Sunday Dec 31 |
 | Trail/Road Run 28:56 [3]4.5 mi (6:26 / mi) | |
| weight:151lbs |
| Slow end of year jog, me and my FR, included the meadows loop (1.37 miles) and the a couple loops around the Smith fields (.71 miles each), one in 5:18 to make the heart pump a little faster.
I'm wiped out from my D.C. work trip. Friday night, at 4:15 AM, I got woken by a fire alarm (in the room, right next to the bed, with a woman's voice incessantly repeating "a fire has been reported in the hotel, please evacuate ... ). I took my time getting out of bed and getting clothes on, expecting it to be a false alarm. But when I opened the door to the hallway, it was filled with acrid smelling smoke, enough to bother you when you breathed it in. I headed quickly, with lots of other stunned people in various states of undress, to the nearest stairwell and down nine flights to exit into the cold. Turns out the fire was two floors down on the 7th floor, and some of my colleagues who had their room there had to crawl to the exit to avoid the thick smoke. Apparently, some unidentified, probably drunk, philosopher lit a couch on fire with a cigarette in a lobby area, in spite of the hotel being smoke free. I finally was allowed to go back to my room at 8:00 AM. I took a freight elevator up after wending through the various waterfalls coming through the ceiling in the lobby area. Then back to work with four more hours of interviews starting at 9:00.
I drove back that night, arriving in Northampton at 2:30 AM Sat. morning. The trip included a detour driving around downtown Waterbury at 1:00 AM, looking for an open gas station, with the car running mostly on vapors. New Years resolution: fill the gas tank when the needle is still on the red empty line, instead of waiting until it drops out of sight. |
| |
| C • A "tobacco" cigarette? 4 |
Friday Dec 29 |
| machines (elliptical) 30:00 [3] | |
| |
| Again, after a day of interviewing. Better than doing nothing. This is my rest week before ramping up after the first. |
Thursday Dec 28 |
| machines (elliptical) 30:00 [3] | |
| |
| In D.C., at Marriot Wardman Park hotel exercise center, after a long day interviewing job candidates. |
Tuesday Dec 26 |
| Road Run 36:24 [4]5.0 mi (7:16 / mi) | |
| |
| The old CTC race course in Amherst/Hadley. Effort was moderately hard, and I was a bit under my goal of 7:20 per mile, though fading a bit towards the end. Flat course and day off helped. Also, back a lot better, so only had my foot problem to deal with. And a stomach cramp the last couple miles, due to an ill-advised doughnut.
Good news (for a change) on the FR front. FR clocked this certified course at 5.02. And I think where I start and finish makes it slightly longer than the original race course (whose markings on the road are now long gone), suggesting FR may have been spot on. The time recorded above is the time at 5 miles, not 5.02. |
| |
| C • My spies tell me that you were... 4 |
| Road Run 7:08 [3]0.86 mi (8:17 / mi) | |
| |
| Warm-up. |
Sunday Dec 24 |
| Trail Run 54:44 [3]5.22 mi (10:29 / mi) | |
| |
| Mt Tom loop, 3 1/2 minutes slower than last Aug when I was in 20 minute 5k shape: I've got a lot of work to do. Just didn't have anything on the hills, partly due to my sore left quad which has been acting up again. I have about six chronic injuries that seem to just rotate in and out.
Forerunner strikes again, claiming the distance was 4.56 miles. I used to log this as 6 miles, which I knew was way too high since there's about 350 meters of climb and a couple of rock scrambles. But I never doubted it was over 5 miles!
Looking at the route blown up on Garmin training center (I don't yet know how to overlay it on a OCAD map), some doubts about FR accuracy crept in. It showed the starting point was about 500 feet north of the finishing point (for a loop!). It seems the errors creept in mostly the two times I stopped the watch for a minute or two (once to take a dump, once to admire the view and stretch a sore achilles at the top of Whiting Peak); so it may not have affected the calculation of distance. Checking runs with FR earlier this week, the distance between start and end points was much less: about 200 feet on my Frost out-and-back; about 150 feet on the Toby run. Might this have to do with the movement of the satelites over the course of the run?
Splits with FR distances; 12:54 (1.00), 9:13 (.82), 12:38 (.53), 7:24 (.79), 5:29 (.56), 7:02 (.86).
Addendum: sport tracks says this is 5.22. That sounds more accurate to me! |
Saturday Dec 23 |
| Trail/Road Run 46:00 [3]5.0 mi (9:12 / mi) | |
| |
| From home, inner loop of XC course, plus Smith track and fields. Very easy pace.
