was running on a muddy, slippery, trail-like course. That’s before I was running trails. If you want to see the course and “play” my run, go to this link:
http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/player/6102583

Here is my history of the event:

2003 - 26:27 (8:28 pace) first 2003 RACE - Bees Inaugural 31/118
2004 - 24:25 (7:49 pace) 1st Age Award!!! 13/132
2005 - 22:50 (7:18 pace) dry fast course, 2nd age group
2008 - 22:23 (7:12 pace) 15/130

Somehow I managed to improve my time from last time. I wore trail shoes thinking that this will help handle a slippery course. But the course was mostly dry, despite the heavy rains the past few days (in rained at 6:30 am this morning). The weather cooperated (75F and no rain). I am pleased with my time on a very tough course. Lea struggled a bit (expected) but finished with a respectable time. I am happy and proud of her. Liz (still recovering from Achilles tendon injury) came for support and took pictures.

<- Lea storming ahead. This part of the course was on grass. We later entered the Brecksville HS cross country course, which reminded me of the local trails, but well marked, including markings of roots and other obstacles.

For some reason this year they did not give age awards. I do not personally care since I enter to support a local race for a good cause (the money goes to support resurfacing the Brecksville HS track). But I think age awards are a good idea for a lot of the older folks who enjoy being rewarded for their efforts. Also, it would be nice to see the final results posted in the internet. The only awards went to the top 3 runners (M and F), plus the first Brecksville and first Broadview Hts runners, which essentially means that the same people received two awards, while the rest got nothing. Not a great idea, in my opinion. I hope they will change this next year if they want to attract more runners other than Brecksville students and their families (there were a lot of kids running this race).

The race T-shirt was nice (yellow with black letters with a touch of red – I am wearing it now!) and the refreshments and race organization were first rate. I will definitely enter again next year.

Week 25 – Training Report

S: The week started with the 3rd Buckeye Trail training run. Started slow from Columbia road but picked up the pace and actually lead the group in the Boson-Pine Lane section. Maybe it was the greasy dinner the night before, or the new trail shoes… I’ll never know.
M: Drove to Chicago to pick up passport. 2.5 easy mi. with Lea in the evening.
T: Fitness but skipped running
W: Aborted trail run because I was tired and had the wrong shoes. Snowville to BT, to Columbia and back, 6 mi.
T: Interesting day: At noon I went for 6 miles, Columbia rd and back, all road. It was hot (80F & sun) and went fast. In the afternoon after fitness class I decided to run home. The trails were wet and started raining around 7 pm. Fell down (first trail fall for a long time!) Got soaked (totally soaked). But for some perverted reason, I enjoyed the run! Walked up Snowville home.
F: 1 mi with Liz at noon. She is getting back!
S: 6 am with group 6 miles, then 1 mi with the 7 am group and the home. Took a shower, got dressed, got the family up and we went for the Brecksville Bees 5K run (see report).

Total for the week: 46 miles, 166 lbs

Buckeye 50K – Training Run #3

Training Run #3 was really short, from Boston to Pine Lane and back, about 8 miles. To make it longer, I parked at Columbia Rd and ran to Boston (3 mi). This added 6 more miles to my run, a total of 14.2. Since I was tired all week and ran 15 miles yesterday, I was not sure if it would be a good idea to run today. I was tempted to skip this run. But I forced myself to get up and go, and I am glad I did! Somehow I had one of the best trail runs so far. I am not sure why. Last night we went out and ate a hamburger, fries, melted cheese, so lots of calories and fat. Maybe that helped :) Anyway, I led the group for quite a while. Average pace 10:34. I made a new friend, Beth. She is a short, thin (95 lbs!) runner, running her first trail run. I expect her to do very well in the race.

Week 24 – Training Report

The week started with the 2nd Buckeye Trail training run. My legs were tired from the Jim Klett 6mi race the day before. Unlike last week, I could not finish the run… very slow and walking. Felt really tired. After the trail run, I took an ice bath again. Not sure if it helped. Felt tired for the rest of the week.

S: 2nd Trail Group Run, Snowville to Boston for the group (Columbia to Snowville extra for me) 15 mi.
M: Yoga & water running
T: 2 mi in the morning, run to the RC for fitness (BT trail, 8 mi) in the afternoon, tired!
W: Trail run (Columbia to Snowville via the Trail), 6 mi
T: Run to RC via BT (8 mi) & Fitness – still tired
F: Rest
S: 6 am with group 7 fast miles, then 8 mi on Tow, slower

Total for the week: 53 miles, 166 lbs