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Haven and I having a blast racing in the 2008 Bailey's Doggie Dash.
Since I began running almost five years ago I've participated in 25 races (including 3 adventure races) but surprisingly only three events have been repeats. Twice each I've run the Grand Rapids Marathon and the Irish Jig 5K, and now I can add Bailey's Doggie Dash to the list for the fourth time!
My first ever organized race was the 2005 edition of the Doggie Dash and it's been an annual staple for Haven and I ever since. Why? You'll be hard pressed to find more fun packed into a 5K!
Haven poses as Amanda takes advantage of beautiful photography settings.
Haven has always been a fast runner - after all, she's a dog! They're born to run, even the lazy ones. :) My training over the years has helped me keep up with her and our Doggie Dash results show a favorable trend:
2005 Bailey's Doggie Dash - 24:39 - 10th overall, 1st/1 age group
2006 Bailey's Doggie Dash - 22:42 - 5th overall, 1st/4 age group
2007 Bailey's Doggie Dash - 20:17 - 3rd overall, 2nd/3 age group
(A note about the age groups... Yes, I "won" my age group in 2005 by being the only runner in it! Although technically I'll never truly win my age group as long as Joel Bierling and his dog Anubis are here - they've won the Doggie Dash outright every year since 2004, and Joel is my age. In fact the top three humans in 2007 were all 31 years old!)
The one and only Bailey, the "assistant race director" of Bailey's Doggie Dash.
Could Haven and I continue to improve in 2008? Sadly, no - I am still recovering from a lingering hamstring injury and knew going into the event that I would not be able to run near full speed, but Haven didn't get the memo...
We lined up behind the chalk line with "START" scrawled on the pavement - part of the appeal of this race is how casual and old-school it is - and Haven immediately began screaming in excitement! Just like before last year's race - she knew exactly what was going on and just couldn't wait to get going.
Krista Durham heard Haven (who couldn't?) and walked over to say hi as I tried to buckle the Ruff Wear Roamer leash around my waist. Krista and Ron discovered the Doggie Dash - and indirectly their dog Kasey - last year thanks to my blog! In 2007 Ron won his age group but this year was Krista's turn and she assured me that she was no threat to win an award.
Race director Kevin Sweeney "barks" out final instructions before the start of Bailey's Doggie Dash.
Photo courtesy of Jim Falk, Kent County Parks Foundation. The race is held at Wabasis Park in Kent County, and 100% of the entry fees are donated to the Foundation.
Finally we were off! As you can see in the photo below, even though I was trying to go easy Haven was definitely in afterburner. The pack began to thin out a bit when suddenly a Golden Retriever whizzed past... off leash! I heard a woman behind me calling for her dog but it was having too much fun! I stopped a couple times to try and snag its leash but without luck; however, the dog was soon back in hand.
Haven launches us off to a quick start - who do you think is having more fun?
Heading up the first hill from the boat launch a young Husky mix kept trying to play with Haven, but Haven wasn't here for games - she wanted to catch the lady in front of us! To Haven's chagrin I instead struck up a conversation with Neil, the owner of the playful Isla. This was Neil's 4th or 5th Doggie Dash but the 1st for recently-adopted Isla - in previous years Neil had to borrow his daughter's dog!
Going downhill pulled away from Neil and Isla and Haven settled in behind a woman and her Irish Setter, who was also using a hands-free leash like us. We followed about half a mile, reaching the 1-mile mark where I realized I'd forgotten to start my watch! I started it here and based on my finish time, was able to deduce later that Haven and I posted an 8:16 first mile, faster than I've run in a long time.
Neil Bierling and Isla work their way up a hill.
Once again it was a downhill section that allowed us to pass a runner and Haven and it made the turn onto the wooded trail section of the course. With nobody in sight ahead or behind us, Haven must've realized the sudden privacy - she stopped for some "business"! Fortunately I carried a couple Business Bags in my pocket and cleared the trail of landmines, but then had to carry the live ordnance until we found a trash can! When all was said and done it was almost a one minute delay.
A few dogs and people passed us during the pit stop and I must've subconsciously accelerated a bit - we ran the second mile at a 9:05 pace including the poop delay, but by this point Haven was finally growing tired of giving my pace a free ride. The leash went slack and I was on my own!
Surprisingly I felt pretty good but I didn't let the slow pace fool me into thinking I was fit enough for anything faster. We jogged through the campground where a camping family was watching with their dog. They asked me about race and I ran backwards a few steps as I explained the basics before Haven coaxed me onwards.
