Sunday, February 26, 2012
RR - Gainesville
Race Report
Sun, Feb 19/12
Five Points of Life Marathon
Gainesville, FL
4:58:51 – 2 AG
Marathon # 354
I need to get this report finished before I leave for my next international race. It has been delayed due to a nasty flu bug I have been fighting for the past week. In hindsight the fact that I was sick for almost one week after the last race has changed my opinion and feelings about the race. I will try to write the race report describing my actual feelings before/during/after the race without the knowledge that I was probably sick and did not know it at the time?
Having finished the Jacksonville marathon the previous week and finally running an entire marathon w/o walking for the first time in over a year I decided to run the Five Points Marathon faster. I ran the inaugural race six years ago so I reviewed my report from that race. Umm! I ran way over my head in spite of it being a tough course with lots of hills and set the course record- 3:29:31 - for my AG (60 to 64) that has yet to be broken! Well, that record was not in jeopardy. I would be happy to finish 1 hr slower?
The weather was forecast to be much warmer than the freezing temps I suffered the week before in Jacksonville. Temps were forecast to be in the low 60s.
I drove up to Gainesville on Sat, checked into a luxurious Super 8 Motel, picked up my race packet and enjoyed an early pasta dinner. The first shock the next morning was the weather. It was a balmy 72 F and windy at the 7am start. Fortunately it stayed overcast so the temps only rose to the high 70s. There were about 400 runners in the marathon and 1,000 in the Half. I remembered the first 6 miles were hilly with 3 BAHs (Bad Ass Hills) so I tried not to go out too fast through those hills and into a brisk head wind. I was pleasantly surprised when I passed Mile 6 in 58:29 and a split of 10:04. The course flattened out and I continued to push the pace to reach Mile 10 in 1:39:47 and a split of 9:42. However I noticed that my legs were starting to tire already and that was not a good sign? At Mile 11 we ran through the UF campus and Gator Stadium. As we approached Mile 13 the Half and Marathon split off and I now only had a few runners in front of me? As I passed the Half in 2:11:41 and a split of 10:31 I realized that I was slowing down and I knew the 2nd Half would be much slower. I hoped to continue to push the pace to at least 20 miles and then worry about walking? However as I was pushing the old bod up a BAH at 15 miles it suddenly became too difficult/impossible to keep the old legs churning and they stopped! I knew right then the race was over for me! I had ‘hit the wall’ – there was nothing left! It was going to be a long, tough slog for the final 11 miles.
I walked/jogged and struggled past 16 miles in 2:46:44 and a split of 12:31. I had hoped that if I walked/jogged a few miles my legs might recover enough to start running again but when I reached Mile 20 in 3:37:11 my split had slowed to 13:30 and I was walking more than jogging! And I felt like SHIT!
I was really discouraged that I had ‘hit the wall’ so early in the race? I didn’t believe I was in that bad of shape but yet I couldn’t seem to recover no matter how much I walked. It was ugly – and it was painful – but I was determined that I would gut it out to the finish line and finish # 354!
When I passed Mile 24 in 4:30:19 and a painfully slow split of 13:52 I knew that I would finish but I wasn’t sure if I could break 5 hrs? I figured I needed to lower my splits to 13:00/mile and allow a few minutes for the final 200 m.
I was running on energy fumes because there was absolutely no energy left in my body. Mile 25 – 4:43:51 and a split of 13:32. Not good enough! I sucked it up – refused to walk and passed Mile 26 in 4:56:27 and a split of 12:35. I held that blazing pace for the final 200 m to cross the finish line in 4:48:51 and salvage some pride for Maddog! I kept telling myself during the final 11 miles that this pain – this agony- this total feeling of fatigue was a great opportunity to teach the old bod how to cope with fatigue and pain! I hope I never have to suffer through another lesson like that for a long, long time!
My late checkout time at the hotel expired while I was crossing the finish line so I had to drag my sorry, tired ass into the car w/o even washing and drive 2 hrs to pick up the Sports Manager at the Tampa Airport. She was returning home from babysitting duties in TX. By the time we arrived home at 4 pm I was feeling so badly that it was all I could do to take a much-needed shower and go to bed w/o any dinner. I suffered all night with a high fever and hot and cold sweats. I thought I was sick because I had pushed the old bod beyond its limits. Only after the sickness and flu-like symptoms continued for another 3 days did I finally realize I didn’t get sick because of the race. I had probably been sick before and during the race but hadn’t realized it? No wonder the old bod gave up at 15 miles.
When I tried to walk on Mon morning my right calf was so stiff and swollen that pain was shooting down the leg into the plantar fascia and I couldn’t put any weight on the right foot? I thought I had a serious injury but I dragged my still-sick ass out of bed on Wed for a 1-hr torture session (massage) with Attila the Hunness and she managed to correct the problem(s). I think I just stressed too many muscles with that dumb effort to finish the race. Had I known I was that sick with the flu I think I would have dropped out and saved myself a lot of pain? But then I couldn’t have counted # 354 and a 2nd AG (there were only 2 runners in my AG).
But that is past history. The leg is feeling OK now. The flu seems be gone? Although I was unable to run/train all week I did manage to run 11 miles on Sun and my energy level seems to be back to normal.
So I am off to Saipan on Mon for my next international marathon. I will definitely run that race much smarter and slower in the tropical heat.
Stay tuned!
Sun, Feb 19/12
Five Points of Life Marathon
Gainesville, FL
4:58:51 – 2 AG
Marathon # 354
I need to get this report finished before I leave for my next international race. It has been delayed due to a nasty flu bug I have been fighting for the past week. In hindsight the fact that I was sick for almost one week after the last race has changed my opinion and feelings about the race. I will try to write the race report describing my actual feelings before/during/after the race without the knowledge that I was probably sick and did not know it at the time?
Having finished the Jacksonville marathon the previous week and finally running an entire marathon w/o walking for the first time in over a year I decided to run the Five Points Marathon faster. I ran the inaugural race six years ago so I reviewed my report from that race. Umm! I ran way over my head in spite of it being a tough course with lots of hills and set the course record- 3:29:31 - for my AG (60 to 64) that has yet to be broken! Well, that record was not in jeopardy. I would be happy to finish 1 hr slower?
The weather was forecast to be much warmer than the freezing temps I suffered the week before in Jacksonville. Temps were forecast to be in the low 60s.
I drove up to Gainesville on Sat, checked into a luxurious Super 8 Motel, picked up my race packet and enjoyed an early pasta dinner. The first shock the next morning was the weather. It was a balmy 72 F and windy at the 7am start. Fortunately it stayed overcast so the temps only rose to the high 70s. There were about 400 runners in the marathon and 1,000 in the Half. I remembered the first 6 miles were hilly with 3 BAHs (Bad Ass Hills) so I tried not to go out too fast through those hills and into a brisk head wind. I was pleasantly surprised when I passed Mile 6 in 58:29 and a split of 10:04. The course flattened out and I continued to push the pace to reach Mile 10 in 1:39:47 and a split of 9:42. However I noticed that my legs were starting to tire already and that was not a good sign? At Mile 11 we ran through the UF campus and Gator Stadium. As we approached Mile 13 the Half and Marathon split off and I now only had a few runners in front of me? As I passed the Half in 2:11:41 and a split of 10:31 I realized that I was slowing down and I knew the 2nd Half would be much slower. I hoped to continue to push the pace to at least 20 miles and then worry about walking? However as I was pushing the old bod up a BAH at 15 miles it suddenly became too difficult/impossible to keep the old legs churning and they stopped! I knew right then the race was over for me! I had ‘hit the wall’ – there was nothing left! It was going to be a long, tough slog for the final 11 miles.
I walked/jogged and struggled past 16 miles in 2:46:44 and a split of 12:31. I had hoped that if I walked/jogged a few miles my legs might recover enough to start running again but when I reached Mile 20 in 3:37:11 my split had slowed to 13:30 and I was walking more than jogging! And I felt like SHIT!
I was really discouraged that I had ‘hit the wall’ so early in the race? I didn’t believe I was in that bad of shape but yet I couldn’t seem to recover no matter how much I walked. It was ugly – and it was painful – but I was determined that I would gut it out to the finish line and finish # 354!
When I passed Mile 24 in 4:30:19 and a painfully slow split of 13:52 I knew that I would finish but I wasn’t sure if I could break 5 hrs? I figured I needed to lower my splits to 13:00/mile and allow a few minutes for the final 200 m.
I was running on energy fumes because there was absolutely no energy left in my body. Mile 25 – 4:43:51 and a split of 13:32. Not good enough! I sucked it up – refused to walk and passed Mile 26 in 4:56:27 and a split of 12:35. I held that blazing pace for the final 200 m to cross the finish line in 4:48:51 and salvage some pride for Maddog! I kept telling myself during the final 11 miles that this pain – this agony- this total feeling of fatigue was a great opportunity to teach the old bod how to cope with fatigue and pain! I hope I never have to suffer through another lesson like that for a long, long time!
My late checkout time at the hotel expired while I was crossing the finish line so I had to drag my sorry, tired ass into the car w/o even washing and drive 2 hrs to pick up the Sports Manager at the Tampa Airport. She was returning home from babysitting duties in TX. By the time we arrived home at 4 pm I was feeling so badly that it was all I could do to take a much-needed shower and go to bed w/o any dinner. I suffered all night with a high fever and hot and cold sweats. I thought I was sick because I had pushed the old bod beyond its limits. Only after the sickness and flu-like symptoms continued for another 3 days did I finally realize I didn’t get sick because of the race. I had probably been sick before and during the race but hadn’t realized it? No wonder the old bod gave up at 15 miles.
When I tried to walk on Mon morning my right calf was so stiff and swollen that pain was shooting down the leg into the plantar fascia and I couldn’t put any weight on the right foot? I thought I had a serious injury but I dragged my still-sick ass out of bed on Wed for a 1-hr torture session (massage) with Attila the Hunness and she managed to correct the problem(s). I think I just stressed too many muscles with that dumb effort to finish the race. Had I known I was that sick with the flu I think I would have dropped out and saved myself a lot of pain? But then I couldn’t have counted # 354 and a 2nd AG (there were only 2 runners in my AG).
But that is past history. The leg is feeling OK now. The flu seems be gone? Although I was unable to run/train all week I did manage to run 11 miles on Sun and my energy level seems to be back to normal.
So I am off to Saipan on Mon for my next international marathon. I will definitely run that race much smarter and slower in the tropical heat.
Stay tuned!
Monday, February 13, 2012
RR - Jacksonville
Race Report
Sun, Feb 12/12
26.2 With Donna Marathon
Jacksonville, FL
4:31:16 – 1AG
Marathon # 353
I planned this race as the 2nd of my ‘training’ marathons although I don’t like the drive to Jacksonville and I think the $125 registration fee ($135 with online fee) is ridiculous. However it is all donated to Breast Cancer Research and it is still easier and cheaper than flying to another state to run a race. I ran the inaugural race in 2008 when I was sick and struggled to finish under 4 hrs and 2nd AG. That finish time seems like an impossible dream these days? I was hoping that I could run 20 to 23 miles as part of my training program to get back into race shape.
As race day approached the weather forecast became bleak. A ‘Northerner’ was coming through FL and temps were forecast to drop below freezing with brisk North winds. I drove up to Jacksonville on Sat and arrived in the afternoon to pick up my race packet at the Expo at the Prime Osborn Convention Center in downtown Jacksonville. The weather was sunny and cool.
I stayed at a hotel in Neptune Beach that was a shuttle stop for the race. The race starts and finishes at the Mayo Clinic and since there is not enough parking the race organizes shuttle buses to bus 7000+ runners to the start. Fortunately the hotel agreed to extend a 3 pm late checkout to all runners. When I went for pasta dinner the temps had dropped to the low 50s but with a blustery North wind it felt much colder. It didn’t portend well for a 6:30am start on Sun?
The race starts at different times each year because 3 miles of the course is on Jacksonville Beach and it needs to be low tide to provide room for the runners. I planned to catch the last shuttle bus to minimize the amount of waiting time at the start but somehow ended up on a bus at 5:15 am that arrived at 5:30am. Damn! One hour to wait! The temp was 31F and with a brisk North wind – it was friggin COLD!
There were no tents or buildings to hide in! I had 4 layers of clothes on and I was still freezing! I waited until 10 min before start time to remove my warm up clothes (1 layer) and store them at the gear tent. Unfortunately as I approached the start line they announced that the race start would be delayed 10 minutes because some shuttle buses were late. I later heard from a friend whose shuttle bus arrived 20 minutes after the start of the race and she and others had to start late and try to catch up!
