Generally speaking I like to blog right after my long run or ride of the week, but I am in St Louis this weekend, so logistically it simply didn't work out.
I have to admit, after reviewing my times from last week's triathlon in Flagstaff, I've been pretty ecstatic about my stats. My first Sprint distance was in April and I completed the Tri in 1:43 minutes. I wasn't disappointed with my times (at the time), but I knocked 10 minutes off that time in this last one for a total time of 1:33. What I realized when looking at my times is that I am fairly competitive on the bike and that perhaps I really should focus more effort there.
So on Wednesday, I met Matt for some hill-repeats (I've also been told my next Tri in San Diego is super hilly). Matt's hill route is a stair-stepper, with three distinct sections up. On our first trek up, Matt took the lead and I stayed behind and we took it fairly easy. By the second time up Matt gave me the look as if to say "every man for himself, Mer" and was gone, blazing a trail that left me eating dirt. By our third trip up, my legs were loose and I was ready to challenge him, passing him about half way up, but unable to hold the lead as he flew by me at the very top. At that point I was hungry for another opportunity and as soon as we hit the bottom (and I could see in Matt's face that he was ready to be done with these), I took off -never feeling Matt on my heals again. For the first time, I actually believed that Matt didn't "let me win". All these painful workouts are really showing improvement.
Thursday morning, as usual, we met for a 6 mile trail run. Matt had purchased new trail shoes the day before and was super excited to try them out. They are so cool (to look at) that I found myself super jealous as he made his way out of his car and onto the trail.
Because we were hoping to do 6 miles, we agreed to meet at 4:45am so that we'd have a little extra time to finish and cool down. However, neither of us realized it would be quite so dark at that hour. So, Matt flew off into the darkness, as I took every step with caution. Your eyes really do adjust after a few minutes and by mile 2 the sun was really poking its head up, so we were fine. It was 88 degrees and not terribly comfortable on the trail, so it was as hard and rewarding as ever. Our times weren't anything to get excited over, but just knowing we can do it is enough, some mornings. And, I think Matt liked his shoes.
I have to admit, after reviewing my times from last week's triathlon in Flagstaff, I've been pretty ecstatic about my stats. My first Sprint distance was in April and I completed the Tri in 1:43 minutes. I wasn't disappointed with my times (at the time), but I knocked 10 minutes off that time in this last one for a total time of 1:33. What I realized when looking at my times is that I am fairly competitive on the bike and that perhaps I really should focus more effort there.
So on Wednesday, I met Matt for some hill-repeats (I've also been told my next Tri in San Diego is super hilly). Matt's hill route is a stair-stepper, with three distinct sections up. On our first trek up, Matt took the lead and I stayed behind and we took it fairly easy. By the second time up Matt gave me the look as if to say "every man for himself, Mer" and was gone, blazing a trail that left me eating dirt. By our third trip up, my legs were loose and I was ready to challenge him, passing him about half way up, but unable to hold the lead as he flew by me at the very top. At that point I was hungry for another opportunity and as soon as we hit the bottom (and I could see in Matt's face that he was ready to be done with these), I took off -never feeling Matt on my heals again. For the first time, I actually believed that Matt didn't "let me win". All these painful workouts are really showing improvement.
Thursday morning, as usual, we met for a 6 mile trail run. Matt had purchased new trail shoes the day before and was super excited to try them out. They are so cool (to look at) that I found myself super jealous as he made his way out of his car and onto the trail.
Because we were hoping to do 6 miles, we agreed to meet at 4:45am so that we'd have a little extra time to finish and cool down. However, neither of us realized it would be quite so dark at that hour. So, Matt flew off into the darkness, as I took every step with caution. Your eyes really do adjust after a few minutes and by mile 2 the sun was really poking its head up, so we were fine. It was 88 degrees and not terribly comfortable on the trail, so it was as hard and rewarding as ever. Our times weren't anything to get excited over, but just knowing we can do it is enough, some mornings. And, I think Matt liked his shoes.
(Sunrise -- not too shabby considering just how dark it was!)
(Look, we kinda match!)
(Look, we kinda match!)
On Friday I boarded a flight to St Louis to see mom, Gram and Michael, after pushing out a 2000 meter swim.
Marathon training for the Philly Marathon (on Nov 18th) began last week, so I really have to stay focused on getting some good runs on the books. I had a 7 miler planned for Sunday in St Louis and had been worried for two weeks about their scorching temps. The weather and temps in St Louis had been far worse than Phoenix and that's not an easy thing to say. So, when my plane landed and I stepped off, I was pleasantly surprised by the cloudy, relatively cooler, temps.
