Time: 81:49
Distance: 13.18 miles
W/u: 22:26 for 3.04 miles
W/o: 2 x 4 miles with 4 mins recovery
C/d: 16:27 for 2.14 miles
I met up with some of the Queens boys at the main entrance to McAlpine. One athlete was running 300s, two were doing a 3-mile predator run and two were running a 5-mile predator. I was gearing up for a long 2 x 4-mile effort around marathon pace.
The warm up brought us the the one mile mark of the Footlocker course. The two runners who were doing the longer predator run (Oscar and Benny), had to run the final two miles of the cross-country course and then the course once more. I would be running the final two miles and the first two miles. A little confusing, but it worked out. I would run the same four miles on my second repeat, except in reverse. This meant on the first I would have to go up with hill twice, and on the second I would have to go up the hill twice, but in reverse (the steeper side). Writing this feels like a routine of "who's on first?"
Splits:
5:29.49 (hill)
5:12.51 (10:42)
5:19.75 (16:01.75)
5:23.20 (hill #2) for 21:25 total and 5:21 average.
(4 mins recovery)
5:25.82 (hill reverse)
5:18.77 (10:44)
5:28.39 (16:13)
5:20.32 (hill reverse) for 21:33 total and 5:23 average.
I felt good on the first tempo as I had Oscar and Nelson out front to eye. I got a little aggressive on the second mile when I dropped that 5:12 but I felt easy doing it. I closed the gap that mile on Nelson who was stopping at 3 miles. I was able to attack the second hill and coast down the backside for a solid split. With 4 miles down, I ran a loop of the pond and took a minute to gather myself. Knowing I had to run the same course in reverse was a little intimidating but manageable.
I will admit that those two hills in reverse rocked my world. It felt like I was walking up the backside of the hill because I practically was. I went into the hill on the first mile running 5:10 pace and came down from it running 5:30. My splits were able to recover however. I'm not sure what happened on that third mile where I struggled with a 5:28. A loss of focus on my first workout like this certainly showed. Overall, I'm pleased with how things went. I think had this workout been done on a flatter section of McAlpine I could have averaged 5:15s with little effort. To throw in four hills made the workout honest and forced a mental toughness on the day.
Showing posts with label oscar. Show all posts
Showing posts with label oscar. Show all posts
Friday, January 15, 2010
Friday, October 23, 2009
Conference Carolinas Meet
Time: 71:27
Distance: 10.74 miles
W/u: 18:27 for 2.66 miles
W/u: 22:20 for 3.20 miles
W/o: 16:35 for 3.01 miles
C/d: 14:00 for 1.87 miles
600m Community Challenge: 1:41, 1st place
Predator Run:
Today was our last day without a car as Meagan and I would pick up a loaner from the Mini dealership after the meet, but first I had to get to Queens. I was meeting up with Benny Perez for a short workout out at McAlpine prior to the league championship meet. I used my feet as a car when I ran from the apartment to campus and then we drove out to the main entrance.
Out at McAlpine, Benny and I started by running the Footlocker course as a warm up. Scott Simmons and Jenna Wrieden, asst. coach, were out there finalizing course markings for the 5k and 8k later in the day. After a few strides Benny was ready to kick things off with a short predator run of the Footlocker course (first 3 miles). I decided to tag along because I wanted to test out the lungs with a light workout. I spent most of both warm ups coughing, but would be fine during the up tempo section.
We hit splits of:
5:29, 5:32, 5:31 for 16:32 total.
I was relaxed and in control the entire time. Benny struggled a bit after the hill on the course but responded to words of encouragement.
Community 600m:
There was a community 600 to run prior to the cross country meet. Most of the participants were Queens student-athletes and friends of the xc team who had come out to support. Meagan is taking a negotiation course this semester and her tactics are still a little green because it wasn't until 2 seconds after the race started that she convinced me to run. I weaved my way through the back of the field and targeted the leaders. Mind you, I was wearing basketball shorts, chewing gum and my left shoe was nearly falling off. I rounded the pond and by 350m I was sitting off the leader's shoulder. He was quick to throw in a surge which made the tempo pretty serious coming down the windy homestretch. It was a two man battle for nearly 200m. The crowd was in my favor and I had memories of my first beer mile when I got into a kicker's duel with Rob Sorrell. This race was meaningless, yet the competitive drive for a t-shirt and gift certificate was higher than ever. With about 15 meters left I finally got a step advantage and crossed the line first. The assistant coach for Anderson put up a great fight.