Since there were 7,000 cold runners lined up we huddled together and used each other to stay warm until the race started at 6:40 am. I started the race with 3 layers of clothes and the usual garbage bag to trap the body heat. After climbing a long bridge over the St John’s River (Intercostal Waterway) during the 1st mile I discarded the garbage bag. The bridge was followed by two overpasses over the next 2 miles so when I reached mile 3 in 30:36 I felt toasty and removed a sweatshirt. I hoped I wouldn’t regret throwing that sweatshirt away later. I passed mile 5 in 49:36 and turned on to the beach. With no protection from the brisk North (head) wind it was friggin COLD – I wished I had my sweatshirt back! At mile 8 we left the beach and turned into residential areas that provided some shelter from the wind. I passed mile 10 in downtown Neptune Beach in 1:40:41. I was averaging a 10-min pace even though my legs still felt stiff and tight from the cold. At mile 12 the race turned west and we finally got some relief from the head wind.
I reached the Half in 2:12:25 and I knew right then that the 2nd Half would not be that fast. My legs were already starting to tire! I passed mile 15 in 2:30:53 where the course finally turned South and we would now have a tailwind for the rest of the race. I finally started to warm up with the sun out and the wind at our backs. When I passed mile 18 in 3:01:29 and a split of 10:05 my legs really felt tired and I figured I needed to slow my pace down by 30 to 45 sec/mile if I wanted to make it to Mile 20 or 22 w/o walking. I reached mile 20 in 3:23:08 and a split of 10:35. My legs had recovered some with the slower pace and I figured I could probably make it to mile 22 or 23 before walking? I decided to push on. Each mile was a new record for me for quite some time. When I reached mile 23 in 3:55:31 and a split of 10:58 I was really excited and happy that I had made it that far w/o walking. I became determined to finish the race w/o walking!
Only a few ‘wee’ problems in the way! The last three miles were the same two overpasses and bridge as the 1st three miles and my legs were wasted! Thankfully Maddog showed up – he has been missing for some time and many races! He was determined to finish the race w/o walking so he made me suck it up and gut it out through the final 5K. Mile 25 to the top of the bridge was the toughest mile and longest split of the race – 11:17. But once I crested that bridge I knew I would make it to the finish line w/o walking! That final mile was tough – it was ugly – and it was painful – but I kept the wasted old legs churning and crossed the finish line in 4:31:16! For the 1st time in more than 1 year I had run an entire marathon w/o walking! I was not pleased with my time – I really thought I was ready to break 4:30. And I was very surprised to learn that SLOW time was good enough to win 1st AG?
Once I stopped it suddenly became bitterly COLD again – it was a balmy 41F at the finish! Thus I retrieved my warm up clothes, took a mandatory finish line photo and quickly retreated to a shuttle bus. Only when I got on the warm bus did I realize how COLD I really was. Back at the hotel I filled the tub with scalding water and submerged the old bod for 30 minutes. Only then could I begin to feel parts of my body that seemed to be missing?
I was not looking forward to the long (5-hr) drive home. I was tired and my legs were sore. And I will never drive through Orlando again – I 4 was a parking lot through Orlando! When I arrived home I was so tired that I didn’t even have enough energy to cook dinner or unpack. I went straight to bed and slept 12 hrs.
Now it is time to begin training for the next marathon – next weekend! I am encouraged and ahead of schedule. I didn’t expect to run an entire race until next weekend. Now I can push the pace a little harder and try to lower my finish time?
Stay tuned!
Sun, Feb 12/12
26.2 With Donna Marathon
Jacksonville, FL
4:31:16 – 1AG
Marathon # 353
I planned this race as the 2nd of my ‘training’ marathons although I don’t like the drive to Jacksonville and I think the $125 registration fee ($135 with online fee) is ridiculous. However it is all donated to Breast Cancer Research and it is still easier and cheaper than flying to another state to run a race. I ran the inaugural race in 2008 when I was sick and struggled to finish under 4 hrs and 2nd AG. That finish time seems like an impossible dream these days? I was hoping that I could run 20 to 23 miles as part of my training program to get back into race shape.
As race day approached the weather forecast became bleak. A ‘Northerner’ was coming through FL and temps were forecast to drop below freezing with brisk North winds. I drove up to Jacksonville on Sat and arrived in the afternoon to pick up my race packet at the Expo at the Prime Osborn Convention Center in downtown Jacksonville. The weather was sunny and cool.
I stayed at a hotel in Neptune Beach that was a shuttle stop for the race. The race starts and finishes at the Mayo Clinic and since there is not enough parking the race organizes shuttle buses to bus 7000+ runners to the start. Fortunately the hotel agreed to extend a 3 pm late checkout to all runners. When I went for pasta dinner the temps had dropped to the low 50s but with a blustery North wind it felt much colder. It didn’t portend well for a 6:30am start on Sun?
The race starts at different times each year because 3 miles of the course is on Jacksonville Beach and it needs to be low tide to provide room for the runners. I planned to catch the last shuttle bus to minimize the amount of waiting time at the start but somehow ended up on a bus at 5:15 am that arrived at 5:30am. Damn! One hour to wait! The temp was 31F and with a brisk North wind – it was friggin COLD!
There were no tents or buildings to hide in! I had 4 layers of clothes on and I was still freezing! I waited until 10 min before start time to remove my warm up clothes (1 layer) and store them at the gear tent. Unfortunately as I approached the start line they announced that the race start would be delayed 10 minutes because some shuttle buses were late. I later heard from a friend whose shuttle bus arrived 20 minutes after the start of the race and she and others had to start late and try to catch up!
Since there were 7,000 cold runners lined up we huddled together and used each other to stay warm until the race started at 6:40 am. I started the race with 3 layers of clothes and the usual garbage bag to trap the body heat. After climbing a long bridge over the St John’s River (Intercostal Waterway) during the 1st mile I discarded the garbage bag. The bridge was followed by two overpasses over the next 2 miles so when I reached mile 3 in 30:36 I felt toasty and removed a sweatshirt. I hoped I wouldn’t regret throwing that sweatshirt away later. I passed mile 5 in 49:36 and turned on to the beach. With no protection from the brisk North (head) wind it was friggin COLD – I wished I had my sweatshirt back! At mile 8 we left the beach and turned into residential areas that provided some shelter from the wind. I passed mile 10 in downtown Neptune Beach in 1:40:41. I was averaging a 10-min pace even though my legs still felt stiff and tight from the cold. At mile 12 the race turned west and we finally got some relief from the head wind.
I reached the Half in 2:12:25 and I knew right then that the 2nd Half would not be that fast. My legs were already starting to tire! I passed mile 15 in 2:30:53 where the course finally turned South and we would now have a tailwind for the rest of the race. I finally started to warm up with the sun out and the wind at our backs. When I passed mile 18 in 3:01:29 and a split of 10:05 my legs really felt tired and I figured I needed to slow my pace down by 30 to 45 sec/mile if I wanted to make it to Mile 20 or 22 w/o walking. I reached mile 20 in 3:23:08 and a split of 10:35. My legs had recovered some with the slower pace and I figured I could probably make it to mile 22 or 23 before walking? I decided to push on. Each mile was a new record for me for quite some time. When I reached mile 23 in 3:55:31 and a split of 10:58 I was really excited and happy that I had made it that far w/o walking. I became determined to finish the race w/o walking!
Only a few ‘wee’ problems in the way! The last three miles were the same two overpasses and bridge as the 1st three miles and my legs were wasted! Thankfully Maddog showed up – he has been missing for some time and many races! He was determined to finish the race w/o walking so he made me suck it up and gut it out through the final 5K. Mile 25 to the top of the bridge was the toughest mile and longest split of the race – 11:17. But once I crested that bridge I knew I would make it to the finish line w/o walking! That final mile was tough – it was ugly – and it was painful – but I kept the wasted old legs churning and crossed the finish line in 4:31:16! For the 1st time in more than 1 year I had run an entire marathon w/o walking! I was not pleased with my time – I really thought I was ready to break 4:30. And I was very surprised to learn that SLOW time was good enough to win 1st AG?
Once I stopped it suddenly became bitterly COLD again – it was a balmy 41F at the finish! Thus I retrieved my warm up clothes, took a mandatory finish line photo and quickly retreated to a shuttle bus. Only when I got on the warm bus did I realize how COLD I really was. Back at the hotel I filled the tub with scalding water and submerged the old bod for 30 minutes. Only then could I begin to feel parts of my body that seemed to be missing?
I was not looking forward to the long (5-hr) drive home. I was tired and my legs were sore. And I will never drive through Orlando again – I 4 was a parking lot through Orlando! When I arrived home I was so tired that I didn’t even have enough energy to cook dinner or unpack. I went straight to bed and slept 12 hrs.
Now it is time to begin training for the next marathon – next weekend! I am encouraged and ahead of schedule. I didn’t expect to run an entire race until next weekend. Now I can push the pace a little harder and try to lower my finish time?
Stay tuned!
Monday, January 23, 2012
RR - Ocala
Race Report
Sun, Jan 22/12
Ocala Marathon
Ocala, FL
4:34:37
Marathon # 352
Rather than repeat a medical/health update please read the footnote added to my previous race report from Curacao.
Now that I am feeling ‘better’ I decided to stick with the proven and best way to get back into marathon shape – by running marathons! Luckily winter is race season in FL and there are lots of races to choose from that I can drive to. The 1st race after the cruise was Ocala. I have run this race many times and won my AG almost every time. It is a ‘hilly’ course in the horse country around Ocala.
Typically the weather is not great – either cold or rain or both – but this year the forecast was sunny skies and temps in the low 50s at the start. There were some minor changes to the course again this year as the race started and ended at the Paddock Mall in Ocala. There were
200 runners lined up for the 7 am start. It was the nicest weather I have experienced in the many years I have run Ocala – sunny and a pleasant 51 F at the start and warmed up to the mid 70s by the time I finished.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from the old bod? During the few long training runs (13 & 16miles) I completed after the cruise I could only run an 11-min pace and my legs were beat at the end of the runs? I knew that I couldn’t run the entire race so my initial race strategy was to run a cycle of Run 5 miles & Walk 1 min. However when I passed Mile 5 in 50:06 I was pleasantly surprised with the 10-min pace and I felt GOOD so I decided to revert back to the race strategy I used in the past to beat my old bod into race shape – run for the 1st 20 miles or until my legs tired and forced me to walk! As I approached a turn-around near Mile 10 I noticed an old friend Rick Karamptsos coming in the other direction. He was about ½ mile ahead of me. I decided to catch him!
I passed Mile 10 in 1:38:10 – I was running over my head for the shape (or lack of) I was in!
I passed the Half in 2:08:33 – a way ahead of my expectations. But I had no false illusions or fantasies. I knew the 2nd half would be much slower and involve a lot of walking! When I made a turn at Mile 16 for the 2nd and shorter 10-mile loop I could see Rick ahead of me and I finally caught him at Mile 18. We ran together for 1 mile but then I could feel my legs starting to tire and I had to watch Rick pull ahead as I struggled to continue running to Mile 20. I reached Mile 20 in 3:18:10 (still on a sub 10-min pace) but my legs were wasted! I started to walk! I set a strategy of Run 1 mile & Walk 1 min and was able to hold that cycle for the next 4 miles and average an 11:30 -min pace. However the final 2 miles have some really nasty hills and I had to struggle to keep the old legs shuffling and was forced to add a few extra minutes of walking on the hills. At that point I really didn’t care about time. I had exceeded my expectations and a few more minutes weren’t going to hurt my finish time!
I struggled across the finish line in 4:34:37. I didn’t win an AG award but I was very happy with my time and performance. It was a great ‘training’ marathon! I discovered that I am in better shape than I thought. All I need is a few more months of training and a few more marathons and I will be back in marathon shape. And I confirmed that the ‘fatigue and shortness of breath’ issues are behind me. It is amazing how much easier it is to run when you have a heart that is working properly!
My only disappointment was my lack of motivation and willingness to accept pain. I could have finished under 4:30 but was unwilling to push the old bod and accept the level of pain necessary to accomplish that time! Hopefully as I get into better shape and become competitive again the ‘fire in the belly’ and desire to win will return? If not then I will seriously consider hanging up the racing shoes and retire from racing by the end of this year!
What will happen? Who knows?
Stay tuned!
Sun, Jan 22/12
Ocala Marathon
Ocala, FL
4:34:37
Marathon # 352
Rather than repeat a medical/health update please read the footnote added to my previous race report from Curacao.
