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Today's long run was shorter than usual because Amanda and I wanted to take some batting practice before heading over to the local animal shelter to pick up our new foster dog, Ella. I was planning to run 12 miles but wound up doing just 9.25 to make sure we had enough time for softball.
The cool thing about this run was that I ran a 10:30 pace for the first four miles, but then started feeling good and ran the last 5+ miles at a 9:20 pace! Negative split! Amanda arrived at the local park just five minutes after I did, so I changed into my softball cleats and stepped onto the field.
I must've been a bit tired, or maybe just out of practice, but my swing was UGLY. I can't remember any ball that I hit really well, at least right handed. My second series of swings I took lefty and made some pretty good contact. When I play softball I bat and throw right-handed, but I'm fairly capable left-handed and I have a smoother swing from the left side. Often times I'll bat lefty just to remind my right side how to swing a bat!
One of my favorite adventures during our vacation last week was an excursion I took in the kayak I borrowed from the cabin's owner. It's just a short, 9.5-foot recreational boat but I decided to take it on a long trip and see if I could reach the public beach that was barely visible in the distance.
Lake Malone was once a network of rivers and tributaries that were dammed up several decades ago. The surrounding topography is rugged enough such that the lake never filled out like some dammed rivers, but instead sports several "fingers". The shoreline is mostly vertical sandstone bluffs anywhere from 10 to 200 feet high! It's amazingly scenic - Amanda's photos from the pontoon boat tour exhibit the scenery quite well.
You can see in this map the approximate route I took while out on the water. Initially my plan was to simply head north from the cabin to the beach near the dam; I figured it might take me half an hour or so. It wound up taking just 15 minutes! Kayaks are amazingly fast, even the stubby one that I was paddling.
I proceeded southwest along the coast, pausing for a few minutes to watch a pair of pied-billed grebes fishing for some breakfast, sometimes as close as 20 feet away! Then I continued until I reached one of Lake Malone's "fingers", an inlet that's part of the state park and doesn't have any cottages on its shoreline. I paddled upstream through the mist - in fact, throughout my entire voyage there was steam fog rising from the calm surface of the water. This inlet was shrouded from direct sunlight and the surroundings had an eerie "Jurassic Park"-like feel about it. Part of me kept waiting for a dinosaur to burst from the trees on the cliffs above!
Despite my imaginary fears I bravely paddled deeper into the mist until the water became so shallow that my paddle hit bottom. I'd now been on the water about 30 minutes - that's all! It felt like a day-long adventure already except that I wasn't tired. In fact, I was feeling very much alive despite the prehistoric ambiance. Several times I drifted close enough to great blue herons that I spooked them into flying away, sometimes remaining perched until I was just a few feet away! If any birds look like dinosaurs, these are the ones.
As I emerged from "Jurassic Park Gorge" I was blinded by sunlight from two angles - the sun from above and its reflection off the water from below. Luckily I brought my sunglasses! Being at this angle relative to the sunlight provided an amazing spectacle I'd never seen before - minature tornadoes of mist! They were invisible with the sun at my back, but were relatively easy to spot (in a ghostly way) with the sun in my face. First just one, and I even paddled through it! I couldn't feel a thing as there was barely any strength to this vortex. What was happening was that the sunlight was heating up the water, the rocky bluffs and the trees; however they all warmed at different rates, creating different velocities of upward-moving air as it warmed in the sunlight. The results were faint, gently swirling but distinct rope-shaped tornadoes. As I moved further out of the inlet and faced a wide expanse of open water, these twisters appeared everywhere! Literally dozens were dancing in front of me - it was an eerie scene as if I were watching the formation of the planet except instead of raging with powerful fury the tornadoes were tiptoeing with delicate grace.
I guess you'd figure that leaving a place that reminded me of Jurassic Park would bring me back to the present, but instead pushed me further into pre-history! However, my hungry stomach reminded me that breakfast was in the near future and it was time to head back to the cabin. Starting from the north shore I decided to hammer the pace and see how fast I could go. What took me 15 minutes on the way out took just nine minutes this time! I could see our dock in the distance and was surprised to see the silhouette of a heron standing on it; however, as I got closer I realized that it was Amanda! Apparently I was still stuck in the jurassic era...
