Lessons Learned

OK, everyone can stop sitting, cease chirping, quit whining and start reading - without further a due, here's my much ballyhooed race report from last Monday's 112th running of the Boston Marathon.

So where to start? Good question, and not sure I have the answer to it, so let's begin by piggybacking off the same question every other person asks me after congratulating me on my incredible 56th-place performance a week ago.

(For the record, I'd use a few different adjectives to describe my own race, but since a 2:30:24 seemingly hinges on the border of incredible that's what we'll go with for the time being.)

Am I happy with my race?

For now, let's just say I'm not totally unhappy with it. I'll explain.

It's hard to be happy when 25 or so people pass you over the last 10 miles of a race, regardless if you still finish 56th in a field of 21,963. It's tough to crack a smile when you look at the results afterward and see that two guys you beat in a 10 miler nine weeks before were the same two guys who finished 23rd and 24th overall while you crossed the finish line a good 5 minutes and twenty some-odd places behind them. Sorry, but those are tough pills to swallow for any competitor, regardless of the circumstances. If they went down easy then I'd need to find myself a new hobby.

Disappointments aside, there's still a lot to keep my head up about. Aside from the incredible and unforgettable experience of my first Boston Marathon, I walked, err, hobbled, away from this race having learned a lot things - a lot about the marathon itself and a lot more about the guy who wore #1063 on his chest.

Lesson Learned # 1. Boston will beat the shit out of you. Run wisely.

The marathon experts - and there are many of them - seem to agree that the most efficient plan of attack for conquering a 26.2-mile footrace is to keep an even keeled approach from one mile to the next, that is running consistent splits, every 1,609 meters, for as long as your road-hardened legs will allow. Boston is no exception.

Let me repeat, slowly. Boston...is...no...exception.

I'm no expert, or apparently I just had a hard time practicing the lessons that those who are preach, but I did anything but run even splits from Hopkinton to Boston last Monday. Hell, the first and second halves of my race were about as uneven as my sideburns from that bad haircut I got in the eighth grade. Yep, that bad.

Going into Boston I figured that I was fit enough to average 5:35 per mile for 26.2 miles. In retrospect, it did me no good to average 5:26's for the first 10K only to muster 6:04's for the final 6.2 miles.

The lessons here? Never let the new girl at the barber shop cut your hair and don't go out in 1:12:13 for the first half of a marathon if you're gonna come back in 1:18:11. Both choices make for a long day and neither is worth the embarrassment.

Lesson Learned # 2. Once you commit, you're committed. Oh, and you're an idiot for doing so.

So if I was fit enough to run 5:35 a mile for 26.2 miles, why the hell did I commit to a pack that was running at a pace much faster than that?

It's called racing, and as we all know sometimes racing makes people do stupid things. Salazar said, "Standing on the starting line we're all cowards." Well, ol' Al was wrong. Standing on the starting line we're all idiots, at least I was last Monday. But hey, sometimes stupidity pays off. Idiots can win races, too, ya know.

The lesson here? You can get away with being an idiot in a mile, maybe even a 5 or 10K, but longer than that and it's likely you're gonna be in trouble. Big trouble.

Lesson Learned # 3. Sticking it out is well worth the effort, even if it damn near kills you.

At 15K into last Monday's 26.2 mile affair, the clock read 50:50, or 14 seconds faster than I had run two weeks prior at the Boston Tuneup 15K in undulating Upton, Mass. I'm not gonna lie, I knew at the 9.3-mile mark in Natick that I wasn't feeling as comfortable as I should have with roughly an hour and a half of running still ahead of me, but I was determined to keep going at the pace I was running for as long as my legs would allow. By the time I reached Wellesley three miles later I could feel the funkiness starting to creep its way into my legs, and when I crossed over 128 at 16-1/2 miles my pace had slowed considerably and I knew I was in big trouble. Good pal and former teammate Fran Guardabascio, taking it all in from the convenience of his employer's sidewalk, told me afterward that I "didn't look good." I sure as hell didn't feel good, either, and a few miles later I would feel, and look, much worse.

Cue Mile 19. This picture - taken by soon-to-be new momma Melissa Kinney - pretty much sums up my last 10 miles. The head is down and I'm hurtin' - bad. I covered the 5K stretch from 30-35K in 19:25, yep, an average of 6:19 a mile. I was suffering.

But I kept going. By Mile 20 all I wanted to do was crawl into a hole and call it a day, but I didn't. I couldn't. I wouldn't let myself. I might have been dying but I sure as hell wasn't quitting.

I knew my brother was stationed at Mile 22 and my New Balance Boston teammates were camped out at Mile 23. Looking forward to seeing these people got me through those next few arduous miles.

That's when it happened.

What happened? Damned if I know, still trying to figure it out in fact, but something clicked. I hit Cleveland Circle and suddenly I was moving again. No, I didn't start dropping 5:30 miles - hell, I barely snuck back under 6's - but all of a sudden I had a new outlook on life. No longer was I feeling sorry for the idiot who went out way over his head, but instead I was charging toward the finish line with whatever life I had left in my legs, which admittedly wasn't much. I quit looking at my splits but I didn't quit on myself. I might have died - and died hard - to 2:30:24, but I can honestly say I gave it all I had for 26.2 miles, and that I can live it.

The lesson here?

Don't give up, though the pace seems slow
You might succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up
When he might have captured the victor's cup.
And he learned too late, when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out -
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt -
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems afar;
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit -
It's when things seem worst that you mustn't quit.

So back to that question everyone wants the answer to...

...Am I happy with my race?

All things considered, yeah, I guess you could say that.

Race Report: Boston Marathon

It's coming, I swear. Maybe tonight, most likely tomorrow or possibly even Friday if I continue to keep getting distracted. Sit tight.

Training Log: April 13-19

Sunday, 9:30 AM - 13 miles, 1:32:00. Relaxed romp on the trails with Ryan and Christy Mae. Legs didn't feel too bad, but they're not feeling good quite yet either.

Monday, 9:45 AM - 7.2 miles, 50:00. Six passes of Lake Park's perimeter, finishing up with 4 x 35-second strides on the track. Hopefully it's a little less windy a week from now.

Tuesday, 8:05 AM - 4.4 miles, 31:00. 4-banger around the block before work. Legs are starting to show some signs of life again.
7:10 PM - 4.5 miles, 30:00. Twilight trot around Westboro after work. First 10 minutes easy, 1 minute on/1 minute off for the next 10 minutes, last 10 minutes easy back to the store.
9:00 PM - Ice bath on Shadrock's suggestion. Filled the tub with cold water and a 10-lb bag of ice and sat there for 15 numbing minutes. I'll do this again on Thursday if my lower extremities thaw out before then.

Wednesday, 7:40 AM - 6 miles, 44:30. Slow going before work. Felt a bit on the flat side this morning.

Thursday, 8:50 AM - 9.3 miles, 1:03:00. 21:00 warmup, 3-mile PMP in 16:21 (5:26, 5:29, 5:26), 25:40 cooldown. 10 seconds faster per mile than I should have been, but better to make stupid mistakes now than on Monday.

Friday, 10:35 AM - 6.4 miles, 45:00. Out-n-back on the Rail Trail with Rob. No aches, no pains, but no life in the old legs either.

Saturday, 7:45 AM - 6 miles, 42:00. Sunny 6-miler solo before work. 6 x 20/40 strides on the way home to wake the legs back up again.

Totals: 56.8 miles, 8 runs. The week is over, the work is done and I'll be ready to rock & roll on Monday morning. For those of you also about to rock, I salute you.

Quote of the Week

"You can get serious about running Boston. It has a way of taking possession of your senses, of your life."
- Bill Rodgers

Training Log: April 6-12

Sunday, 8:50 AM - 8.1 miles, 1:03:50. Easy does it on the trails with Ryan, Christy Mae and special guest Jeff Caron. Everything felt pretty good except for the perpetually tight left calf and persistently pesky plantar of the same leg.

Monday, 11:45 AM - 22.2 miles, 2:25:00. Last long run before Baahstin out at the Sterling Rail Trail, where the ratio of crushed gravel to pavement was 14:8, or 7:4 for you mathematical purests. Did the 6-mile loop three times and finished up with a 4-banger so I could practice taking fluids and fuel at regular intervals. Took water at 3, 9, 15, and 20 miles, Gatorade at 6, 12 and 18, a GU at 8 and another at 15. The strategy worked out very well, no GI troubles and no lack of energy. Had to stop and stretch the calf a few times but felt fantastic otherwise. Finished the run in 2:25 on the nose, which is hopefully a good omen for two weeks from now.

Tuesday, 8:30 AM - Spinning, 30:00. Quick spin before the soccer moms took control of the bikes.
7:30 PM - 5.5 miles, 44:30. Short shakeout from the store with Rich after work. Legs felt pretty good despite going long yesterday and being on my feet all day today.

