Training Archive: PGIn the 31 days ending 2008-05-31:
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| H | F | S | S | M | T | W | H | F | S | S | M | T | W | H | F | S | S | M | T | W | H | F | S | S | M | T | W | H | F | S | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Saturday May 31 | ||
| nautilus 50:00 [1] | |
| Good to work out some frustrations....
| ||
| run/hike 25:23 [3] | |
| weight:138.5lbs shoes: Asics trail | ||
| 2 x South Sugarloaf (450' climb). Hike up the trail (7:55), run down the road (7:11), hike up the trail (6:58), run down the trail (3:19). Second trip was surprisingly quick, perhaps because I was working out a few more frustrations....
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| C • World Cup at O-ringen? 6 | ||
Thursday May 29 | ||
| nautilus 50:00 [1] | |
|
| ||
| track 20:23 [4]4.8 km (4:15 / km) | |
| weight:138lbs shoes: Asics trail | ||
| Thursday evening track group, but no dogs this time. :-)
3 x 1600 on a 9-minute cycle. Hoped to do no worse than 7 minutes for each one. First took a little effort to do that, the second seemed the same effort and was a touch faster, and the third seemed only slightly more effort and was a good bit faster. I think the legs just felt looser. Any faster would have taken a lot more effort. Splits: 6:58, 6:51, 6:34. So it seems like 6:30 is certainly doable, and quite possibly 6:15, but I think I under 6 is no longer in the cards. | ||
| track 10:16 [2]2 km (5:08 / km) | |
| shoes: Asics trail | ||
| Three laps before (not enough) and a couple after.
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Wednesday May 28 | ||
| Note | |
| So here is my route for the long course on Monday.
It only took about 50 meters worth of rocks leaving #1 to decide that the best routes for me were to stay on trails as much as possible, because the rocks just seemed terrible. And for the most part I think that was a wise decision. No problems finding 2-5, though slow, stopping to look at the map a lot. To 6 the only route that made sense to me was climb up (and up) to get the ridge trail. In fact it turned out to be my best leg of the day. I think some folks who tried to more or less contour had some rough going. Hooked up with JJ on the last bit to 6, we were more or less together until on the way to 8, where he went straighter and then missed the control. Another long climb up to and out of 10. Over the top and staying in the good running seemed clearly the best to 11. Joe caught me going by the last buildings and was a little quicker in to 11, and then a lot quicker back up and out of 11, never saw him again. He was muttering about missing a bunch of controls, which he must have because he started only 3 minutes after me. Ok to 12 and 13. To 14 I climbed up and came in from above. I think the straighter route coming in from the side was faster. Ok to 15, also to 16-18, woods were less rocky, also to 19-20 even though I checked out another control on the way to 20, at the pit, actually punched it, was starting to leave, checked the code, oops. Didn't lose much time but felt pretty stupid. Rest of the way ok, some walking some slow running, trying to get in under 2 hours, made it with 3 minutes to spare. Not so bad. If running there again, I might try wearing running shoes instead of O shoes, a little more padding for the feet and better grip on the rocks. | ||
| hike 40:32 [2]2.6 mi (15:35 / mi) | |
| shoes: Asics trail | ||
| Same as 5/14, hike briskly to the top of Toby, except this was before dinner, and no pack. So a little quicker.
| ||
| trail running 32:13 [4]4.1 mi (7:51 / mi) | |
| shoes: Asics trail | ||
| And then the run back down, pretty good pace (12:31 back from the power line), working hard even if it was mostly downhill.
Beautiful late afternoon, no bugs yet. | ||
Tuesday May 27 | ||
| nautilus 50:00 [1] | |
| weight:139lbs | ||
| Plus the usual long walk. Legs didn't feel so bad, plus the weird right leg pain is much better. Must be the usual cure -- get something else that hurts more.
| ||
| trail running 1:44:52 [3] | |
| shoes: Asics trail | ||
| Same loop as last week from Cranberry Pond, this time with just Dave and Donna. They claimed to be tired from an ultra on Sunday (50k for Dave, 50 miles for Donna), and therefore the pace would be slow, which suited me just fine. But as we were running it felt just the same as last week, chugging up the hills ok, to the point that I was starting to think, I feel too good, I really didn't put out during the orienteering the last couple of days.