While on vacation last week I took a break from my training regimen, in that I only went for two short runs. Both jaunts were the same 3.7-mile out-and-back course starting from our cabin. On both occasions I brought along my favorite running partner - my dog Haven.
It's probably common knowledge that Kentucky's terrain is far more challenging than what you find in Michigan (at least in the vertical aspect; adventure racers would tell you that Michigan sand, swamps, and scrub makes for an awfully arduous trek). There are a couple good hills near my house here, but otherwise routes are either flat or gently rolling. The route I ran in Kentucky had FOUR good hills, and that was just going one-way; I had to hit those hills on the way back, too! I didn't complain - the challenge was fun and the views they provided were awesome!
Our first run was Monday, when I woke up early and headed out with Haven to beat the heat that was coming later that day. Even at 7am, however, it was still hot and muggy. Our cabin was in the middle of nowhere, which meant that the road we ran on rarely saw any traffic. As a result, Haven got to run the entire course off-leash! She's so smart about running with me by now, though, that she rarely strayed more than 50 feet away and generally kept within 20 feet in front of me on the road.
As we approached one of the several cow pastures along the road, I noticed up ahead on the fourth hill that two cows were in the road, outside the fence. Haven noticed, too, and quickly gave chase! One of the cows immediately ducked under the loose wire fence to the safety of its pasture, but the other cow tried to outrun Haven on the shoulder of the road. Not a chance - Haven was soon on the cow's heels and when the cow realized how close Haven was, it also ducked under the fence to safety. Luckily Haven didn't try to follow them into their pasture! The funny thing is that Haven just wanted to play with the cows!
On our way back as we approached hill #3 again (i.e. the sixth of eight climbs on the run), Haven and I spotted a beagle-hound mix staring at us. Haven paused, watching the dog, then took off in a full sprint to go say hi. Once Haven had covered half the distance between them, the other dog turned and ran away! Now about 75 yards away, Haven turned around and politely (albeit anxiously) waited for me to catch up. As we rounded the bend and started up the hill, the dog came back with enough courage to introduce itself.
The dog had a brown head with big droopy ears and a white body marked with three large spots, two on one side and one on the other. It was a female, and she stood just a tad taller than Haven but appeared underfed and probably weighed just 60 pounds. Because of her big ears and the fact that her first reaction to Haven was "run away!" I decided to name this dog "Bunny".
Bunny had no collar or other identification, but Amanda had seen her in one of the pastures the day before, so I figured she was a local farm dog. Haven and I continued with our run and interestingly enough, Bunny decided to join us! In fact, she stayed with us for the last 1.5 miles and came right up to the cabin's front door - I had to keep her from coming inside! She eventually made her way back home. I wish I had brought some treats with me because I really wanted to give Bunny some food.
Friday was the second run but it was largely uneventful. The weather was just as muggy and the hills just as steep, but all cows were fenced in and Bunny was nowhere to be seen. Haven did manage to get four ticks on her, but I saw them easily on her white fur and removed them before they had a chance to take a bite. Both of our dogs use Advantix which I thought was supposed to repel ticks? Oh well, no harm done.
I went for a run Sunday after we got back home, but boy was my body out of it. I don't know if it was the messed up sleep schedule or lack of training or both, but I just didn't have any energy. I still mustered out nine miles and I must admit that once I was done, I realized that it felt good to run. It was nice to have a very light training week, but at the same time both my mind and my body missed the exercise! Hey feet, it's good to have you back.
The barge is towing the tugboats!
Amanda suggested that I take BOTH Haven and Beacon running today to get them nice and tired for tomorrow's 10-hour drive. If you've ever tried to run with two labs attached to one arm, you'll understand why I chose to run on the North Country Trail near my house. Out on the trail, I can let these four-wheel-drive beasts off leash to burn off their energy!
We started out on the street for half a mile but luckily it was uphill, so I took advantage of my two tugboats until we reached the trailhead. The weather was great - sunny and 74 - and the trail was all my own. Some parts were so overgrown with prickers, however, that I had to gingerly tiptoe my way through them. I didn't bring any water for the dogs because there are two streams on this out-and-back course, meaning they'd have water access four times during the 75 minute run.
Alas, the plan didn't pan out. The first stream was mostly black mud, but there was enough water for the pups to wet their tongues. Then at the second stream crossing I was surprised to find it all dried up! The dogs were surprised, too - they kept wandering up and down the streambed looking for the water. I had to take a detour and go off-trail for a 1/4 mile to the Flat River, which is NEVER dry - it's a major river.