Wednesday, 7:50 AM - 5 miles, 36:30. Easy does it from home before work, 6 x 20-second strides on the way home. Calf finally seems to be loosening up a bit.
7:30 PM - 5.3 miles, 38:00. Short loop through Westboro, then four loops of the plaza so I could practice taking fluids from paper cups I set up on the back of my car. Might need to look into a Fuel Belt.

Thursday, 8:45 AM - 10.2 miles, 1:08:30. 19:00 warmup, 5-4-3-2-1 halftime fartlek, 27:30 cooldown. Started at low 5-minute pace for the first couple pickups and gradually got down to 4:50-5:00 pace for the last few. Felt strong, just not fast. Good news is I'm racing a marathon and not a 5K, so better to be strong than fast anyway.

Friday, 7:45 AM - 7.7 miles, 54:00. Steady 7's on the Bike Path before work. Legs are finally starting to come back around.

Saturday, 7:45 AM - 6 miles, 41:00. 20:00 easy, 4 x [1:30 on/1:30 off], 1:00 easy, 4 x [30 sec on/30 sec off], 4:00 easy back home. "On" stuff at 5-minute pace, if that.

Totals - Running: 70 miles, 8 runs. Spinning: 30:00, 1 session. Last real week of training for Boston as I'll be keeping things pretty low key through next Sunday. Monday's long run was the main focus of the week and it was good for my legs - and perhaps even more so, my head - to be on my feet and feeling good for 2-1/2 hours. I needed that. I recovered quickly too, which was also encouraging. All in all I'm happy with my last 5 weeks of training, and despite the mid-winter injury hiccup I believe in my fitness and am confident that I'll run well a week from Monday.

Finally, a BIG thanks to everyone who helped keep my head - and body - inline these past couple months. Physically and mentally I would have folded without you guys.

Quote of the Week

"Many times I had asked the question, 'Why me?' Whether it be after poor races, struggles in life, injuries, etc. It tends to be an easy question to ask when you feel sorry for yourself. In this moment, on the verge of my first U.S. title, I finally had the courage to put my arms up in the air and say, 'Why not me?!'"
- Andrew Carlson, 2008 U.S. 15K champion

Race Report: Boston Tuneup 15K

[photo courtesy of Ted Tyler]

Didn't originally have this race on the pre-Boston schedule, but given the unexpected hiccup after Foxboro I decided that it was necessary to include it. The plan was to run 10-15 seconds per mile faster than goal MP (5:35-40), so anywhere from 5:20-30 pace at a "comfortably hard" effort would suffice this morning. Well, the first 3 miles felt hard, the last 6.3 were a lot more comfortable and my average pace was 5:28 per mile, so in the end everything worked out pretty nicely. Tapply took off right before the 2-mile mark and I just let him have fun with that while I stuck to the plan of hitting pace, which was tricky at times with the unrelenting undulations this course is known for. Happy with the overall effort but even happier that my left calf, which was expectedly tight from the get-go, never blew up on me at any point during the race, or even afterward. Good day.

Mile-by-mile...
1. 5:30
2. 5:27 (10:57)
3. 5:40 (16:37)
4. 5:20 (21:57)
5. 5:32 (27:29)
6. 5:27 (32:56)
7. 5:34 (38:30)
8. 5:26 (43:56)
9. 5:33 (49:29)
9.3. 1:35 (51:04)

Training Log: March 30-April 5

Sunday, 8:15 AM - 19miles, 2:04:30. For a complete recap of this morning's long run, see the entry directly below this one. And when you're done with that, stop by the space of the newest member of the running blogosphere, my former high school rival turned college teammate and eventual roommate, best bud and one of the nicest all-around good guys you'll ever meet, Sean McKeon. Welcome my son, welcome to the machine.


Monday, 4:45 PM - 6 miles, 44:00. Easy jog around Pakachoag in a light drizzle. Left calf has been tight, sore and noticeably swollen since yesterday but didn't bother me much once I got going. Plan is to keep running until the leg falls off, explodes or just stops working all together, which isn't entirely unlikely.

Tuesday, 8:55 AM - 6 miles, 45:00. Easy does it on the dirt at Lake Park before work. Calf soreness/tightness still lingers in both legs and anterior left shin feels tender to the touch. Legs feel worse standing around than when running.
7:40 PM - 5.5 miles, 45:00. Easy run from the store after work with Rich. Knock on wood but everything felt pretty good tonight.

Wednesday, 8:20 AM - Spinning, 30:00. Worked just hard enough to get the blood flowin' and the sweat drippin'.
8:05 PM - 6.2 miles, 45:00. Short run after a long day. Felt good to get some fresh air, even if that air was 20 degrees colder than it was 24 hours ago.

Thursday, 9:15 AM - 10.2 miles, 1:11:30. 24:30 warmup to AHS track, 7 x 400m w/200m jog recovery, 4 x 200 w/1:00 jog recovery, 26:30 cooldown back home. 400's in 75.15, 73.09, 75.10, 75.90, 75.57, 75.68, 75.15. 200's in 36.54, 35.44, 35.57, 35.82. The idea was to spin the wheels a bit without taxing my legs too much for Saturday's longer effort. Left calf tightened up on the cooldown but otherwise the legs felt pretty good. 5-minute pace felt more awkward than anything else.

Friday, 10:00 AM - ART, adjustment and e-stim with Dr. V. She ripped my lower left leg to shreds but it was all for my own good.
11:50 AM - 9 miles, 1:01:30. Rainy run around the Fells with Jeff. Nice to get off the roads. Left calf tightened up again the last 20 minutes or so, otherwise no issues.

Saturday, 11:00 AM - 14 miles. 18:00 warmup w/strides, Boston Tuneup 15K (2nd, 51:04), 15:00 cooldown with John Brown and Tim Tapply. Race report can be found in the entry above this one.

Totals - Running: 76 miles, 8 runs. Spinning: 30:00, 1 session. Second straight week of solid running/sucky cross training, but I'd rather have it that way than in reverse so I won't complain too much. Got in two quality longer efforts covering 21 miles at MP pace or faster, along with a short turnover workout on Thursday, making this my most complete week of training in a long time. I'll get in one last long run this coming Monday and then start scaling things back so I'm ready to roll at Boston in two weeks. My tricky left leg seemingly finds a new way to annoy every couple of days but as long as I can keep it under control I don't think it will be an issue come race day.

Quote of the Week (courtesy of John Brown)

"I like running because it's a challenge. If you run hard, there's the pain – and you've got to work your way through the pain. You know, lately it seems all you hear is 'don't overdo it' and 'don't push yourself.' Well, I think that's a lot of bull. If you push the human body, it will respond."
-Bob Clarke, Philadelphia Flyers General Manager, NHL Hall of Famer

Dress Rehearsal

I, playing Kane Cloverdale, met up with the Vagtastic Voyager and McLovin', respectively played by Ian Nurse and Chris Voce, in Cleveland Circle at 7:30 this morning for a chauffeured limousine ride out to Mile 6 in Framingham. The three of us warmed up 4 miles to Mile 10, then Ian and I ran a 12-mile PMP to Mile 22 before regrouping with Voce at Mile 23 for an abbreviated cooldown around the BC Res, where we ran just fast enough to avoid the throngs of autograph seekers impressed by our collective display of speed along the marathon course. I opted out of a second Res loop so I could hit the road and get to my day job on time, which I was able to do without issue. All in all it was a very successful morning.

PMP breakdown...
10. 5:50
11. 5:35 (11:25)
12. 5:37 (17:02)
13. 5:32 (22:34)
14. 5:40 (28:24)
15. 5:27 (33:51)
16. 5:40 (39:31)
17. 5:34 (45:05)
18. 5:27 (50:32)
19. 5:38 (56:10)
20. 5:40 (61:50)
21. 5:27 (67:17)

Average mile - 5:36.4
6-mile splits - 33:51 (5:38.5)/33:26 (5:34.3)
4-mile splits - 22:34 (5:38.5)/22:21(5:35.3)/22:12 (5:33.0)

Very happy with this workout, even happier that I had Ian and Voce out there to keep me going when I wanted to throw in the towel. Thanks guys.

The wind blew, quite literally, for the first 7-1/2 miles of the PMP but didn't pose much of a problem after that. I experienced a few bad patches and had a couple good stretches, but if it weren't for Ian I surely would have cut this one short when the going got tough around Mile 18. Glad I hung in there and stuck it out for the full 12, heck the last 4 miles actually felt pretty good, as this was a perfect dress rehearsal for what it's gonna be like 3 weeks from now when there will be no refuge in mercy, there will be nothing to forgive and no one to issue dispensation. And at last, there will be no refuge in cowardice, because I will not afraid. There will be no alternative, it just has to get done.

OK, so I stole that last little bit there straight out of Once A Runner, but it was fitting. I'm pretty sure John L. Parker, Jr. won't mind.

Training Log: March 23-29

Sunday
8:35 AM - 9.1 miles, 1:03:45. Same loop as last Thursday; 6 x 20-second strides on the way home. Energy levels low but legs felt almost back to normal.

