Progression session

7:25 AM - 10 miles, 1:03:30 - Horgan Track.
4 miles to Horgan (28:00), 2 miles of striding the back straight on the track (12:40), 4-mile progression back home (22:50 - 6:00, 5:55, 5:35, 5:20).

Not gonna lie, this one wasn't as easy as I hoped it would be but then again running hard first thing in the morning rarely ever classifies as effortless. Normally I wouldn't consider finishing up the last couple miles of a run at a mid-5:30 pace all that difficult an endeavor, but doing so less than an hour removed from a deep sleep is a whole different story. Menial complaints aside, the important thing is that I got the damn thing done, not with the ease or speed I was hoping for, but done nonetheless.

The rest of my NB Boston teammates will run a similar session tomorrow morning in Lincoln, but because of my wacky weekend work schedule and relative lack of proximity to the aforementioned location, I get the privilege of doing the the second workout of the week on my own. It's not an ideal situation, but because of the circumstances it is what it is. If anything, I think flying solo through turbulence once a week this fall will pay huge mental dividends when it comes time to toe the starting line. It's one thing when you can latch on to someone and fly the friendly skies, it's a whole 'nother kind of adventure when you hit a rough stretch without the luxury of a co-pilot. The real test is not abandoning your aircraft when it starts taking a nosedive.

Quote of the Day

"Keep the faith, 2008 is a big year for running and life."
- Keith Kelly, speaking, er, e-mailing, the truth.

Every hour counts

8:35 AM - 12 miles, 1:23:00 - Sterling Rail Trail.
6-mile loop, not once, but twice. 42:15/40:45 for each go around, keeping things under control the entire way. 6 x 10-second hill charges afterward.

Got a bit of a longer run in this morning since I didn't need to be in to work until noon, perhaps the biggest, if not only, advantage of keeping the store open an extra hour on Thursday nights. The combination of Sunday's workout/race and Tuesday night's hills and drills seem to have finally taken their toll on my legs, mostly my calves, and I really had no desire to pick things up this morning, not even a little bit. I was still able to get in some good mileage, however, and finished up the run with 6 short hill charges on a moderately steep grade. The whole goal with the hill charges is to work on my form and improve my basic power, two things I deem important but regretfully haven't paid much attention to the last few years. Ideally, I'll do one or two of these sessions a week after easy runs and I'm hoping that along with drills, the short hills will make me stronger, more efficient and less injury prone. Time will tell, but given my recent history, I figure they're worth giving a shot.

Quote of the Day

"Chess is like track and track is like life. In all of them, you have many choices, and depending on your choice, there will be consequences. So one must choose wisely."
- Khadevis Robinson

Make it quick!

7:30 AM - 8 miles, 57:10 - Rockland 8.
Easy does it on this crisp morning, the first one in a long while that warranted wearing a long sleeve t-shirt. Legs expectedly tired given the combination of mileage and intensity the last three days, but feeling pretty good on the whole.

This one will be quick - surprise, surprise - because it's getting late and I've yet to devote any part of my day to stretching and core work, two things I deem very important and two things I haven't been doing near enough of lately. Also, by getting taking care of these two essential exercises in a timely fashion, I can get my ass to bed at a reasonable hour, another area I've been failing miserably in of late. And let's face it, a slow distance run and a relatively uneventful day at work don't make for interesting blogging, but if and when they ever do I'll be the first to share, unless, that is, any of the names listed on the right side of this page beat me to it. Hasta mañana hombres.

Quote of the Day

"I didn’t find myself saying 'God, these girls are the best in the world.' I was thinking to myself 'you are, too; you earned your spot here.'"
- Anna Willard on racing at the World Championships

Final draft

11:20 AM - 4 miles, 31:35 - Lake Park.
Lil joggy jog on the dirt to stretch the legs out a bit before tonight's workout. First 1/2 mile on the track a dead-on 4 minutes, last 1/2 in a spot-on 3:20. The three outer loops and a mile on the track works out to exactly 4.36 miles, but c'mon, who's counting?

6:30 PM - 12 miles - Heartbreak Hill.
8 x Bottom-to-Top with Ryan, Jeff, Fabian, Justin and new addition John Nieskens. Drill set beforehand on the grass, consisting of butt kicks, quick feet, backward running, karaoke and bounding. Workout went well, felt very strong throughout. Times ranged from 1:55 to start down to 1:48 for the last one. Solid group, this fall is gonna be exciting.

Quote of the Day

"Saw this and thought of you!!"
- E-mail this morning from good pal Melissa Kinney, regarding the above image. For the record, I've never once considered removing a non-essential body part in the hopes of cutting a few seconds off my 10K time. The removal of non-essential body hair, yes, but that's a whole different cartoon.

Talking shop

4:25 PM - 10 miles, 1:07:30 - Reebok International.
Roads to Blue Hills trails and back with Keith, then added on 2 miles with Ted once back on campus. Good run, legs seem to have bounced back well from yesterday's effort.

Great afternoon at Reebok world headquarters in Canton checking out new product, talking shop and going for a run with Keith Kelly, our store's sales rep and an all-around good guy to boot. It was cool to see how the other side of the athletic footwear industry operates and get a peek at all the shit that has to go down before a new shoe lands itself a spot on my store's wall. The amount of innovation, design, testing and tweaking that a shoe undergoes before it gets released is absolutely mind-blowing. And even then there's no guarantee that they "got it right", but that's where feedback from retailers and wear-testers comes in handy before the designers go back to the drawing board, so to speak. From a retailer's perspective, it's always exciting to be asked for product feedback by a vendor who really wants to improve the quality of the stuff they're putting out and then to actually see those improvements take place. Reebok is a company that certainly falls into that category. A lot of the old footwear from back in the DMX days left a sore spot on a lot of runner's feet and has made a lot of folks, specialty retailers included, reluctant to give their current line a shot. It's too bad, because while the new RBK stuff certainly isn't perfect, it's a lot better than it used to be. And an early look this afternoon at next year's line showed me that Reebok is willing to take the steps necessary to improve a product that can compete with established industry leaders. Ridiculous past marketing campaigns aside, this company has the right people in the right places to make it happen, so it's up to specialty retailers like PR Running to give the Reebok product a shot and help grow the brand as best we can. As someone who's seen up close the direction Reebok Running wants to go in, I'm happy to do so.

Quote of the Day

"I don't rest on past laurels."
- Steve Scott

Double your fun

10:35 AM - 10 miles - Canal Diggers 5K.
Ran the inaugural Canal Diggers 5K as the second part of a pre-arranged workout with Kevin of 2 x 5K. No splits, but did the first on my own in 16:46 (5:24 pace), raced the second in 15:44 (5:04 pace). Nice to reacquaint myself with old friend Ann Aerobia, even if just for a brief minute or two.

5:45 PM - 6 miles, 45:25 - Hopedale.
Double dose of the pond after work. Lightheaded and woozy but legs felt fine.

Just got home from a night consisting of barbecue, beer, baseball and the Brady Show at Rich's house, so this will be quick. Busy day today with a workout/race all rolled into one this morning, an afternoon shift working at the store, a refreshing evening run on the hallowed dirt of Hopedale and one of the biggest nights of New England sports in recent memory. Let's just forget about the fact that the Sox dropped 2 of 3 to the Yanks at home and revel in the Pats 38-14 dismantling of the Chargers instead. Yeah, let's do that.

Anyway, as I mentioned on Friday, this morning's workout was 2 x 5K with goal paces of 5:25-30 for the first go around and 5:10-15 a few minutes a later. I didn't get any splits along the way, but hit 16:46 (5:24), 15:44 (5:04) with about 15 minutes in between the two. I was shooting for only 10 minutes of respite, but the start of the race was pushed back 5 minutes so the walkers could get an unnecessary head start.

Overall, I'm very happy with the effort, even more so to pull out the win. The course was flat and conditions were ideal, but I'm not gonna lie - I was busting my ass the second time around. Once the singlet went on and the horn went off, hitting splits went out the window and the only goal became to win the damn race. After a choppy start, I spent 2-1/2 miles trying to chase down Byron Gartrell until I finally caught him with just over a 1/4 mile to go. I got gapped, but I didn't quit. When I went by Byron, I went by him hard. I didn't check splits, I raced. I'll be sore tomorrow, but I can sleep well tonight.

