Down to 3 weeks before the big race! Had a pretty successful running week/weekend, so feeling pretty good. But real quick, a short article on Ryan Hall, who is in Boston for the next few weeks wrapping up on his training. I'm really excited to see how he and Meb do, and hope for the best for all the American runners!
Friday, enjoyed my day off, hung out and had dinner and drinks in town. Saturday morning, dragged my lazy carcass to Crystal's for the long run. Didn't want to go fast, and the last workout I wanted to do was the 3/1 run, so we settled on an easy 16 instead. Weather was cold and windy, but not awful. Started out slow, but found that what felt slow actually was kind of fast. Breezed through the trail, got to the uphill climb on Meridian and realized we were blazing through very comfortably. Decided to scrap looking at the watch and controlling pace, and just make this more of a feel run. Felt ok for the most part, and it helped that there were a ton of people out. Coming back, the weather got windier, more overcast, and everyone disappeared. Hit the downhill, and tried my best to maintain some sort of cruise control. Knew that the last few uphill miles would be a challenge, and needed to conserve some energy. Got to the last couple miles, could tell we were both struggling so tried to talk it out and coach us through it. Really struggled through the last 15 minutes - the lack of sleep and water was getting to me. Made it to the end, afterwards I told Crystal that the pep talks/coaching were as much for me as it was for her. Total mileage: 16 miles - splits were: 8:23, 7:50, 7:55, 7:49, 7:31, 7:25, 7:11, 7:06, 7:07, 7:10, 7:11, 7:10, 7:06, 7:13, 7:12, 7:11.
Sunday morning, woke up to rain, rain, and more rain. Eventually it stopped, then got dragged out by Crystal to get in some mileage. Was sunny at some points, but mainly overcast. We went out on a different part of the trail that we normally don't do, and is generally flat with some slight grades on the road. About 6 miles out, had to play frogger on a road which the speed limit is 55 mph - not your typical neighborhood roads, where Crystal will normally challenge the drivers. So had to drop a couple patented Sullentrup Surges to get past the traffic. Wind was a factor when we got further out, but wasn't too bad coming back in. Picked it up slightly on the last few miles, I think Crystal and I both just wanted the run over with. Total mileage: 13 miles - splits were: 8:48, 8:44, 8:42, 8:32, 8:33, 8:28, 8:32, 8:22, 8:38, 8:39, 8:12, 8:03, 7:38.
Was tired, but felt pretty good. Longest mileage week this segment - 54 miles, and everything seems to be coming together. Doing heavy mileage again this week, running with the Big River Running Group tonight for their Monday Group Run!
Monday, March 29, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Tempo Thursdays
Quick interview I found on Geb - thought this was pretty cool and interesting, and I'm just fascinated with the top runners of the world (Geb being arguably the greatest runner ever) and how they think in general. He has had an amazing career thus far, and it is still far from over as he hits the twilight years of his career.
Yesterday, got home from work and took a nap. Dragged myself out for my easy run. Really windy and overcast, but pretty warm. Did out and back towards Troy, was running into a really strong wind going out, so was fighting it. Probably pushed it harder than I would have liked, and was getting tired coming home. Really dropped pace the last 2 miles because I was pretty sure I was going too fast, and I was getting dangerously tired. Lots of people out there, was nice to have some company on the trail. Total mileage: 6 miles - total time out was about 48 minutes (too fast for recovery run)
Today, Trisha is in town and it is raining cats and dogs, so opted for treadmill time at lunch at my friend's place since I am meeting up with her after work. Luckily, the good treadmill was not taken, so I had the t.v. and fan at my disposal. Unluckily, the 250 lb. meathead (wearing a hoodie) that was doing free weights must have been cutting for his fight coming up, because he jacked up the heat in the middle of my tempo. Seriously, not a good thing to have 80 degree heat blasting at you while running hard. Regardless, did my tempo, put the treadmill at 9 mph and ran there for a while, sped up the last 1.5 miles and jacked up the incline to make it more challenging. Felt amazingly good, turnover/stride seems to be in place. Total mileage: 6 miles - ran for about 39 minutes.