4:45 PM - Visited the stretch of asphalt pictured right in an attempt to make friends with a hill that's been known to break many a marathoner's heart. I'll find out in 4 weeks whether or not I was successful. Note the appropriately placed graffiti on the side of the road.

Monday
9:45 AM - 18.4 miles, 2:00:00. Relaxed pace for the first hour, 10 x [1:30 on/1:30 off] for the next 30 minutes, then back to a relaxed pace for the last half hour. Felt strong throughout and my gimpy left leg didn't blow up on me, so for my first long run in 4 weeks I'd say it was a huge success.

Tuesday
8:10 AM - Spinning, 30:00. Spin, spin, spin your wheels, all the livelong day.
7:30 PM - 6.3 miles, 46:35. Easy run around Westboro after work. Not a mile south of 7-minute pace - didn't even come close.

Wednesday
8:25 AM - Spinning, 30:00. Didn't work all that hard this morning, or didn't sweat all that much, I should say. It's amazing the difference a well-placed fan makes.
7:35 PM - 9.4 miles, 1:02:40. First 4 miles easy, 1 mile of stride the straights/jog the turns on the WHS track, 1 mile easy, last 3 full miles steady in 5:55, 5:45, 5:40. The faster I ran, the better I felt.

Thursday
10:05 AM - 10.1 miles, 1:13:15. Felt lethargic and heavy-legged but otherwise no complaints. Cumulative fatigue is starting to set in, which is probably to be expected.
8:15 PM - 4.1 miles, 30:00. First double in 5 weeks. Felt better than this morning.

Friday
12:15 PM - 9.1 miles, 1:00:00. Mid-day romp around A-town with Jeff. Avoided the forecasted wintry mix, which was awesome.

Saturday
7:45 AM - 6 miles, 42:30. Easy does it before work. Both calves a bit tight but otherwise felt pretty good. 6 x 30-second buildup strides on the way home.

Totals - Running: 72.5 miles, 8 runs. Spinning: 1:00:00, 2 sessions. Solid week. Very happy to get a good long run in, as well as get the overall running volume back up, but I'm a bit disappointed with my lack of diligence in regard to getting my ass on the spin bike. I think the increased mileage left me a little too tired to plant my ass in the saddle on a regular basis, so I've got to make a better effort this coming week to spin the wheels more often , even if it's only for shakeout purposes. Overall though, my injuries seem to be subsiding, or at least improving, so I'm very excited to finally be getting back on track.

The plan for this coming week is to keep the volume right around 70-75 miles, get in a good long run with some marathon-paced running mixed in and put forth a solid, but sub-max, effort at the Boston Tuneup 15K in Upton on Saturday. Call it a crash course in marathon training. Hey, cramming for tests worked in college.

Quote of the Week

"I'm going in and winning it. I have tremendous respect for Bernard. I have tremendous respect for Matt. But if you don't consider yourself one of the favorites, you're foolish."
- Chris Solinsky in this month's Running Times, regarding his goal for the 2008 Olympic Trials.

Training Log: March 16-22

Sunday
11:00 AM - 17.1 miles. New Bedford 1/2 Marathon (72nd, 1:15:03). Pre-race plan was 6-6:15 pace for the first 3 miles, then gradually cut it down to projected marathon pace or thereabouts over the last 10. Executed pretty well - 18:01 for the first 3 miles, 57:02 for the last 10.1. Had the pleasure of Bergie, Uncle Fire and Christy Mae's company for those first 3 miles but fought the wind by myself for the last 4-5. The tib didn't bother me during the race but it tightened up quite a bit, along with my soleus, later in the day. Complete race report can be found in the entry below this one.

Monday
3:10 PM - ART and an adjustment with Dr. V. Lots of work on the tib and soleus, both of which were tighter than a bull's ass during fly season.
5:00 PM - Spinning, 45:00. Apparently the bike becomes less mentally taxing after the first 30 minutes. That, or it gets even more mind-numbing.

Tuesday
8:40 AM - Spinning, 30:00. Steady as she goes on the spin bike.
7:30 PM - 8.5 miles, 1:01:00. I've been running around Westboro for almost a year and a half now and I've yet to come up with a clean loop over 4 miles. Tib didn't give me any trouble, soleus still pretty tight though.

Wednesday
7:45 PM - 8.5 miles, 1:01:00. Another random road run around Westboro after work. Tib felt good again, soleus a little less tight than yesterday. Progress is good. In a showing of weakness, however, I decided to sleep in rather than ride the bike this morning. Can't afford to have too many more lapses like this, but I think I needed the extra rest.

Thursday
10:05 AM - 9.1 miles, 1:00:20. 16:00 easy. 15 x [1:00 on/1:00 off], 15:20 easy. "On" stuff started at low-to-mid 5-minute pace and gradually got a little faster, "off" stuff much slower than that. Tib was well behaved, calf still a bit tight but man did it feel good to finally spin the wheels again.
8:30 PM - Spinning, 30:00. More wheel spinning, but of the stationary variety this time.

Friday
3:00 PM - 10 miles, 1:10:20. Met up with Pete Gleason and Shad Miller this afternoon. 27:25 warmup, 3-mile tempo in 15:55 (5:21, 5:19, 5:15), 27:00 cooldown. Short but solid effort on the wind-strewn roads of Grafton. Good company, too.
5:20 PM - Spinning, 40:00. Stopped by the Y on my way home to squeeze in a quick spin.

Saturday
7:50 AM - 4.1 miles 32:00. Short-n-slow before work. Soleus/calf still a bit tight but the rest of my gimpy left leg is holding up quite well. I planned on a second workout after work but the Y closed early and I stayed late at the store so I bagged it. Given how tired I felt after a busy day this probably wasn't such a bad thing.

Totals - Running: 57.3 miles, 6 runs. Spinning: 2:25, 4 sessions. Good week, everything is seemingly heading in the right direction. The injury is improving, my fitness is resurfacing and hopefully this trend will continue. As for training, I fell a bit short of my volume goals for the week but I nailed the quality days so I can live with that. New Bedford was a good way to kick things off and the back-to-back fartlek and tempo on Thursday and Friday was a nice capper. The plan from here is to really get after it for the next two-and-a-half weeks and then the hay will be in the barn as they say. I haven't put a whole lot in there of late but I think I've stocked up well enough the last few years that I should still be in pretty good shape four weeks from now.

Quote of the Week

"It’s good to be excited again."
- Ryan Warrenburg on recovering from a recent hip injury.

Race Report: New Bedford 1/2 Marathon

I went back and forth as to whether or not to call this entry a "race" report, but the fact that I filled out an application, forked over 35 bucks, put on my singlet and my name shows up in the results means I ran in a race yesterday, even if it wasn't the balls-to-the-wall, bust-a-nut, all-out effort I would have liked to put forth.

After almost 3 weeks consisting of four zeros in the log, a half dozen ART appointments, a few half-assed attempts at cross training and only one run in the double-digits, I figured it probably wouldn't be a wise move to butt heads with the dozen or studs positioned at the front of the starting line. In an effort to make sure I didn't foolishly change my mind at the last minute, I planted my ass four rows back of where I'd normally set up shop, took three seconds longer than usual to cross the starting line and proceeded to watch a couple hundred people who pretended to know what they were doing zig-zag all over the road like a bunch of wandering idiots in front of me. Man, what an odd feeling. I didn't like it, not one bit.

Luckily, I had my good buddy Bergs, Christy Mae and Uncle Fire to keep me company for the first 3 miles, which was reached in a dead-on nuts 18:01 - right on schedule. After that, I took aim at anyone wearing a Fuel Belt in front of me and worked on rolling along the rest of the way at a steady clip somewhere in the range of 5:30-5:40 per mile. Some splits were faster than that, others a bit slower, but the last 10.1 miles averaged 5:38 per, so aside from seeing a 1:15:03 result next to my name after all was said and done, I'm happy with the end result. Plus, I apparently out-kicked Grafton High cross country and track coach Peter Gleason, who I noticed was rockin' a pair of black Brooks Adrenaline we don't stock at my store. Maybe that will teach him! (Editor's note: We actually probably special ordered the aforementioned shoes for Pete, but by out-kicking him I secured bragging rights next time he visits the store.)

As for my troublesome tib, well, as they say, that's a whole 'nother story. Definitely nothing worth bragging about there, the thing flat-out sucks. It didn't really bother me during the race at all but tightened up quite a bit afterward and even more so as the day progressed. I went grocery shopping last night and the whole area - tib and soleus - hurt like hell pushing the cart around the store. This morning wasn't as bad, but it wasn't good either, so I decided to play it safe and just spin my wheels on the bike after my ART treatment this afternoon. Right now it's 10:50 PM and everything is feeling a lot better, so the plan is to ride the bike again tomorrow morning and follow that up with an easy run around Westboro after work if my hoof is feeling healthy. I'm sick of this day-to-day shit.