Conference Carolinas:
I was in charge of leading the women's and men's races during the Conference Carolinas Championships. Don't worry, I was on a bike. And I didn't mess things up. My instructions from Scott were: 1) Lead the race 2) Don't fall.
I did just that by keeping about a 20 meter lead in the races. I decided not to go up the only hill on the course, not because I couldn't make it, but rather I didn't want to descend. I was on Mike Crouch's Schwinn purchased from Wal-Mart and there is a swamp on the other side of the hill. I had visions of flying down the course, sliding into the turn, off the trail and into the muck. I opted to sit the hill out and pick up the racers on the other side.
Oscar and Futsum had a nice battle up front that wasn't decided until the final half mile. Simon (of "It's not a tumor" fame) ran great to finish third. The Queens men swept the top 6 spots. Results.
The women won their first ever conference title by beating Lees-Mcrae who had won the last nine championships.
Congrats to the Royals.
Distance: 10.74 miles
W/u: 18:27 for 2.66 miles
W/u: 22:20 for 3.20 miles
W/o: 16:35 for 3.01 miles
C/d: 14:00 for 1.87 miles
600m Community Challenge: 1:41, 1st place
Predator Run:
Today was our last day without a car as Meagan and I would pick up a loaner from the Mini dealership after the meet, but first I had to get to Queens. I was meeting up with Benny Perez for a short workout out at McAlpine prior to the league championship meet. I used my feet as a car when I ran from the apartment to campus and then we drove out to the main entrance.
Out at McAlpine, Benny and I started by running the Footlocker course as a warm up. Scott Simmons and Jenna Wrieden, asst. coach, were out there finalizing course markings for the 5k and 8k later in the day. After a few strides Benny was ready to kick things off with a short predator run of the Footlocker course (first 3 miles). I decided to tag along because I wanted to test out the lungs with a light workout. I spent most of both warm ups coughing, but would be fine during the up tempo section.
We hit splits of:
5:29, 5:32, 5:31 for 16:32 total.
I was relaxed and in control the entire time. Benny struggled a bit after the hill on the course but responded to words of encouragement.
Community 600m:
There was a community 600 to run prior to the cross country meet. Most of the participants were Queens student-athletes and friends of the xc team who had come out to support. Meagan is taking a negotiation course this semester and her tactics are still a little green because it wasn't until 2 seconds after the race started that she convinced me to run. I weaved my way through the back of the field and targeted the leaders. Mind you, I was wearing basketball shorts, chewing gum and my left shoe was nearly falling off. I rounded the pond and by 350m I was sitting off the leader's shoulder. He was quick to throw in a surge which made the tempo pretty serious coming down the windy homestretch. It was a two man battle for nearly 200m. The crowd was in my favor and I had memories of my first beer mile when I got into a kicker's duel with Rob Sorrell. This race was meaningless, yet the competitive drive for a t-shirt and gift certificate was higher than ever. With about 15 meters left I finally got a step advantage and crossed the line first. The assistant coach for Anderson put up a great fight.
Conference Carolinas:
I was in charge of leading the women's and men's races during the Conference Carolinas Championships. Don't worry, I was on a bike. And I didn't mess things up. My instructions from Scott were: 1) Lead the race 2) Don't fall.
I did just that by keeping about a 20 meter lead in the races. I decided not to go up the only hill on the course, not because I couldn't make it, but rather I didn't want to descend. I was on Mike Crouch's Schwinn purchased from Wal-Mart and there is a swamp on the other side of the hill. I had visions of flying down the course, sliding into the turn, off the trail and into the muck. I opted to sit the hill out and pick up the racers on the other side.
Oscar and Futsum had a nice battle up front that wasn't decided until the final half mile. Simon (of "It's not a tumor" fame) ran great to finish third. The Queens men swept the top 6 spots. Results.
The women won their first ever conference title by beating Lees-Mcrae who had won the last nine championships.
