August 23rd marked the annual PG County Road Runners Womens distance festival followed by a predicted time 5K. Anyone that reads these blogs knows the only way I will ever win anything is if I run in a "gimmic" type of race. I came in 2nd a couple of years ago at the DCRRC predicted time 5 miler. I think I looked good again last year until I fell and broke my foot (still finished though).
This was the first time I had run this race which made predicting a time even more difficult than usual. I asked the nice folks when I checked in what the course was like and I was told it had a lot of turns but was pretty flat. Turns don't really hurt someone as slow as me so this all sounded good. I thought about my time in the 3K on Wednesday and considered the temperature (not too bad) and came up with a time of 35:16. I thought that should be a tough time to get but do-able.
I knew I wouldn't be able to take a lot of walk breaks.
I misjudged the start and had to jog over to the start line just as we were being sent off. I had about 30 seconds to recover though so I can't complain about that. The start took us parallel to the runway at College Park airport. Then we veered into a park with a large lake. It was so weird to not have a watch on to see how I was doing. I started taking walk breaks pretty early on...perhaps only 1/2 mile in. But I tried to keep them short. It seemed like I was the last runner before a pretty long break to the walkers. I could see a guy in front of me for most of the race but I just couldn't catch up to him. However, as I got to within 1/2 a mile of the finish, a woman appeared behind me. The sight of her pushed me along and helped me finish a little faster than I probably would have otherwise. Where was she earlier?
I was convinced that I ran a very slow race...perhaps something around 40 minutes. But when I got back to my car I saw that it was 9:40 and the race started at 9. It took me several minutes to get to the car and I had stopped for a bagel so I started thinking maybe I wasn't as slow as I thought. I waited through the awards for the women and then they finally awarded the prizes for the predicted time race. The woman that finished behind me actually won the race! If she is anything like me, seeing me ahead of her at the finish probably pushed her to run a little faster which enabled her to win the race! A couple of guys tied for 2nd and that was it for the prizes so I went home.
Imagine my surprise when I checked the results the next day and found that I came in 4th! The 2 guys ahead of me missed their prediction by 22 seconds. I missed mine by 23.97 seconds! If I had pushed myself to start running 20 yards sooner at the finish I would have come in 2nd! The winner was within 16 seconds of her prediction. A 100 yard push would have been good enough to beat her! Argh!!
Nonetheless, it was a fun race and I'll plan on running this again next year. This race marked my 36th race of the year. A prolific month of September should put me within spitting distance of 50 races for the year. It will be nice to get it out of the way so I don't have to worry about injuries like the one I suffered at the end of last year.
Place Name Age S City State Predict Time Diff
1 Mary Contreras 37 F Arlington VA 36:00 36:17 0:00:16.40
2 Malcolm Lester 41 M Washington C 17:11 17:33 0:00:22.00
3 Kent McCullough 51 M Lanham MD 19:56 19:34 0:00:22.46
4 Tim Ramsey 48 M Arlington VA 35:16 35:40 0:00:23.97
5 Katy Wareheme 26 F Boonsboro MD 25:00 25:30 0:00:29.02
6 Ian Wright 33 M Laurel MD 30:00 29:28 0:00:32.52
7 Manuel Legaspi M 20:00 20:36 0:00:35.53
8 Clifford Bedore M 27:00 27:38 0:00:37.53
9 Vennita Harris 24 F Laurel MD 45:00 45:49 0:00:48.62
10 Shawn Gilleylen 40 F Laurel MD 45:00 46:02 0:01:01.18
11 Nicole Greene 30 F Frederick MD 40:36 39:35 0:01:01.27
12 Jason Morancie M 30:00 28:52 0:01:08.28
13 Ben Lipovsky 60 M Hyattsville MD 28:00 26:50 0:01:10.27
14 Kirk Gordon 52 M Mitchellville MD 20:50 22:11 0:01:20.49
15 Eileen Spear F 31:00 29:39 0:01:21.91
16 DeNita DeLano 32 F Temple Hills MD 49:20 47:56 0:01:24.51
17 Tammy Colandrea 32 F Greenbelt MD 43:21 41:53 0:01:28.42
18 Ethica Kumsa F 17:00 18:29 0:01:28.98
19 Laurence Daniels 41 M Mitchellville MD 50:00 48:31 0:01:29.64
20 Mary Ester 47 F Washington DC 30:00 28:27 0:01:33.50
21 Valerie Barnes 31 F Greenbelt MD 46:45 44:58 0:01:47.45
22 Sally Bolenger F 31:00 32:54 0:01:53.50
23 Richard Vickers III 45 M Silver Spring MD 25:00 26:59 0:01:58.28
24 Olivia Payton 51 F Laurel MD 45:00 47:36 0:02:35.75
25 Ernest Brown 51 M Washington DC 43:00 45:45 0:02:44.74
26 Heather Burroughs 24 F Burtonsville MD 36:00 38:46 0:02:45.56
27 Philip Zenchoff 80 M Silver Spring MD 46:30 49:33 0:03:02.40
28 Sharlene Deskins 44 F Seabrook MD 32:45 36:20 0:03:34.72
29 Valerie Ballard F 40:00 36:22 0:03:38.76
30 Loretta Henry 44 F Laurel MD 45:00 41:16 0:03:44.08
31 Risa Ryan 26 F Odenton MD 33:45 29:46 0:03:59.49
32 Gerard Alleyne 27 M Bladensburg MD 33:54 29:21 0:04:33.53 33 242 David Ferris M 30:00 25:18 0:04:42.12 34 212 Moneta Strickland 27 F Montgomery Village MD 37:00 42:26 0:05:25.75 35 209 Jodi Lethbridge 26 F Burtonsville MD 42:00 47:32 0:05:31.53 36 213 Henson Rara 26 M Montgomery Village MD 36:50 42:27 0:05:36.35 37 232 Jackie Nitowitz 44 F College Park MD 1:30:00 1:23:35 0:06:25.12 38 210 Elissa Lethbridge 53 F Burtonsville MD 55:00 1:01:41 0:06:40.64 39 234 David Palomino 28 M Riverdale MD 42:00 34:52 0:07:08.94 40 211 Mandy Lethbridge 21 F Burtonsville MD 40:00 49:33 0:09:32.53 41 225 Irene Park 32 F Baltimore MD 1:00:00 49:29 0:10:31.37 42 224 Sarah Park 29 F Baltimore MD 1:00:00 49:29 0:10:31.40 43 221 Netta Henry 39 F Laurel MD 45:00 56:42 0:11:41.51 44 219 Denise Henry 48 F Laurel MD 45:00 56:42 0:11:41.57 45 246 Dave Rapp M 45:00 30:01 0:14:59.63 46 243 Laurie Fisher F 35:10 1:23:35 0:48:24.33
Monday, August 25, 2008
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Tidal Basin 3K reprised
The August 2008 edition of the Tidal Basin was held on a sunny, clear and warm August 20. I spoke to a few people before the race. Jim Moreland complimented on my time in the downhill mile. He had noticed I had beaten Tami. We also talked about the previous nights race. Peter Blank said hello and Joe Broderick and I talked about how it was coller than last month but how it was still awfully warm.
With the help of my new shoes and with my ankle wrapped, I felt pretty good for the first few hundred yards. That doesn't sound like much but I've been tired after this portion of the race the last few months. I did tire shortly afterwards but I really wanted to get to the other side of the bridge before taking a walk break. I did so and took my break right at the 5 minute mark. I passed the 1K mark shortly after starting to run again. I looked at my watch and was surprised to see I was under 10 minute/mile pace by several seconds. Off I ran for another 5 minutes, crossing the 2nd bridge and passing the 1 mile mark in just under 10 minutes. OK, I thought to myself, can I keep the wheels on?
For the most part I did keep the wheels on the bus. I only ran 4 minutes before taking another walk break but I was bale to get rolling again after that. I stopped looking at my watch at that point as I focused on reaching that finish line. I took 1 more brief walk break along Ohio Drive and then plodded/scurried to the finish. I was shocked to see the clock under 19 minutes as I approached. I was only hoping to break 21 minutes today. If I had been paying attention perhaps I could have broken 19 minutes. Instead I settled for a time of 19:03...my best in several months. Given my larger goal of returning to sub 31 minute 5K's, I know I need to get my 3K's under 18 minutes but this was certainly a step in the right direction. If not for being so sweaty back at work it would have been a perfect lunch hour.
With the help of my new shoes and with my ankle wrapped, I felt pretty good for the first few hundred yards. That doesn't sound like much but I've been tired after this portion of the race the last few months. I did tire shortly afterwards but I really wanted to get to the other side of the bridge before taking a walk break. I did so and took my break right at the 5 minute mark. I passed the 1K mark shortly after starting to run again. I looked at my watch and was surprised to see I was under 10 minute/mile pace by several seconds. Off I ran for another 5 minutes, crossing the 2nd bridge and passing the 1 mile mark in just under 10 minutes. OK, I thought to myself, can I keep the wheels on?
For the most part I did keep the wheels on the bus. I only ran 4 minutes before taking another walk break but I was bale to get rolling again after that. I stopped looking at my watch at that point as I focused on reaching that finish line. I took 1 more brief walk break along Ohio Drive and then plodded/scurried to the finish. I was shocked to see the clock under 19 minutes as I approached. I was only hoping to break 21 minutes today. If I had been paying attention perhaps I could have broken 19 minutes. Instead I settled for a time of 19:03...my best in several months. Given my larger goal of returning to sub 31 minute 5K's, I know I need to get my 3K's under 18 minutes but this was certainly a step in the right direction. If not for being so sweaty back at work it would have been a perfect lunch hour.
Springsteen 4.5 Miler
Well thats a misleading title if there ever was one. No, there is no such thing as a Springsteen 4.5 Miler. But I did attend a Springsteen concert on Monday and then ran a 4.5 mile race on Tuesday so I thought I would combine the two.
First, the concert. I worked half a day and drove down to Richmond Monday afternoon. When I got there I signed up for being allowed into the pit. For all the times I have seen The Boss I have never been in the pit. I was given number 740. 700 people were going to be allowed into the pit. A number would be selected at random and that number would become the new #1. That meant I needed the number pulled to be between 41 and 740. The number pulled was 7. So close but yet so far. Oh well. We thought this would mean that we would be allowed in next so we would be in the front row of the non pit people. Didnt work out that way though and after waiting an hour we were told we had to scramble over to another entrance. I ended up right at center court with a head on view of Bruce. He was probably 60 feet away. Not bad, all things considered.
