An end to the year.

It's the last day of 2008 and I think quite a good year for me running wise. It's been about 20 months since I solved the problem with my left foot. In April, 1 year after the fix I ran a 10 day race, completing 427 miles and confirming that I was indeed back. I had a tough 50k in the summer in very hot conditions. Then ran my best 2 mile and Marathon times for about 3 years. In the fall I ran a decent 24 hour. Then ran my first trail race, a 6 hour on Long Island. Finally on Thanksgiving I broke 40 minutes for 5 miles for the first time in I can't remember when, so yes I think 2008 was a good year. Oh yes! I turned 55 a few weeks ago.

Golden Sun

Went out for my run just as the Sun was coming up this morning. Unlike the last 2 weeks I did not see other runners out there on the roads. It was not too cold and the run was quite pleasant, running for just over an hour.On the way back I was running towards a golden Sun.

Be consistent

Something that as always been important to me has been to be consistent in my running . I find that once I get into a pattern of running on a regular basis I see the benefits, in both my general health and the results in my races. When I ran today it completed a streak of 8 months in which I have run every day. I have mentioned before that I have these running streaks, they can range from a few weeks to a few years. I never put any pressure on myself to run everyday, I just get the feeling that I want to go out and run and so I do. When I run in an "Ultra" race I have the same attitude, but because of my consistent training, it just feels right to run. Consistency is something to look into.

Nice Run

The mild weather continues, in fact it was warmer than I expected and a few miles into my run this morning I had to take my hat off. Just like last week I did see a couple of runners out there on the road. I do not usually see them during the week. For some reason I felt a little tight, but still comfortable during the run and decided to go a little further than last week. I ran about 7 miles in around 65 minutes. As I was running this morning I realized that I am very happy running in the countryside as opposed to the city, cars are not such a problem.

Hot Chocolate and Cherry scones

My first Sunday run in the UK was quite pleasant. With all the rain yesterday it was damp out there, but not too cold. It is really nice to run in the country side, seeing green fields and sheep as I ran along quiet roads. I managed to run about 6 miles and when I got back got to enjoy a hot chocolate and a cherry scone.

Last race of the year in the US

28 F was the temperature at the start of the 2 mile race this morning, but with no breeze it did not feel that cold. My first mile was 7:41 and my finishing time was 15:29, giving me a second mile of 7:48. So a little better than the last couple of weeks. This was my last race of the year, as I will be in the UK in a few days for the rest of the year.
I needed to run an errand this afternoon, so I decided to do it literally and ran about 3 1/2 miles to a store to buy something and then ran back. While out there I saw a couple of gas stations selling gas at $1.99 a gallon for unleaded regular. The likes of which have not been sen for quite some time.
I also saw a police car that had crashed into a traffic light. I wanted to take a photograph, but thought they might not like it.

2 Races in 48 hours again

This morning as I prepared to run the 2 mile race, my second race in 48 hours, I was still feeling some tightness in the right side of my lower back. I thought to myself that I do not have the same speed of recovery that I had in my youth. Once the race started it did not feel so bad and I went through the first mile in 7:44, which I am happy with. During the second mile however my legs did feel tired and the was timed at 7:58, giving me a finishing time of 15:42, which was better than last week.
I am now feeling quite sore, but it reminds me of the way I felt when I was running fast marathons in my younger days.

It's Santa!!!

This is Santa at the finish of the 5 mile Turkey trot in Brooklyn yesterday.
I was a little sore when I woke up this morning, but was out the door just after 6:30 to run a couple of miles. That made me feel a bit better, after I got however I took a nap. When I woke up from that my right hip was quite painful. It's just one of the muscles back there that is a little sore and I hope one more night of sleep will fix it up.

Santa at the race

I ran a 5 mile Turkey trot in Brooklyn this morning with my friend Utpal. It was quite cold, but not too bad. My time was 39 :36, which was 3 minutes faster than last year, very happy with that. Utpal ran 42:27, his first race other than the Marathon in 10 years we figured. Santa was near the finish line cheering people on. I was very happy with the speed I had in the second half of the race and ran fast than I expected. Which just goes to show I can still surprise myself.

Winter run

The morning is bright and sunny for our Sunday run. We decided to go out to Flushing Meadow, since it is cold enough for the lake to be frozen and it would look pretty nice. However it is usually quite windy out there and this made it feel even colder, well at least on the way out. The temperature was 26 F and I have to say the hot chocolate on the way back was most welcome.

Cold 2 mile race

With a temperature of 25F and 20 mph winds, I wondered if I wanted to run the 2 mile race this morning. I did run and for most of the loop course it seemed like I was running into the wind. It felt like I running really slow, my first mile time of 8:10 showed it. Then something happened during the second mile, I started feeling strong and began passing some of the people who had passed me earlier. My finishing time was a decent 15:44, with a second mile time of 7:34. Although I was sweating I felt cold. If you could get out of the wind the sunshine made it feel a little warmer.

A little under the weather

For the last 10 days or so I have been fighting something, at times I feel good, but at others I feel a little under the weather. Well this morning was one of those. Though I have to say when I got out and stated to run it did not feel so bad. When I mention how I feel to someone they say "Yeah there is something going around, a lot of people have it". Anyway I think we had a good run this morning. We did run the 10k loop.

Rainy Saturday

I was not quite sure how I felt as I went out to the 2 mile race this morning. My right ankle still felt a little sore, but I figured it would not be a problem. Once the race started my breathing seemed to be the main problem. I could not quite get it right. I went through the first mile in 7:22 and the second mile I seemed to be hanging on, running 7:40. For a total time of 15:02. A time I am still quite happy with.

Oh yeah! It was a sort of rainy overcast morning with the temperature in the mid 50's F.

Little things

This morning I woke up with a sore calf and was not quite sure where it came from. I then remembered that I had turned my ankle when I went out for my run yesterday. Though it did not bother me much at the time I guess it strained some of the muscles and tendons around it. It seemed to get better as the day went on, but I noticed my hip was a little sore on my walk back home. It should not be a problem, but it just goes to show how one little thing can affect others.

New York City Marathon

Well it's the morning of the marathon and it is quite cool and windy, but with bright sunshine. Probably good conditions for the race. Utpal and I ran around 6 miles (10k)and we plan on watching the TV coverage after a little breakfast. Maybe I'll give a report tomorrow.

I finished third!

Due to other events happening today and this weekend, there was not a big turnout for the 2 mile race this morning. So I found myself in second place for the first mile, my time being 7:20. I had some congestion which did not help my breathing and I dropped back to third place with about 3/4 of a mile to go. With a time of 14:59, I did manage to break 15 minutes and was quite satisfied.

Hard run

Surprisingly it was not so cold this morning for the 2 mile race.The last few days have been a little bit stressful, so it was nice to run the race. It was a bit of a struggle since my legs were still tired from the 2 long races I've done in the last 3 weeks. I tried to just keep my form and stay as close as I could to runners I knew. I went through the first mile in 7:36, the second in 7:29, for a finishing time of 15:05. I am very happy with that.

6 Months

My run this afternoon marks 6 months since I missed a day of running, or in other words I have run every day for the last 6 months. Today's run was cold and very windy, but the legs felt pretty good.

Still Sore

My upper legs have been sore all day. I think maybe I used some muscles during the race that I have not used in a while and of course they were still tired from the 24 hour race. I guess this is the experience of doing the 2 races so close together. My hip flexors seem to be the most sore. Time will heal them. I did jog a couple of miles again this afternoon.

Yes I am sore!