Training Log: March 9-15

Sunday
2:55 PM - 10.3 miles, 1:07:45. Snuck out of work for a windy run around Westboro. Picked up the pace for a mile in the middle (5:56) and again at the end (5:46). Tibial area tightened up a little but never got all that bad.

Monday
7:30 AM - 6 miles, 43:00. Easy run from home before work. Tibial area tightened up quite a bit, worst it's felt in a few days.
8:15 PM - Spinning, 30:00. Low resistance, high cadence. Probably gonna get my ass kicked by a bunch of middle-aged women tomorrow morning so made it a point not to push it tonight.

Tuesday
9:30 AM - Spinning, 1:00:00. First spin class, ever. Me, a bunch of soccer moms and a 60-year-old guy named Jim, who told me I was working way too hard when I was already sweating bullets five minutes into the ordeal. Didn't bother explaining to him what it was I was trying to achieve, just kept pedaling hard. Good workout, really got the heartrate up.
4:45 PM - 7.8 miles, 51:15. Threw in six 20-second strides on the way home to stretch my legs out a bit. Tibial area felt much better than yesterday, didn't really act up on me at all. Left side of my body feels way out of whack in general, though.

Wednesday
8:10 AM - Spinning, 35:00. Easy spinning for the first 5 minutes, then a steady effort for the next 30 at a moderate resistance level. It's amazing how much faster the time goes by with an MP3 player.
7:30 PM - 9.1 miles, 1:00:15. Hit the roads of Westboro after work. 3-mile warmup, 4-mile progression/tempo (22:20-5:45, 5:40, 5:31, 5:24), 2.1-mile cooldown. Felt like I hadn't done a workout in 2-1/2 weeks. Oh, wait.

Thursday
9:30 AM - Spinning, 52:00. 50-minute spin class preceded by a 2-minute warmup. A couple quick intervals, a few steady climbs and enough sweat to fill a gallon jug.
Noon - ART and an adjustment with Dr. V. What a difference a few snaps, crackles and pops make.
8:25 PM - 5.4 miles, 40:00. Short shakeout from the store after work. Tib a bit tight but not terrible.

Friday
8:30 AM - Spinning 30:00. Steady spin at a moderate resistance level, alternating between keeping myself planted in the saddle and standing up on the pedals.
7:25 PM - 9.1 miles, 1:03:25. 5 miles easy (36:55), 5 loops (1 loop = 0.35 miles) of Gibbons Middle School in 1:55.2, 1:53.0, 1:52.6, 1:52.5, 1:50.6 with 18-20 seconds float in between, easy jog back to the store to finish up. Knock on wood but the tib didn't give me any real trouble at any point during the run. Didn't feel too bad afterward, either.

Saturday
6:35 PM - 5.7 miles, 41:25. Easy does it after work. Tib felt good again. Hopefully I can say the same again this time tomorrow.

Totals - Running: 53.4 miles, 7 runs. Spinning: 3:27, 5 sessions. Better week than last, but still have a ways to go before I'm ready to run well five weeks from Monday. After talking things over with Kevin I've decided to run New Bedford tomorrow as a test of sorts, one that will give me an idea of my current fitness level but more importantly one that will reveal how much abuse my hurtin' hoof is capable of taking right now. Considering that I haven't run over 10 miles in the past 3 weeks, along with tomorrow's forecasted wind, rain and possible snow, it should make for an interesting day down by the water, to say the least. The plan is to run the first 3 miles with Bergie at a 6-6:15 pace and gradually cut it down to my projected marathon pace or thereabouts over the last 10 miles. Here's hoping I'm able to execute said plan.

Quote of the Week

"Be, Dream, and Believe."
- Zoila Gomez, The Road to Success Will Be Rocky

Training Log: March 2-8

Sunday
11:00 AM - 4 miles, 30:00. Easy out-n-back on the roads with Hodgie-San from miles 12 to 10 of the Stu's 30K course. Ankle a bit stiff but tolerable. Area was sore and creaky afterward but felt better when I was moving than when standing around.

Monday
12:20 PM - 7 miles, 47:15. Ran from my parent's house to take advantage of the flatter start. No trouble with the ankle at all for the first 4 miles or so, then it started to stiffen up on me. Not as creaky and sore afterward as yesterday, which is a small step in the right direction.
5:20 PM - ART with Dr. V. She really went to town on my ankle and it loosened things up quite a bit. Ran into NB Boston teammate and fellow wounded warrior, Ryan Fenton, on my way out. As far as I know this encounter will not be appearing on Flotrack anytime soon.

Tuesday
8:00 PM - 10 minutes on the bike followed by a good stretch and a 5-minute jog around the gym. I'm not even gonna include my pathetic attempt at the elliptical. Finished up with 30 minutes of deep-water running in the pool.

Wednesday
6:50 PM - 6.5 miles, 45:45. Hit the roads of Westboro before hosting a triathlon clinic at the store. Knock on wood, but the ankle didn't bother me one bit. Wasn't that sore or tight afterward, either. Not out of the woods yet, but I'm heading in the right direction.

Thursday
10:00 AM - ART and an adjustment with Dr. V. Last visit for the next week or so, hopefully. Being aggressive with the treatment seems to be paying off. This stuff might be voodoo, but count me among the believers.
11:20 AM - 6.8 miles, 44:15. Out-n-back to the starting line in Hopkinton, starting from just past the 5K mark in Ashland. No real trouble with the shin, knock on wood, just a little sensitive from the ART treatment an hour earlier. Planned on pool running after work but got stuck at the store later than I had planned.

Friday
11:55 AM - 7.7 miles, 52:15. Bike Path with my fellow wounded warrior, A-Ten. Tibial area tightened up and got sore as the run progressed. Two steps forward, one step back.

Saturday
8:10 AM - 8 miles, 53:25. Tibial area not as tight/sore today. I popped 3 aspirin before the run though, so that may have had something to do with it. Last couple miles in the low-6's.
7:00 PM - Spinning, 30:00. Forgot my bathing suit but luckily I had biking shorts in my gym bag. Sweat like a pig and really got my heartrate up on the bike with a nice mix of 30-second and 1-minute pickups along with some steady spinning. Somewhat enjoyable, actually, even without music. I think I'll be doing more of this than pool running.

Totals: 40 miles, 6 runs. Cross training: 1:15, 2 sessions. Second disappointing week in a row but things are finally starting to turn around. Physically I have some catching up to do but mentally I've made a lot of progress and that's 90% of the battle right now. It doesn't look like I'll be running as much as I would like anytime soon so I really have to start kicking up the cross training this coming week. Since a good training week for me when I'm healthy is roughly 9 to 11 hours of running, I'm gonna shoot for 11 to 13 combined hours of running and cross training this week. Optimistically, the ratio of running to cross training will be 7-4 or even 8-3, but I'm just going to take things one day at a time and adjust accordingly. I probably need to do more than that to achieve a similar training effect and really get rip-roaring fit but the fact of the matter is there's just not enough time in the day. I'll just do what I can, have faith in my training and give it my best shot six weeks from Monday.

Quote of the Week

"As a general guideline you should do twice the time cross training as you did running. So if you were running an hour and a half a day then you should do 3 hours of cross training. Yes this totally sucks."
- Nate Jenkins

Training Log: February 24-March 1

Sunday
9:15 AM - 10.2 miles, 1:08:10. A variety of factors forced me to put the long run off till tomorrow, which given how shitty I felt this morning probably isn't such a bad thing. 6 x 20-second strides on the way home.
5:25 PM - 4 miles, 30:00. Hit the mean streets of Westboro after work for a short shakeout. Plan was to keep it slow and I executed that plan very well. Cause for concern, however, with my left posterior tibial tendon. It's been annoying me to some degree all week but flared up like a sunavabitch this afternoon.

Monday
12:15 PM - 21.1 miles, 2:13:20. Out-n-back from miles 9-19 on the marathon course, starting and finishing at Roche Bros. on Speen Street in Natick. Nice tailwind heading out (61:55 at 10 miles), annoying headwind on the way back (2:05:37 at 20). Felt really comfortable except for left tibial area, which tightened up quite a bit as the run progressed.

Tuesday
AM: OFF. Got to the end of my road before having to turn around and walk home. Left tibial area absolutely killing me. What's a more pathetic sight than a skinny guy running down the street in tights? A skinny guy walking down the street in tights.
5:50 PM: ART with Dr. VanNederynen at Performance Health Center in Natick. Not expecting a miracle cure out of this but glad I was able to be seen on such short notice. The ART treatments sure helped after Vermont, so hopefully I can have similar success this time around. Going back on Thursday morning.

Wednesday
OFF. Suspect area feels a little bit better but is still pretty tight and painful. Running didn't strike me as the brightest of ideas.

Thursday
AM: OFF. Took another zero, but had my second round of ART this morning with Dr. V. Lower leg has loosened up a lot but still hurts a little bit. Going in for treatment again tomorrow morning and might try to run on the treadmill after work if everything is feeling better.

