Oklahoma City Memorial Half Marathon Race Report

Two inches is the difference between this weekend and the same weekend two years ago.

Yes, just two inches; that is, around the waist.

In 2005, I ran back-to-back half marathons in the capital cities of Des Moines, Iowa and Lincoln, Nebraska in 2:16 and 2:18, respectively.

And today, I could only muster a 2:23:20 in another capital city - Oklahoma City, Oklahoma - after only doing a 10K day ago.

Lots to write about, but I've firmed up my position on two things after today's half marathon - 1.) that races should start following the USATF rule on headphones and get them off the course and 2.) that more races need completely closed courses.

On the latter, in about mile 10 of the half marathon and around mile 23 of the full marathon, I a truck crossing in front of racers pull completely in front of - and causing him to have to come to a complete stop - a hand cycle wheelchair racer! If the wheelchair athlete wouldn't have seen it coming and anticipated it, it could have been a head-on collision.

When we were in Fort Worth yesterday, I was curious to know the fastest finisher to complete the 10K with a set of headphones on. My expectation was about right. She said that the 16th finisher was the first one to have headphones on. Actually I thought it might have been a little later.

My goal was to try and stay as close to 10:30 per minute miles, which would have been about a 2:17-and change finish. But not having the miles under my legs tested my endurance a little bit and I came in at the 2:23:20.02 that I mentioned earlier. Here are what the splits looked like:

Mile 1 -- 10:17.94
Mile 2 -- 10:52.75 (21:10.69)
Mile 3 -- 10:24.47 (31:35.16)
Mile 4 -- 10:50.54 (42:25.70)
Mile 5 -- 10:35.90 (53:01.60)
Mile 6 -- 11:02.62 (1:04:04.22)
Mile 7 -- 10:58.56 (1:15:02.78)
Miles 8-9 -- 21:58.27 (1:37:01.05) - There was a timing mat at mile 8 that I didn't know that it was the mile marker. I deduced it later on in addition to hearing somebody talk about it.
Mile 10 -- 11:11.49 (1:48:12.54)
Mile 11 -- 11:00.12 (1:59:12.66)
Mile 12 -- 12:07.12 (2:11:19.78)
Last 1.1 -- 12:00.24 (2:23:20.02) - The last part was a gentle downhill, plus I was trying to stay up with a runner in a pink top who was carrying a set of nice balloons (without the stick, of course).

The half marathon course has a lot of long inclines, especially from between the mile 8 and mile 11 markers. Little Rock has a very slight, yet recognizable incline in the first half, but this is just a little bit tougher.

The volunteers on this course are absolutely great. It had the feel of a Motive Bison Stampede, which I believe is no longer in existence in Austin (or will not be). Some of the water stops were done in themes. (Not that any of that matters to me, but it was kind of cool to see people being enthusiatic about being out there supporting everyone.)

The finish line area is handled pretty well, but they could do a little better job in moving the runners into a food area to meet with friends who ran the race. Family and other friends who didn't participate can't get in this area, which is very good.

The biggest problem this marathon has is the starting corral.

Runners queue up on Robinson Avenue just west of the Oklahoma City National Memorial, but they didn't have the corrals go back far enough and people came in from the side streets like how we used to see the last many number of years in Houston. It all actually worked out pretty well despite it, but it looked kind of odd to begin with.

The organizers promote this as "A Run To Remember" in an effort to memorialize the 168 individuals who lost their life on or after April 19, 1995.

They had a 168-second moment of silence where the only thing that could be heard were the birds chirping. I had my doubts just before they did it and I was utterly impressed. And by the time that National Anthem was done being sung immediately after it, most runners were singing along as well. Very inspiring.

If you've been to the Oklahoma City National Memorial, you know that it is a very well thought out memorial to the victims that lost their lives. There is a center area where the building once stood. And in that spot, there is a very cool reflecting pool. (Cool in the sense of how they move the water through it to give a very sheer look.) In this area, you can walk around (and see the 168 chairs set up in permanent tribute to those that lost their lives) and also sit in a grass area on the other side of the pool.

It just was odd to see marathoners using it as a stretching and pre-race gathering area. I thought that it took something away from how respectful people should be about those who were forced to pay an awful sacrifice with their lives that day.

Many runners ran with bibs on the back of their shirts that said, "Running In Memory Of".

The absolute best one that I saw the entire day was as follows:

Running In Memory Of

4/19/95

9/11/01

4/16/07

Bricktown Saturday Evening

After filing my column with the Conroe Courier this evening (and after Waverly got a bit of a nap), we went back to downtown Oklahoma City in the Bricktown area.

We went to Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill for dinner. (I knew it would be a little pricey, but not outrageous. Just given that it is in a downtown entertainment district; however, it is a one-time thing.) We thought that the wait was going to be an hour and a half to two hours, but it only ended up being about 35-45 minutes.

The food surprisingly was excellent. I didn't have a runner's meal and I'm quite sure that somewhere at about mile 4 I'll get a reminder of what I had last night. :)

The baseball stadium for their AAA minor league baseball team (the Oklahoma Redhawks) is the AT&T Bricktown Ballpark and it is absolutely gorgeous. Outside they have full body statues of Hall of Famers Johnny Bench and Mickey Mantle as well as head statues of the Waner Brothers (former Pittsburgh Pirates who were on the '27 World Series team), Carl Hubbell, Bobby Murcer and Allie Reynolds. Cool stuff if you're a baseball fan!

Tomorrow will be interesting. Everything about this Marathon here in OKC that I've seen is absolutely first-class.