But when we finished, a look at the watch showed we were 6 and a half minutes slower, same perceived effort. So maybe I was a little tired. Really nice run regardless, chatting with Donna most of the time, even going uphill, telling old ultra tales (she's run a bunch of 100-milers). Very pleasant. And certainly not a run I would have done on my own. | ||
Monday May 26 | ||
| orienteering 1:56:59 [3]11.9 km (9:50 / km) +525m 8:03 / km | |
| Team Trials long course at South Mountain. Not so bad, made it around in under 2 hours, which after about 90 minutes I wasn't sure I could do.
My initial reaction to the run was more or less the usual, somewhat dissatisfied, thinking back to the trials a couple of years ago in St. Louis where I seemed to be running about 10% faster. But then on the way home I was thinking, not so bad, made it around all three days without totally embarrassing myself (or anyone else, I hope). And looking at the years of birth of the rest of the field, where it seems I have a head start in this world on the next oldest by 17 years, again, not so bad. And if I was feeling totally uncoordinated in all those rocks, afraid of doing serious damage anytime I would try to run, well, considering how my agility, balance, flexibility, eyesight, well, pretty much everything except my good looks, has all gone to hell over the last few years, then today was all right. And certainly the best time of anyone eligible to collect Social Security.... :-) So while not exactly thrilled, it seems unreasonable to be pissed off. So there. Though it is a stretch right at this moment to say "I feel great!" Lost a reasonable amount of skin off my right knee, my bionic toe is sorer and more swollen than usual, and I have a purple third toe on my left foot, the result of what may have looked like a very unsuccessful attempt to dislodge a piece of very well planted rock. On the other hand, my left knee held up ok, as did the hamstrings, and my weird very painful right leg walking around the house syndrome seems to have calmed down a good bit, at least for now. The last is probably due to the fact that lots of other things hurt. So here's the course, no routes yet. | ||
| C • Lookin' GOOD!! 11 | ||
| trail running 5:00 [2] | |
| shoes: integrators 2006 | ||
| Just enough of a warm-up to get the joints lubricated enough to be able to run when they said Go.
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Blue Long - Splits | ||
Sunday May 25 | ||
| orienteering 44:23 [3]484 km (6 / km) +190m 5 / km | |
| shoes: integrators 2006 | ||
| Middle distance at Hickory Run. Sort of disappointing run, another in a series it seems, not bad, but a little too sloppy and certainly too slow to be satisfying. Maybe a minute of two of mistakes -- 20-30 seconds on #2 double-checking the reentrant just short of the correct one, 30-45 seconds on #3 going too far, and several little bits. But mainly just not having a fighting spirit. Only time I really put out was on the way up to 17, pretty easy leg, good visibility, just cussed myself a couple of times and finally got a move on. Needed to get in that frame of mind a lot earlier but it just never happened. A day when there were scalps to be taken....
Best time on the course was 32 for Will Smith. Eddie had 34+, Eric about the same I think, Tom Hollowell 36+ I think. Lots of folks in the 40-43 range (Wyatt, Leif, Ross, Clem, among others). Samantha was best woman, then Pavlina and Viktoria I think. Hillary had a bad day. My routes on the men's course. Another really good course, this time by Sandy Fillebrown. Leaves were pretty much out, so the visibility was less than it might have been. | ||
| trail running 8:00 [2] | |
| shoes: integrators 2006 | ||
| Warm-up jog to the start. | ||
Blue Middle - Splits | ||
Saturday May 24 | ||
| Event: US Team Trials | ||
| orienteering 24:47 [4]3.49 km (7:06 / km) +83m 6:21 / km | |
| shoes: Asics trail | ||
| Sprint at Team Trials at Lehigh University. Pretty good run, planning well in advance almost the whole way. A couple of routes that may not have been the best (2-3, 16-17), plus bad execution 9-10, don't know why I went down the stairs where I did. But still pretty good. I was shooting for no more than 30% behind and I was more like 23-24%. Of course that may have been because the young guys were all too slow.
