8 years later & another 13.1 miles down the road

That which does not kill us, makes us stronger.  (Nietzsche)

I capped off another half marathon on Sunday.  Numero 8.  The ocho.  Two more and I can be officially classified as a "veteran" although I don't really feel much like one.  Another shirt, another medal.    

After 8 years, this has become almost routine.  I went, I ran, I made it across the finish line upright once again.  I'd like to say I improved on last year's time but that would be a lie.  Given my poor training regime, this persistent cough that just won't seem to go away, and losing Claire last week, I was debating not even going this year.  After Julie passed in August, I had made an internal promise to dedicate this year's run in her memory.  I wasn't looking for any records this year, but after things went south last week, I questioned my resolve.  I did decide to make the run, but, honestly, my heart wasn't in it this year.  I have always found running to be somewhat therapeutic.  One of those sports where my main competition is myself.  Running a longer distance gives me a lot of time to debate issues, have internal conversations, consider options.  This year it probably wasn't the best year to be alone with my thoughts.  I spent more than a few miles thinking about poor Claire.                

On the surface, this year's run was pretty good.  The course was good (flat, fast).  Weather was pretty much perfect (cool, dry) with temps in the mid 40s at the start.  There was the usual mob of +25,000 runners which led to the normal 28 minutes delay to cross the start line AFTER the starting gun.  I like this annual run, but having that many bodies on the course really slows up the pace.  I think I would prefer some of the smaller, less popular runs.  The crowds/spectators were up to their typical form - wild, noisy, enthusiastic.  Many, many, many funny signs along the way:

• Worse Parade Ever
• Hurry up!  My arms are tired from holding this sign
• You are almost finished!  Oops.  My bad. (with picture of Steve Harvey)
• 13.1 miles all for a free banana
• I thought I was signing up for a Netflix Marathon

I wasn't really expecting to break any of my records and came in a bit slower than last year.   The only drama I had this year was that my phone died around mile 12 so my pacing program shut down before I crossed the finish line.  I'm not as sore as I have been in the past, but that's probably due to my slower pace and pre-race prep (thanks to Rock Tape and Alieve).  Right now, I am not sure if I will go for number 9, but, given my propensity to not learn my lesson and repeat things, the chances are highly likely.  The good news is that, after completing 5 of these things, I have a guaranteed slot for the 2017 race.  Hopefully, next year I will be in a better mood/condition.      

• Either you run the day or the day runs you

Motivation

Happy Belated New Year Y'all!

I fully intended to post something introspective or meaningful around the 1st, but that just wouldn't be me.  Too many distractions I suppose.    

Spent New Year's out in the country at our annual Rally with the Airstream group out in the country drinking champagne and blowing stuff up.   Nobody lost an eye, nobody got blowed up, nothing was set on fire.  The dogs, however, were not as impressed with all of the fireworks.  Lots of food, games, drink.  A fairly sedate rally, something that us old codgers prefer.  We've held these at the same RV park for the last 20 years, so this has almost become routine.  The only I have to note is that my folks have retired from the club and they were an integral part of this event over the past 35+ years.  Ever since they officially retired last year, it is a bit more complicated to do these gigs without their participation.  

As one might surmise, I have been lacking the proper motivation to post up anything meaningful.  With our new company, I have been buried with new projects, priorities, tasks, and I am somewhat distracted.  I spent the last week with my counterpart from France going over our strategy on how we are going to cut costs and save the company mega bucks.  2016 is turning into a very interesting year.  

I have also been under the weather for a while.  Have had a nagging cough and shortness of breath since October that I cannot seem to chase away.  Been to the doctor several times for different drugs and treatment but nothing has really made the difference.  I go back again on Monday for a CT scan to see if they can figure out what is wrong with me.  Not a cold, but something that is just wearing me down/pissing me off.     

