The Running Thread - 2016

[SunDial]

Congrats John @FFigawi That was awesome. A 4:35 marathon to finish it off.

 

[SunDial]

I'm on my bike watching this. It's amazing how fast time goes by while I'm watching. And all u can think of is, "I may need to do one of these before I turn 50!"

Go John!

I want to do one before or at 60. I am 57 now.

 

[mrsgryphon]

@mrsgryphon Sorry I didn't see you post before the race! I was pretty close to my expected time. I finished at 2:17:52, which is about what I was hoping for 2:15 would have been a PR. Perfect running day in Hartford, cloudy overcast, maybe 50 degrees at the start of the race. I hope everyone else running this weekend had great times (in both meanings!!)

@whaler8 Now it's my turn to apologize - I haven't been back since the race and my Disney trip immediately following. Re-entry to real life was tough! It was a perfect running day for Hartford. Sounds like you had a great race! We finished very close in time - I ended up at 2:16:07.

@LSUlakes sorry for the late update, but 2:16:07 time for my Hartford Half on 10/8. I'm also running a last minute race tomorrow.

11/6/16 - mrsgryphon - Race to Fill the Pantry 2 mile - (16:47/NA)

My Thanksgiving Day race gets 10,000 runners and in the past they have seeded to 45 minutes finish which means I don't have to get there quite so early to not end up at the back of the pack. I qualified for the last seed group with my July 5k, but since then they announced the town is requiring them to shrink the size of the seed area for security reasons. They are now only seeding to 42 minutes and my time is too slow. So tomorrow will be my crazy attempt at getting a seed card for Thanksgiving. I have done no speed work - all my training was focused on my two fall half marathons - and this is a huuuuge stretch based on my 5k time. It's also a small race (last year 200 for the 5k, 65 for 2 mile) and looking at the results from the past couple of years attempting this goal time will put me right near the front. Honestly, the thought of this makes me feel ill. Fortunately it's the same start as the 5k so at the beginning there will be a bit more of a crowd.

 

[Barca33Runner]

Well, I learned how tough a Half Marathon can be when I've only put in ~20 miles of training in the last two months. I've been pretty scarce around here because I was so embarrassed about my lack of training while everyone else is doing so well. I finished in 2:30, but it wasn't pretty and I walked most of the last five miles.

The good news: Harvest is finally over and I can get back to properly training for Dopey. I think I needed to have a day like this to remind me how tough running can be when I'm not prepared.

Congrats to @FFigawi on becoming an Ironman. What an awesome achievement.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

Congratulations @FFigawi !

Now, time for my 22 miler. Seems insignificant after what you just did.

 

[Disney at Heart]

Congrats, @FFigawi! You are awesome and such an inspiration for everyone!

 

[CheapRunnerMike]

So impressed by @FFigawi at Ironman Florida yesterday...awesome work John! If anyone wants to see the video of him crossing the line, click this link and ffwd to the 4:55:30 mark, he's just coming into frame.

http://livestream.com/accounts/3678055/events/6591263/videos/141074787

Can't wait to hear all about the day John, but for now enjoy the day and have a few wobbly pops for good measure because YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!!!

 

[CheapRunnerMike]

I'm on my bike watching this. It's amazing how fast time goes by while I'm watching. And all u can think of is, "I may need to do one of these before I turn 50!"

Go John!

I want to do one before or at 60. I am 57 now.

Well let's get @Waiting2goback and @SunDial signed up for races, along with @LSUlakes, and then we can start an Ironman thread to go along with the running thread. With @opusone, myself and now @FFigawi the IM club is growing!

 

[FFigawi]

Thank you for all the support, commentary, and congratulatory messages! Reading all of your posts last night after the race made me smile & feel glad for all the wonderful people here who spent their time following my day. I have to admit, I think eating ribs, watching football, and everything else you guys were doing might have been more enjoyable at the time.

I have to give a special shoutout to @Keels for driving over to be part of my support crew yesterday. Loved having her around to take pictures, videos, and keep social media updated. And thanks to @DopeyBadger and @CheapRunnerMike too for posting my progress, estimated times, etc. I knew I could count on you for the #math.

I'll have a race report written up later this week. For now, thank you all again so much for the support. Time to go have a breakfast beer. #imanironman #dontjudge

 

[Ariel484]

Congrats @FFigawi!! Amazing job! Must've been all that yoga!