I woke up this morning and I felt like I did after running my first marathon. My upper legs, mainly my quads were really sore. The walk to work helped to loosen me up a bit. This afternoon I took a short nap and then went out and jogged a couple of miles. This is all part of the recovery, which is all part of running the races. I feel very satisfied with the job I did. By the way did I mention that I was 28th out 90 male finishers.

6 Hour run

Today I went out to Sunken Meadow Park, on Long Island and ran in a 6 hour race. It was mostly on trails and was quite hilly. It was cold and windy for most of the race. There were about 140 runners, some from the 24 hour race 2 weeks ago. In fact Byron Lane, who won the 24 hour race, won again today, and it was his 41st birthday. I ran 28.71 miles, which wasn't bad since it was only 2 weeks after doing 76 miles in the 24 hour race.

Sri Chinmoy- One year anniversary

It is one year since the passing of Sri Chinmoy my meditation teacher and spiritual guide for almost 35 years. Over this weekend many will come to pay their respects. on a kind of pilgrimage to the New York borough of Queens. There was no 2 mile race today. So Utpal and I went out to run a few miles as a start to this day of remembrance.

Ray K

Photo by Jowan

Ray Kroliewicz is kind of an ultra running legend in the US, he adds a lot of energy to a race and always seems to get any observers involved. He has a family connection in New York and so has done many races here, though he lives in Pontiac, South Carolina. I have known him for probably 25 years, though we were out of touch for about 15 of those. In the photo here you see him at the start of the Ted Corbitt 24 hour race. Giving some direction ( I guess ) to Gary Corbitt, Ted's son.

My friend Luis Rios

Photo by Jowan

The guy with the beard is my friend Luis Rios. I have known him for about 20 years. When he was in his 30's he used to run a lot of races organized by the Sri Chinmoy Marathon Team and even won a few. Now he runs in some of the same multiday races as me and here he is in the Ted Corbitt 24 hour race that happened this weekend.

Recovering

Woke up this morning at my usual time and yes I was a little tight in the old leg muscles. I think the walk to work helped somewhat. I have a sore spot on the ball of my right foot, but other than that everything is good. Last year I ran 72 miles in Quebec and 81 miles in Ottawa, so my 76+ miles this weekend was right in the middle.

Sore and Happy

IT was supposed to be the perfect weekend for a 24 hour race. Cool and sunny, dry ( no rain forecast). There were 60+ runners at the start of the Ted Corbitt 24 hour race, a lot of old friends and some more recent ones. I got into a comfortable pace, the park where the race was is very scenic so that made the run even nicer.A couple of hours into the race we had a rain shower, but not enough to really bother anyone. I seemed quite comfortable for the first 14.5 hour, then I started to have some problems. I plodded on to the 16 hour mark then took a 45 minute sleep break, this helped and on returning established a solid mix of running and walking. After 1 more hour the rain started and was on and off for the next 4 hours. Sri Chinmoy Marathon team member Arpan De Angelo briefly held the lead in the race and held on to finish second. I was very happy to finish with 76.5 miles, which split the difference between my 2 races last year.
So here I am sore and happy.

Race day

Well it's cold out there 46 F and it should be the same during the night hours of the race. Typically I woke up and my Achilles tendon on my right foot is letting me know it is there. It looks like the weather will be pretty much like yesterday, which was very nice in the afternoon. I have time to get an early breakfast and will then take my ride with the other guys from the Marathon team.
The race starts at 10am and so will be finished at that time on Sunday. Wish me luck!

Old friends

When I went for breakfast this morning I met 2 old friends. Ed Kelley and his wife Kim were in town from Sacramento. It seems Kim's grandmother in New Jersey has died. Ed won the 3100 mile race 2 times and finished second once.It was really nice to see them again.
A few hours later I went out for an easy 2 miles, just to make sure everything is working ok before the race tomorrow.

Ted Corbitt 24 hour race-4 days to go

With 4 days to go to the start I just received my entry confirmation for the Ted Corbitt 24 hour race this weekend. It seems there will be about 60 participants, most of them local. With 4 of us from the Sri Chinmoy Marathon team. There will be a lot of old friends out there, so I will have an opportunity to catch up with them during the race. My running feels pretty good this week, so I am happy.

Satisfied

The morning was a little misty, well there was a light misty rain as I went out the door.There were just the usual stalwart runners out at the 2 mile race. I started of about the same as always and felt good throughout the race. Sitting back in 7th place I went through the first mile in 7:08 and finished strong in 14:17 and was quite satisfied with that. I am managing to maintain good times for my 2 mile races. there will of course be a break since I have a 24 hour race next week.

Hiccups

Hiccups are interesting things they are not completely incapacitating, but they can be very annoying. I have not had them for quite a while, but I did yesterday afternoon and this afternoon, for about 5 minutes each time. I find that if I relax my breathing a little it does not take too long for them to go away.
I had a short but very powerful run this afternoon, it felt really good.

5 Months

My run this afternoon marked the 5th month that I have not missed a day of running. My philosophy is to just feel when I want to go out and run and unless it's a race day, not have any preconceived idea of how far I will run. In this way I find I totally enjoy my running and when I run every day my body is happy to run. I am very happy with how my running is going right now.

Shea Stadium

A beautiful fall morning greeted us as we set out for our run. It was time for us to start doing our runs out to Shea stadium. It is the first time since the Spring that we have done this run. In the middle of the run I started feeling like I was really hungry and losing energy, despite that fact that I eaten a granola bar before leaving the house. I tried to ignore it and it went away. We maintained what I thought was a good pace for us. Stopping on the way back for our traditional Hot Chocolate, it was the longest run since the marathon in August.

Oh my goodness!

With a temperature of only 52F, the conditions were nice and cool for the 2 mile race. I had been feeling a little off the last couple of days, but was still optimistic. At the start it felt like I was running slow, but I was up there with the leaders so I knew I was not. I settled into 5th place and just after the first mile in 7:07 was passed by the first placed woman. I stayed with her and passed her going up the one hill on the course. She passed me back and I tried to stay with her for the rest of the race. As I approached the clock I saw that it had just passed 14 minutes and crossed the line in 14:11, my second fastest time in 3 years.

Sore throat

Woke up with a sore throat this morning, but other than that I was fine. Met Utpal on the corner at the usual time. It was cool but quite humid. We ran the 10k loop at a relaxed pace. It was suggested that we maybe go out again in the afternoon. but by the afternoon I did not feel I wanted to run a second time.

Same conditions, same time

The conditions for the 2 mile race this week were the same as last week. It rained overnight, was cool but humid in the morning. This week I had a couple of familiar runners in the race and this helped me with my pace. I was 2 seconds faster through the first mile 7:0, but 2 seconds slower in the second mile. So my finish time was the same 14:27. I am happy that I am consistent.

Remembering 9/11

Seven years ago today I was flying on a plane from Europe to New York. When we got withing about 3 hours of our destination we were told something had happened and we would be returning to Vienna. I spent the next 4 days in a hotel there watching everything unfold from afar. It was very strange for me to return to New York on September 15, the first plane to arrive in JFK. I have never flown into an airport that is completely quiet. Also seeing the plume of smoke rising from lower Manhattan as we made our approach was very eerie.

After the storm

Tropical storm Hanna, which what was left of hurricane Hanna hit around 3 pm yesterday. It was pretty heavy for a couple of hours. but then became just a steady rain. By this morning it was nice for my Sunday run. However Utpal is suffering from a late summer cold, so we just ran what I call my 5k loop. Which was fine with me since I was still feeling sore from the race yesterday.

Improvement

There was some rain overnight so of course it was humid this morning ( so what's new!). The race field was small this week, only about 20 runners. I was in fact in third place at one time early on, getting passed by 3 runners ( one of them the first woman finisher) about half way through. I tried to use them to keep my pace. I went through the first mile in 7:08. It was hard to breath with the humidity at 91%, but I held on as well as I could. My finishing time was 14:27, second best this year. So my fitness is still good.