Congrats to the Royals.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
The Kid is Back
Time: ~65 mins
Distance: 10.13 miles
W/u: 22:33 for 3.00 miles
W/o: 25 x 400 on a 2:00 interval
C/d: 17:09 for 1.88 miles
I needed redemption after last week's 400 workout. I opted out of a workout yesterday because I thought an extra day of rest would do the calves good. The Queens team was running there fabled 25 x 400 meter workout on a 2 minute interval this afternoon and I thought that I would tag along. The 2 minute interval makes things interesting because the fast you run, the more rest you get. For instance, run 65 seconds, get 55 seconds rest.
We used a section of McAlpine just off the main path because it ends with a slight uphill on the way out. I wasn't looking to impress anyone today with my foot speed so I opted out of "hammering" some of the later intervals with some of the guys. My goal was to stay consistent and relaxed as possible. The group of guys broke up nicely to where I was running with Oscar, Nelson, Simon and Futsum for the majority of the workout. Devin was lurking just behind, but made his presence felt during the hammers and late in the workout.
The intervals started out quicker than they usually do based on the guys' reactions after the first 3. I hit splits of:
67.54 (50.90), 63.49 (58.28), 65.18 (54.64), 63.51 (56.37), 64.95 (55.35),
63.57 (55.90), 64.98 (55.05), 64.27 (56.03), 65.45 (54.30), 63.66 (56.32),
65.82 (53.93), 64.57 (55.20), 66.36 (54.32), 64.02 (56.13), 66.22 (53.93),
64.75 (55.45), 65.77 (53.90), 65.10 (55.41), 66.39 (52.65), 66.53 (54.87),
66.28 (52.90), 67.05 (53.00), 67.82 (51.43), 65.24 (54.58), 64.01 for 49:03 and 6.65 miles.
Avg = 65.30 sec.
Avg rest = 54.62 sec.
The workout is incredibly long and took a lot of focus. After each interval I found myself walking a little bit to shake out the legs and hoping that by 30 sec. I felt recovered enough to start running again. The countdown for the 2 min. interval would come pretty quickly and the group would jump off the line and get back at it. I'm pretty sure this is the most 400s I have ever run, surpassing the 20 I did earlier this summer. I'm not convinced the section of trail we were running was a complete 400 meters and would guess that it was 380-385, but this is not a complete science and the work we put it was solid.
Distance: 10.13 miles
W/u: 22:33 for 3.00 miles
W/o: 25 x 400 on a 2:00 interval
C/d: 17:09 for 1.88 miles
I needed redemption after last week's 400 workout. I opted out of a workout yesterday because I thought an extra day of rest would do the calves good. The Queens team was running there fabled 25 x 400 meter workout on a 2 minute interval this afternoon and I thought that I would tag along. The 2 minute interval makes things interesting because the fast you run, the more rest you get. For instance, run 65 seconds, get 55 seconds rest.
We used a section of McAlpine just off the main path because it ends with a slight uphill on the way out. I wasn't looking to impress anyone today with my foot speed so I opted out of "hammering" some of the later intervals with some of the guys. My goal was to stay consistent and relaxed as possible. The group of guys broke up nicely to where I was running with Oscar, Nelson, Simon and Futsum for the majority of the workout. Devin was lurking just behind, but made his presence felt during the hammers and late in the workout.
The intervals started out quicker than they usually do based on the guys' reactions after the first 3. I hit splits of:
67.54 (50.90), 63.49 (58.28), 65.18 (54.64), 63.51 (56.37), 64.95 (55.35),
63.57 (55.90), 64.98 (55.05), 64.27 (56.03), 65.45 (54.30), 63.66 (56.32),
65.82 (53.93), 64.57 (55.20), 66.36 (54.32), 64.02 (56.13), 66.22 (53.93),
64.75 (55.45), 65.77 (53.90), 65.10 (55.41), 66.39 (52.65), 66.53 (54.87),
66.28 (52.90), 67.05 (53.00), 67.82 (51.43), 65.24 (54.58), 64.01 for 49:03 and 6.65 miles.
Avg = 65.30 sec.
Avg rest = 54.62 sec.