Although the sound was poor, I thought the show was among the best I have ever seen. He slid across the floor, jumped into the audience, pulled kids up on stage with him 3 times, and did a solo on the piano of "For You". They took a request for "Crush on You" which he said they hadn't performed in over 20 years. Steven said we would understand why in a moment but it ended up being a good fun song. The encore lasted forever, meaning I didn't get home until after 1. But it was worth it.
The next day was the Paul Thurston 4.5 Miler at Burke Lake. I find the course to be moderately difficult but certainly not as bad as some of the recent cross country races I have run recently. I got off to a decent start and actually passed Tami Graf after a couple of minutes. But once we turned onto the trail and into the woods off she went, followed quickly by Sharyn Gordon. Sharyn mentioned that it was tough to breathe. She was right...the air was very heavy and stagnant.
Nonetheless, I felt relatively good for a guy that spent over 6 straight hours on his feet the night before and only got a few hours sleep. I had to stop for a walk break after 5 minutes but I kept the break to 1 minute. I followed the same routine up until I reached the water station after 40 minutes. I was pretty whipped at that point and alternated 2 minute runs with 2 minute walks for most of the rest of the race. I guess I would have been OK if it was a 3.5 mile race but it wasnt meant to be. I pushed myself along for the final 300 yards to the finish and settled for a time of 55:12(official was 55:23...not sure why there was such a big difference).
I was 53rd and last male and 78th out of 80 overall, beating a father and daughter by just under 2 minutes.
Notable finishers were:
Greg Grosicki 25:43 (winner)
Karsten Brown 26:42
Jim Moreland 30:53 (age group winner)
Jay Wind 31:35
Elaine Twigg 33:04 (female winner)
Kirk Gordon 33:11
Jon Palks 37:22
Tami Graf 48:06 (age group winner)
Sharyn Gordon 51:02
Kay Wallace 51:47 (person that finished in front of me)
Bryn Gaffen 57:13 (10 year girl that finished behind me)
First, the concert. I worked half a day and drove down to Richmond Monday afternoon. When I got there I signed up for being allowed into the pit. For all the times I have seen The Boss I have never been in the pit. I was given number 740. 700 people were going to be allowed into the pit. A number would be selected at random and that number would become the new #1. That meant I needed the number pulled to be between 41 and 740. The number pulled was 7. So close but yet so far. Oh well. We thought this would mean that we would be allowed in next so we would be in the front row of the non pit people. Didnt work out that way though and after waiting an hour we were told we had to scramble over to another entrance. I ended up right at center court with a head on view of Bruce. He was probably 60 feet away. Not bad, all things considered.
Although the sound was poor, I thought the show was among the best I have ever seen. He slid across the floor, jumped into the audience, pulled kids up on stage with him 3 times, and did a solo on the piano of "For You". They took a request for "Crush on You" which he said they hadn't performed in over 20 years. Steven said we would understand why in a moment but it ended up being a good fun song. The encore lasted forever, meaning I didn't get home until after 1. But it was worth it.
The next day was the Paul Thurston 4.5 Miler at Burke Lake. I find the course to be moderately difficult but certainly not as bad as some of the recent cross country races I have run recently. I got off to a decent start and actually passed Tami Graf after a couple of minutes. But once we turned onto the trail and into the woods off she went, followed quickly by Sharyn Gordon. Sharyn mentioned that it was tough to breathe. She was right...the air was very heavy and stagnant.
Nonetheless, I felt relatively good for a guy that spent over 6 straight hours on his feet the night before and only got a few hours sleep. I had to stop for a walk break after 5 minutes but I kept the break to 1 minute. I followed the same routine up until I reached the water station after 40 minutes. I was pretty whipped at that point and alternated 2 minute runs with 2 minute walks for most of the rest of the race. I guess I would have been OK if it was a 3.5 mile race but it wasnt meant to be. I pushed myself along for the final 300 yards to the finish and settled for a time of 55:12(official was 55:23...not sure why there was such a big difference).
I was 53rd and last male and 78th out of 80 overall, beating a father and daughter by just under 2 minutes.
Notable finishers were:
Greg Grosicki 25:43 (winner)
Karsten Brown 26:42
Jim Moreland 30:53 (age group winner)
Jay Wind 31:35
Elaine Twigg 33:04 (female winner)
Kirk Gordon 33:11
Jon Palks 37:22
Tami Graf 48:06 (age group winner)
Sharyn Gordon 51:02
Kay Wallace 51:47 (person that finished in front of me)
Bryn Gaffen 57:13 (10 year girl that finished behind me)
Monday, August 18, 2008
Hell, thy name is Comus!
OK, that's not exactly fair. Comus looked like a wonderful place to live. I would look into the possibility if not for already knowing that Dori would have absolutely no interest in being so far out of town and having so much land to take care of.
What I should really say is Hell, thy name is the Comus 5K. You know how I grumbled about last weekends cross country race at Landon? This was worse and not just by the additional .1 miles. This course had a ton of hills. Nearly all of it was run on either grass (which scares me-can't see the holes) or on trails in woods with lots of roots and things to trip you up. We crossed a couple of creeks and we had to jump over a fallen tree. Perhaps the toughest part of the course for me were the sidehill runs. That placed a lot of stress on my bad ankle.
Just getting their was difficult. My GPS in my car couldn't find Comus so I turned off of 270 where I thought the turn should be. That was a mistake that cost me about 6 minutes. I found an address on the website while stopped at a light and was able to plug that into the GPS. It showed I would arrive right at 5:30...the scheduled starting time. Oh boy. This is when its nice to have a psuedo sports car. I did 60 on the winding country roads leading to the farm that served as the base for the course. I signed up with 2 minutes to spare. No time to stretch. Oh well. The "G" word was said and were off.
We started by running around an excercise area for horses. Then we ran down a pretty big hill beside a fence holding back a couple of horses. One came over to the fence to see what we were doing. I gasped a hello. We then started climbing another hill and I took my first walk break. I looked at my watch and weren't even 2 minutes into the race! Not a good sign at all. The good news was I had a lot of people still behind me at this point.
I started running again but I was having trouble with my footing on the grassy surface. There were sections of the course that I could have run faster if on pavement but I had to slow down. Thus, the little cushion that I built up for when I walked the uphills just wasnt happening this day. To prove it. I was passed by a group of about 8 runners at about the 3/4 mile mark as I walked up a short steep hill. Included in this pack was Mark Zimmerman, who has to be about the happiest (and chattiest) runner I know.
We emerged from the trees and ran back by the horses we saw earlier. We were told at the start that this was about the 1 mile mark. OK, only 2.1 more Back by the start line I was able to grab a big cup of water. That helped quite abit but I decided to walk for a minute or two here. We ran through a pretty large field and I was able to see some of the runners behind me. A few passed me while still in the field but I was able to keep some women behind me as we entered another set of woods. We did a kind of sideways "M", racing through the woods in one direction before racing back towards where we came from on a parallel path. Then we did it again. Each leg of this "M" was on a higher elevation so I could see and hear some of the runners ahead of me, particularly Mark. I would guess he was about 3 minutes ahead of me at this point. I was also able to see 2 women behind me in the woods. My new and last goal for the day was to keep them behind me.
We exited the woods and ran beside a fence in a field for a few hundred yards before entering more woods. This was the toughest section of the course for me with the previously mentioned sidehills and some very steep sections. I was able to keep the woman in front of me in sight through these woods but I certainly didnt make up any ground.
When I exited from the woods I was whipped. We kind of ran a big U in large field. I had to walk a lot of this. I started running again when I saw the first woman behind me exit from the woods. Not far in fromt of me was the woman and now also a child runner. Unfortunately, we then hit a steep hill and I immediately lost touch with them.
My left calf started to cramp up on me at this point. Oh great, I thought, as if I wasn't having enough fun already. I hobbled by a volunteer who said I had about 1/4 mile left. Apon hearing this I immediately stepped in a hole hidden by the grass and wrenched my back. I mostly walked the rest of the way until I could see the clock. Then I picked up my pace until I crossed the finish line in an amazingly bad 42:25. I did beat 3 women but I came in last among the men(110th). 159 runners completed the course.
Perhaps (no, certainly) the best part of the race was the post race party. There were bottles of cold beer on ice (I had a Yeungling) and there was also a Good Humor truck that was giving everyone whatever they wanted (I had a snow cone. I didn't want ice cream with my beer).
This race marked my 33rd race of the year and according to my Franklin Planner, it took place during the 33rd week of the year. So...I am back on pace for 50+ races...assuming nothing crazy happens like falling down and breaking my foot and ankle. But that could never happen...right?
What I should really say is Hell, thy name is the Comus 5K. You know how I grumbled about last weekends cross country race at Landon? This was worse and not just by the additional .1 miles. This course had a ton of hills. Nearly all of it was run on either grass (which scares me-can't see the holes) or on trails in woods with lots of roots and things to trip you up. We crossed a couple of creeks and we had to jump over a fallen tree. Perhaps the toughest part of the course for me were the sidehill runs. That placed a lot of stress on my bad ankle.
Just getting their was difficult. My GPS in my car couldn't find Comus so I turned off of 270 where I thought the turn should be. That was a mistake that cost me about 6 minutes. I found an address on the website while stopped at a light and was able to plug that into the GPS. It showed I would arrive right at 5:30...the scheduled starting time. Oh boy. This is when its nice to have a psuedo sports car. I did 60 on the winding country roads leading to the farm that served as the base for the course. I signed up with 2 minutes to spare. No time to stretch. Oh well. The "G" word was said and were off.
We started by running around an excercise area for horses. Then we ran down a pretty big hill beside a fence holding back a couple of horses. One came over to the fence to see what we were doing. I gasped a hello. We then started climbing another hill and I took my first walk break. I looked at my watch and weren't even 2 minutes into the race! Not a good sign at all. The good news was I had a lot of people still behind me at this point.
I started running again but I was having trouble with my footing on the grassy surface. There were sections of the course that I could have run faster if on pavement but I had to slow down. Thus, the little cushion that I built up for when I walked the uphills just wasnt happening this day. To prove it. I was passed by a group of about 8 runners at about the 3/4 mile mark as I walked up a short steep hill. Included in this pack was Mark Zimmerman, who has to be about the happiest (and chattiest) runner I know.
We emerged from the trees and ran back by the horses we saw earlier. We were told at the start that this was about the 1 mile mark. OK, only 2.1 more Back by the start line I was able to grab a big cup of water. That helped quite abit but I decided to walk for a minute or two here. We ran through a pretty large field and I was able to see some of the runners behind me. A few passed me while still in the field but I was able to keep some women behind me as we entered another set of woods. We did a kind of sideways "M", racing through the woods in one direction before racing back towards where we came from on a parallel path. Then we did it again. Each leg of this "M" was on a higher elevation so I could see and hear some of the runners ahead of me, particularly Mark. I would guess he was about 3 minutes ahead of me at this point. I was also able to see 2 women behind me in the woods. My new and last goal for the day was to keep them behind me.