Best time was 20:05, Eric Bone, a second ahead of Ross Smith. I think Eddie was the third US but Im not sure. Best for the women was Hillary (21+), then Samatha (22+), Viktoria (23+), Pavlina (24+), Angelica (24+). I have my doubts as to whether any of the times were of the quality needed to qualify for an A final. Although the goal today for some, I'm sure, was just to get in a good run, don't do anything stupid. So hopefully there is more potential. My routes on the men's course. A very fine course by Randy Hall, and a excellent sprint venue. Much more like European city sprints than what we normally get over here. A good O' challenge and really really fun. | ||
| C • black circles? 7 | ||
| trail running 8:00 [3] | |
| shoes: Asics trail | ||
| A little warm-up.
| ||
Blue Sprint - Splits | ||
Wednesday May 21 | ||
| nautilus 50:00 [1] | |
| trail running 47:40 [3]5.2 mi (9:10 / mi) | |
| shoes: Asics trail | ||
| Pocumtuck Ridge, from the south end to the towers where the cable comes up, and beck. Legs felt totally dead (as they had on the earlier walk), had to convince myself to keep going for the first 5 or 10 minutes, but then things got better. Had some energy on the way back, but of course it was a little downhill. I think yesterday evening's run took more out of me that I had realized. With company the time passed pretty quickly, but it was not an easy run.
Still strange leg pains at rest, but maybe a little less. | ||
| Note | |
| Continuing my attempt to get better gas mileage. Last fill-up for the Subaru gave 29.5 mpg, about the best I've ever done and I think that was once when most of the driving was done with a strong tailwind. Usual summertime is 26-28, depending on what kind of driving I happen to be doing. So this is a little better, mainly from driving just a little slower and gentler.
I did manage to take off the removable cross slats on the roof rack, which have never been used. Every little bit helps. Though what is really needed is a different (and lighter) car. And, if we have any sense, a new and more efficient furnace, given what the price of heating oil is going to be next winter. | ||
| C • Gas Mileage 23 | ||
Tuesday May 20 | ||
| trail running 1:38:10 [3] | |
| shoes: Asics trail | ||
| On Mt. Toby starting from Cranberry Pond with Dave, Rick Scott, Donna Utakis and Doug B. Route more or less.
Right leg continues to get moments of serious pain at home, so I was a bit concerned, but after 50 meters it was fine. Not sure what is going on. And energy was ok, made it up the long climb up S. Mt. ok, just walked the steep section above the S curves on the last climb. Better than I expected. Nice company, especially Rick, haven't run with him for many years, but saw him at Soapstone and made plans to get together. Various stories exchanged of when we were young and fast. | ||
| Note | |
| Soapstone results from Sunday. Seems like I was the first really OF. :-)
Not that it was pretty.... 
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Monday May 19 | ||
| nautilus 45:00 [1] | |
| weight:138lbs | ||
| Plus the usual 3-hour walk. Usual suspect areas in the legs (hamstrings, calfs, knees) feel ok, although at some point I seem to have developed a shin split on my right leg, first showed up Friday evening (from running at the track Thursday?), bothers me primarily walking around the house, went away after about 5 minutes of orienteering on Saturday, after about 2 minutes of warm-up on Sunday, and after 1 hole today. And then back at the house it was hurting again. Must be something in the air.
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| C • primarily walking around the house 2 | ||
| Note | |
As a follow-up to this, I got this fine certificate in the mail, signed by Dave Barry himself, plus this even finer piece of Paris Hilton toilet paper.
I feel great! | ||
Sunday May 18 | ||
| trail running 2:24:30 [3]14.5 mi (9:58 / mi) | |
| rhr:51 weight:137.5lbs shoes: Asics trail | ||
| Soapstone Mountain Trail Race.
