Time: 30:43
Distance: 4.43 miles
Pace: 6:56
Map
I ran from the apartment to Queens via Freedom Park. There isn't much to report about this run other than the fact that I got to eat in the dining hall post run. The Queens team was running 20 x 400 this afternoon which meant they were late getting to dinner. After grabbing some food courtesy of Simon's ID card, I hung around the campus waiting for Meagan to get out of her first class of the semester.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Simon Says
Time: 58:41
Distance: 8.41 miles
Pace: 7:00
Map
I held off on running this morning because Simon needed a ride to the airport in the afternoon. We scheduled a time to meet prior to departing for CLT and put in a few miles around Queens. He had just returned from the mountains of North Carolina where the team had competed in an early season meet. Simon Steutzel was the 6th man across the line for Queens, only 3 seconds back from scoring. That's not too bad for a German whose longest run was 10 miles up until a few weeks ago.
Distance: 8.41 miles
Pace: 7:00
Map
I held off on running this morning because Simon needed a ride to the airport in the afternoon. We scheduled a time to meet prior to departing for CLT and put in a few miles around Queens. He had just returned from the mountains of North Carolina where the team had competed in an early season meet. Simon Steutzel was the 6th man across the line for Queens, only 3 seconds back from scoring. That's not too bad for a German whose longest run was 10 miles up until a few weeks ago.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Another Freedom Park Run
Time: 45:55
Distance: 7.01 miles
Pace: 6:32
Map
I basically did the same run as this morning except I looped back through Freedom Park for some extra miles. The legs and pace felt strong and I was simply trying to get time on the feet.
Distance: 7.01 miles
Pace: 6:32
Map
I basically did the same run as this morning except I looped back through Freedom Park for some extra miles. The legs and pace felt strong and I was simply trying to get time on the feet.
Running and Errands
Time: 38:24
Distance: 5.45 miles
Pace: 7:02
Map
I took a spin through Freedom Park this morning before taking Meagan to work. My dad and I spent the rest of the day running errands around Charlotte. Our first stop was to Target where he purchased a toothbrush, next we were off to South Park mall for a sweatshirt. A good friend, Carolina, requested that one be purchased with her name across the front. It's not to difficult to find a UNC baby blue sweatshirt here in the Tar Hell state, or so we thought.
My dad spotted on at Finish Line in the mall and promptly made the purchase, but if were only that easy. The store was running a buy 1 for $35 or 2 for $40 special which meant that I would be getting a piece of apparel too. There certainly weren't any Brown University items, no OU pieces and I couldn't do App State, Penn State, USC, Duke or Texas. I reluctantly chose an Ohio State Buckeyes sweatshirt from the selection and immediately texted my little sister who will be attending the nations largest university in the fall. I told her she better not flunk out now that I have this sweatshirt.
The last stop was to Earth Fare where we had lunch and bought some dinner food for later.
Distance: 5.45 miles
Pace: 7:02
Map
I took a spin through Freedom Park this morning before taking Meagan to work. My dad and I spent the rest of the day running errands around Charlotte. Our first stop was to Target where he purchased a toothbrush, next we were off to South Park mall for a sweatshirt. A good friend, Carolina, requested that one be purchased with her name across the front. It's not to difficult to find a UNC baby blue sweatshirt here in the Tar Hell state, or so we thought.
My dad spotted on at Finish Line in the mall and promptly made the purchase, but if were only that easy. The store was running a buy 1 for $35 or 2 for $40 special which meant that I would be getting a piece of apparel too. There certainly weren't any Brown University items, no OU pieces and I couldn't do App State, Penn State, USC, Duke or Texas. I reluctantly chose an Ohio State Buckeyes sweatshirt from the selection and immediately texted my little sister who will be attending the nations largest university in the fall. I told her she better not flunk out now that I have this sweatshirt.