Quote of the Day

"The last lap I tried to catch to him. But I didn’t have the energy. But now I have the courage. I do not fear anybody. Because I now realize that even me, I can make it.”
- Moses Masai

Bad taste

Sorry, I've been choking on last night's entry since I woke up this morning. How in the world the Sox blew a 5-run lead in the 8th inning with the best bullpen in baseball is beyond me. Looking back, it's probably better that I turned the game off early rather than putting something through the TV screen and cursing myself to sleep. Luckily, the boys bounced back this afternoon and whacked Wang around to bring the division lead back up to 5-1/2 games. Thank you Cy Young, I mean Josh Beckett, for making my day just a little bit brighter.

Week Summary: September 9-15
Sunday - 8:35 AM: 16 miles, 1:43:05. Miles 12-15 in 5:44, 5:37, 5:27.
Monday - 11:10 AM: 6 miles, 43:05. 5 x 10-second hill charges afterward. 7:35 PM: 6 miles, 48:10.
Tuesday - 8 AM: 4 miles, 28:25. 6:10 PM: 10 miles. 10 x 1-minute on Heartbreak Hill.
Wednesday - 7:40 AM: 8 miles, 57:20. Tired.
Thursday - 7:20 AM: 10 miles, 1:08:35. 4 x 100m strides, 4 x 400m (73.13, 71.07, 71.85, 70.55).
Friday - 11:45 AM: 10 miles, 1:10:35. 5 x 10-second hill charges at 45 minutes, 5 x 20-second strides during the last mile.
Saturday - 8:05 AM: 6 miles, 43:45. Easy today, hard tomorrow.
Totals: 76 miles, 9 runs. Another good week in the books. Hope to string together a steady slew of these throughout the fall.

Quote of the Day

"I think a lot of people go into races, especially the marathon, just so determined to run a certain time. Though my times are important to me, I realized at Boston I just had to relax and let it go. During the race I just tried to stay really attuned to how I was feeling and respond to that."
- Ann Alyanak, who ran a 10-minute PR to finish as the second American woman in the 2007 Boston Marathon

Off day, or is it?

11:45 AM - 10 miles, 1:10:30 - West Hill.
Parked at the canal, roads down to West Hill, one loop and back. Added on with a little out-and-back toward Plummer's Landing and stopped at the intersection of Upton Road and Pudding Street 45 minutes in for 5 x 10-second hill charges. Threw in 5 x 20-second strides over the last mile as well, just to stretch the legs out a bit.

Day off from work today, but a busy one nonetheless. It's funny, my days off aren't ever really "off", but rather days where I try and get all the other crap done that I manage to neglect during my irregular work week. Today started with a doctor's appointment for my aching right eye, which it turns out is infected. Looks like I'll be wearing my glasses for a few days till this sucker clears up, literally. From there, I headed home to update the local Running Calendar, which will run alongside my twice-monthly running column in this Sunday's paper. The column itself still needed some work, but I deemed completing my own run more important than completing the column, so I took off to West Hill to get some mileage in on soft ground. After getting home in the early hours of the afternoon, I showered, then sat down and had some lunch before meeting with a representative from Gallo Builders to pick a new tile for the foyer in my new pad because the first color I chose had recently been discontinued. For the curious amongst my loyal crowd, I went with "rocca grey" which replaced the "stone grey" I originally had my sights set on. I'm still wondering why this substitution couldn't be taken care of over the phone, but apparently, me initialing the change was a key part of the equation. Damn bureaucracy.

Anyway, after taking care of the trivial tile matter, I went to pick up my prescription from the pharmacy, which took close to 20 minutes. Mind you I dropped the script off on my way home from the appointment this morning, and never mind the fact that the damn thing was nothing more than a tiny bottle of eye drops. Yes, eye drops!

Moving on. Eye drops in hand and eventually in my eye, I got home, had some fish for dinner with the rents and got back to work on my column. The goal was to finish the thing by 6 so I could head out to Stonehill for the football home-opener at W.B. Mason Stadium, but it wasn't meant to be. 2-1/2 hours and almost 20 inches of type later, I put the finishing touches on a piece highlighting the importance of making yourself visible while running outside during the fall and winter months. I even managed to work a reference to Clark Griswold in there. Make sure to check it out here on Sunday.

Speaking of Sunday, I'll be racing in this inaugural event hosted by the one and only Paul Collyer. After talking things over with Kevin earlier this week, I'll be using the race as part of a tempo/threshold workout consisting of 2 x 5K. The plan will be to navigate the course at 10:35 AM all by my lonesome at what will hopefully be a leisurely aerobic pace of 5:20-5:30 a mile, then at 11 AM try and lead 400-500 other runners on an even faster 3.1-mile tour of Worcester's thriving Canal District. The goal is to get down to 5:10-15 pace or thereabouts the second time around. Yes, I realize that's not much of a drop in pace, but there's a very fine line between my aerobic and anaerobic capacities right now. A few more weeks of steady mileage mixed with some well-placed hill workouts, tempo runs and fartleks should help to widen that gap a bit.

And few hours of sleep right now will help ensure that I'm well-rested for my efforts on Sunday morning. I'm feeling pretty good about the 7-2 lead the Sox are holding over the Yanks right now in the seventh, so I don't mind shutting this one off early. Let's just hope I don't wake up tomorrow morning eating those words.

Quote of the Day

This is the point where it gets interesting, you sort of ride the line just below being injured (hopefully), and I personally am lucky if I have two runs a week where I actually enjoy myself. This is what it takes to compete in the trials though, and most of the guys are willing to do it, I just hope we can walk in ten years."
- Brian Sell on going 'ballz deep'

Runaway winner

THURSDAY
7:20 AM - 10 miles, 1:08:35 - Horgan Track.
28:20 to Horgan, 2 miles on the track in 11:50, 28:25 back home. 2 miles on the track consisted of striding the back straightaway on the odd laps and running a faster 400 on the even ones. Even laps were as follows: 73.13, 71.07, 71.85, 70.55.

Yesterday morning gets my vote as Morning of the Year for 2007. It's gonna be a hard one to beat - 50 degrees, sunny, slightly breezy and most importantly, dry. Absolutely pristine conditions, I thought that even Mayall would be hard pressed to complain, but a check of his log this morning reveals that he indeed did.

As for the run itself, I was feeling a little less fatigued than Wednesday morning, borderline energetic in fact. Depending on how I felt, I was planning on throwing some short pickups into one of my runs either Thursday or Friday, and the combination of beautiful weather and adequate energy levels steered me toward getting it over with sooner rather than later.

So, rather than carrying out the original plan of a few 1-minute surges and strides yesterday, I decided on the fly to make use of the Horgan track mid-run and do 2 miles around the oval instead, alternating between strides on the odd laps and full quarter-mile pickups on the evens. I figured 5-minute pace or 75 seconds would be pushing my limits on the one lappers, but I was pleasantly surprised to comfortably click off four rotations in the low 70s. Given where I'm at right now, this was certainly encouraging. Never mind that a few years ago I used to click off 12 laps straight at this pace, but let's not dwell on the past, for the future looks brighter.

That's it for now. I'm off to go bang out 10-12 miles on the hallowed ground known as the West Hill Dam. If I'm not too strapped for time this afternoon, I may even update this page again later today. Take it easy folks.

Quote of the Day

"Well, you don’t want to be the kid in the backyard imagining that he just hit a three-point shot with no time left in the NBA Finals. Then you’re just a dreamer. Success in our sport comes from putting in the work, enjoying the process and getting yourself as ready as you can be."
- Matt Downin

Doubling up

TUESDAY

8:00 AM - 4 miles, 28:25 - Pakachoag 4.

Easy shakeout before work.

6:10 PM - 10 miles - Newton Hills.
Just me, Justin Maloney and most of the ladies last night for 10 x 1 minute up Heartbreak Hill. Small crew for this one, but just happy to be back with the team. Luckily the rain let up for us and conditions were near perfect. Felt strong throughout, but could feel my form starting to unravel a bit toward the end of the last two.

WEDNESDAY

7:40 AM - 8 miles, 57:20 - RockPak 8.

Tired, but otherwise no complaints. Nice morning, finally starting to feel like fall.