The workout is incredibly long and took a lot of focus. After each interval I found myself walking a little bit to shake out the legs and hoping that by 30 sec. I felt recovered enough to start running again. The countdown for the 2 min. interval would come pretty quickly and the group would jump off the line and get back at it. I'm pretty sure this is the most 400s I have ever run, surpassing the 20 I did earlier this summer. I'm not convinced the section of trail we were running was a complete 400 meters and would guess that it was 380-385, but this is not a complete science and the work we put it was solid.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
McMullen Failure
Time: ~70 mins
Distance: 10.07 miles
W/u: 20:32 for 3.00 miles
W/o: 4 x mile, 2 x 400
C/d: 15:19 for 1.88 miles
Simmons took us out to a new location this afternoon that is a bit south of the city. We hit up the McMullen Greenway for some miles on a partially dirt/paved/bridged route. Most of the guys on the team were doing a pre-race workout consisting of 2 x mile, 2 x 400 but Oscar was doing 6 x mile that I was hoping to join. We got in our warm up and a few strides before commencing the effort on the first mile of the greenway.
Mile Splits:
4:39 (2:57), 4:48 (2:51), 4:59 (3:14), 5:05 (7:28)
400 Splits:
65.00 (5:35), 64.03
After the second mile interval I knew things were going downhill. My sickness is still troubling me and I guess it was a bit of a mistake to attempt this workout. However, I had already started the effort and was determined to get something in worthwhile. Oscar was running absolutely great which wasn't good for me. I was left in his wake on the second interval after about 600 meters. On the third interval Mike joined us and proceeded to take the pace out in 65 through 400m. I immediately backed off and thought about stopping at 800, 1000 and 1200 meters. I relaxed the last half of the mile and managed to split just under 5 mins. On my final interval I decided to run with one of the groups doing the pre-race. I felt much more comfortable going through 800 in 2:34 and finishing with a 2:31. The 400s at the end were just to get the legs turning over.
Oscar managed to average 4:40s or just a dip under and I think he finished with a 4:34.
The other news on the trail was that Fasil Bizuneh, who is coached by Simmons, was out doing his second big workout of the day. In the morning he ran a 2 mile warm up, 5 miles at 4:28 pace, 8 miles in 39:40ish and cooled down a mile. That's 16 miles total for the morning with some big chunks running really fast. Well, in the afternoon he came back out to McMullen to do the workout over. Yes, he was going to duplicate the effort from the morning to the best of his ability. I'm not sure what he ran the 5 miles hard in, but just as we were about to leave Simmons asked if anybody wanted to run 8 miles at 4:55 pace. There were no takers.
Distance: 10.07 miles
W/u: 20:32 for 3.00 miles
W/o: 4 x mile, 2 x 400
C/d: 15:19 for 1.88 miles
Simmons took us out to a new location this afternoon that is a bit south of the city. We hit up the McMullen Greenway for some miles on a partially dirt/paved/bridged route. Most of the guys on the team were doing a pre-race workout consisting of 2 x mile, 2 x 400 but Oscar was doing 6 x mile that I was hoping to join. We got in our warm up and a few strides before commencing the effort on the first mile of the greenway.
Mile Splits:
4:39 (2:57), 4:48 (2:51), 4:59 (3:14), 5:05 (7:28)
400 Splits:
65.00 (5:35), 64.03
After the second mile interval I knew things were going downhill. My sickness is still troubling me and I guess it was a bit of a mistake to attempt this workout. However, I had already started the effort and was determined to get something in worthwhile. Oscar was running absolutely great which wasn't good for me. I was left in his wake on the second interval after about 600 meters. On the third interval Mike joined us and proceeded to take the pace out in 65 through 400m. I immediately backed off and thought about stopping at 800, 1000 and 1200 meters. I relaxed the last half of the mile and managed to split just under 5 mins. On my final interval I decided to run with one of the groups doing the pre-race. I felt much more comfortable going through 800 in 2:34 and finishing with a 2:31. The 400s at the end were just to get the legs turning over.
Oscar managed to average 4:40s or just a dip under and I think he finished with a 4:34.