Spending 100 minutes in the woods yesterday was not the best preparation for this, but I hadn't been to this race in quite a few years and thought it was time to go back. The primary goal was simple -- get through uninjured. The secondary goal was maybe to be better then 2.5 hours, which I wasn't sure I could do. Got a few little twinges in the legs from time to time, but nothing seriously, and afterwards, when cooled off and all sorts of aches sometimes appear, this time the legs just felt tired. So I accomplished both goals, even though my legs quit on me about halfway and the last 75 minutes was pretty feeble, back to the old ultra feeling, walk all the uphills and just try to keep running the flats. Definitely pretty feeble. Course profile. Results, well, I hung around for a while, had a little to eat (a greasy burger tasted just fine, as did some chips), when I took off maybe an hour and three quarters after the first runner must have come in, there was nary a result to be seen. I did spot a couple of people hunched over a computer off in a corner. Tech is great when it works, but when it doesn't.... On the other hand, a word of praise for the organizers for having what I would call a maître d' informing arrivals of where to register, or where to go pee, or whatever, all in a very pleasant fashion. And the maître d' was none other than Clint Morse, who ran real well in the short race. | ||
| C • Apparently a stack of regis... 1 | ||
Saturday May 17 | ||
| Event: WCOC Huntington meet | ||
| orienteering 1:16:40 [3]7.6 km (10:05 / km) | |
| weight:138.5lbs shoes: integrators 2006 | ||
| WCOC local meet at Huntington SP, not my best, not my worst.
Not a bad run, but frustrating in a way, I think because I am having trouble reading the map when I am running. I don't know if my actual eyesight has gotten worse, I don't think so because I can still read the map fine when I'm standing still. But on the move it is all different, the lines seem so faint, I'm just missing all the detail. I'm sure a magnifier would help, but I'm hesitant to go in that direction because it's useless when it rains. But maybe I should try it anyway. Problems -- #2. Went to the boulder, no flag, checked another smaller one, no flag there either. After a bit spotted the flag on the small knoll a little to the south. Interesting that the clue was a cliff. Or, using ancient terminology, "A cliff." #5. Walked up the hill leaving 4, to be expected. #8. Walked up the hill leaving 7, really slowly. Legs were not feeling zippy. #12. Got on the wrong spur, trying to keep running and just couldn't read the map well. Adjusted pretty well. #14. Walked up a couple hills, really slowly. And then didn't look at the clue (top of dot knoll), assumed flag was at the foot of a cliff, sailed along checking cliffs until I finally stopped and took a careful look at the map. 21. Couldn't make sense of the contours on the run, so just kept heading what I thought was west. Hit the marsh pretty much dead center. 24. Don't know if this was my fault or not. Went to where I thought the center of the circle was, no flag in sight, and the area was just a jumble of tipped-over pine trees, like big matchsticks. Eventually found the control farther south, in an area of nice woods. 25. Got myself over to the general area ok, but then didn't read the contours well and was looking too far west. Another minute or two lost. So I finished with a bit of a sour taste in my mouth. Not that I'd had a perfect run until the last couple, but it had been decent. On the other hand, it was a beautiful morning, the course setter had used the nicest woods, and I have to remind myself -- as I'm starting to do sometimes now when just out for a training run -- that I need to remember to just be happy I can still get out and do this. My routes. | ||
| orienteering 26:00 [2] | |
| shoes: integrators 2006 | ||
| Picking up a few controls. Doing penance for some poor orienteering?
| ||
| Note | |
| Stopped for a quick 9 at Millbrook on the way home. The mosquitos are here.... :-(
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Red - Splits | ||
Friday May 16 | ||
| nautilus 45:00 [1] | |
| Passed on a run today, just didn't feel like it. | ||
Thursday May 15 | ||
| track 19:55 [4]4.8 km (4:09 / km) | |
| weight:137.5lbs shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| Thursday evening track group. 1 x 1600, 3 x 800, 2 x 400, all on a 9 minute per mile cycle, so not that much rest. Felt better than last week. And as usual, much more pleasant when you're done than in the anticipation or the doing.
