I haven't been in the blogging frame of mind lately - at least not blogging about running. Sometimes I think I should switch to blogging about Salsa because that seems so much more interesting, but for now, I'll stick with the current format.

So I went to the gym this morning because prior to vacation, I had left a favorite necklace of mine in one of the lockers at the gym. Luckily I realized it pretty quickly and was able to call them and have them put it aside for me. Unfortunately, it's locked up in the safe (which is nice and all, but the things prolly worth less than 40 bucks), so I need a manager to retrieve it and, apparently, there's no manager on duty until 10 am.

So anyway... I did a hamster wheel run. Nothing fancy, nothing out of the ordinary. And unfortunately that fresh-as-a-daisy feeling I had earlier in the week is pretty much gone by now. But I ran, and that's the whole point, right?

5 miles in 42:27

Springy!!!

Wow... taking a week off from running seems to have helped my legs recoup a bit. Today was my second run since being back from vacation. I did a neighborhood loop with a few hills - just shy of five miles - and even towards the ends of the run, my legs felt downright springy. It was such a nice and unusual feeling. Maybe I should take time off more often!

4.86 in 41:24

Island Time

Yeah... it really was that beautiful. Seebo and I just returned from a week long getaway to Tortola where the lizards, chickens, and beautiful beaches are plentiful. It was nothing short of amazing. If you want to see more pics ... just ask... but given that this is a running blog... I'll stick to running stuff (mostly).

We both gave up running for the week, but I'll tell ya.. anyone who thinks they've done hills before hasn't seen squat until they've seen the hills on Tortola. Walking them was quite enough for me. Anyway... back to running....

So I ran Tinicum this morning - just the 4.5 miles that comprises the lower loop and the out and back to my place. I was sure that I'd see turtles this time around since this was the exact weekend I saw them laying eggs last year, but alas, there was no sign of them. Seebo hypothesized that either I wasn't looking hard enough or that I had already fulfilled my turtle viewing quota for the year given that we had seen several sea turtles while snorkeling in Lenister Bay. I'm not sure where the turtles have gone.

Left the watch at home - trying to stay on island time as much as possible.

10k before Vay-Cay

That's 6.25 the day before leaving for vacation.... on the treddy (on account of the rain).... in 52:42. Felt like a rock star... well, not really, but I felt good.

But the really important piece of news, which is somewhat sad, is that the Cluster Map at the bottom of this page was reset on May 14th. This means that all of my beloved red dots of various sizes from all 'round the globe have disappeared. It's too bad, really, because it gave me a lot of joy to know that at least three people on the continent of Africa had stumbled across my blog.

No running for the next week, but plenty of snorkeling!

Maggie's National Naked Running Day (observed)

A few days ago my friend and fellow runner/blogger, Maggie, wrote a lovely post about getting back to the simplicity of running; running for running's sake. You really should click here and read it - it's very thoughtful and nicely written.

Simply put, Maggie suggested that this coming Monday, we observe and celebrate Maggie's National Naked Running Day. No, she's not suggesting a mass streak across the city of Philadelphia. Rather, she suggests we leave our watches, iPods, Garmines (if you have one), and technical running gear at home and just go out and "enjoy the run for what it is".

My schedule didn't happen to sync up to allow me to observe this 'holiday' on Monday, so I chose to celebrate a day early. Now... to be fair... I don't really have non-technical running clothes - so I just wore what I normally wear. And, I don't usually run with my iPod unless I'm on the hamster wheel, so leaving that behind wasn't too difficult. Leaving the watch on the dresser, however, was not easy. I won't lie. I looked at the clock immediately before and immediately after I ran - so I do know approximately how long I was out... and of course I G-mapped the course (which I had already had archived) so I could know how far I ran.

Confessing these things may make it seem like I cheated a bit, and maybe I did, you can decide for yourself. But for me, I had the right mindset. I ran a neighborhood route, through the bowels of Southeast Delco - watching people doing yard work, walking home from church, or arriving for Mother's Day celebrations. The weather was beautiful and lots of stuff was in bloom. There is this one particular stretch of road that is about a mile in length that falls around the fifth mile of this loop. I love this road for the simple fact that, to me, it has the perfect rolling hills. You really can't even call them hills. Not even I, who might consider some large speed bumps hills, would call these hills. Rather, the roll of the road with its slight inclinations and declinations make it a very enjoyable stretch for me to run. It was a very zen like experience for me today running that stretch.

So here I am, a week past Broad Street, two weeks past the Lehigh Valley Half Marathon, and I'm trying NOT to worry about pace. It was a challenge, but I'm glad that I was able to do it. I felt good, strong, and thankful that I have the ability to get out there and enjoy the run for what it is.

Thanks for the suggestion, Maggie.

(8.2 in about 72 minutes - sorry... old habits die hard)

P.S. Ran 5 miles(42:22)on Friday on the treddy due to the rain.