The other news on the trail was that Fasil Bizuneh, who is coached by Simmons, was out doing his second big workout of the day. In the morning he ran a 2 mile warm up, 5 miles at 4:28 pace, 8 miles in 39:40ish and cooled down a mile. That's 16 miles total for the morning with some big chunks running really fast. Well, in the afternoon he came back out to McMullen to do the workout over. Yes, he was going to duplicate the effort from the morning to the best of his ability. I'm not sure what he ran the 5 miles hard in, but just as we were about to leave Simmons asked if anybody wanted to run 8 miles at 4:55 pace. There were no takers.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Jerry Runs a Big One
Time: 84:08
Distance: 14.04 miles
Pace: 5:59
Map
I got up this morning and saw that Jerry's Kids was running the Quad Cities Marathon. I haven't chatted with Jerry in a few weeks but guessed that he would be shooting for mid-2:20s. I left to do my long run with the Queens athletes out at McAlpine and wasn't able to hit refresh every 10 minutes.
My run was fantastic. The legs were really fresh due to the light workload midweek and the weather started cool and dry. I was running with Futsum, Oscar, Benny and Simon for the first 4 or 5 miles and then the Ethiopian went to work. He was going 17 miles but I guess he was feeling frisky early on because by 6 miles we were running around 6:00 pace. Futsum kept at the pace until mile 9 when he decided to back off because now Oscar and I had gone to work. Benny lasted until mile 10 and it was down to two for the last 25 minutes. I felt good the whole way and a good hard long run is something that I think I've been missing in my training. This is not the type of effort I need every weekend, but it reminded how good it feels to finish up the last 6 or 8 miles of a long run at a good clip.
Splits: 7:19, 6:41, 6:34, 6:26, 6:07, 5:57, 5:49, 5:39, 5:33, 5:36, 5:43, 5:35, 5:31, 5:29.
After the run I went to pick up Meagan who made me guess as to what Jerry's Kids ran. I said 2:25 and she seemed a little disappointed at my guessing ability. He crossed the tape in 5th place with a time of 2:25:13. Great stuff. Congrats.
Distance: 14.04 miles
Pace: 5:59
Map
I got up this morning and saw that Jerry's Kids was running the Quad Cities Marathon. I haven't chatted with Jerry in a few weeks but guessed that he would be shooting for mid-2:20s. I left to do my long run with the Queens athletes out at McAlpine and wasn't able to hit refresh every 10 minutes.
My run was fantastic. The legs were really fresh due to the light workload midweek and the weather started cool and dry. I was running with Futsum, Oscar, Benny and Simon for the first 4 or 5 miles and then the Ethiopian went to work. He was going 17 miles but I guess he was feeling frisky early on because by 6 miles we were running around 6:00 pace. Futsum kept at the pace until mile 9 when he decided to back off because now Oscar and I had gone to work. Benny lasted until mile 10 and it was down to two for the last 25 minutes. I felt good the whole way and a good hard long run is something that I think I've been missing in my training. This is not the type of effort I need every weekend, but it reminded how good it feels to finish up the last 6 or 8 miles of a long run at a good clip.
Splits: 7:19, 6:41, 6:34, 6:26, 6:07, 5:57, 5:49, 5:39, 5:33, 5:36, 5:43, 5:35, 5:31, 5:29.
After the run I went to pick up Meagan who made me guess as to what Jerry's Kids ran. I said 2:25 and she seemed a little disappointed at my guessing ability. He crossed the tape in 5th place with a time of 2:25:13. Great stuff. Congrats.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Long Run
Time: 120:08
Distance: 17-18 miles
Map
Scotty D and I got out the door later than usual and we thought it was going to bite us in the ass. We were pretty certain that the run was going to turn into a death march the last 5 miles. The pace started off relaxed as we ran north on 24th. We appreciated the breeze out of the south as we turned onto Tecumseh and ran out towards Oscar's house. Last night at the Red Hawk's game where the Thompson family went to watch Birdzerk (careful on the click... might want to turn your sound down or off) perform I asked Oscar to put out some water. He told me that there were Gatorades in his fridge that we could help ourselves to. We reached his house around 40 mins and the cold beverage was key. Shortly thereafter I took my first Clif Shot--vanilla varietal--while running. I can understand why people complain about the taste and texture, but it didn't upset my stomach.