Labor Day weekend

It's Labor Day weekend here in the US, but this morning was just Sunday morning. This of course means that Utpal and I went for our Sunday morning run. I was feeling pretty good, but he had a hard time in the marathon last week, so it was his run to set the pace. We did what I call the 10k loop and about 4 miles in he called a walking break, which we did for about 1 minute. So Sunday's are back on schedule.

Wow really good!

Early this morning a band of thunder storms came through the area and dropped quite a lot of rain,as a result it was very humid again for the 2 mile race, but at least it was not raining. Since it is a week after the marathon my usual expectation is to run around 16 minutes, but last week I was a little better than that 1 day after the marathon. So this I thought maybe I can match it. I thought I was running quite fast, but was not sure, unfortunately there was no split time at the 1 mile this week. I was really surprised when I started my sprint into the finish and could see the clock reading 14:30. I crossed the line in 14:34, my fourth best time this year!

A week since

It is now a week since I ran the marathon and the 2 mile race the next day. I have run just easy runs all week, there is still some stiffness in my upper legs, but I feel OK. I am quite happy with my recovery and now trying to decide what my next races will be.

The marathon is not easy.

People often say to me, " Oh you are an ultra runner the marathon must be easy for you", but that is so far from the truth. Unless you are world class, you do not run an "ultra" with the same kind of intensity that you do a marathon. Of course you know you can run the distance, but you are trying to run it much faster. So running a marathon is never easy, but I try to have as much fun with it as I do all my races no matter what the distance.

A bit better today

I slept very well last night. This morning there was still some soreness, but Utpal and I had arranged for our usual Sunday run and there he was waiting for me ask I came out the door. Of course we were both feeling the marathon, so it was a gentle run. We ran what I call my 5k loop and then stopped to get a drink. Once again the morning was pleasant.

Surprised myself

Yes my upper legs felt a little stiff this morning and I jogged over to the 2 mile race not sure if I would run. I did run and expected to run really slow, but as the race progressed I started to feel OK.I went through the first mile in 7:57 so I thought I could finish with a low 16 minute time that I would be happy with. As I approached the finishing line I saw that the clock said 15 something and was surprised to finish in 15:54, with my second mile also being 7:57.

The temperature was in the low 60's F, humidity around 80%.

Very Happy

So today was the Marathon. It was in the beautiful Rockland Lake State Park. The weather at the start was quite cool. The first loop around the lake is 2.7 miles and each 1 of 8 more loops is I think 2.95 miles. I felt quite good until 18 miles and then I started to mix in some walking. At that point I was well ahead of my past from last year. With about 4 miles to go I started to struggle a little and my pace slowed. I had been on course to reach my goal of 4 hours and 30 minutes, but I was very happy to finish in a time of 4:45, which is 6 minutes faster than last year. When I got home I weighed myself and I was 4.5 pounds lighter than before the race. I feel really good and if I don't feel too sore tomorrow will try and run the 2 mile race.

Cool mornings

The last 2 mornings have been nice and cool with temperatures around 60 degrees F and it promises to be the same tomorrow. The Marathon is upstate and inland a little, so it could be even cooler at the start, which is at 7 am. Ran comfortably this afternoon, so I'm ready to go

Nice race

So here we are 5 days before the marathon and conditions for the 2 mile race are excellent. I didn't want to run too hard because I only have a few days to recover, but when you get into the middle of a race it's hard not to run fast. Anyway it felt like I was running well and I was quite happy with the time of 14:32, which was still fast for me but slower than previous weeks.I am feeling good about the marathon on Friday.

No race today

Due to some scheduling problems there was no 2 mile race today, it will now happen tomorrow. So Utpal and I decided to do our Sunday run today. We ran the first 5k together at a nice easy pace, but when I left him to come back I couldn't seem to stop myself from running at a strong pace. A few of my friends have just come into town.

1 week away

The Self-Transcendence Marathon is just 1 week away and I am feeling quite confident. Almost as if on cue my right Achilles said "Hello" to me this afternoon at the start of my run, but it seemed to loosen up and I don't anticipate a problem with it next week. I will take the week as it comes and should go into the race relaxed.

Started Tapering

This morning it was around 65 F when I went out for my run. The humidity was a little high, but it felt really nice to run. I am 12 days away from the marathon and although I am still running twice on Saturdays and Sundays, I am running less. I am starting what we call a taper. I ran only about 5 miles yesterday and 9 miles today in 2 runs each day.
I am trying to catch something of the Olympics, which seems quite interesting so far. Happy that GB got a Gold in cycling this morning.

Not so fast

My 2 mile race this week was not as fast as last week, but still probably my second fastest time in a couple of years. My breathing didn't feel so great, but everything else was going well. My time was 14:28 and I am very happy with that. We were very lucky that the temperature was in the mid 6o's F and the humidity was also in the mid 60's. So good conditions and a good result.

My friend Abichal finishes 3100 miles

Abichal Watkins from Wales, who I consider a good friend finished the Self-Transcendence 3100 mile race race today in a New Welsh and UK record of 54 Days 11 hours 36 minutes. I was very happy to hand him the Welsh flag during his last lap.

Nearing the end

My friend Abichal is on his lat full day of the 3100 mile race. He has been out there for 54 days and should finish about half way through the 55 th day. He trained hard all winter for this race and will improve his best time by almost a full day. Pretty amazing!

Chiropractor

I have mentioned the problem with my Achilles before and that I thought the real problem was my calf. Well it happens that a friend of mine from Chicago is in town for a couple of days and he is a non practicing Chiropractor. He uses the Applied Kinesiology technique. He diagnosed it as a stretch response problem with the fascia of the calf and gave me a treatment. This is the same guy who fixed my foot problem last year.

A full day

The weather was really nice this morning, not so humid and a cool breeze. I ran 8 miles in the morning. When I went out again in the afternoon, it was a little hotter and even less humid. I did 4 more miles. I had enough time to get home and shower, then get back to the 3100 mile race in time to see Pranjal from Slovakia finish. The Slovakian Ambassador and his family came out. It was a nice ceremony

A Tradition

It has become a tradition for the 3100 mile runners to run in the 2 mile race, before and after they finish. So today Aprihanal ran the race after 4 days of rest. He ran an excellent time of 12:42, finishing 3rd amongst the men and 4th overall.
I was also very happy with my race. From early in the race I was running with 2 sisters who usually beat me quite easily. When they passed me as they usually do, I kind of looked inside myself to see if I had the capacity to stay with them and I did. For the next mile we see sawed back and forth, with them eventually opening up a 7 yard gap on me. They had however pulled me along to my best time in at least 2 years. A time of 14:08. Very very happy!

100 Days

Yesterday was the 100 th day that I have run at least 2 miles each day. I had gone 60 days at the beginning of the year, so this is my longest streak for quite some time.
With my increased training and the summer heat, the extra pounds I gained after stopping my raw food diet have almost all melted away. It is just 3 weeks now to the marathon. I was thinking of running a 12 hour race tomorrow, but decided against it.

3100 mile race- Top 3 complete

Grahak Cunningham from Australia completed the podium places, when he finished 3100 miles just before 6pm today. His finish time of 46 days 11 hrs 53 min 48 sec moved him from 14th to 5 th on the all time list.

On a personal note, my run this afternoon was the 100th straight day that I have run in my currant streak.

3100 mile race- Second spot secured

Just before 8pm on day 46 Pranab Vladovic from Slovakia became the second finisher in the 2008 edition of the Self-Transcendence 3100 mile race. His unofficial time of 45 days 13 hours and 52 minutes, was I believe a personal best. Congratulations Pranab!!!