I apologize for the lack of an entry yesterday and a bare bones one tonight. It's been a busy week on many fronts, so a few things have unfortunately fallen victim to my own neglect, this blog included. That being said, and seeing how I've got a full day on tap at the store tomorrow, I'd be best served to get my ass to bed at a reasonable hour. Come to think of it, right now seems reasonable enough. Goodnight.

Quote of the Day

"This may sound masochistic, but forcing yourself is a part of competitive running and you either are good at it and become better at it, or you never take up the challenge."
- Bill Rodgers, Marathoning, page 167

Got shoes?

11:10 AM - 6 miles, 43:05 - Sterling Rail Trail.
Kept things short and slow as planned. 5 x 10-second hill charges afterward. The idea is to do these again on Thursday and keep them in the rotation twice a week after easy runs.

7:35 PM - 6 miles, 48:10 - Easton Y.
Pre-Owen's run with Bergs, Reino and Fran. 3 x 100-yard strides on the turf at Stonehill mid-run to stretch the legs out a bit. We successfully managed to navigate the Sheep Pasture trails in the dark but were unable to accomplish our goal of infiltrating the scene of this morning's house explosion. Still had a blast though.



Behold my fleet of footwear, currently fighting strong at 27 pair. This elite running unit draws from various brand backgrounds and represents an array of different sizes, shapes and colors. Some play a more prominent role on my feet than others, but like a youth basketball team, everyone will eventually see some playing time. Not all those pictured here can cut the mustard though, and this cohesive unit bound together by shoe goo doesn't rebuild, it simply reloads. Every 4 to 6 weeks new recruits hoping to replace old warriors must go through a rigorous training program that tests the very heart of their beefed-up midsoles. Those who can eclipse the magical 100-mile mark are among the fortunate few who have shown me they have what it takes to earn a spot on my feet for 300 to 500 miles. The ones that can't, well, these poorly constructed piles of EVA foam aren't totally neglected, just relegated to the menial, often boring, but equally important task of protecting my feet at low-impact times of the day.

Quote of the Day

"They did offer a laptop computer as the big prize for the raffle. No word on whether the hard drive had monster.com users' personal info on it.'
- New Balance Boston's Mark Mayall, winner of yesterday's Monster.com 3.5-mile Road Race

On the ropes

8:35 AM - 16 miles, 1:43:05 - Stone Church.
52:36 on the up-and-down 8-mile loop, keeping things pretty relaxed minus a few piss poor attempts to run the hills hard. 50:24 for the second "8", which in reality is closer to 8.4, including a steady 3-mile stretch from 12-15 in 5:44, 5:37, 5:27. Finished up with an easy mile before calling it a day. Solid run, but soft compared to Casey's effort over the same distance this morning.

Finally back on a regular schedule, but that doesn't mean life has been any less hectic. Rich and I survived another asskicking at work today, the second day in a row the two of us have been pummeled by fall marathoners, weekend warriors, high school cross country runners, fitness walkers, Team In Training Gallowalkers and everyday Joe Schmoes with every podiatric malady under the sun.

As physically exhausted, not to mention mentally battered and bruised, some of these difficult cases have left me, it was a great weekend at the store, made even better by the woman who put a big smile on my face when she bought not one, but two, Garmin 305 GPS units yesterday. I even got a chuckle this afternoon when told by a high school runner that the apparent ignorance I displayed by not mentioning her team's home cross country course in this article made one of her teammates mad. I'm not gonna lie, as the local running writer who works at the local running store and crosses paths with 98% of the local running population, it made my weekend.

Exhaustion, Garmin-induced smiling and basking in my own ability to piss people off aside, it's been both exciting and satisfying to see how much this small store has grown in the scant year I've been fortunate enough to call myself an employee. It's a good feeling to see Rich and Jess fulfilling their dream, while filling what was a gaping hole in the Central Mass. running community.

Speaking of filling gaping holes, the folks over at Gallo Builders are doing a nice job turning the pile of dirt at 65 Sophia Drive into a structure that is starting to resemble a livable dwelling. The following photos were taken this morning. Lovely color, don't ya think?



And that's gonna do it for today. I've got a much-needed day off from work tomorrow, which should leave me plenty of time to get some rest and start brainstorming ideas for my next running column. I wonder who I'll manage to piss off this week...

Quote of the Day

"Personally, I don't think human beings should ever run when its 90 degrees. I try to avoid it, and am moderately successful...Any race that's run in temperatures over 80 degrees should be boycotted by runners!...I always have hated summer running. Maybe we can ban it...Run as you feel, not according to some running guru's theories. Half the time those guys were never really very good. Sorry, had to say that."
- Bill Rodgers, in an excerpt from the "Ask Bill" section of the Running Times website. Check out this page, it's a true gem.

Run easy

7:40 AM - 5 miles, 35:50 - Pakachoag 5.
Easy does it to end the week. Felt much better than the past couple days. It's amazing what 8 hours of sleep and 7-minute miles will do for your energy levels.

Weekly Summary: September 2-8
Sunday - AM: 16 miles, 1:45:00. Last 5 miles in 5:19, 5:33, 5:12, 6:18 (recovery), 4:54. Pretty much all downhill. 5 x 10-second hill charges afterward.
Monday - 10:15 AM: 7 miles, 51:00.
Tuesday - 6:55 AM: 8 miles, 54:00.
Wednesday - 9:45 AM: 8 miles, 51:20. 5 x 2 minutes @ 5K effort w/2 minutes recovery. 5 x 10-second hill charges afterward. 7:35 PM: 4 miles, 30:15.
Thursday - 8:45 AM: 12 miles, 1:21:45.
Friday - 7:20 AM: 10 miles, 1:09:50. 10 x 20-second strides.
Saturday - 7:40 AM: 5 miles, 35:50.
Totals: 70 miles, 8 runs. Solid week, best one since VCM. Still have a long way to go to get where I want to be but I've got plenty of time to get there.

Quote of the Day

“He looked at me and said, ‘I wouldn’t count on it. You probably won’t be that great.’ So right then I’m thinking to myself, ‘I’m going to prove this guy wrong.’”
- Anthony Famiglietti

Early night

7:20 AM - 10 miles, 1:09:50 - RockPak 10.
First 3 miles all north of 7-minute pace. Tired from the time I rolled out of bed, not too sure how I managed to pick things up as much as I apparently did. 10 x 20-second strides over the last 4 miles might have had something to do with it. Surprisingly, those didn't feel too bad.

It's 9:51 p.m., and I'm going to bed. Now.

Quote of the Day

"Sometimes, you're feeling like crap, you're out there and sometimes it's just the team and you know they're counting on you...and there's just something different about it, you know, about being a part of a team really and you know, contributing to it."
- Ohio State coach Robert Gary on being part of a cross country team

Tireday, I mean Thursday

8:45 AM - 12 miles, 1:21:45 - Rail Trail.
Back-n-forth on the trail a few times, starting out pretty easy and gradually working down to 6:20 pace or so by the end. Body still tired, legs a little on the sore side from yesterday's hill charges but on the whole not feeling too bad.

Con Senora y Senor Ponce the night after the wedding.

Quote of the Day

"There isn't any secret to being a great runner. You must just train very hard. Very, very hard. That's the secret."
- Said Aouita

Fill 'er up

9:45 AM - 8 miles, 51:20 - RockPak 8.
Plan was for 10 x 1-minute hills, but too tired and sluggish from travel to actually go through with it so I improvised on the fly. Hit the first 3 miles in 7:21, 6:48, 6:26, then did 5 x 2 minutes @ 5K effort w/2 minutes float for recovery. Ran the last mile up and over Malvern Road in 5:28 - 1 second better than last week - and finished up with 5 x 10 second hill charges on Auburn Hill afterward. Good effort, but not great.

7:35 PM - 4 miles, 30:15 - Westboro.
Easy shakeout from the store with Casey after work. Felt good to stretch the legs out.

First full day back in Mass, first full day back to work and first full day of training for the upcoming fall racing season. I'm not gonna lie, it was a lot to squeeze in for one day, so hopefully I still have some room left for a few hours of much-needed sleep.