That said, I am signed up for my 8th turn in the half marathon this weekend.  No way I am ready for it this time.  With all of the distractions at work and this nagging cough, I have not been training all that much this year.  Seems like I lack the proper motivation.  Even this week is already booked full with a day in probate court and a 2 day road trip to Cincinnati. My brother asked if I would still be doing the half this weekend and I told him affirmative.  This is number 8 and I just can't quit now.  To me, this is the annual reminder of my good fortune and blessings.  

  
Besides, I am too close to 10 to give up now.  I am just not expecting to set any PRs this year....     
          

Tails from the road

Points to Shadowrun.  I figured she might know where I was a few weeks back.  After all, I was kinda in the neighborhood (if not across the state).  I had a business conference in Chicago for a few days at the end of June.  I'll admit I've been to Chicago many times but usually it is either passing through or visiting plants on the west side of Chicago.  I have never been downtown so I took the opportunity to check out the local flora and fauna.  I got in a couple of nice long runs along Lake Shore Drive, found an amazing pizza place (Blaze Pizza) that makes your pie in 3 minutes, hiked across downtown to visit some of the tourist sites, took the "L" train back to the airport.  Pretty good conference, a nice break from the daily headaches at the office.  One more city off my bucket list.       

Chicago Skyline

Navy Pier

Cloud Gate

Water wall

Two guesses where what TV show this fountain is featured in

Some really good pizza

Last weekend I took an extended trip up to New Braunfels (south of Austin) with my brother and his family to spend some time tubing on the Guadalupe River.  It's sort of a summer tradition down here in Texas.  Take a scorching day and go spend it floating down the river on inner tubes with a few hundred other people trying not to get fried.  Momma and SIL were not able to go so I took the furry kids instead.  First time they've been to the river.  For two old hot dogs (who don't swim), it was an interesting weekend.  Hot, wet, & overfed but I think they made out just fine.  

We even squeezed in a side trip to a local dog park that just opened up.  

  

Dude, where's my flex?

Shamelessly stealing the meme from terri...

I was going to post a follow up to last weekend's run, but that seemed a bit redundant. Instead, I chose to regale you with my latest saga/drama.   

Over the past few years, the company has been aggressively promoting healthy living.  We have an onsite workout room, hired a trainer to teach various classes (zumba, latin dancing, boot camp, etc.), hold regular contests to encourage wellness (winner gets their insurance premiums paid for a year), and other activities to improve the health of the employees.  Two years ago, they handed out FitBits to everyone - one of those a neat little electronic wearable monitors that tracks your activities/steps you take.  FitBit is one of several in the field (Nike Fuel) and is fairly accurate and simple to use.   It wireless and will sync to your cell phone or laptop so that you can track your progress on line and send you progress reports or alerts on your status.  

Initially, I got a FitBit Zip - a small monitor about the size of a key fob that you year on your belt.  It's the low end version of monitors and I've worn it pretty religiously since last year.  It was nice to keep track of my activities/mileage.  It alerted me when I achieved any of the set goals (10k steps) and posted up progress to my FitBit account online.  They even have FitBit communities that you can join to track progress with others in your group.  The company has a good number of people on our account that we complete for the most active persons over a period of time.  I wore my Zip during last year's half marathon and it worked great.  I even bought a pair of FitBit Flexes (the wrist version) for my son and DIL for their anniversary last year and they love them.

Sadly, I lost my Zip back in November.  Had it on my belt when I went out for some shopping but it fell off somewhere along the way.  I liked the Zip enough to buy another but decided to upgrade to the Flex.  I even bought one for momma for Christmas so we all had one.  I waited until Christmas to start wearing mine and have been using it ever since.    

The Flex is different from the Zip - it is rechargeable and has little monitor lights that show you when you have completed part of your goals.  It is an upgraded version to the flex with a few more bells and whistles.  It will vibrate and flash when you hit your target and constantly syncs with your smartphone and provide updates as you run/work out to track you progress.  I wore it during my recent half marathon and it worked just great.  There is even a Map My Run app that will track your route and location (big brother is really watching). 