 

[roxymama]

Congrats to all the wine n diners!! Having fun looking at all the cool costumes posted on the interwebs.

 

[camaker]

Great day for a race. Ran the City of Oaks Marathon this morning and what a difference being trained and uninjured makes! After running the Disney Marathon injured in January in 5:48:48 I knew I could do better and felt like I had a score to settle with marathons!

City of Oaks was a pretty hilly course starting and ending at the NC State bell tower and running through downtown Raleigh before hitting the greenways for an out and back.

The race started nice and cool and headed due east into downtown at dawn. Not cool. The course turned out to be much hillier than I was expecting and I could tell I was burning way more energy on them early in the race than I wanted to. Plus the hills played merry hell with my pace management. It took me a good 5-6 miles to get my legs into a comfortable groove and I hit the halfway mat at 2:10:37 (9:58/mile).

The second half started out well and I loosened the leash on my pacing a bit. It started to warm up and I was able to shed my gloves and thermal sleeves, too. I could tell I was making good time, until... Miles 21-24 were brutally uphill. My legs started to get heavy and lose drive. I was giving all that precious time back through a combination of terrain and accumulated fatigue. Miles 24-26 flattened out a bit, becoming more rolling than the previous uphill slogs. By the time I could see the finish line, I was ready to be done and couldn't muster a stretch push of any note. Crossed the line at 4:20:22 (9:56/mile).

So, how did that stack up against my goals for the race?

Base goal (finish <5:00:00) - Check
Stretch goal (finish <4:30:00) - Check
Bonus goal (negative split) - Check

Knocking 1:28:24 off my marathon PR - priceless!!

Given the course conditions I could not be happier with my performance. Apparently I literally left it all on the course, too. After crossing the finish line they handed me my medal and I promptly had to grab the chute railing to stay upright, so I got to spend some time with the nice folks at the med tent until I could stand on my own again! Fortunately, DW ran the 5k with some folks from her school and was there to drive home. Now I can focus on just having fun with Dopey in January.

I would also be seriously remiss if I didn't give a huge shout out and thank you to @DopeyBadger who set up the custom training plan that got me so well prepared for this race!

 

[CheapRunnerMike]

Great day for a race. Ran the City of Oaks Marathon this morning and what a difference being trained and uninjured makes! After running the Disney Marathon injured in January in 5:48:48 I knew I could do better and felt like I had a score to settle with marathons!

City of Oaks was a pretty hilly course starting and ending at the NC State bell tower and running through downtown Raleigh before hitting the greenways for an out and back.

The race started nice and cool and headed due east into downtown at dawn. Not cool. The course turned out to be much hillier than I was expecting and I could tell I was burning way more energy on them early in the race than I wanted to. Plus the hills played merry hell with my pace management. It took me a good 5-6 miles to get my legs into a comfortable groove and I hit the halfway mat at 2:10:37 (9:58/mile).

The second half started out well and I loosened the leash on my pacing a bit. It started to warm up and I was able to shed my gloves and thermal sleeves, too. I could tell I was making good time, until... Miles 21-24 were brutally uphill. My legs started to get heavy and lose drive. I was giving all that precious time back through a combination of terrain and accumulated fatigue. Miles 24-26 flattened out a bit, becoming more rolling than the previous uphill slogs. By the time I could see the finish line, I was ready to be done and couldn't muster a stretch push of any note. Crossed the line at 4:20:22 (9:56/mile).

So, how did that stack up against my goals for the race?

Base goal (finish <5:00:00) - Check
Stretch goal (finish <4:30:00) - Check
Bonus goal (negative split) - Check

Knocking 1:28:24 off my marathon PR - priceless!!

Given the course conditions I could not be happier with my performance. Apparently I literally left it all on the course, too. After crossing the finish line they handed me my medal and I promptly had to grab the chute railing to stay upright, so I got to spend some time with the nice folks at the med tent until I could stand on my own again! Fortunately, DW ran the 5k with some folks from her school and was there to drive home. Now I can focus on just having fun with Dopey in January.

I would also be seriously remiss if I didn't give a huge shout out and thank you to @DopeyBadger who set up the custom training plan that got me so well prepared for this race!

Awesome! You smashed those goals

 

[Nole95]

DW and I ran the Savannah Rock n Roll Marathon yesterday morning. It was pretty much a perfect day for running with the temperature being 52 at the start.

Our goal was to PR the race. While I did not finish with the time I really wanted, I did manage to shave 13 minutes off my PR, and DW knocked 12 minutes off of hers. I'm not going to complain about that.