Haven and I cresting the final hill and still having fun.
At long last the final uphill was in sight and we did our best to maintain momentum. Along this stretch of road Amanda was lurking on the shoulder to snap some photos with the amazing fall colors in the background. Every year the Doggie Dash has seen great weather - clear, sunny, cool, and leaves every color but green.
Cresting the hill I noticed that Neil and Isla weren't far behind, so Haven and I made sure we didn't get lazy as we chugged towards the finish line. Woo hoo! Yep, it's an old-school event - no chip timing here. A volunteer ripped the perforated tab from my bib number while another wrote down my time on a clipboard. 26:59 was written by my number, probably my slowest 5K ever but also among the most enjoyable!
Juanita Stasik and Lance working hard - well, one of them is working hard. :)
The last mile clocked about 8:45 - not having Haven's help really exposed my slowness! We hung out at the finish to watch some other folks finish, including a couple of my friends from work. Juanita Stasik and her yellow lab Lance were running their second Doggie Dash after discovering the event in 2007.
Bob Fry and Monty make their way to the finish. Monty was glad for the cool, 45-degree weather!
Making his first Doggie Dash appearance was Bob Fry and his Pomeranian mix Monty. Bob is one the guys I run with at work during lunch (when my leg is healthy) and a former Boston Marathoner. Notice that "50" on his shirt - I'll bet that he and I were the only two runners wearing shirts from a 50-mile ultramarathon! Monty probably took as many steps in this 5K as Bob does in a 50K!
Now it was time for the treats - dog biscuits for Haven and Halloween candy for me! Race director Kevin Sweeney sure knows how to dish out a post-race spread! He also knows how to organize a smooth event - low tech, low stress, high class and high fun!
Haven is in full-on begging mode, explaining in dog language why she deserves yet another biscuit!
Once all the runners and walkers had finished it was time for the awards. First up were the door prizes and I finally won! The loot was a hand-made blanket - I've been pining for one of those hand-made dog beds and blankets that are given out each year.
The little wizard, winner of the Bailey's Choice costume award.
Next were the costume winners as chosen by local meteorologist Peter Chan - many great outfits but there was a certain charm about the winner - a little wizard. And finally the running awards... Once again Joel Bierling and Anubis won overall but he had to pass a high school cross country runner on the last hill to earn his victory! If that kid is back next year, Joel and Anubis are in trouble. A girl from the same high school took a close 2nd overall for women, too!
I should mention that trophies are handed out for the people and engraved bowls for the dogs! Three deep in each age group, so there's a lot of hardware going home. Neil and Isla won their age group as did Bob and Monty! However Bob had already headed home, so after the awards I got their trophies and dropped them off with Bob at work. He has two other dogs besides Monty and he thinks they'll be jealous of Monty's engraved bowl.
Not to be outdone by our co-worker, Juanita and Lance went home with some hardware, too! They finished 3rd in her age group, a task made easier by arriving on time. Last year Juanita took a wrong turn while driving to the park and started the race 10 minutes late! Apparently she still had so much fun that she came back for more.
Krista Durham and Kasey try to shrug off their award after promising at the start to not win one. ;)
Remember Krista's promise that Kasey wasn't going to win anything? Wrong - they placed 3rd in their age group! Kasey is 2-for-2 with trophies and now has more than either of his owners. Ron had his own race the next day - the Grand Rapids Marathon as his first 26.2 and he rocked it with a 3:37! Wow.
Finally it was time for my age group and... nothing. Lots of guys in their 30s can run faster than gimpy me, so poor Haven had to endure the shame of no engraved bowl this year. But hey, we won a blanket!
Haven relaxes on our door prize, an evidently comfy hand-made blanket.
Even though it's only a 20-minute drive home, Haven slept the entire way - she was one worn-out pup. We posed for our photo in front of the burning bush in what has become a post-race tradition, then went inside to indulge in more treats. As if Bailey's Doggie Dash wasn't enough of a treat already!
The traditional post-race photo - we'll be back in 2009!
No, that's not me, not by a long shot. Not yet anyway... It won't be until this fall that I'll attempt my first ultramarathon. However, this entry is about one of the world's premier ultrarunners, Dean Karnazes.
I've been a casual fan of Dean for over a year, and a few weeks ago I finally decided to get his book from the library and read it. It's definitely a good read, especially if you're fascinated by people who obsessively push themselves to their limits as Dean does. After reading his book I poked around on Dean's website and noticed that he was scheduled to visit Grand Rapids last weekend on a book tour! I returned my library copy and bought one from the bookstore since he would be signing books that Saturday.