Fort Worth Zoo Run Run 10K Race Report

It is time once again for those crazy feats that I pull off - and have a little fun with!

Earlier this morning, Waverly and I left Spring at a little after 2 a.m. to drive to Fort Worth so that I could participate in the Fort Worth Zoo Run Run 10K, which started at 7 a.m. (Yes, I'm still missing a Resurrection Run 5K report and a Vancouver Sun Run 10K report. More on that in a minute.)

An excellent event with a pretty good course, with a couple of short hills in miles 2 and 5, that actually does run through the Zoo in the first mile! Pretty interesting. No wild animals loose though.

How did I do? Well, I'm not back where I want to be, but I'm on my way getting there.

It isn't the time that I would have hoped for (which was maybe to get back under 1:02), but it was 1:03:16.28, according to my watch. (Official chip was 1:03:14.5.) And it was an improvement from two weeks ago at the Vancouver Sun Run 10K, where I went 1:03:44. But maybe it isn't because of the two bridges there. Who knows? And to some, who cares?!

Most of the water stops were just beyond the mile markers, which I like. The course was marked and managed pretty well despite their being a lot of traffic in the area because the Zoo is also close to Texas Christian University. Here are the splits:

Mile 1 -- 9:53.63
Mile 2 -- 10:24.45 (20:18.08)
Mile 3 -- 10:08.63 (30:26.71)
Mile 4 -- 10:05.75 (40:32.46)
Mile 5 -- 10:33.52 (51:05.98)
Mile 6 -- 10:11.90 (1:01:18.88)
Last .2 -- 1:58.40

Overall -- 1:03:16.28

During mile 1, there was the first mile marker and I hit my watch and saw, "9:08.81". I thought to myself, "That was pretty easy for that time." No sooner had I thought that, there was another marker for the mile 1 marker to the 10K! So my first mile was really 9:53.63.

Other than not making decent time on the short uphills, my 10K pace right now is really about a 1:02 and change (which I know will come by getting the miles in.)

In mile 6, I passed a couple of runners, who were fading more than me. One was a cute blonde, who on the waistband of the back of her shorts (yes .. it was on the outside!) it read, "Just Do It!" So I did my best to. :)

We traveled north after that, got breakfast in Gainesville (where time is a bit slower there) and made our way into Oklahoma City this afternoon.

I'm running the Oklahoma City Memorial Half Marathon. I thought for just a little bit about doing the marathon, but I decided not to.

We got to meet Bill Rodgers and Dick Beardsley (again for me on both and the first time for Waverly.) I told Dick that I met him at the ING New York City Marathon and he told me then about finishing second in Houston two years in a row. He said he remembered, but I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't. I spoke a little bit to Bill about his run in Alpharetta, Georgia last month where he ran a 7:46/per mile pace at age 60 in a good, tough half marathon.

We also saw former Olympic gymnast Shannon Miller and 1984 U.S. Olympic women's gold medal winner in the marathon, Joan Benoit Samuelson.

Both Bill and Dick signed posters for Waverly! Pretty cool!

I visited at length with Jan Nierling from the Chevron Houston Marathon, who was manning their booth at the Expo. I'm looking forward to providing her once again this year information for the event's media guide.

Tomorrow's half marathon will be my 13th state!

And the Vancouver Sun Run 10K race report? Well, it will appear in the May edition of The Woodlands Running Club's new newsletter, "Deer Tracks." Editor Bill Dwyer tells me that we're going to have an edition of 15-20 pages this month!

HARRA's Footprints

I've really enjoyed this past year being given the responsibility of putting together "Footprints" for the Houston Area Road Runners Association.

There's one more issue to go to complete the year and that's the July/August issue.

I'm very proud of being able to achieve one of the initial goals that I had and that was to increase the club's partcipation in Footprints. Each issue, we've had 10 or more clubs that have submitted a report!

Without fail, before, you'd always see reports from the Houston Striders, the Bayou City Road Runners, Houston Masters Sports Association, Bay Area Running Club, Tornados Running Club and sometimes the Al Lawrence Running Club. One of my accomplishments, I believe, is that I've been able to faciliate the following:

+ Consistent participation from Al Lawrence Running Club (thanks to Melissa Henderson and Jennifer Fowlkes)
+ Addition of the Clear Lake Fitness Club (through Susan Bell)
+ Addition of the Pearland Area Runners Club (through Cassie Dimmick and now John Mohr)
+ Addition of the Brazosport Area Road Runners Association (as a result of Edwin Quarles being the secretary)
+ Addition of Finish Line Sports (working with Andy Stewart)
+ Addition of The Woodlands Running Club (directing that effort myself with the Club's approval)
+ Occasional reports from Team In Training, Team PTI and the Galloway Group

Each month, we've had an overview column, "President's Lap," from Anna Sumrall Helm and one of the crown jewels, I think, is the addition of "Running With Dr. Bob" by HARRA's Medical Director Bob Hoekman, M.D.

We've had articles written by Edwin, Jessica Alexander and Doug Spence.

I just signed off on the May/June issue today and I'm really, really excited about it. I think there's a lot of good information in it and quite honestly, there are things that I had to cut out.

I could use four (4) more pages - very easily! If I just had a way to fund it. :)

HARRA Membership Renewal

Our membership director, Erin Foley, has had the new registration setup online for a few days now.

So why delay the obvious? I'm in again for '07-'08 (and Waverly too!)

What's nice is that The Woodlands Running Club amended its membership year to coincide with HARRA's.