We exited the woods and ran beside a fence in a field for a few hundred yards before entering more woods. This was the toughest section of the course for me with the previously mentioned sidehills and some very steep sections. I was able to keep the woman in front of me in sight through these woods but I certainly didnt make up any ground.
When I exited from the woods I was whipped. We kind of ran a big U in large field. I had to walk a lot of this. I started running again when I saw the first woman behind me exit from the woods. Not far in fromt of me was the woman and now also a child runner. Unfortunately, we then hit a steep hill and I immediately lost touch with them.
My left calf started to cramp up on me at this point. Oh great, I thought, as if I wasn't having enough fun already. I hobbled by a volunteer who said I had about 1/4 mile left. Apon hearing this I immediately stepped in a hole hidden by the grass and wrenched my back. I mostly walked the rest of the way until I could see the clock. Then I picked up my pace until I crossed the finish line in an amazingly bad 42:25. I did beat 3 women but I came in last among the men(110th). 159 runners completed the course.
Perhaps (no, certainly) the best part of the race was the post race party. There were bottles of cold beer on ice (I had a Yeungling) and there was also a Good Humor truck that was giving everyone whatever they wanted (I had a snow cone. I didn't want ice cream with my beer).
This race marked my 33rd race of the year and according to my Franklin Planner, it took place during the 33rd week of the year. So...I am back on pace for 50+ races...assuming nothing crazy happens like falling down and breaking my foot and ankle. But that could never happen...right?
It's all downhill from here
My 32nd race of the year promised to also be my fastest race of the year. The Arlington Co-op Downhill Mile was held on August 12. I have run this race the last 2 years and learned that gravity really does make a difference. Its a point to point race and it drops about 250 feet over the course of the mile. It has a couple sharp turns at the top of the course, which is also the steepest part of the course but after that its a pretty straight shot.
Given my time of 9:02 just a couple of weeks before on a track I knew I wouldn't be setting any PR's (7:17) this day. I was hoping for something around 7:40. Anything greater than that would be a disappointment.
This race is usually a VERY low key event with only about 6-8 runners. It was a little bigger this year with 11 runners competing. Most significantly, ultra marathoner Michael Wardian showed up for the run. I saw Charlie Mercer warming up as I walked up the hill to the starting line and he was clearly nervous about running against Michael. Charlie held the course record 4:31 and was undefeated here so he saw his dynasty slipping away. I thought it would be a good race since Charlie was very familiar with the course but I knew Michael was a little faster than him. Sometimes I wish I wasnt so slow so I could actually see how some of these races finished.
Jim Scarborough, the race director, didnt run this year...I think because he didnt think he had enough volunteers. Jay Wind held his phone up at the start and Jim yelled go through the phone while he started the clock at the bottom of the hill. As readers by now know, I almost always start too fast and sometimes find myself still with the leaders after a couple of hundred yards today. Not today though. the other runners were anxious to get to the downhill portion of the course and raced hard over the first 100 yards to get to the steep descent.
As we got to the descent, I was running close to both Bob Weiner and Jay Wind. I know Jay doesn't like downhills and I held him off for more than half of the race last year. Not this year though. Both of them passed me just as we entered the steepest portion of the course and soon I lost track of them. I didn't realize it then but I did have one runner behind me...Tami Graf. I never saw her until the finish. She is certainly faster than me right now so she must have been being extra cautious on the hills. Can't blame her...at times its more falling than running.
I had to stop for quick walk breaks just like the track meet a couple of weeks ago. How frustrating. I knew that would cost me my chance to reach my goal time but I had no choice...I couldn't get any air while running.
I pushed really hard at the finish. I heard a lot of encouragement as I raced towards the finish line. I was gasping for breathe but I really wanted to finish as strong as possible with all of them watching. I crossed the tape in 8:05. I was disappointed but hey, at least it was a new PR as a 49 year old. (How's that for the glass being half full).
Jim did a nice job of awards. Michael ended up beating Charlie by 5 seconds and won Redskin tickets. Everybody won something. I won a book about not being ripped off by my 401k. We said our goodbyes and we were off.
Finishers are listed below:
Bib ## Name G Age City State Time M F Award
--- -- -------------------------- - --- ---------------- ------ - - --------
1 Michael Wardian M 34 Arlington VA 4:40 1 M
2 Charlie Mercer M 38 Arlington VA 4:45 2 M 2
3 Matthew Sushinsky M 17 Rockville MD 4:51 3 M 3
4 Vhan Bui M 22 Springfield VA 4:56 4 M20-29 1
5 Elizabeth Jones F 31 Falls Church VA 5:55 1 F 1
6 Bob Weiner M 61 Accokeek MD 6:12 5 M60-69
7 Jay Jacob Wind M 58 Arlington VA 6:27 6 M50-59 1
8 John Paul Anderson Jr M 47 Edgewater MD 6:42 7 M40-49 1
9 Regina Davids F 20 Centreville VA 7:20 2 F 2 29
10 Tim Ramsey M 49 Alexandria VA 8:05 8 M40-49 2
11 Tami Graf F 72 Lusby MD 8:39 3 F 3
So I was 10th out of 11 finishers and the 8th of 8 males. But Hey, I was 2nd in my age group!
Given my time of 9:02 just a couple of weeks before on a track I knew I wouldn't be setting any PR's (7:17) this day. I was hoping for something around 7:40. Anything greater than that would be a disappointment.
This race is usually a VERY low key event with only about 6-8 runners. It was a little bigger this year with 11 runners competing. Most significantly, ultra marathoner Michael Wardian showed up for the run. I saw Charlie Mercer warming up as I walked up the hill to the starting line and he was clearly nervous about running against Michael. Charlie held the course record 4:31 and was undefeated here so he saw his dynasty slipping away. I thought it would be a good race since Charlie was very familiar with the course but I knew Michael was a little faster than him. Sometimes I wish I wasnt so slow so I could actually see how some of these races finished.
Jim Scarborough, the race director, didnt run this year...I think because he didnt think he had enough volunteers. Jay Wind held his phone up at the start and Jim yelled go through the phone while he started the clock at the bottom of the hill. As readers by now know, I almost always start too fast and sometimes find myself still with the leaders after a couple of hundred yards today. Not today though. the other runners were anxious to get to the downhill portion of the course and raced hard over the first 100 yards to get to the steep descent.
As we got to the descent, I was running close to both Bob Weiner and Jay Wind. I know Jay doesn't like downhills and I held him off for more than half of the race last year. Not this year though. Both of them passed me just as we entered the steepest portion of the course and soon I lost track of them. I didn't realize it then but I did have one runner behind me...Tami Graf. I never saw her until the finish. She is certainly faster than me right now so she must have been being extra cautious on the hills. Can't blame her...at times its more falling than running.
I had to stop for quick walk breaks just like the track meet a couple of weeks ago. How frustrating. I knew that would cost me my chance to reach my goal time but I had no choice...I couldn't get any air while running.
I pushed really hard at the finish. I heard a lot of encouragement as I raced towards the finish line. I was gasping for breathe but I really wanted to finish as strong as possible with all of them watching. I crossed the tape in 8:05. I was disappointed but hey, at least it was a new PR as a 49 year old. (How's that for the glass being half full).
Jim did a nice job of awards. Michael ended up beating Charlie by 5 seconds and won Redskin tickets. Everybody won something. I won a book about not being ripped off by my 401k. We said our goodbyes and we were off.
Finishers are listed below:
Bib ## Name G Age City State Time M F Award
--- -- -------------------------- - --- ---------------- ------ - - --------
1 Michael Wardian M 34 Arlington VA 4:40 1 M
2 Charlie Mercer M 38 Arlington VA 4:45 2 M 2
3 Matthew Sushinsky M 17 Rockville MD 4:51 3 M 3
4 Vhan Bui M 22 Springfield VA 4:56 4 M20-29 1
5 Elizabeth Jones F 31 Falls Church VA 5:55 1 F 1
6 Bob Weiner M 61 Accokeek MD 6:12 5 M60-69
7 Jay Jacob Wind M 58 Arlington VA 6:27 6 M50-59 1
8 John Paul Anderson Jr M 47 Edgewater MD 6:42 7 M40-49 1
9 Regina Davids F 20 Centreville VA 7:20 2 F 2 29
10 Tim Ramsey M 49 Alexandria VA 8:05 8 M40-49 2
11 Tami Graf F 72 Lusby MD 8:39 3 F 3
So I was 10th out of 11 finishers and the 8th of 8 males. But Hey, I was 2nd in my age group!
Friday, August 15, 2008
This was no picnic
The DC Raod Runners held their annual Summer picnic on Sunday August 10th. Unfortunately, they combined it with a 3 mile cross country run around Landon High School. I ran this race last year and while I loved the picnic, I hated the course. Even when I was in my best shape a couple of years ago, I didn't perform well in cross country events. Besides my fear of twisting an already tender ankle, it just seems like these courses take it out of me. This day was no exception.
Last year I managed to beat Christine C. by a minute or so. My one goal was to beat her again this day. I took off quickly at the start. So quickly that it wasn't until a minute or two into the race did people like Kirk Gordon pass me. Hmm, maybe that explained why I felt like I was going to hurl after only a few minutes. In essence, my race was over after just a few minutes. From that point on I just tried to stay in reach of the person in front of me, whoever it might be, and to also keep Christine(who was running with Mark Zimmerman) behind me.
I did OK on the first part for the first half of the race but Christine and Mark caught up to me about half way through the race. They put a pretty good gap on me when I stopped for a walk and I never recovered. Because of the nature of the course (lots of hills and turns) I didn't see them again untiul they were just about to finish. I trailed them by over 2 minutes. I thought there was a woman walking behind me but she must have dropped out because I show up in last place on the official results page. bummer. Someone talk me out of this race next year! I finished in 39:02 and was the 62nd male and the 82nd finisher.
Notable finishers were:
Richie Booth M 20 Darnestown MD 15:52 1 M 1
Ted Poulos M 46 McLean VA 19:58 16 M40-49 3
Kirk Gordon M 52 Mitchellville MD 22:38 33 M50-59 2
Robert L. Gurtler M 73 The Plains VA 33:15 59 M70-79 3
Christina Caravoulias F 53 Silver Spring MD 36:45 18
Mark Zimmermann M 55 Silver Spring MD 36:46 61
Last year I managed to beat Christine C. by a minute or so. My one goal was to beat her again this day. I took off quickly at the start. So quickly that it wasn't until a minute or two into the race did people like Kirk Gordon pass me. Hmm, maybe that explained why I felt like I was going to hurl after only a few minutes. In essence, my race was over after just a few minutes. From that point on I just tried to stay in reach of the person in front of me, whoever it might be, and to also keep Christine(who was running with Mark Zimmerman) behind me.