When we made the turn onto 72nd, the hill seemed much longer and steeper than I had remembered it being. I'm definitely not as fit as I was when I ran this loop sometime in March with Owen. The time before I ran the loop with Owen I really hammered it. The pace was probably around 6:30 to 6:40 while we were out along 72nd and remained the same once we turned onto Lindsey to head back into town. I split the two miles from 60th to 36th along Lindsey which were 6:19 and 6:20. Shortly thereafter we stopped to get some water at a horse stable before running the last 15 minutes back to the Lodge looping through the frisbee golf park.
Good run today. I'm glad Scotty and I committed to doing it. The hills were a bit rough but overall this is what I think I needed. The legs didn't feel too bad. I had a little stiffness in my right hip and my calves were a little sore when I woke up. I didn't feel great the last 30 minutes, but I definitely didn't crash. I took a Gu (chocolate) at about 85 to 90 minutes, not because I needed it but I was getting sick of carrying it in my back pocket.
Distance: 17-18 miles
Map
Scotty D and I got out the door later than usual and we thought it was going to bite us in the ass. We were pretty certain that the run was going to turn into a death march the last 5 miles. The pace started off relaxed as we ran north on 24th. We appreciated the breeze out of the south as we turned onto Tecumseh and ran out towards Oscar's house. Last night at the Red Hawk's game where the Thompson family went to watch Birdzerk (careful on the click... might want to turn your sound down or off) perform I asked Oscar to put out some water. He told me that there were Gatorades in his fridge that we could help ourselves to. We reached his house around 40 mins and the cold beverage was key. Shortly thereafter I took my first Clif Shot--vanilla varietal--while running. I can understand why people complain about the taste and texture, but it didn't upset my stomach.
When we made the turn onto 72nd, the hill seemed much longer and steeper than I had remembered it being. I'm definitely not as fit as I was when I ran this loop sometime in March with Owen. The time before I ran the loop with Owen I really hammered it. The pace was probably around 6:30 to 6:40 while we were out along 72nd and remained the same once we turned onto Lindsey to head back into town. I split the two miles from 60th to 36th along Lindsey which were 6:19 and 6:20. Shortly thereafter we stopped to get some water at a horse stable before running the last 15 minutes back to the Lodge looping through the frisbee golf park.
Good run today. I'm glad Scotty and I committed to doing it. The hills were a bit rough but overall this is what I think I needed. The legs didn't feel too bad. I had a little stiffness in my right hip and my calves were a little sore when I woke up. I didn't feel great the last 30 minutes, but I definitely didn't crash. I took a Gu (chocolate) at about 85 to 90 minutes, not because I needed it but I was getting sick of carrying it in my back pocket.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Long Run
Time: 105:04
Distance: 17+ miles
Map
After a good amount of rest and a very easy day on Saturday, I got out the door and wanted to get in a solid long run. Sometime last week Craig asked if I had ever run the hills out by his house. He told me about a few mile stretches that had some solid climbs. I was intrigued and today seemed like a good day to check 'em out.
The weather was a little chilly and the wind was blowing around 15 mph. Take a look at the map to see where I ran. I started taking mile splits from the intersection of 24th and Almeida and continued until the intersection of 24th and Lindsey. The grid system on this route provided me with a lot of data. It was more difficult to run east on Tecumseh with the wind in my face than it was to run up some of the hills. Check out the splits:
6:22, 6:11, 6:01, 6:20, 6:20, 6:10, 5:58, 6:05, 5:54, 5:52, 5:43, 5:42, 5:44, 5:44, 5:40
Distance: 17+ miles
Map
After a good amount of rest and a very easy day on Saturday, I got out the door and wanted to get in a solid long run. Sometime last week Craig asked if I had ever run the hills out by his house. He told me about a few mile stretches that had some solid climbs. I was intrigued and today seemed like a good day to check 'em out.
The weather was a little chilly and the wind was blowing around 15 mph. Take a look at the map to see where I ran. I started taking mile splits from the intersection of 24th and Almeida and continued until the intersection of 24th and Lindsey. The grid system on this route provided me with a lot of data. It was more difficult to run east on Tecumseh with the wind in my face than it was to run up some of the hills. Check out the splits:
6:22, 6:11, 6:01, 6:20, 6:20, 6:10, 5:58, 6:05, 5:54, 5:52, 5:43, 5:42, 5:44, 5:44, 5:40
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