Friday, December 31, 2010

2010



With 2010 coming to an end at midnight, tonight, I have closed out my running for the year. My yearly total ended at 1341 miles. I do believe this is the most mileage I have ever posted within a year's time. This was assisted with the races I ran during the year, as well as the training leading up to each race. I took on the Hal Higdon training program while getting prepared for the Columbus Marathon and really liked this plan.

I ran four marathons in 2010, with the last three all taking place within 49 days. I ran the Cowtown Marathon (Ft Worth, TX) in Feb, Columbus Marathon (Columbus, OH) in Oct, MidSouth Marathon (Wynne, AR) in Nov, and finally the St Jude Marathon (Memphis, TN) in Dec. My finishing times were 4:11, 3:53, 3:53, and 4:09 in order. Not only did I gain a Personal Record but, I accomplished my goal of completing those last three marathons in under three months. I also took part in a marathon relay with some fellow SORT members at Little Rock. We took first in our division by over 18-minutes.

My goals for 2011 involve six marathons. These are Little Rock Marathon (Little Rock, AR) in Mar, Andrew Jackson Marathon (Jackson, TN) in Apr, Tupelo Marathon (Tupelo, MS) in Sep, Columbus Marathon (Columbus, OH) in Oct, MidSouth Marathon (Wynne, AR) in Nov, and St Jude Marathon (Memphis, TN) in Dec. Hoping to better my PR in 2011. And continue to raise money for charity as I prepare for each race.

Happy 2011 everyone. :)

Thursday, December 30, 2010

Weather

Talk about one confused Mother Nature. Just two days ago I was scraping ice off my windshield. Today it was in the 60s and tomorrow is supposed to hit the 70s, with high winds and rain. Then drop down to freezing at night. No wonder everyone is getting sick. Still, need to knock out a 9-miler tomorrow so, weather be damned, I need to get it done. Might get Deb to run 3 with me. :) She's a great motivator.

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

9 Weeks

Ok, we're 9-weeks out from Little Rock. We have a number of Muckas signing up for the half marathon. This is awesome. Some have run several half marathons in the past. Others are running their first or second. The group is really starting to take off. I'm really glad it is because I think we needed something like this in this small town.

As for my training, I'm back on schedule. Hit a 4 and 9-miler the last two days. Both runs went well. Cold rain today so I had to get it done on the treadmill. College bowl games kept me entertained on this run. Big 10 is 2-0 so far. Let's go Bucks!!!

Hope everyone has some healthy resolutions for 2011 and does well at sticking with them. 4-miler tomorrow. Let's get it done. :)

Monday, December 27, 2010

Christmas Run

Well, it didn't happen. I took the lazy way out that day and just sat around the house, enjoying family and the fireplace. Then I really enjoyed Deb's Christmas dinner. Very nice!! Needless to say, with all the Christmas goodies I had eaten, then the nice dinner, Sunday's long run was a necessity. So, a 12-miler was in order. Or so I thought. After I ran those 12, I was logging my miles down and looking at my training schedule and that's when it hit me. I'm a week ahead on my training schedule. DOH!! The 17-miler I ran last Sunday was supposed to happen this week. I guess running those three marathons, in consecutive months, kind of threw me off a bit. Oh well, I'll run the same schedule this week so I can be back on track.

Little Rock is less than three months away. Fund raising is currently at $111.20. 22%towards my goal of $500. If you know anyone who is interested in contributing to the fight against heart disease, please pass this link on to them. I could sure use more sponsors. :)

http://www.littlerockmarathon.com/Donate/PersonalPage.cfm?MID=6723&CID=290

Saturday, December 25, 2010

Christmas Day

Merry Christmas everyone!! Hoping everyone is having a happy and safe holiday season. Today's run schedule calls for a 9-miler. It's wet and snowing outside. Debating on getting off my butt and knocking out this run. Got some new running gear for Christmas. Mrs Claus gave me a pair of Adidas Cushion Response 19s. SWEET!!! Just in time for my run at a couple marathons in March and April. She bought me a bright orange long sleeve running shirt as well. Says I need to be seen when I run at O-Dark-30. :) I think Mrs Claus has a thing for me. Hope everyone is enjoying the holidays. Happy running.