The last stop was to Earth Fare where we had lunch and bought some dinner food for later.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Week in Review
Time: 566:58
Distance: 86.64 miles
I finished up this week's training with a tragic Michigan workout but that's not to take away from the quality early on. There a few runs during the week that were simply miles of running, but I got in 3 workouts that definitely showed the fitness. On Tuesday I ran some mile repeats with Queens and on Thursday I hit the track for the 300/100 workout. I have two weeks to sharpen up for CVS up in Providence. My flight is booked and I'll be heading back to the old stomping grounds for some high quality racing.
Distance: 86.64 miles
I finished up this week's training with a tragic Michigan workout but that's not to take away from the quality early on. There a few runs during the week that were simply miles of running, but I got in 3 workouts that definitely showed the fitness. On Tuesday I ran some mile repeats with Queens and on Thursday I hit the track for the 300/100 workout. I have two weeks to sharpen up for CVS up in Providence. My flight is booked and I'll be heading back to the old stomping grounds for some high quality racing.
Michigan Workout
Time: 65:05
Distance: 10.56 miles
W/u: 22:16 for 3.01 miles
W/o: 33:51 for 6.34 miles
C/d: 9:00 for 1.21 miles
I hate this workout.
I was really tired this morning and slept in which meant that I missed the cool weather of the morning. Meagan and pops planned an outing to IKEA. Shoot me. So it was on tired legs when I was off to McAlpine to run a tough workout in 87 degree weather. Can you guess how it turned out? I'm already trying to establish excuses.
I felt a little sluggish on the warm up but was attempting to get pumped up for the start of the workout. My goal was to attack the first mile and then try and run relaxed as much as possible. The workout was designed to be run on the track but I thought I could run close to the prescribed pace on the dirt.
Target: Mile in 4:40, 2 miles at 5:10 pace, 1200 in 3:20, 2 miles at 5:10, 800m in 2:10.
Actual:
4:40.90, 5:31, 5:39,
3:44.17, 5:48, 5:47,
2:18.70.
The first mile was spot on and while it felt hard I was confident that this workout was going to be a good one. That was until 400m into the 2 mile section at 5:10 when I looked down and saw that I was running over 5:30 pace. Oops. I would never get back to attempting 5:10 pace as it wasn't going to happen. I almost called it a workout at 3 miles, but decided that it would still be beneficial to hammer a few sections of what was turning out to be a mediocre tempo run. The 1200 felt decent but never really got going. I wanted to commit to hitting 3:40 but it again wasn't happening. The only time I felt really good was on the final 800 when I knew I could leave it all out there. I felt great running 2:18 as it came naturally. The turnover felt natural, the footstrike was strong and the knee lift was right.
I'm not sure what to think about this workout as I was able to run 3 harder efforts within a 6.25 mile run. The point of the workout is to continue to press during the "relaxed" portion of the run but without anybody there to push the pace, I just wasn't going to run 5:10 pace. On the plus side, I know that my fitness is where it needs to be heading in to the final lead up to CVS 5k. I just ran 4:40 and 2:18 on dirt in 87 degree weather by myself. I'm not tapered and this was at the end of a good week of training.
Distance: 10.56 miles
W/u: 22:16 for 3.01 miles
W/o: 33:51 for 6.34 miles
C/d: 9:00 for 1.21 miles
I hate this workout.
I was really tired this morning and slept in which meant that I missed the cool weather of the morning. Meagan and pops planned an outing to IKEA. Shoot me. So it was on tired legs when I was off to McAlpine to run a tough workout in 87 degree weather. Can you guess how it turned out? I'm already trying to establish excuses.
I felt a little sluggish on the warm up but was attempting to get pumped up for the start of the workout. My goal was to attack the first mile and then try and run relaxed as much as possible. The workout was designed to be run on the track but I thought I could run close to the prescribed pace on the dirt.
Target: Mile in 4:40, 2 miles at 5:10 pace, 1200 in 3:20, 2 miles at 5:10, 800m in 2:10.
Actual:
4:40.90, 5:31, 5:39,
3:44.17, 5:48, 5:47,
2:18.70.