First one home

3100 mile finisher
Asprihanal Aalto the Finnish runner was the first runner home today in the Self-Transcendence 3100 mile race. He finished just after breakfast in a time of 44 days 2Hrs 42 mins 15 seconds unofficially.This is I believe his 7th finish in his 3rd best time. Congratulations !!!

Between Thunderstoms

About 30 minutes before I went out for my run this morning, thunderstorms passed over the area. Needless to say when we went out it was quite humid. With my second run yesterday afternoon I had completed 9 miles. This morning I ran another 8 and will go out again this afternoon. Not too long after I came back from my run more thunderstorms passed. So I had managed to run between them, however I was so wet from the humidity, it would probably have been nicer to be in one.

Best time this year

I said I was feeling good this week, but as I warmed up for the race I felt some pressure in my neck and shoulders. Once the race started however I felt good. An old friend of mine was running just behind me and told to keep the pace. I felt I was running fast and was really feeling it when she passed me with 1/2 mile to go. I tried to stay as close as I could and came in with a time of 14:20. My best time this year and only 4 seconds slower than my best time last year.
I jogged 2 miles as a warm down and was very happy with my race today.

Tough day

The morning run was not too bad, though it was 78 F and 85 % humidity. Once again I looked like I had been swimming with my clothes on. I did my usual 6 miles then tagged on another 2 miles. In the afternoon when I went out again it was 86 F and although the humidity had gone down to 51%, it made it feel like 90. I ran 3 miles, but seemed to lose all my energy. After a 5 minute break I did another mile on the 3100 mile race course.

Not quite there

This morning the temperature was quit high 77 F, but the humidity was a little lower than in previous weeks. I was feeling quite good and started the 2 mile race well. At about 1/3 of a mile into the second mile I started to feel like I was hanging on a little, but the runners who usually beat me quite easily were still in sight. I was a few seconds faster than last week with a time of 15:07, but for the second week I was outside 15 minutes.
I went over to the 3100 mile race course and ran another 4 miles, feeling good about my mornings work.

Solo Run

My running partner Utpal is out of town for a week, so today I was running on my own. I had got to bed late last night, but with only 5 1/2 hours of I was out the door at 5:45. Once again the humidity was high 87%, but I ran nice and controlled, running 7 miles. After a nice break, which included a short nap. I went out again at 2pm and ran another 6 miles. So like last week I ran 13 miles for the day. Together with the 10 miles I did yesterday that gave me 23 miles for the weekend, that's pretty good. Oh and the humidity was down to 54% in the afternoon.

A nice Saturday

For the last couple of days the humidity has been low, so of course on race day it would be 76%. I knew I wasn't running so fast and my finishing time was 15:12. My slowest in 2 months. Three running friends from the 10 day race had come out to see the 3100 mile race. Bob Oberkher ran the 2 mile race, Luis Rios and Shishaldin decided to do some laps around the 3100 mile course, I joined them later and did another 8 miles, giving me a total of 10 miles for the day.

A milestone

Today when I went out to run it was the 80th straight day that I have run this year. It is the longest running streak I have put together for a while. It all started back in April at the 10 day race, so this photo represents the start of it all.

Stable

I gained back about 3 lbs since I stopped eating raw food. It does seem to have stabilized and my running seems ok. Today for the first time in about a week the humidity dropped below 50%. it did in fact go down to 26%. The temperature was as high as 88 F (31C), but with the low humidity it felt quite good.

Twice the run, twice the fun

So for the first time this summer I went out to run twice today. First in the morning I went out with Utpal, I felt kind of heavy the whole run, but stayed strong the full distance of 6 miles. It was very humid and I was quite wet when I finished.
Just after 2pm I went out again and felt surprisingly strong, it was a little less humid so I stayed out a little longer and ran 7 miles this time. some of it on the 3100 mile course while chatting with a couple of the runners.

Ate too much

It rained through the night and was trying to rain lightly before the start of the 2 mile race. As I started the race I didn't feel like I was running fast, but I knew from my position in the field that I was doing ok. The last 1/2 mile I seemed to be labouring a little, but kept my form and finished well, with a time of 14:51. Some said the air was a bit heavy, but when I got home and weighed myself I realized that I had gained 2 lbs since yesterday. I ate too much on 4th of July.

Last day raw

This is the last day of this years raw food diet for me. I am very happy with how it has gone, my weight is just about the same as it was last year at this time. Just like last year I have decided to take a few days and then start to build up my running training.
This past weekend the weather was hot and humid, today it is much drier and not so hot, but the Sun is very strong and one can burn quite quickly if not careful.

Raw food running

OK so I am nearing the end of my raw food stint for this year. When I went out for my Sunday run with Utpal my legs felt a little tired, partly from the race yesterday and I think partly from not eating enough protein the last couple of days. The fact that it was also 84% humidity may have helped to make it a bit of a struggle.anyway I managed and near the end I stopped and bought myself, my new treat for my Sunday run, a bottle of Perrier water.

On a personnal note

So once again it is Saturday morning and time to run a 2 mile race. Once the race got started I didn't feel so fast. Maybe it was the very humid conditions, because some of the fast runners that usually beat me easily, were only just in front of me for most of the race. In fact I just beat out one runner that I had not beaten for 2 years. My time was 14:55 which is 13 seconds slower than last week, but now I have gone under 15 minutes 2 weeks in a row, so that's good.

The humidity by the way was 84%, so yes it was a little sticky !

3100 mile race- Day 12

A different view of the world on the course of the 3100 mile race.
Today was very humid, but everyone is still going around and around. some are struggling more than others, but that is the nature of the race. You struggle and struggle and then suddenly something gets better and away you go. A few runners out there are looking for that moment. And still the days go on.

3100 mile race- Day 11

It seems that after day 10 all of the runners are ahead of their totals from last year. Some by just a mile or two, others by as much as 60 miles. Despite the problems some of them are having they are still doing well.

Here you see one of the snack and drink tables where the runners can load up on a few things to keep them going.

3100 mile race- Day 8

Sunday morning and after running my usual schedule during the 3100 mile race is to stop by and see how things are going. Ananda- Lahari said to me with a smile " I have a shin splint", I told him "Don't worry it will go away".. The humidity was very high and I had sweated a lot, Pranjal as he passed asked me if I had been swimming. So you see that the spirits are good and even though they are working hard, there is good humour.

3100 mile race- Day 7

It's Saturday morning and there is a 2 mile race at 8am around the school adjacent to the 3100 mile course. I am running in the 2 mile race and since all the runners in the 3100 mile race know me, they shout encouragement to me as I come around. This is a great boost to me and probably entertaining to them.

A few people are making reports on the race and here you see Utpal ( on the right ), taking some photo's for his blog.


My time by the way was 14:42, which believe it or not is my fastest time so far this year.

3100 mile race- Day 6

Abichal had one of his classic days on day 5, his knee started bothering him during the day, so he decided to have a short day and go home early with just 55 miles. Today everything seems good, he is running well and had completed 54 miles when I left him with 4 hours to go in the day.

You can see from the photo that some guys eat on the run and from the smiles, it's easy to see that they are enjoying it out there.

3100 mile race- Day 5

Yes it's day 5 so it's still early on in the proceedings. Each runner is settling in to their position, both on the board and their daily routine.
Abichal tells me that everything goes well until the evening then he struggles. He is still trying to figure out how to deal with that.
Sopan keeps telling me that he has not felt warm since the race started, but I am sure that will change.
Pavol has had trouble with a knee, then it got better and today it bothers him somewhat. Though he told me with a smile it's really OK.