Tuesday, Apr. 24 Track Workout

It must have been the new Timex watch that I bought yesterday!

The one that I bought before I did the 2005 hp Houston Marathon finally broke off at the wrist a few weeks ago. It is the simple Timex Ironman 50-lap model. Nothing fancy. If I start to run faster, maybe I'll upgrade it.

I did a total of four (4) miles this evening. Nothing too spectacular. (Well, technically 4.5 miles.)

Waverly and I walked a lap around the track to get warmed up and then we were going to see if she could do two (2) miles. (Outside of her 10:09 that she did a year or two ago during her former school's mile run, it might be one of her fastest single miles.) The plan was to keep it easy, but here are the splits that she came through with:

2:42.21, 2:52.97, 2:58.13, 2:58.09 -- 11:31.40

We added one more lap - half walk and half jog/run - to give her 1.5 miles total. She did excellent, but her knees were bothering a little bit too.

Then, the Luke's Locker Beat program participants were doing just four (4) 400-meter dashes in preparation for their target race on Saturday in the Rise and Shine 5K. So I felt obliged to join them. Much to my surprise lined up to the left of me in the bright orange running shirt (it looks like a t-shirt, but he tells me it isn't) was none other than TWRC "Deer Tracks" editor, RRCA-certified coach and all-around good guy Bill Dwyer.

I had asked him earlier if he was going to wear his chip on Saturday. He said he was. Then I asked him if he was going to leave his time out of the results of the May edition of "Deer Tracks" (like he did his AT&T Austin Half Marathon time) and he responded that it was the "editor's privilege."

No sooner than Rick Cook set us all off for the first 400, I got a taste of the Bill Dwyer of old. (And I'm not saying anything about him being 50 either!) In the first 100 meters, I saw orange off to the left of me and getting to the 200-meter mark, he was still there. I'm thinking to myself, "Darn, he really is going to be ready for the CB&I Triathlon in two weeks." Even after 300 meters, he wasn't that far off. I actually held him off, but he pushed me to the fastest 400 meters that this Clydesdale has ever done on the track -- 1:49.50!

I remember talking to John Yoder after I did my first 400 during last year's LP Run and he was really surprised when I went through the first one at 1:59. (So was I. And I quickly faded after that.)

After about a three and a half minute recovery, we went out on the next one (and there was no Bill Dwyer.) He said that the first one was still part of his warmup! (I'm still laughing about that answer.) I went through the second one at 1:53.72 and I really had to push it in between the 200 and 300 meter marks.

Then Bill was back for my third one (and his second one.) As we started, Bill took the lead after about 75 meters and opened up a little lead through 200 meters. I saw him look at his watch and I glanced at mine, "52 seconds." I knew that I wouldn't be able to repeat that, but the question was whether or not he was. This lap was all about not letting Bill beat me.

I tried not to get too close because I didn't want him to hear how hard I was breathing, but I didn't want him to open up an advantage to where I couldn't catch him either. At about that time, I could hear Kim Hager cheering for me to catch him. (I told Waverly on the drive home that I knew somebody was hollering for me to catch him, but that I knew that it couldn't have been her -- the Super Secret Spy Girl.)

I thought about starting to make a move right before the 300-meter mark, but I thought it was too soon. I waited until we made it past the mark and then I went by him. (I think he was actually relieved for me to get by him, but we were both surprised by Ronald Longtin - a multi-time Luke's Locker Beat program participant and a really nice older gentleman. He's a little bit older to me though than he is to Bill.) I came through the third 400 in 1:54.48. (I almost thought that I was going to puke after I stopped.)

I did the last one in 2:03.09 (and really wanted to throw in the towel at the 300-meter mark on this one) and then added two more miles (untimed) on the track before heading home.

I also did a bit more reading about nutrition and fueling. I found a formula that talked about how many calories somebody at my weight would need on a daily basis and what my resting metabolic rate was. (I thought the first number was way high.) Regardless, I continue to try and be diligent on watching what I'm eating and it seems to be paying off a little bit. When I lose a little, I lose it in my seat first (and when I put a pair of Dockers for her choir concert this afternoon they fit a bit better there.)

Wait, this report just in, they did measure the ground rumbling at Knox Junior High ... and it was me, but in a good way, of course!

Monday, Apr. 23 Miscellaneous

Not much going on today as I begin to plan out my weekend.

Regardless, it will probably involve a road trip that may involve a couple of races.

I've got a couple of possible combinations that I'm working on. Most of them may involve doing the Half Marathon in Oklahoma City, which is a 6:30 a.m. start on Sunday. I could slog my way through the marathon to get state #10 and join the 50 States Marathon Club, but I'm not sure I want to do that - and be miserable heading into the week.

I finished up a race report this evening on the Vancouver Sun Run 10K for Bill Dwyer for The Woodlands Running Club's newsletter, "Deer Tracks".

I've already begun working on my Conroe Courier column for two weeks out and I have to reach out to the Race Director tomorrow of the CB&I Triathlon in The Woodlands tomorrow as that will be the focus of this Sunday's column. (And since it is likely that I'll be travelling Friday night and Saturday afternoon, I'll have to turn it in early for once.)

My activity level was OK. Nothing major. Waverly had to take some books back to the Harris County library on Cypresswood this evening so we went and brisk walked three (3) loops of the south side of Meyer Park, which has a 1.27-mile trail. (For the boo birds out there and yes, you do exist, Waverly had run 1.5 miles at school earlier in the day.)