The first mile was spot on and while it felt hard I was confident that this workout was going to be a good one. That was until 400m into the 2 mile section at 5:10 when I looked down and saw that I was running over 5:30 pace. Oops. I would never get back to attempting 5:10 pace as it wasn't going to happen. I almost called it a workout at 3 miles, but decided that it would still be beneficial to hammer a few sections of what was turning out to be a mediocre tempo run. The 1200 felt decent but never really got going. I wanted to commit to hitting 3:40 but it again wasn't happening. The only time I felt really good was on the final 800 when I knew I could leave it all out there. I felt great running 2:18 as it came naturally. The turnover felt natural, the footstrike was strong and the knee lift was right.
I'm not sure what to think about this workout as I was able to run 3 harder efforts within a 6.25 mile run. The point of the workout is to continue to press during the "relaxed" portion of the run but without anybody there to push the pace, I just wasn't going to run 5:10 pace. On the plus side, I know that my fitness is where it needs to be heading in to the final lead up to CVS 5k. I just ran 4:40 and 2:18 on dirt in 87 degree weather by myself. I'm not tapered and this was at the end of a good week of training.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Running Vanderbilt Style
Time: 63:46
Distance: 9.40 miles
Pace: 6:47
Map
Meagan, pops and I spent all day walking around the Biltmore House with a bunch of other folks who were all impressed with the expansiveness of the estate. The tour of the house lasted about 2 hours and went along all floors of the house. Some of the highlights included the dining room with an organ, library with a chess set that once belonged to Napoleon and an indoor pool with underwater lighting though it was unfilled. I'm not sure how safe the underwater lighting systems of the early 1900s were, but it was probably top notch during the time of construction. Everything about the house was built to last and the grounds were just as important to George Vanderbilt. At one point he owned all that was visible from the views of the house. I would include more pictures of the inside of the house but photos weren't allowed during the tour.
Front shot of the Biltmore House.
Shot of the house from one of the garden paths.
Vanderbilt once owned as far as the eye could see.
A window.
The front lawn looking away from the house.
Distance: 9.40 miles
Pace: 6:47
Map
Meagan, pops and I spent all day walking around the Biltmore House with a bunch of other folks who were all impressed with the expansiveness of the estate. The tour of the house lasted about 2 hours and went along all floors of the house. Some of the highlights included the dining room with an organ, library with a chess set that once belonged to Napoleon and an indoor pool with underwater lighting though it was unfilled. I'm not sure how safe the underwater lighting systems of the early 1900s were, but it was probably top notch during the time of construction. Everything about the house was built to last and the grounds were just as important to George Vanderbilt. At one point he owned all that was visible from the views of the house. I would include more pictures of the inside of the house but photos weren't allowed during the tour.
Front shot of the Biltmore House.
Shot of the house from one of the garden paths.
Vanderbilt once owned as far as the eye could see.
A window.
The front lawn looking away from the house.We left the house around 4 in the pm and began driving along the road that leaves the grounds. After driving past Bass Pond and seeing some bikers and a lady jogging with her dogs, my dad joked that maybe I should just run from here. I called his bluff as I quickly ducked into a parking lot near a Segway path and proceeded to strip into my running clothes. I grabbed my phone and earbuds and was off. I ran along a bike/walking path that I think is primarily used by guests staying at the Biltmore Inn. There were a few miles of path to be run before coming to the Outdoors Center and stables. I realized that I was a little lost from the main road, but once I got my bearings I was off past the winery and on my way. I put in about 7 miles before leaving the estate's grounds and then dropped my phone off at the Starbucks where Meagan and my dad were enjoying some 'ffeine brew. I still had 20 minutes to run so I continued up the road and happened upon Asheville High School which was quite scenic. A high school also means that there would be a track nearby and so I put in a few laps on the facility. I finished up the run back at the Starbucks and we all proceeded on our merry way back to Charlotte.
A Hurried Run
Time: 37:08
Distance: 5.45 miles
Pace: 6:48
Map
My dad came to visit yesterday afternoon which means Meagan and I will be able to explore the city and surrounding areas. This morning Mr. Let'sGoToTheBiltmore got his way and we were all off to Asheville, NC. It's about a two hour drive from the Queen City to one of America's Best retirement spots.