I did OK on the first part for the first half of the race but Christine and Mark caught up to me about half way through the race. They put a pretty good gap on me when I stopped for a walk and I never recovered. Because of the nature of the course (lots of hills and turns) I didn't see them again untiul they were just about to finish. I trailed them by over 2 minutes. I thought there was a woman walking behind me but she must have dropped out because I show up in last place on the official results page. bummer. Someone talk me out of this race next year! I finished in 39:02 and was the 62nd male and the 82nd finisher.
Notable finishers were:
Richie Booth M 20 Darnestown MD 15:52 1 M 1
Ted Poulos M 46 McLean VA 19:58 16 M40-49 3
Kirk Gordon M 52 Mitchellville MD 22:38 33 M50-59 2
Robert L. Gurtler M 73 The Plains VA 33:15 59 M70-79 3
Christina Caravoulias F 53 Silver Spring MD 36:45 18
Mark Zimmermann M 55 Silver Spring MD 36:46 61
Feeling blue at Bluemont
I have run at Bluemont Park probably 2 dozen times. I have run a lot of races there and I also do some of my training there. It's where my wife usually goes to run and I will occassionally join her. So when the DC Road Runner Club held there annual 5K there August 5th I was feeling fairly good about my chances. Not only did I know the course but they also moved the starting line back so the one major hill on the course wouldn't come into play for this race. On the downside, it was hot and storms were in the area so it was also kind of muggy. Given the cancellation of the 8K a few weeks before, I was actually surprised to find that the race was on as scheduled when I arrived in the parking lot.
Unfortunately, I had one of those days where I just didn't "feel it". I went out moderately fast but had to take a walk break after only about 4 minutes. I then used a 4 on, 1 off cycle for the remainder of the race. I tried to keep some of my old competition (Bob Gurtler, Tami Graf, Sharyn Gordon) in sight but I lost touch with them after about a mile. Then I tried to keep Blair Jones in striking distance but I lost her at about the halfway point ( I did lead her for part of the first half of the race). In the end, it was just me running between some slower women. Not a guy to be seen behind me and the nearest male in front of me finished 3 minutes ahead of me. I finished in 37:02 (official was 37:18), making me the 89th male and 139th overall out of 146 finishers. Back to the treadmill I suppose.
Notable finishers were:
Sam Blasiak M 28 Falls Church VA 16:33 1 male winner
Madeline Harms F 22 Arlington VA 19:24 1 Female winner
Karsten Brown M 34 Front Royal VA 17:11 4
Ted Poulos M 46 McLean VA 18:49 15
Charlie Mercer M 38 Arlington VA 19:20 22
Bill Stahr M 47 The Plains VA 20:12 28
James Moreland M 55 Gaithersburg MD 20:25 31 won age grp
Kirk Gordon M 52 Mitchellville MD 20:58 36
Jay Jacob Wind M 58 Arlington VA 21:12 41
Bob Platt M 57 Arlington VA 23:24 57
Jon Palks M 59 Bowie MD 24:46
Tami Graf F 72 Lusby MD 31:08 42 F70-79 1
Robert L. Gurtler M 73 The Plains VA 31:18 86 M70-79 2
Sharyn D. Gordon F 50 Mitchellville MD 32:16 43
Blair Jones F 64 Washington DC 33:17 44 F60-69 1
Unfortunately, I had one of those days where I just didn't "feel it". I went out moderately fast but had to take a walk break after only about 4 minutes. I then used a 4 on, 1 off cycle for the remainder of the race. I tried to keep some of my old competition (Bob Gurtler, Tami Graf, Sharyn Gordon) in sight but I lost touch with them after about a mile. Then I tried to keep Blair Jones in striking distance but I lost her at about the halfway point ( I did lead her for part of the first half of the race). In the end, it was just me running between some slower women. Not a guy to be seen behind me and the nearest male in front of me finished 3 minutes ahead of me. I finished in 37:02 (official was 37:18), making me the 89th male and 139th overall out of 146 finishers. Back to the treadmill I suppose.
Notable finishers were:
Sam Blasiak M 28 Falls Church VA 16:33 1 male winner
Madeline Harms F 22 Arlington VA 19:24 1 Female winner
Karsten Brown M 34 Front Royal VA 17:11 4
Ted Poulos M 46 McLean VA 18:49 15
Charlie Mercer M 38 Arlington VA 19:20 22
Bill Stahr M 47 The Plains VA 20:12 28
James Moreland M 55 Gaithersburg MD 20:25 31 won age grp
Kirk Gordon M 52 Mitchellville MD 20:58 36
Jay Jacob Wind M 58 Arlington VA 21:12 41
Bob Platt M 57 Arlington VA 23:24 57
Jon Palks M 59 Bowie MD 24:46
Tami Graf F 72 Lusby MD 31:08 42 F70-79 1
Robert L. Gurtler M 73 The Plains VA 31:18 86 M70-79 2
Sharyn D. Gordon F 50 Mitchellville MD 32:16 43
Blair Jones F 64 Washington DC 33:17 44 F60-69 1
Friday, August 8, 2008
Anybody can run a mile...right?
The DC Road Runners held their annual 1 mile and 3K championships on July 30 this year. Last year at this event I actually knocked off 3 races-the 1 mile race walk, a 1 mile run and the 3K run. I got to the track this year just as Peter Blank was starting the 1 mile race walk. I cheered him on as he went by and he yelled over that I should be out there with him. I don't know if I would have done it anyway - I did it twice last year and they really beat up my calves. Plus, I'm sure I'm not following the official race walk criteria...I just try to walk fast.
I ran in the next event...the masters mile. I've been worried about this event for the past week. I always dreaded these track events even when I was running at my best. I always get lapped, which is embarrasing, and I worry about holding everyone up. In the past I had always run the mile in at least 8:30. This year I hadn't run faster than a 10:00 mile in practice or in a race. That would be very slow. I looked for runners I knew to be relatively slow-there were none. I would represent the slowbies today.
There was a field of 12 in my heat which meant I was close to the start line when the gun went off. But I quickly fell to the back after only a couple of strides. Initially, Peter was right in front of me. In fact, he turned and said "It looks like its you and me Rammer". But I knew better. Even though he hadn't had enough time to recover from his race walk-which he did in 9:35-I knew he would finish well in front of me. I mumbled something to that effect back to Peter and continued on.
I completed the first lap in about 2:10. I was fairly pleased with that. That went away quickly though as I began to be lapped almost immediately. First by was Ted Poulos. I never know if I should run on the inside lane or get to the outside in these situations-I have received conflicting instructions. Today I ran on the inside, actually stepping on the inside line quite a few times. I really don't think I impeded anyone.
I completed the 2nd lap in 4:20. Not bad at all I thought. Except for the fact that I was gasping for any air I could get and my heart rate was probably about 900. I had to walk. Now its one thing to take a walk break in the middle of a 5K on a road. A few runners that are close to you see you and maybe you get a jeer from an onlooker telling you to run but thats about it. It doesn't get much worse than having to walk during a track event. EVERYONE sees you. But I HAD to walk. I wouldn't have finished if I didn't walk. I only walked for about 20 yards...enough time to get a little air and to let my heart rate come down a little bit. Jay Wind passed me around here. I knew it was him before he got to me because of his heavy breathing. I rooted him on and then got back to my own run.
I got to the 3/4 pole at 6:50. Ugh...my lap was 20 seconds slower than my previous laps. And I had to walk again. At least I wasn't being passed anymore. But only because everyone was either finished or about to finish. I was dying but I pushed on, I think mostly from pride. All of the Pacer girls were there and I really didn't want to collapse in front of them. I saw the clock 100 yards ahead and thought I might be able to get there in under 9 minutes which would be a real achievement. I was cheered in but my legs felt like they were carrying weights and I finished in 9:01:6.
OK, I passed my first test. I didn't totally embarass myself in the 1 mile. But what about the 3K? I knew my pace was going to be considerably slower for the 3K. I would be lucky to break 20 minutes. Was that too slow?
I had some time to think about it. They ran the masters womens mile next. There was only 1 master woman (Patricia Zerfas) but Jim Noone arrived late for the mens master so he ran with her. They both ran close to a 6 minute mile. Great job by both.
Next was the open mile. Time for the young guys. The leaders were absolutely flying. Bert Rodriguez won with a time of 4:21:6! willy Viviani was just a second behind. I think I saw smoke coming off of their shoes.
My favorite race of the night was the womens mile. As I mentioned the Pacer girls were there in force. I happened to be next to the starting line when they lined up. There was a cute woman I had never seen before at the front of the pack in lane 1. She was joking with the race director as he lined them up and she was very relaxed. But when the gun fired she was out of there in a flash. She ran probably the most impressive race I have ever seen run by a woman. She was just cruising. She looked relaxed but purposeful. She had a nice lead on the 2nd place woman who was no slouch herself (and had probably the most defined abs I have ever seen on a woman). As I watched the splits I was thinking to myself "she might break 5 minutes". Sure enough, she came in with a time of 4:55.1! Wow! I looked up the results the next day and learned she was Kristen Henehan, last years Marine Corp winner. After a 6 year layoff after college, she took up competitive running again last year and won her first marathon. She did so well she qualified for the Olympic Trials. Runners world did a very nice video interview with her...look it up...it was very interesting. BTW- the 2nd place woman was Lindsay Wilkins, who won the Crystal City 5K just a few days before. She ran the mile in 5:09.1. If not for Kristen, I would marvelling over her race.
Anyway, back to me. I decided that in fairness to the other runners, I couldn't run the 3K. I figured I would be about 6 minutes slower than the next slowest runner. The women would be waiting for me to finish before they could run their own 3K. It would be getting dark. I would be embarrased. It just wasn't a good situation. So I ate hot dogs instead (provided by the race director for the race that was cancelled the previous week).
I left before the 3K's were run. I'm bummed about that because I see in the results that Charlie Mercer ran the first 3K. Not only did he run it, he won it! I guess he is recovered from the being hit by a car. He ran it in 11:16. Last place was Carlos Liceaga with a time of 16:28.8. That's slower than I expected but it still means I would have been out there by myself for over 3 1/2 minutes. I think I made the right decision.
The 2nd heat of the 3K combined the women with the fast men. Robert Wade, who came in a close 3rd in the mile, won this race with a time of 8:45.9. That would be good enough to usually demolish the field at the monthly tidal basin 3K. Bert Rodriguez was clearly wiped out as he ran a miserable time of only 8:59.8...good enough for 4th!Kristen led the women in with a time of 10:16 with Lindsay right behind in a time of 10:35.2.