I spent some time testing the accuracy of the Forerunner, which continues to impress (though this test was all in the open). When I measured a lap on the track and the 100 meter run, it was accurate to within a foot or two. When I did the 100 again with switchbacks across all 8 lanes of the lap, it lost less than half of the extra distance; when I did switchbacks across just three lanes it lost about 3/4. As viewing it in map mode confirmed, it wasn't always getting data points close enough to the turnaround points. If you move slowly, it records moves of less than 5 feet, though the distance measurement fluctuates as much as 5-10 feet from noise, even when standing still, so the accuracy is probably dependable only up to 10 feet.
When I got home, I read in the manual that I was using the default for data recording which is "smart recording", and which is less accurate (records fewer data points) than the setting "every one second". Recording every second, it should have no trouble (at my pace) catching trail twists and turns greater than 5 feet, or 10 feet at the worst. Unless, that is, its accuracy diminishes substantially under tree cover. |
| |
| C • So when you have it so that it... 4 |
Friday Dec 22 |
| Trail Run 53:41 [3]6.03 mi (8:54 / mi) | |
| |
| With PG, the Sugar-Gunn loop, plus an extra half mile loop near the caves to keep the ramp going for Peter. A steady, moderate pace: no incentive to push the pace since I was sure Peter wouldn't let me get away, and so it would have been pain without gain. Though I did notice that every time I drifted 5-10 meters ahead Peter used the trick of asking some question, knowing that would draw us back together.
Down by the farm, Peter inexplicably stopped to slobber over a flock of wild turkeys. I commented that turkeys only interested me when they were on my plate. I guess I need an attitude adjustment if I'm to become AOWN.
Splits: 17:05 (1.77, power line), 8:54 (1.02), 4:39 (.5 extra loop), 7:02 (.85, bottom Gunn), 6:02 (.65, top Gunn), 6:06 (.8, turn off N. Mt), 3:44 (.44)
The distances were recorded by my new Forerunner. Peter was impressively accurate in his estimations, usually no more than a couple hundredths off, and sometimes spot on. I guess he's more of a "realist" about training, and I'm more of an "idealist". Makes me think of a box score I once saw for a baseball game (last column is the final score):
Realists 351 403 231 0
Idealists 000 000 000 1 |
| |
| C • So I assume the proper reading... 3 |
Thursday Dec 21 |
| grass 22:48 [3]2.7 mi (8:26 / mi) | |
| |
| 3 laps around UMass field. I'm saving myself for a run tomorrow with PG.
Forerunner says each lap is .89, which is below the lower bound of my earlier guestimate of .9-.95. Back in the toilet.
(Well, I shouldn't be surprised: the turf is thick, soft, and uneven.) |
| |
| C • Excellent workout today! You ... 2 |
Wednesday Dec 20 |
| Trail Run 48:20 [3]5.5 mi (8:47 / mi) | |
| |
| Juggler. My body, including my back, is feeling a bit sturdier. 8:19, 9:38, 7:01 (24:59), 6:34, 9:14, 7:32 (23:21)
This is my standard "6 mile" trail run. The forerunner measured it at 5.45, which pisses me off. I threw it in the toilet. |
| |
| C • Forerunner Water Immersion Test 4 |
Tuesday Dec 19 |
| machines 38:00 [3] | |
| |
| bike, 8:00 (waiting for an elliptical to free up).
Elliptical, 30:00, h14.
After a lot of lifting. I'm doing heavier weights on all the machines than a couple months ago: does that mean the 5 pounds I've added is all muscle mass? Fat chance. |
Sunday Dec 17 |
| Trail Run 24:24 [4]3.06 mi (7:57 / mi) | |
| |
| 50's again: if this is global warming, I'm all for it.
Ran the Noho 5k course. Stiff and sore from yesterday's squash, and out of shape, so what felt like a 4 effort was a pretty slow time. 7:45, 7:47, 8:02, 49.
