26 April 2011

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After a full day of meetings, I was able to convince one of my colleagues to go for a short run. He took me on the (by now almost familiar) Promenade of Galway. This is a very popular section at the Atlantic coast of Ireland, where lots of folks are going for a stroll, walk or run when the weather permits. While I am aware that lots of people think that Ireland is known for its rain, I have never had the experience that Ireland is always rainy. We had a great run, the weather was exceptional and the run was fantastic. A great day at work followed by a great day in the Irish "sun".

25 April 2011

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Pre-race
I arrived in Galway, Ireland Sunday morning for business. Before I left the US, I checked to see if there were any races going on while I was there. Luckily, Monday was a holiday in most of Europe so there was actually a 10 mile road race scheduled in Ennis, about an hour away from my hotel. So once I arrived in Galway, I went to the bus station to find out about any connections and to buy a ticket. I set my alarm for 6AM to catch the bus at 7:05AM. I only had a 2 minute walk to the bus station. Finding the location of the race in Ennis once I arrived there would be a different story.

23 April 2011

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I have been struggling with some serious leg pain after receiving a knock to my quad in a soccer match two weeks ago and deciding to run the SweetH2O 50K just three days after. The pain has actually moved from the quad to now surround my entire upper left leg and knee area with a mix of muscle and nerve pain, keeping me from sleeping through the night. That's why I only went for a short and easy recovery run on Monday followed by nothing but rest.

18 April 2011

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Recovery run, a short 4 miler and very easy at that. I met up with Richard, Mike, James and Jay at their office at 6AM and we went out on the usual Discovery Drive loop. We kept an easy pace, the weather was absolutely perfect. Had I not been feeling off because of the 50K race Saturday and my Quad injury, I would have gone long. Temps were in the low 60s and no cloud in the sky. I think I've ma deup my mind to register for the Pinhoti 100 in November, again. After dropping at mile 60 last year due to injury, I plan to complete it this time around. I will spend some time planning out the rest of the year during the next few weeks. You've read it here first, my goal is to run it in under 24 hours, so my training must reflect that goal. It'll be interesting to say the least. And I think I might be able to convice one or two of my fellow runners (Trice brothers, hint hint!) to join me.

16 April 2011

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Pre-race
The race preparations did not begin as expected. A pretty bad quad bruise from a soccer match three days before the race put my participation in jeopardy. Even on the evening prior to race day, I was still unable to even jog.

12 April 2011

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I ran an easy 6 miler this morning. I met up with Richard and his house at 5:15 AM to run up Monte Sano. Rather than running the usual Tollgate Trail up to the Ranger station, we opted to once again run the Old Railroad Bed Trail, but we turned off onto Wagon Trail. From there, we went on to the Fagan Springs Trail until we reconnected with the Old Railroad Bed Trail. Once we reached Tollgate Trail, we followed its path until we got dumped out at Tollgate Road. From there, we ran the Cotton Row 10K course in reverse until we cut the coruse short to head back to Richard's house. It was definitely a fun run today. Still keeping it easy in anticipation of this weekend.

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I ran an easy 4 miler this morning at a slow pace. Very relaxing after playing a tough soccer match on Sunday. I met up with Mike and Jay at their office and we ran a research park loop just to get loose. The weather was perfect, low 60s and no wind to speak of. I will continue to keep it easy until the SweetH2O this weekend near Atlanta, Georgia. The plan is to run this race as a training run, not a race. That'll be a first;-)

09 April 2011

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I went for a slow 5 miler this morning around my usual UAH loop. Richard had stopped by my house shortly after 6AM due to an alarm clock malfunction. The temps were already getting close to 70 degrees. I was feeling a little sluggish. most likely due to some dehydration. Withe the warmer days arriving I need to increase my regular fluid intake. I don't like feeling flat while doing a slow 5 miler. Overall, it was a nice run, got my blood pumping and the sweat flowing. The humidity has already increased as well, so I dont think it's going to get any cooler any time soon.

08 April 2011

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5:45 AM, 68 degrees and sunny. A perfect morning for a run. I joined Mike and James this morning for a short 5 miler around Research Park and Bridge Street Town Centre. Having run a nice 8 mile trail run last night, I immediately felt the quicker pace in my legs. I did keep up, barely, even when they started to really push with three quarters of a mile left. My legs felt a little heavy, but other than that, I was glad to have gotten up in time for this run. I plan to add another short run this evening, if my schedule allows it.

07 April 2011

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I meet up with Richard at his house after work around 5:30PM. We both had taken a break yesterday, so we needed to get some miles in. We headed up Bankhead Parkway at a nice pace. Instead of heading up Tollgate Trail, we opted for Railroad Trail instead. When we entered Railroad Trail, we had a fantastic view of the trail (see below).