We arrived at the mansion and took a tour of the 170,000 sq. ft. home with over 250 rooms. The Biltmore Estate is situated on 170,000 acres and was built by Richard Morris Hunt while the landscaping was done by Fredrick Law Olmstead. Now if this were 2004 I could tell you all about Olmstead and some of his other creations because I took a class on urban development. In fact, Professor Malone was one of my favorites as he had great slides of photos he took and stories about each one. However, I have forgotten all those little tidbits of information but I did still remember that Olmstead was responsible for New York's Central Park.
Anyway, this run was just long enough for me to put in some miles before leaving. I felt good and wanted to run more but we had a 10:00 departure time.
Distance: 5.45 miles
Pace: 6:48
Map
My dad came to visit yesterday afternoon which means Meagan and I will be able to explore the city and surrounding areas. This morning Mr. Let'sGoToTheBiltmore got his way and we were all off to Asheville, NC. It's about a two hour drive from the Queen City to one of America's Best retirement spots.
We arrived at the mansion and took a tour of the 170,000 sq. ft. home with over 250 rooms. The Biltmore Estate is situated on 170,000 acres and was built by Richard Morris Hunt while the landscaping was done by Fredrick Law Olmstead. Now if this were 2004 I could tell you all about Olmstead and some of his other creations because I took a class on urban development. In fact, Professor Malone was one of my favorites as he had great slides of photos he took and stories about each one. However, I have forgotten all those little tidbits of information but I did still remember that Olmstead was responsible for New York's Central Park.
Anyway, this run was just long enough for me to put in some miles before leaving. I felt good and wanted to run more but we had a 10:00 departure time.
Friday, September 4, 2009
Good Samaritan
Time: 59:42
Distance: 9.00 miles
Pace: 6:37
Map
Morning run from the apartment to Freedom Park and around. I started off the day right by helping a gentleman who needed directions. I ran a bit on grassy median but otherwise it was on pavement. The legs felt pretty good this morning.
Distance: 9.00 miles
Pace: 6:37
Map
Morning run from the apartment to Freedom Park and around. I started off the day right by helping a gentleman who needed directions. I ran a bit on grassy median but otherwise it was on pavement. The legs felt pretty good this morning.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Infamous 300/100 Workout
Time: 53:50
Distance: 8.17 miles
W/u: 21:51 for 3.08 miles
W/o: 15:47 for 3 miles
C/d: 16:12 for 2.09 miles
I felt a little sluggish warming up to the track this afternoon but that could have been due to the hills that are along the route. When I got to the middle school's track the parking lot was full of parents waiting for their sons. I think they just had tryouts for football because some kids made it while others didn't. I finished warming up with some laps around the track and then I slipped into the Lunar Racers.
The target today was to run 12 x 300/100. Three each at 52-50-48-46 with 30 sec rest.
I hit splits of:
(22.59) 50.55, (27.22) 52.36, (27.24) 52.58,
(26.55) 50.07, (27.13) 51.07, (28.31) 50.57,
(28.51) 49.57, (30.14) 50.03, (30.50) 49.77,
(30.10), 49.96, (31.44) 52.20, (29.40) 49.54 for 15:47 total.
Average rest - 28.26
Average 300 - 50.69
Before leaving the apartment to do this workout I calculated that Jailhouse prescribed a workout that would average 79 second 400s (if I hit the 300 splits and kept to 30 seconds on the jog). When it was all done I averaged 78.95 per lap, but didn't hit the splits. I started off perfect running the 300 intervals just as they are supposed to be but the rest was a little quick. When you push the rest on this type of workout, things can go downhill in a hurry. I wasn't able to change gears to hit 48s or 46s.
I'm confident that when I race CVS I'll be able to maintain 4:40 pace or a little faster because I ran 3600 meters averaging ~51 seconds which is 68s or 4:32/mile pace. When I ran this workout last I averaged (28.15) and 52.57 for an overall 3 mile time of 16:08. Today I ran 20 seconds faster and felt better doing it.