The good thing about this full-fledged dive into September is that I'm finally going to be back on a regular schedule with work and running, making everything else that much more manageable. This morning's makeshift workout made me realize 1. how much I really need the team right now to maximize the effectiveness of my harder efforts and 2. that I really need to be more diligent about getting a sufficient amount of rest so I'm recovering properly and getting the most out of said efforts.

So, taking these two key points into consideration, Tuesday night can't come soon enough. It will be my first workout back with the team since before VCM and I'm really looking forward to feeding off the energy of my New Balance Boston teammates and training hard again under Kevin's watchful eye. As Ryan and Jeff both alluded to in their own blogs, it's going to be an exciting season - full of long and short hills, explosive drills, up-tempo paces and kickass races.

Time to get psyched up, spiked up and ready to tear it up!

Quote of the Day

"And if you want to leap up to their level, no one's going to give it to you. You've got to work for it to make the jump."
- Peter Gilmore on what it takes to reach the next level.

Zoning out

Monday - 10:15 AM - 7 miles, 51:00 - Alton Baker Park.
Comments: Hit up Pre's Trails and ran the roads in and around the U of O. Legs were pretty messed up from yesterday's downhill silliness but didn't feel too bad once I got going. Woodchips were just what the doctor ordered.

Tuesday - 6:55 AM - 8 miles, 54:00 - Beaverton.
Comments: Got out early from the hotel before the flight home and by shit luck managed to stumble upon Nike world headquarters. An absolutely incredible facility, what with a 2-mile woodchip running trail and all. I'm just glad I didn't get booted for my New Balance hat, Sporthill shirt, Reebok shorts and Mizuno sneaks.

Just got in after 12 hours of travel and stops in three different time zones. I'll have more to write about my trip in the coming days, but for now I have trick my body back into believing it's 12:52 a.m. and it would be in my best interest to get some much-needed sleep. G'night fools.

Quote of the Day

"Nothing like being put in the hot seat, but then it's one of my favorite places. If the answers to all running shoe questions were easy, I'd have to go out and find a real job. An ugly thought indeed."
- J.D. Denton, aka the Running Times "Shoe Guy", telling it like it is.

Great discovery

10:15 AM - 16 miles, 1:45:00 - Forest Park.
Comments: Hit up the out-n-back Leif Erikson trail in Portland, conveniently marked every 1/4 mile out to Mile 6. Net uphill on the way out, just the opposite on the way back. 2 x 2 miles @ ~6:00 pace at 40 and 60 minutes, last 5 solo in 5:19, 5:33, 5:12, 6:18 (recovery), 4:54. 5 x 10-second hill charges afterward.

This will be brief because I've got to get ready for the wedding soon, but if you ever happen to find yourself out this way, make sure you check out the Leif Erikson trail just off the end of Northwest Thurman Street in Portland. It's magical. I must've seen at least 75 people out running and another 25 or so ascending and descending the trail on their bikes. The beauty of it all is that the entire gravel road is marked, wonderfully shaded and has plenty of room for everyone. Definitely a Top-5'er.

Quote of the Day

"Kara showed that if you dream big and follow through, your dreams can come true."
- Steve Slattery on former Buff Kara Goucher's success. Not bad advice for the rest of us, either.

Oar-e-gone

7:15 PM - 9 miles, 1:05:00 - Beaverton, OR.
Comments: Went exploring from the hotel with Mariko. Hit a couple parks and a nice sports complex with a short wood chip trail. Very stuffed up for some reason but felt much better than I expected to after traveling all day.

Running column complete, arrived safely in Oregon and not as tired as I thought I'd be. Good start to the weekend.

Quote of the Day

"He’s not looking at the foothills, he’s got his eyes of the mountains."
- Dan Browne on Ryan Hall

Frazzled on Friday

7:20 AM - 8 miles, 55:05 - RockPak 8.
Comments: Felt pretty decent given a less-than-ideal night of sleep. Last 3 miles in 6:41, 6:25, 6:01. 5 x 100m incline/decline strides afterward.

It's been a busy week on many fronts, starting with a spike in mileage, which was made all the more challenging while putting in full days on a concrete floor at an increasingly busy store. A handful of unsuccessful attempts at getting all the other important everyday life stuff taken care within a relatively unproductive daily 3-hour window after work, a still unwritten newspaper column and a fast-approaching weekend trip to Oregon for Oscar & Carrie's wedding and you have one frazzled Mario.

Sleep has been the red-headed step child of this crazy week, taking a vicious beating without being totally ignored. My running column, on the other hand, which is due sometime before the clock strikes midnight, has been the completely neglected child and desperately needs some attention. I should probably start packing soon, too.

Did I mention I'm getting on a plane in less than 12 hours?

Quote of the Day

"Going up Mountain Road I wanted to die, and coming back down Mile Hill Road I thought I was going to."
- Greg Ward commenting on his first bike ride over "The Death Loop"

Legendary day

7:45 AM - 7 miles, 43:15 - Rockland 7.
7:10 PM - 5 miles, 40:50 - Westboro.

Comments: AM - Fartlek: 1-minute pickups at 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and 35 minutes. Finished up the last mile over Malvern Road in 5:29. Energy levels much better this morning. PM - Easy run from the store with Larry Olsen. Definitely over 5 miles but not quite 6, and I don't do halves, so this of course gets rounded down. Great run - never a dull moment when Larry Legend is around.

I'm officially in survival mode until sometime on Saturday, possibly, and likely, longer than that. Sit tight, I'll be back -- eventually.

Quote of the Day

"This race killed me, but not until the last 3 miles."
- Ed Baker, on the USATF National 50K Trail Championships last Sunday. Fast Eddie came back to life quickly, however, completing an 8-mile tempo run at 5:12 pace just two days later.

Cutting it short

8:20 AM - 6 miles, 44:00 - Bike Path.
Comments: Had my sister drop me off at the barber shop, got my hairs cut, then ran home. Legs felt fine but didn't have the time, energy or motivation to go any longer.

Quote of the Day

"A lot of the racing is mental, a lot of it the damage is done before the gun has even gone."
- Craig Mottram

Get busy

7:15 AM - 10 miles, 1:08:45.

Comments: New loop from home, gradually picking it up over the last 3 miles in 6:27, 6:05, 5:49. 5 x 100m strides afterward, 1-3-5 on a slight incline, 2 & 4 making advantageous use of gravity.

Busy season is in full swing at PR Running, with cross country getting underway last week and the fall marathon season lurking right around the corner. It's an exciting time to be in the store but it man does it take a lot out of you, well, out of me at least.

My legs are toast, which has about as much to do with running 10 miles first thing in the morning as it does parading back-and-forth on rug-covered concrete for 9 hours afterward. The remedy? Running on soft surfaces when the opportunity allows, a daily icing regimen, kicking the legs up for an hour or so after work and the ever-so-elusive, but ever-so-important good night of sleep.

I need to get to work on that last one, like now. G'night.

Quote of the Day

"Dream big, have faith, and believe that anything is possible."
- Kara Goucher, making her second appearance here in a week

History lesson

8:45 AM - 10 miles, 1:05:00 - Hopedale.
Comments: 3 loops of the pond from the high school parking lot with 3-mile splits of 20:15, 18:03, 19:09. Felt pretty good for once. Got into a nice, steady rhythm in the middle but didn't go too crazy.

I'm not in much of a writing mood tonight, but luckily for you, my loyal readers, I am in a giving one. I'd like to share the following history lesson passed along to me by Grandmaster Hodgie-San, via his colleagues Professor Malmo and Master Po. Let this serve as proof that everything you'll ever need to know in life can be found on letsrun.com.

THE HISTORY OF KUNG FU IN AMERICA

In 17th and 18th century when Shaolin Kung Fu practice was being codified Masters would exchange information through word-of-mouth at Exhibitions. Exciting time it was. Master Igloi to Master Lee-Diard, many different kind Kung Fu. Eventually best Kung Fu methods rise to top. Much information was exchanged through KUNG FU WORLD in Kansas Monastery in the United States.

KUNG FU WORLD have many monks and scribes to make many copy on rice paper. Send writings of Kung Fu Master all around world. Many Grasshopper Read KUNG FU WORLD. Many Grasshopper benefit from writings of KUNG FU WORLD.