Doing this really increased my appreciation for trained racewalkers. I saw a young man this summer racewalk a mile in just under seven (7) minutes at one of the RunSport track meets at Rice. It was absolutely incredible. Granted there are legal techniques that are employed that allow them to take every advantage they can, but brisk walking as fast as you can takes a surprising amount of effort.

We tried to hit a 14-minute mile in the last loop and it was hard -- and we came up short with a 14:10 effort. It was 3.81 miles in 57:04. I needled Waverly a little bit that we went faster than what she had run earlier in the day. :)

When we got home, I wanted to get in a couple of 4.1-mile loops on the bike before she was ready to go to bed this evening. However, I only managed one. I think I need to get a bike that is better suited for me. I feel like it is too short for my legs. When I'm on the stationery bike in the gym, I can adjust the seat to where my legs are almost straight out on the down pedal and not feeling like it is up in my chest otherwise. I have the seat up as high as it can go and I just never really feel comfortable, especially when I'm trying to push things a little bit.

I really tried watching what I ate today and the number of calories only added up to 1,630. (And some of the things I've been reading this evening seems like it is really low. I just found something that I can put to use - A Male Athlete's Guide to Proper Fueling, by Leslie Bonci, M.P.H., R.D. with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.) Hmmm ... I'll report more on this later.

Around The World 5K Race Report

It was off to Aggieland (College Station, TX) for Sunday afternoon's Around The World 5K that started in front of the G. Rollie White Coliseum, which was playing host to a Fish Camp Counselors Meeting. (Which it was explained to me why everybody was dressed up in some type of costume. They "dress up" for meetings. Another interesting tradition I suppose!)

This was a simple, no-frills event that was put on by the International Student Association. The cost was $12 on race day, but since I (and they) didn't have change for a $20 to dole out $1 bills the cost went to $10. (I made it up back to the University in the form of $3 parking.)

I went to this, more than anything, to get out of the house a little bit.

Waverly and I left Spring at approximately 2:40 p.m. and we arrived, after filling up for gas near Montgomery, at about 4:15 to 4:20 p.m. (That is when I remember walking through the garage adjacent to the G. Rollie White Coliseum.)

I registered and received a T-shirt and a printed bib number (#104 ... I was #114 in the Yuri's Night 5K the day before) that was reminiscent of the ones provided at Stu's Country Mile in Centerville on the 4th of July.

For you Aggies in the audience, I walked Waverly around the north end zone of Kyle Field and informed her of the traditions and background regarding Reveille and the 12th Man while we waited for the race to begin.

This race was going to feature trophies for the first, second and third place male and female finishers in addition to a number of door prizes. (And I won neither!)

Corps of Cadets were used to monitor intersections that were crossed along George Bush Drive, Texas Avenue and University Avenue until you got on the inside of campus.

How did I run? Not real well, but I probably shouldn't have expected to for a number of reasons.

1.) I did an hour on the elliptical machine late in the morning at Bally's in The Woodlands (5.10 miles). I was going to do a second hour; however, I was forced to deal with some gas (probably from the greasy, yet good pizza the night before at Steel City Pizzeria in The Woodlands.) So I logged another 6 minutes on the elliptical machine and 15 minutes on the stationery bike before calling it a day there.

2.) My weight. I saw pictures from the Resurrection Run 5K and the one that Joe Carey took at Yuri's Night 5K for his blog - and I don't like the looks of either of them.

The bottom line is that I've got to get serious about getting it back into line. More activity and less intake! (The large breakfasts at the Residence Inn are getting me in Vancouver.)

I covered the course, which measured to be 3.08 miles using the USATF tool, in a very unflattering 31:05.95. There was a water stop along Texas Ave. and I think it was more than halfway, but not by much. It took me 15:21.35 to get there and 15:44.60 to get back. I stopped to walk just about as much as Waverly did on Saturday, unfortunately for the both of us.

The temperature was 80 degrees, but actually that didn't bother me that much. I think I just tried to push it faster than what I was ready. (Even though I wasn't running hard yesterday, I felt like I could have gone faster than I did today.)

All in all, it was fun. And the scenery was well ... what can I say. (I don't think I have to say much more!)

Therefore, on Sunday, April 22nd, I got in an hour and 20 minutes of crosstraining, 30 minutes of running and put in the following to my body (other than water early in the day and Diet Coke later):

280 calories -- Two (2) Nutri Grain bars
360 calories -- Two (2) Chicken patties for lunch
664 calories -- Philly Chick Wrap at Jason's Deli (also had two small pieces of pineapple and 3-4 strawberries)
60 calories -- 8 ounces of Powerade before the race
100 calories -- 2 cups of Apple Sauce

So somewhere around 1,600 calories for the day. I'm going to have to try and keep up with this on a more diligent basis as well as increasing my output on a daily basis too.

Virginia Tech Victim: Jeremy Herbstritt, Marathoner

Imagine reaching the pinnacle of your sport and completing the dream only to learn later that day a senseless tragedy would wipe the joy from the accomplishment.

That's what happened on Monday to Jennifer Herbstritt, 25, of Bellefonte, Pennsylvania.

Early last fall, Herbstritt qualified for Monday's 111th Boston Marathon by completing the downhill Steamtown Marathon course in a time of 3:36:16.

This came less than five months after she narrowly missed qualifying in last year's inaugural Pocono Mountains Run for the Red Marathon, held on May 7. She ran the course in that race in 3:42:21 while her older brother, Jeremy, then 26, did the distance in 4:04:33.

The year before in October '05, the two of them ran the Steamtown Marathon in Allentown in which Jeremy outlegged his sister, finishing in 3:48:42. Her debut marathon that day was recorded in 4:04:06.