Now that I am feeling ‘better’ I decided to stick with the proven and best way to get back into marathon shape – by running marathons! Luckily winter is race season in FL and there are lots of races to choose from that I can drive to. The 1st race after the cruise was Ocala. I have run this race many times and won my AG almost every time. It is a ‘hilly’ course in the horse country around Ocala.
Typically the weather is not great – either cold or rain or both – but this year the forecast was sunny skies and temps in the low 50s at the start. There were some minor changes to the course again this year as the race started and ended at the Paddock Mall in Ocala. There were
200 runners lined up for the 7 am start. It was the nicest weather I have experienced in the many years I have run Ocala – sunny and a pleasant 51 F at the start and warmed up to the mid 70s by the time I finished.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from the old bod? During the few long training runs (13 & 16miles) I completed after the cruise I could only run an 11-min pace and my legs were beat at the end of the runs? I knew that I couldn’t run the entire race so my initial race strategy was to run a cycle of Run 5 miles & Walk 1 min. However when I passed Mile 5 in 50:06 I was pleasantly surprised with the 10-min pace and I felt GOOD so I decided to revert back to the race strategy I used in the past to beat my old bod into race shape – run for the 1st 20 miles or until my legs tired and forced me to walk! As I approached a turn-around near Mile 10 I noticed an old friend Rick Karamptsos coming in the other direction. He was about ½ mile ahead of me. I decided to catch him!
I passed Mile 10 in 1:38:10 – I was running over my head for the shape (or lack of) I was in!
I passed the Half in 2:08:33 – a way ahead of my expectations. But I had no false illusions or fantasies. I knew the 2nd half would be much slower and involve a lot of walking! When I made a turn at Mile 16 for the 2nd and shorter 10-mile loop I could see Rick ahead of me and I finally caught him at Mile 18. We ran together for 1 mile but then I could feel my legs starting to tire and I had to watch Rick pull ahead as I struggled to continue running to Mile 20. I reached Mile 20 in 3:18:10 (still on a sub 10-min pace) but my legs were wasted! I started to walk! I set a strategy of Run 1 mile & Walk 1 min and was able to hold that cycle for the next 4 miles and average an 11:30 -min pace. However the final 2 miles have some really nasty hills and I had to struggle to keep the old legs shuffling and was forced to add a few extra minutes of walking on the hills. At that point I really didn’t care about time. I had exceeded my expectations and a few more minutes weren’t going to hurt my finish time!
I struggled across the finish line in 4:34:37. I didn’t win an AG award but I was very happy with my time and performance. It was a great ‘training’ marathon! I discovered that I am in better shape than I thought. All I need is a few more months of training and a few more marathons and I will be back in marathon shape. And I confirmed that the ‘fatigue and shortness of breath’ issues are behind me. It is amazing how much easier it is to run when you have a heart that is working properly!
My only disappointment was my lack of motivation and willingness to accept pain. I could have finished under 4:30 but was unwilling to push the old bod and accept the level of pain necessary to accomplish that time! Hopefully as I get into better shape and become competitive again the ‘fire in the belly’ and desire to win will return? If not then I will seriously consider hanging up the racing shoes and retire from racing by the end of this year!
What will happen? Who knows?
Stay tuned!
Saturday, January 07, 2012
Country Club List
Country Club List. (Jan 17/12)
A list of members who have completed a marathon or ultra in a minimum of 30 different countries.
Note: A country may only be counted ONCE and a marathon that passes through more than one country (such as Monaco) may only count for ONE country. All members in the top five ranking must verify their stats.
Runner Country # Countries
John Wallace USA 112
Wally Herman Canada 99
Edson Sanches USA 76
Horst Preisler Germany 65
Stefan Schlett Germany 64
William Govi Italy 64
Tad Lancucki(d) UK 57
Jaap Van de Berg Netherlands 57
Yen Nguyen USA 51
Peter Bennet USA 51
Peter Maier Germany 51
Roger Biggs UK 46
Dieter Elster Germany 45
Klaus Westphal Germany 42
Peter Dennett UK 41
Don Lang(d) USA 41
Curt Sandberg Sweden 40
Helmut Linzbichler Austria 39
Brent Weigner USA 38
Oswald Waye UK 37
Sudyong Toprasert Thailand 36
KG Nystrom Sweden 32
Antonius Steinberg Germany 30
Karsten Koehler Germany 30
(d) - deceased
A list of members who have completed a marathon or ultra in a minimum of 30 different countries.
Note: A country may only be counted ONCE and a marathon that passes through more than one country (such as Monaco) may only count for ONE country. All members in the top five ranking must verify their stats.
Runner Country # Countries
John Wallace USA 112
Wally Herman Canada 99
Edson Sanches USA 76
Horst Preisler Germany 65
Stefan Schlett Germany 64
William Govi Italy 64
Tad Lancucki(d) UK 57
Jaap Van de Berg Netherlands 57
Yen Nguyen USA 51
Peter Bennet USA 51
Peter Maier Germany 51
Roger Biggs UK 46
Dieter Elster Germany 45
Klaus Westphal Germany 42
Peter Dennett UK 41
Don Lang(d) USA 41
Curt Sandberg Sweden 40
Helmut Linzbichler Austria 39
Brent Weigner USA 38
Oswald Waye UK 37
Sudyong Toprasert Thailand 36
KG Nystrom Sweden 32
Antonius Steinberg Germany 30
Karsten Koehler Germany 30
(d) - deceased
Wednesday, December 07, 2011
TR - Curacao
Trip Report
Curacao
12/2 – 12/5/11
Race results:
Sun, Dec 4/11
HBN Law Marathon
Willemstad, Curacao
5:43:23 – 1 AG
Marathon #351 – Country # 112
I scheduled and booked this race in the spring when I was feeling OK and in good shape. It is only held every two years and this was the 1st marathon in Curacao since it became an independent country in Oct 2010. Thus I figured I should run it this year because there was no telling what might happen two years from now? Am I fortune teller?
As mentioned in my previous report I ran the Space Coast Marathon last weekend just to confirm that I could “go the distance’ before wasting money on a trip to Curacao. These days I have wisely learned to buy trip insurance because I can no longer be certain that I will be healthy or capable of running a marathon in 6 months let alone 6 days!
Since we have visited Curacao a few times I decided to go just for the weekend – run the race – and return home. I arrived late Fri night and Sat morning set out to explore Willemstad and find the start/finish area. The race website did not provide much detail – no course maps, etc. However the race director Erwin was very friendly and supportive as we communicated by email and he suggested a great hotel and provided directions to the start line.
After I felt comfortable how to find my way at 3 am in the dark so I could pick up my race packet and be ready for a 4am start on Sun, I spent the rest of Sat exploring Punda – the main downtown area of Willemstad. I quickly discovered that Curacao – like most Caribbean Islands is expensive! Don’t know how the locals can afford to eat and drink where the tourists go?
I enjoyed a nice pasta dinner overlooking the ocean and retired early for a 2:30 am wake-up call. I wanted to arrive by 3 am thinking that there would be a line-up for race packets? They were just setting up the start line and packet pick up so I talked to Erwin and a few local runners. It was definitely a small, local and low-key race with only 14 runners – all males! The entry fee was 25 Fl ($14 US). There was no race T-shirt, no finisher’s medal or certificate and even the race bib was ‘on loan’ (it had to be returned at the end of the race). Erwin had been kind enough to make up a bib #112 to commemorate Country #112.
It was 79F and 100% humidity (a light drizzle) as we waited in the dark. We were provided with two red strobe lights to attach to our arms so that cars could see us. Erwin explained that there were no course or distance markers, no traffic control and no water stations! Instead of water stations there were 6 bikers/cyclists roaming the course with plastic bags of water and Gatorade for runners. Since I was the only non-resident in the race and had no idea of the course I was provided a dedicated biker (Arthur) who would accompany me throughout the entire race. I offered my apologies to Arthur since he would be out on the course for a very long time!
A local runner told me that the course was tough with a lot of hills and the worst hill was at the start as the course climbed through the back streets of Otrabanda and climbed a fixed-span bridge that soared 200 ft above St Anna Bay. The race started on time and I followed the group of runners as we climbed the 1st mile to the top of the bridge. I tried to keep the runners in sight but could not run the entire mile up the bridge. I became fatigued after ½ mile (thanks to UC) and had to walk. I was in last place when I crested the bridge but was able to run the next mile down the bridge and pass one runner. Maddog was determined NOT to finish last!
Even at 4 am there was lots of traffic on the bridge so there was police support to control the traffic on the bridge. Once we descended and left the bridge there was no more traffic control. Each runner had to watch for cars and make their own way across intersections.
Thank goodness for Arthur! I would have been lost by mile 3 because there were lots of turns and no course markers! Thankfully I had worn my Garmin GPS and could read distance (whenever I could find a street light) to give me an idea how far I had run. The 1st 10K was on major city streets and there were sufficient lights to see the road and course but after the course entered the outskirts lights were scarce and often I could not even see my feet! I passed 6 Miles in 1:11:27 (close to my now standard 12-min race pace). I had hoped to run a cycle of Run-10 min & Walk -1min but there were too many hills. The ‘run’ cycle varied between 7 to 10 min and on some really tough hills I had to walk up the hill and run down the other side.
Arthur missed at turn near 10 miles and luckily a motorcycle cop came by and redirected us back on course (added an extra ¼ mile to my race). While we were stopped and discussing directions the last place runner caught up to us (he missed the turn too or was following us?). I became a wee bit discouraged and allowed that runner to take off and leave me in last place! But Maddog chewed my ass out and I picked up the pace and lengthened the run cycle to R-10 min and passed him again before I reached the Half in 2:40. The sun had risen and I became concerned about how brutal the sun and heat would get during the 2nd half?
I had been drinking 1 sack (about 4 oz) of water every 20 min and taking a GU carbo gel every 40 min with another sack. But now I felt that I was starting to dehydrate so I increased my water intake to 2 sacks every 20 min. I passed mile 16 in 3:18:34. I figured the best I could do over the final 10 miles was a 13-min pace so I would be lucky to finish in 5:30? We lucked in with the weather – the skies stayed overcast and we enjoyed a light drizzle that kept the heat down in the low 80s! Still – when I passed Mile 20 in 4:13:27 my body temp was on fire. Although I was sweating like crazy I could not vent the heat fast enough to keep my body temp near normal. As we turned on to a major road that headed back into town and the finish line I stopped and dug $10 out of my emergency funds and asked Arthur to find a mini mart and buy four 1-liter bottles of ice cold water.
He soon caught back up to me and I poured 1 liter of cold water over my head, neck and body. It felt shockingly and wonderfully COLD and provided the desired effect of lowering my body temp back to normal. As I started to drink the ice cold water I realized that I had become slightly dehydrated and drank the entire bottle. I felt much better. However during my lengthy water stop the last place runner had closed within sight. Fortunately I was able to get my pace back below 13 min/mile and extend the Run cycle to 10 min and quickly leave him behind. When I reached Mile 23 in 4:57:49 my pace had slowed to 15 min/mile. I would be lucky to finish under 5:45? I stopped for a 2nd and final water break – 1 liter on the body and 1 liter in the body. I felt much better again. I couldn’t pick the pace up much but I was able to keep the Run cycle at R-10 min & W -1 min.
As I approached mile 25 I spotted another runner walking ahead and decided to catch him. However when he saw me closing he dug deep and started running. I chased him through the final mile w/o walking but much to his credit he refused to let me catch him. I crossed the finish line in 5:43:23.
There were many runners at the finish line – about 200 runners in a Half and 10K that started at 6am – waiting for the award ceremony. Erwin announced my finish and my running accomplishments so many of the local runners introduced themselves and asked questions. I was awarded a trophy for 1st AG (oldest runner in the race) and for my 112th country.
Again I discovered that a positive upside/benefit to running/walking so slow is that nothing hurts at the end of the marathon – except my pride!
After walking back to the hotel and enjoying a long, hot shower I decided to walk over to Punda for some greasy food and a beer. As I was crossing the Queen Emma bridge (a floating bridge declared a World Heritage Site) and taking photos to share with my readers I struck my head on a Christmas decoration that had been hung too low – but just the right height to peel about one inch of scalp of the top of my head! I was bleeding like a stuck pig! Luckily some kind tourists went to a restaurant for some paper napkins to use as a compress to stop the bleeding. A doctor/tourist proclaimed that I could probably get by w/o stitches. A cop called an ambulance who wanted to charge me $500 to take me to Emergency. I told them what to do with their ambulance. I walked back to the hotel to wash out the wound and my ‘red’ hair. I managed to stop the bleeding and soon returned to Punda for my beers! Brought home an unwanted/undesired souvenir the next day.
Now that I am back home – “What’s next”?