1600 - 6:57 800s - 3:18, 3:17, 3:16 400s - 1:34, 1:33 Oh, and there was the dog. A greyhound in fact. Brought by a couple that also had their newborn in a jogger. The jogger I could deal with, mom stayed in the outside lane for the few laps she ran. The dog, on the other hand, well, I wasn't happy with it, even if it was by all appearances pretty well behaved, didn't jump up on anyone, seemed to love zipping around, usually not bothering anyone. But then on one of the 400s the bunch of us are just starting out and the dog is zipping around right in the midst of us, and I'm thinking, it's just a matter of IF, not WHEN, the accident happens. And I don't want to be the one laid up because a dog was doing intervals with us and tripped me up. So I complained afterwards to the guy who organizes the sessions. Don't know if he'll do anything or not. And if complaining makes me the grynch, so be it. | ||
| C • dog 3 | ||
| track 8:55 [2] | |
| shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| A little before, a little after. | ||
Wednesday May 14 | ||
| nautilus 40:00 [1] | |
| weight:138lbs | ||
| hike 41:05 [2]2.6 mi (15:47 / mi) +340m 6:59 / km | |
| shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| Meant to get out late afternoon, but I lay down for a moment and my how time flies....
So after a fine dinner, still just enough daylight for a quick trip up Toby, minimal pack (phone, jacket, small flashlight just in case), walking/climbing briskly. Good effort, felt ok. Lots of birds out, only song I could remember was the wood thrush. But I was reminded of the woodcock I saw on a run up in Gill a few days ago. Almost stepped on it, and when it flew it had the zig-zaggy flight of a woodcock, but it didn't go far or fast, never far from me, then sat down, then took off again, right in front of me. Best view of a woodcock I've ever had, much better then any time 50 years ago when I did a modest amount of bird hunting with my dad and pheasants were pretty easy shots, grouse very tough, and woodcock just about impossible. But this guy would have been easy pickens, were I so inclined, and so armed. Which fortunately I was not. | ||
| trail running 34:33 [3]4.1 mi (8:25 / mi) | |
| shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| And then running back via the S curves, down the power line and home. Good pace, good effort, legs still ok, and dinner stayed put. Good rogaine training (not to be confused with rogaine practice, search and rescue with a little white ball). Getting quite dark in the hemlocks at the end, but no falls!
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Tuesday May 13 | ||
| trail running 1:01:30 [3] | |
| weight:138.5lbs shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| In Northfield on the M&M trail from Gulf Road. I was planning on going north across the Upper Bald Hills, hadn't been that way for many years though I ran there fairly often when I was training for ultras (and it was also part of Fred's old 50K course). But there was signs of logging going on, and an improved dirt road, and a big gate, and 3 No Tresspassing signs, and not a hint of anything like a trail marker.
So I went the other way, up and over Crag Mt., really more a long ledgy ridge than a mountain, but quite nice, lots of old hemlocks and only a couple steep but rather short climbs, and then down to Mountain Road, where the section past the Northfield pump storage reservoir starts. And then back. Nice run, legs not too bad, beautiful late afternoon. Before long it will be hot and humid and buggy, but not yet. Today's route.... 
By the way, here's the current digital version of the topo. Doesn't come close to the 1961 version above. 
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Monday May 12 | ||
| trail running 1:01:03 [3] | |
| shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
Found some nice trails in Brattleboro on some land mostly owned by the Brattleboro Retreat (a psychiatric hospital). I'd seen a sign and a map of the trail network last year sometime, thought I should check it out, and finally did. The best part was the little box hanging by the sign that had copies of the map (click for a bigger copy)....
And it was a very good map, as far as the trails went, they seemed to be mapped pretty much perfectly, though of course there were no contour lines. So when I got home I checked out the topo map.... 