But her joy of finishing the Boston Marathon on Monday was washed away as she and her family learned upon driving back to Bellefonte - near Penn State University where Jeremy had earned two undergraduate degrees in 2003 and 2006 - that he had been murdered during Seung-Hui Cho's reign of terror on the Virginia Tech campus.

The Centre Daily Times, published in State College, Pennsylvania (where Penn State is located), quoted Tussey Mountainback 50 Mile Relay and Ultramarathon race director Mike Casper as saying that Jeremy Herbstritt had led relay teams in the 2003, 2004 and 2005 events.

In the first year, 2003, Jeremy had been joined by three of his family members as they finished fifth in the Mega division (7-8 runners) of the 50-Mile relay in 6:40:44. The following two years, they posted efforts of 6:40:44 and 6:58:29, respectively, in 2004 and 2005 to finish second and sixth in their Mixed categories.

(Why did I feel compelled to post the information above? When in Vancouver this week, I had noticed that Herbstritt was the only Pennsylvanian that had been murdered and that he was from a small town close to where I was initially raised and had graduated with two degrees from Penn State. I didn't make the connection until this evening when I was going through e-mails and saw a post to an Ultra Running list serv that I belong to by the race director of the Pocono Mountain Marathon referenced above. When I checked for last year's results - its inaugural running, that is when I stumbled upon Herbstritt's name.)

Yuri's Night 5K Race Report

For the regulars, yes, I'm behind in posting the Resurrection Run 5K and Vancouver Sun Run 10K race reports; however, I'll get to them sometime. :)

When we arrived at Challenger 7 Memorial Park in Webster, I thought that the race might be the first in history to be called on the account of fog. Everybody approaching the park early was forced to slow to 25- or 30-mph to keep from missing the entrance. HMSA's Clark Courtright indicated that he and others even missed the sign off of NASA Road 1 to turn off to the park because of the fog.

Waverly checked with Sarah to see if she needed any help once we got there and I went over to see where I could help On The Run's Jay Lee. No sooner we were there we realized that Edwin Quarles had made the trip over from Angleton. And not before too long, the blogger contingent was increased with the presence of Joltin' Joe Carey and Holden Choi, who drove further than me from The Woodlands.

Mike Mendeck's son, Gavin, was there to help Sarah setup the course and before the race, I also saw and had the chance to speak with both Paul Cooley, also from HMSA, and Bruce Mansur and his wife, Gloria. (It is the great community of runners - who are also great people - that keeps me energized to do the things that I choose to do.)

Waverly and I did about a half mile warm-up before the race. While the fog had burned up and the sun was out, but not yet completely hot, I was wondering how much of the humidity and impending heat would come into play.

I was going to be pacing Waverly and not running my own race so my goal was to try to keep her going out as even as possible. Unfortunately, without trying, I think I pushed the pace a little bit as she struggled a little right after we got off of the pavement on to the grass.

She hasn't raced in awhile -and- she did four miles on the bike last night too.

We have this agreement that "what happens on the course stays on the course." So, that means I'll keep it from here too, but I pushed some and some times she was OK with it and other times not. (And my "push" was simply to keep moving instead of stopping to walk.)

Waverly finished in 37:50, which was good enough for third in her age group (under-19)! (The mile markers didn't get set out, but that was actually good as I was trying to keep her mind off of how far it was today.) Plus Sarah indicated that since the course isn't certified, she thinks that it might actually be 3.15 miles instead of 3.1.

It was a nice effort for Waverly, for not having raced in awhile!

Edwin said he was right at 22-even. Joe was under 23 minutes and Holden, who is coming back off from an extended layoff and reduced training schedule, was right at 27 minutes.

A couple of young runners went 1-2 (with Anthony Aguinaga winning in 18:05 and Brian Alvarado of Al Lawrence Running Club behind by just a second) with his father, Jorge, in third. Raymond Cruz of the On The Run Racing Team was fourth.

She had an excellent turnout with somewhere around 140 participants. (She was pleasantly surprised as more than a week ago, it was somewhere under 60!) The last two years, she has had 99 and 83 finishers in the 5K in 2005 and 2006, respectively.

We talked after everybody had gone and I noted that she seems to have a couple of core group of constituencies that attend this event. It is small (and some people like to not have a big crowd) and it is supported by a lot of people who are from the local area. Plus there are those who work at NASA. The blogger turnout increased from one (Jen Kim) last year to five of us - counting Waverly.

And, interestingly enough, the Mothers for Clean Air Earth Day 5K only had 220 finishers in Bellaire today in the face of this being the same weekend as the MS150.

A Little Friendly Publicity

Those people who know me real well know how much enjoyment I get out of seeing people recognized for the great things that they accomplished.

I've gotten comments from The Courier's publisher, Jim Fredricks, that he was glad to see many of the responses that I've received over the weekly running column on Sundays in his paper and that I was getting some attention. I told him once, via e-mail, that I could honestly care less if I got recognized one way or the other.

I mean, seriously, I've had my 15 minutes of fame and then some. And there's a lot of times where I've contributed to something that I've explicitly said for my name not to be attached to it - even when I know something will turn out well.

While pouring through the results of Texans at Monday's 111th annual Boston Marathon, I noticed that one runner, Ann Affolter, 29, of Dallas, was the only Texan of the 711 finishers who improved their 5K split each of the eight 5Ks throughout the race. She was also one of only 41 Texans who had a negative split.