As for RnR, the organization for this race was great. From the Expo to on course support, it was very well organized. DW and I were very impressed with the whole finisher area, and we were both of the opinion that it seemed much more smoothly run and efficient than what RunDisney has done with any of their races we have attended.

Savannah is a great city, and it was nice to be able to walk right out the front of the hotel and be in our corral.

 

[gjramsey]

Texas 10 Conroe Race report: Time change was nice this morning, so it didnt feel like I had to get up as early to get to the race site. I got to Conroe just after 6 when packet pickup opened, got my packet and then went on a little 4 mile run, since the plan called for 14 miles today. The course was ready for the race, so I ran 80% of the 5 mile lap to get my miles in. It was about 40 minutes until the start of the race when I got back to the car. Changed my shirt for the race and had a bar to get some food in me. Temps were in the low 60s, which was better then the last several days.

Race started a little late, and we took off. Going into the race, I thought I wanted to keep my pace around 8:00 mile. Checked my watch at 1/2 mile and the pace was about 25 seconds faster then I thought I wanted to race at, but was feeling good, so kept on running. Ended up with the 1st mile 7:33. 2nd mile was 7:26 and feeling easy. 3rd mile was still feeling easy at 7:21. 4 mile and a nice incline on it but the mile ended up at 7:17. Around here math started kicking in and trying to figure out what I could do and still PR (1:14:51 set 3 years ago). Mile 5 had a couple steep rollers in it, and a nice decline the last half mile. Still feeling pretty easy with a 7:21. Time to do the lap again! Mile 6 was going back up the 1/2 mile incline, and a 7:25. Mile 7 was another 7:25, and the legs are now starting to feel a little tired. Mile 8, 7:26. Ok, I think I could walk the hills and still PR, but that ain't happening, no walking hills today. Mile 9, 7:17, my legs were telling me that was my slowest mile, so pretty stunned when I looked at my watch. Final mile, the last two steep rollers, and then the final half mile down hill to finish. Mile 10 7:14. The race clock was still under 1:14 as I approached the finish line. Stopped my watch at 1:13:57. A PR of 54 seconds.

Where in the world did this come from!?!? The 10 mile race was the last of my highest mileage week ever, 57 for the week. I had been telling my running buddies yesterday that so far I was liking the Hanson's plan and feeling stronger in my runs. That 10 mile runs were feeling pretty easy. I wore my HR monitor for the first time in a while for an easy run Friday morning, and had an average HR of under 130 for 7 miles, something I had never seen before.

So at this point in the training program, I am really happy with where I am at. However, I did blow one of my goals for the month.. I think I may have raced the race a little to hard, but the PR was worth it!

 

[DopeyBadger]

Great day for a race. Ran the City of Oaks Marathon this morning and what a difference being trained and uninjured makes! After running the Disney Marathon injured in January in 5:48:48 I knew I could do better and felt like I had a score to settle with marathons!

City of Oaks was a pretty hilly course starting and ending at the NC State bell tower and running through downtown Raleigh before hitting the greenways for an out and back.

The race started nice and cool and headed due east into downtown at dawn. Not cool. The course turned out to be much hillier than I was expecting and I could tell I was burning way more energy on them early in the race than I wanted to. Plus the hills played merry hell with my pace management. It took me a good 5-6 miles to get my legs into a comfortable groove and I hit the halfway mat at 2:10:37 (9:58/mile).

The second half started out well and I loosened the leash on my pacing a bit. It started to warm up and I was able to shed my gloves and thermal sleeves, too. I could tell I was making good time, until... Miles 21-24 were brutally uphill. My legs started to get heavy and lose drive. I was giving all that precious time back through a combination of terrain and accumulated fatigue. Miles 24-26 flattened out a bit, becoming more rolling than the previous uphill slogs. By the time I could see the finish line, I was ready to be done and couldn't muster a stretch push of any note. Crossed the line at 4:20:22 (9:56/mile).

So, how did that stack up against my goals for the race?

Base goal (finish <5:00:00) - Check
Stretch goal (finish <4:30:00) - Check
Bonus goal (negative split) - Check

Knocking 1:28:24 off my marathon PR - priceless!!