Friday
8:30 AM - ART and an adjustment with Dr. Weiss. Left side way out of whack and needed straightening.
7:00 PM - 3 miles, 22:30. Treadmill after work. Better than Tuesday's attempt, which isn't saying a whole lot. Suspect area still pretty tight, pain is very localized and the combination of the two has me concerned.

Saturday
OFF. Didn't run but did shovel my driveway this morning. Posterior tib area very creaky and sore all day at work.

Totals: 38.3 miles, 4 runs. Shitty week on the whole but despite the lower leg troubles I did manage to salvage a good long run on Monday so all was not lost. I've made some progress treating what I think is posterior tibial tendinitis but fact of the matter is I don't know what it is for sure and whatever it is, well, it's still there. I pretty much hit rock bottom mentally mid-week but with the help of a few very close friends I've started to dig myself out of it. I've decided that come hell or high water I'm running Boston in 7 weeks and I'm not going to Hopkinton on April 21 just to see if I can make it the 26.2 miles to the finish line. I'm going there to see how fast I can do it.

Quote of the Week

"Mind is everything. Muscle, pieces of rubber. All that I am, I am because of my mind."
- Paavo Nurmi

Training Log: February 17-23

Sunday
10:10 AM - 17 miles. Old Fashioned 10 Miler (2nd, 53:03). 22:00 warmup, 30:35 cooldown. Goal for Ryan and I was to start at 5:25-30 pace and cut down from there. The wind altered those plans a bit but the effort was right where it needed to be. Solid effort, felt very strong and in control from start to finish. Full race report is in the entry directly below this one.

Monday
8:45 AM - 6.6 miles, 46:45. Note: Mileage totals from now on will come straight off the Garmin. No more Mario Miles so let's all get used to looking at decimal points. As for the run, it was windy and wet but since it was 50 degrees out I won't complain too much. Legs didn't feel all that bad, either.
5:00 PM - 6.9 miles, 48:40. Last run in the Inspire 5 before they get shipped back to Atlanta. These guys served me well during their short stint in my rotation.

Tuesday
8:15 AM - 12.1 miles, 1:20:25. Third day in a row wearing shorts. Looks like it will be the last day for a while, too.

Wednesday
7:30 AM - 8.3 miles, 56:15. Cold, windy and felt pretty sluggish to boot. 6 x 20-second strides on the way home.
7:00 PM - 4.1 miles, 30:00. Same ol', same ol' on the store treadmill.

Thursday
8:25 AM - 12.5 miles, 1:20:25. Had a tough time getting out the door for this one but didn't feel too bad once I got going. Need to try and get something of quality in tomorrow or Saturday.

Friday
7:35 AM - 10.5 miles, 1:13:10. Out-n-back into Millbury by way of the Bike Path. Tried to get out early and beat the snow but was greeted by an unwelcome 1/2 inch of the white stuff when I stepped out of the garage. Almost fell three times in the first 2 miles before finally hitting the ground about a mile later. Nearly went down again about 7 miles in but managed to stay on my feet. Fuck winter.

Saturday
7:45 AM - 8.4 miles, 53:45. 15:00 easy, 9 x [2:00 hard/2:00 easy], 4:45 easy back home. Hard stuff started at 5:30 pace and got down to 5:00-5:10 effort by the last couple repeats. Felt good to stretch the legs out a bit.

Totals: 86.4 miles, 9 runs. Alright week. Overall quality was less than I would have liked but I got in a good effort at Foxboro on Sunday and Saturday's fartlek was better than nothing. Motivation has plummeted along with the temperature and I feel like I've just been going through the motions of late. Hopefully I can turn the corner again soon.

Quote of the Week

"It's contagious. You don't put up any barriers. Anything's possible."
- Matt Tegenkamp

Race Report: Old Fashioned 10 Miler

Call me old fashioned but I can't think of a better way to spend a Sunday morning in February than running 10 miles straight into a stiff headwind.

OK, so maybe I'm not thinking hard enough or I need to find a new hobby but that's exactly what I and 427 other people with nothing better to do did this past weekend at the Old Fashioned 10 Miler along the scenic backroads of Belichickville, I mean Foxboro, Massachusetts.

This is the third straight year I've partaken in this preferred form of tomfoolery and considering the absence of arctic temperatures and slush-laden roads, along with the fact I ran 44 seconds faster than last year, I really have nothing to complain about. OK, so the soup offering after the race was a little skimpy, but I'll stop there.

Moving on, the pre-race plan laid out by my running mate, Mr. Ryan Carrara, called for us to cover the first few miles at a 5:25-30 clip before gradually ratcheting things down to a pace we can only one day hope to hold for an entire 26.2-mile footrace. The aforementioned headwind altered those plans a bit but the effort was where it needed to be and nobody left with wind burn so I'd say we executed our strategy pretty well.

A large pack of multi-colored singlets hit the first mile in a dead-on nuts split of 5:30 before someone, likely me, got a little bit excited and towed that very same group through a faster-than-desired 5:13 reading for the second mile. The wind was a blowin' at this point, so much so that Ryan offered me a small sum of money for my NB skullcap, a deal that ultimately fell through, however, due to a lack of readily available monetary funds on the part of Mr. Carrara. I would have proposed a counter-offer for an apple-cinnamon Hammer Gel, but bartering for goods while skimming the road at 11.5 MPH is almost as dangerous as texting while driving. There's just no need for it.

Anyway, Mile 3 came and went in 5 minutes and 22 seconds and our merry little group had been whittled down to a half dozen or so folks at this point, including myself, Mr. Carrara, D3 alums Adam Fitzgerald and Dan Vassallo, Timmy Tapply and a pair of BAAers, Eric "Mountain Man" Blake and Terry "Sandbagger" Shea, who was plotting a blitz of Belichick-like proportions at the back of the pack. Mile 4 dipped back below 5:20 and was marked by idle chatter and idle bodies unwilling to move, but that all changed a mile later when Dan the Man must've got sick of listening to Ryan and I babbling away and dropped a 5:02 fifth mile to take the lot of us through halfway a little ahead of schedule in 26:28.

17 seconds from one mile to the next wasn't enough of an adjustment for Blake and Silent Terry, however, as the two of them kept things up for another mile, putting 10 seconds on the pack with another low 5-minute split for the next 1,609 meters before Eric realized Terry was in no talking mood on this sunny Sunday morning and he'd be best served to rejoin the moving chatterbox that was idling on down the road just a few yards behind him.

And as for the race, my friends, that was all he wrote. I'll keep writing, of course, but by Mile 7 Terry had put his pen and notebook away and decided that this story was over. Our little chase pack stuck together though and took turns breaking the wind until Mile 9, which happened to fall at the appropriately-named Ryan Place, where Carrara got excited to see his name on a road sign and started to pick up the pace. Since I told myself before the race that I was going to do whatever Ryan did -- heck, if he stopped in the middle of the road to do a chicken dance I would have been flapping my wings right behind him -- I just stuck to my guns and went with the move, even though I knew he was only pulling such a stunt so I would break the wind for him the last mile. And if you look at the results, you'll notice Ryan entered the finishing chute exactly one second behind me. Now I'm no strategist, but I'd say his plan worked to perfection.

Training Log: February 10-16

Sunday
9:25 AM - 8 miles, 57:55. Only had time for an easy hour this morning. Didn't feel like doing much more than that anyway.
5:00 PM - 4 miles, 30:00. Round and round on the rat wheel after work. Started at 8 mph and got down to a blazing 8.5 by the time it was over.

Monday
7:30 AM - 10 miles, 1:08:30. Late start this morning but with the wind chill well below 0 I was in no rush to get out the door. Survived with all my limbs still intact, even threw in 6 x 20-second strides on the way home.

Tuesday
7:30 AM - 8 miles, 50:00. Easy running for the first 2 miles or so, 6:00 pace or faster the rest of the way. Left ITB screamed at me for the first 5 minutes before quieting down.
7:00 PM - 4 miles, 30:00. PR treadmill in my 826's. Other than the new shoes, same old shit - short and slow.

Wednesday
OFF. Spent 45 minutes shoveling my driveway this morning if that counts for anything. Planned to run on the treadmill after work but grabbed dinner with Jeff instead.

Thursday
7:25 AM - 8 miles, 54:45. Plan was to fartlek but ended up ice skating instead. Horrible road conditions. ITB, hips and calves all took a beating.
5:30 PM - 4 miles, 30:00. "Belt of death rumba" on the PR treadmill. Didn't feel like starring in Ice Capades tonight so I went belt dancing instead.

Friday
4:20 PM - 10 miles, 1:07:15. Busy day = late run. 6 x 20-second strides on the way home.

Saturday
7:20 AM - 8 miles, 56:30. First run using my new toy, the Garmin 205. Same loop as Thursday morning, which is precisely 8.39 miles according to the gadget.

