Today We started Marathon Training with USA Fit. The program is put on by Run Gear Run and is the same one that I participated in last year. The first day they start with a three mile - determine your pace run. Since three miles is a little short for my weekend long run I decided that I would run to the training site and run home. The program started at 6:30 this morning so I had to get up at 4:50 to try to leave by 5:30 to run the 6 miles to get there. Yeah this wasn't the greatest idea, but I did it anyway. I left a little late and got there a little bit late. I found my running partner Julianne and chatted with her until it was our groups turn. Things have been exciting for her as she just moved into their new house - yeah!!!
So I finished the pace run and headed back home. The run home was pretty rough. It had been several weeks since I had run a long distance and I could tell. I was running so slow and stopping to rest and walk that I could hardly believe that I had run a marathon in 4:05 back in February. Hopefully I will get my conditioning back quick.
The other reason that running to the training program and home may not have been a good idea is that I am running the Austin 10k+ tomorrow morning. I can already that the run today will effect me tomorrow. I have not felt well the rest of the day and have been very tired. I was able to take a little nap earlier. Hopefully I will feel better in the morning and the soreness will be gone.
May the Force be with YOU!!
Chad
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Race Results - Steubing Ranch 5K
It was a beautiful day for this race. The morning was cool and there was a nice breeze. Jill and Arin got up early to volunteer to get the race setup while I stayed home and waited for Rachael to wake up (we thought it would be better for all if we didn't have to wake her up ;-)
The start of the race was about an hour away and she was still sawing logs so I had to wake her up. I got her moving and we made our way down to the community center for the start of the race. There were about 60 people that were participating in the run/walk so I made my way to the front of the pack for the race start.
The race was going pretty good. I was up near the front of the pack. At one point I think that I was in second place, but that did not last long. We were about a mile into the race when I came across a kid that was taking down own of the directional signs that was telling us which way to turn. I started yelling at him that we were using those and that this was being put on by the HOA. His loud mouth mother starts yelling back out the window. Ridiculous!!!! Then when I come back around the loop she is out in the street yelling some more - I kept telling her to come on and run with me ;-)
I may have said a few things that didn't really help the situation - oh well.
Anyway, I finished 5th with a time of 23:24 which is a pace of 7:40. I was very pleased with this time. I leaves me hope that I can finish a 10k at an 8min/mile pace in the near future.
After I finished I headed back out and found Arin and finished with her. She did great!!! She ran about half of it and I think that she finished just over 30 minutes. She had a great kick at the end to finish strong!!!
After I crossed the finish line with Arin I went out and found Jill and Rachael. I caught up with them shortly before they were passing by the house. Rachael was pretty much over it and wanted to stop at the house, but she kept on going. We got to the park and she was done, but she did a great job walking almost three whole miles!!!!
I took Rachael with me to the park while Jill finished the 5k. After a little while I went out and found her not too far from the finish and walked with her to the end. She did a great job!!! She did the entire distance with really no training. One of the funniest things is that she said Rachael had to stop several times on the walk and have her massage her knees!!! That was soooo cute!!!
Congratulations Jill, Arin, and Rachael!!!! Way to go!!!!
Chad
The start of the race was about an hour away and she was still sawing logs so I had to wake her up. I got her moving and we made our way down to the community center for the start of the race. There were about 60 people that were participating in the run/walk so I made my way to the front of the pack for the race start.
The race was going pretty good. I was up near the front of the pack. At one point I think that I was in second place, but that did not last long. We were about a mile into the race when I came across a kid that was taking down own of the directional signs that was telling us which way to turn. I started yelling at him that we were using those and that this was being put on by the HOA. His loud mouth mother starts yelling back out the window. Ridiculous!!!! Then when I come back around the loop she is out in the street yelling some more - I kept telling her to come on and run with me ;-)
I may have said a few things that didn't really help the situation - oh well.
Anyway, I finished 5th with a time of 23:24 which is a pace of 7:40. I was very pleased with this time. I leaves me hope that I can finish a 10k at an 8min/mile pace in the near future.
After I finished I headed back out and found Arin and finished with her. She did great!!! She ran about half of it and I think that she finished just over 30 minutes. She had a great kick at the end to finish strong!!!
After I crossed the finish line with Arin I went out and found Jill and Rachael. I caught up with them shortly before they were passing by the house. Rachael was pretty much over it and wanted to stop at the house, but she kept on going. We got to the park and she was done, but she did a great job walking almost three whole miles!!!!
I took Rachael with me to the park while Jill finished the 5k. After a little while I went out and found her not too far from the finish and walked with her to the end. She did a great job!!! She did the entire distance with really no training. One of the funniest things is that she said Rachael had to stop several times on the walk and have her massage her knees!!! That was soooo cute!!!
Congratulations Jill, Arin, and Rachael!!!! Way to go!!!!
Chad
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Steubing Rank 5k Run/Walk
Today I will be joining the family to run the Steubing Ranch 5k. I don't usually run this distance so I am excited to see what my time will be. I am planning to run it hard then go back and catch up with the family and finish it with each of them. Should be a fun day with lots of activities going on!!!