I had a lot of time – almost 6 hrs to contemplate that question during the marathon on Curacao. It is so maddening and frustrating for Maddog to be forced to run and walk a race so slowly! What’s the point in racing if you can’t be competitive and run at a level you are capable of? I am willing to accept the frustration for a bigger goal and for a short term but not for a long time or permanent basis.
I have scheduled and booked 4 international marathons/countries in 2012 that represent the completion of significant goals (world records). I am willing to do whatever it takes to complete those marathons and goals but if the health issues with the UC still continue after the final race – I will hang up my racing shoes! I will quit running marathons and all races!
I would probably still run a few miles each day to stay in shape and enjoy my daily endorphin fix – but No More Races!
I have known that this decision would come eventually. But I expected it to be the result of an injury and hoped that I could switch to biking or swimming as alternative exercises. But this nasty disease has robbed me of that option. I can’t do any exercise which requires anaerobic or fast aerobic effort!
But the fat lady ain’t singing yet! There is still about 9 months for the GI docs to figure out a combination of drugs that might force this disease into remission and let me get my (running) life back?
Stay tuned!
Footnote:
Health update: 1/5/12
I need to apologize to the UC. Even though it is a nasty disease and has greatly impacted my health and running for the past year I falsely blamed it for all my woes during the past few months. The symptoms of fatigue and shortness of breath that I suffered for the past few months are typical of UC and ones I had suffered each time the UC flared up. So I falsely believed all my problems were due to UC and the GI doc was aggressively treating the UC with new drugs and combinations of drugs. When no improvement was seen and in fact the symptoms and my running seem to get worse over the past few races I decided that I should make an appointment with my GP to see if there might be other reasons for the problems?
A few days after I returned from Curacao feeling tired and depressed I met with my GP. Five minutes after checking my heart and doing an EKG in his office I was ordered “to go directly – do not go home or collect $200” to the Cardiac Unit of the Sarasota Hospital! My heart rate was hovering in the low 30s and my heart was experiencing A-Fib (Atrial Fibrillation).
Both the GP and cardiologist were convinced that I needed a pacemaker – immediately!
Needless to say I was in shock. However I did insist that we slow the rush/process down and explore other options. I was not excited about getting a pacemaker!
Fortunately it was decided that a cardio version should be tried to shock the heart back into rhythm and it was successful. I was released from the hospital after a few days and a stress test later that week confirmed that my heart was still in rhythm and the muscle and arteries were in good shape. I started running again and for the first time in months I was able to run w/o suffering fatigue and shortness of breath. I was even able to run at a sub-10 min pace again!
I stopped taking all additional drugs for the UC other than the main one that I must stay on and all the other ‘crappy’ symptoms of that nasty disease quickly disappeared! It is the best I have felt in months – both physically and mentally.
I just completed a 2-week cruise through the Panama Canal over the Christmas Holidays where I truly rested and relaxed for the first time in many years – no running. However I am now ready to resume my normal training program (and lose the 10 lbs gained on the cruise) and get back into ‘marathon’ shape for the 2012 racing season!
Stay tuned!
Curacao
12/2 – 12/5/11
Race results:
Sun, Dec 4/11
HBN Law Marathon
Willemstad, Curacao
5:43:23 – 1 AG
Marathon #351 – Country # 112
I scheduled and booked this race in the spring when I was feeling OK and in good shape. It is only held every two years and this was the 1st marathon in Curacao since it became an independent country in Oct 2010. Thus I figured I should run it this year because there was no telling what might happen two years from now? Am I fortune teller?
As mentioned in my previous report I ran the Space Coast Marathon last weekend just to confirm that I could “go the distance’ before wasting money on a trip to Curacao. These days I have wisely learned to buy trip insurance because I can no longer be certain that I will be healthy or capable of running a marathon in 6 months let alone 6 days!
Since we have visited Curacao a few times I decided to go just for the weekend – run the race – and return home. I arrived late Fri night and Sat morning set out to explore Willemstad and find the start/finish area. The race website did not provide much detail – no course maps, etc. However the race director Erwin was very friendly and supportive as we communicated by email and he suggested a great hotel and provided directions to the start line.
After I felt comfortable how to find my way at 3 am in the dark so I could pick up my race packet and be ready for a 4am start on Sun, I spent the rest of Sat exploring Punda – the main downtown area of Willemstad. I quickly discovered that Curacao – like most Caribbean Islands is expensive! Don’t know how the locals can afford to eat and drink where the tourists go?
I enjoyed a nice pasta dinner overlooking the ocean and retired early for a 2:30 am wake-up call. I wanted to arrive by 3 am thinking that there would be a line-up for race packets? They were just setting up the start line and packet pick up so I talked to Erwin and a few local runners. It was definitely a small, local and low-key race with only 14 runners – all males! The entry fee was 25 Fl ($14 US). There was no race T-shirt, no finisher’s medal or certificate and even the race bib was ‘on loan’ (it had to be returned at the end of the race). Erwin had been kind enough to make up a bib #112 to commemorate Country #112.
It was 79F and 100% humidity (a light drizzle) as we waited in the dark. We were provided with two red strobe lights to attach to our arms so that cars could see us. Erwin explained that there were no course or distance markers, no traffic control and no water stations! Instead of water stations there were 6 bikers/cyclists roaming the course with plastic bags of water and Gatorade for runners. Since I was the only non-resident in the race and had no idea of the course I was provided a dedicated biker (Arthur) who would accompany me throughout the entire race. I offered my apologies to Arthur since he would be out on the course for a very long time!
A local runner told me that the course was tough with a lot of hills and the worst hill was at the start as the course climbed through the back streets of Otrabanda and climbed a fixed-span bridge that soared 200 ft above St Anna Bay. The race started on time and I followed the group of runners as we climbed the 1st mile to the top of the bridge. I tried to keep the runners in sight but could not run the entire mile up the bridge. I became fatigued after ½ mile (thanks to UC) and had to walk. I was in last place when I crested the bridge but was able to run the next mile down the bridge and pass one runner. Maddog was determined NOT to finish last!
Even at 4 am there was lots of traffic on the bridge so there was police support to control the traffic on the bridge. Once we descended and left the bridge there was no more traffic control. Each runner had to watch for cars and make their own way across intersections.
Thank goodness for Arthur! I would have been lost by mile 3 because there were lots of turns and no course markers! Thankfully I had worn my Garmin GPS and could read distance (whenever I could find a street light) to give me an idea how far I had run. The 1st 10K was on major city streets and there were sufficient lights to see the road and course but after the course entered the outskirts lights were scarce and often I could not even see my feet! I passed 6 Miles in 1:11:27 (close to my now standard 12-min race pace). I had hoped to run a cycle of Run-10 min & Walk -1min but there were too many hills. The ‘run’ cycle varied between 7 to 10 min and on some really tough hills I had to walk up the hill and run down the other side.
Arthur missed at turn near 10 miles and luckily a motorcycle cop came by and redirected us back on course (added an extra ¼ mile to my race). While we were stopped and discussing directions the last place runner caught up to us (he missed the turn too or was following us?). I became a wee bit discouraged and allowed that runner to take off and leave me in last place! But Maddog chewed my ass out and I picked up the pace and lengthened the run cycle to R-10 min and passed him again before I reached the Half in 2:40. The sun had risen and I became concerned about how brutal the sun and heat would get during the 2nd half?
I had been drinking 1 sack (about 4 oz) of water every 20 min and taking a GU carbo gel every 40 min with another sack. But now I felt that I was starting to dehydrate so I increased my water intake to 2 sacks every 20 min. I passed mile 16 in 3:18:34. I figured the best I could do over the final 10 miles was a 13-min pace so I would be lucky to finish in 5:30? We lucked in with the weather – the skies stayed overcast and we enjoyed a light drizzle that kept the heat down in the low 80s! Still – when I passed Mile 20 in 4:13:27 my body temp was on fire. Although I was sweating like crazy I could not vent the heat fast enough to keep my body temp near normal. As we turned on to a major road that headed back into town and the finish line I stopped and dug $10 out of my emergency funds and asked Arthur to find a mini mart and buy four 1-liter bottles of ice cold water.
He soon caught back up to me and I poured 1 liter of cold water over my head, neck and body. It felt shockingly and wonderfully COLD and provided the desired effect of lowering my body temp back to normal. As I started to drink the ice cold water I realized that I had become slightly dehydrated and drank the entire bottle. I felt much better. However during my lengthy water stop the last place runner had closed within sight. Fortunately I was able to get my pace back below 13 min/mile and extend the Run cycle to 10 min and quickly leave him behind. When I reached Mile 23 in 4:57:49 my pace had slowed to 15 min/mile. I would be lucky to finish under 5:45? I stopped for a 2nd and final water break – 1 liter on the body and 1 liter in the body. I felt much better again. I couldn’t pick the pace up much but I was able to keep the Run cycle at R-10 min & W -1 min.
As I approached mile 25 I spotted another runner walking ahead and decided to catch him. However when he saw me closing he dug deep and started running. I chased him through the final mile w/o walking but much to his credit he refused to let me catch him. I crossed the finish line in 5:43:23.
There were many runners at the finish line – about 200 runners in a Half and 10K that started at 6am – waiting for the award ceremony. Erwin announced my finish and my running accomplishments so many of the local runners introduced themselves and asked questions. I was awarded a trophy for 1st AG (oldest runner in the race) and for my 112th country.
Again I discovered that a positive upside/benefit to running/walking so slow is that nothing hurts at the end of the marathon – except my pride!
After walking back to the hotel and enjoying a long, hot shower I decided to walk over to Punda for some greasy food and a beer. As I was crossing the Queen Emma bridge (a floating bridge declared a World Heritage Site) and taking photos to share with my readers I struck my head on a Christmas decoration that had been hung too low – but just the right height to peel about one inch of scalp of the top of my head! I was bleeding like a stuck pig! Luckily some kind tourists went to a restaurant for some paper napkins to use as a compress to stop the bleeding. A doctor/tourist proclaimed that I could probably get by w/o stitches. A cop called an ambulance who wanted to charge me $500 to take me to Emergency. I told them what to do with their ambulance. I walked back to the hotel to wash out the wound and my ‘red’ hair. I managed to stop the bleeding and soon returned to Punda for my beers! Brought home an unwanted/undesired souvenir the next day.
Now that I am back home – “What’s next”?
I had a lot of time – almost 6 hrs to contemplate that question during the marathon on Curacao. It is so maddening and frustrating for Maddog to be forced to run and walk a race so slowly! What’s the point in racing if you can’t be competitive and run at a level you are capable of? I am willing to accept the frustration for a bigger goal and for a short term but not for a long time or permanent basis.
I have scheduled and booked 4 international marathons/countries in 2012 that represent the completion of significant goals (world records). I am willing to do whatever it takes to complete those marathons and goals but if the health issues with the UC still continue after the final race – I will hang up my racing shoes! I will quit running marathons and all races!
I would probably still run a few miles each day to stay in shape and enjoy my daily endorphin fix – but No More Races!
I have known that this decision would come eventually. But I expected it to be the result of an injury and hoped that I could switch to biking or swimming as alternative exercises. But this nasty disease has robbed me of that option. I can’t do any exercise which requires anaerobic or fast aerobic effort!
But the fat lady ain’t singing yet! There is still about 9 months for the GI docs to figure out a combination of drugs that might force this disease into remission and let me get my (running) life back?
Stay tuned!
Footnote:
Health update: 1/5/12
I need to apologize to the UC. Even though it is a nasty disease and has greatly impacted my health and running for the past year I falsely blamed it for all my woes during the past few months. The symptoms of fatigue and shortness of breath that I suffered for the past few months are typical of UC and ones I had suffered each time the UC flared up. So I falsely believed all my problems were due to UC and the GI doc was aggressively treating the UC with new drugs and combinations of drugs. When no improvement was seen and in fact the symptoms and my running seem to get worse over the past few races I decided that I should make an appointment with my GP to see if there might be other reasons for the problems?
A few days after I returned from Curacao feeling tired and depressed I met with my GP. Five minutes after checking my heart and doing an EKG in his office I was ordered “to go directly – do not go home or collect $200” to the Cardiac Unit of the Sarasota Hospital! My heart rate was hovering in the low 30s and my heart was experiencing A-Fib (Atrial Fibrillation).
Both the GP and cardiologist were convinced that I needed a pacemaker – immediately!
Needless to say I was in shock. However I did insist that we slow the rush/process down and explore other options. I was not excited about getting a pacemaker!