During my days of covering high school athletics here in Houston and across the state of Texas from the mid-1980s to 2001, one of the many relationships that I developed was with Dallas Morning News running columnist Debbie Fetterman when she worked for the now-defunct Houston Post.

I dropped Debbie a note about Ann's achievement. Click here to see what came of it. :)

Good To Be Home

After two weeks away, gone for work in Vancouver, British Columbia, it is always good to be home! (It didn't use to be, but I'd prefer not to go into those details.)

The fatigue and malaise of work and being, well, a bit lonely when I'm gone just really doesn't put me in a mood to do the things that I need to exercise-wise sometimes when I'm away. And this last weekend, I had plans to go down to Bainbridge Island, Washington to run a half marathon on Saturday before doing the Vancouver Sun Run 10K on Sunday. However, they got blown out of the water with some issues at work that required us to work on Saturday.

So this evening, I made it to the gym to get an hour in on the elliptical machine at Bally's in The Woodlands. Then after going to get something to eat with Waverly, we both did 4.1 miles on our bicycles. (I was going to go another loop or two, but some folks pulled in our street that would have seen Waverly going into the house by herself so I went in.)

The two of played a game of darts in the garage before she retired for the evening. (I think it might have been the first time that we've ever played before. I beat her ... 504-322. Like anything else, she'll get better.)

We're both heading down to Webster in the morning to help Sarah Graybeal with her Yuri's Night 5K event. It is the third year for the event and I was able to help Sarah last year. (It is where I got to meet her boyfriend, Jose, for the first time.)

And the two of us will run it together.

She ran at school on Monday and then at the track on Tuesday.

Monday was a mile and a half - 2.51.87, 3.13.64, 3.29.39, 3.38.97, 3.39.85, 3.00.07.

Tuesday, she had her Mom take her to the track where the Luke's Locker Beat program in The Woodlands does one of their group weekly workouts. The idea was for her to go and run two (2) miles and hang out with Bill Dwyer, Rick Cook and Kim Hager. All three of these individuals would do anything for you without thinking about "what's in it for me?"

So when I called back to Houston I found out that she went early and did the two miles by herself because she wanted to watch something on TV that night. (I suspect American Idol, but I don't know for sure.) Here was the report I got via e-mail, as I was working and she went to bed early for TAKS testing last week:

"Tonight i did it in a total of 23.36 for 2 miles. here are my splits.

1=2.37.93
2=2.42.05
3=3.00.24
4=3.12.44
5=5.55.24
6=3.00.83
7=3.08.03

Number 5 is equal to two laps around. on my watch my one mile was 11:32.

I love you

Waverly"

A note like that certainly made the evening go better! ;)

I had a good report from Bill when he sent me an e-mail and said, "Waverly looked good last night at the track. I don’t know how far she ran as she was already running when I got there."

So, we'll see how tomorrow morning goes - and have some fun helping a good friend of ours!

Updating Stats

I think one of the things that made things fun was updating my race statistics after each race.

I realized this evening - here in Vancouver - that I hadn't updated my page since the end of January. And even then, I hadn't plugged in the times to those races. Wow!

+ Sunday's Vancouver Sun Run 10K will be 212th race and my 11th race of 2007.

+ The last two years, I had 11 events in by the end of February and in 2004, by the end of March.

+ I've run more race miles (126.2) in 2007 than I did in 19 events (84.1 miles) the entire year of 2003.

+ Other than being injured last May, the two races that I did last month (in March) were the fewest that I had done since December 2003.

+ I've run seven (7) races in a single month six (6) different times.

+ I've run a race in 44 consecutive months. (I can hear Rick and Bill just chortling right now!)

+ I've run an event in 21 different states and one (1) Canadian province.

+ I've run 32 half marathons in 12 different states and a Canadian province.

+ I've run 14 marathons in 9 different states.

+ This is the farthest I've gone into a year without running a race on back-to-back days.

I'm already looking at the calendar for the next two weekends. The possibilities are as follows:

Saturday, April 21 - Yuri's Night 5K
Sunday, April 22 - Around the World 5K Run, College Station, 5 p.m.
Saturday, April 28 - Running for the Arts 5K, Houston
Sunday, April 29 - Germanfest 15K, Muenster (Oklahoma City Marathon)

And beyond that ....

Sunday, May 6 - Vancouver International Marathon
Saturday, May 12 - YMCA Trail Run, Conroe
Saturday, May 19 - David's Dream Run, The Woodlands (Fargo, North Dakota Marathon)
Saturday, May 26 - Run The Woodlands 5K
Sunday, June 3 - Sandcastle City Classic 10K, White Rock, BC
Saturday, June 9 - Run The Woodlands 5K (Seven Hills RC vs. The Woodlands RC)
Sunday, June 17 - Sugar Creek Mile, Sugar Land
Saturday, October 13 - Huntsville Half Marathon
Sunday, October 14 - United Space Alliance 10 Miler, Houston/Clear Lake

One of the best local race schedules? -- http://www.7hills.us/schedule.htm

Montgomery County Triples

Spring '07 Montgomery County Triple

5/12 - YMCA Trail Run, Conroe
5/19 - David Dream's Run, The Woodlands
5/26 - Run The Woodlands 5K, The Woodlands

Fall '07 Montgomery County Triple

11/22 - Run Thru The Woods 5M, The Woodlands
11/23 - City of Conroe Turkey Trot 5K, Conroe
11/24 - Run The Woodlands 5K, The Woodlands

Hey, You Missed Me!

Karen Gram's story today in the Vancouver Sun indicated that the Sun Run 10K has established new records as the number of registrants has reached 51,117 runners! Wow!