Skipped warmup and cooldown because of time but if it stops raining and I feel like it later, then I might get out for a small jog late at night. Otherwise, may push it till tomorrow if I am feeling up to it, but the rest would be nice too. On pace for 50+, feeling pretty damn good :)
Yesterday, got home from work and took a nap. Dragged myself out for my easy run. Really windy and overcast, but pretty warm. Did out and back towards Troy, was running into a really strong wind going out, so was fighting it. Probably pushed it harder than I would have liked, and was getting tired coming home. Really dropped pace the last 2 miles because I was pretty sure I was going too fast, and I was getting dangerously tired. Lots of people out there, was nice to have some company on the trail. Total mileage: 6 miles - total time out was about 48 minutes (too fast for recovery run)
Today, Trisha is in town and it is raining cats and dogs, so opted for treadmill time at lunch at my friend's place since I am meeting up with her after work. Luckily, the good treadmill was not taken, so I had the t.v. and fan at my disposal. Unluckily, the 250 lb. meathead (wearing a hoodie) that was doing free weights must have been cutting for his fight coming up, because he jacked up the heat in the middle of my tempo. Seriously, not a good thing to have 80 degree heat blasting at you while running hard. Regardless, did my tempo, put the treadmill at 9 mph and ran there for a while, sped up the last 1.5 miles and jacked up the incline to make it more challenging. Felt amazingly good, turnover/stride seems to be in place. Total mileage: 6 miles - ran for about 39 minutes.
Skipped warmup and cooldown because of time but if it stops raining and I feel like it later, then I might get out for a small jog late at night. Otherwise, may push it till tomorrow if I am feeling up to it, but the rest would be nice too. On pace for 50+, feeling pretty damn good :)
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
26 More Days!
Getting closer and closer to Boston, and it's starting to hit me through all this planning of that weekend that our group has been doing. Exciting times, this is going to be a lot of fun! Found this video that was posted on Big River's site that talks about the Shamrock Shuffle last weekend, pretty cool and has a couple Big River guys in it!
On to running - Monday, got home after work, messaged Crystal who had taken a vacation day. Weather was gorgeous - 60's and sunny. Pat joined us for a couple miles, so we hit up the Glen Carbon route nice and slow. Nothing special to report, legs felt ok but a little tired from the long weekend of running. Made it a point to take it really easy. Total mileage: 6 miles - total time out was 52 minutes.
Yesterday, another perfect weather day! 70 and sunny, actually pretty warm so waited an hour before starting my hill workout. 2.5 up, 8Xhills, 2.5 down. Hit up the big hill on Meridian Road, which is my go-to for challenging hill work. I was advised to work on running downhill repeats as much as regular hill work, so this workout flew by for me. Just to refresh, we mapped out a quarter mile on a pretty long, steep hill, that gets really steep toward the top. Ran the uphills pretty aggressively (5K pace), and didn't coast through the downhills but certainly relaxed and let gravity do its work. I read an article on Alberto Salazar that suggested this strategy (not to expend too much energy on downhills and let the slope do the work). Anyways, felt pretty decent during the workout - turnover was good, and wasn't tiring as much near the top like I usually do. Thumbs up to Mother Nature for giving us one of the best weather days of the year to this point. A big thumbs down to the fat woman who hogged the entire sidewalk then glared at me and mumbled some words towards me because she had to waddle over when I passed her - God forbid someone else might actually be walking/running on an absolutely perfect night! That seriously irritated me, and was arguably the sole reason I negative split my repeats. Total mileage: 7 miles - hill splits were: (uphill, downhill) 1:28, 1:27, 1:26, 1:24, 1:25, 1:24, 1:24, 1:21.
I hit the repeats faster than I thought I would, was very pleased. Easy mileage tonight, then hopefully a long tempo on Thursday barring bad weather conditions (rain, rain, and more rain in the forecast).
On to running - Monday, got home after work, messaged Crystal who had taken a vacation day. Weather was gorgeous - 60's and sunny. Pat joined us for a couple miles, so we hit up the Glen Carbon route nice and slow. Nothing special to report, legs felt ok but a little tired from the long weekend of running. Made it a point to take it really easy. Total mileage: 6 miles - total time out was 52 minutes.
Yesterday, another perfect weather day! 70 and sunny, actually pretty warm so waited an hour before starting my hill workout. 2.5 up, 8Xhills, 2.5 down. Hit up the big hill on Meridian Road, which is my go-to for challenging hill work. I was advised to work on running downhill repeats as much as regular hill work, so this workout flew by for me. Just to refresh, we mapped out a quarter mile on a pretty long, steep hill, that gets really steep toward the top. Ran the uphills pretty aggressively (5K pace), and didn't coast through the downhills but certainly relaxed and let gravity do its work. I read an article on Alberto Salazar that suggested this strategy (not to expend too much energy on downhills and let the slope do the work). Anyways, felt pretty decent during the workout - turnover was good, and wasn't tiring as much near the top like I usually do. Thumbs up to Mother Nature for giving us one of the best weather days of the year to this point. A big thumbs down to the fat woman who hogged the entire sidewalk then glared at me and mumbled some words towards me because she had to waddle over when I passed her - God forbid someone else might actually be walking/running on an absolutely perfect night! That seriously irritated me, and was arguably the sole reason I negative split my repeats. Total mileage: 7 miles - hill splits were: (uphill, downhill) 1:28, 1:27, 1:26, 1:24, 1:25, 1:24, 1:24, 1:21.