What makes Dean so famous in ultrarunning circles? He usually places among the top finishers of major ultra races, usually at distances of 100 miles or more. But several elite runners can do that. Then Dean decided to enter a 12-man relay race that covers 200 miles - but he ran it solo! Later he ran a marathon ten times over in one shot - 262 miles! And last fall he ran 350 miles non-stop! It took him three days and three nights, 80+ hours total.
The week before the book signing I happened to be shopping for running shoes at Gazelle Sports and the store had a sign advertising the book signing. It mentioned that Dean would be signing his handiwork at Schuler Books, then he would run about 12 miles to the other Schuler's to sign books there. I wonder if people could run with him? The running store didn't know, and neither did the bookstore.
Saturday morning Amanda and I helped set up for Vicky's Pet Connection adoption event at PetSmart. We ran some errands and later that afternoon picked up our foster dog Zoe who we had dropped off earlier. One person seemed a bit interested in her, so we'll see if that pans out. Then it was back home where I tried to figure out what to wear to the book signing. No, I'm not vain. I was, however, trying to be prepared in case Dean invited people to run the 12 miles between stores with him. The forecast said 44 degrees with possible thunderstorms, but it was easily 60 degrees that evening. I found a pair of running shorts that I could wear under my jeans, put a running shirt underneath my turtleneck, and put on some running socks. This way I could change quickly out in the open parking lot.
Amanda and I showed up at Schuler's and had to wait as Dean was running late. There were at least 50 people there waiting for him, including a local TV news anchor with his camera. Finally Dean arrived and he spoke to the audience for about 20 minutes, mostly recanting stories that were in his book. Then we all lined up for him to sign. While he signed my book I asked if I could join him on his run to the other bookstore. No problem! There was already a small group planning to run with him. He pointed them out to me and went on to sign the next book.
The other group was led by the race director for the Grand Rapids Marathon, a guy named Don Kern. Don actually met Dean on a south pole expedition - a touristy adventure where both of them wanted to run a marathon to the south pole! Dean's book and Don's website tell that story well, including how they ran around the world naked, complete with photos. :)
Anyway, Don was the guy who brought Dean to Grand Rapids on the book tour and a few friends from Don's running club were planning to run with Dean that night. Don assured me that they were only going to run a 9-10 minute/mile pace, something I could handle. So I dashed off to the parking lot and changed into my running gear. I walked back inside to wait as Dean finished signing and chatted a bit with some of the other "fans" hanging around.
At last Dean was ready and we headed outside. I realized that I was one of just seven runners, including Dean! This was beginning to feel like having Derek Jeter join some of my softball buddies for some batting practice! Off we ran, and right away the pace was closer to 8-minute miles than 9 or 10. Well, I would keep up as long as I could. Nobody talked a whole lot - we were trying to breathe, after all - but I still was able to chat with some of the folks. I asked Dean about life on the road for his book tour, and he asked if 60-degree nights were common for March in Michigan.
Our route took us through downtown Grand Rapids, which was a total blast. It was about 10pm at night and the streets were full of nightlife, forcing us to weave among all the traffic and pedestrians who routinely honked, waved, shouted encouragement, and one guy who said "Now that's what I call a bar crawl!" We ran past the Calder, ran past the fish ladder, and made our way to a bridge where some of Don's buddies had set up a mini aid station (gatorade and beer). Dean was behind schedule so we pressed on. And really pressed, because now Dean was flying trying to make up lost time. Don was the slowest runner of the group and fell behind, so I hung back with him since he's about my ability level anyway. Don's girlfriend Francine is also slow like us so she stayed behind while Dean and the other fast runners took off.
Don, Francine, and I continued to plod along at a more comfortable pace. Just minutes before we were in a crowded downtown, but now we were running through a virtual ghost town of an industrial area. Now that we weren't pushing the pace so hard, we could actually spare some oxygen for a little conversation. Before we knew it we had arrived at the bookstore in 1 hour 51 minutes of running. Dean and the others had arrived just 10 minutes earlier, so we didn't feel too bad. I thanked Dean for the run and headed home.
How did I get home? Well Amanda had driven to the bookstore and waited over an hour for me to arrive. She read an entire photo essay book about dogs (Dogs 24/7, I think) and even managed a trip to Target to buy us some Pringles for the drive home. Quite a fun night! It's not every day you get to go for a casual run with a world-class runner. And I have the t-shirt to prove it!