Day 3 - 3100 mile race

Of course it is early in the race yet, but today was the best day so far. The first 2 days had been hot and humid, although yesterday was not so hot.
Today was humid at the start but the temperature was quite low, around 62 F. There has been a fairly nice breeze though out the day. Some of the runners are starting to get their first aches and pains, which they pretty much know how to deal with. I think generally all are happy with the mileage that they are doing this early in the race. From my multi day experience I know that they are now beginning to adjust to their new race lifestyle.

Remember to check out the race site using the link in the blogs I read column.

3100 mile second day

Though the weather was quite warm on the first day everyone is strong so they get through it with good mileage. I stopped by the race 2 times today and everyone was still looking good. The weather has turned a little cooler and that helps, though the humidity was quite high. In the early evening a thunder storm blew through, there wasn't much rain, but the winds were very strong and blew a lot of things around. Which made for a lot of running around by the crew and helpers and anyone else who could help to batten down the hatches.

To find out about daily results etc click on the link in Blogs I read to the left.

World's longest race

yes I felt some soreness this morning, but other than that I'm OK. We had thunder storms over night, but it was still quite warm and humid this morning.
The world's longest race started this morning in New York, it is 3100 miles long. In the photo you can see some of the participants. I jogged out there to the start and back. I will be going out there everyday for the next almost 2 months to see how things are going on. They run around a scool that is about 10 minutes from my house

Just too hot

I woke up nice and early and walked the 3 1/2 to 4 miles out to Flushing Meadow for the 50k race. I got there just in time to see the 100k race start. It was already warm and the humidity was high, but as we started the 50k race an hour later it didn't feel too bad. I was mostly running on my own, though there was almost always someone not too far ahead of me. The weather seemed to be getting quite hot and the Sun was feeling quite strong, but everything seemed to be going OK. At 21 miles I was on pace for a sub 6 hour time. Then I started to really feel the heat. I had been drinking a lot and making sure I was well hydrated, but then I started to feel a little dizzy, then nauseous and in the space of 3 miles I had lost it. As I completed 24 miles I knew it was a mistake to carry on. I discovered that 3 other runners had become sick and on medical advice, the 100k race had now been reduced to a 50 mile race. I spent a half an hour sitting in the shade and drinking lots of fluids and started to recover, but I had no feeling to go out and try to complete the 7 remaining miles. I had a problem with a heat related sickness about 20 years ago and have tried to be smart and avoid that problem since.
Once I felt well enough I packed my bag and walked the almost 4 miles back home very casually, getting more drinks on the way. When I got home 1 1/2 hours after I had stopped and after consuming about 50ozs of fluids, I finally went to the bathroom. When I weighed myself I was down 4 lbs even after re hydrating myself. So a lesson learned.

The day before tomorow

The weather is finally cooler and I have to say my last run before the race went well. Of course I am never quite sure what race day will bring, but right now I am feeling good. One thing I will learn is just how well I recover from doing a 10 day race in 6 weeks. So I will let you know.

50 Days

My run this afternoon was quite pleasant in that the temperature was 85 F ( 29 C ) and there was a nice breeze, the humidity was just 33%. It was also the 50th straight day that I had gone out for a run, making it my second longest streak of the year. I feel that the 50 day threshold is usually a significant one. I like to be consistent in my running, I feel it helps me throughout the year.

Different Day

Such a different day from yesterday. Although the temperature in the mid 70's F when I left for work this morning it felt much nicer. It's nice to work in the basement though it is starting to warm up down there too.
I could feel the difference in the air as I walked home in the afternoon, it was 90 F , but there was a cooling breeze. After a short nap to kind of break the day, I went out for my run. By this time it was down to 86 F ( 30 C), but it only felt a little bit better than yesterday. I was trying out my new pair of Addidas Urahu, which I knew would be good since I had a pair before. Yes they felt comfortable on my feet.

Heat acclimation

So yesterday and today I got to see what it's like to run in some summer heat. This afternoon the temperature was much higher, but the humidity was less. I went out in the middle of the afternoon with the temperature at 93 F ( 33 C ), but the humidity was a modest 42 %. So believe it or not it didn't feel that bad, of course I was only running a few miles and I had made sure I was pretty well hydrated. I was sweating pretty good though by the end of the run.

Hot Run !!

The temperature was already 74 F ( 22 C) when I went out the door this morning and the humidity was 85%. So yes it was a hot run. I had decided to continue following my paln and only run 6 miles today. Utpal is training for a marathon in August so he wanted to run longer, so after about 3 miles we parted company. Shortly after that I had a drop in energy, even though I had eaten a granola bar about 45 minutes before we left. I ran through it and later regained my energy, I was in fact feeling quite strong at the end, though I was sweating a lot.
I like my new Addidas Duramo shoes!

Just right

Last week I mentioned that I got a pair of running shoes. Well while I was there I saw another pair that were on sale, they were also a model that I like, but I decided not to get them at that time. So I went there today and they had been reduced for clearance, they only had 5 pairs left and one of them was my size. So by waiting a week I got just what I wanted and at a cheaper price. I have to say though that it usually works out the opposite way, I go back and they have sold out, so I was kind of lucky this time.

The combination

I had a feeling today that maybe the combination of running a hard 2 mile race on Saturday and a long run on Sunday, may be too much. It did feel like my legs were tired today and it has been taking me 2 or 3 days to recover. The only way to really know, is to not run the race the 2 mile race this week and not run too long on Sunday.. I have recovered from 24 hour races and then run 50k races in 6 to 7 weeks, but never tried it after a 10 day race, so maybe I have to adjust something.
I have been walking around in my new Addidas Duramo's for the last couple of days. This afternoon I ran in them. They feel very good, I am happy with them.

Hot and Humid run

This morning was the first time this year that it has been quite warm when we went out for our run. It was already 65 F when we started at 7am. Since it had rained during the night it was also quite humid. The run as usual went out to Shea Stadium and back. During the run however we covered about 80% of the course that will be used for the 50k race I will be running in 2 weeks. After about 9 miles I started to get a numb feeling in my left foot, similar to that I had 2 years ago when I developed my foot injury. It did however go away and was fine for the rest of the run.

Hard work

For the last 3 or 4 days I have been fighting something, with on and off headaches and a need to cough, especially when I lay down to sleep.
This morning when I woke up the headache I went to sleep with was still there and my mind said that maybe I should not run the 2 mile race. My heart really wanted me to run. So I found myself on the starting line ready to run. Once I got going I felt quite comfortable and my first mile was 7:31. I tried to maintain my form and my pace, but was finding it hard. My second mile was 7:43, for a total time of 15:14, just 5 seconds slower than last week. I actually found this encouraging, because I feel it shows that I am in fact stronger than last week, since I ran almost the same time when I was sick.

A little sore

I was a little surprised to feel sore this morning when I set out for work. I actually felt it more than I did after the 12 miles I did on Sunday. I guess the combination of the 12 and the 4, run at a bit more quality was enough for my body to feel slightly over done. I will run easy today and everything should get back to normal as the week goes on.

Much better this week

Woke up feeling pretty good. So it was out the door at 7 am and off to run with Utpal. Apart from a little soreness in my hamstrings I was feeling good after the 2 mile race yesterday. I guess Utpal was feeling good too because we went out a little faster than we usually do. The weather conditions were really nice and we had a good run out to Shea stadium.
The water fountains are on in the park so we stopped about half way and had a nice drink of water. There were no aches and pains this week and I felt really good at the end of the run. Yesterday afternoon I had the feeling I wanted to go out a second time to run and was feeling that again today, but I have to be sensible and wait for my 2 a day weekends. I do not want to over train and get injured.