I hit the repeats faster than I thought I would, was very pleased. Easy mileage tonight, then hopefully a long tempo on Thursday barring bad weather conditions (rain, rain, and more rain in the forecast).
Monday, March 22, 2010
Big River Dominance
Congrats to the Big River Racing Team for their 2nd place finish in the Shamrock Shuffle! The race is one of the biggest 8K's out there, and you basically run the start and finish of the Chicago Marathon which is super awesome. 25,000+ ran it this year, despite the cold and windy conditions. The elite team competition was cumulative timing, and the guys just missed first place by 13 seconds! Ryan Bak finished 5th overall, Ben was 10th, Brian Lyons was 15th, and Kyle Cameron was 22nd - congrats BRR guys!!!! (pics from last year's race - Ben and Brian)
Well, I did some running over the last 5 days, so let's cut to the chase. Thursday, ran to my buddy's treadmill during lunch. Some girl was on the treadmill with the fan and the t.v., so I was forced to use the other treadmill with no fan and no t.v. Needless to say, this didn't last long. Did 2 or so at marathon pace (7:15), then went outside to cool off and do an impromptu hill work. Did 4 repeats up and down, roughly a minute hard at 5K pace. Turnover felt good, needed to get in more miles but wasn't going to get it in that day due to busy scheduling. Total mileage: ~4 miles
Friday, got home after work and got in some mileage. Weather was decent outside, and I felt pretty good. Did out and back on the trail, kept myself in check other than racing a couple cyclists the last 1/2 of the trail. Tried to stay as loose as possible, feel like I succeeded. Total mileage: 6 miles - total time out was 50 minutes (I think?).
Tim was in town over the weekend visiting, so met up with him at night. Stayed out a little too late, and had our 20 miler scheduled early. Got up, met with Crystal and Mike at the trails, and did the run. Felt pretty decent throughout the entire way, had to make a pit stop at a port-a-potty right around the turn around point, then had to play catchup. Was fun running after those guys, and had to work off some runners to help aid in the challenge. They had almost a half mile lead on me, so took me roughly 2 miles to catch up, albeit I picked it up considerably. Was definitely tired when I finally did, but had the long downhill on Meridian to coast for a while and get my energy back. Could tell Crystal was struggling in the later miles, so we were working with her a bit. Last mile, ended up picking it up a little, finished strong. Crystal slapped Mike and I on our last quarter mile pickup saying we never let her win, but for the record she did get the better of us. Felt really strong throughout the run, amazing with the lack of sleep I had. Total mileage: 20 miles - splits were: 9:03, 8:18 (watch beeped fast), 8:43, 8:40, 8:43, 8:38, 8:30, 8:33, 8:19, 8:21, 7:21 (trying to catch up with Crystal and Mike), 6:54 (oops!), 7:53, 8:22, 8:20, 8:21, 8:16, 8:32, 8:30, 7:40.
Huge nap, hung out with everybody to watch Tourney Games, then met up with Tim and his dad for drinks afterwards - fun times :) Sunday, spent most of the day in intensive recovery from the damage that was done the day before. It was raining all throughout the day, so eventually made it out the door for a recovery run, which was pretty late at night. Temps were in the low 30's and rainy and WINDY - not the best running weather. Did my Glen Carbon city loop, felt really strong throughout the run and tried not to push it too much. Kind of a pain to run into the wind, but conversely was awesome running downwind. Had thoughts of doing more mileage, but wanted to keep the legs rested for a potentially hard running week. Total mileage: 6 miles - total time run was 45-50 minutes.
So got in a weird 48 miles this week, but the good news is I felt really strong and somewhat fit. I think with a couple more solid weeks, I should be sitting somewhat pretty for this marathon. Hill work is a must over this last month of training!!!
Friday night fun
Watching the Tourney Games!
Well, I did some running over the last 5 days, so let's cut to the chase. Thursday, ran to my buddy's treadmill during lunch. Some girl was on the treadmill with the fan and the t.v., so I was forced to use the other treadmill with no fan and no t.v. Needless to say, this didn't last long. Did 2 or so at marathon pace (7:15), then went outside to cool off and do an impromptu hill work. Did 4 repeats up and down, roughly a minute hard at 5K pace. Turnover felt good, needed to get in more miles but wasn't going to get it in that day due to busy scheduling. Total mileage: ~4 miles
Friday, got home after work and got in some mileage. Weather was decent outside, and I felt pretty good. Did out and back on the trail, kept myself in check other than racing a couple cyclists the last 1/2 of the trail. Tried to stay as loose as possible, feel like I succeeded. Total mileage: 6 miles - total time out was 50 minutes (I think?).