But what was funny is that the next to last paragraph says that "we've got runners from Switzerland, Germany, Brazil and Abbotsford. They are coming from the Cayman Islands and Humble, Texas, from Yamanashi, Japan and Yarrow, B.C."

Wait, Humble, Texas?

(I know that the face of the 50 States Marathon Club, Steve Boone, doesn't run much, if anything, under a marathon so I knew that it can't be him!)

Nonetheless, Spring, Texas will be accounted for too!

Tuesday, Apr. 10 Evening Run

6.73 miles / 1:13:45 / 10:57 per mile
Vancouver, British Columbia -- Route

Started the run at about 11:40 p.m. Nice and easy run. Wasn't too much worried about time. Just needed to get out to get back to being consistent about logging miles. Nice long 10-block incline after about two miles. Came back across the Burrard Bridge. Ran (slowly) all the way across it. Last summer in the Scotiabank Vancouver Half Marathon, I walked most of it and it isn't much of a bridge at all. I'll see this bridge again on Sunday.

However, the weather this evening - in the mid 40s, but not cool enough to wear gloves - was more to my liking tonight.

The biggest thought that I had on the run tonight was that I was fortunate enough to be able to run pretty much injury free right now, despite the inconsistency. But nothing is going to help better than dropping weight and increasing the mileage safely. I've been around enough to know better.

Friday, Apr. 6 Workout

Bally's, The Woodlands
60 minutes - elliptical machine; 5.11 miles, level 16 random
20 minutes - stationery bike; random, level 6

Miscellaneous
Reportedly Astros fans are trying to find out if a team has ever gone 0-4 to start and won the World Series. Something tells me that they aren't going to do it. Nor do I think that they'll repeat the Orioles' 0-21 start either from 1988.

They hire Billy Gillespie at Kentucky and there's a story on the Louisville newspaper's web site about his past drunk driving arrests. Goes to show that as you move higher up the food chain, the more darts you get thrown at you.

Dorothy and Toto? No Trip To Kansas

Why did I run the Mercer Island Half Marathon the weekend before last?

Probably because I was going to run either the Knoxville Marathon last weekend or the Eisenhower Marathon in Abilene, Kansas tomorrow to get state #10. However, the race day lows for much of the race time was going to be in the low 20's (with a wind chill of in the teens.) Plus it was supposed to be snowing there today!

Thanks, but I'll pass. Probably will head down to the Resurrection Run 5K tomorrow and then get a trail half marathon next Saturday in Washington state, close to where Dr. Bob Hoekman, HARRA's Medical Director, has a winter home and then the Vancouver Sun Run 10K on Sunday.

None of that, though, is as exciting as Sarah's Half Ironman finish from last weekend!

In other news, well it isn't really "news", I have acquired some more old running magazines.

Awhile back, I was able to obtain about 13 years worth of Runner's World, Running Times, Inside Texas Running and Runner Triathlete News from Seven Hills Running Club president and Huntsville Half Marathon RD Ken Johnson.

Today, I met, in person, for the first time, Denton "Denny" Morse, who is on the Board of the Houston Marathon Committee.

Denny had sent Sarah an e-mail, through HARRA, stating a desire to give these magazines to somebody that was interested before he decided to recycle them.

I obtained Runner's World magazines from mid-1976 through to 1984, including one from 1975.

Runner's World had some competition from a New York City-based magazine called, "The Runner." There were copies of that magazine from January 1979 to July 1986.

And there was even four copies in 1980 and 1981 of a publication called, "Running," that was published out of Portland, Oregon. The July/August 1981 issue had an article, "Hanging Out With Lydiard" as well as an interesting article of how Don Kardong covered the 1981 Boston Marathon by calling - from his hotel room - close to 30 public pay phones along the course route!

Fascinating stuff!

Resurrection Run 5K Finishers Streaks

Entering Saturday's Resurrection Run 5K, the following individuals have appearance streaks at this event:

2000-2006 (7 years) -- 2 runners -- Roger Newcom, Don McCurdy

2001-2006 (6 years) -- 3 runners -- Amy Cupitt, Elliott Fink, Sean Cupitt

2002-2006 (5 years) -- 8 runners -- Duane Heckman, Jordan Bowen, Keefer Caid-Loos, Lynn Palmer, Margaret Montgomery, Scott Bowen, Terry Frank, Tom Chandler

2003-2006 (4 years) -- 7 runners -- Colleen Randall, James Brown, Larry Cullen, Louis Ciaccio, Mark Knox, Sarah Graybeal, Taylor Park

2004-2006 (3 years) -- 18 runners -- Angela Oltean, Bonnie Jo Barron, Chelsea Rake, Christopher Bittinger, Holly Rake, Irv Saltzman, Jeri Brown, John Phillips, Joshua Rake, Karen Lancer, Mariah Caid-Loos, Marissa Caid-Loos, Missy Maxwell, Pete Rake, Raymond Cruz, Rosie Schmandt, Samantha Cayton, Samantha Groff

The event existed four years before this, from 1996-1999. Results were not available online.

Of course, with many events, it isn't possible to do something like this because we only get a listing of the top three in a specific age group and that's it.

So what is somebody like me to do anymore? Cut-and-paste, save and store them for later use and analysis.

Tuesday, Apr. 3 Workout / Miscellaneous

Bally's The Woodlands
I wasn't adequately fueled this afternoon before I went to the gym; therefore, my output wasn't what I was hoping for it to be going in.
45 minutes - elliptical machine; same level 16, no sticks
5 minutes - stationery bike; was starting to get borderline sick so it was time to go get something to eat.