Given the course conditions I could not be happier with my performance. Apparently I literally left it all on the course, too. After crossing the finish line they handed me my medal and I promptly had to grab the chute railing to stay upright, so I got to spend some time with the nice folks at the med tent until I could stand on my own again! Fortunately, DW ran the 5k with some folks from her school and was there to drive home. Now I can focus on just having fun with Dopey in January.

I would also be seriously remiss if I didn't give a huge shout out and thank you to @DopeyBadger who set up the custom training plan that got me so well prepared for this race!

I am so proud of you! It's days like these that make all the long nights writing the plans for you guys worth it. In all honestly, having you guys go out and crush it comes so close to the feeling I get when I crush a race myself. Ask my wife. I came home and had a good day running. I was beaming. But when I checked my PM and saw your final time, it's all I talked about for the next hour. Just smiling ear to ear.

You came to me and said I want 4 days a week. And the Friday and Sunday are both off so no back to back long runs. I'd be lying if I didn't say this was a tough plan to write. But we came up with a plan based on your current paces. Got you into continuous running since the injury. Maxed the long run at 14 miles. Messed a tad with hydration and nutrition. Came up with a pacing strategy.

And with all that... YOU CRUSHED IT! You knocked 1:28 off your time and made a massive 25% improvement from your previous marathon.

So, I want to thank you for trusting the last 5 months of your running career in my hands. It helps validate to me I'm on the right track. Because I took a 4 day a week plan with a max run of 14 miles and got you to the starting line healthy and only 5 minutes off your race predicted time based on your half marathon with a 25% improvement. You sir amazed me! Congrats!

 

[camaker]

I am so proud of you! It's days like these that make all the long nights writing the plans for you guys worth it. In all honestly, having you guys go out and crush it comes so close to the feeling I get when I crush a race myself. Ask my wife. I came home and had a good day running. I was beaming. But when I checked my PM and saw your final time, it's all I talked about for the next hour. Just smiling ear to ear.

You came to me and said I want 4 days a week. And the Friday and Sunday are both off so no back to back long runs. I'd be lying if I didn't say this was a tough plan to write. But we came up with a plan based on your current paces. Got you into continuous running since the injury. Maxed the long run at 14 miles. Messed a tad with hydration and nutrition. Came up with a pacing strategy.

And with all that... YOU CRUSHED IT! You knocked 1:28 off your time and made a massive 25% improvement from your previous marathon.

So, I want to thank you for trusting the last 5 months of your running career in my hands. It helps validate to me I'm on the right track. Because I took a 4 day a week plan with a max run of 14 miles and got you to the starting line healthy and only 5 minutes off your race predicted time based on your half marathon with a 25% improvement. You sir amazed me! Congrats!

View attachment 205439

Saying thank you again seems so inadequate, so I'll go for a laugh instead. After our discussions about pacing and hydration/nutrition strategy I knew I'd never remember the details under race conditions. So I put together a spreadsheet for each. Then I copied them onto a piece of card stock and "laminated" it so it would hold up to sweat in my pocket. Used it the whole race, pulling it out to refresh the plan for the next couple of miles in mind.

I've always liked spreadsheets, but I am truly the padawan to Master Dopey Wan Kenobi! Or do you prefer Obi Wan Dopey?

 

[Keels]

I won't speak for @FFigawi because it was his experience and he may feel totally different ...

But watching John yesterday was the ultimate proof that if you "Put in the Work" and "Trust Your Training", an event will be your victory lap.

I watched the entire swim, saw him in and out of both transitions, out and in the bike course, multiple times on the run course and then finally at the finish line - and he was WORLD'S APART in how he looked compared to other athletes. He looked great at every spot, he was happy, smiling, waving and posing for pictures, just in general great spirits ... definitely not like a guy in the middle of the most grueling athletic event one can compete in.

When we saw him take off like a rocket for the Marathon portion, it was just incredible. We could all tell that he knew this bad boy was a done deal and it really was just about what his time would be. And, of course because he's one of the most fiercely competitive people I know, he even surprised us on his marathon time (he even had a few 9:00/miles in there just to show off). If he was struggling, he never once showed it.

I posted a video of him crossing the finish line and being declared an Ironman, and I don't know what to say other than it was the most definitive example of ultimate triumph that I've ever seen.

So incredibly proud of him, and so honored to have had the opportunity to be there to support him.

 

[Keels]

Oh yeah, and I cried like a baby when he finished. Because that's what Keels do.

 

[run.minnie.miles]

Congratulations to everyone that ran (and tri'd!) this weekend!!! Awesome job everyone!