Tim was in town over the weekend visiting, so met up with him at night. Stayed out a little too late, and had our 20 miler scheduled early. Got up, met with Crystal and Mike at the trails, and did the run. Felt pretty decent throughout the entire way, had to make a pit stop at a port-a-potty right around the turn around point, then had to play catchup. Was fun running after those guys, and had to work off some runners to help aid in the challenge. They had almost a half mile lead on me, so took me roughly 2 miles to catch up, albeit I picked it up considerably. Was definitely tired when I finally did, but had the long downhill on Meridian to coast for a while and get my energy back. Could tell Crystal was struggling in the later miles, so we were working with her a bit. Last mile, ended up picking it up a little, finished strong. Crystal slapped Mike and I on our last quarter mile pickup saying we never let her win, but for the record she did get the better of us. Felt really strong throughout the run, amazing with the lack of sleep I had. Total mileage: 20 miles - splits were: 9:03, 8:18 (watch beeped fast), 8:43, 8:40, 8:43, 8:38, 8:30, 8:33, 8:19, 8:21, 7:21 (trying to catch up with Crystal and Mike), 6:54 (oops!), 7:53, 8:22, 8:20, 8:21, 8:16, 8:32, 8:30, 7:40.
Huge nap, hung out with everybody to watch Tourney Games, then met up with Tim and his dad for drinks afterwards - fun times :) Sunday, spent most of the day in intensive recovery from the damage that was done the day before. It was raining all throughout the day, so eventually made it out the door for a recovery run, which was pretty late at night. Temps were in the low 30's and rainy and WINDY - not the best running weather. Did my Glen Carbon city loop, felt really strong throughout the run and tried not to push it too much. Kind of a pain to run into the wind, but conversely was awesome running downwind. Had thoughts of doing more mileage, but wanted to keep the legs rested for a potentially hard running week. Total mileage: 6 miles - total time run was 45-50 minutes.
So got in a weird 48 miles this week, but the good news is I felt really strong and somewhat fit. I think with a couple more solid weeks, I should be sitting somewhat pretty for this marathon. Hill work is a must over this last month of training!!!
Friday night fun
Watching the Tourney Games!
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Happy Tourney Day!!!
Here is a quick update of my running week thus far. Monday, got home, was absolutely exhausted. Had dinner with Pat and Crystal (thank you Crystal!), watched the most ridiculous show on the travel channel ever called America's Worst Driver. In fact, here is a link to the actual episode. Pat and I were in hysterics watching this, and I was literally crying at the end. I think I wore myself out even more, so ended up in bed before 8 p.m.! Definitely needed the 11-12 hours of sleep that I got that night.
Tuesday, went to the Blues game with Barrel. Went downtown after work, used Barrel's treadmill to get in some repeats. Her gym has absolutely no air circulation and the heat was on, so I was immediately dying within 10 minutes in there. Did mile warmup, 2-800 meter repeats (~2:54 each), mile down, then opted to go outside and get in some cheap mileage since it felt like 85 degrees inside. Was under a massive time constraint, so didn't get in what I wanted to. Blah, but legs were still really tired so wasn't too upset. Total mileage: ~4-5 miles
Wednesday, got home after work and absolutely crashed out for a couple hours. Lack of sleep is really starting to get to me! Perfect day outside, dragged myself out and got on the trail. Nothing special to report, did out and back towards Troy. Weather was gorgeous - 60's and cool, lots of cute girls on the trail to pick me up :) Felt tired starting out (lack of food), but felt pretty good at the end. Total mileage: 8 miles - time out was 62-66 minutes.
Just trying to get in mileage today and tomorrow, then gear up for the big 20 miler (first one this segment!) that awaits on Saturday morning. Tim is in town, so I'm sure we will be getting into our usual trouble over the weekend! Also, the NCAA Basketball Tournament starts today, which feels weird I am not in Vegas but will make due over at home!
Tuesday, went to the Blues game with Barrel. Went downtown after work, used Barrel's treadmill to get in some repeats. Her gym has absolutely no air circulation and the heat was on, so I was immediately dying within 10 minutes in there. Did mile warmup, 2-800 meter repeats (~2:54 each), mile down, then opted to go outside and get in some cheap mileage since it felt like 85 degrees inside. Was under a massive time constraint, so didn't get in what I wanted to. Blah, but legs were still really tired so wasn't too upset. Total mileage: ~4-5 miles
Wednesday, got home after work and absolutely crashed out for a couple hours. Lack of sleep is really starting to get to me! Perfect day outside, dragged myself out and got on the trail. Nothing special to report, did out and back towards Troy. Weather was gorgeous - 60's and cool, lots of cute girls on the trail to pick me up :) Felt tired starting out (lack of food), but felt pretty good at the end. Total mileage: 8 miles - time out was 62-66 minutes.