What a night!
I ran in the next event...the masters mile. I've been worried about this event for the past week. I always dreaded these track events even when I was running at my best. I always get lapped, which is embarrasing, and I worry about holding everyone up. In the past I had always run the mile in at least 8:30. This year I hadn't run faster than a 10:00 mile in practice or in a race. That would be very slow. I looked for runners I knew to be relatively slow-there were none. I would represent the slowbies today.
There was a field of 12 in my heat which meant I was close to the start line when the gun went off. But I quickly fell to the back after only a couple of strides. Initially, Peter was right in front of me. In fact, he turned and said "It looks like its you and me Rammer". But I knew better. Even though he hadn't had enough time to recover from his race walk-which he did in 9:35-I knew he would finish well in front of me. I mumbled something to that effect back to Peter and continued on.
I completed the first lap in about 2:10. I was fairly pleased with that. That went away quickly though as I began to be lapped almost immediately. First by was Ted Poulos. I never know if I should run on the inside lane or get to the outside in these situations-I have received conflicting instructions. Today I ran on the inside, actually stepping on the inside line quite a few times. I really don't think I impeded anyone.
I completed the 2nd lap in 4:20. Not bad at all I thought. Except for the fact that I was gasping for any air I could get and my heart rate was probably about 900. I had to walk. Now its one thing to take a walk break in the middle of a 5K on a road. A few runners that are close to you see you and maybe you get a jeer from an onlooker telling you to run but thats about it. It doesn't get much worse than having to walk during a track event. EVERYONE sees you. But I HAD to walk. I wouldn't have finished if I didn't walk. I only walked for about 20 yards...enough time to get a little air and to let my heart rate come down a little bit. Jay Wind passed me around here. I knew it was him before he got to me because of his heavy breathing. I rooted him on and then got back to my own run.
I got to the 3/4 pole at 6:50. Ugh...my lap was 20 seconds slower than my previous laps. And I had to walk again. At least I wasn't being passed anymore. But only because everyone was either finished or about to finish. I was dying but I pushed on, I think mostly from pride. All of the Pacer girls were there and I really didn't want to collapse in front of them. I saw the clock 100 yards ahead and thought I might be able to get there in under 9 minutes which would be a real achievement. I was cheered in but my legs felt like they were carrying weights and I finished in 9:01:6.
OK, I passed my first test. I didn't totally embarass myself in the 1 mile. But what about the 3K? I knew my pace was going to be considerably slower for the 3K. I would be lucky to break 20 minutes. Was that too slow?
I had some time to think about it. They ran the masters womens mile next. There was only 1 master woman (Patricia Zerfas) but Jim Noone arrived late for the mens master so he ran with her. They both ran close to a 6 minute mile. Great job by both.
Next was the open mile. Time for the young guys. The leaders were absolutely flying. Bert Rodriguez won with a time of 4:21:6! willy Viviani was just a second behind. I think I saw smoke coming off of their shoes.
My favorite race of the night was the womens mile. As I mentioned the Pacer girls were there in force. I happened to be next to the starting line when they lined up. There was a cute woman I had never seen before at the front of the pack in lane 1. She was joking with the race director as he lined them up and she was very relaxed. But when the gun fired she was out of there in a flash. She ran probably the most impressive race I have ever seen run by a woman. She was just cruising. She looked relaxed but purposeful. She had a nice lead on the 2nd place woman who was no slouch herself (and had probably the most defined abs I have ever seen on a woman). As I watched the splits I was thinking to myself "she might break 5 minutes". Sure enough, she came in with a time of 4:55.1! Wow! I looked up the results the next day and learned she was Kristen Henehan, last years Marine Corp winner. After a 6 year layoff after college, she took up competitive running again last year and won her first marathon. She did so well she qualified for the Olympic Trials. Runners world did a very nice video interview with her...look it up...it was very interesting. BTW- the 2nd place woman was Lindsay Wilkins, who won the Crystal City 5K just a few days before. She ran the mile in 5:09.1. If not for Kristen, I would marvelling over her race.
Anyway, back to me. I decided that in fairness to the other runners, I couldn't run the 3K. I figured I would be about 6 minutes slower than the next slowest runner. The women would be waiting for me to finish before they could run their own 3K. It would be getting dark. I would be embarrased. It just wasn't a good situation. So I ate hot dogs instead (provided by the race director for the race that was cancelled the previous week).
I left before the 3K's were run. I'm bummed about that because I see in the results that Charlie Mercer ran the first 3K. Not only did he run it, he won it! I guess he is recovered from the being hit by a car. He ran it in 11:16. Last place was Carlos Liceaga with a time of 16:28.8. That's slower than I expected but it still means I would have been out there by myself for over 3 1/2 minutes. I think I made the right decision.
The 2nd heat of the 3K combined the women with the fast men. Robert Wade, who came in a close 3rd in the mile, won this race with a time of 8:45.9. That would be good enough to usually demolish the field at the monthly tidal basin 3K. Bert Rodriguez was clearly wiped out as he ran a miserable time of only 8:59.8...good enough for 4th!Kristen led the women in with a time of 10:16 with Lindsay right behind in a time of 10:35.2.
What a night!
City of Oz
The inaugural Crystal City Twilight 5K was held on July 27th. Given that I worked there for over 6 years and even lived there for 6 months, I couldn't pass this one up. Plus, my friend Femi planned on running it so I looked forward to a fun time.
Parking was a little tougher than I expected, partly because some roads were already closed off by the time I arrived to register. I parked near the original USAir HQ and walked about 1/3 of a mile to register. Wow, has Crystal City changed since I was last there. They have added a bunch of restaurants. When Dori and I lived there back in 98 we used to comment on how dead the city was on weekends. That certainly wasnt the case this evening as there were people everywhere! The lines for getting my chip and number were pretty long...and I had pre-registered. I went back to the car and worked on a sudoku while enjoying air conditioning. Yes, I know I sound like a broken record but it was another hot night!
I got back to the start about 7 minutes before the start. I saw Femi and we talked for a few minutes before we positioned ourselves at the front and rear of the field. There were a LOT of people here for this race. I later learned there were 1656 finishers! As a result, it was kind of a crazy start as everyone tried to find a lane they could run in without being blocked. I had to do some weaving at the start as I felt kind of frisky. I had only been running for a couple of minutes when I caught up with one Ric Franke, who I hadn't seen until then. I passed him but I grew worried when I had to stop for a walk break at the 1 mile mark. I ran the first mile in 10:01...thats too fast for me right now. Sure enough, I crashed and burned from that point on. I struglled with a side cramp through much of the 2nd mile. I think I just lost interest in the 3rd mile. I tried to make a go of it but my heart wasn't in it.
I finished with a time of 37:15...good enough for 1463rd out of the 1656. Well, thats not that bad. I beat Ric by about 1 minute (38:13) though he beat me to the food line:) Speaking of which, the after party was very good...The Noodle Co supplied mac and cheese and another pasta while the Budweiser truck was also there providing cold free beer in 16oz cups.
I looked for Femi but never saw him. When I spoke to him at work he said he looked for me for a couple of minutes and then went home to sulk since he was disappointed with his time. So...I ate alone. It was fine. I got to watch lots people dancing to a song that I some how missed. I don't know the name but it includes the line "Everybody clap your hands". Everyone but me knew it. The funniest thing was when 3 construction guys came walking by doing the dance that apparently goes with the song.
Notable finishers were:
Steve Crane 14:46 (winner...smokin' time)
Katie Read 17:14 (female winner...smokin' female time!)
Jim Moreland 20:33
Betty Blank 21:43 (won her age group)
Michael Femi Adeniji 22:48 (281 overall,33rd out of 141 in age group)
Bob Gurtler 31:18 (after a R/T to CA since our Wed Night race)
Joe Belkoski 35:41 (he waved as he passed me shortly after the 1 mile mark. This could be a new person that goes on my "he shall not beat me" list.)
Christina Caravoulias 36:36 ( a former she shall not beat me person)
Me 37:15 (133 out of 141 in age group)
Jennifer Seifert 64:29 (last person in)
Parking was a little tougher than I expected, partly because some roads were already closed off by the time I arrived to register. I parked near the original USAir HQ and walked about 1/3 of a mile to register. Wow, has Crystal City changed since I was last there. They have added a bunch of restaurants. When Dori and I lived there back in 98 we used to comment on how dead the city was on weekends. That certainly wasnt the case this evening as there were people everywhere! The lines for getting my chip and number were pretty long...and I had pre-registered. I went back to the car and worked on a sudoku while enjoying air conditioning. Yes, I know I sound like a broken record but it was another hot night!
I got back to the start about 7 minutes before the start. I saw Femi and we talked for a few minutes before we positioned ourselves at the front and rear of the field. There were a LOT of people here for this race. I later learned there were 1656 finishers! As a result, it was kind of a crazy start as everyone tried to find a lane they could run in without being blocked. I had to do some weaving at the start as I felt kind of frisky. I had only been running for a couple of minutes when I caught up with one Ric Franke, who I hadn't seen until then. I passed him but I grew worried when I had to stop for a walk break at the 1 mile mark. I ran the first mile in 10:01...thats too fast for me right now. Sure enough, I crashed and burned from that point on. I struglled with a side cramp through much of the 2nd mile. I think I just lost interest in the 3rd mile. I tried to make a go of it but my heart wasn't in it.
I finished with a time of 37:15...good enough for 1463rd out of the 1656. Well, thats not that bad. I beat Ric by about 1 minute (38:13) though he beat me to the food line:) Speaking of which, the after party was very good...The Noodle Co supplied mac and cheese and another pasta while the Budweiser truck was also there providing cold free beer in 16oz cups.
I looked for Femi but never saw him. When I spoke to him at work he said he looked for me for a couple of minutes and then went home to sulk since he was disappointed with his time. So...I ate alone. It was fine. I got to watch lots people dancing to a song that I some how missed. I don't know the name but it includes the line "Everybody clap your hands". Everyone but me knew it. The funniest thing was when 3 construction guys came walking by doing the dance that apparently goes with the song.
Notable finishers were:
Steve Crane 14:46 (winner...smokin' time)
Katie Read 17:14 (female winner...smokin' female time!)
Jim Moreland 20:33
Betty Blank 21:43 (won her age group)
Michael Femi Adeniji 22:48 (281 overall,33rd out of 141 in age group)
Bob Gurtler 31:18 (after a R/T to CA since our Wed Night race)
Joe Belkoski 35:41 (he waved as he passed me shortly after the 1 mile mark. This could be a new person that goes on my "he shall not beat me" list.)