Maybe if I had run instead, I would have been better off. Bally's has a particular treadmill that I like where I can run and read at the same time. They have two of them. When I got there, there was a gentleman walking on one and somebody had something draped over the handrail of the other one. Well, nobody ever came.

So ... at about 6:30 p.m., I left the house and went out to the weekly workout of the Luke's Locker Beat program in The Woodlands that Kim Hager, Bill Dwyer and Rick Cook coach. I've got a standing invite when I'm in town. They had two groups - one that was doing three (3) 1600's and another that was doing something less. I figured that I would choose the harder workout. (Yes, I'm stubborn.)

I had already done a warmup mile. I did the first 1600 in 9:47 (2:19, 2:30, 2:30, 2:28), took a self-imposed minute break and tried to start the second one. I did the first lap in 2:28 and realized that it wasn't going to be my night. After shooting the breeze a little bit, I did another 1,600 meters at about 85% and did it in 10:20. Nothing sterling - 2:27, 2:38, 2:37 and 2:37.

But it was three miles in addition to what I had already done earlier in the afternoon and I'm not going to get better at anything - whether it be speed, endurance or distance if I don't work more often than what I have been.

HARRA Tour de Bayou
I was going to head south for this (not to run even) this afternoon at 6 p.m. at Spotts Park; however, I remembered that Waverly was coming home on the activity bus after school (which drops her off away from the house) and I'm more concerned about making sure she makes it here safely then leaving to attend an event.

While we live in a decent subdivision, I have two registered sex offenders that live on our street. I certainly hope they don't make another mistake, and while I can't be everywhere as a Dad ... still why take chances?

Congratulations to ...
Juancarlos Vielma for his second place finish on Sunday at the Big-D Texas Marathon in Dallas.

Rick Cook for winning our 11-member NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament bracket by picking the Florida Gators to win it all. (Lisa Foronda must be doing cartwheels with two men's basketball championships and a football championship in the last year and a day.) Doug Spence, who made 55 correct selections, was second while Steve Maulden - a friend of Bill Dwyer's finished third. Edwin Quarles made a screaming comeback to finish 4th after starting out at the bottom. Erin Foley was sixth while Dwyer and Joe Carey were right behind me.

Miscellaneous
We'll preview the Resurrection Run 5K in Nassau Bay this Saturday on the RunHouston Chronicle blog tomorrow. Where am I going to be on Saturday? Not completely sure. I'll run somewhere, but I may be travelling to do so - and no, I won't be going to New Orleans for the Crescent City Classic 10K.

MLB Observations
1.) We need to see more complete games (although we won't) like we did with Ben Sheets of the Milwaukee Brewers going the distance against the Dodgers on Monday.
2.) Wouldn't it be nice to have former Astro (and current Boston Red Sox) Julio Lugo leading off your lineup at shortstop instead of the anemic hitting, yet defensively strong Adam Everett? (And I did notice that both went 1-for-4 on Monday.)
3.) Best pitching performance, aside from Sheets? Had to belong to Seattle's Felix Hernandez. Eight innings, three hits and 12 strikeouts. He turns 21 on Sunday.
4.) It is going to be fun to see how Frank Thomas does with the Blue Jays and Mike Piazza, his replacement at DH, does with the Oakland A's. Thomas went 1-for-4 while Piazza was 0-for-4.

Races with HARRA Discounts

Events Providing a HARRA Discount (as of 3/30/07)
(These events have 2007 event information posted)

This is a list of upcoming races that provide HARRA members with race discounts. If you're a current HARRA member and take advantage of the discount with these races or not, please thank them for offering it.

Sat., Apr 7 - Easter Bun Run 5K, $2
Wed., Apr 11 - 40th annual LP Run, $1
Sat., Apr 14 - Dulles Dash 5K, $2

Sat., May 5 - 10th annual Sprint for Life 5K, $2
Sat., May 26 - Astros Race For The Pennant, $1

Wed., Jul 4 - Run Wild 5K, $3
Wed., Jul 4 - First Colony Freedom 5K, $2

Mon., Sep 3 - Fired Up 5K, $2
Sat., Sep 29 - R.O.C. Fun Run 10K/5K, $1

Sun., Oct 14 - United Space Alliance 10 Miler, $2

Sun., Dec 9 - 20th annual Sugar Land Lakes of Williams Ranch 30K, $3

Many other races which normally offer HARRA members a discount do not have their registration information in place yet.

As soon as I'm aware of it, I'll be more than happy to update this list as I, obviously, would love to see it grow.

And, please, if I've missed somebody, let me know and I'll do my best to get it updated as soon as possible.

Monday, Apr. 2 Workout / Miscellaneous

Bally's The Woodlands
64 minutes - treadmill; upped it .1 mph every 5 minutes until 59 minutes (I know ... it doesn't add up, does it?) and then I went another 5 minutes upping it .1 mph every minute.
18 minutes - stationery bike before calves started to cramp.

Congratulations to ...
Sarah Graybeal for completing her first Half Ironman at the Lone Star Tri Festival on Sunday in Galveston!

Bill Dwyer for becoming a grandfather this evening - on Opening Day causing Bill to break a 13-year attendance streak at first Astros home game of each season.

Speaking of Opening Day ...
Is it going to be a long year for the Astros - again? They waste an excellent effort by Roy Oswalt as Brad Lidge gives out a two-out home run to let the Pirates tie the game before Dan Qualls gives up a two-run shot to Jason Bay for the win.