Just trying to get in mileage today and tomorrow, then gear up for the big 20 miler (first one this segment!) that awaits on Saturday morning. Tim is in town, so I'm sure we will be getting into our usual trouble over the weekend! Also, the NCAA Basketball Tournament starts today, which feels weird I am not in Vegas but will make due over at home!
Monday, March 15, 2010
St. Patrick's Day Parade Run Recap
I had a pretty fun weekend with Shane in town, and let me just cut to the chase seeing this post is going to be pretty long...
Friday after work, got in 3 miles with Shane. Was raining and slightly windy. Kept the pace honest, legs were really tired and tried to just relax as much as possible. Picked up some beer for postrace festivities, then relaxed at home. Went out for a little bit at night, attempted to get a good night's sleep. Finally St. Pat's was here!
Race Morning
Woke up kind of early, drank a ton of water and ate a light breakfast. Checked the weather conditions outside, and was discouraged to see the misty rain. Did a light jog outside just to loosen up, then went and picked up Shane and Crystal. Drove downtown which I thought was early, saw parking was already filling up because of the mass throng of people that were gathering, so parked in Barrel's spot at her place since she was out of town. Walked to the Big River tent, got situated.
At the Start
Talked to a few of my teammates there, did light stretching and tried to loosen up. Legs felt heavy and tired, which was kind of alarming. Warmed up with the group, did a couple miles downtown through parts of the course. Felt a lot better after the warm up and certainly looser. Did some drills and some strides, got changed up and headed towards the start with Shane and Crystal. Lost them in the mass chaos around the area, so was trying to find anybody I could line up next to. Got up somewhat towards the front, but it was pretty much mayhem over there. It was pretty much a staggered start, and top finishers from last year had different colored bibs to differentiate themselves and start up front. Well, people didn't really adhere to that, as evidenced by the lady with the stroller lining up right behind the elites, and others just like that. So I fought my way up as closer as I could get, which was still far back. Prepared for battle...
Mile by Mile Report
Mile 1 - The gun went off, and away we went! Jostled for position, spent unnecessary energy trying to get up there with some of the faster runners. The new route has us going through the buildings downtown, so was a pretty cool sight - reminded me a little of the Chicago start, but obviously a much smaller scale. Saw a couple teammates, then Shane and Crystal, and tapped Shane to know I was there. Passed them, saw Candace so tried to work my way up there. By the time we hit Market, I was away from the crowd and established position. Was going way too fast and I knew it, so tried to slow down. The dreaded Market Street hill was approaching... [Mile 1: 5:31]
Mile 2 - Hit the hill, shortened my stride and started the long climb. Really controlled pace at this point, and wasn't trying to be stupid. It was pretty windy, and wasn't the easiest conditions to run in. Caught and passed a few people on the hill and was still trying to catch Candace. Was working decent, and finally the hill crested out and slight downhill before making a turn. Started to get gapped on the turn, one of the girls on my team caught me so talked to her trying to figure out her pace and whatnot. Well, she takes off, and I tried to keep up with her but knew that would ultimately be a bad mistake, so let her go. Hit that nasty, sneaky hill on Olive, caught back up to a couple guys, but then they gapped me again. [Mile 2: 6:22]
Mile 3 - Felt ok at this point, got the hardest points of the way, and zoomed down Olive. Tried to let gravity dictate my pace, but was losing ground on the people ahead of me. There are a few hills here and there, tried to work back up but was always 20-30 feet behind. Could see downtown approaching, so tried to keep focus and keep going. [Mile 3: 6:12]
Mile 4 - Was discouraged to see my 3rd mile split, and thought I lost some valuable time. Kept working, hit downtown but was losing ground on Candace. Tried to be more aggressive, but everyone was picking it up. Was really glad at this point that I had familiarized myself with the course, as I had not killed myself and felt ok. Needed to really suck it up and hit the home stretch hard. Heard my split, was almost 20 seconds faster than last year so was pleased. [Mile 4 - 6:07]
Mile 5 - Here we go, how bad do I want this? Picked it up, everyone started going faster. Was passed by 2 guys I had passed before, was scared to death to look back to see if anyone was working off me. Picked it up even faster, could see the turn around point in the far distance. Started my kick around 6th St., not too far from Broadway which we would run the last quarter. Really made the mistake of not monitoring my time to make sure I was making enough ground. Turned onto Broadway, was pretty tired and trying to fight. Could see Candace, but didn't have enough juice to catch her. Was windy, had trouble breathing. Saw the finish line, and knew it would be close. Tried to take it to the next gear, didn't have it. [Mile 5 - 6:03]
Peter Kim M30
Clock Time: 30:41
Chip Time: 30:35
Overall Place: 48/11,941
Gender Place: 43/?