Christina Caravoulias 36:36 ( a former she shall not beat me person)
Me 37:15 (133 out of 141 in age group)
Jennifer Seifert 64:29 (last person in)
Outlaw Tim Ramsey?
The annual DCRRC Steve Thompson 8K race was scheduled for July 23rd. There was a threat of thunderstorms that evening but the skies were clear when I left the office at 5PM. When I pulled into the parking lot at Belle Haven Marina I saw the usual assortment of runners so I thought everything was going as usual. However, it didn't take long to learn that the club had cancelled the race for fear of the storms, had posted this cancellation on the website at around 5PM - after many, including myself, had already left for the race, and perhaps worst of all, had not sent anyone to the site to advise people that showed up of the cancellation. I realize that managing the club and directing races is voluntary but I think that if you accept these positions then you are also accepting a certain amount of responsibility to the club membership to do the right thing. Ed Grant, the President of the club, has since apologized for the handling of the cancellation on the club website but by then the damage was done. Argh!
Anyway, since the skies were clear a lot of people showed up for the expected race. We were fortunate to have Bob Platt there, the man in charge of Race Packet. He volunteered to unofficially take charge of the race. Karsten Brown created makeshift finish cards from old flyers. Jon Palks suggested the name "Outlaw 8K" as the new name for this unofficial,un-sanctioned, non-event.
Bob said the "g" word and we were off. It was another hot evening and 2 hours earlier than the Rockville race a few nights before so it was tough. Nonetheless, I felt better than I had recently as I ran that first mile. I ran it all before taking a break. I passed Ric Franke during that first mile. I swore to myself he wouldn't beat me again :)
For the next 2 miles I ran close to a man I later learned was Joe Belkoski. I drafted off of him for awhile and then I would take a walk break. Then I would run and catch up to him again until I could draft off of him for a minute or two until I took another walk break. I did this until after the turnaround. Then we hit a nice downhill section and I accelerated by him. I actually ran at this point for about 4 minutes and I ran it pretty fast (all things relative) so I left him so far behind I couldn't see him. But that run took a lot out of me. I couldn't do another sustained run for the rest of the race. I did a number of 1 or 2 minute runs followed by 1 minute walks. Finally another run that had been running behind both Joe and I caught and passed me. I tried to stay close to him for awhile but I couldn't do it. Then I saw Joe gaining on me. I started running again but he passed me during my next inevitable walk break. He passed along his encouragement as he passed but I told him the race was his. I tried a few times to catch him but I just couldn't do it. I could see him ahead of me for most of the remaining mile but I just couldn't close the gap. He finished in 62:27 while I finished in 63:37 (63:30 watch time). Joe approached me after the race and said he thought I could have caught him on a couple of those downhills but I told him I tried but it just wasn't in me. He said he ran in the Parkway 10 miler and ran along with people that also ran/walked. He said he probably should try it but he's too stubborn. I say, keep doing what you are doing Joe! I would run it all if I could.
It did start to rain during my drive home and we had a pretty strong storm which Ed felt justified the cancellation of the original race. I disagree but I do understand he has to think about liability.
Here are the total results for the race...
pl.nameagesexhometowntime
1Leoule Degfae18MAlexandria, VA28:10.70
2Karsten Brown34MFront Royal, VA28:36.75
3Tikut Degfae18MAlexandria, VA30:30.78
4Ted Poulos46MMcLean, VA30:35.48
5Mark Drosky47MAlexandria, VA32:48.52
6Jason Page63MHamilton, VA33:13.33
7Bill Stahr47MThe Plains, VA35:24.74
8Jim Noone63MFairfax, VA35:28.70
9Kirk Gordon52MMitchellville, MD35:37.72
10Jay Wind58MArlington, VA36:31.16
11Steve McCollum46MWashington, DC36:56.04
12Ken Krehbiel54MWashington, DC37:02.88
13Kristin Dahling32FArlington, VA37:14.87
14Joe Emerson42MAlexandria, VA37:15.99
15Robert Trost62MFalls Church, VA37:41.46
16Greg Chaconas62MWashington, DC37:56.92
17Karen Young40FBeallsville, MD38:04.72
18Tony Keenant36MArlington, VA38:06.86
19James Scarborough50MMcLean, VA38:15.32
20Alex Friend48MFalls Church, VA39:07.76
21Lucia Olivera30FWashington, DC39:26.68
22Bob Platt56MArlington, VA39:54.06
23Patrick Groton30MAnnandale, VA39:59.95
24Eamonn McEvilly65MSpringfield, VA40:38.60
25Michael Knapp14MAlexandria, VA41:15.80
26John Lyon15MAlexandria, VA41:33.61
27Jon Palks59MBowie, MD41:39.80
28Glenn Gardner47MWoodbridge, VA42:26.80
29Leslie Stanfield58FReston, VA44:16.80
30Patrick Brown63MReston, VA44:20.11
31Lisa Schaefer37FVienna, VA44:30.53
32Robert Bowie43MUpper Marlboro, MD44:42.00
33Jaques Bure52MTakoma Park, MD44:42.58
34Laure Veissiere26FWashington, DC45:02.05
35Foster Friedman45MAlexandria, VA45:27.75
36James DeMartino50MWashington, DC45:37.18
37Andy Buechele65MWashington, DC46:21.16
38Monica Mora29FWashington, DC46:42.43
39Irving Todds47MSterling, VA48:00.98
40Bonie Agera32FBurke, VA48:06.85
41Bob Weiner61MAccokeek, MD48:19.79
42Dan Haney40MAlexandria, VA48:33.02
43Andrew Kent44MArlington, VA48:35.56
44unidentified maleM49:13.86
45Bernadette Flynn51FSpringfield, VA50:54.83
46Shelly Cavey28FAlexandria, VA52:51.75
47Bob Gurtler73MThe Plains, VA53:11.53
48Wayne Holland66MAlexandria, VA55:24.66
49Tarah Hepburn30FSterling, VA57:15.38
50Kathie Kramer30FArlington, VA57:28.12
51Mark Ferguson46MArlington, VA1:01:08.18
52Joe Belkoski50MAlexandria, VA1:02:27.07
53Tim Ramsey49MAlexandria, VA1:03:36.78
54Ric Francke61MMcLean VA1:09:58.36
So 53rd out of 54 finishers. Not good. But I beat Ric. OK. And I bettered my time from the Rockville race by over 3 minutes...very good. I'll be glad when I can consistently and easily maintain a 12 minute pace over 5 or 6 miles though.
BTW This was my 27th race of the year.
Anyway, since the skies were clear a lot of people showed up for the expected race. We were fortunate to have Bob Platt there, the man in charge of Race Packet. He volunteered to unofficially take charge of the race. Karsten Brown created makeshift finish cards from old flyers. Jon Palks suggested the name "Outlaw 8K" as the new name for this unofficial,un-sanctioned, non-event.
Bob said the "g" word and we were off. It was another hot evening and 2 hours earlier than the Rockville race a few nights before so it was tough. Nonetheless, I felt better than I had recently as I ran that first mile. I ran it all before taking a break. I passed Ric Franke during that first mile. I swore to myself he wouldn't beat me again :)
For the next 2 miles I ran close to a man I later learned was Joe Belkoski. I drafted off of him for awhile and then I would take a walk break. Then I would run and catch up to him again until I could draft off of him for a minute or two until I took another walk break. I did this until after the turnaround. Then we hit a nice downhill section and I accelerated by him. I actually ran at this point for about 4 minutes and I ran it pretty fast (all things relative) so I left him so far behind I couldn't see him. But that run took a lot out of me. I couldn't do another sustained run for the rest of the race. I did a number of 1 or 2 minute runs followed by 1 minute walks. Finally another run that had been running behind both Joe and I caught and passed me. I tried to stay close to him for awhile but I couldn't do it. Then I saw Joe gaining on me. I started running again but he passed me during my next inevitable walk break. He passed along his encouragement as he passed but I told him the race was his. I tried a few times to catch him but I just couldn't do it. I could see him ahead of me for most of the remaining mile but I just couldn't close the gap. He finished in 62:27 while I finished in 63:37 (63:30 watch time). Joe approached me after the race and said he thought I could have caught him on a couple of those downhills but I told him I tried but it just wasn't in me. He said he ran in the Parkway 10 miler and ran along with people that also ran/walked. He said he probably should try it but he's too stubborn. I say, keep doing what you are doing Joe! I would run it all if I could.
It did start to rain during my drive home and we had a pretty strong storm which Ed felt justified the cancellation of the original race. I disagree but I do understand he has to think about liability.
Here are the total results for the race...
pl.nameagesexhometowntime
1Leoule Degfae18MAlexandria, VA28:10.70
2Karsten Brown34MFront Royal, VA28:36.75
3Tikut Degfae18MAlexandria, VA30:30.78
4Ted Poulos46MMcLean, VA30:35.48
5Mark Drosky47MAlexandria, VA32:48.52
6Jason Page63MHamilton, VA33:13.33
7Bill Stahr47MThe Plains, VA35:24.74
8Jim Noone63MFairfax, VA35:28.70
9Kirk Gordon52MMitchellville, MD35:37.72
10Jay Wind58MArlington, VA36:31.16
11Steve McCollum46MWashington, DC36:56.04
12Ken Krehbiel54MWashington, DC37:02.88
13Kristin Dahling32FArlington, VA37:14.87
14Joe Emerson42MAlexandria, VA37:15.99
15Robert Trost62MFalls Church, VA37:41.46
16Greg Chaconas62MWashington, DC37:56.92
17Karen Young40FBeallsville, MD38:04.72
18Tony Keenant36MArlington, VA38:06.86
19James Scarborough50MMcLean, VA38:15.32
20Alex Friend48MFalls Church, VA39:07.76
21Lucia Olivera30FWashington, DC39:26.68
22Bob Platt56MArlington, VA39:54.06
23Patrick Groton30MAnnandale, VA39:59.95
24Eamonn McEvilly65MSpringfield, VA40:38.60
25Michael Knapp14MAlexandria, VA41:15.80
26John Lyon15MAlexandria, VA41:33.61
27Jon Palks59MBowie, MD41:39.80
28Glenn Gardner47MWoodbridge, VA42:26.80
29Leslie Stanfield58FReston, VA44:16.80
30Patrick Brown63MReston, VA44:20.11
31Lisa Schaefer37FVienna, VA44:30.53
32Robert Bowie43MUpper Marlboro, MD44:42.00
33Jaques Bure52MTakoma Park, MD44:42.58
34Laure Veissiere26FWashington, DC45:02.05
35Foster Friedman45MAlexandria, VA45:27.75
36James DeMartino50MWashington, DC45:37.18
37Andy Buechele65MWashington, DC46:21.16
38Monica Mora29FWashington, DC46:42.43
39Irving Todds47MSterling, VA48:00.98
40Bonie Agera32FBurke, VA48:06.85
41Bob Weiner61MAccokeek, MD48:19.79
42Dan Haney40MAlexandria, VA48:33.02
43Andrew Kent44MArlington, VA48:35.56
44unidentified maleM49:13.86
45Bernadette Flynn51FSpringfield, VA50:54.83
46Shelly Cavey28FAlexandria, VA52:51.75
47Bob Gurtler73MThe Plains, VA53:11.53
48Wayne Holland66MAlexandria, VA55:24.66
49Tarah Hepburn30FSterling, VA57:15.38
50Kathie Kramer30FArlington, VA57:28.12
51Mark Ferguson46MArlington, VA1:01:08.18
52Joe Belkoski50MAlexandria, VA1:02:27.07
53Tim Ramsey49MAlexandria, VA1:03:36.78
54Ric Francke61MMcLean VA1:09:58.36
So 53rd out of 54 finishers. Not good. But I beat Ric. OK. And I bettered my time from the Rockville race by over 3 minutes...very good. I'll be glad when I can consistently and easily maintain a 12 minute pace over 5 or 6 miles though.