The best part will be the pizza that we have planned for dinner tonight!!! Yum!!!
Chad
The best part will be the pizza that we have planned for dinner tonight!!! Yum!!!
Chad
Friday, April 9, 2010
NY Marathon - Lottery results
Late last year I entered the lottery to get a chance to run the NY Marathon. There are several ways to get entered to run in the NY Marathon, but for most of us we have to enter the lottery drawing. Well they have completed the lottery drawing and have published the winners that will get to run in the 2010 NY marathon. Drum roll please..........
I did not win an entry to the marathon. This is just as well. I had not planned on running in the NY marathon this year due to the lottery system. They do have a backdoor entry. If you do not get into the marathon through the lottery for three years in a row, then you are guaranteed entry for the fourth year. So if I apply again for 2011 and 2012 and do not get in I will automatically get in in 2013. I think that 2013 will work into my plans just fine and I will be set to run the 2013 NY Marathon. My goal will be run the NY Marathon and qualify for the Boston Marathon.
It is just as well that I did not get in to the NY Marathon this year as back in November I had signed up for the 2010 San Antonio Rock and Roll marathon so the NY Marathon did not really fit into my plans for this year. Typically, this would result in me getting the race entry, because it would not really fit into my plans. This time I got lucky.
Chad
I did not win an entry to the marathon. This is just as well. I had not planned on running in the NY marathon this year due to the lottery system. They do have a backdoor entry. If you do not get into the marathon through the lottery for three years in a row, then you are guaranteed entry for the fourth year. So if I apply again for 2011 and 2012 and do not get in I will automatically get in in 2013. I think that 2013 will work into my plans just fine and I will be set to run the 2013 NY Marathon. My goal will be run the NY Marathon and qualify for the Boston Marathon.
It is just as well that I did not get in to the NY Marathon this year as back in November I had signed up for the 2010 San Antonio Rock and Roll marathon so the NY Marathon did not really fit into my plans for this year. Typically, this would result in me getting the race entry, because it would not really fit into my plans. This time I got lucky.
Chad
Monday, March 22, 2010
Austin Marathon Race Report
Okay it has taken me a really long time to get around to doing the race report. Just not motivated to write after long days at work and hours playing Mafia Wars!!!
One word can describe my experience at the Austin marathon AWESOME!!!!
I had a great time - this was probably the best marathon experience I have had. I ran the first 11 or so miles of the race with Julianne (my training partner), Jenny (my tutor), and Yun(Jenny's friend). They were all doing the half marathon. We had a good time running at a good conversational pace. This was a 20+ reunion for Jenny and I. We went to the same high school and she helped tutor my in one of my classes. She was a year older than me and had not talked after she graduated. We found out that we were both running this race through Facebook. If it had not been for Facebook I know that we would have passed by each other on that day and not had recognized each other.
So the four of us chatted the whole time and the miles just flew by. Jenny introduced me to Runner's Math. We talked about the ticket Jenny got while riding her bike, I brought up Zingerman's deli in Ann Arbor, MI where Jenny and Yun went to school. It seems as if there was some other interesting conversation topics along the way that are better off not mentioned.
We hit the half marathon split and I was feeling pretty good so far so I picked up the pace. The course has a reputation as a hilly course so I had been doing a lot of hills in my training. The hills were not nearly as bad as I have expected or as steep or prevalent as I had been training on. On the last half of the course I was running by myself and it definitely was not as much fun as the first 11 miles, but I felt really good up to about mile 24 or 25 when I hit the notorious "WALL". Typically I would start to struggle and have problems between 18 and 22 miles. I think that I could have made it the whole way without hitting the wall if I had not pushed so hard to make up time on the last half of the course.
I started to get a second wind as I approached the State Capitol grounds. As I passed the capitol building there was wall to wall people cheering us on as we approached the finish line. I got really pumped and picked up the pace with a pretty good finishing kick. I was passing many of the other runners that were also finishing at this time and I was encouraging them to pick it up and finish strong together. The approach to the finish line was also on a downhill slope, which made the finish so much better than the finish of the San Antonio marathon which has an uphill just before the finish.
I finished in 4 hours and 5 minutes, which a PR by more than 30 minutes!!! The two things that I attribute to that improvement was the weather and the hill workouts. The weather was just about perfect for running whereas San Antonio was too hot and humid. While training for this race I went out of my way to add hills to my workouts and it paid off with a huge improvement in time.
Prior to the race I did not set any time goals other than to finish and I think that made a big difference in how I ran the race. I went out to have a good time and run with my friends. Around mile 22 or 23 it was looking like I could get really close to a sub 4 hour marathon, but I just could not keep up the pace that was required.
May the Force be with you!!!
Chad
One word can describe my experience at the Austin marathon AWESOME!!!!
I had a great time - this was probably the best marathon experience I have had. I ran the first 11 or so miles of the race with Julianne (my training partner), Jenny (my tutor), and Yun(Jenny's friend). They were all doing the half marathon. We had a good time running at a good conversational pace. This was a 20+ reunion for Jenny and I. We went to the same high school and she helped tutor my in one of my classes. She was a year older than me and had not talked after she graduated. We found out that we were both running this race through Facebook. If it had not been for Facebook I know that we would have passed by each other on that day and not had recognized each other.