In 19th century, monks at KUNG FU WORLD become soiled with stain of Western world -- stain of greed...stain of money. Sell KUNG FU WORLD to highest bidder, sell to evil Monk Ro-Dal. Many evil monk work at new KUNG FU WORLD. Say "Put our writings on check-out stand at grocery store. Sell to bored American housewife, just like GEISHAPOLITAN." Good plan for pocket, bad plan for soul.

One day evil monks say "We need more Yuan, find Kung Fu Master to make false writings to sell to grasshopper." One monk ask, "But is this not against teachings of the Kung Fu Masters?" Young monk get banished from KUNG FU WORLD and false prophet Master Gai Lo-Wei now put writings on rice paper. Master Gai Lo-Wei earn credentials from association with Master Shor-Ter, Kung Fu Champion. Evil monk Gai Lo-Wei abandon Masters teachings and now teach false Kung Fu. Gai Lo-Wei partner Jun Bing-Ham banish all kind Kung Fu: tiger, snake, stork, dragon, hawk, monkey and bear, no longer practice. Now only one kind Kung Fu taught, Penguin Kung Fu.

About same time in 19th century more evil monk see much Yuan make by selling Kung Fu writings, say "I have better Kung Fu, I have New Kung Fu, I have Exercise Physiology to replace Kung Fu." These new EP monks see new Monastery to exploit for Yuan, only now not called Yuan -- now called "Grant Yuan". Monastery system already in place -- American University system. Find gullible sucker with bigger and deeper pockets filled with "Grant Yuan" -- the US Government. These new evil EP monks in white coats put Grasshopper on treadmill, put electrode up backside, have funny mask put on Grasshopper face to steal his breath, to steal his soul. Have Mantis Caliper measure skin, measure fat. Put all information on abacus and make calculation.

Evil EP monks in white coats proclaim, "Old way to measure success is no good, these writings of mine on this rice paper is proof! Time is no longer way to measure success, VO2Max is now the new way to measure Kung Fu success." All grasshopper must pay yuan for New Kung Fu Calculus. All Kung Fu Master shake head, not understand selfish greed of New Kung Fu, not understand selfish greed of new KUNG FU WORLD.

During the mid 19th century and the 20th century evil monks run rampant. Spread their New Kung Fu virus to Grasshoppers across USA. Each year, there are fewer Kung Fu warrior in USA. No more Kung Fu champions. Meanwhile in the rest of the world, monks are teaching old Kung Fu with new EPO Fungus Potion.

One day, monk in CERN Monastery invent new way of printing on ethereal Rice paper. He call Hyper Text Monastery Language (HTML) Another monk Marc Andree-san in Illinois monastery invent way of reading ethereal rice paper with Mosaic looking glass. New way share writings of Kung Fu Masters: World Wide Monastery!

Which bring to 21st century.

Use the World Wide Monastery for good Kung Fu. But be careful, the evil EP monks are busy at work, hatching evil plan to control this World Wide Monastery.

Today, I hear, evil monks at New York Kung Fu Monastery want make New York Kung Fu Exhibition the USA National Kung Fu Exhibition. Evil monks at this monastery for many century ignore American Grasshopper. Say, "Kenya Kung Fu is better, Italian Kung Fu is better, Mexican Kung Fu is better." Master Po ask, "How does American Grasshopper get honor at Kung Fu exhibition at home when evil monks in New York Monastery not invite Grasshopper to Exhibition?"

Why do evil monks now want American Kung Fu Exhibition?

Master Po know answer to this riddle: for these evil monks, it has always been "Yuan". New Mantis Warrior have top Kung Fu honor walk earth from Morocco Monastery to America. Evil New York monks hatch plan to lure this Warrior to New York Exhibition, then sell TV rights and keep all Yuan for evil monastery. All other American grasshopper be damned.

Grasshopper of American monasteries must unite and fight the evil monks of the New York Monastery. American Kung Fu Exhibition must go to monastery that have for centuries support for local Kung Fu. New York Monastery must be shunned until evil monks are routed and monastery show long-term commitment for American Grasshopper.

Good shall always prevail over evil.

Quote of the Day

"Don't think. Feeeeeeeeeeeeeel."
- Rich, quoting Bruce Lee in Enter the Dragon

Taking it back

7:55 AM - 14 miles, 1:35:30 - Borderland State Park.

Great run back at the Motherland this morning after an awesome night in Norton at the humble home of Sean and Melissa Kinney, who just celebrated three, yes, three, years of marriage. It seems like just yesterday I was waving goodbye to the usual suspects at the reception hall, bound for uncertainty in Oregon, only to return homesick and broke two months later. Now those two are thinking about having kids, Reino and Jess are getting married next summer, I'm building a house and Bergie has a serious girlfriend. Either we're getting old or Danny Ainge is getting ready to convince Michael Jordan to make his third NBA comeback with the Boston Celtics next season.

As for the run, it went pretty well. I felt strong, I was able to gradually ratchet down the pace and I was glad to be back on familiar ground. I'm not gonna wax nostalgic like I did last month, but I will briefly reiterate the fact that I LOVE running here, here referring to the Stonehill campus, Sheep Pasture, Town Forest and the crown jewel of this off-road collection, Borderland State Park. I don't know what's so appealing to me about these trails, but I suspect much of it has to do with the fact that this little dirt-covered piece of heaven on earth is where I became a runner. I learned a lot about myself every time I took off down these trails, and today was no different.

I'll keep this morning's self discoveries to, well, myself, but I will share something else I learned about 4 miles out from campus -- the current edition of the Stonehill men's cross country team is going to be nothing short of scary this season. I ran into those bastards this morning, all 21 of them (yes, 21!) and the early report from KcoachB sounded promising. These guys were 10th in the country last season, are led into by a pair of returning All-Americans and boast a class of incoming freshmen that would most assuredly make a lot of Division 1 coaches with a large scholarship budget jealous. The path this program has taken since clowns like me were running around in singlets emblazoned with a large purple feather is nothing short of amazing. I'm proud to call myself an alumni, and even though I never called any of these current Chieftains, I mean Skyhawks, my teammate, I look forward to watching KcoachB's boys tear up the grass this season.

I'm also looking forward to going to bed soon, but before I hit the hay, here's a few weekend performances worth noting:

1. NB-Boston teammate and resident trail bird, Ryan Carrara, on going 2-for-2 at the Thomas Chamberas cross country race and the Mt. Toby Trail Race yesterday and today. That's one tough double, but Ryan's one tough dude. Plus, anyone who bases the location of his home on its proximity to off-road running options is made for this kind of crazy stuff.

2. Fellow blogging badass and Whirlaway road whore Shad Miller on winning today's Marshfield Sufferfest, I mean 20K. A very impressive run over a tough course on a miserable day for a long race, not to mention perhaps the most physically exhausting means of raising the necessary funds to take your wife out for a celebratory dinner that I've ever heard of!

Quote of the Day

"I hate it with a passion when I hear coaches talk about bad luck. I don't believe in bad luck, and I don't believe in good luck. I believe preparation puts you in position to have good results."
- Tim Pitcher

Training Log: August 19-25

Sunday - OFF. The foot feels better but I don't feel like pushing my luck today. I may do so tomorrow, however.
Monday - AM: 6 miles, 44:00. Hopedale. Two loops of the pond (22:15/21:05) and a little add-on to get back to the car. Foot tender at times, barely noticeable at others, but definitely sore afterward. Felt good otherwise.
Tuesday - AM: 7 miles, 50:20. AHS track. Ran 3 miles down to the high school, looped around the turf fields for a mile, then headed back home. Foot didn't pose much of a problem but left hip all out of whack. Hopefully it's nothing a little targeted stretching can't take care of. OK, a lot of targeted stretching.
Wednesday - AM: 8 miles, 56:30. RockPak 8. 7:24 to start, 6:51, 6:40, 6:22 for the last 3. Foot fine, hips better, glute still tight but better than earlier in the week. Slowly making some progress.
Thursday - AM: 5 miles, 36:35. Pakachoag 5. Solo slogfest before work. Snuck under 7 for the downhill last mile but otherwise I was crawling. PM: 5 miles, 38:00. Shepherd Hill. Ran around with some high school kids on their first day of practice. These kids kill me. They don't train all summer then go out and try to kill it for 5-6 miles on the first day of practice. It started getting ugly for them somewhere around Mile 4. Ah, to be young and stupid.
Friday - AM: 10 miles, 1:10:00. West Hill. Back to the scene of last week's crime, only this time I escaped scot-free. Had a nice run with A-10 on some newly discovered trails. Mind you we've been running some variation of the same three loops here for the past 7 years. The change did us good.
Saturday - AM: 10 miles, 1:08:00. Crack Path 10. The air was thick and it swallowed me whole.