At the river the dogs happily jumped into the water to drink and cool off. I gave them five minutes, then we turned around and headed home. Crossing over the last stream of black mud, Beacon decided to put on his commando war paint and plow his head and body through the mud! This yellow lab became a black lab; wisely Haven declined to join in. By now the dogs were worn out and in the final half-mile stretch home I literally had to tow them!
Luckily for the dogs Amanda was waiting for them when we got home with a kiddie pool full of clean, cold water. Of course it was no longer clean the instant Beacon waded in it! We eventually had to hose them off. Needless to say, they've been sleeping ever since! Now it's my turn.
Some worn out dogs!
A closer look at Beacon's dirty fur.
Remember Dory from Finding Nemo? "Just keep swimming!" Well this week's running has become symbolic of her motto. I don't know why but I've been in a mood to run every single day and nearly did just that but I wisely forced myself to take a day off after the long run. Here's a summary:
August 6 - My weekly long run. I ran 21.6 miles at a slow, comfortable pace and 4h45 later I was still feeling great when I stopped. Usually after 3 hours I feel like crap and I just tough it out another hour or two, but this time the entire 21.6 miles felt like an easy jog. Amanda picked me up at my office, where I used their fitness center to shower and change clothes so as not to disgust everyone at Chili's! We at lunch and I was ravenous, consuming my entire black bean burger and all the fries, plus four full glasses of strawberry lemonade. Usually I eat just half the burger and fries.
August 7 - I made myself take a day off, but my legs didn't feel too sore and I kinda wanted to go out and run.
August 8 - Before coming home from work I lifted weights in the fitness center. Usually I just do upper body stuff but I felt a little ambitious and I did some squats and calf raises, too. Then I drove home and promptly went for a fast 3.4-mile run with my dog Haven who didn't appreciate my negative split, increasing the pace at the turn-around. My legs did feel a bit sore from the squats, but not too bad.
August 9 - I went for my weekly Wednesday lunch run with some buddies at work, tallying a slow 5.0 miles except I was feeling so good at the end that I flat out SPRINTED the last 200 meters just for fun. One of my buddies tried to keep up but could only hang close for 50 meters. It was also a fun day of social running because the four of us discussed heavy topics such as the role of individuals in ensuring our survival as a society, and just what society needs to do to survive and if human nature is up to the challenge, etc. I just LOVE such discussions, and the guys I run with have great perspectives. Incidentally, they're all 45 to 55 years old and have been running and/or cycling at least 20 years each!
August 10 (today) - Lifted weights after work again but this time spared my legs because I was planning to run. Once again I took Haven out on our 3.4-mile course but at a comfortable pace. The local police had set up one of those radar signs that show your car's speed and it clocked me at 9 mph! I was hoping to get Amanda out there with a camera tomorrow so I could try a full sprint but the cops took it away this evening.
The other experiment going on was Haven trying out her new "pawdometer", a step counter designed for dogs that Amanda got as a free sample. Pedometers in general are difficult to make accurate, especially for running, so I didn't think it would be any better for dogs. At least we took a measured route so that regardless of how accurate the device thought Haven's stride was, we'd have a benchmark for how many "steps" per mile. Today it came out to about 9.5 feet per stride! I swear, my dog is NOT a giraffe! Even my long legs can't do that, let alone Haven the 65 lb labrador retriever.
August 11 (tomorrow) - Yes, I'm planning to run again, looking to go 6-8 miles at a medium pace. We'll be driving all day Saturday to a rental cabin in Tennessee for a week-long vacation, so Saturday is my rest day.
Sooner or later I'll probably lose this drive to run every day - it always happens - but that's why I have a bike. That happened a few months ago so I went on a few epic bike rides to give my mind some variety in training. If only I had a kayak! It's on my wish list for some future day...
We didn't have any big plans for Saturday other than dropping off our foster dog at an adoption event for Vicky's Pet Connection. The event went well because Darva got adopted and we got a new foster Marty. It was what happened on our way back home from dropping off Darva that changed the day's (lack of) plans.