BTW This was my 27th race of the year.
Reality reminder
July 19 marked the annual Rockville Rotary Twilight 8K. I believe that I have run it 5 times and it has always been hot. Sometimes we get a thunderstorm. I think it was cancelled once because of heat. Well, they delayed the start by about 10 minutes to allow the temperature to come down a degree or two. I heard a couple of non-runners sitting on a curb question why it was being delayed as it was quite nice out. They obviously weren't runners. While it was fairly comfortable for lounging, it was pretty darn hot for a run...somewhere in the mid to high 80's. The humidity was down which made it seem cooler but we runners were still about to run in very hot conditions.
This is not an easy course as it has several significant hills to conquer. Given my relative poor level of conditioning, the heat, and the course I decided before the start of the race to not over due it. With this in mind, I started all the way at the back of the pack. It was a chip race so why get caught in the middle of the pack?
It was a really good crowd this year at the start and then there was the usual good turnout of residents as we turned into the neighborhoods. There weren't quite as many people out with hoses this year to splash people as they ran by but thats OK with me as I always worry about wet socks and blisters when I see those hoses.
I ran nearly all of the first mile with only one very brief walk break in an OK 11:00. I knew I wouldn't be able to keep that up though. The big hills were still ahead. I think I passed through the halfway point in about 29 minutes. I was slowing down and the heat was taking its toll. It didn't look like I could break an hour. That was immediately verified as I had to walk almost all of the next mile. I was whipped. The only thing that kept me going at this point was Barry Goldmeier, the local joggler. He was running this evening with very cool glow in the dark balls. I always hate being passed by Barry...nothing personal...I just think I should be able to beat someone thats running while juggling 4 balls! But I really thought I should beat him in a nighttime race. (It was after 9:30 by this point). He would pass me, I would struggle to keep up, he would drop one of his balls and have to stop to pick it up and I would race by ("race" is relative). We went back and forth like this until he passed me for good as we ran around Montgomery College.
It was as we ran around Montgomery College that I knew something bad had happened on the course. Two paramedics on bicycles that had been riding leisurely through the crowd and that had passed me about a mile before came by me in the opposite direction at this time and riding at a serious pace. A little further ahead we came across a fire truck that had obviously been providing water to runners but he was hurrying to pack up and get on the road, which he did about 2 minutes after I passed him. As I ran by the truck I heard a voice on a radio name an intersection just a hundred yards from where I had just run and where the course took us by with less than a mile to go.
From that point on, I heard a lot of sirens. I knew someone must have gone down and I silently wished the best for them. I wondered if I knew the person. Since I run in so many races I've gotten to know a lot of runners but the runners I know run a lot of races. This race brings out people that only run a few times a year.
Mile 4 was very slow as I contemplated life and also frankly really struggled with the heat. I drank 3 small glasses of water at the last water stop before Rockville Pike. I always like running on the Pike. It's a straight, slightly downhill road that is well paved and well lit. Drivers frequently lean out of their cars and offer encouragement (or sometimes the opposite of encouragement but thats for another blog). You cant see the finish line but you can see the buildings that are besides the finish line so you get a feeling of progress. I was able to run most of the Pike and I passed quite a few people during this little stretch run. I ran by the intersection mentioned on the ambulance drivers radio but the scene had been cleared.
As I entered Rockville Town Centre I gave one last push and ran through the finish line. The announcer commented on my Pikes Peek T-shirt, though he couldn't pull my name up fast enough to get it out before other runners started coming in behind me. I finished in a disappointing 66:31 but I didn't punish myself because of the heat. I kept telling myself during the race...don't die, don't end up in a hospital tonight, and don't throw up (I was suffering from reflux from about mile 2 on). I accomplished all 3 so I had view the race as a success of sorts.
While taking off my chip the announcer asked the crowd if anyone knew a runner by the name of X please come to the finsih line. I assumed that this was the runner that went down. I didn't recognize the name and I don't recall it now. The paper the next morning confirmed the worst...a male runner, aged 60 died during the race at the intersection I heard named on the radio. This made the 4th runner (that I know of) that died in a race that I ran in. (Virginia Beach Half Marathon in 2001, the Marine Corp Marathon, and The Army Ten Miler just last year). Femi at work now calls me the "Running Angel of Death".
All kidding aside, this does show the dangers of running. My Mother is constantly trying to convince me to stop running for fear of me becoming one of these runners. She called me when she read the article and was shocked that I also ran in the race. But what I always tell her is that while I acknowledge that I am more at risk when I run then if I were at home sleeping, it makes me less at risk for the remaining hours of the day. I think thats a very good trade off and a risk I can live with (no pun intended). So I will continue to run but I will also continue my mantra of "Live to race again tomorrow".
Here are some of the results from the race:
Mohamed Awol (winner 24:24...are you kiddingme!?)
Mike Wardian 25:30
Darkwing Duck (I'm serious, look it up) 26:56
Jim Moreland 34:12
Lou Shapiro 34:25
Bill Stahr 34:47
Kirk Gordon 35:47
Bob Platt 39:49
Jon Palks 42:26
Barry Goldmeier 64:44
Ric Franke 66:23 (that ticks me off, I never saw him. I would have pushed more if I had seen him. That's the downside to starting in the back. He started over a minute in front of me).
Me 66:31
I was the 1103rd male out of 1113 male finishers.
On the female side:
Julie Culley 26:57 (female winner)
Alisa Harvey 29:48 (I'm surprised she ran this given the heat)
Christina Caravoulias 58:52 (good for her!)
There were 870 female finishers and 22 unidentified finishers...so over 2000 finishers. I beat 53 of them. OK, not my best effort.
This is not an easy course as it has several significant hills to conquer. Given my relative poor level of conditioning, the heat, and the course I decided before the start of the race to not over due it. With this in mind, I started all the way at the back of the pack. It was a chip race so why get caught in the middle of the pack?
It was a really good crowd this year at the start and then there was the usual good turnout of residents as we turned into the neighborhoods. There weren't quite as many people out with hoses this year to splash people as they ran by but thats OK with me as I always worry about wet socks and blisters when I see those hoses.
I ran nearly all of the first mile with only one very brief walk break in an OK 11:00. I knew I wouldn't be able to keep that up though. The big hills were still ahead. I think I passed through the halfway point in about 29 minutes. I was slowing down and the heat was taking its toll. It didn't look like I could break an hour. That was immediately verified as I had to walk almost all of the next mile. I was whipped. The only thing that kept me going at this point was Barry Goldmeier, the local joggler. He was running this evening with very cool glow in the dark balls. I always hate being passed by Barry...nothing personal...I just think I should be able to beat someone thats running while juggling 4 balls! But I really thought I should beat him in a nighttime race. (It was after 9:30 by this point). He would pass me, I would struggle to keep up, he would drop one of his balls and have to stop to pick it up and I would race by ("race" is relative). We went back and forth like this until he passed me for good as we ran around Montgomery College.
It was as we ran around Montgomery College that I knew something bad had happened on the course. Two paramedics on bicycles that had been riding leisurely through the crowd and that had passed me about a mile before came by me in the opposite direction at this time and riding at a serious pace. A little further ahead we came across a fire truck that had obviously been providing water to runners but he was hurrying to pack up and get on the road, which he did about 2 minutes after I passed him. As I ran by the truck I heard a voice on a radio name an intersection just a hundred yards from where I had just run and where the course took us by with less than a mile to go.
From that point on, I heard a lot of sirens. I knew someone must have gone down and I silently wished the best for them. I wondered if I knew the person. Since I run in so many races I've gotten to know a lot of runners but the runners I know run a lot of races. This race brings out people that only run a few times a year.
Mile 4 was very slow as I contemplated life and also frankly really struggled with the heat. I drank 3 small glasses of water at the last water stop before Rockville Pike. I always like running on the Pike. It's a straight, slightly downhill road that is well paved and well lit. Drivers frequently lean out of their cars and offer encouragement (or sometimes the opposite of encouragement but thats for another blog). You cant see the finish line but you can see the buildings that are besides the finish line so you get a feeling of progress. I was able to run most of the Pike and I passed quite a few people during this little stretch run. I ran by the intersection mentioned on the ambulance drivers radio but the scene had been cleared.
As I entered Rockville Town Centre I gave one last push and ran through the finish line. The announcer commented on my Pikes Peek T-shirt, though he couldn't pull my name up fast enough to get it out before other runners started coming in behind me. I finished in a disappointing 66:31 but I didn't punish myself because of the heat. I kept telling myself during the race...don't die, don't end up in a hospital tonight, and don't throw up (I was suffering from reflux from about mile 2 on). I accomplished all 3 so I had view the race as a success of sorts.
While taking off my chip the announcer asked the crowd if anyone knew a runner by the name of X please come to the finsih line. I assumed that this was the runner that went down. I didn't recognize the name and I don't recall it now. The paper the next morning confirmed the worst...a male runner, aged 60 died during the race at the intersection I heard named on the radio. This made the 4th runner (that I know of) that died in a race that I ran in. (Virginia Beach Half Marathon in 2001, the Marine Corp Marathon, and The Army Ten Miler just last year). Femi at work now calls me the "Running Angel of Death".
All kidding aside, this does show the dangers of running. My Mother is constantly trying to convince me to stop running for fear of me becoming one of these runners. She called me when she read the article and was shocked that I also ran in the race. But what I always tell her is that while I acknowledge that I am more at risk when I run then if I were at home sleeping, it makes me less at risk for the remaining hours of the day. I think thats a very good trade off and a risk I can live with (no pun intended). So I will continue to run but I will also continue my mantra of "Live to race again tomorrow".