Totals - 51 miles, 7 runs. Good week all things considered. Foot was still a bit tender Monday and Tuesday but pretty much feeling normal again by Wednesday. Proud of myself for not pushing through this latest little niggle like the idiot I've been known to be. I'm chalking this up as a down week, which while unexpected probably wasn't such a bad thing. Gradually gonna kick it back up from here.

Quote of the Day

"With two laps to go, I was thinking that fifth or sixth would be good, but then I thought about running in the sauna suit, and the 90-mile weeks, and the aqua jogging, and I said to myself, 'sprint.'"
- Kara Goucher, World Championships bronze medalist, 10,000 meters

Great escape

9:30 AM - 10 miles, 1:10:00 - West Hill.

I returned to the scene of last week's crime and am happy to report that I escaped scot-free this time around. A-Ten and I had a nice little run on some of the newer trails around West Hill that he, Jeff and Dan discovered earlier this summer. Mind you the founding fathers of the WHTC have been running some variation of the same 3 loops for the past 7 years, so this little deviation from the norm was a most welcome change.

Getting off the roads, for me at least, was a welcome change as well. I was a little worried how the foot would react to the terrain changes of the trails but thankfully I didn't have any problems. Unlike last week, I was able to successfully put one foot in front of the other this morning, greatly reducing the chances of any new, unforeseen, freakish, not to mention annoying, injuries.

With any luck, I'll be able to avoid any more unwelcome hiccups as we head toward the fall season. It would sure be nice to stay healthy for more than 6 months, get in some consistent training and race cross country again. Yes, it would be nice, like really, really, I-can't-put-it-into-words nice.

And before I pull the plug on this entry, welcome Casey Moulton into the running blog mix. It's good to have him aboard.

Quote of the Day

"I believe I can. I know I am prepared. Can I do it? I think I can."
- Craig Mottram on whether or not he can win the World Championships 5,000 meters.

What's yours is mine

7:55 AM - 5 miles, 36:35 - Pakachoag 5.
6:35 PM - 5 miles, 38:30 - Shepherd Hill.

Since Jeff seems to have hijacked one of the signature elements of the daily runaround, I figure it's only appropriate to return the favor and hold his usual entry header hostage until further notice. Or we can just call it a fair trade. Whatever works for you, 'mate.

Anyway, let me try to make some sense of the chicken scratch in italics at the top of the page you're most likely trying to decipher. Here goes.

This morning's 5-mile slog before work was just that. Energy levels were low and I just felt plain t-i-r-e-d. Lack of sufficient sleep will have that effect, I guess. Thankfully, my foot feels a lot better and the persistent soreness and tenderness that have been camping out under my right big toe since last Friday have finally packed up and gone elsewhere. Hopefully those two unwelcome little bastards don't come back anytime soon.

As for the details of the run, I did manage to sneak under 7 minutes for the last mile, but it wasn't without the aid of a more-than-generous downhill. For those of you who've run these same roads with me, you know the last mile back to my parents' house is about as close as you may ever come to actually falling off a cliff.

The afternoon jogfest wasn't much faster than this morning, but I have the boys and girls of the Shepherd Hill Regional HS cross country teams to thank for dragging me around at a leisurely clip. Today was the first day of practice for both squads and coaches Nancy Roberts and Aiden Kearney asked me to give the kids a quick shoe clinic before the fun started. I stuck around afterward for a 3-mile tour of the Rams' cross country -- or more accurately road race -- course with the Aiden's upperclassman boys and then hit the old cinder track for 2 more miles while Nancy's girls busted out a 2-mile time trial, Tour de France style, with runners taking off after one another at 30-second intervals. "I'm working the girls hard from Day 1 this year," the coach commented. As you should coach, as you should.

And I should cut this entry short right here and get my tired carcass to bed so I'm not dragging ass again all day tomorrow. I have the day off from work, but I really want to make a better effort at getting to bed at a decent hour. A little rest goes a long way, or so I'm told anyway.

Quote of the day:

"I feel like more than ever that everything counts – EVERYTHING."
- Matt Gabrielson

Hardly working

I think the best part about my job at the running store that it never actually feels like work. Sure, I get paid for being there and yes, I look forward to my days off, but when I'm on the floor fitting feet, taking inventory, placing orders or just shooting the shit about this race or that shoe, I'm doing what I love to do, with people I enjoy being around, and that my friends makes me one happy store manager.

Case in point: today. I got to the store around 9:45, worked the full day, finished up an inventory and tied up some loose ends after closing before finally hitting the road around 8:15. Yes, it was a long day and no, these aren't my typical hours, but not once did I look up at our nifty Mizuno finish line clock wishing that I could escape, not even after a pain-in-the-ass customer tried to nickel and dime me to death over the undesirable color of her daughter's cross country spikes. Sorry lady, she already gets a 10% discount and no, I can't tap those lime green suckers with my magic wand and turn them purple. Thank-you, however, for bringing some comic relief into my afternoon.

Speaking of comic relief, I had an old guy come in this morning from all the way out in Orange, a good hour or so drive from the store. Impressed he had traveled such a great distance to fund us, I just had to ask this fella what brought him all the way out to Westboro to buy his running shoes. Was he just driving by and happened to notice the store, referred by a physical therapist, visiting a friend, or checking us out because of our excellent reputation for fitting people in shoes?

"Don't let him convince you he came all the way out here just for shoes," chimed in his brother, who was assisting the Orangeman in the shoe-buying process. "My brother deal pickles. He has a lot of clients out in this part of the state."

"Deals pickles?," I asked the brother, puzzled and hoping this wasn't code for some sort of lewd act you'd suspect someone from Orange to take part in.

"Hey, at least it's not crack or cocaine," the Orangeman snapped back with from the rear of the store, as my co-worker Matt nearly fell to the floor from laughter.

When all else fails, it's always our customers that keep me going. There's something new to look forward to every day, whether it's taking on the challenge of a difficult fit, picking an old warrior's brain about training back in the day, sharing injury advice with a frustrated marathoner, answering a new runner's questions about what kind of socks to wear or just shooting the shit with some high school kid who recently joined the cross country team to get in shape for basketball, even if that kid is 12 years old, black as night and 6-foot-2 with a size 14 shoe. And no, I'm not even joking, but something tells me this guy's not gonna quit basketball to run long distance year round.

That being said, working with the high school kids is an absolute blast. Yes, they're weird, and no, half of them don't have any idea what they're getting themselves into, but on the whole their enthusiasm is infectious, which in turn has helped renew my own excitement for this crazy sport.

And it makes work that much more enjoyable as well. Time flies when you're having fun.

Quote of the day:

"Well, what have you got? I usually just down three cocktails and pop a naproxen before bed and that seems to do the trick."
- The Orangeman's response when I offered to suggest some home treatments for dealing with plantar fasciitis. His remedy may actually be more effective than my recommendation of rolling his ailing foot around on a frozen water bottle.

Promising developments

Behold my beautiful backyard. A little landscaping might be in order next spring, but for now it's showing promise.

Speaking of showing promise, the bottom of my foot was feeling a bit better this morning, so much so that I went out and ran 6 miles on it. The sunavabitch didn't let out so much as a whimper as I floated around the small slice of heaven more commonly referred to as the Hopedale Parklands, but started barking at me almost immediately while stretching and walking around afterward. Luckily a water bottle full of ice and a handful of Vitamin I reduced those barks down to a playful yelp and my freshly drugged and frozen friend crawled back into the doghouse and quickly settled down. It's still rearing its ugly head though, so hopefully another bribe of I & I later on this evening will keep this pain-in-the-ass pooch quiet for good.

In the meantime, I'm off to the motherland for a not-so-healthy dose of beer, pizza and buffalo wings at Owen O'Leary's, an on again, off again Monday night tradition since 2002.