The contours are reasonably ok on the eastern hill, totally insufficient on the western part by the ski jump and Ice Pond. A section that would actually be pretty nice for orienteering. And then I spent a while trying to figure out how to combine the two into one image. Totally without success. :-( Anyway, the run was pretty nice. Started at the south end at Solar Hill, north to the top of the ski jump, that got me nervous just looking down, then over to the east and up to Stone Tower, then back to Ice Pond and around and about on most of the trails near it until it seemed like I would get in about an hour. Got back to the car at 58 minutes, so once down Solar Hill and back up. A really nice run, preceded of course by my usual 2 to 3 hour walk. | ||
| C • Success... 13 | ||
| nautilus 45:00 [1] | |
| Stopped on the way home to bulk up. | ||
Sunday May 11 | ||
| Event: WCOC Ansonia Nature Center meet | ||
| orienteering 1:03:19 [4]7.1 km (8:55 / km) +270m 7:30 / km | |
| shoes: integrators 2006 | ||
| WCOC club meet at Ansonia, Red course. A great area, interesting topography, good map, nice woods. And a fun course too.
Progress. Had a little more energy, ran up a bunch of hills (none big, but I would have walked them all a couple of weeks ago). Started to run out of gas after about 35-40 minutes, walked 4 little bits, but still pretty good. 7 falls. Orienteering was a little shaky, mainly having trouble reading the details of the map well on the run, struggling quite a bit with that. I can read it ok standing still, but on the move, not so good. So a lot of times I was just trying to go with what I could get, plus stay on the direction I wanted, and keep my eyes open. No big mistakes, maybe 2 minutes altogether? My routes. #5 - Should have stayed high. Dropped down to the marsh, was rough going, finally said the hell with it and just waded across (20 meters, mid-calf deep). #8 - Pulled up a boulder too soon and a little to the right. Took a careful look at the map and saw where I was. #10 - A little left. #11 - A little left, but full speed. #12 - A little right, almost went too far. #15 - Getting real tired going up into and out of the control. #16 - A little left, not quite clear on what the contours were supposed to be doing, but just kept moving and saw the control to my right. #17 - Tired, trail seemed easier/faster even if it dropped lower. #18 - Worst control, too far left, stood for a bit, then corrected the right way. #23 - Getting real tired. | ||
| trail running 23:00 [3] | |
| shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| After a few minutes and a change of shoes, went back out for a little bit on the trails.
| ||
| Note | |
| A bit of a long but good day.
First orienteering at Ansonia. Definitely good. Then to Litchfield for a Mother's Day visit. Went ok, pulled out a couple of very old photo albums, c. 1930s and 40s, and that seemed to dredge up some old memories. Glad I went. And then to Canton for Charlie's birthday party. In his pursuit of eternal youth, or maybe as a result of trying to keep up with all the babes in Rhonda's early morning class, Charlie is going under the knife on Friday for a twofer, shoulder and knee. He's looking forward to it, hopes for significant improvements. That would be real nice, keeping our fingers crossed. An excellent birthday cake, by the way, though I only had a very small piece. And then home, aware all day of how much gas was being burned, and reverting back a bit to 1970s driving, a little slower, a lighter foot on the pedal. Got home without having to fill up. The best, of course, from an energy point of view, would have been not to go at all, but life is short.... | ||
Red course - Splits | ||
Friday May 9 | ||
| Note | |
| weight:138lbs | ||
| A gloomy day, but still some good news...
- the G is getting back under control. - just received the $1200 from W (and Congress), though of course it was just borrowed from the Chinese. So it's not clear if this is really good news. - got a letter from my "Dave Barry guy," the polyp was benign, which is definitely good news. Don't have to see him again for 10 years. | ||
| trail running 52:45 [3]5.38 mi (9:49 / mi) | |
| shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| In the hills just north of Rt. 2 in Gill, light rain. Legs a little better than yesterday. This makes a couple good weeks of training, need to keep it up while figuring out a way to avoid getting hurt. Route.
| ||
| nautilus 45:00 [1] | |
| Looking forward throughout the session to what came next -- lunch (at 4:30 pm). | ||
Thursday May 8 | ||
| track 25:00 [3]3.31 mi (7:33 / mi) | |
| weight:139lbs shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| With the Thursday evening track group. The schedule was faster sections with shorter rests in between -- 2 minutes fast, 1 slow, 3, 1, 4, 2, 4. 2, 3, 1, 2 -- though it is a bit of a stretch to call it speedwork, since my pace on the faster parts was about 7:15/mile.