Tinicum.... yes, again... you'd run there too if you lived close by

I guess it's still a little early for the Tinicum Turtles, but that didn't stop me from looking hard for them during my morning run. I didn't see any dug-up spots where they might have already laid their eggs. I wonder if somehow the eco-system of Tinicum is different this year, causing the turtles to change their breeding patterns. There has been a good deal of change in Tinicum over the past year - significant clearings, drainage, etc. I'll give it another few more weeks before I get too concerned.

Incidentally, this was my first run since Broad Street. I am still feeling soreness in my legs - mainly my left quad, but my calves too. Otherwise, the run felt good. I felt like I was keeping a decent pace, but wasn't pushing too hard.

I did the initial loop plus and out and back along the trail that connects the lower and upper loops. Ate a bunch of spider webs and counted nine or ten bunnies along the way - all adults. I'm sure the brazen adolescents will be out soon. A couple of deer were out as well.

5.6 in 48:41

Broad (running down the) Street

As smart of a race as I ran last weekend... this weekend, I was kind of a dumbass. It all worked out in the end, but it didn't feel good. For some reason, this past Friday seemed like a really great day to do some serious weight training. I don't know why. Yes, of course, I knew it was two days before Broad Street, but that didn't stop me from doing squats, lunges, and lots of upper body work. Somehow it seemed like a good idea at the time. Saturday I woke up so very sore and so very sorry, knowing that this wouldn't go away by Sunday... and I was right.

Weather was great, overcast and cool... no significant wind. Just like last weekend. Of course it was a zoo... as usual. With 22,000+ registrants, how could it not be? The first mile was the usual zig zag-ing through the throng of runners. I knew I went out fast - first mile was something like 8:04. Silly for me to be running the first mile that fast. I knew I should slow down and I tried, but miles 2, 3, and 4 came in around 8:14. You might be tempted to think that I was feeling good, putting in splits like that. When, in truth, I wasn't feeling so good and I knew I'd be in trouble down the road. Since I was so sore from lifting, my body and my legs felt tired, pretty much from the get go. But I knew that the tired and sore feelings were more about my Friday weight-lifting-fest - so I didn't feel like I could trust the messages I was receiving from my body.

By the time I made it around City Hall, I was definitely hurting. I saw my friend, Ron, spectating in the crowd right before mile 6, so that helped. It's always nice to see someone you know cheering you on. By the time I hit mile seven, the momentum was gone and I was toast. Shortly past the mile 7 marker, I stopped and walked for a short bit. I knew the last three miles were going to be really long, and they were. I kept trying to tell myself that I had less than 5k to go, but that didn't make it any easier. I walked a second time during mile eight, but still somehow managed to do it in under 9 minutes.

By the time I got to the 8 mile marker, I knew I had just two more miles to go. Unfortunately, these are the two most uninteresting miles of the course and seem to drag on forever. I just wanted to be done. I don't know what pace those last two miles were - certainly slower than my first few, but probably around 8:30 or less.

Funny thing is... for as crappy as I felt and given the fact that I walked here and there during those last three miles... I was surprised to find that I beat my time from last year. Not by much, but by about a half minute. The Broad Street web-site was down at the time of this posting, but by my watch, I ran it in 1:23:15

Update
Chip Time 1:23:14 - which is the exact time I ran it in in 2006
7th Place in the Rebecca Division (out of 66)

Keeping my fitness

I've been taking a nice little rest since last Sunday. My legs were pretty sore for a few days following the Lehigh Valley half. This morning, was my first run and really, my first return to exercise since then. I meant to run yesterday morning, but a late Salsa night squashed that plan.

I set out to do my usual West Philly loop and felt pretty good. I noticed some soreness in my calves, but this wasn't the same as the tightness/soreness that has plagued me in weeks past. This was more just residual soreness from charging the Lehigh hills last Sunday. Ok, ok, so 'charging' is probably a bit of an exaggeration, but you get the point.

I did bring my watch, but now I forget what my time for the loop was. I know that I was running on the faster end of my usual pace - so probably around an 8:30 pace on average. Really, this morning was about shaking out the cobwebs and priming the pump for Sunday. I'll probably go to the gym tomorrow morning and throw around some iron - just so I keep that buff feeling.

Rain, rain stay away for Sunday!

The Best Time Ever (***update at end of post***)

It's been a bit of a rough week. I was glad for it to be over and head up to the beautiful Lehigh Valley for the half marathon this weekend with my good friend, Amy. This is my third consecutive year running this race. I ran it with Amy the first year and she returned again this year for another go at it. We came into town early afternoon on Saturday to go to the expo. Here's Amy,, looking cute as ever with her expo gear bag. And here we are, oh so cute and fabulous outside the expo. I'm warning you... if you haven't already figured it out.. there are going to be a lot of pictures in this entry, so if you're one of those running goobers who is primarily interested in the blow-by-blow race report, perhaps this entry isn't for you.
The past two years, there has been a Peep car at the expo. Essentially, it's a yellow VW Beetle with a giant yellow peep chick molded onto the top. It's become tradition to have one's picture taken with the Peep-mobile. We were sorely disappointed at it's absence this year. So, of course, I improvised. Amy was nervous that I'd be arrested by one of the half dozen officers standing about twenty feet away. Of course, that didn't happen. If she hadn't have been such a nervous Nelly, I may have hopped up on the seat.