Quote of the day:

"They're peaceful-easy-feeling running. You can't hear nature around you. You can't hear the little old man who just had cataract surgery honking."
- Paul Collyer, making a good point about why real runners don't wear headphones

Run down

No running today, again. This makes two straight days without purposeful forward motion, or any sort of meaningful physical activity for that matter. The good news is the bottom of my right foot is feeling better, although it's still a bit tender. I'm going to test it out with a run tomorrow morning, so hopefully by then I'm over the hump.

Speaking of humps, I apparently pulled something on the left side of my gargantuan arse. My backside has been inexplicably sore since Friday, likely the result of the same botched fall that f'd up the bottom of my foot, but who knows for sure.

All I do know is that I don't want to take any more unplanned time off. Better to take care of this stupid shit now.

Quote of the day:

"I'm going to put my faith in [Boen] and everything she says. You realize that you don't have to go out and kill yourself in workouts. It's about learning how to control yourself."
- Kevin Gill, incoming freshman cross country runner at Stonehill, demonstrating he's already wise beyond his years.

Training Log: August 12-18

Sunday - AM: 15 miles, 1:45:45. Hudson. Tour de Trails from la casa de Carrara with Ryan, Christy Mae, Fire and Brad. Finished up with 6 strides on the road. Other than the seasonal carnivorous bugs, I absolutely LOVE running here.
Monday- AM: 4 miles, 30:00. Lake Park. Trotted a few dirt loops around the park amongst the local joggers, looking the part with my long shorts and shuffling stride. Need to get an iPod to totally fit in though. PM - 4 miles, 25:00. An Cu Liath. 3.5-mile pub run in 20:40 followed by another easy half mile to get in an even four. Nothing like running 6-minute pace through downtown Worcester on a Monday night.
Tuesday - AM: 4 miles, 29:00. Pakachoag 4. Easy shakeout before work. PM: 10 miles. Westboro High. Warmed up 2 miles, strides, 4-mile tempo run on the track with Matt in 21:26 (5:32, 5:22, 5:26, 5:06), 26 min cooldown w/6 x 25-second hill charges. Goal for tempo was 5:30-25-20-15. Butchered it to some degree, but I've done much worse. Felt real easy and smooth the whole way.
Wednesday - AM: 8 miles, 57:10. RockPak 8. Woke up dead-dog tired to no one's fault but my own. 6-1/2 hours of sleep isn't gonna cut it. No leg soreness though, not yet anyway.
Thursday - AM: 12 miles, 1:16:15. Sterling Rail Trail. Double dose of the 6-mile loop, plan was to start around 7-minute pace and work down to 6's or so for the second loop. Happy to report I was fairly successful, and even felt pretty decent too. Loop 1 - 40:10, Loop 2 - 36:05. Marked miles: 6:43, 6:32, 6:04, 5:51.
Friday - AM: 10 miles, 1:08:00. West Hill. Tooled around the trails at an unusually tame pace with A-Ten, MacKay and Jeff Hill, finishing up with 6 strides in the parking lot. Almost took a digger around 7 miles but in an act of acrobatic brilliance managed to stay on my feet. Landed funny though and did something to the flexor tendon under my right big toe. Hurt like hell afterward.
Saturday - OFF. Bottom of right foot under big toe does not feel good. Pissed off that I can't even blame my own stupidity for this one, just my inability to stay on two feet.

Totals - 67 miles, 8 runs. Had a good week going until Friday's foot fiasco. Plan is to do whatever it takes to let the damn thing heal. I figure, or hope at least, that voluntarily taking a day or two off now is better than being forced to take a week or two off down the road.

Quote of the day:

"Fearlessness is not the absence of fear. It's the mastery of fear. It's about getting up one more time than we fall down."
- Arianna Huffington

Spontaneous combustion

I've got nothing, except an apparently busted right foot from trying to avoid taking a face plant on the trails today at West Hill. The flexor tendons/muscles on the bottom of my foot under my big toe hurt like a sunavbitch just sitting here, as well as when I get up to walk around. Tomorrow may be an unplanned day off if things don't turn around over night, or I may just chop off my leg below the knee and hope it regenerates as a structurally sound and fully functioning limb. Hey, it works for starfish.

Quote of the day:

"To be honest with you, nothing has replaced what running was to me. Nothing has given me that same charge, that same high."
- Jack Fultz, 1976 Boston Marathon champion

Status check

Current state: Tired. Note the capital T.

Two piss-poor nights of sleep combined with back-to-back 10 hour work days and an increase in training volume/intensity are leading me to shut this sucker down and call it an early night. I'm not gonna complain, I'm just gonna go to bed. A solid -- albeit rare -- 8-9 hours of shuteye should have me back at it and raring to go tomorrow.

G'night.

Quote of the day:

"Running has also taught me that there may be some hurdles along the way, but they are for jumping over."
- Deena Kastor

Follow that street car

If you're like me and spend a lot of your free time clicking and perusing the links on the right side of this page, then you've likely already discovered this post during your daily exploration of the running blogosphere. If not, I suggest checking it out. For the competitive runners amongst this blog's loyal crowd, it's a frustrating experience, or more appropriately, set of experiences, you can surely relate to. If you can't, there's the inherent universal lesson about never giving up and following your dreams, something all of us can apply not only to our own running, but life in general.

But this is a running blog and Nate's most recent entry forced me to take a closer look at the course my own running career has taken since I graduated from Stonehill in the spring of 2004. After four years devoid of any injury other than a few sprained ankles, I've suffered enough physical maladies in the past three years to warrant donating my feeble limbs to sports medicine research. I've gone from being a paragon of structural integrity to the posterchild for overuse injuries. It's been frustrating, to say the least. The accompanying emotional struggles have proven even more trying and I can honestly say that I'm still shocked I didn't hang up my racing flats after cracking my pelvis last summer. Luckily, Dan Green sent me a new pair before I found space in the closet for the old ones and, well, you know the rest.

All kidding aside, I'm not still running 70+ miles a week, attending weekly workouts and racing my nuts off because I get shoes on a regular basis, look good in short shorts and enjoy showing off my rib cage. No. I get my ass out the door every morning because deep down I still want to see if I can qualify for the Olympic Trials and eclipse that list of numbers posted on the right side of this page.

What I'm trying to get at here is that the achievement of success in this sport, in life, essentially comes down to one thing: desire. Sure, a few other key factors such as hard work, consistency and confidence are necessary ingredients as well, but I've found from my own experiences that without a burning desire, without that willingness to soldier on when you think you've hit rock bottom, those other elements are useless. Hell, they're non-existent.

Luckily, I'm not alone -- actually, I'm in pretty good company. Guys and gals I surround myself with such as Nate, Jeff, Justin, Shad, Driscoll, KG, Erin, Jess, along with a whole slew of others I'm unintentionally forgetting to mention, are still getting up to fight another round when most would have already thrown in the towel. These folks aren't gonna take a standing 8-count -- no, win or lose, they're gonna fight till the final bell.

The lesson here? Keep swinging.

Quote of the day:

"What kept me going? What else was I going to do?...I had no alternative. I wanted to be the best runner I could be so I did what I had to do."
- Nick Rogers

Come one, come all

I haven't got much to write on this rather uneventful Monday, but a teammate of mine has joined the blogging fray and I urge you to click on the preceding link to experience JC's quest for greatness.

I'm excited by this recent trend of runners writing blogs. It's always motivating, for me at least, to read about what other runners are doing and experiencing. Also, this whole running blogosphere has proven a convenient way to keep in touch and stay connected with teammates and competitors alike.

Now if I could only stay motivated enough to write something meaningful on a daily basis, I'd be doing my part to keep the blogging balance in check, as well as live up to this blog's name.

Quote of the day:

"When equal athletes compete, it is the one who doesn’t lose focus or waver in their belief that wins."
— Greg Meyer, 1983 Boston Marathon Champion

Go long, then go home

Or go to work, as I did this morning after an hour and 45 minutes romping around on the twisty trails from la casa de Carrara in Hudson. I don't mind the shortened Sunday shift at the store, although it did cause me to miss out on Christy Mae's bountiful brunch and that, my friends, is reason to lament. If you've ever been fortunate enough to sample the blueberry waffles made from scratch, turkey bacon seared to perfection and homefries saturated with enough seasoning to make Emeril jealous, then I'm sure you feel my stomach's pain. Luckily for me, the crafty cook of the Carrara kitchen didn't let me leave without a few slices of chocolate chip banana bread, which was enough to temporarily stop the flow of tears and hold me over just long enough so I could get to work on time.