Fortunately it was decided that a cardio version should be tried to shock the heart back into rhythm and it was successful. I was released from the hospital after a few days and a stress test later that week confirmed that my heart was still in rhythm and the muscle and arteries were in good shape. I started running again and for the first time in months I was able to run w/o suffering fatigue and shortness of breath. I was even able to run at a sub-10 min pace again!
I stopped taking all additional drugs for the UC other than the main one that I must stay on and all the other ‘crappy’ symptoms of that nasty disease quickly disappeared! It is the best I have felt in months – both physically and mentally.
I just completed a 2-week cruise through the Panama Canal over the Christmas Holidays where I truly rested and relaxed for the first time in many years – no running. However I am now ready to resume my normal training program (and lose the 10 lbs gained on the cruise) and get back into ‘marathon’ shape for the 2012 racing season!
Stay tuned!
Tuesday, December 06, 2011
RR - Space Coast Marathon
Race Report
Sun, Nov 27/11
Space Coast Marathon
Cocoa, FL
4:24:22
Marathon #350
This will be another brief report since I was still suffering bad effects of that nasty disease UC and my performance and time is not worth wasting a lot of time writing about! I would have cancelled the race except I was scheduled to run an international marathon one week later and I needed to see if I could “go the distance’ before wasting money on a trip to South America? Also I planned to stay with old friends – the Grubers- in their new home in Cocoa that was conveniently located one block from the start/finish of the race. In retrospect I am now very glad that I did get to spend time with my friends as they received some bad news a few days later (discussed later in the report).
Nicole and I had been spending the Thanksgiving holidays in Kyle, TX with our son Jason, Ami & our precious grandkids. Chris & Ari flew in from Seattle so the whole family was together for Thanksgiving. I ran a few days in Kyle and found I had to struggle just to run a cycle of Run -5 min & Walk – 1 min. That was not a good sign for the upcoming race?
Nevertheless I left TX on Sat morning and arrived in Cocoa later that day. Grube had been kind enough to pick up my race packet which saved a lot of time and allowed me a short rest before we walked to a fine Italian restaurant for pasta dinner. Grubette (Connie) explained that she had been sick with pleurisy for a few weeks and was scheduled for a scan and biopsy on some tumors that had been discovered on her lungs?
Sun was ‘M’ day. I ran the race in 2010 and enjoyed the course along the Indian River. The race started at 6:15 am. I almost missed the start because the alarm clock did not wake me until 5:50 am and I had to rush to the start line that was fortunately only a few blocks away. I did not have enough time to ‘empty’ my system either at the Grubes or at the start so I expected that I would have to make a pit stop early in the race. The weather was hotter than forecast with temps in the low 70s at the start and increased into the low 80s by the finish! Most of the finish times were much slower than normal.
My strategy was to start out with a cycle of R-5 min & W-1 min. After a few cycles I realized that I was having a ‘bad’ UC day and decided to stick to that cycle through the entire race if necessary to finish. By mile Three I was looking for a bush along the Indian River for a pit stop. I reached Mile 5 in 1:00:34 and Mile 10 in 1:59:34 – averaging a 12-min pace in spite of all the walking I was forced to do. When I reached the Half back in downtown Cocoa I took advantage of the many portable toilets at the start line to make another (2nd) major pit stop! I hoped that would ‘empty’ my system and be the final pit stop?
The 2nd half headed south along the Indian River and we met many Half Marathoners on the return loop to the finish line. When I passed 20 M in 4:02:29 I was surprised/frustrated that I needed a 3rd major pit stop - a new record for me! My pace slowed to an average 13-min over the next 5 Km and then slowed more again to a 14-min pace over the final 5 Km as I struggled to keep the tired old legs shuffling to the finish line in 5:24:22. I was determined not to give up and quit even though I was totally fatigued and frustrated with how slow I was ‘running’!
The Grubes had decided to do a 40-mile bike ride while I was running so I wasn’t sure if they would be at the finish line or not. When I couldn’t see them I decided to take the mandatory finish line photo and return to their place. The only positive thing I can see about ‘running’ so slow is that nothing hurts when the race is finished – except your pride!
The Grubes returned shortly after I had a hot shower. Connie was not feeling well after the bike ride so we decided to stay home and watch football and rest. Grube was gracious enough to grill us an excellent steak even after Tebow won the Denver game in overtime (he hates Tebow!).
I left at noon on Mon to pick up Nicole at the Tampa airport as she returned from TX. Connie still was not feeling well and we all hoped that the medical appointments she had that week would provide some answers. Unfortunately the answers were not good! The tumors were cancerous! The doctors still haven’t determined where the cancer originates or how they are going to treat it. We were shocked and sad with the bad news! Our prayers and good wishes are with her through this battle.
The Grubes and I had discussed the frailty and uncertainty of old age and illness during my visit. Little did we realize the significance of our thoughts and opinions? After returning home I had another treatment of the new meds for my UC and then met with the GI doc. I explained that I was disappointed that I had not enjoyed a ‘super’ boost or improvement on the new drugs. He tried to convince me that a 68-year old man with UC should not be running marathons. You can imagine what Maddog’s response was to that advice!
Since I had finished Space Coast w/o dying I figured I could survive my next international marathon in Curacao although I understood it would be harder because of the tropical heat and humidity. And I had a few more days for the new meds to perform a miracle. Did they?
Stay tuned!
Sun, Nov 27/11
Space Coast Marathon
Cocoa, FL
4:24:22
Marathon #350
This will be another brief report since I was still suffering bad effects of that nasty disease UC and my performance and time is not worth wasting a lot of time writing about! I would have cancelled the race except I was scheduled to run an international marathon one week later and I needed to see if I could “go the distance’ before wasting money on a trip to South America? Also I planned to stay with old friends – the Grubers- in their new home in Cocoa that was conveniently located one block from the start/finish of the race. In retrospect I am now very glad that I did get to spend time with my friends as they received some bad news a few days later (discussed later in the report).
Nicole and I had been spending the Thanksgiving holidays in Kyle, TX with our son Jason, Ami & our precious grandkids. Chris & Ari flew in from Seattle so the whole family was together for Thanksgiving. I ran a few days in Kyle and found I had to struggle just to run a cycle of Run -5 min & Walk – 1 min. That was not a good sign for the upcoming race?
Nevertheless I left TX on Sat morning and arrived in Cocoa later that day. Grube had been kind enough to pick up my race packet which saved a lot of time and allowed me a short rest before we walked to a fine Italian restaurant for pasta dinner. Grubette (Connie) explained that she had been sick with pleurisy for a few weeks and was scheduled for a scan and biopsy on some tumors that had been discovered on her lungs?
Sun was ‘M’ day. I ran the race in 2010 and enjoyed the course along the Indian River. The race started at 6:15 am. I almost missed the start because the alarm clock did not wake me until 5:50 am and I had to rush to the start line that was fortunately only a few blocks away. I did not have enough time to ‘empty’ my system either at the Grubes or at the start so I expected that I would have to make a pit stop early in the race. The weather was hotter than forecast with temps in the low 70s at the start and increased into the low 80s by the finish! Most of the finish times were much slower than normal.
My strategy was to start out with a cycle of R-5 min & W-1 min. After a few cycles I realized that I was having a ‘bad’ UC day and decided to stick to that cycle through the entire race if necessary to finish. By mile Three I was looking for a bush along the Indian River for a pit stop. I reached Mile 5 in 1:00:34 and Mile 10 in 1:59:34 – averaging a 12-min pace in spite of all the walking I was forced to do. When I reached the Half back in downtown Cocoa I took advantage of the many portable toilets at the start line to make another (2nd) major pit stop! I hoped that would ‘empty’ my system and be the final pit stop?
The 2nd half headed south along the Indian River and we met many Half Marathoners on the return loop to the finish line. When I passed 20 M in 4:02:29 I was surprised/frustrated that I needed a 3rd major pit stop - a new record for me! My pace slowed to an average 13-min over the next 5 Km and then slowed more again to a 14-min pace over the final 5 Km as I struggled to keep the tired old legs shuffling to the finish line in 5:24:22. I was determined not to give up and quit even though I was totally fatigued and frustrated with how slow I was ‘running’!
The Grubes had decided to do a 40-mile bike ride while I was running so I wasn’t sure if they would be at the finish line or not. When I couldn’t see them I decided to take the mandatory finish line photo and return to their place. The only positive thing I can see about ‘running’ so slow is that nothing hurts when the race is finished – except your pride!
The Grubes returned shortly after I had a hot shower. Connie was not feeling well after the bike ride so we decided to stay home and watch football and rest. Grube was gracious enough to grill us an excellent steak even after Tebow won the Denver game in overtime (he hates Tebow!).
I left at noon on Mon to pick up Nicole at the Tampa airport as she returned from TX. Connie still was not feeling well and we all hoped that the medical appointments she had that week would provide some answers. Unfortunately the answers were not good! The tumors were cancerous! The doctors still haven’t determined where the cancer originates or how they are going to treat it. We were shocked and sad with the bad news! Our prayers and good wishes are with her through this battle.
The Grubes and I had discussed the frailty and uncertainty of old age and illness during my visit. Little did we realize the significance of our thoughts and opinions? After returning home I had another treatment of the new meds for my UC and then met with the GI doc. I explained that I was disappointed that I had not enjoyed a ‘super’ boost or improvement on the new drugs. He tried to convince me that a 68-year old man with UC should not be running marathons. You can imagine what Maddog’s response was to that advice!
Since I had finished Space Coast w/o dying I figured I could survive my next international marathon in Curacao although I understood it would be harder because of the tropical heat and humidity. And I had a few more days for the new meds to perform a miracle. Did they?
Stay tuned!
Monday, October 24, 2011
TR - Netherlands
TRIP REPORT
Isle of Jersey & Netherlands
9/30 – 10/11/11
Race Results:
Sun, Oct 9/11
Soest, Netherlands
Pijnenburg Bosmarathon
Marathon #349
5:23:52
As I stated at the end of the last report I was on my way to Amsterdam from Jersey to keep a promise made to a friend – “to join him for his 100th marathon”!
I met Jaap Van de Berg in the Faroe Islands. He is a fellow member of the Country Club and a good friend. When he initially invited me to join him in his hometown of Soest I was excited to do so since I was going to be in the neighborhood (Europe) at the time and I expected to be healthy!
I planned to stay one day in Amsterdam to re-visit that city. After taking a train into the Central Station and finding my hotel near Dam Square I explored the city. I quickly discovered that Amsterdam is very expensive! In the evening I walked around the ‘Red Light’ district to window shop. The prostitutes stand in front of glass doors/windows displaying their ass(ets) in bra & panties (or less). Anyone interested in ‘buying’ knocks on the door and negotiates a price! It is quite entertaining – even if you don’t buy anything!
On Wed, Jaap was a kind host and picked me up at the hotel to drive me to Soest. Soest is about 30Km south of Amsterdam. The surrounding area is agricultural – flat and green – so much nicer than the noise and hustle of Amsterdam! The weather had turned miserable – cloudy, cool and rain – not great for touring so I stayed close to my hotel that was located close to the Running Club where the race started/finished. On Thu Jaap had arranged for a friend, a retired military officer – to give us a tour of an air base that had been abandoned by the USA. We were shown a memorial to 33 Dutch citizens who had been shot at that site by Nazis for refusing to work. What shocked me was that Jaap has lived in Soest all his life and had never seen the memorial because the area is prohibited to the public? His friend also gave us a personal, guided tour of the Soest Museum that was closed that day. Then Jaap showed me around his hometown that he is very proud of. Later that evening Jaap and his new bride Mea invited me to their home for a lovely traditional Dutch dinner washed down (of course) with Heineken!
On Sat it rained again for most of the day. I was beginning to worry that the course which was dirt trails through the forest would be wet and muddy and even more worried that it would rain during the race?
On sat evening I was invited to a pasta party at the Running Club who were hosting runners from their sister city of Soest, Germany. A friend, Wolfgang and his wife Giselle, had driven up from Dusseldorf to make a presentation the Club on the Sahara Marathon.
Sun was ‘M’ Day. The race started at 10:30am. It was dry for the start but the trails were a mess. Jaap and I had lots of posing and interviews to make for the local press before the start. The course was a 10.5Km loop though the forests – no roads or streets to cross. Again I started out with a Run/walk strategy. The race had a time limit of 5 ½ hours which could be difficult with the condition of the trails?
I started with a cycle of R-5min & W-1 min. After 5 Km I was in LAST place and increased the cycle to R-1Km & W-1 min. When I completed the 1st loop in 1:15 I was still in LAST place so I decided to increase the cycle to R-2 Km & W-1 min. I finished the 2nd loop in 2:31 and I was still in LAST place!