After the expo, we took a trip to Allentown's recycling center. Yes, it's more exciting than it may sound. And then, off to the hairdresser. Amy has lived in the Philadelphia area for several years now, but being the loyal lass that she is, she returns every few months to visit her hairdresser of ten years (who's name is escaping me right now). Fabulous 'do! We (her hairdresser and I) tried to talk her into something a little different, but clearly, Amy doesn't do too well with change.
After buying some fabulous new sunglasses at the Bon-ton (dig the zexy security tag), we met up with Sarah, Meera, Tom, and Deb for a lovely dinner at one of Allentown's fine dining establishments. Then it was off to one of the new super-fabulous Wawas (you know, the fancy ones with the gas pumps) to get some breakfast stuff. Amy didn't know it, but I lifted a Sweet & Low packet right from under the noses of some of Allentown's finest (for some reason, I think they were following us). Here I am posing for my mug shot. We arrived plenty early for the pre-race socializing (and porta-potty-party). This is one of my favorite pictures... truly captures what me and Amy are all about. I had made arrangements to meet up with Maggie - a fellow blogger who I have not before had the pleasure of meeting. Unfortunately, by the time we caught up with each other, my bag (along with my camera) had been checked. It was great to finally meet her and her husband after reading her blog for so many months. See Maggie's blog for an artistic rendering of the scene.

Okay, okay... onto the actual race stuff.... We could not have asked for a better day, weather wise. Conditions were puuurfect. Overcast, low 50s, no real wind to speak of. Just perfect. This is definitely the hilliest race that I regularly run. This being my third shot at it, I felt fairly comfortable in knowing where the hills are and what, in general, to expect from the course. There are slight and gradual inclines and declines in the first five or six miles, but it really isn't until into the eighth mile that the hills start to come. None of them are particularly long, but some of them are fairly steep. Plus after already running eight or more miles, the legs are kind of tired. Miles eight, nine, and ten have the worst of the hills. Knowing this, I kept my pace in check for those first six miles, I knew that I'd like to average an 8:40 pace or below.

My first three miles were each 8:35 exactly. Yes, I was impressed with my pacing. Subsequent miles were a bit faster, but I was feeling strong and felt as though the pace was relaxed. Of course, the hills were a bummer and tough, but I got through them as well as I could and still had enough left in the tank to run well enough in those last three miles. I vividly remember last year, just having almost nothing left by that point and really hating the race. It didn't get to that point this year, and for that, I was very pleased.

At the time of this posting, the official results weren't up, but according to my watch, I finished in 1:52:20 - more than 5 minutes ahead of my time from last year and my fastest time on this course by over three minutes. I was pleased. I really felt like I ran a smart race. This kind of feels like another first in my evolution as a runner - actually having a plan for a race and successfully implementing it. I'm happy! And Amy surprised herself with running a great race for supposedly being out of shape. Whatever, Amy... you rock.

We decided to 'cool down' by walking back to the hotel - which was probably about a mile from the race finish. We debated the merits of this decision - given that our legs were aching and we were both having some left knee issues. But this made it all worthwhile. Only in Allentown, ladies and gentlemen:
Please note the Jesus painting, the Monster Truck/Demolition Derby poster, and the Billy Graham flyer (the wrestler, not to be confused with the Evangelical preacher). Priceless.

We will definitely be back next year.

UPDATE
And now the stats you've all been waiting for...
Official Chip Time is 1:52:24
54th woman in my age group (out of 246 women)
306th woman out of 1527 women runners
And MOST importantly....
FIRST PLACE in the coveted Rebecca Division (out of 12)!!!!

Home

I'm getting spoiled by all of this beautiful weather. It's been so perfect for running - cool, but sunny... temps in the mid 50s. This morning was no exception. I woke up a bit before my alarm and just lay in bed listening to the chorus of birds.... the call of Tinicum. This is my second spring running there and it truly does feel like home.

So out I went. My last run before Allentown. I left the watch at home and didn't even entertain the idea of the iPod. I knew this was going to be an easy run - just the initial loop (interesting part, then boring part). I felt good; I had energy; no nagging aches or pains. This, I thought, is how running should be.

Funny thing about today's run... the interesting part was not so interesting. Of course it was beautiful and it was interesting to note just how much the foliage had grown, narrowing the path. I suppose its still too early for the turtles to be laying their eggs - a few more weeks. And yet, almost as soon as I set foot on the 'boring part', I spotted one of the first Tinicum bunnies of the season. Along that stretch, I'd see about seven or eight, in total. All adults - but I know that, too, will change soon. At one point, I felt like I was watching a rabbit relay. No sooner would one scurry down the trail and dart into the brush when another would appear to run the next leg. I could almost swear I saw them passing off a carrot to one another. And, of course, a few memebers of the official Tinicum track club were out and about.

Simply a beautiful morning and I was glad to be home.