Division Place: 12/?
Pace: 6:07/Mile
Final Thoughts
Pretty bummed out I missed by PR by a freaking 2 seconds. I just ran that last mile so stupid. I felt pretty strong on the race and went out too fast, but recovered enough to run decent in the mid miles. Had thoughts of breaking 30 minutes going in, but knew it would be tough since I hadn't worked enough hills. Just disappointed in myself. Waited for Crystal and Shane to finish - Crystal zoomed in at 32:00 flat, dropped a very impressive P.R. and won 4th in her age group!!! Shane finished not too long after her in a very solid 32:53, and all of us headed off to the postrace celebration.
Had a few beers there with the Big River folk, talked to a ton of people post race. Big River ended up with quite the showing - Ryan Bak and Julie Lossos won the men and women races, Ben was 2nd, Brian Lyons was 4th, and Adam MacDowell was 5th. Margaret Lyons was 2nd or 3rd female overall (the one that passed me on the 3rd mile that I was talking to), so a very impressive showing by the Big River Running Team - congrats to all!!!!!
Big group lunch afterwards, crashed out hardcore for a while and hung out at Pat and Crystal's for game night that evening. Sunday morning, woke up for early mass, did a group long run. Was pretty much the same weather conditions - windy, drizzly, crappy. Mike came over, and Pat did a few miles with us as well. We wanted to get in 15 (3/1 run), so did our normal out and back through Glen Carbon. Met up with our friend Andy (also running Boston) who jumped in a few miles with us and was pretty fun to have a decent group out there. Nothing crazy to note on the run, legs were pretty tired and heavy almost the entire run. Coming back, Shane took a hard fall when he tripped over his shoe laces - this was at mile 9, and it was a pretty nasty spill but luckily he instinctively rolled and spread out the impact. Had a nasty gash on his knee, but he was fine to go so we kept going. Around the 10th mile, started to pick up the pace. Was still harboring angry thoughts about yesterday's crappy finish, so told Mike and Shane I was going to push the pace. Mike picked it up with me, Shane and Crystal slightly behind, and we blazed through the last few miles. Felt ok, but legs were done. Had to work very hard the last mile, Mike was pretty strong out there. He is in great shape, and will run a great marathon in a few weeks. Total mileage: 15 miles - splits were: 8:43, 8:47, 8:35, 8:22, 8:24, 8:13, 8:16, 8:21, 8:13, 8:09, 7:49, 6:56, 7:08, 6:40, 6:41.
So my winter speed work is officially done, going to transition to a lot of marathon speed work here on out and really working the hills for Boston. Pretty happy with my results, am starting to get into better shape and have had 2 solid races so far, so I couldn't ask for more!
Shane, Crystal, and I postrace
Group Shot
Crystal - 76th overall, 4th in her age group!!!!
Friday after work, got in 3 miles with Shane. Was raining and slightly windy. Kept the pace honest, legs were really tired and tried to just relax as much as possible. Picked up some beer for postrace festivities, then relaxed at home. Went out for a little bit at night, attempted to get a good night's sleep. Finally St. Pat's was here!
Race Morning
Woke up kind of early, drank a ton of water and ate a light breakfast. Checked the weather conditions outside, and was discouraged to see the misty rain. Did a light jog outside just to loosen up, then went and picked up Shane and Crystal. Drove downtown which I thought was early, saw parking was already filling up because of the mass throng of people that were gathering, so parked in Barrel's spot at her place since she was out of town. Walked to the Big River tent, got situated.
At the Start
Talked to a few of my teammates there, did light stretching and tried to loosen up. Legs felt heavy and tired, which was kind of alarming. Warmed up with the group, did a couple miles downtown through parts of the course. Felt a lot better after the warm up and certainly looser. Did some drills and some strides, got changed up and headed towards the start with Shane and Crystal. Lost them in the mass chaos around the area, so was trying to find anybody I could line up next to. Got up somewhat towards the front, but it was pretty much mayhem over there. It was pretty much a staggered start, and top finishers from last year had different colored bibs to differentiate themselves and start up front. Well, people didn't really adhere to that, as evidenced by the lady with the stroller lining up right behind the elites, and others just like that. So I fought my way up as closer as I could get, which was still far back. Prepared for battle...