Around 23Km I finally passed a runner. A race volunteer, (Peter) who had accompanied me throughout the race on a bike informed me that he would have to drop back and follow that runner. Alas – 2 Km later he caught back up to me with the bad news. That runner had dropped out of the race and I was once again in LAST place! To make matters worse (?) it started to rain! At that point I was wondering if Jaap might lap me since I was on schedule to complete the 3rd loop in 3:45? No sooner did I think that when Jaap flew by me. I figured he would finish close to 3:30 – he did finish in 3:29:44 – a great race for him!
When I completed the 3rd loop in 3:50 it was raining hard and my legs were starting to tire. I informed Peter that I was going to reduce the cycle back to R-1Km & W-1 min. for the final loop. Surprisingly I passed another runner around 35 Km. He was suffering severe leg cramps and I tried to encourage and convince him to tough it out and finish (so I wouldn’t be LAST)! Alas- Peter caught up to me about 2 Km later with more bad news. That runner had dropped out and I was in LAST place again! He asked me if I was going to make it (I think he hinted that he was hoping I might quit) but I informed him that ‘quit’ was not in Maddog’s vocabulary! As we passed volunteers along the course for the final time I thanked each and every one for staying there in the cold and rain and suggested they go home for a hot bath and cold beer. All of them knew my name (from pre-race publicity with Jaap) and had cheered me through all 4 laps! Although I was getting close to the cut-off time I kept moving the tired old legs and crossed the finish line in 5:23:55. Jaap was waiting at the finish line to hang a finisher’s medal around my neck and Wolfgang was there to take the photo.
We retreated to the Club house for a beer but suddenly the cold and wet clothes started to bother me so I requested a ride back to the hotel for a hot shower. I think I stayed under that shower for at least 30 min? Jaap had arranged for a friend to drive me back to Amsterdam and to a hotel near the airport since I had an early morning flight home. Jaap and Mea came to the hotel to say bye and thank me for coming. I was glad that I had kept my promise!
I am back home and slowly recovering from the UC flare-up. The leg injuries seem to be behind me so hopefully I will be able to resume my normal training soon and begin the long, slow process of getting back into ‘marathon’ shape.
Stay tuned!
Isle of Jersey & Netherlands
9/30 – 10/11/11
Race Results:
Sun, Oct 9/11
Soest, Netherlands
Pijnenburg Bosmarathon
Marathon #349
5:23:52
As I stated at the end of the last report I was on my way to Amsterdam from Jersey to keep a promise made to a friend – “to join him for his 100th marathon”!
I met Jaap Van de Berg in the Faroe Islands. He is a fellow member of the Country Club and a good friend. When he initially invited me to join him in his hometown of Soest I was excited to do so since I was going to be in the neighborhood (Europe) at the time and I expected to be healthy!
I planned to stay one day in Amsterdam to re-visit that city. After taking a train into the Central Station and finding my hotel near Dam Square I explored the city. I quickly discovered that Amsterdam is very expensive! In the evening I walked around the ‘Red Light’ district to window shop. The prostitutes stand in front of glass doors/windows displaying their ass(ets) in bra & panties (or less). Anyone interested in ‘buying’ knocks on the door and negotiates a price! It is quite entertaining – even if you don’t buy anything!
On Wed, Jaap was a kind host and picked me up at the hotel to drive me to Soest. Soest is about 30Km south of Amsterdam. The surrounding area is agricultural – flat and green – so much nicer than the noise and hustle of Amsterdam! The weather had turned miserable – cloudy, cool and rain – not great for touring so I stayed close to my hotel that was located close to the Running Club where the race started/finished. On Thu Jaap had arranged for a friend, a retired military officer – to give us a tour of an air base that had been abandoned by the USA. We were shown a memorial to 33 Dutch citizens who had been shot at that site by Nazis for refusing to work. What shocked me was that Jaap has lived in Soest all his life and had never seen the memorial because the area is prohibited to the public? His friend also gave us a personal, guided tour of the Soest Museum that was closed that day. Then Jaap showed me around his hometown that he is very proud of. Later that evening Jaap and his new bride Mea invited me to their home for a lovely traditional Dutch dinner washed down (of course) with Heineken!
On Sat it rained again for most of the day. I was beginning to worry that the course which was dirt trails through the forest would be wet and muddy and even more worried that it would rain during the race?
On sat evening I was invited to a pasta party at the Running Club who were hosting runners from their sister city of Soest, Germany. A friend, Wolfgang and his wife Giselle, had driven up from Dusseldorf to make a presentation the Club on the Sahara Marathon.
Sun was ‘M’ Day. The race started at 10:30am. It was dry for the start but the trails were a mess. Jaap and I had lots of posing and interviews to make for the local press before the start. The course was a 10.5Km loop though the forests – no roads or streets to cross. Again I started out with a Run/walk strategy. The race had a time limit of 5 ½ hours which could be difficult with the condition of the trails?
I started with a cycle of R-5min & W-1 min. After 5 Km I was in LAST place and increased the cycle to R-1Km & W-1 min. When I completed the 1st loop in 1:15 I was still in LAST place so I decided to increase the cycle to R-2 Km & W-1 min. I finished the 2nd loop in 2:31 and I was still in LAST place!
Around 23Km I finally passed a runner. A race volunteer, (Peter) who had accompanied me throughout the race on a bike informed me that he would have to drop back and follow that runner. Alas – 2 Km later he caught back up to me with the bad news. That runner had dropped out of the race and I was once again in LAST place! To make matters worse (?) it started to rain! At that point I was wondering if Jaap might lap me since I was on schedule to complete the 3rd loop in 3:45? No sooner did I think that when Jaap flew by me. I figured he would finish close to 3:30 – he did finish in 3:29:44 – a great race for him!
When I completed the 3rd loop in 3:50 it was raining hard and my legs were starting to tire. I informed Peter that I was going to reduce the cycle back to R-1Km & W-1 min. for the final loop. Surprisingly I passed another runner around 35 Km. He was suffering severe leg cramps and I tried to encourage and convince him to tough it out and finish (so I wouldn’t be LAST)! Alas- Peter caught up to me about 2 Km later with more bad news. That runner had dropped out and I was in LAST place again! He asked me if I was going to make it (I think he hinted that he was hoping I might quit) but I informed him that ‘quit’ was not in Maddog’s vocabulary! As we passed volunteers along the course for the final time I thanked each and every one for staying there in the cold and rain and suggested they go home for a hot bath and cold beer. All of them knew my name (from pre-race publicity with Jaap) and had cheered me through all 4 laps! Although I was getting close to the cut-off time I kept moving the tired old legs and crossed the finish line in 5:23:55. Jaap was waiting at the finish line to hang a finisher’s medal around my neck and Wolfgang was there to take the photo.
We retreated to the Club house for a beer but suddenly the cold and wet clothes started to bother me so I requested a ride back to the hotel for a hot shower. I think I stayed under that shower for at least 30 min? Jaap had arranged for a friend to drive me back to Amsterdam and to a hotel near the airport since I had an early morning flight home. Jaap and Mea came to the hotel to say bye and thank me for coming. I was glad that I had kept my promise!
I am back home and slowly recovering from the UC flare-up. The leg injuries seem to be behind me so hopefully I will be able to resume my normal training soon and begin the long, slow process of getting back into ‘marathon’ shape.
Stay tuned!
TR - Isle of Jersey
TRIP REPORT
Isle of Jersey & Netherlands
9/30 – 10/11/11
Race Results:
Sun, Oct 2/11
St Helier, Isle of Jersey
Jersey Marathon
Marathon #348 – Country #111
5:19:55
I almost didn’t write this trip report! I was so frustrated and bummed out with the poor performances and health issues that I didn’t want to bore anyone with the ongoing saga. However one of my friends suggested I should still write a brief report and I do need to thank friends for their support and hospitality at both races so here goes.
If the races and trip had not been international (i.e. one new country to add to my list) and paid for I would have cancelled the trip at the last minute because of a major flare-up with the UC. I literally met with my GI doc a few hours before flight time to get some additional meds to take with me in the hopes it would help control the UC?
When I arrived in Jersey I was pleasantly surprised to find my friend Tony Hancock waiting for me in ‘Arrivals’. I met Tony during the Inca Trail Marathon (Peru) and we keep in touch. Tony lives near London and has a girl friend (Sue) in Jersey. Tony was kind enough to accompany me on the bus into the Central Bus station in St Helier. Race registration and packet pick-up were located one block from the station so I was able to pick up my race packet on the way to the hotel. The Jersey Evening Post had published a supplement for the race that included a nice article on Maddog so I was asked to sign a few autographs during packet pick-up. Later that evening I joined Tony, Sue and her daughter Jen for a lovely pasta dinner.
Sun was ‘M’ Day. The race started and finished in Liberation Square in St Helier. Europe was experiencing record temps for Oct and the forecast was for HOT temps – in the 80s! It was sunny and warm at the 9 am start. Because of injury and health issues I was forced (yet again) to adopt a run/walk race strategy with a primary goal of finishing. I started with a cycle of Run-5 min & Walk-1 min. However by mile 5 I realized I was in LAST place and that was not acceptable to Maddog so I increased the cycle to R-1 Mile & W-1 min. I passed a few runners before reaching the Half in 2:31 and that made me feel better. But I knew the 2nd Half would be even slower because it was getting hotter! There were several relay teams and the relay race started 30 min later so runners kept passing me throughout the race and that was frustrating – except when pretty young ladies ran by me and shouted “well done John/Maddog”. They recognized me from the article in the race supplement. The sad news was that I was in such bad shape that I couldn’t stay with them to chat! As I approached Mile 20 in 3:56 I was staring to wilt from the heat. Fortunately much of the course was on dirt bike trails that were shaded and the next two miles of shade provided some relief and I was able to struggle across the finish line in 5:19:55.
After a brief interview with the local paper I joined Tony, Sue & Jen for a cold beer at the finish line. Then I crawled back to the hotel for a long hot shower before returning to the finish area to join a friend, Jack Brooks, and other fellow members of the 100 Marathon Club (UK) for more beer and a celebration dinner. One member had completed his 100th marathon at the race!
The weather continued to be sunny and warm on Mon so I joined a group to tour the entire island and enjoy the typical tourist sites – the German bunkers at Noirmont Point, Corbiere Point, St Brelade’s Bay, Gorey and Mont Orgueil Castle, etc (see photos). Jersey is a pretty island and there seems to be a lot of money since the houses were huge and I didn’t see any slums?
On Tue the weather returned to normal – cloudy & cool – and I walked around St Helier to buy the required souvenirs, take more photos and enjoy a pleasant seafood dinner at the Fisherman’s Market.
On Wed I had to catch a cab to the airport for a very early morning flight back to Gatwick and on to Amsterdam. I still wasn’t feeling well and would have cancelled that portion of the trip if I had not promised a friend, Jaap, that I would join him to run his 100th marathon in his hometown of Soest, Netherlands! Maybe the UC would calm down and I would feel better by the weekend?
Stay tuned!
Isle of Jersey & Netherlands
9/30 – 10/11/11
Race Results:
Sun, Oct 2/11
St Helier, Isle of Jersey
Jersey Marathon
Marathon #348 – Country #111
5:19:55
I almost didn’t write this trip report! I was so frustrated and bummed out with the poor performances and health issues that I didn’t want to bore anyone with the ongoing saga. However one of my friends suggested I should still write a brief report and I do need to thank friends for their support and hospitality at both races so here goes.
If the races and trip had not been international (i.e. one new country to add to my list) and paid for I would have cancelled the trip at the last minute because of a major flare-up with the UC. I literally met with my GI doc a few hours before flight time to get some additional meds to take with me in the hopes it would help control the UC?
When I arrived in Jersey I was pleasantly surprised to find my friend Tony Hancock waiting for me in ‘Arrivals’. I met Tony during the Inca Trail Marathon (Peru) and we keep in touch. Tony lives near London and has a girl friend (Sue) in Jersey. Tony was kind enough to accompany me on the bus into the Central Bus station in St Helier. Race registration and packet pick-up were located one block from the station so I was able to pick up my race packet on the way to the hotel. The Jersey Evening Post had published a supplement for the race that included a nice article on Maddog so I was asked to sign a few autographs during packet pick-up. Later that evening I joined Tony, Sue and her daughter Jen for a lovely pasta dinner.