That's Better!

The weather for the 2 mile race was very pleasant this morning. It felt like I was actually running. I have been running a little harder in training this week and my legs were feeling a bit tired.Once I got going I felt good and knew I was running faster than last week. I did struggle a little bit with my breathing in the second mile, but pushed about as hard as I could at the end. First mile 7:38. second 7:31, finish time 15:09.

30 days

No that is not a veiled reference to the Stevie Marriott song, 30 days in the hole. I am referring to the number of days I have now gone, where I have run. It's my second streak of the year, the first one being the first 60 days of the year. I don't plan these things they just happen and of course the 10 day race started this one off. So we will see how far this one goes.

Last night

Last night I watched the DVD I bought last week. It's called "The Runner" and it's all about a guy named David Horton. It's about his 2700 mile run along the Pacific Crest Trail. Which stretches from the Mexican border to the Canadian Border on the west coast of the US. It's an amazing film and I thought very inspiring. I think I may have met David when he ran in the race across America some years ago, but just briefly.
I felt pretty good when I got up this morning, no major problems from my run yesterday, My feeling while walking home from work were, that I am about 90% recovered from the 10 day race.

Still Recovering

So 2 weeks after the race it is time to see if I can get serious about my running again. This morning Utpal and I ran out to Shea Stadium and of course around the new Citi Stadium. I did feel the occasional protestation from my hips, which seemed to tell me that it was maybe a little too early, to run this far. At the end I felt OK. After a little breakfast and a walk home I was feeling a little sore. After an hour of relaxing I decided to take a nap, which turned into 2 hours. It then felt a bit like I had run an easy marathon. We will see how I feel tomorrow.

After the race

When I got back from the race I didn't feel too bad. I slept for about 2 hours and then I had dinner. I made arrangements with Utpal to go for a run the next morning, which of course would be slow and easy. We ran about 2 miles or so with a little walking mixed in. I felt OK, we then stopped in at Dunkin' Donuts for a hot chocolate and a muffin. The run helped me to shake out a few things. I noticed that I had a big water blister on the little toe of my left foot, which had not bothered me, so I had left it alone. I decided to drain it, then it felt sore for a couple of days. I had forgotten my old feeling that if it doesn't bother you leave it alone and it will just re-absorb on it's own. Oh well!

Day 10 - The end

I started the last day of the race with only 8 miles needed to 400 miles. So I was pretty relaxed. I reached this goal around 4 in the afternoon. One of my friends, Sanatan was so encouraging, he kept telling me he wouldn't leave until I hit 400. During the rest of the time until dinner I just walked and jogged a few more miles.
Traditionally on the last night the cooks get the night of ( sort of ), when the race directors for the evening shift bring pizza. I had the permitted 2 slices and then went to bed.
Some people like to push through the night to get extra miles, but I have spent the last 9 days training my body to a schedule and I stick to it on the last night. Marty Sprengelmeyer told me as he completed the 1300 mile race some years ago, that he made the mistake of not taking his usual breaks near the end and as a result struggled with his body wanting that break.
I spent the morning chatting and walking with some of the Russian runners, suddenly realizing with 2 hours to go that I had reached 427 miles. The number 27 is special to me, so I decided that this was a good place to stop. Another race completed.
After a special Lasagna lunch the awards ceremony took place and few goodbyes were exchanged and in the crowds a few missed.

Day 9

I just remembered something that happened to me the previous night. After eating dinner I took my usual sleep break. I woke up after 2 hours with a stomach ache, then after another 2 hours sleep I woke up and vomited. This has never happened to me before and once it was done it didn't seem to bother me too much.
I have mentioned that I came into the race with a goal of 450 miles, which I adjusted to 400 after the rain. So here I was starting day 9 with 350 miles, leaving me with just 50 miles in 2 days to reach my goal. This meant that I was very relaxed and had no pressure to push.
The forecast said there was rain on the way again, but this wouldn't be a problem. My friend Vladimir who was in 3rd place was having some problems with his shins and asked me to help him with some taping. Though I have not had shin splints for a long time I do know how to treat them and was glad to help.
Helping others seems to also help me and by the end of day 9 I had another 42 miles for a total of 392. I was very happy!
I forgot to mention that as I started my 390th mile I got the inspiration to run a little fast, it felt good so I picked it up and surprised a few of the runners when I did a 10 minute mile which is quite fast for this stage of the race.

Day 8

I don't seem to remember too much about day 8 for some reason. One thing was that after my sleep break I came out and Mark Dorian's family had arrived. Which was interesting for me because his wife is originally from Bolton. We talked for a little. Though I had slept well I couldn't seem to get going and took frequent breaks during the night. Also I was having a little trouble with the metatarsals on both feet, which has been a problem for me in the past. Took the time to treat them and add some protection to the soles of my feet.
My mileage only improved to 39 miles for day 8 for a total of 35, which ain't too bad for an old guy.

Day 7

Finally the weather had improved, but I think the rain had taken it's toll. There seemed to be a few runners out there with a few problems, especially some of the newcomers, first timers in the 6 day race. I was asked during the day for my advice, since some of them value my experience in these races.
I myself found that I slept a little longer on my main sleep break and was finally probably feeling the effects of all that rain. As a result my mileage dropped for the day and I only managed 38 miles. Giving me a 7 day total of 311. I did however close within 5 miles of the next runner on the board, at least briefly.

Day 6

After spending most of the night and day running and walking in the rain, it felt good to have a hot lunch and slip inside my sleeping bag for an hour.
2 years ago I did 278 miles in the 6 day race, which is about average for me and it looked like I could be right up there at the end of this day. It was nice to be rain free, well there were the odd sprinkles. With the colder temps after the rain and just the fact that the rain takes a lot out of your legs, I wasn't sure what day 6 would be like.
My breaks during the night were a bit more frequent, but by the end of it all I had 41 miles for day 6 and a total of 273. So pretty decent. I had also separated myself from 3 runners behind me on the board.This had come about by me just being consistent I think.

Day 5

So I slept for 1 1/2 hours this lunch time and when I got out there the course was pretty active with all the new runners. Most of the talk during the afternoon was of the impending rain that was expected during the night. Everyone seemed to have a different report. I was quite tired at dinner time and was happy to take my sleep break. Coming out before midnight it was still nice and dry, I ran well for about 3 hours and decided to take an hours break, just as I made it into the dorm it started to rain.
When I came out it was a mix of light showers and misty rain, but quite comfortable. The feeling was if it stayed like this it wasn't a big deal. However it just kept going on. At the end of the day I once again had 42 miles for a 5 day total of 232. It was Monday, the weekend was over and the park was quiet again.

Day 4

There seemed to be 3 or 4 of us who were pretty close together at the back of the pack. I try to run my own race and not be influenced by those close to me on the scoreboard. I am sure that a couple of them were looking at me though. This was the last day that the 10 day runners would have before the 6 day runners joined us. Some of the 6 day runners were coming out during the day and setting out their tents and such. Asprihanal Aalto a favourite in the race and a friend of mine, told me that he had woken up with a fever that morning and had decided to not run the race.
Instead of having to deal with foot problems as I usually do on day 4, the ones that I got in the first 2 days seemed to be getting better. I was settling into a comfortable routine and enjoying the experience of once again being in a multi day race in Flushing Meadow Park. I improved my daily mileage slightly to 43 for the 4 th day, giving me a 4 day total of 190 miles, again below the pace I had planned, but still decent .
The 6 day race got underway just as I took my lunch and went for my break.