The drive home took us through Ada and as we skirted the quaint downtown, we noticed a main road was closed off. It seemed like a parade was getting underway until we saw the "floats" fly by - a group of cyclists with bib numbers pinned to their team jerseys. It was a bike race!
The event was the Ada Criterium, a series of ten bike races sanctioned by the US Cycling Federation and also serving as the Michigan criterium state championships. Riders of all abilities, even pro, were competing. It was about 12:30pm, so we found a parking space and found a place to watch along the sidewalk.
The race course was simply a 0.8-mile loop on the downtown streets and there were very few spectators. That isn't to say it wasn't crowded, because the sidewalks near the start/finish line were full of cyclists and their friends and family. We watched the men's Cat 4 race at 12:40 where the riders race 30 minutes plus 5 laps; they ride the 30 minutes at whatever pace the peloton feels like, but once the time is up then there's automatically 5 laps to go.
We chatted with a few volunteers who informed us that the premier race of the day would take place at 4:50pm with the Cat 1-2 (and pro) men. They neglected to tell us that the pro and Cat 1-2 women were racing next at 1:30pm! So after watching just one race we drove home to take care of some errands and grab lunch. Soon we were on the road again, heading to Vicky's to pick up our next foster dog, Marty. Then, we were back at the races.
The elite men's race was 80 minutes plus 5 laps, so we decided to walk around the entire course (it's only 0.8 miles, remember) during the race to watch from every possible angle! It was just like going for a stroll on the neighborhood sidewalk with a pack of VERY FAST cyclists humming past every 100 seconds or so.
While walking near the start/finish area I ran into David, a guy I'd met twice before. The first time was back in February while running on the North Country Trail near my house - he was running, too! We said hi, but didn't introduce ourselves until we happened to meet at the bookstore during the Dean Karnazes book signing! He's a triathlete and recently completed the Lake Placid Ironman in a little over 12 hours, a very solid time - at least I think it is, but I've never done a triathlon before. Maybe someday...
David stayed to take some photos while Amanda and I continued our circuit of the race loop. We talked with one volunteer whose son finished 3rd in the junior men's race, and another volunteer couple who had a son in the last race, the Cat 3 men. At one point a police officer, whose job was to keep the public OFF the race course, nearly got nailed by the race leader when he tried to cross the road without looking! I felt bad for the rider who had to shout "Watch out!" and swerve when he was doing his best to attack the peloton.
Finally the race was over, won by a local rider, and Amanda and I decided to go home. Not without a couple souvenirs - the sponsor Ada Bike Shop was selling nice water bottles for $3 each! It was our first time watching an organized road bike race and it was quite thrilling - the speed, the strategic tactics, the competition! It made me feel like racing, and I'm not even a "roadie"! But I'll stick to running and adventure racing for now.
Tuesday evening this week I went for a run with my dog Haven in 90-degree, humid heat. Just 14 hours later I went running again, a 5-mile lunchtime run with a few co-workers, with the temperature at the same 90 degrees. However, that second run was MUCH HOTTER. Why?
The sun. Tuesday evening's run was after 8pm and the sun had just ducked below the trees (but hadn't set yet). On top of that my route was along tree-shrouded dirt roads, so the road didn't see much direct sunlight throughout the day. In fact, it didn't seem quite so hot to me, although my dog was definitely feeling it.
Meanwhile, Wednesday's noon run was on city sidewalks exposed to the glaring high sun. Not only was the running surface hot as a griddle, my body was soaking up the sun's radiative heat, too. Yeah, my legs were tired from running the previous evening, but the heat was absolutely sweltering in comparison.
To top it all off, my softball team played it's 16th and last game of season Wednesday evening! I was definitely feeling tired after seven innings playing shortstop and running the bases. So today, my legs are getting a day off from running to catch up on some rest!
Worn out yet content, Haven is happy the run is over!
Today was one of the hottest days of the year, topping out at 94 degrees with a dewpoint of 75! So I decided to postpone my afternoon run to the late evening, when it had "cooled" to 90 degrees. Sheesh.
I decided to bring along my four-legged running partner, my dog Haven, although I had to be careful that she didn't overheat. Dogs don't cool off as well as humans, so even though Haven is design to run far and fast, she's not as well designed to keep cool.
Our route would take us 5.4 miles, which normally just requires me to bring one water bottle. This evening I carried two - one for me and one for Haven, plus a packable cloth water bowl. We maintained an easy pace (~9:30 miles) along the hilly dirt road that weaved its way northeast of our home.