Mile by Mile Report
Mile 1 - The gun went off, and away we went! Jostled for position, spent unnecessary energy trying to get up there with some of the faster runners. The new route has us going through the buildings downtown, so was a pretty cool sight - reminded me a little of the Chicago start, but obviously a much smaller scale. Saw a couple teammates, then Shane and Crystal, and tapped Shane to know I was there. Passed them, saw Candace so tried to work my way up there. By the time we hit Market, I was away from the crowd and established position. Was going way too fast and I knew it, so tried to slow down. The dreaded Market Street hill was approaching... [Mile 1: 5:31]
Mile 2 - Hit the hill, shortened my stride and started the long climb. Really controlled pace at this point, and wasn't trying to be stupid. It was pretty windy, and wasn't the easiest conditions to run in. Caught and passed a few people on the hill and was still trying to catch Candace. Was working decent, and finally the hill crested out and slight downhill before making a turn. Started to get gapped on the turn, one of the girls on my team caught me so talked to her trying to figure out her pace and whatnot. Well, she takes off, and I tried to keep up with her but knew that would ultimately be a bad mistake, so let her go. Hit that nasty, sneaky hill on Olive, caught back up to a couple guys, but then they gapped me again. [Mile 2: 6:22]
Mile 3 - Felt ok at this point, got the hardest points of the way, and zoomed down Olive. Tried to let gravity dictate my pace, but was losing ground on the people ahead of me. There are a few hills here and there, tried to work back up but was always 20-30 feet behind. Could see downtown approaching, so tried to keep focus and keep going. [Mile 3: 6:12]
Mile 4 - Was discouraged to see my 3rd mile split, and thought I lost some valuable time. Kept working, hit downtown but was losing ground on Candace. Tried to be more aggressive, but everyone was picking it up. Was really glad at this point that I had familiarized myself with the course, as I had not killed myself and felt ok. Needed to really suck it up and hit the home stretch hard. Heard my split, was almost 20 seconds faster than last year so was pleased. [Mile 4 - 6:07]
Mile 5 - Here we go, how bad do I want this? Picked it up, everyone started going faster. Was passed by 2 guys I had passed before, was scared to death to look back to see if anyone was working off me. Picked it up even faster, could see the turn around point in the far distance. Started my kick around 6th St., not too far from Broadway which we would run the last quarter. Really made the mistake of not monitoring my time to make sure I was making enough ground. Turned onto Broadway, was pretty tired and trying to fight. Could see Candace, but didn't have enough juice to catch her. Was windy, had trouble breathing. Saw the finish line, and knew it would be close. Tried to take it to the next gear, didn't have it. [Mile 5 - 6:03]
Peter Kim M30
Clock Time: 30:41
Chip Time: 30:35
Overall Place: 48/11,941
Gender Place: 43/?
Division Place: 12/?
Pace: 6:07/Mile
Final Thoughts
Pretty bummed out I missed by PR by a freaking 2 seconds. I just ran that last mile so stupid. I felt pretty strong on the race and went out too fast, but recovered enough to run decent in the mid miles. Had thoughts of breaking 30 minutes going in, but knew it would be tough since I hadn't worked enough hills. Just disappointed in myself. Waited for Crystal and Shane to finish - Crystal zoomed in at 32:00 flat, dropped a very impressive P.R. and won 4th in her age group!!! Shane finished not too long after her in a very solid 32:53, and all of us headed off to the postrace celebration.
Had a few beers there with the Big River folk, talked to a ton of people post race. Big River ended up with quite the showing - Ryan Bak and Julie Lossos won the men and women races, Ben was 2nd, Brian Lyons was 4th, and Adam MacDowell was 5th. Margaret Lyons was 2nd or 3rd female overall (the one that passed me on the 3rd mile that I was talking to), so a very impressive showing by the Big River Running Team - congrats to all!!!!!
Big group lunch afterwards, crashed out hardcore for a while and hung out at Pat and Crystal's for game night that evening. Sunday morning, woke up for early mass, did a group long run. Was pretty much the same weather conditions - windy, drizzly, crappy. Mike came over, and Pat did a few miles with us as well. We wanted to get in 15 (3/1 run), so did our normal out and back through Glen Carbon. Met up with our friend Andy (also running Boston) who jumped in a few miles with us and was pretty fun to have a decent group out there. Nothing crazy to note on the run, legs were pretty tired and heavy almost the entire run. Coming back, Shane took a hard fall when he tripped over his shoe laces - this was at mile 9, and it was a pretty nasty spill but luckily he instinctively rolled and spread out the impact. Had a nasty gash on his knee, but he was fine to go so we kept going. Around the 10th mile, started to pick up the pace. Was still harboring angry thoughts about yesterday's crappy finish, so told Mike and Shane I was going to push the pace. Mike picked it up with me, Shane and Crystal slightly behind, and we blazed through the last few miles. Felt ok, but legs were done. Had to work very hard the last mile, Mike was pretty strong out there. He is in great shape, and will run a great marathon in a few weeks. Total mileage: 15 miles - splits were: 8:43, 8:47, 8:35, 8:22, 8:24, 8:13, 8:16, 8:21, 8:13, 8:09, 7:49, 6:56, 7:08, 6:40, 6:41.