Day 3

I forgot to mention that for the last half of day 2 and first half of day 3 it was Luis Rio's Birthday.A little before lunch was served at the end of day 2 we had a party. The video above is Luis cutting the cake.
Day 3 was much cooler and by now I was starting to get in to the routine of the race. After my usual nap I was back out on the course. During the day you find others that are either running or walking at the same pace. Since I have done a few of these races ( this was in fact my 25th Multi Day ), newer runners or first timers often ask me for advice, or how to deal with a particular problem they may have. I am always glad to try and help.
In the dorm I was sharing with 9 other runners it can be surprisingly quiet at night and is not so hard to sleep. At least I slept well.
Again by the end of day 3 I had run another 42 miles a distance I seemed to be settling in to. This gave me a 3 day total of 147 miles, slightly less than I had planned , but I was satisfied.

Day 2

Each runner shares a table in this "Dug out" with another. This is where you can take a short break and keep a few items you may need handy.
At the end of each day they serve a hot vegetarian lunch, ( each day is from noon to noon)I usually eat this then sleep for 1 hour. The afternoon of day 2 was even hotter than day 1, so for me the idea is to try to take it easy and get whatever miles I can. I do this until 7 pm when they serve dinner. After dinner I walk 2 easy miles then go to the dorm where I sleep until 11:30. This is a schedule I developed 6 years ago and seems to work for me.
I have found that during the night it is much easier for me to accumulate miles.
I usually do not have a problem with my feet for the first 4 days, but in this race it started on day 2. I started developing blisters on the base of my fourth toe on each foot. I know how to deal with this so it was not too big a deal. In most races I manage to do around 50 miles on day 2, but by the end of this one I only added 42, for a total of 105. I felt strong and wasn't worried and was ready for lunch.

10 Day Race- Day 1

For some reason they mis-spelled my last name on the scoreboard, they corrected it later.
The first day was interesting in that there were 49 runners on the course so it was pretty crowded. The afternoon was quite hot with a strong Sun. I spent the first few hours with some of my running friends, since we seemed to run at the same pace. I ran 35 miles I think in the first 10 hours and then took a sleep break.
I then seemed to struggle a bit which is not usual for me. I think maybe the Sun affected me a little bit more than I thought it would. Anyway I completed 63 miles for the first day, which is on the low end of what I usually do, but I was happy. Though I was placed near the back of the pack.

Recovery and such

The 10 day race is run on a 1 mile loop in Flushing Meadow Park in Queens NY. During the course of 240 hours you see a lot of things going on. The photo on the left shows you just one activity.
Needless to say my feet are sore from the race, but that has not stopped me from going out for a run. I am recovering so that means a 2 or 3 mile easy run, which feels pretty good at the moment.

The little toe on my left foot seems to be the most bothersome and that is something I didn't feel during the race.

The Past

When I lived in London in the mid seventies I was involved in a relay run to celebrate the American Bicentennial. Three friends and I ran from the George Washington Statue near the National Museum,to the JFK Memorial at Runnymede. We got some newspaper coverage and this was a clipping from the time. I am the one on the right, I believe I was 22 at the time.

Luis Birthday

Over the 10 days of the race there were 3 birthdays. This was the first one, my friend and sometimes walking partner during the race. Is here celebrating his 60 th .

I pretty much kept to my the same sleep pattern that I did during the race, last night. My quadriceps were a little sore when I got up. I did however meet with Utpal and run a couple of miles, just to shake things up a little. I think it helps in the recovery.

Back from the 10 day race

Just to say that I am back from the 10 day race. I ran a total of 427 miles, which is smack in the middle of the two goals I had set myself. 450 being what I hoped for and 400 being my fall back. You can see from the photo that we did have some rain. I will talk more about the whole race in the next few days.

Race Day

In about 1 hour I will go and have breakfast and then get a ride out to the race site. It is quite hard sometimes to stop myself from getting excited and just relax. In the few hours before the race you get a chance to meet up with old friends from other races and tell a few stories about what has gone on since last we met. I will be back in a week and a half to let you know how things went

This time tomorrow

OK so this time tomorrow I will be about 4 hours into the race, which considering it's 10 days long doesn't seem that much. There is a big field of 40 + runners, so I won't get lonely. It is usually quite busy out there and I have a lot of friends in the race to talk to. The weather is supposed to be nice for at least the first 4 days. After this time about 30 more runners will start the 6 day race, then it will really be jumping.

This what the 6 & 10 day race site looks like 3 days before the start. The area where the cones are will be filled with personal tents. The big white ones are the dorms. In a couple of days this place will be buzzin'.

Run Out

OK so this is me running in the Ottawa 24 Hr race, but in 3 days time I hope I will look something like this as I start running in the Self Transcendence 10 day Race. The race as usual is in Flushing Meadow park New York, which is not far from where I live.
This morning Utpal and I ran out to the race site to see how things are going with the setup. It was pretty quiet, but just as we got there a runner from New Jersey showed up with some of his things, including his tent which he wanted to set up. We chatted for a little while and then Utpal and I headed home. He will drive me out there in an hours time with some of my stuff, in readiness for the race start on Wednesday.




Photo by Utsahi

8 days to go

yes I have just 8 days to go to the start of the 10 day race. I have been feeling a bit off the last couple of days, but then I always seem to feel like that before a race. maybe it's my bodies way of making sure I don't overdo it. I heard the other day that there will be something like 45 runners in the 10 day race, with another 30 or 32 6 day runners joining 4 days later. There as been a course change from the one we have been using for the past few years, so that will make it interesting The weather can be unpredictable so we just have to make do with whatever happens. This is the lot of the multi day runner.

Running shoes

I guess everyone has a favourite pair of running shoes. I have a pair of Asics right now that feel so comfortable when I wear them. I used them a lot in my races last year, but of course they do not last forever. Then hopefully another pair comes along that feel just as good. During multi day races I have had the experience, that a shoe that feels great one day can suddenly feel not so good a few days later, but I find generally that I manage with alternating between 3 pairs of shoes. I tend to change them every 6 to 8 hours if I can.

Flushing Meadow

After something like 6 weeks Utpal and I resumed, our Sunday morning ritual of running out to Flushing Meadow. This includes running on part of the 6 & 10 day race course, where I will be in just over 2 weeks time and our pilgrimage to the new baseball stadium being built. This is Utpal standing in front of part of it. It is the longest run I have done since before I went on my trip. I did feel somewhat the effects of the 2 mile race yesterday.
If I am fairly consistent for the next 2 weeks I think I will be in good shape. Though hopefully most of what I did in January and February is still there.

First in 6 weeks

Today I ran my first 2 mile race in 6 weeks. I gained a couple of pounds during my trip and I am not race fit, but it was good to get out there.
The weather was nice 50 F ( 9 C ) and it had rained a little earlier. Ran the first mile in 7:46, the second in 8:05 for a 15:51 time. I felt OK for the first mile and just tried to hold my form for the rest of the race, pushing in the last 50 meters.

River run

So I got to run by the river in Skopje this morning, where I am staying is just a few minutes from there. It was cool this morning, I think 4 C, but the run was nice and the sun was shining.It felt quite good to run again for the first time in about 4 days, I think it also helps to get the bus journey out of your system. I think I will be running a 2 mile race in 2 days time, so that will give me some idea of where I am at. Stay tuned.

Travelling

So I have been travelling all over Central Europe for the last 3 weeks, 1 week to go. Not been easy keeping up with my running and have missed a few days. I have been doing a lot of hiking, which I think has really helped my breathing and I think my weight is under control. I have about 5 weeks until the 10 day race and I am quite happy that I will be in good shape. Just have to see.