We continued down Railroad Trail until we turned onto the Alms House Trail that would conncet us to the Land Trust parking lot, where we would head to the Bluffline Trail all the way to High Trail. I wanted an opportunity to take a snapshot at the same location where I took a picture the day after christmas, when the trail was in full snow cover. Now that Spring had arrived, I wanted the "green" version of the same or similar picture for my blog and my desktop. The weather was perfect, in the high 60s. Richard was struggling a bit today, so when I continued on Bluffline Trail he opted for a shortcut hike to meet me once I got onto High Trail.

Once I entered Bluffline Trail, I decided to push a little. Boy, was that tough. Going up Bluffline from my direction was not an easy task for me. But once I got to the top and the High Trail connector, I got my opportunity to retake the "white christmas" version. I didn't get the exact same shot, but I think I got pretty close (see below).


When I finally regrouped with Richard, we headed doen High Trail until we connected with Tollgate Trail. From there, I was ready to push the pace again and crash down Tollgate until it dumps us out at the corner of Bankhead Parkway and Tollgate Road. We finished up the final 1.5 miles down the road for a nice 8 miles. Let's see what tomorrow brings. I definitely need to start hydrating more as the days get warmer. I think the cold days are finally gone.

05 April 2011

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I decided to go for a quick run while my son was at soccer practice this evening. The weather was still holding up nicely and the only concern I had was my personal safety. The place I chose didn't provide sidewalks or shoulders to run on. Instead, I had to head into traffic with my dorky reflective vest and headlamp. I guess it's ok to look dorky while trying to stay safe? Anyway, I headed out of the soccer park at 7 pm and managed 5.5 miles just before dark. Traffic was crazy around that time of day with lots of folks heading in and out of the park for their kids' soccer, football or baseball activities. If I plan to do this twice a week, I will neeed to keep making sure I am easily/highly visible. People are way too distracted with their kids in the car when driving down these otherwise quiet country roads.

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Richard arrived at my house at 5:30AM, not really wanting to run. It was pretty nasty outside, cold and windy, nothing like the awesome weather we had yesterday morning. However, we were both dressed and ready to go so we sucked it up and went outside. We headed for UAH trying to decide where to run. After a brief discussion, I decided to follow Richard's suggestion and run a new route. He had it all mapped out in his head for what should 6-7 miles, just enough. He also mentioned a small culvert/creek crossing that would require some "tight walking" along a wooden fence. I wasn't sure what that meant but how bad could it be, right?

04 April 2011

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The alarm went off at 4:30 AM and when I walked out the front door at 5 AM after drinking my usual cup of coffee and downing a bottle of Propel, the weather was gorgeous. It was already above 60 degrees and I was rearing to go for a trail run. I headed to Richard's house, where he, Mike and James were already waiting. Jay followed a short time later for what would be his very first "real" trail run. I have to say, he mastered this true trail test with flying colors. Heading up Bankhead Parkway with the largest running group to date, we settled in an easy pace, keeping everyone together until we entered Tollgate trail. Once we passed the parking lot, we split upin smaller groups based on pace, agreeing that we would eventually meet up again anyway on the way back from the State Park Ranger station atop Monte Sano mountain.

03 April 2011

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My better half was looking for a running partner today, so I gladly obliged;-) She just started a new job and hasn't been able to do much running. We decided to keep it short at a steady pace and ended up running 3.5 miles around the UAH campus. The weather has quite nice at 8:30 AM in the morning with temps already in the 60s. If I didn't know any better, I'd say it's summer. But I'm sure there's another cold front coming through, reminding me that we still have a way to go before stuffing our fleece running tops, hats and gloves into a box until the next winter season. Hopefully, sub freezing temps are gone for good, though.

02 April 2011

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Richard and I hadn't been running together lately and my mileage had been way down over the past two weeks as well, so we decided it was time for a fun long run again. We were going to do a 13 mile trail and road run followed by a local 8K race to get about 18 miles for the day. We ended up otping out of the 8K race and just completed the half marathon distance, instead. We met up at Richard's house at 6AM to complete our run at the 8K race start by 8:30 AM in time to register and rest for a few minutes. When headed up Bankhead Parkway to the Tollgate trailhead. After close to a mile, we took the High Trail connection to cut across the side of Monte Sano mountain until we would reconnect with Bankhead Parkway near Governor's drive. After we crossed Governor's drive, we entered a gated community atop Monte Sano Mountain and continued through it until we reached the powercut section that would take us down the mountain towards another neighborhood and ultimately Drake Avenue.

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