Totals: 64 miles, 9 runs. Had a down week on tap which ended up sinking a little lower than planned thanks to a little inclimate weather from Mother Nature and lots of dicking around on my part. Any hope of quality work was washed away with the rain on Wednesday, so let's hope I can get my ass back in gear at the Old Fashioned 10-Miler in Foxboro tomorrow morning. The plan is to start out at 5:25-30 pace for the first few miles and cut it down from there.

Quote of the Week

"You need to train hard for a long time to get good...The most incredible training means nothing if you are not healthy on race day."
- Nate Jenkins outlining his marathon training guidelines. Read this.

Training Log: February 3-9

Sunday
9:15 AM - 18 miles, 2:06:00. Backward version of yesterday's run with Ryan, Christy Mae and Uncle Fire. Tired, left IT band a bit tight the first mile or two, right soleus twinged on me a couple times but otherwise I didn't feel too bad.

Monday
10:15 AM - 8 miles, 56:15. Tried to come up with a clean 8 but fell a bit short and had to add on up the hill. IT band was doing some silly things again the first 1/2 mile or so but didn't act up on me again after that.
4:00 PM - 4 miles, 30:00. Short shakeout before dinner. IT band was well behaved this evening.

Tuesday
8:55 AM - 12 miles, 1:24:40. Bike Path into Millbury, back home via Greenwood Street. 6 x 20-second strides during the run. IT band tight early, then OK. Soleus OK early, then tightened up.

Wednesday
7:25 AM - 9 miles, 1:01:45. Shorts, light gloves and a non-waterproof jacket were probably poor choices of attire this morning. OK, so they were definitely poor choices. And to think it's part of my job to help people decide what to wear outside in this crap. I've only failed myself.

Thursday
8:55 AM - 10 miles, 1:07:15. Almost came up with a clean 10 but fell a bit short. Felt like a pile of dung but at least my IT band and soleus didn't give me any trouble. 6 x 20/40 strides on the way home.
8:00 PM - 5 miles, 37:00. Short shakeout on the treadmill after work. First time on this thing in a couple weeks and can't say that I really missed it all that much.

Friday
7:25 AM - 10 miles, 1:06:35. Reverse of yesterday's loop with a small addition to make it a clean 10. Tried throwing in a few pickups but they weren't very productive.
7:00 PM - 4 miles, 30:00. If the after-work treadmill shakeout is good enough for Brian Sell, then it's good enough for me.

Saturday
7:25 AM - 10, miles, 1:04:35. 6 x [2:00-1:00-0:30] hard w/1:00-1:00-2:30 easy jogs for recovery. First quality effort in a week - first time I felt good in a week, too.

Totals: 90 miles, 10 runs. Tough week but I got through it. Lessons learned:
1. Three 18-mile runs and two workouts in the same seven-day stretch is never a good idea.
2. Moving is an exhausting process.
3. There is nothing worse than running in a downpour in February. Nothing.

Quote of the Week

"We haven't had a day over 35 degrees since Christmas, and the other day when we did some speed work it was 7 degrees. We got about four inches of freezing sleet. It took me an hour to shovel the pure slush off of my driveway — we're getting hammered up here."
- Brian Sell, summing up the shittiest winter in recent memory. This week was no exception.

Training Log: January 27-February 2

Sunday
8:15 AM - 18 miles, 2:01:00. Solo in the snow before work. Felt like hell when I woke up but the legs felt pretty good once I got going and my energy levels weren't too bad either.

Monday
9:00 AM - 8 miles, 53:45. Felt kinda sluggish for the first 3 miles, better after that. 8 x 20-second strides on the way home.
7:15 PM - 7 miles, 50:15. Easy does it around Easton with Bergie. Short of 7 miles but I'll make up for it tomorrow.

Tuesday
8:25 AM - 10 miles, 1:06:40. Out-n-back fartlek on McCracken Road, 10 x [2:00 hard/2:00 easy]. Wanted to call it quits after #6 but managed to hang in there for the final four.

Wednesday
OFF. Since I don't have much stuff, I thought moving would be anything but time consuming, tiring or a big pain in the ass. Boy, was I wrong.

Thursday
8:45 AM - 8 miles, 58:00. First run from the new place. Like the current state of my living area, I was feeling a bit rough around the edges.
4:20 PM - 8 miles, 1:01:00. Easy run around town with Erin. Tired, but not as bad as this morning.

Friday
8:55 AM - 10 miles, 1:08:50. Hit the roads before the rain hit me. 6 x 20-second strides on the way home.

Saturday
9:50 AM - 18 miles, 1:53:00. Squires long run # 2 with Ryan from his place in Hudson. 30:00 easy, 6 x 8:00 on/2:00 off for the next hour, 23:00 easy to finish up. "On" stuff started at ~5:45 pace and got faster from there. Felt real strong which was encouraging given how crappy I was feeling earlier in the week.

Totals: 87 miles, 8 runs. Solid week, even with the day off. Since I had the week off from work my plan was to try and hit the century mark for the first time in a couple years but I didn't think moving would be so time consuming, not to mention tiring. I still managed to hit all my key workouts though, so I didn't miss out on anything other than some nice looking numbers in the old log book. S'alright - no harm, no foul.

Quote of the Week (this one's sticking)

"It just takes something a little more, a lot of faith, diligence. You have to keep at it all the time."
- Jen Toomey

Training Log: January 20-26

Sunday
9:20 AM - 16 miles. Frostbite 15K (1st, 48:40). 23:00 warmup with SKinney, 23:00 cooldown with Andy McCarron and Nick Weidman. Solid race, best one in a long time. Complete race report is in the entry below this one.

Monday
9:40 AM - 7 miles, 51:15. Easy run with Hodgie-San on the wind-strewn roads of Sterling, Mass. Loop was probably a hair short of 7 miles. Legs didn't feel all that bad.
5:05 PM - 7 miles, 52:15. Took my new Glycerin 6's on their maiden voyage, my first run in a non-posted shoe in quite some time. The loop came out to 7.6 miles according to this online tool.

Tuesday
7:50 AM - 10 miles, 1:09:00. Out-n-back to the Horgan track w/8 x 100m strides on the back straightaway. A crisp 14 degrees out there this morning.

Wednesday
8:30 AM - 10 miles, 1:02:30. First 6.5 miles easy/moderate (42:36), last 3.5 steady (19:54 - 5:43, 2:58 [0.5], 5:47, 5:26). Felt real good from start to finish.
4:25 PM - 7 miles, 51:55. Fallon Clinic out-n-back with a stop at Summerhill Road on the way home for 6 x 30-second hill charges. Needed to let the legs and lungs burn a little bit.

Thursday
8:30 AM - 14 miles, 1:30:00. First 7 miles in 46:46, last 7 in 43:14. Planned on a fartlek but felt way too tired and flat to go through with it.

Friday
7:25 AM - 8 miles, 55:30. Face went numb but everything else felt good. 6 x 20/40 strides on the way home.

Saturday
7:30 AM - 14 miles, 1:26:25. Course work with Ryan and Liam from Loring Arena in Framingham. 22:10 warmup, 8 mile PMP from Miles 3-10 and back to 9 in 43:40 (5:47, 5:35, 5:25, 5:27, 5:26, 5:21, 5:27, 5:12), 20:35 cooldown. Solid workout, felt comfortable and in control from start to finish.

Totals: 93 miles, 9 runs. Another good week in the books, nothing super crazy just super consistent. The race was a great way to kick things off and this morning's PMP wrapped it all up very nicely. Ryan and I will continue to kick the poop out of one another for 10 more weeks with a steady diet of long runs, a few more PMPs, a couple of track workouts and a handful of races before resting up for two weeks and crossing our fingers for a good day on April 21. Feel free to join us at anytime - or at the very least, cross your fingers.

Quote of the Week

"But the team motivates you to get out the door in the morning. Of course, my teammates will also hammer me into the ground if I slack off."
- Brian Sell, U.S. Olympian

Race Report: Frostbite 15K

Yesterday marked my first race of 2008, the appropriately named Frostbite 15K in Raynham, MA. This is the second straight year I've contested this midwinter classic, and I think this race has cemented its spot in my winter road racing schedule. Ridiculous entry fee aside, it's well organized, draws a good crowd, features a nice course and offers a generous post-race spread. Bottom line, you'll get your money's worth, and then some.

Anyway, onto the race itself. I'm not gonna lie, this was a very good result for me, as good as any I've put up in the past couple of years. The win, and the 100 bucks that came with it, were added bonuses. I improved four places and 57 seconds from last year, which was a bit of a surprise since it was about 30 degrees colder and a lot windier out there yesterday morning. I felt strong from start to finish, ran pretty consistent splits but most importantly I raced well. I haven't been able to say that too many times since 2004, so yesterday's effort has me feeling pretty good about the direction I'm heading. This was definitely a good first step toward Boston. Hopefully I can keep the momentum moving forward over the next 13 weeks.