A cold goodbye

So I went out early to get my last run in New York this winter done. It is cold out there 18 F ( -8C) and with the wind it feels like 3F (-16C), but this is how New York sending me of to Europe, where I am told it is warmer. So over the next few weeks I hope I will get some nice runs in and hopefully get a chance to tell you about them, so stay tuned out there.

Solo

My usual Sunday morning running partner Utpal had a minor medical procedure yesterday, so didn't feel well enough to come for a long run this morning. So I was on my own. You can see from the photo that there was quite a lot of snow out in Flushing Meadow Park, but it was sunny and so nice. I had to be a bit careful at times because of the snow and ice, but it was a lot of fun.
I ran 12+ miles stopping from time to time to take some photo's. This one actually shows part of the course that is used for the 6 & 10 day races that takes part here in April.. I am quite happy with the way my training has gone the last 6 weeks, especially the last 3 weeks when I have increased my mileage.
I am leaving for Western and Central Europe in a few days and hope to maintain my running while traveling a lot. It's not always easy, but if I can squeeze in some kind of run everyday it really helps.

50 Days

When I go on these running streaks I have certain benchmarks I like to reach. the first one was of course the 28 day mark, which to me is the first month. yesterday was my 50th straight day of running and this is my second mark. For me I like to think that 50 days means that this is a seroius running streak I have going here.
After 2 weeks of increasing my mileage I felt tired when I went out for my run on Monday, so this week I am just running 3 miles a day on the weekdays. I will probably leave the 2 a days in place on the weekends.

Responding Well

I have increased my mileage for the last 2 weeks, averaging 5 miles a day last week and 6 miles a day this week. When I start to get in the groove, where I run and how far I run becomes instinctive. I have noticed for the last couple of days that my breathing has been very good. Which was a little surprising because I had been exhibiting cold symptoms earlier in the week.
This morning was the usual 2 mile race and I noticed that my legs felt quite tired after the first mile, but that they felt fine for the last 1/2 mile and my breathing was good . This allowed me to push a little at the end.

When I went out for my second run this afternoon the idea was to run an easy 3 miles, but as I came to my turning point I just kept going and eventually ran 5 miles instead.. It feels as though my body is getting used to the increase in training miles and is responding well.

Snow Run

On Tuesday I came home from work and there was about 1/2 " of snow on the ground and it was still snowing lightly. It was the first time this year that I had got to run in the snow, the last time was in December. The snow itself was nice and crispy. I got inspired and ran 5 miles.
On Wednesday it was raining, not too bad. Though it had rained heavily earlier in the day. I went out with the intention of doing 5 miles again but changed it into a 5 k. I did however run into Utpal who encouraged me to do more and we were joined by Sudip, so all 3 of us ran 5 miles.
Today the afternoon was quite mild, so once again I was inspired to run 5 miles, this time on my own. though my legs felt a little tired at the start I felt good at the end.

Cold Day

It was really cold in New York today. Early on it was 12 F, but by the time I went out for my run it was up to 22 F. There was a blue clear sky and bright sunshine, so it was actually quite pleasant. Somehow it kind of reminded me of some of the days I would run cross country in school in England.
Maybe because of the cold I felt no soreness in my legs after the 14+ miles I ran yesterday. I just remember enjoying the crispness of the air and at the end feeling it was time for lunch.

Good week

I decided to increase my training a little this week, it's nothing fantastic but it all helps. So at the moment I am running 5k a day. On Thursday with the help of my friend Utpal I ran 6 miles almost 10k. Since I usually plan to run the 2 mile race on Saturday morning, I only run an easy 2 miles on Friday.
I woke up on Saturday morning with a bit of a thick head, after waking in the night with a sore throat. So I wasn't too optimistic. I was however quite pleasantly surprised when I ran a time of 15:30, which is my fastest time this year. In the afternoon I went out and ran another 3 miles, though I must admit my legs were a little tired.
And so to Sunday morning.As you can see from the photo we ran out to Shea Stadium, it was pretty much a repeat of last weeks run, but we added a little more by running by the Zoo in Flushing Meadow Park. Running for about 2 1/2 hours. Then of course I topped it off by going out again this afternoon for another 3 miles.
My total for the week was 35 miles, an average of 5 miles a day. Though not spectacular it is a good base for me to build on this early in the year.

This Weekend

Last summer when I was training for the 24 hour race in Drummondville I would run twice a day on weekends. For a few weeks now I have been thinking to start that again. Yesterday I ran our local 2 mile race in the morning, in 15:51. Then in the afternoon I went out again and did another 2 mile run.
This morning I ran all the way out to Shea Stadium, through flushing Meadow, a run of around
11 miles. I hope to go out for a short run this afternoon.
I found that this type of running really prepares you for late in a race when you are starting to get tired. My experience has been that the endurance training seems to kick in.

10 Day Race

So yesterday I signed up for the New York Self Transcendence 10 day race. This will be the first time I run the 10 day race, I've run 6 days several times and when I used to run the 1000 mile race I ran for 12 and 15 days. 4 years ago I ran 470 miles in the first 10 days of a 1000 mile race and I had some problems on the 10th day. So that gives me a goal to aim for. I have lots of experience and have been pretty injury free for the last 9 months so we will see how it goes and of course you'll hear about my training here.

28 Days

I have now gone at least 28 straight days without missing one day running. So it's kind of official I'm on a running streak. I may have mentioned before, but I once went for 4 years 6 months 8 days without missing.I was lucky enough to meet Ron Hill in the late 70's, he's run everyday for about 40 years without missing.

Ted Corbit

On December 12 2007 a legend of American Ultra running died, it was the day after my 54th birthday so I didn't want to write anything. 6 weeks have gone by and I am settled back in New York so now is the time.
I was fortunate enough to know Ted quite well, I can say he was my friend, as he was the friend of everyone he met, he was that kind of person.
I had heard of him long before I met him for the first time, but when you meet him it is something special. He is the embodiment of humility and was forever willing to share all the knowledge he had gained over the years with anyone who asked.
I remember on one occasion we were talking at an art exhibition we were both attending, he asked me about my running and I told him about a problem I was having with my left ankle. He immediately told me that he thought there was not a big problem, then told me some exercises to do to help it.
I had the chance to run with him a few times over the years and again the sense of calm and gentle control he had was so inspiring. He touched and inspired so many people over his 80+ years and he will be greatly missed, but I also think that ideals will spur the efforts of many runners for years to come.

Cold Weather Running

This is the third day in a row that I have gone for a run in below freezing temperatures. I was talking with a friend this morning about running in the cold and we then got into marathons we have run in cold weather.
Almost 30 years ago a group of us used to go to the Prevention Marathon in Pennsylvania the first Sunday in March. Prevention was a magazine that promoted healthy living. Anyway the second year we went down the temperature was really cold, I think around 12 F but it was bright sunshine and windy. The course was out and back then out and back again. On the way out the wind would be at your back and it would feel quite comfortable and of course you would sweat. When you turned around to run back it would be freezing and then all the sweat would freeze. I remember someone telling me that I had an icicle hanging from my ear and discovering that indeed I had one about 3 inches long. It was a tough marathon but everyone there seemed to enjoy it.
After the race was over there would be a huge buffet meal, with lots and lots of health food type dishes. Which was a great treat and made all the hard work worth while.

Cold Sunday run

It's quite interesting what you can see while out running. This a scene that greeted me while out for my run a couple of weeks ago in the UK.
This morning in New York it was 24 F with a 21mph wind and the run out to Flushing Meadow was challenging, but Utpal, my regular running partner and I managed to run about 9 miles and I was very glad we did.
From time to time I go on running streaks, the longest one to date being from March 1997 to September 2001. So it seems I have started another one, with today being the 20th straight day I have run this year, we will see how it goes.