So the four of us chatted the whole time and the miles just flew by. Jenny introduced me to Runner's Math. We talked about the ticket Jenny got while riding her bike, I brought up Zingerman's deli in Ann Arbor, MI where Jenny and Yun went to school. It seems as if there was some other interesting conversation topics along the way that are better off not mentioned.
We hit the half marathon split and I was feeling pretty good so far so I picked up the pace. The course has a reputation as a hilly course so I had been doing a lot of hills in my training. The hills were not nearly as bad as I have expected or as steep or prevalent as I had been training on. On the last half of the course I was running by myself and it definitely was not as much fun as the first 11 miles, but I felt really good up to about mile 24 or 25 when I hit the notorious "WALL". Typically I would start to struggle and have problems between 18 and 22 miles. I think that I could have made it the whole way without hitting the wall if I had not pushed so hard to make up time on the last half of the course.
I started to get a second wind as I approached the State Capitol grounds. As I passed the capitol building there was wall to wall people cheering us on as we approached the finish line. I got really pumped and picked up the pace with a pretty good finishing kick. I was passing many of the other runners that were also finishing at this time and I was encouraging them to pick it up and finish strong together. The approach to the finish line was also on a downhill slope, which made the finish so much better than the finish of the San Antonio marathon which has an uphill just before the finish.
I finished in 4 hours and 5 minutes, which a PR by more than 30 minutes!!! The two things that I attribute to that improvement was the weather and the hill workouts. The weather was just about perfect for running whereas San Antonio was too hot and humid. While training for this race I went out of my way to add hills to my workouts and it paid off with a huge improvement in time.
Prior to the race I did not set any time goals other than to finish and I think that made a big difference in how I ran the race. I went out to have a good time and run with my friends. Around mile 22 or 23 it was looking like I could get really close to a sub 4 hour marathon, but I just could not keep up the pace that was required.
May the Force be with you!!!
Chad
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Race Day
Tomorrow I will be lacing up the shoes to run my third marathon the Austin Marathon. I was a little worried about the weather, but it looks like it is shaping up to be a beautiful day to run. Should be around 43 degrees at the start and get up to the upper 50's.
The course is a hilly course, but I have been running lots of hills in my training so I think that I am as prepared as I can be - if you can really be prepared for a marathon that is.
I will be sporting my Don't Mess with Texas jersey that is made by Primal Wear instead of the Star Wars one.
Also, I will be meeting up with an old friend from High School that I have not seen in over 20 years. We found out on Facebook that we were both doing the race. Facebook is awesome. We would have been running in the same race 1400 miles from where we grew up and would probably not have seen each other if it were not for Facebook.
My running buddy Julianne is also running tomorrow in the half marathon. We have been getting together on the weekends and doing our long runs together. Good Lucj tomorrow.
I will post the pace result as soon as I can and write up a race report. No predictions on a finish time - sorry!
May the Force be with US tomorrow!!!
The course is a hilly course, but I have been running lots of hills in my training so I think that I am as prepared as I can be - if you can really be prepared for a marathon that is.
I will be sporting my Don't Mess with Texas jersey that is made by Primal Wear instead of the Star Wars one.
Also, I will be meeting up with an old friend from High School that I have not seen in over 20 years. We found out on Facebook that we were both doing the race. Facebook is awesome. We would have been running in the same race 1400 miles from where we grew up and would probably not have seen each other if it were not for Facebook.
My running buddy Julianne is also running tomorrow in the half marathon. We have been getting together on the weekends and doing our long runs together. Good Lucj tomorrow.
I will post the pace result as soon as I can and write up a race report. No predictions on a finish time - sorry!
May the Force be with US tomorrow!!!
Saturday, February 6, 2010
New San Antonio Running Store
Recently I had the opportunity to meet with ownership/management from Run On a Dallas based running store that has opened a location in San Antonio. The store has been open about 6 weeks now and is located in Stone Oak area between 1604 and 281. I met with Michelle and Eric and had a nice chat about running in San Antonio.
The store was very nice. Seemed to be well stocked with all of the running essential gear. The store also hosts weekly social runs, running training classes and free seminars. You can sign up the San Antonio store Email Blast and be notified of their upcoming events by clicking on the link.
The store is in a new plaza and seems to be well placed near Anytime Fitness, Subway, and some other health conscious restaurants.
Take some time and stop in at the new store and check it out. I don't think that you will be disappointed! Good luck Run On and welcome to San Antonio!!!
May the Force be with YOU!!!
Chad
The store was very nice. Seemed to be well stocked with all of the running essential gear. The store also hosts weekly social runs, running training classes and free seminars. You can sign up the San Antonio store Email Blast and be notified of their upcoming events by clicking on the link.
The store is in a new plaza and seems to be well placed near Anytime Fitness, Subway, and some other health conscious restaurants.
Take some time and stop in at the new store and check it out. I don't think that you will be disappointed! Good luck Run On and welcome to San Antonio!!!
May the Force be with YOU!!!
Chad
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