As for how the race played out, here's the Cliff's Notes version...I led the pack through the first mile, spent 2-6 chasing after fellow Central Masser Andy McCarron, finally caught him at 6 miles and pulled away over the last 5K. Here's the mile-by-mile data from my watch, along with the self talk going through my head at the time.

1. 5:03 - That was quick. Oh well, nothing you can do about it now.
2-4. 15:42 (20:45) What...the hell...is McCarron doing? Don't worry about it. It's way too early and way too cold out here to do anything stupid. Relax Mario, REEELAX!
5. 5:15 (26:00) Right on schedule and he's coming back. It's just you and him, no one else. Close the gap!
6. 5:11 (31:11) Got him! Here comes the hill...use it!
7. 5:34 (36:45) Houston, we have clearance. Relax and roll, relax and roooollllll!
8. 5:10 (41:55) Man, this wind sucks! I wonder if Tilton's arms fell off yet.
9.3. 6:45 (48:40) Quit thinking and keep fighting! You're almost there - bring it home!

Quote of the Day

"That is, you are enjoying the act as much as the outcome."
- Yolanda Flamino, women's Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier

Training Log: January 13-19

Sunday
8:45 AM - 19 miles, 2:05:00 - Westboro. Backroads long run from home to Westboro, ending at Casey's place to shower before opening the store. 6 x 100m strides @ WHS track. Felt great!

Monday
10:15 AM - 10 miles, 1:14:40 - Auburn. Easy run around town in the snow; last 3 miles in 7:03, 6:59, 6:37. Footing was less than ideal.

Tuesday
8:05 AM - 10 miles, 59:50 - Jarrin 10. Fartlek before work. 15:00 easy, 25:00 of pickups, steady mile in 5:19, easy 1/2 mile in 3:23, 2 miles of pickups back home in 5:42, 5:21. New PR for the loop!
7:00 PM - 4 miles, 30:00 - PR Running. Short shakeout on the treadmill after work. Need to get an iPod.

Wednesday
7:30 AM - 8 miles, 57:45 - Horgan Track. Easy out-n-back to the track. Cold and tired but otherwise no complaints.
7:00 PM - 4 miles, 30:00 - PR Running. Rat wheel after work. Started out real slow and worked my way down to slow.

Thursday
7:55 AM - 13 miles, 1:24:10 - McCracken Road. Out-n-back on the McCracken Road rollercoaster. First 3 miles easy in 21:35, then 10 miles steady progression in 1:02:35. Last 2 miles in 5:47, 5:34.

Friday
7:25 AM - 10 miles, 1:08:10 - Jarrin 10. Easy does it in the rain and slush. Too sloppy for strides.

Saturday
7:30 AM - 7 miles, 47:00 - Rockland 7. Relaxed run before work. 6 x 20/40 strides on the way home.

Totals: 85 miles, 9 runs. Solid week on the whole. Mileage was good, long run went well and the fartlek and progression run both served their respective purposes. I'm racing the aptly named Frostbite 15K tomorrow morning in Raynham and I'm excited to lace my flats back up again, even if I won't be able to untie them afterward.

Storming ahead

10:15 AM - 10 miles, 1:14:40 - Auburn.
RockPak 8 with a Shaw's add-on, plus 8 minutes of looping around the AHS parking lot mid-run. Hit 4 miles in just under 29:00 and clocked the last 3 in 7:03, 6:59 and 6:37. Likely north of 10 but definitely short of 11.

Apparently running in this shit was photo worthy.

Quote of the Day

"One of the biggest things I’ve learned over the years is that there is more than one way of doing things and no single workout works ideally for everyone."
- Matt Folk, Team Good River, and 39th place at the 2008 men's Olympic Marathon Trials

Run long, then get a ride home

8:45 AM - 19 miles, 2:05:00 - Westboro.
Long commute into work, ending at Casey's place in Westboro to clean up a bit before opening the store. Took the backroads through Auburn, Worcester, Millbury and Grafton, adding on 2 miles at the WHS track (6:06, 5:58) toward the end of the run with 6 x 100m strides mixed in for turnover. Solid run.

My normal commute into work usually takes me about 20 minutes, 25 tops if I stop for coffee and get stuck in a long line. This morning I decided to take the roundabout route into Westboro, spending just over two hours cruising at an average speed of 9.5 miles-per-hour through the scenic backroads of Auburn, Worcester, Millbury and Grafton. It was by far the most pleasant trip I've had into work in recent memory. I didn't use a drop of gas, just a packet of GU. I didn't sit in traffic but ran right by it instead. I didn't stop at red lights, I just ran through them. And best of all, I didn't wait in the drive-through line at Panera, just walked in and out of there in less than two minutes. I did, however, catch a ride home after my shift ended. Something tells me taking the long way home wouldn't have been so pleasant.

Quote of the Day

"It's amazing when you're in front, you feel nothing can stop you."
- Michael Aish, winner of today's Rock-n-Roll Arizona Marathon

All together now

10:40 AM - 14 miles, 1:25:00 - Windham Road.
Out-n-back in Pelham/Windham, NH with Casey Moulton. 2 miles easy (6:46, 6:28), 10 miles in 56:09 (5:37, 5:48, 5:41, 5:40, 5:33, 5:37, 5:34, 5:26, 5:24, 5:25), 2 miles easy (15:37). Solid workout, talked the entire way. Felt strong and in control throughout.

Casey Moulton and I aren't teammates. No, we're not coached by the same guy. We don't work together. Hell, we don't even live in the same area code. We do, however, share a similar goal - to go as fast as we can on April 21.

It's not a Hanson's, Team USA or Zap Fitness, but there's something truly unique and special about the New England running scene. Regardless of the singlet one wears on his or her back, runners from this region really do support one another like nowhere else in the country. Need proof?

Head out to the marathon course any Sunday morning from now until early April, or the Reggie Lewis Center on a Tuesday or Wednesday night, or to a rainy backroad in New Hampshire on a Friday morning in January and you can see it for yourself. All for one, one for all. It's a beautiful thing.

Quote of the Day

“He’s like the guys on the auto assembly line. You just keep doing the same job, over and over, but it’s what it takes to build the car."
- Keith Hanson on Brian Sell, U.S. Olympian

40 degrees of separation

8:15 AM - 13 miles, 1:26:00 - Worcester State.
Same loop as last week only much more pleasant weather conditions this time around. Man, what a difference 40 degrees makes.

Today was a long day and tomorrow will be a long workout so I'm gonna do the smart thing and get some rest.

Man, I'm even boring myself to sleep. Oh well, goodnight.

Quote of the Day

“Right now I don’t feel any pressure. That will change as we get closer. I just go out and prepare myself to run on the track and that’s all I can do. The amount of pressure I put on myself is usually enough.”
- Gary Reed, Canadian 800-meter stud

Fart-lekin' good

7:25 AM - 8 miles, 51:45 - RockPak 8.
15:00 easy, 5-4-3-2-1 minute fartlek with 1/2 time recovery, 14:45 easy back home. Good little workout, 5K effort or thereabouts on the fast stuff. Felt pretty strong.

7:20 PM - 6 miles, 43:00 - Westboro.
Post-work shakeout through the affluent streets of Westboro with a stop at the high school for 6 x 20-second hill charges mid-run. Hit the hills at a good clip, otherwise just plodding along.

It's getting late, I'm pretty tired and to be honest I really don't have much to babble about, but I stumbled upon this website today and it's chock full of cool links and other dorky running stuff worth giving a look. Check it out!

Quote of the Day

"I love running, so that in itself keeps me logging the miles. In terms of training at a high level, though, I guess I ultimately want to see how fast I can become."
- Josh Ordway, 21st at the 2008 men's Olympic Marathon Trials

Zapping my fitness

8:15 AM - 10 miles, 1:06:40 - Jarrin 10.
Reversed the regular direction just to switch things up a bit. 7:40, 7:17 and 6:40 for three of the early miles, no clue after that but apparently I picked up the pace. Legs expectedly tired but the effort felt comfortable.

That's right Rob, I named this loop after you brother. It will be a staple from here on out.

So I was feeling pretty tired when I rolled out of bed this morning, no doubt a direct result of an increased training load the past few days. Once I got going my legs felt a bit zapped but my stride felt smooth and aerobically I was never laboring. Combating the effects of cumulative fatigue will be the overarching theme from now until early April, so since I'm expecting it I'll try and keep my complaining to a minimum.

Heading into this training cycle I've got 15 months of mostly uninterrupted training under my belt, unlike before Vermont City last year when I was working off a few months of mediocre mileage and purposely conservative workouts. The end result there, given my abbreviated period of preparation, was both successful and encouraging, but now that I'm healthy, strong and structurally sound it's time to up the ante a little bit.

I'm coming off a fall of consistent training with some average cross country results and an unexpected half marathon PR, a combination of positive factors which has me excited about what I'll be able to do on the roads this spring. Over the next 12 weeks I'll be increasing my mileage, introducing some heftier workouts and racing some longer distances which will hopefully have me in rip-roaring shape come April 21st.