While I like the new Flex, it does have a few drawbacks.  I'm not really a fan of the rechargeable deal - the Zip ran off a watch battery that you replaced every 3-4 months.  The Flex you have to recharge every 5-6 days.  The wristband has a clasp that is prone to becoming dislodged if you put on a long sleeve shirt or jacket.  In the short two months I've had the Flex, it has fallen off 4-5 times.  
  

Saturday I was out running some miscellaneous chores (the vet, the gas station, Wallyworld, the trailer, the auto store) around town.  When I got back to the house, I noticed that my flex was missing.  Panicked, I immediately began to search back through the house and the truck looking for it but found nothing.  I looked in every potential location but No Joy.  I considered back tracking where I had been but that was a lot of ground to cover and I figured the chances of locating were slim.  I was frustrated enough to log onto the FitBit blog site and log a complaint to the company about the wrist band.  Spent some time in the community board and found a section labelled "I've Lost My Flex" with a lot of comments.  Seems like this problem is a bit more widespread.  Depressed, pissed off, I gave up looking for it figuring I had to go get a new one.  

Sunday I got up and re-read the community board and some of the advice I had received from other users (Thanks Odyssey13!) about helpful hints on trying to locate their devices and some of the home grown fixes that others have used to prevent the flex from falling off.  I did revisit the situation and decided to use my iPhone to backtrack  my trip around town, but I did not hold out much hope.  The flex was in constant sync mode and the last time it updated my phone was between 1200-1215 Saturday and I reviewed a few receipts and found one from Wallyworld at 1223, so I figured it was might be there.  Jumped in the truck and drove up to WW to check it out, but that is still a long shot.  As I was sitting at a traffic light a few miles away from WW, I opened the FitBit app to try and force a sync and noticed it said "connected".  While I was sitting in the truck!.  I tore through the truck on Saturday but didn't see it so I would swear it was not there but the app didn't lie.  Pulled over and dug back through the truck and eventually found it wedged back behind a seat still running about 50% charge.  Elated, I did go retract my snarky comments to FitBit about losing my flex but my concerns with the band still exist.  Now I hope to apply some of the homegrown "tricks" to insure this does not become a crisis again.  Finding something that was lost is a great feeling.  Now, if I can only find my mind...

One foot in front of the other

That which does not kill us, makes us stronger (Friedrich Nietzsche)  
But it may hurt like hell afterwards.   (me)

Despite all the rumors to the contrary and my worst intentions, I managed to pull off another half yesterday.  Number 7 is in the bag.  13.1 miles later, another medal, another shirt, a few more stiff joints, and some sense of accomplishment.  

The run was very good, it was just runner that was less prepared.  0700 Sunday morning, clear skies, temps hovering around 48 at the start, streets were dry, the pack of runners were anxiously awaiting the starting gun.  30,000 runners crammed along several blocks in the predawn light made for one hell of a party.  

Waiting for the start

Heading for the starting line (20 minutes after the gun)

Since this is my 7th time on this merry-go-round, I knew what to expect, how to prepare.  Got up obscenely early (couldn't sleep) and drove downtown at 0400 just to make sure I could park next to the convention center.  I know, that is a bit A/R, but I like having my truck nearby so I don't have to hike a mile away just to find my ride home.  That and I ain't about to pay some guy $30 to park in one of the lots next to the convention center (I may be crazy but I am definitely cheap).  Got there early enough to find a good spot and prepare for the run.  Took the opportunity to revise my running attire - the weather was cool enough but not too cold, so I changed my layers. dropped the base shirt and went with the sleeves.  It is always interesting to see how people dress for the start and then watch how many clothes/jackets/gloves/sleeves/hats are discarded within the first two miles.  My strategy worked out OK for me - wasn't overheated nor too cold.  I bought a new spibelt this year - one that was waterproof and had extra belt loops for my Gu and I can hook the race bib onto directly.         