Friday, December 24, 2010

Hills, hills, hills

After yesterday's 9-miler in the cold and wind, I ran a 4-miler over the hills today. Actually felt good for the most part. Took off too fast though. First mile was a 7:49. I knew, with hills coming up, I needed to slow down. Still completed my run in 31:55, which I was pleased with. Planning another 9-miler on Christmas day. All depends on what Santa brings me. :) Merry Christmas everyone.

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Week 2

Slow week so far. It's Wednesday and I only have four miles posted. Might have jumped into the training to soon after St Jude. Oh well, going to adjust and take today off to get some rest and hit the hills tomorrow for a nine miler. Gotta make room for all those holiday goodies Deb and the girls are making for me. :) Wonder if I'll get any running gear for Christmas. Hmmmmmm...... ;)

Monday, December 20, 2010

Little Rock Training

First week of training for Little Rock in the books. 41 miles completed, with my long run of 17 miles. Not too bad considering I just ran St Jude's two weeks ago. Legs are a little tired still but, starting to get into the groove of training again. Deb is helping me with some of my runs. Which, by the way, is greatly appreciated. Looking forward to our four mile run in the morning. Maybe we'll have some snow to run in by the time Christmas arrives. one can wish. :)

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Little Rock Marathon

While still in my recovery week following St Jude, I'm getting excited about the Little Rock Marathon. Making my first attempt to be a fund raiser for the American Heart Association. My goal is to raise $500 for the cause. Having several family members who suffer from heart ailments, such as my Mom and Dad, I thought it would be best if I put my running efforts to a better cause. If you are interested in helping this cause, please follow the link and help us reach our goal. Thank you.

http://www.littlerockmarathon.com/Donate/PersonalPage.cfm?MID=6723&CID=290

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

First Run

First run since St Jude. It was 34 degrees outside and gettign dark. Deb waited for me to get home from work so she could run with me. We took it nice and easy and enjoyed the run. I think we averaged a 9:46 pace for 3.12 miles. Not bad. Legs are still tired but it felt good to get back out there. Still in recovery mode this week. Next week I'll start my training for the Little Rock marathon. Gotta do well on this one. Running for the American Heart Association. Trying to raise $500 for the cause.

Saturday, December 4, 2010

St Jude's Done!


Up at 4am to get on the road by 5am. Arrived in Memphis a little after 6am. It was already 55 degrees and a bit windy. Humidity was at 85%. 16,000+ runners between the marathon, half and 5K. Made the mistake of trying to use the Elite's Porta-potty close to the start line. A race official came up and got on the whole group who was in line to use them. "Those are for the Elites!", she stated. I forgot, my bodily functions are beneath that of the Elites. LOL!! No biggie, big row of them just a couple blocks away.

Well, we got started just after 8am. One thing that never ceases to amaze me is the runner traffic you face during the first couple of miles. This one took about five miles to really start thinning out. Seemed like everytime you would go to pass someone, they would drift over in front of you as to block you. Hey, we're not competing for the winner money, let it go. Ha Ha!! Just funny. Annoying at the time but, funny now. Did I mention the wind?? It steadily increased. And it always seemed to hit you as you would run uphill. Oh yeah, there were hills. LOTS of them. Most of them UP!! It certainly took a lot out of the runners. My Pit Crew (Deb and Amy) were there. Got to see them twice on the course. That was awesome!! Amy high fived me, and Deb gave me some sugar. :) Gotta love my girls!

Well, it wasn't my best race as there was no PR involved. But, it wasn't my worst race. It was right in the middle. The main thing is, it was for a great cause. If you have one race to run in your life, this is the one to experience. This race raises money for St Judes Hospital. The St Jude Heroes raised 3 million dollars this year. That amount of money keeps the hospital running for 2-days. So you can imagine they need all the help anyone can provide. And speaking of St Judes, the course takes you through the campus of the hospital. What an awesome, yet sad, experience. They help these poor kids suffering from various illnesses. Great bunch of people who were more than appreciative of the folks running this race. I will be back to run it again next year and help raise money for them. Great race!!

Friday, December 3, 2010

St Jude



14 hours to go until the start of this race. I'm pretty excited about this one. I truly wish I had done the fund raising for St Jude's. I know I will do this next year when I go back to run it again.

Had almost a full month to recover from the MidSouth marathon. Legs are feeling good, motivation is there, just need to make sure I set the alarm and get up on time to make it to the race. :) Deb and Amy will be going with me. You know it's not a good race unless Team Wise is there. Well, I will have results posted sometime tomorrow. Let's get it on!!