The air didn't feel as bad as I thought. It was definitely super muggy, but the sun was below the trees and the dirt roads are well shaded to begin with. The wind was dead calm but the slight "breeze" created by my forward motion felt good. However, I quickly felt the heat when I stopped, which I did three times to give Haven a drink from her water bowl.
Less than 52 minutes after we started, we trotted back up our driveway. While we were gone Amanda played fetch with Beacon while Darva apparently tried to herd Beacon after each catch. Importantly for Haven, Amanda had the kiddie pool filled up with cold water, which Haven happily used to cool off! She laid in that pool for about ten minutes! Likewise, I took a cold shower. Ahhhhh!
Haven cooling off in the kiddie pool - notice the neat ripples caused by her panting
Right now Haven is curled up at my feet in the family room as I compose this post. She just LOVES to go running, and I must admit I love to have her running at my side, even if I have to carry twice the water.
Several weeks ago my wife and I took one of our foster dogs, Bella, to the local vet to get her health certificate updated. The vet who checked out Bella was Dr. Bruce Langlois, owner of the Lowell Animal Hospital. He proclaimed Bella to be perfectly healthy, and then we chatted a bit about running.
See if you can follow this chain... Back in March I went for a run with Dean Karnazes, who was in town for a book signing thanks to a guy named Don Kern, the director of the Grand Rapids Marathon. One day I was reading Don's blog and was surprised to find an entry about Bruce! So I asked Bruce about Don during our visit with Bella, leading to Bruce inviting me to join him and some running buddies on their weekly Saturday morning run. Finally on July 19, I took him up on the offer.
There's a group of runners who show up to Townsend Park at 8:00am every Saturday to go for a run. However, Bruce and a friend of his named Dave like to get started early at 6:00am! So I dragged myself out of bed ready for a hard run because these two guys like to go FAST. At least, fast relative to me. They were planning on 8-minute miles for 13 miles! I wasn't sure I could do that but I figured I'd be close and might as well try.
Well, I can't run quite that fast. After about 4 miles I dropped a few yards behind them on a long hill, and each hill after that put them farther ahead. Luckily they were planning a stop around halfway at Bruce's lake cabin to grab a drink of water, so I caught up to them there. Five minutes later we were off again, and after a mile I just couldn't hang with them. They went on ahead and I eventually stumbled back to Townsend Park, but not that far behind them - I ran 8:30 miles! A good run for me.
Last Saturday I was back at Townsend Park, but this time at 7:00am. I ran for half an hour on the trails, then rested up and waited for the 8:00am crowd to show up since they run at a slower pace than Bruce and Dave. A little after 7:30am those two came striding into the parking lot, having finished their 13-miler at a 7:30 pace! As it turned out, however, only two guys showed up for the 8:00am group run - Andy and John. I was looking to run 12 miles, but Andy and John were planning on less. We started off together but after 3 miles Andy turned around (to run 6) and then after 4 miles John turned back (to finish with 8) while I pressed on alone.
The next few miles were miserable, not because of my fitness because I felt fine, but because of the hordes of deer files! I was getting swarmed and even bitten a few times. Then to make matters worse I started to run out of water! Even though it was early in the morning the temperature was already into the 80's with a forecast high in the mid 90's. I turned toward the main two-lane highway for two reasons: 1) I figured there would be fewer deer flies than on the tree-shrouded dirt roads, and 2) I needed to find somewhere to refill my empty water bottle.
As it happens, my aunt and uncle live along that main road but when I ran by they weren't home. No problem, though, because just another mile down the road is a convenience store where I was able to refill my water bottle. However, I had already dehydrated and was forced to walk soon after leaving the store. I walked about a mile and then started feeling better and managed to run the remaining 2 miles back to the park. Boy was it HOT that day! I drank three bottles of water over 15 total miles of running, which is twice what I normally drink.
Now I've gotta run - literally. I still need to go running this evening. Today was the hottest of the year, reaching 98 degrees a few hours ago and it's still in the lower 90's right now (7:30pm) so it'll be an interesting run. I'm planning to take one of my dogs with me, so I'll be carrying two water bottles - one for me, one for Haven, plus a little water bowl for her to drink from. Gotta keep her hydrated, too!