With that many people to cram across the starting line, it took almost 20 minutes for my corral to cross the start after the gun had sounded.  I like the whole event, but that kind of mob takes some of the shine out of it.     

I ran OK, but, my lack of prep runs showed.  Typical jackrabbit start and then lose steam on the back half.  I held a decent pace the first 6 miles, but the second were slower.  Not as achy as last year, but a bit off my time from prior years.  Not a pace I am particularly proud of (2:41), but at least I conquered the course/objective.  I won't bore everyone with the entire montage of the run - it was a good run, I was slow and some things worked better than others.  Developed a hot spot on my left foot.  Not sure if it was the new shooz or due to my lack of conditioning.  I am happy with completing the race, just not happy with my progress.  I should prepare better but things just seem to keep getting in the way.  In my mind, the race is not against the clock or even against other runners (no way I am in that class of running).  To me, the race is against yourself.  My competition is internal.  I try to beat my prior times, push the envelope to improve myself and best my previous attempts.  I spend a good portion of the run going over things in my head, arguing with myself, running through a list of chores/to-doos.   

Just keep putting one foot in front of the other (something a sage old running mentor once told me).  

This year I decided to change up my run strategy and focus more upon what was around me (the here & now).  I was trying to enjoy the entire event and the surrounding hoopla (ergo my slower time?).  The sideline action was almost as much fun as the runners.  Some of the slogans along the round this year:

A few others were:

• Worst. Parade. Ever.
• It's my birthday.  I expected a better parade.
• I like your stamina.  Call me. xxxx
• Run like you are being chased by zombies.
• Romo wouldn't have made the first mile (not a Cowboys fan).   
• When they said Marathon, I thought they meant Netflix Marathon   

Of course, you always see the most interesting people/characters along the course:

Now is the dangerous time for me.  The post race euphoria.  Now that it is over & done and I am back home warm and dry, the thought creeps into my head about next year. They've changed the registration system again for next year and gone back to old system of first come, first served.  They opened up the registration last night for the first 10,000 enrollees.  Lord knows, I just may be stupid enough to try for 8.  Somebody please stop me...

Some days you run the road, some days the road runs you.

Yea, it’s that time of the year again. Time to see if I can still run with the big dogs or should just stay on the porch.  

Sunday morning is the annual Chevron Marathon/Half Marathon.  This will be my 7th trip down that road of insanity.  7 trips on this merry-go-round means I am either really committed or really stupid (hint:  go with the latter).  

Common sense says I should say home warm and dry and watch some more football and play with the dogs, but NOOOO, something inside of me says I have to do this.  Some silly, warped sense of pride/drive keeps me coming back to the same starting line.  Honestly, I feel no better prepared than previous years.  I haven't been running or training as much as I should have been.  I could list all sorts of excuses, but that is all it really is:  excuses.    At least I know the course and the system and how to best prepare for it.  I've laid out my gear, charged up the iPod, heading downtown this morning to pick up my race packet and bib number and buy some more race crap that I really don't need (need me some more energy shots).         

Come early Sunday morning, I'm quite sure I will be seriously questioning my resolve and sanity, but it's too late to back out now and we'll have to see what the weekend brings.  At least the weather looks to be decent - sunny with no rain and mid 40s at the start.  I've run in a number of different conditions, but rain and cold really seem to take a lot of the fun out of it.  Regardless, I will be hitting the dark, chilly streets of Houston at o-dark-thirty with 30,000 other nut cases.  

Besides, it's all about the shirt...

1 Corinthians 9:26 - Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air.    


Perhaps a more appropriate prayer (for me) would be:  Lord watch over me and my fellow runners.  Keep everyone safe and whole.  May the streets be dry and smooth, the weather fair and the course run true.  And Lord, if it is my time, please at least wait until I cross the finish line.