So Christy Mae, I thank you not only for your gratuitous generosity, but also for not hammering the rest of us sorry bastards into the ground this morning. Your kindness on both fronts was greatly appreciated and did not go unnoticed.

Quote of the day:

"I live to make people smile, that's my thing. If I can give you that, then it makes life worth living."
- Tommy Leonard

Training Log: August 5-August 11

Sunday - PM: 6 miles, 50:00. Hopedale. Double loop of the pond after work with Rich on what turned out to be an absolutely fantastic evening for a leisurely stroll. Other than the red remnants of a nasty sunburn on my stomach, no ill effects to speak of from yesterday's fun.
Monday - AM: 12 miles, 1:29:00. Hopedale. 4 loops of the pond with Marky Mark, yes, the same pond I ran around twice just 15 hours before. We had the pleasure of KGwyth's company on the run for the first 2 miles and again on the bike the last 6. Finished up with 6 x 18 second strides on the road. Great run, as it usually is with these two. Sad to see them go :(
Tuesday - AM: 3 miles, 22:00. AHS track. Warmed up 11:30 on the turf/track, right into one run-through of the drill set/dynamic stretching routine I've been tweaking, then cooled down for 10:30. My karaoking needs a lot of work. PM: 11 miles, 1:13:00. Rail Trail. 28:20 warmup, 10 x 45-second hill repeats with Greg on the dirt mound across from Manning Street, easy mile in 7:40, 3 miles steady on the trail in 16:48 (5:39, 5:32, 5:37), 3:32 cooldown. The steady stretch felt more like a glorified jog; the hills beforehand, however, were an expectedly rude re-introduction to lactic acid buildup. Welcome back to Anaerobia.
Wednesday - AM: 8 miles, 57:00. Rockland 7. Just boppin' along on my standard 7-mile loop with a detour through the high school to hit the day's desired mileage quota. Started slow in 7:38 but finished up in 6:57, 6:31. If you guessed that last mile was downhill, you guessed correctly.
Thursday - AM: 10 miles, 1:08:45. West Hill. Two extended main loops at the dam followed by 6 strides on the dirt. Feeling a little saucy toward the end of the run and threw in two random pickups of about 3 minutes each to top things off. Held the mustard though.
Friday - AM: 10 miles, 1:06:55. Bike Path. Licked a few farts this morning, one every 10 minutes in fact, so 6 total pickups of a minute each. Also charged the 7 small hills I encountered along the way to get some mechanical work in. Short-circuited a bit toward the end but found one last surge of energy going up the final hill.
Saturday - AM: 7 miles, 47:00. Rockland 7. Reversed the normal direction of this loop to mix things up a little bit. Picturesque New England fall morning, only it's August. Such a tease.

Totals: 67 miles, 8 runs. Solid week. Pleased with Tuesday's workout and the happy kind of soreness that lingered for a few days afterward. Hills and tempo runs are the bread and butter of my training diet, so much like an inmate who's locked up for life, I'll rely on those two workouts as my main source of nourishment for the rest of the summer and throughout the fall.

Quote of the day:

"It takes a lot of time, thought and effort to get to the place where you can run for a time without thought and effort. Yes, it is a funny thing that you have to be sane, very sane, to go to the crazy place."
- Tom Derderian, The Crazy Place

No complaints

My legs are sore, my body is tired and I'm not going to complain about it one bit. Seriously.

These aren't feelings of pain or fatigue -- no, no -- these are the long lost feelings of Effort, my friends. It's been a while since I've experienced this foreign sensation and man does it feel gooooood. Every time I get up from my chair or walk down the stairs and my quads scream at me, they're not telling me to sit back down -- they're just reminding me that I'm alive.

I'm no masochist, merely a distance runner. Hell, who am I kidding, the two are one and the same.

Quote of the day:

I think optimism is way overrated. Too much optimism means you’re going to be disappointed. But enough pessimism ensures that more often than not you’re going to be pleasantly surprised.
- Ian Dobson

Hills for strength

Exciting news worth looking forward to: the foundation for my new place is being poured later this week. The cruel reality I'm not so much looking forward to: climbing this sucker at the end of every run.

Quote of the decade:

"(Name withheld), you don't like it doggystyle."
- Unnamed husband reminding his wife of her alcoholic preferences. Seriously.

Training Log: July 29-August 4

Sunday - AM: 10 miles, 1:05:25. Rail Trail. Continuous run with a 3-mile tempo thrown in the middle for shits and giggles. 16:13 for the fast stretch with splits of 5:28, 5:25, 5:20. Pleasant surprise; at this effort level I figured on 5:30-35 pace at best. I'll take it. PM: 3 miles, 23:00. WHS Track. 16-minute warmup with Marky Mark and Katie G., then an abbreviated version of the dynamic routine (still needs tweaking), followed by a mile of striding the straights/jogging the turns with Driscoll. Thrusting muscles will likely be sore tomorrow.

Monday - AM: 6 miles, 43:35. Hopedale. Double pond loop with Driscoll, dragging ass early on but managing to snap out of it by the end. Noticeably sore in some odd spots, which was probably to be expected. Dominated breakfast afterward at Town Common; the black forest pancakes didn't stand a chance.

Tuesday - AM: 7 miles, 50 minutes. Industrial Park. Plan was 6 strides on grass mid-run but a rutty stretch of grass forced me to nix that idea. Improvised with 5 strides post-run on the pavement in front of my house instead -- now that's how to think on your feet.

Wednesday - AM: 7 miles, 47:50. Bike Path. 15 minutes easy, 5 x 2 minutes @ 5K effort w/2-minute jog recoveries, 14:50 easy back home. If this is what 5K effort feels like then I have no desire to race a 5K anytime soon. Not bad for my first structured workout in over two months though.

Thursday - AM: 11 miles, 78 minutes. Hopedale. Another great run on the trails with MD. Plan was for 10 miles but inadvertently managed to sneak in an extra mile because of my own absentmindedness.

Friday - AM: 5 miles, 35 minutes. Pakachoag. Leisurely stroll before work and prior to the serious heat and humidity setting in. Felt like I was floating but likely still just sleeping and not actually running.

Saturday - AM: 12 miles, 1:16:45. Beach 2 Beacon 10K. 21 minutes up, 4 strides, 10K in 33:45, 22 minutes down. Other than butchering the first mile this went pretty well; didn't feel totally comfortable but wasn't killing myself either. Splits from my watch were 5:07 (5:07), 5:27 (10:34), 5:26 (16:00), 5:34 (21:34), 5:26 (27:00), 5:40 (32:40), 1:05 (33:45). Note to self: Don't follow women's elite pack through a downhill first mile of a major 10K road race and expect them to be slower than 5:20 -- just don't.

Totals: 61 miles, 8 runs. Another good week in the books, very happy with the direction things are heading in right now. Great weekend up in Maine with my NB Boston 'mates, which really got me excited for the fall racing season. It's gonna be a good one, I can just tell.

As for training, more of the same on tap for next week with a mid-week hill workout to mix things up a bit. Hopefully I can squeeze in two sessions of drills/dynamic routine as well. Consistency, consistency, consistency.

Quote of the day:

"It's a reasonable course but if you're tired on the big hill, you're going to hate life. I was hating life."
- Pat Tarpy on the B2B 10K

The way life should be

Now that I've got a handful of articles out of the way, phone numbers successfuly tranferred, a cup of spoiled milk through my system and more than a few miles under my belt, all that's left is three measley hours of work and a 2-1/2 hour drive up to Maine for tomorrow's Beach 2 Beacon 10K. The early odds from Cape Elizabeth have me coming in at a steady 34 minutes, plus or minus 30 seconds. Given that I've got a little more than three weeks of consistent running under my belt, I'd say that's a pretty safe bet.

Quote of the day:

"Distance running is pretty much a no brainer. You put the miles in, you work hard, you're gonna get better."
- Ed Moran