Another thing I'll be trying to do more of over these next few months is sleeping. A little rest goes a long way when one is training hard, so I'm going to make a real good effort to hit the hay at a decent hour from now until April 20. And now is as good a time as any to practice what I'm preaching. Goodnight.

Quote of the Day

"Then the guy whacked me in the face with a two-by-four. Talk about a buzzkill."
- Mark, physical therapist extraordinaire who refers a buttload of patients to the store, telling Rich and I about one of his adventures in Providence.

Dub 7's

8:50 AM - 7 miles, 46:45 - Rockland 7.
7:12 first mile, 27:10 for the middle 4, 6:15, 6:06 to finish things up. 6 x 20/40 strides on the way home.

7:05 PM - 7 miles, 51:00 - Easton Y.
Pre-Owen's jaunt from the Y with Bergs. Beelined it down Main Street and cut through campus before looping back. Clocked a 7:08 for the marked mile along outer perimeter.

15 weeks till Boston - one, five - in case you were wondering, counting or lost track.

Quote of the Day

"I always believed that not everyone could be a great natural marathoner, but if you had some ability, motivation might well get you there. I felt that in particular that the longer the event became, the more willpower, a lot of mileage, work and luck became the major factors."
- Bill Rodgers, Marathoning, page 85

An epic morning

Sunday, January 6th

8:30 AM - 17 Miles, 111 min
Back roads of Hudson, Stow, Maynard and Bolton w/Ryan

Today I had a chance to experience running along the backroads of the forgotten towns of Hudson, Stow, Maynard and Bolton. You likely have never heard of any of aforementioned towns, and that's unfortunate because they're home to such slices of Americana as the Horseshoe Pub, the Honeypott Hill Orchard, Mark Mayall and numerous Indian uprisings during King Phillips War, respectively. Well, more importantly, these towns are also prime running real estate during the winter months, governed by none other than the elder statesman of New Balance Boston, Ryan Carrara.

On a gorgeous January morning, we started the run from Ryan's house and ran down scenic Route 62 for a skosh until we reached solace of the backroads of Stow. We followed the scenic asphalt trail through Stow (about 5 miles long), cut briefly through Maynard and Bolton and looped around to eventually follow the same way back to historic Hudson. It was a really great run and I couldn't have asked for a better location. I now know why it is one of Ryan's favorite places to run for hours on end. After the run, we concluded our morning by going to brunch at Christy Mae's cafe in the dining room and had some great home style food, including the infamous Swedish tea ring, reheated waffles with real maple syrup, canned pineapples and the best instant coffee this side of 495. Overall, it was a great morning and gave me some quality time with quality friends.

Training Log (Dec 30-Jan 5)
Sunday: 18 Miles, 125 min
Monday: AM- 8 Miles, 56 min. PM- 6 Miles, 45 min
Tuesday: 6 Miles, 48 min
Wednesday: AM- Miles, 36 min. PM- 1 Mile, 7 min
Thursday: 13 miles, 88 min
Friday: AM- 5.5 Miles, 40 min. PM- 8.5 Miles, 60 min
Saturday: 10 Miles, 66 min

Total = 81 Miles, 10 runs
Great week. Daily runs are feeling easy, I'm recovering well after one-mile treadmill runs and can't wait for April 21st.

One at a time

7:15 AM - 10 miles, 1:06:00 - Jarrin 10.
16:00 easy, 10 x 1:00 hard/1:00 easy, 31:00 easy back home. Felt good to stretch the legs out a bit.

81 miles for the week, one good long run, one easy maintenance workout and one minor lapse in focus. Got back on track pretty quickly though and managed to put a decent chunk of steady mileage in the bank before things really start kicking into gear this coming week. The fun gets underway roughly nine hours from now at la casa de Carrara with the first Squires fartlek of the Boston buildup. Better get my ass to bed. Goodnight.

Quote of the Day

"I would like to see how good I can get. There’s only a short window to find that out. I do not want to live in regret years from now, wondering if I could have run a faster race."
- Pat Rizzo, Hanson's stud

Friday fun

8:35 AM - 5.5 miles, 40:00 - Hopedale.
Many a loop around Hopedale with Mark and Katie, just counting down the minutes to a long-awaited Town Common breakfast.

3:30 PM - 8.5 miles, 1:00:00 - Stonehill.
Random romp around campus and the sheep pasture with Sean and Di. 6 x 100m strides afterward, alternating between turf and track.

Got in some good miles today with a bunch of great friends, a fitting end to what has been an awesome couple of weeks.

My exhausted ass is going to bed. Goodnight.

Quote of the Day

"C'mon man, even Babe Ruth got to play at Yankee Stadium."
- Sean, justifying jumping the fence to do strides on the brandy new Stonehill track this afternoon.

Chillin' out

8:30 AM - 13 miles, 1:28:10 - Worcester State.
Worcester State loop with Sean, which came out to exactly 13.1 miles on his Garmin. Good run - cold as balls outside but my Sugoi wind briefs worked like a charm. Nice rebound from yesterday.

You know a guy's your best friend when he meets you without hesitation for a 13-mile run at 8:30 in the morning when it's 6 degrees out with a windchill that made it feel 15 degrees colder than that. I can't think of too many people, never mind someone with a mailing address in San Diego, that would be up for such a ludicrous endeavor.

And believe me, 90 minutes out there on the roads this morning was indeed ludicrous. Still, it was a helluva lot better than the 7 minutes I spent on the dreadmill last night. The fresh arctic air soothed my soul and froze just about everything else, and by the end of the run I was slurring my words worse than Joe Namath trying talk to Suzy Kolber. Hey, at least the roads were clear.

Quote of the Day

"We will either find a way, or make one."
-Hannibal

Sad 6

7:15 AM - 5 miles, 36:40 - Pakachoag.
Easy run on the roads before scheduled meeting with the electrician, who inconveniently decided not to show up - again.

7:25 PM - 1 mile, 7:15 - Treadmill.
Planned on doing a progression run on the treadmill after work but realized after about 5 minutes it just wasn't happening. Pathetic.

Quote of the Day

"Circumstances - what are circumstances? I make circumstances."
-Napoleon Bonaparte

Burn, burn, yes ya gonna burn

I'll blame neither the weather, the holidays nor the writer's strike for my recent blogging hiatus - heck, I'm not going to blame anyone or anything except myself and my own laziness - but now is no time for brooding over excuses, it's time for me to write and you to read, so let's get to it.

Today marks the start of a new year, new beginnings, new this, new that, yada yada bullshit. I'll save you from the boredom of resolutions I've made to myself, goals I hope to achieve, races I want to win, states I'd like to visit, drugs I'll try to quit, weight I'd like to lose, countries I plan to conquer, cures I hope to discover and languages I'll attempt to make myself fluent in.

Sorry, I'll be sharing none of that here. I will, however, dive headfirst - or perhaps more appropriately, backflip - into the running year that was for me, one number at a time.

C'mon now, this is a running blog, what the hell did you expect? If you want access to all the juicy shit that goes on away from the roads, track and trails I'll have to start charging a subscription fee. Sorry folks.

So let's see. Miles. For the year I logged 3,364 of them, or an average of 64.89 per week for 52 weeks. If you discount the 2-mile week and the two full weeks I didn't run a step due to the tarsal tunnel trouble I experienced after Vermont City, that average jumps to 68.65 for 49 weeks of healthy running. Given that I logged a paltry 2,681 miles for an injury-riddled 2006, those numbers don't look so bad.

Races. There were 13, not counting a handful of Monday night runs from the An Cu Liath. I completed my first marathon at Vermont City in May, finishing 6th overall in 2:28:25. I ran two half marathons, PRing by almost a minute at New Bedford in March with a satisfying 1:09:53 on a windy day. Unofficially, I PR'd for the 10 miles in the same race, splitting 52:55 before hitting a wall of wind head-on the last 5K and finishing 8th. At Bay State in October I shaved 5 seconds off my time from New Bedford with a 1:09:48 5th-place finish, which was a pleasant surprise given the rocky road I was traveling in the months proceeding Vermont City. As for wins, I managed two of them in 2007, both of them in Central Massachusetts, which was good for my hometown pride if nothing else. I also returned to cross country for the first time in a couple years this past fall, competing in three races, the best of the lot being a 31:55 13th-place finish at New England's. Average-at-best cross country results aside, it was exciting to lace the spikes up again and be a contributing part of a kickass team. I really missed that.

On the whole, 2007 was successful and satisfying, mainly because I made it through relatively unscathed, which was my main goal at the outset of the year. The small flame which was merely flickering last January is now shining bright. The base has been firmly set, the logs have been carefully arranged and this fire isn't going to be put out anytime soon.

So here's to 2008. Let it burn.

Quote of the Day

"Arriving at one goal is the starting point to another."
- John Dewey