Joined the Forerunner club: got the 205 for a Hanukkah present. Really cool. The "current pace" is bogus, ranging randomly from 30 seconds per mile too fast to about 2 minutes per mile too slow, usually being too slow. But the distance seems right on, and that's all that matters (I can calculate pace in my head.) This course is "officially" 3.1; it measured 3.05 on Google pedometer; and 3.06 with the Forerunner. Very accurate. Now I'll have to find out the real lengths of my usual trail routes (that I round up to the nearest half mile). That will be deflating. |
| Trail Run 28:00 [3]3.2 mi (8:44 / mi) | |
| |
| From Smith to the course and back, plus a lap around the fields. |
Saturday Dec 16 |
| squash 1:00:00 [3] | |
| |
| About 10 games with Adam, plus practicing. He's good enough now to make this log-able. |
Friday Dec 15 |
| Trail Run 52:05 [2]5.2 mi (10:00 / mi) | |
| |
| 50 deg! From Amethyst to the summit of Mt Orient and back on the Frost. Low energy and a sore left achilles, made for a lot of walking heading up to the first summit. 22:56, 6:25 (29:21), 5:13, 17:30 (22:43). |
Thursday Dec 14 |
| machines (bike, l11-15) 35:00 [3] | |
| |
| Tired legs. |
Wednesday Dec 13 |
| Track 9:54 [4]1.5 mi (6:35 / mi) | |
| |
| At the Smith gym after dark, and thought testing the track would be more interesting than machines. 2 1200's in 4:58, 4:56. Didn't feel too bad at that pace. |
| Track 13:00 [2]1.5 mi (8:39 / mi) | |
| |
| The rest was slow jogging. |
Tuesday Dec 12 |
| Trail Run 54:20 [3]6.2 mi (8:46 / mi) | |
| |
| Mid-afternoon run, 40 and sunny. Frost to Atkins Reservoir and back, moderate pace. Didn't push coming back because the downhills still bother my back.
Coming up to Flat Hills Road, there was a scruffy, old guy up ahead on the trail, walking the same direction as I was running, wearing an orange flak jacket and carrying a rifle. I made sure to let him know it was a human coming up his back. He asked me how far it was to the road, which was strange, since you could see the road through the trees (made me wonder how accurate his shooting was). He looked (and spoke) like someone with an IQ of about 60. But looks can be deceiving: probably a retired UMass professor.
Later in the run, I passed the Dean of my college, walking two large dogs. We exchanged some pleasantries, but I'm sure in the back of both of our minds was: "why aren't you at work?"
8:34, 5:21, 2:32, 6:31, 5:35 (28:36), 5:30, 5:20, 2:20, 4:45, 7:47 (25:44) |
Monday Dec 11 |
| machines (elliptical, l13) 40:00 [3] | |
| |
| RPM: 75-80. Kept my HR over 140 for most of this. |
Sunday Dec 10 |
| Orienteering 1:19:30 [3]7.3 km (10:53 / km) | |
| |
| Mt Tom red course from last year. 50 degrees! I posted the splits. A good time considering the physical effort was well under race pace: good routes and spiked all but one. |
| |
|
Red - Splits |
Saturday Dec 9 |
| dirt 26:04 [3]3.3 mi (7:53 / mi) | |
| |
| 4 laps around Smith field, from the gym. 6:13, 5:57, 5:41, 5:32. Earlier I watched Adam's first ever JV squash match. He won in a nail biter: 5-9, 4-9, 9-3, 9-1, 10-9. |
Friday Dec 8 |
| Trail Run 41:54 [2]4.8 mi (8:43 / mi) | |
| |
| Mix of trails, open fields, and golf fairways. More than just a "taste" of winter: 21 deg and windy. Hat, ski mittens, two shirts, and a relaxed pace. |
Wednesday Dec 6 |
| machines (bike, h13) 45:00 [3] | |
| |
| |
Tuesday Dec 5 |
| Trail Run 49:53 [3]6.0 mi (8:18 / mi) | |
| |
| Frost to Juggler and back. First taste of winter: 31 deg and dusting of snow on the trails. Back felt fine until minor soreness the last mile or two. But another chronic problem, my left quad, was quite sore. So it goes. 8:37, 10:11, 7:08 (25:57), 6:42, 9:23, 7:51 (23:56). |
Monday Dec 4 |
| machines (elliptical) 30:00 [3] | |
| |
| |
Sunday Dec 3 |
| |
| Event: WCOC Five Ponds meet
|
| Orienteering race 59:10 [4]6.2 km (9:33 / km) | |
| |
| 5 ponds, red course, with some of the same points as in the spring, but all different routes; and with e-punching! (thanks George). A great run, and to my amazement my back held up fine. The only mistake (over 10-15 seconds) was going staight to the finish from 11. I stood around for almost 2 minutes before discovering (talking with George) that I hadn't done the final little trail loop with 12 and 13. So I took off and finished the course. My official time, recorded on my watch which I never stopped, should be 59:10. I didn't think I could e-punch the finish a second time, though apparently I could have. I would have been low 57's if I hadn't gone braindead again at the end. |
| |
|
Red - Splits |
Saturday Dec 2 |
| machines (bike) 25:00 [2] | |
| |
| At Smith. Then hit the squash ball around with Adam, something my back really didn't like. Then picked up the remaining 6 controls at Mt Tom (2.2 k). |
Friday Dec 1 |
| Trail Run 35:56 [3]4.4 mi (8:09 / mi) | |
| |
| Freaky weather: 64 degrees on Dec. 1. Same run as Monday, stone wall and back. Same sore back. 9:02, 9:42, 9:22, 7:48. |