Oh well, have to start someplace. And since legs felt totally dead all day, I suppose it was good just to have done something. Also getting in lots of rogaine practice, and not eating much (which in itself is good rogaine practice). | ||
| track 4:15 [2]0.5 mi (8:30 / mi) | |
| shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| Very short warm-up. | ||
Wednesday May 7 | ||
| trail running 1:08:35 [3] | |
| weight:140lbs shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| Bridal loop on Mt. Toby, what goes for a very long run these days. I figured under 70 minutes would be good, so it was good.
I thought of calling up Phil to see if he wanted to join me, but i figured (1) 4 pm was a little too early for him, and (2) more importantly, I didn't really want to have to keep stopping to wait for him. Power line 17:57, start of loop 31:31, end of loop 41:21, power line 54:44, back n 13:51. | ||
| C • bridal loop? 2 | ||
Tuesday May 6 | ||
| trail running 53:14 [3] | |
| weight:141lbs shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| From Mill River up to Atkins Reservoir (28:15) and back (24:59). I thought of calling up Phil to see if he wanted to join me, but i figured (1) 4 pm was a little too early for him, and (2) more importantly, I didn't need the struggle to try to keep up with him.
Although the legs felt at least mediocre, certainly better than yesterday. | ||
| C • Surely, you jest. 4 | ||
Monday May 5 | ||
| trail running 37:38 [2] | |
| shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| At Northfield Mountain after a round of rogaine practice at Northfield, which itself was after a morning of trying to get things done at home, where there is a long to-do list. Gail, of course has her own to-do list, one item is apparently to clean/organize her studio. Meanwhile, she has put on my list (is maybe it's our list, I'm not sure) to clean out my office enough that the floor can be vacuumed, something that has not been done to parts of that room for, well, it's certainly more than years, maybe best measured in decades.
So anyway, it occurred to me this morning, a little competition sometimes being good for the soul, that maybe the motivation I needed was to see if I could clean out my office before she cleaned out her studio, keeping in mind the likelihood of a long-term tie if neither of us ever got the cleaning up done. So I launched into cleaning, except I started in the bedroom, my side, and it is looking quite nice now, about three grocery bags of old magazines and papers are now ready to go out for recycling on Wednesday. Which is all great, except that pretty much used up all the enthusiasm I had for cleaning for the day (or maybe the week, or, one hopes not, maybe the month). So the office is in the exact state of chaos as it started the day. But I still have hope. After all, I voted for Obama. Oh, yes, the run. Slow, dead legs. But necessary under the new program to both improve conditioning and lower the G. All necessitated by my signing up for the Blue course at the Team Trials. Such foolishness.... | ||
| C • Why does the floor need to ... 2 | ||
| Note | |
Stopped in at the office after the run to deal with a late-filing client. Pure vanilla, absolutely simple, except he had figured he could do it himself. And when the bottom line showed he owed $1800, he gave me a ring. So we got that straightened out, modestly on the plus side with both the Feds and the state, who knows what he had done. And meanwhile we're chatting, he's the manager of a gas station / convenience store, and he's filling me in on all the latest, which station I shouldn't use a credit card at because they not to be trusted with such things, and what's happening with the guy who owned several stations and recently sold out and laid off several long-time employees with minimal severance packages, and a little more of this and a little more of that, and then he says,
Oh, and did you know, Swampfox turned 50 last week.And I said, No, you're shitting me, or something like that. Followed, of course, by, How the hell do you know that, do you know Swampfox? Well, of course he didn't actually know Swampfox, but the word on the street was that Swampfox had indeed turned 50, and he wasn't taking it very well. I mean, if you did a cross-section and counted the rings, old Mr. Swampfox would have as many rings as Ross and Samantha put together. And I'd guess pretty much anyone would rather be Ross and Samantha than an aging Swampfox. So, needless to say, I was in a bit of a state of shock, which I worked my way out of only by the realization that Mr. Swampfox, intelligent fellow that he is and also a fan of good comedy, and I'm sure of Dave Barry, well, I'm sure that Mr. Swampfox has already scheduled his first colonoscopy. So fine. | ||
| nautilus 40:00 [1] | |
| Finished off the day at the gym, also a struggle, but got it done. | ||
Sunday May 4 | ||
| orienteering 57:51 [3]5.79 km (9:59 / km) +225m 8:22 / km | |
| shoes: integrators 2006 | ||
| West Point, classic (M60 again). Foggy again, rocks still wet and slippery but all the rain passed overnight. Pretty good run, decent effort. One bad route, going over the hill on the way to #6 when along the pond was faster. And just a little bobble at #9, looked in the first set of boulders. But made good time down the hill at the end.