Here are some of the results from the race:
Mohamed Awol (winner 24:24...are you kiddingme!?)
Mike Wardian 25:30
Darkwing Duck (I'm serious, look it up) 26:56
Jim Moreland 34:12
Lou Shapiro 34:25
Bill Stahr 34:47
Kirk Gordon 35:47
Bob Platt 39:49
Jon Palks 42:26
Barry Goldmeier 64:44
Ric Franke 66:23 (that ticks me off, I never saw him. I would have pushed more if I had seen him. That's the downside to starting in the back. He started over a minute in front of me).
Me 66:31
I was the 1103rd male out of 1113 male finishers.
On the female side:
Julie Culley 26:57 (female winner)
Alisa Harvey 29:48 (I'm surprised she ran this given the heat)
Christina Caravoulias 58:52 (good for her!)
There were 870 female finishers and 22 unidentified finishers...so over 2000 finishers. I beat 53 of them. OK, not my best effort.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Halfway home
On July 16, I ran the monthly DCRRC Tidal Basin 3K. It was my 25th race of the year, meaning I am halfway towards running 50 (or more) races this year.
I got to the race site at about 11:50. As usual, I changed in the car. I then went over and signed in. Then I went in search of a bathroom for a quick break. I only had about 5 minutes until the scheduled 12:00 start. I had to jog about 1/4 mile to a bathroom within the FDR Memorial. I got back to the start at about a minute past Noon just as we were moving over to the start line. And then we were off.
I had hoped my little jog to the bathroom would help warm me up, something I usually don't do. But the run seemed to work against me. I was tired early. I made it across the big bridge and then slowed to a gasping walk. It was a very hot day and it was taking its toll. It didn't take long before Joe Broderick passed me at about the 3/4 mile mark. Last month he and I ran close to one another from this point of the race on, with me pulling away at the finish. This time, I had nothing in me that would enable me to respond to Joe's push. By the 1 mile mark he was far enough in front of me that I knew I couldn't catch him.
I thought I was going to run alone during that last .86 miles. But with about .2 miles to go, Kirk Gordon met me on the road and ran in to the finish with me. That REALLY helped me a lot. As bad as my finish time was (Official 22:47, watch 22:42), it would have been a lot worse without him. Thanks Kirk!
Notable finishers in this race were:
Jake Krong 9:22 (winner)
Shauneen Garrahan 9:58!! (female winner)
Ted Poulos 10:11
James Moreland 11:47
Kirk Gordon 12:21
Jay Wind 12:53
Dee Nelson 14:38
Peter Blank 15:26 (ran early and then directed the race and did a great job)
Tami Graf 18:36
Joe Boderick 20:36
Ray Campbell 33:40
Bill Osborn 33:50
I finished 62nd out of 67 race finishers.
I got to the race site at about 11:50. As usual, I changed in the car. I then went over and signed in. Then I went in search of a bathroom for a quick break. I only had about 5 minutes until the scheduled 12:00 start. I had to jog about 1/4 mile to a bathroom within the FDR Memorial. I got back to the start at about a minute past Noon just as we were moving over to the start line. And then we were off.
I had hoped my little jog to the bathroom would help warm me up, something I usually don't do. But the run seemed to work against me. I was tired early. I made it across the big bridge and then slowed to a gasping walk. It was a very hot day and it was taking its toll. It didn't take long before Joe Broderick passed me at about the 3/4 mile mark. Last month he and I ran close to one another from this point of the race on, with me pulling away at the finish. This time, I had nothing in me that would enable me to respond to Joe's push. By the 1 mile mark he was far enough in front of me that I knew I couldn't catch him.
I thought I was going to run alone during that last .86 miles. But with about .2 miles to go, Kirk Gordon met me on the road and ran in to the finish with me. That REALLY helped me a lot. As bad as my finish time was (Official 22:47, watch 22:42), it would have been a lot worse without him. Thanks Kirk!
Notable finishers in this race were:
Jake Krong 9:22 (winner)
Shauneen Garrahan 9:58!! (female winner)
Ted Poulos 10:11
James Moreland 11:47
Kirk Gordon 12:21
Jay Wind 12:53
Dee Nelson 14:38
Peter Blank 15:26 (ran early and then directed the race and did a great job)
Tami Graf 18:36
Joe Boderick 20:36
Ray Campbell 33:40
Bill Osborn 33:50
I finished 62nd out of 67 race finishers.
A little whine would be good right about now.
On July 14, the DCRRC held their annual Bastille Day 4 miler. Having run a disappointing 4 miler just 10 days prior, I was really hoping to run better in this evening race. I left my office in Tyson's Corner at about 5:45... a little late for a 7:00 start at Fletcher's Boathouse. Little did I know that my car wouldn't start when I got to the garage. Not good.
I ran back to the office and found a friend (Femi-mentioned in earlier blogs) leaving for the day. He said he would be happy to help jump my car if I had cables, which I did. The car turned over quickly. After quickly disconnecting the cables and saying my thanks to Femi, I was off! I knew I needed a light traffice night if I had any chance of covering the 15 miles in less than the remaining 45 minutes. Fortunately, it was one of those rare DC evenings where the road was open in front of me. I was held up on the Key Bridge for about 10 minutes but I still made it to the race with time to spare. Warning lights were on in the car during the drive so I decided to try to restart the car as soon as I parked. Sure enough, dead again. Well, I decided to deal with that after the race. My wife still questions my sanity on that decision as she said virtually everyone would have chosen to take care of their car then but I had a race to run!
It was a warm evening but not blistering hot like a few recent races.The first mile go up hill towards Bethesda. I like to take care of hills early so that was fine. Then, of course, I love the downhills. Here I caught up to Sharyn Gordon and I ran right behind her for the 2nd half of the hill. Unfortunately, I had to take a quick walk break at the bottom of the hill and she just kept going. A few people passed me during the third mile but they never got too, too far ahead. I hoped to catch them with a good last mile. One of those people was Father Frank Gignac. I know he's a priest because he always wears a Catholic University T-shirt (my undergrad school) so I looked him up a couple of years ago. He was the asst. track coach back then. The guy is 75 and still looks good! Anyway, I kept throwing spurts at Father Frank during that last mile in a valiant attempt to catch up. I would get to within 20 yards or so and then have to take a walk break. I did this 3 or 4 times, always with the same result. Thinking I lost my chance I took a longer walk break with just 1/4 mile to go. Then I started running again. I was making up a lot of ground in a hurry. I could see the finish line approaching. It was going to be close. In the final 50 yards, I was taking 2 strides for every 1 that he made. As we closed to just 10 yards from the finish, I was just 6 feet behind him. Unfortunately, there was some congestion at the finish line. He blocked most of the available path. I didn't want to bump into him so I ran on his left shoulder. We crosed the finish line nearly stride for stride in an identical time of 47:24. (My watch time was 46:59...it was a narrow starting chute with a lot of runners). But he did beat me by a nose. I think I would have had him if the finish line were clear and we had a bit more room but thats the way a race goes.
I did beat a couple of people that usually run near me...Blair Jones finished right behind me in 49:10 and Ric Franke finished right behind her in a time of 50:51. All things considered, I was happy with my results for this race. I beat a couple of people I should beat, bettered my time from 10 days earlier by over 4 minutes, and averaged under 12 minutes a mile.
Notable finishers for this race were:
Robert Wade 20:36 (Winner)
Karsten Brown 22:28
Ted Poulos 22:39
Kirk Gordon 26:41 (2nd age group)
Marie Sandrock 26:44 (first female)
Jim Moreland 26:53 (3rd age group)
Jay Wind 27:22
Jon Palks 32:59
Sharyn Gordon 43:23
I finished 158 out of 165 finishers. That was my 24th race of the year.
I ran back to the office and found a friend (Femi-mentioned in earlier blogs) leaving for the day. He said he would be happy to help jump my car if I had cables, which I did. The car turned over quickly. After quickly disconnecting the cables and saying my thanks to Femi, I was off! I knew I needed a light traffice night if I had any chance of covering the 15 miles in less than the remaining 45 minutes. Fortunately, it was one of those rare DC evenings where the road was open in front of me. I was held up on the Key Bridge for about 10 minutes but I still made it to the race with time to spare. Warning lights were on in the car during the drive so I decided to try to restart the car as soon as I parked. Sure enough, dead again. Well, I decided to deal with that after the race. My wife still questions my sanity on that decision as she said virtually everyone would have chosen to take care of their car then but I had a race to run!
It was a warm evening but not blistering hot like a few recent races.The first mile go up hill towards Bethesda. I like to take care of hills early so that was fine. Then, of course, I love the downhills. Here I caught up to Sharyn Gordon and I ran right behind her for the 2nd half of the hill. Unfortunately, I had to take a quick walk break at the bottom of the hill and she just kept going. A few people passed me during the third mile but they never got too, too far ahead. I hoped to catch them with a good last mile. One of those people was Father Frank Gignac. I know he's a priest because he always wears a Catholic University T-shirt (my undergrad school) so I looked him up a couple of years ago. He was the asst. track coach back then. The guy is 75 and still looks good! Anyway, I kept throwing spurts at Father Frank during that last mile in a valiant attempt to catch up. I would get to within 20 yards or so and then have to take a walk break. I did this 3 or 4 times, always with the same result. Thinking I lost my chance I took a longer walk break with just 1/4 mile to go. Then I started running again. I was making up a lot of ground in a hurry. I could see the finish line approaching. It was going to be close. In the final 50 yards, I was taking 2 strides for every 1 that he made. As we closed to just 10 yards from the finish, I was just 6 feet behind him. Unfortunately, there was some congestion at the finish line. He blocked most of the available path. I didn't want to bump into him so I ran on his left shoulder. We crosed the finish line nearly stride for stride in an identical time of 47:24. (My watch time was 46:59...it was a narrow starting chute with a lot of runners). But he did beat me by a nose. I think I would have had him if the finish line were clear and we had a bit more room but thats the way a race goes.
I did beat a couple of people that usually run near me...Blair Jones finished right behind me in 49:10 and Ric Franke finished right behind her in a time of 50:51. All things considered, I was happy with my results for this race. I beat a couple of people I should beat, bettered my time from 10 days earlier by over 4 minutes, and averaged under 12 minutes a mile.
Notable finishers for this race were:
Robert Wade 20:36 (Winner)
Karsten Brown 22:28
Ted Poulos 22:39
Kirk Gordon 26:41 (2nd age group)
Marie Sandrock 26:44 (first female)
Jim Moreland 26:53 (3rd age group)
Jay Wind 27:22
Jon Palks 32:59
Sharyn Gordon 43:23
I finished 158 out of 165 finishers. That was my 24th race of the year.
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