Sun was ‘M’ Day. The race started and finished in Liberation Square in St Helier. Europe was experiencing record temps for Oct and the forecast was for HOT temps – in the 80s! It was sunny and warm at the 9 am start. Because of injury and health issues I was forced (yet again) to adopt a run/walk race strategy with a primary goal of finishing. I started with a cycle of Run-5 min & Walk-1 min. However by mile 5 I realized I was in LAST place and that was not acceptable to Maddog so I increased the cycle to R-1 Mile & W-1 min. I passed a few runners before reaching the Half in 2:31 and that made me feel better. But I knew the 2nd Half would be even slower because it was getting hotter! There were several relay teams and the relay race started 30 min later so runners kept passing me throughout the race and that was frustrating – except when pretty young ladies ran by me and shouted “well done John/Maddog”. They recognized me from the article in the race supplement. The sad news was that I was in such bad shape that I couldn’t stay with them to chat! As I approached Mile 20 in 3:56 I was staring to wilt from the heat. Fortunately much of the course was on dirt bike trails that were shaded and the next two miles of shade provided some relief and I was able to struggle across the finish line in 5:19:55.
After a brief interview with the local paper I joined Tony, Sue & Jen for a cold beer at the finish line. Then I crawled back to the hotel for a long hot shower before returning to the finish area to join a friend, Jack Brooks, and other fellow members of the 100 Marathon Club (UK) for more beer and a celebration dinner. One member had completed his 100th marathon at the race!
The weather continued to be sunny and warm on Mon so I joined a group to tour the entire island and enjoy the typical tourist sites – the German bunkers at Noirmont Point, Corbiere Point, St Brelade’s Bay, Gorey and Mont Orgueil Castle, etc (see photos). Jersey is a pretty island and there seems to be a lot of money since the houses were huge and I didn’t see any slums?
On Tue the weather returned to normal – cloudy & cool – and I walked around St Helier to buy the required souvenirs, take more photos and enjoy a pleasant seafood dinner at the Fisherman’s Market.
On Wed I had to catch a cab to the airport for a very early morning flight back to Gatwick and on to Amsterdam. I still wasn’t feeling well and would have cancelled that portion of the trip if I had not promised a friend, Jaap, that I would join him to run his 100th marathon in his hometown of Soest, Netherlands! Maybe the UC would calm down and I would feel better by the weekend?
Stay tuned!
Thursday, August 18, 2011
TR -Isle of Man
TRIP REPORT
ISLE of MAN
8/10 – 8/16/11
Race Results
Sun, Aug 14/11
Ramsey, Isle of Man
Isle of Man Marathon
Marathon #347 – Country # 110
Where and how to start this report? There were a number of events that occurred leading up to this race that are important to better understand the story. So I am including a prologue or background section to fill in this information.
Background:
Planning for this race began about one year ago after the Country Club reversed a decision that the Isle of Man and other Channel Islands were not considered ‘countries’. Some Brits and European members protested that decision and submitted data to support their claim. The most significant criteria was data provided by Wikipedia that stated that these British colonies were not part of the UK or EU and competed against the UK in the Commonwealth games. One of the fundamental rules of the Country Club is that if a ‘nation’ is recognized as a country by an International Sports Organization such as the IOC, FIFA or the Commonwealth Games then it is accepted as a ‘country’ by the Country Club.
This decision reversal was good & bad news for Maddog. He now had to run 3 additional countries in Europe to maintain his claim that he had completed every country in Europe – but at least the countries were easy to get to! IOM was the first marathon in the Channel Islands scheduled for 2011.
Since I had not been back to Europe for 5 years I decided to arrange my trip through London and stay over for a few days to visit friends I had not seen for a few years. When I used to travel through London I always stayed with a good friend, Tad Lancucki, and he graciously offered to host me again. Another friend, Roger Biggs, offered to join me to run the marathon and help set up the travel/hotels etc in IOM. Everything was going smoothly until March when I received the shocking and tragic news that Tad had died suddenly and unexpectently of a heart attack! We were all saddened by this terrible news! Our one consolation was that Tad knew he had bad genes and had retired at the age of 44 (same age his father died of a heart attack) and enjoyed 17 years of adventure and fun before his bad genes got the best of him. There is a moral or lesson in this sad news that needs to be heeded by many readers of this blog!
After we let the shock of the tragic news pass Roger jumped to the rescue and scrambled to rearrange the logistics of the trip for the time we were to spend at Tad’s. Then I thought “everything is fine”?
Until early April when an orthoped informed me that I had a stress fracture in my left fibula and needed to take 6 to 8 weeks off from running. As most of you know that ‘rest’ seriously hampered my training and marathons I had planned before IOM. After running/walking the next 3 marathons and moving to our summer home at 9,000 ft in the Rockies I was finally starting to get back in shape. Three weeks before the IOM marathon I was able to run 13 miles at 9,000 ft w/o walking! I felt encouraged that with 3 more weeks of training I would be able to run close to 4 hrs in IOM. Until late July when some friends who were staying with us asked me to join them to run the Vail Half Marathon. It is a tough trail course and I thought it would be a good training run. I was worried about an injury and decided to run easy and not take any risks? However 8 miles and 3,500 vertical feet into the race I heard and felt a ‘pop’ in my right calf. As I was carried off the mountain on an ATV I kept asking “what have I done to myself and the IOM marathon”? I had torn the calf muscle and to complicate matters we were scheduled to leave 2 days later for a family wedding in Canada and thus I was not able to schedule any PT (physical therapy).
I could barely walk during our visit and when I returned to Colorado I immediately scheduled PT in the hope that it might expedite the healing process. I also forced myself to walk every day and started to include short runs. At first I couldn’t run longer than 30 to 60 secs but one week later (and 4 PT sessions) I had built up to 10 miles with a cycle of Run 5 min & Walk 1 min. That equated to a 13-min pace which would be good enough to finish the IOM marathon under the 6-hr limit! My biggest concern was “would the injured calf hang together for 26 miles”? But I had no option other than hope as I departed Colorado for London.
And now the race story begins.
Race Story:
I arrived at LHR in the early morning and was greeted by a smiley and cheerful Roger. It was 2 am –my body time – so I was not smiling. We drove around London on the M 25 to the village of Copthorne that is close to Gatwick airport where we were to depart early the next morning for IOM. We stayed with John Gilbert and Pam Story – 2 ultra marathoners and members of the 100 Marathon Club (UK). Gil & Pam are also included in the ‘Messengers’ book but I had not met them before. Nobody seemed to mind when I slipped away to sleep for 4 hrs. Later we enjoyed a pleasant stroll through Copthorne and a nice feed of fish & chips at a local pub. I slept 11 hrs before we headed to Gatwick and departed for IOM.
Roger had booked a rental car for 2 pm. We arrived at 1 pm and the rental agency would not let us have the car until 2 pm? I bit my tongue so I wouldn’t appear to be ‘an ugly American’ – Roger said it wouldn’t do any good? Finally we got a car and drove into Douglas to find our B & B. I was glad that Roger was driving. The country and roads reminded me of Ireland. Everything is green and the roads are very narrow with hedges and rock walls along both sides! The island is not that big – 572 sq Km and a population of 80,000. The cities and towns are quite small.
After checking in we decided to leave the car parked and explore the capital city on foot. High Street was only a few blocks from the hotel and within 2 blocks and 30 min I had collected all ‘required’ souvenirs – postcards, teaspoon and silver charm. That is a record – it often takes me 2 to 3 days to collect all the required souvenirs. We enjoyed another good feed of fish & chips at a chippy shop.
Another friend and Country Club member, Edson Sanches, was supposed to arrive that evening so I left a message that we planned to tour the island on Sat morning.
The weather looked like it might cooperate on Sat with cloudy skies and no rain as Roger and I ( couldn’t find Edson) drove north to Laxey to check out the Great Laxey Wheel – a giant wheel with a diameter of 72.5 ft built in 1854 to pump water out of the lead and zinc mines in Laxey. We planned to take an electric train from Laxey to the summit of Snaefell Mtn but we figured it was too overcast and we wouldn’t see much so we continued on to Ramsey where the race would start/finish. We saw part of the race course as we drove over to the Atlantic Coast and south to the town of Peel. There we visited the Peel Castle and the House of Manannan. (Lots of photos posted to my photo website). Then we continued on to Castletown, the ancient capital of IOM. We strolled by Rushen Castle, the Old House of Keys and along the town center before heading back to Douglas. As we approached Douglas the sun had burned off the clouds and we decided to drive back to Laxey to take the electric train to the summit of Snaefell Mtn (2036 ft). It was an interesting ride and I couldn’t help but notice the similarity to the terrain and environment of the Rocky Mtns even though the mtn is only 2036 ft. The tree line ended around 1200 ft and alpine meadows climbed to the summit. And it was much colder – about 20 degrees – at the summit. We could see Scotland and England from the summit but Wales was obscured by clouds. We had toured the whole island in one day. Back in Douglas we finally found Edson at his hotel and enjoyed a nice pasta dinner on High St.
Sun was M-day. The race started at 9 am so we ate a light breakfast and then picked up Edson for the drive to Ramsey. Packet pick up was at the start line in Ballacloan Stadium in Ramsey. My only complaint about the pre-race logistics was the lack of toilets – only 4 toilets in the club house - for more than 300 runners. I had to find a bush near the stadium! The weather was nice – sunny and temps in the low 50s at the start. The marathon started at 9 am and the Half at 9:30 am. I had decided to wear a compression sock on my right leg in the hopes that it would help to hold the injured calf together? Since the leg felt OK my race strategy was to go out at a cycle of Run 5 min & Walk 1 min. The course was a half-marathon loop with the first 5 miles being hilly and the highest point at 5 miles (259 ft). Edson was suffering from a hip injury and figured he would run a 5-hr race. We started together but he would leave me behind each time I walked and then I would catch up again during my run cycle. When we passed mile 3 in 32:24 I was quite pleased – averaging an 11-min pace. The next two miles included the BAH. When I reached mile 6 in 1:05:08 and a split of 10:36 the leg still felt OK and I decided to increase the cycle by 1 min each cycle until I reached a cycle of Run 10 min & Walk 1 min. I was a wee bit discouraged when the Half Marathon leaders blew by me around 7 miles – they were running twice as fast as my pace! I caught Edson at 10 miles (1:47:25) and we ran together to the Half. The compression sock seemed to be helping the injured calf but by 10 miles I could feel a blister starting to form on my big toe. By the time we passed the Half in 2:19:05 I was concerned that the blister would get worse so I stopped and took off the compression sock to check for a blister. Thankfully there was no blister but the toe was red and raw so I rubbed Vaseline on my toes and only put the double-layer sock back on. The foot felt much better!
Edson had continued on and by the time I reached the top of the BAH for the 2nd time at Mile 17 in 3:06:45 I couldn’t see him? Those hills seemed to be much harder the 2nd time around? I guessed that he might have made a pit stop and was behind me? Since the leg still felt OK I increased the cycle to Run 2 Miles & Walk 1 min. Edson caught me at Mile 19 in 3:30:01. We had 90 min to run the final 7 miles – a 13-min pace – to break 5 hrs! Edson declared that he was going to stay with me and drag my sorry ass across the finish line under 5 hrs! We (read I) did OK until Mile 23 (4:16:00) and then I ran out of gas. It is difficult to maintain the required level of aerobic conditioning to run 26 miles w/o being able to train. We had 44 min to cross the finish line and I knew we could do that even if we slowed down. I told Edson to go on ahead but he refused! He nagged/pulled/pushed me to hold the pace. I didn’t care if I finished in 4:59:59 but Edson said that was not acceptable. I finally told him to f%*k off and leave me alone – but he refused! When we reached Mile 25 in 4:40:37 and a split of 12:41 I told him that I was going to walk 2 min so I could run to the finish line. Thank goodness the final mile was a gentle decline so all I had to do was lift my feet and let gravity drag me to the finish line. At Mile 26 Edson stopped and told me to go across the finish line first. Maddog wasn’t willing to accept that! I grabbed his hand and we crossed the finish line together in 4:55:13!
I was in bad shape. I was totally exhausted and felt nauseous! From previous experience I knew that I was suffering from low blood sugar - that happens when I push the old bod beyond its limits. I stumbled into the clubhouse looking for sugar – preferably a coke. However pop and beer had to be purchased at a bar. I wasn’t sure if I could find my warm-up bag and money before puking or passing out? Luckily Roger was in the club house. He had finished in 4:09 – and already had a shower and lunch. I asked him to buy me a coke while I wolfed down two large pieces of chocolate cake covered in icing and then washed them down with the coke. Within a few minutes I could feel the sugar coursing through my system and I felt much better and recovered quickly.
We stayed in the stadium for the awards. Maddog received an award for completing Country #110.
Then we drove back to the hotel over the IOM TT course – where the annual TT motorcycle race is held.