So my winter speed work is officially done, going to transition to a lot of marathon speed work here on out and really working the hills for Boston. Pretty happy with my results, am starting to get into better shape and have had 2 solid races so far, so I couldn't ask for more!
Shane, Crystal, and I postrace
Group Shot
Crystal - 76th overall, 4th in her age group!!!!
Friday, March 12, 2010
St. Pat's Eve
Here we go, on the eve of one of the biggest races that St. Louis has to offer. I've been preparing for this race this winter as well as Boston, but really the training has been so hit and miss that it's hard to really know what to expect. The 5K last Sunday answered some questions though, and I truly feel that I'm at a decent fitness level to drop a good time.
Wednesday, crapped out on a perfect day to run, really no excuses other than I got home late and didn't get in what I wanted to. No worries, switched my off day to make up for it. Yesterday, did 4 easy at lunch around work in Maryland Heights. H-I-L-L-Y, and worked on slight surges on the hills. Didn't break too much of a sweat though, gorgeous day to get outside. After work, drove downtown and jogged the St. Pat's course. They changed the course this year now we start by Busch Stadium on Broadway instead of by Union Station on Market. You weave back downtown back onto Market, and basically get in a mile before hitting the old course. 2nd Mile, you climb up a pretty big hill, loop around back to Olive on the way back downtown. Overall downhill grade, but rolling hills and there are couple that are challenging. Last mile is definitely flatter than in years past (supposedly downhill), and you finish on Broadway headed south towards the Stadium.
So felt ok running the course, have run the last few years so was relatively familiar. Legs were pretty tired, so the big hill on Mile 2 was a little challenging. I always forget when you turn onto Olive heading back that there is one more hill before you slingshot downhill towards downtown. The last couple miles, ran around pace, and was getting pretty tired despite the downhill. Could have been from my earlier workout too (hopefully that is the case). I haven't done enough hill work, so I need to be a little more conservative going out as opposed to the kamikaze mission I usually am on when running this course. Ran a little over 5 in roughly 42 minutes or so, not bad considering stop lights. Excited to run with Crystal and Shane - first race since Chi 09 :) Crystal finished 2nd in her age group last year, so hoping she can equal or do better this time! Looking forward to seeing and running with the Big River team, and best of luck to both the Blue team to bring home the gold! Ben is the defending champion and looks like he is in amazing shape, so hoping he kills it again!
Showing this for good karma - we both ran well last year :)
After work tonight, Shane (who is in town) and I are doing an easy few miles just to loosen up, then lay low. Saturday, get downtown bright and early to get set up, then warm up with the team. Wish us luck!!!
Wednesday, crapped out on a perfect day to run, really no excuses other than I got home late and didn't get in what I wanted to. No worries, switched my off day to make up for it. Yesterday, did 4 easy at lunch around work in Maryland Heights. H-I-L-L-Y, and worked on slight surges on the hills. Didn't break too much of a sweat though, gorgeous day to get outside. After work, drove downtown and jogged the St. Pat's course. They changed the course this year now we start by Busch Stadium on Broadway instead of by Union Station on Market. You weave back downtown back onto Market, and basically get in a mile before hitting the old course. 2nd Mile, you climb up a pretty big hill, loop around back to Olive on the way back downtown. Overall downhill grade, but rolling hills and there are couple that are challenging. Last mile is definitely flatter than in years past (supposedly downhill), and you finish on Broadway headed south towards the Stadium.
So felt ok running the course, have run the last few years so was relatively familiar. Legs were pretty tired, so the big hill on Mile 2 was a little challenging. I always forget when you turn onto Olive heading back that there is one more hill before you slingshot downhill towards downtown. The last couple miles, ran around pace, and was getting pretty tired despite the downhill. Could have been from my earlier workout too (hopefully that is the case). I haven't done enough hill work, so I need to be a little more conservative going out as opposed to the kamikaze mission I usually am on when running this course. Ran a little over 5 in roughly 42 minutes or so, not bad considering stop lights. Excited to run with Crystal and Shane - first race since Chi 09 :) Crystal finished 2nd in her age group last year, so hoping she can equal or do better this time! Looking forward to seeing and running with the Big River team, and best of luck to both the Blue team to bring home the gold! Ben is the defending champion and looks like he is in amazing shape, so hoping he kills it again!
Showing this for good karma - we both ran well last year :)After work tonight, Shane (who is in town) and I are doing an easy few miles just to loosen up, then lay low. Saturday, get downtown bright and early to get set up, then warm up with the team. Wish us luck!!!
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