Distance: 8.17 miles
W/u: 21:51 for 3.08 miles
W/o: 15:47 for 3 miles
C/d: 16:12 for 2.09 miles
I felt a little sluggish warming up to the track this afternoon but that could have been due to the hills that are along the route. When I got to the middle school's track the parking lot was full of parents waiting for their sons. I think they just had tryouts for football because some kids made it while others didn't. I finished warming up with some laps around the track and then I slipped into the Lunar Racers.
The target today was to run 12 x 300/100. Three each at 52-50-48-46 with 30 sec rest.
I hit splits of:
(22.59) 50.55, (27.22) 52.36, (27.24) 52.58,
(26.55) 50.07, (27.13) 51.07, (28.31) 50.57,
(28.51) 49.57, (30.14) 50.03, (30.50) 49.77,
(30.10), 49.96, (31.44) 52.20, (29.40) 49.54 for 15:47 total.
Average rest - 28.26
Average 300 - 50.69
Before leaving the apartment to do this workout I calculated that Jailhouse prescribed a workout that would average 79 second 400s (if I hit the 300 splits and kept to 30 seconds on the jog). When it was all done I averaged 78.95 per lap, but didn't hit the splits. I started off perfect running the 300 intervals just as they are supposed to be but the rest was a little quick. When you push the rest on this type of workout, things can go downhill in a hurry. I wasn't able to change gears to hit 48s or 46s.
I'm confident that when I race CVS I'll be able to maintain 4:40 pace or a little faster because I ran 3600 meters averaging ~51 seconds which is 68s or 4:32/mile pace. When I ran this workout last I averaged (28.15) and 52.57 for an overall 3 mile time of 16:08. Today I ran 20 seconds faster and felt better doing it.
Morning Miles
Time: 36:53
Distance: 5.32 miles
Pace: 6:56
Map
I put in a few light miles this morning through Freedom Park. There wasn't a lot going on during this run but I could tell the legs were feeling good. This afternoon or evening I have to run a 300/100 workout on the track.
Distance: 5.32 miles
Pace: 6:56
Map
I put in a few light miles this morning through Freedom Park. There wasn't a lot going on during this run but I could tell the legs were feeling good. This afternoon or evening I have to run a 300/100 workout on the track.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Freedom & Latta Parks
Time: 68:51
Distance: 10.77 miles
Pace: 6:24
Map
I ran to Freedom Park and searched out Latta Park which is just beyond East Rd. I found the site but it wasn't what I was expected. The overhead shots from maps.google.com made it look like there were trails in the park but it was simply a paved walking path. The park wasn't that big either so I was forced to hit the roads in search of a few more miles. I looped back through Freedom Park before finishing up at the apartment. The legs felt pretty good by mile 4 and the pace got clipping along. Hit splits of: 7:18, 6:53, 6:50, 6:45, 6:27, 6:14, 6:05, 6:04, 5:56, 5:48.
Distance: 10.77 miles
Pace: 6:24
Map
I ran to Freedom Park and searched out Latta Park which is just beyond East Rd. I found the site but it wasn't what I was expected. The overhead shots from maps.google.com made it look like there were trails in the park but it was simply a paved walking path. The park wasn't that big either so I was forced to hit the roads in search of a few more miles. I looped back through Freedom Park before finishing up at the apartment. The legs felt pretty good by mile 4 and the pace got clipping along. Hit splits of: 7:18, 6:53, 6:50, 6:45, 6:27, 6:14, 6:05, 6:04, 5:56, 5:48.
McAlpine Mile Repeats
Time: ~64 mins
Distance: 10.05 miles
W/u: 22:08 for 3.00 miles
W/o: 5 x mile with 3 mins rest
C/d: 16:49 for 2.05 miles
I traveled out to McAlpine with the Queens team for a mile repeat session on a section of the greenway. We arrived to an absolutely packed main parking as several high school squads were racing a meet. I'm not sure which teams were in attendance but for a Tuesday at 4:30 pm, things were pretty serious. I knew that McAlpine is the host location for Footlocker South, but this was something else. The warm up went okay and we found our starting location from the 1.5 to .5 mile markers.