That evening we went to the Cards vs Cubs game in Busch Stadium and the temps were still awesome. So, while sipping my beer and watching the Cubs lose, I figured I should probably move my 7 miler to Saturday, rather than hope for the same weather on Sunday.
(Marcy, Scott and I - enjoying our win -- I've known these two for like 25 years!)
So, at 5:30am Saturday morning, my alarm went off and I readied myself for my run. I glanced at the weather -- 67 degrees and 100% humidity. I am still shocked that it can be 100% humidity and not a cloud in the sky, but that was my morning fate. At least I would be cool, even if horribly damp.
As I headed out for the run, my legs were feeling fresh. Mom's neighborhood is relatively flat with only one stoplight en route to the park a mile away. There's a really outstanding running trail in her park, complete with a lake and shade trees for almost a mile of the 1.5 mile trail. You are faced with dodging duck-crap all the way around the lake, but you manage to get over it when faced with such a pretty area of the park.
As I headed around the park for a third time, I glanced at my Garmin to see how I was doing. It read 4.42 miles and just over 41 minutes. Stunned, I actually had to look again. Holy crap, I was maintaining a 9:15-20 pace and had absolutely no idea. It felt absolutely natural. I was hopeful I could just keep it up for the next 2.6 miles. I completed another lap and was headed home, fearful of even glancing at my watch. I didn't want to be disappointed. (Its amazing the games we play to keep us in it.)
I heard my watch beep "7 miles" and I immediately paused the watch and looked, 1:05:24! My best time, ever! I don't have the capacity to actually plug in my watch while here in St Louis, but it calculates to a 9:20 pace. I'll have to see my splits and actually moving time once I get home. It'll be even better once I am able to remove the time from the stoplights. (grin). And while my mom's neighborhood doesn't offer the hills of Ahwatukee, it was ridiculously humid so still a bit of a challenge for this Phoenician. And the park does have a couple of nice, brief, climbs around the backside of the lake.
What a rush! I could have gone much farther, yesterday morning, but I know that my longer runs are right around the corner, so I need to focus on improving my times with these shorter ones, when I can - and I did.
Marathon training for the Philly Marathon (on Nov 18th) began last week, so I really have to stay focused on getting some good runs on the books. I had a 7 miler planned for Sunday in St Louis and had been worried for two weeks about their scorching temps. The weather and temps in St Louis had been far worse than Phoenix and that's not an easy thing to say. So, when my plane landed and I stepped off, I was pleasantly surprised by the cloudy, relatively cooler, temps.
That evening we went to the Cards vs Cubs game in Busch Stadium and the temps were still awesome. So, while sipping my beer and watching the Cubs lose, I figured I should probably move my 7 miler to Saturday, rather than hope for the same weather on Sunday.
(Marcy, Scott and I - enjoying our win -- I've known these two for like 25 years!)
So, at 5:30am Saturday morning, my alarm went off and I readied myself for my run. I glanced at the weather -- 67 degrees and 100% humidity. I am still shocked that it can be 100% humidity and not a cloud in the sky, but that was my morning fate. At least I would be cool, even if horribly damp.
As I headed out for the run, my legs were feeling fresh. Mom's neighborhood is relatively flat with only one stoplight en route to the park a mile away. There's a really outstanding running trail in her park, complete with a lake and shade trees for almost a mile of the 1.5 mile trail. You are faced with dodging duck-crap all the way around the lake, but you manage to get over it when faced with such a pretty area of the park.
As I headed around the park for a third time, I glanced at my Garmin to see how I was doing. It read 4.42 miles and just over 41 minutes. Stunned, I actually had to look again. Holy crap, I was maintaining a 9:15-20 pace and had absolutely no idea. It felt absolutely natural. I was hopeful I could just keep it up for the next 2.6 miles. I completed another lap and was headed home, fearful of even glancing at my watch. I didn't want to be disappointed. (Its amazing the games we play to keep us in it.)
I heard my watch beep "7 miles" and I immediately paused the watch and looked, 1:05:24! My best time, ever! I don't have the capacity to actually plug in my watch while here in St Louis, but it calculates to a 9:20 pace. I'll have to see my splits and actually moving time once I get home. It'll be even better once I am able to remove the time from the stoplights. (grin). And while my mom's neighborhood doesn't offer the hills of Ahwatukee, it was ridiculously humid so still a bit of a challenge for this Phoenician. And the park does have a couple of nice, brief, climbs around the backside of the lake.
What a rush! I could have gone much farther, yesterday morning, but I know that my longer runs are right around the corner, so I need to focus on improving my times with these shorter ones, when I can - and I did.
(Mom's backyard -- these trees didn't exist when I was a kid! They're HUGE!)
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