After a hot shower and another coke I felt much better and walked down to the Promenade to take more photos of Douglas. Later we met a bunch of friends/members of the 100 Marathon Club for a few beers and dinner.
Roger and I had an early afternoon flight back to Gatwick so we explored more of the city on foot to take more photos. We arrived at Gatwick in the late afternoon and drove around London on the M25 to St Albans – north of the city. We joined another good friend, Jack Brooks, who was hosting us for the night for a great pub dinner and lots of English ale – maybe too much ale (although a few were hoisted to our fallen comrade Tad) because I was not too eager to wake up at 5am for the drive to LHR. It was a lonnngggg flight home!
I am back home in Colorado. After a 12-hr sleep to adjust the body clock from GMT to MT I went for an easy 10-mile run. The leg felt OK so imagine my disappointment when the PT dug her fingers into the scar tissue in the calf – and I jumped two feet off the table in pain? We quickly surmised that many more PT sessions are needed before the calf is ready for hard/fast training.
Fortunately I have 6 weeks before my next adventure and two international marathons – back in the Channel Islands and Europe!
Stay tuned!
ISLE of MAN
8/10 – 8/16/11
Race Results
Sun, Aug 14/11
Ramsey, Isle of Man
Isle of Man Marathon
Marathon #347 – Country # 110
Where and how to start this report? There were a number of events that occurred leading up to this race that are important to better understand the story. So I am including a prologue or background section to fill in this information.
Background:
Planning for this race began about one year ago after the Country Club reversed a decision that the Isle of Man and other Channel Islands were not considered ‘countries’. Some Brits and European members protested that decision and submitted data to support their claim. The most significant criteria was data provided by Wikipedia that stated that these British colonies were not part of the UK or EU and competed against the UK in the Commonwealth games. One of the fundamental rules of the Country Club is that if a ‘nation’ is recognized as a country by an International Sports Organization such as the IOC, FIFA or the Commonwealth Games then it is accepted as a ‘country’ by the Country Club.
This decision reversal was good & bad news for Maddog. He now had to run 3 additional countries in Europe to maintain his claim that he had completed every country in Europe – but at least the countries were easy to get to! IOM was the first marathon in the Channel Islands scheduled for 2011.
Since I had not been back to Europe for 5 years I decided to arrange my trip through London and stay over for a few days to visit friends I had not seen for a few years. When I used to travel through London I always stayed with a good friend, Tad Lancucki, and he graciously offered to host me again. Another friend, Roger Biggs, offered to join me to run the marathon and help set up the travel/hotels etc in IOM. Everything was going smoothly until March when I received the shocking and tragic news that Tad had died suddenly and unexpectently of a heart attack! We were all saddened by this terrible news! Our one consolation was that Tad knew he had bad genes and had retired at the age of 44 (same age his father died of a heart attack) and enjoyed 17 years of adventure and fun before his bad genes got the best of him. There is a moral or lesson in this sad news that needs to be heeded by many readers of this blog!
After we let the shock of the tragic news pass Roger jumped to the rescue and scrambled to rearrange the logistics of the trip for the time we were to spend at Tad’s. Then I thought “everything is fine”?
Until early April when an orthoped informed me that I had a stress fracture in my left fibula and needed to take 6 to 8 weeks off from running. As most of you know that ‘rest’ seriously hampered my training and marathons I had planned before IOM. After running/walking the next 3 marathons and moving to our summer home at 9,000 ft in the Rockies I was finally starting to get back in shape. Three weeks before the IOM marathon I was able to run 13 miles at 9,000 ft w/o walking! I felt encouraged that with 3 more weeks of training I would be able to run close to 4 hrs in IOM. Until late July when some friends who were staying with us asked me to join them to run the Vail Half Marathon. It is a tough trail course and I thought it would be a good training run. I was worried about an injury and decided to run easy and not take any risks? However 8 miles and 3,500 vertical feet into the race I heard and felt a ‘pop’ in my right calf. As I was carried off the mountain on an ATV I kept asking “what have I done to myself and the IOM marathon”? I had torn the calf muscle and to complicate matters we were scheduled to leave 2 days later for a family wedding in Canada and thus I was not able to schedule any PT (physical therapy).
I could barely walk during our visit and when I returned to Colorado I immediately scheduled PT in the hope that it might expedite the healing process. I also forced myself to walk every day and started to include short runs. At first I couldn’t run longer than 30 to 60 secs but one week later (and 4 PT sessions) I had built up to 10 miles with a cycle of Run 5 min & Walk 1 min. That equated to a 13-min pace which would be good enough to finish the IOM marathon under the 6-hr limit! My biggest concern was “would the injured calf hang together for 26 miles”? But I had no option other than hope as I departed Colorado for London.
And now the race story begins.
Race Story:
I arrived at LHR in the early morning and was greeted by a smiley and cheerful Roger. It was 2 am –my body time – so I was not smiling. We drove around London on the M 25 to the village of Copthorne that is close to Gatwick airport where we were to depart early the next morning for IOM. We stayed with John Gilbert and Pam Story – 2 ultra marathoners and members of the 100 Marathon Club (UK). Gil & Pam are also included in the ‘Messengers’ book but I had not met them before. Nobody seemed to mind when I slipped away to sleep for 4 hrs. Later we enjoyed a pleasant stroll through Copthorne and a nice feed of fish & chips at a local pub. I slept 11 hrs before we headed to Gatwick and departed for IOM.
Roger had booked a rental car for 2 pm. We arrived at 1 pm and the rental agency would not let us have the car until 2 pm? I bit my tongue so I wouldn’t appear to be ‘an ugly American’ – Roger said it wouldn’t do any good? Finally we got a car and drove into Douglas to find our B & B. I was glad that Roger was driving. The country and roads reminded me of Ireland. Everything is green and the roads are very narrow with hedges and rock walls along both sides! The island is not that big – 572 sq Km and a population of 80,000. The cities and towns are quite small.
After checking in we decided to leave the car parked and explore the capital city on foot. High Street was only a few blocks from the hotel and within 2 blocks and 30 min I had collected all ‘required’ souvenirs – postcards, teaspoon and silver charm. That is a record – it often takes me 2 to 3 days to collect all the required souvenirs. We enjoyed another good feed of fish & chips at a chippy shop.
Another friend and Country Club member, Edson Sanches, was supposed to arrive that evening so I left a message that we planned to tour the island on Sat morning.
The weather looked like it might cooperate on Sat with cloudy skies and no rain as Roger and I ( couldn’t find Edson) drove north to Laxey to check out the Great Laxey Wheel – a giant wheel with a diameter of 72.5 ft built in 1854 to pump water out of the lead and zinc mines in Laxey. We planned to take an electric train from Laxey to the summit of Snaefell Mtn but we figured it was too overcast and we wouldn’t see much so we continued on to Ramsey where the race would start/finish. We saw part of the race course as we drove over to the Atlantic Coast and south to the town of Peel. There we visited the Peel Castle and the House of Manannan. (Lots of photos posted to my photo website). Then we continued on to Castletown, the ancient capital of IOM. We strolled by Rushen Castle, the Old House of Keys and along the town center before heading back to Douglas. As we approached Douglas the sun had burned off the clouds and we decided to drive back to Laxey to take the electric train to the summit of Snaefell Mtn (2036 ft). It was an interesting ride and I couldn’t help but notice the similarity to the terrain and environment of the Rocky Mtns even though the mtn is only 2036 ft. The tree line ended around 1200 ft and alpine meadows climbed to the summit. And it was much colder – about 20 degrees – at the summit. We could see Scotland and England from the summit but Wales was obscured by clouds. We had toured the whole island in one day. Back in Douglas we finally found Edson at his hotel and enjoyed a nice pasta dinner on High St.
Sun was M-day. The race started at 9 am so we ate a light breakfast and then picked up Edson for the drive to Ramsey. Packet pick up was at the start line in Ballacloan Stadium in Ramsey. My only complaint about the pre-race logistics was the lack of toilets – only 4 toilets in the club house - for more than 300 runners. I had to find a bush near the stadium! The weather was nice – sunny and temps in the low 50s at the start. The marathon started at 9 am and the Half at 9:30 am. I had decided to wear a compression sock on my right leg in the hopes that it would help to hold the injured calf together? Since the leg felt OK my race strategy was to go out at a cycle of Run 5 min & Walk 1 min. The course was a half-marathon loop with the first 5 miles being hilly and the highest point at 5 miles (259 ft). Edson was suffering from a hip injury and figured he would run a 5-hr race. We started together but he would leave me behind each time I walked and then I would catch up again during my run cycle. When we passed mile 3 in 32:24 I was quite pleased – averaging an 11-min pace. The next two miles included the BAH. When I reached mile 6 in 1:05:08 and a split of 10:36 the leg still felt OK and I decided to increase the cycle by 1 min each cycle until I reached a cycle of Run 10 min & Walk 1 min. I was a wee bit discouraged when the Half Marathon leaders blew by me around 7 miles – they were running twice as fast as my pace! I caught Edson at 10 miles (1:47:25) and we ran together to the Half. The compression sock seemed to be helping the injured calf but by 10 miles I could feel a blister starting to form on my big toe. By the time we passed the Half in 2:19:05 I was concerned that the blister would get worse so I stopped and took off the compression sock to check for a blister. Thankfully there was no blister but the toe was red and raw so I rubbed Vaseline on my toes and only put the double-layer sock back on. The foot felt much better!
Edson had continued on and by the time I reached the top of the BAH for the 2nd time at Mile 17 in 3:06:45 I couldn’t see him? Those hills seemed to be much harder the 2nd time around? I guessed that he might have made a pit stop and was behind me? Since the leg still felt OK I increased the cycle to Run 2 Miles & Walk 1 min. Edson caught me at Mile 19 in 3:30:01. We had 90 min to run the final 7 miles – a 13-min pace – to break 5 hrs! Edson declared that he was going to stay with me and drag my sorry ass across the finish line under 5 hrs! We (read I) did OK until Mile 23 (4:16:00) and then I ran out of gas. It is difficult to maintain the required level of aerobic conditioning to run 26 miles w/o being able to train. We had 44 min to cross the finish line and I knew we could do that even if we slowed down. I told Edson to go on ahead but he refused! He nagged/pulled/pushed me to hold the pace. I didn’t care if I finished in 4:59:59 but Edson said that was not acceptable. I finally told him to f%*k off and leave me alone – but he refused! When we reached Mile 25 in 4:40:37 and a split of 12:41 I told him that I was going to walk 2 min so I could run to the finish line. Thank goodness the final mile was a gentle decline so all I had to do was lift my feet and let gravity drag me to the finish line. At Mile 26 Edson stopped and told me to go across the finish line first. Maddog wasn’t willing to accept that! I grabbed his hand and we crossed the finish line together in 4:55:13!
I was in bad shape. I was totally exhausted and felt nauseous! From previous experience I knew that I was suffering from low blood sugar - that happens when I push the old bod beyond its limits. I stumbled into the clubhouse looking for sugar – preferably a coke. However pop and beer had to be purchased at a bar. I wasn’t sure if I could find my warm-up bag and money before puking or passing out? Luckily Roger was in the club house. He had finished in 4:09 – and already had a shower and lunch. I asked him to buy me a coke while I wolfed down two large pieces of chocolate cake covered in icing and then washed them down with the coke. Within a few minutes I could feel the sugar coursing through my system and I felt much better and recovered quickly.
We stayed in the stadium for the awards. Maddog received an award for completing Country #110.
Then we drove back to the hotel over the IOM TT course – where the annual TT motorcycle race is held.
After a hot shower and another coke I felt much better and walked down to the Promenade to take more photos of Douglas. Later we met a bunch of friends/members of the 100 Marathon Club for a few beers and dinner.
Roger and I had an early afternoon flight back to Gatwick so we explored more of the city on foot to take more photos. We arrived at Gatwick in the late afternoon and drove around London on the M25 to St Albans – north of the city. We joined another good friend, Jack Brooks, who was hosting us for the night for a great pub dinner and lots of English ale – maybe too much ale (although a few were hoisted to our fallen comrade Tad) because I was not too eager to wake up at 5am for the drive to LHR. It was a lonnngggg flight home!
I am back home in Colorado. After a 12-hr sleep to adjust the body clock from GMT to MT I went for an easy 10-mile run. The leg felt OK so imagine my disappointment when the PT dug her fingers into the scar tissue in the calf – and I jumped two feet off the table in pain? We quickly surmised that many more PT sessions are needed before the calf is ready for hard/fast training.
Fortunately I have 6 weeks before my next adventure and two international marathons – back in the Channel Islands and Europe!
Stay tuned!