My goal for the workout was to run with Futsum in a relaxed manner. I held off on doing this workout by a day because it was going to be more advantageous to run with a group. Jailhouse had prescribed 4 x mile with the first 800 in 2:30 and getting after the second half with 3 mins rest. The Queens' workout was so similar that it made sense to run with them.
Splits: 4:57.28 (3:04), 4:51.43 (3:20), 4:50.42 (3:08), 4:47.73 (3:19), 4:53.85 for an average of 4:52.14.
I would rank this as one of my better workouts but I was definitely pushing today. I hammered the second half of the 4th repeat and my guess is that we went through mid-way in 2:28-2:30 which means the last 800 was in the 2:20 range. I struggled the last interval as Futsum was able to put a couple of seconds on me by the end of the interval. I was recovering relatively quickly and felt that 3 mins rest was lengthy. The last time I ran mile repeats it was on the track with Carrot Top and I split 5:03.84 (2:02), 4:59.58 (2:00), 4:53.50 (1:57), 4:51.63 (2:30). There has definitely been some improvement in the fitness.
Mike Crouch was running an absolutely stellar effort as I think he averaged 4:33 on the dirt. Pretty sick. He would come rolling by our group with about 300-400 meters to go after starting 15 seconds back. The kid is talented and a tremendous worker. It has been fun watching some of his workouts so far.
Distance: 10.05 miles
W/u: 22:08 for 3.00 miles
W/o: 5 x mile with 3 mins rest
C/d: 16:49 for 2.05 miles
I traveled out to McAlpine with the Queens team for a mile repeat session on a section of the greenway. We arrived to an absolutely packed main parking as several high school squads were racing a meet. I'm not sure which teams were in attendance but for a Tuesday at 4:30 pm, things were pretty serious. I knew that McAlpine is the host location for Footlocker South, but this was something else. The warm up went okay and we found our starting location from the 1.5 to .5 mile markers.
My goal for the workout was to run with Futsum in a relaxed manner. I held off on doing this workout by a day because it was going to be more advantageous to run with a group. Jailhouse had prescribed 4 x mile with the first 800 in 2:30 and getting after the second half with 3 mins rest. The Queens' workout was so similar that it made sense to run with them.
Splits: 4:57.28 (3:04), 4:51.43 (3:20), 4:50.42 (3:08), 4:47.73 (3:19), 4:53.85 for an average of 4:52.14.
I would rank this as one of my better workouts but I was definitely pushing today. I hammered the second half of the 4th repeat and my guess is that we went through mid-way in 2:28-2:30 which means the last 800 was in the 2:20 range. I struggled the last interval as Futsum was able to put a couple of seconds on me by the end of the interval. I was recovering relatively quickly and felt that 3 mins rest was lengthy. The last time I ran mile repeats it was on the track with Carrot Top and I split 5:03.84 (2:02), 4:59.58 (2:00), 4:53.50 (1:57), 4:51.63 (2:30). There has definitely been some improvement in the fitness.
Mike Crouch was running an absolutely stellar effort as I think he averaged 4:33 on the dirt. Pretty sick. He would come rolling by our group with about 300-400 meters to go after starting 15 seconds back. The kid is talented and a tremendous worker. It has been fun watching some of his workouts so far.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Morning Shakeout
Time 31:34
Distance: 4.56 miles
Pace: 6:55
Map
I put in a few miles this morning in preparation for a session of mile repeats this afternoon. I felt great which I hope means that I feel the same out at McAlpine. I was trying to slow down but by the end I was hitting 6:30. Stay tuned for a post later today (or tomorrow) as I'll be getting after in 5 x mile with the Queens team.
Distance: 4.56 miles
Pace: 6:55
Map
I put in a few miles this morning in preparation for a session of mile repeats this afternoon. I felt great which I hope means that I feel the same out at McAlpine. I was trying to slow down but by the end I was hitting 6:30. Stay tuned for a post later today (or tomorrow) as I'll be getting after in 5 x mile with the Queens team.
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