My routes. | ||
| C • over the hill or along the lake 4 | ||
| Note | |
| Nice weekend, good company. Went down with Charlie and Rhonda, seemed like carpooling was both more fun and more sensible. And a nice dinner Saturday evening with them and George and Lyn, and Kissy and Dave.
Got a nap on the way home, so there was still enough energy and daylight for a quick round of rogaine practice before it got dark. I'd have to say my orienteering was better. | ||
Saturday May 3 | ||
| Event: West Point A-Meet | ||
| orienteering 43:49 [3]3.8 km (11:32 / km) +160m 9:32 / km | |
| shoes: integrators 2006 | ||
| West Point, Middle distance, M60 (GreenX course). Very foggy and wet, though not actually raining, but the rocks were very slippery. So-so run, small mistake on #1, silly one on #7, saw another control, was unsure if I'd gone far enough or not, went back quite a ways to be sure. Blew off 2 or 3 minutes. Otherwise OK, nothing special. Nice course.
My routes. | ||
| C • #12 4 | ||
| orienteering 17:28 [4]2.5 km (6:59 / km) +60m 6:14 / km | |
| shoes: integrators 2006 | ||
| Sprint (course 2, Green/Brown/Orange) in the afternoon. Nice course, lots of fun and hard work too. Good run, only problems were getting snagged on some concertina wire just after leaving #6, and getting off line on the way to #9. Good effort. Also a nice new map too.
Very pleasant to go to West Point and run a sprint instead of organizing it the last three years. And the weather even cooperated. My routes. | ||
Friday May 2 | ||
| Note | |
| So they give you a combination of Versed and Fentanyl. Strong stuff.
| ||
| nautilus 40:00 [1] | |
|
| ||
| trail running 29:30 [3] | |
| shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| A short run on Greenfield ridge, south via the Tower, back via the white trail. Cool, misty, very pleasant.
| ||
| Note | |
| So twice in the last couple of days I have found myself getting pissed off enough to actually do something about it. I am not sure if that is a good trend or not.
The first was with my credit card company, Citibank. I pay my balance every month, if they had looked they would have seen that I very recently charged a ticket on Icelandic Air, but they still rejected my card over a $6 charge at the airport in Iceland because their fraud program decided it might be fraud. So I called them up, and after a while found out that it seemed like their fraud program was liable to reject me if I used the card other than in my usual spending pattern. Like outside the country. Or, get this, in another state. But of course I could call up in advance and tell them where I was going to be and then they probably wouldn't reject me. I didn't find that particularly satisfying, so I did the usual and asked to speak to a supervisor. And spent a while letting her know how unsatisfying their policy was. And she eventually took me off their fraud program, or at least says she did. We shall see. Gail, observing the whole time, seemed concerned I was losing my cool. I would describe it as productively and perhaps even fraudulently appearing to lose my cool, just to make my case. I think. The second case was today, coming home from the gym. And for some reason the light is malfunctioning, three cycles go by and it never turns green for straight ahead and traffic is backed up a couple hundred yards (that's a lot around here), and from where I'm sitting, there are several signs warning of the presence of police officers and the need to go slow, but no actual police officers in sight. Finally the front car runs the red light, and this does something and the light starts to function again. And I get around the corner on the next cycle, and some construction is going on about 30 yards from the light. Two state police there, road details, getting paid $40+ an hour, state law requires it, well, the law requires at least one police officer. And the two guys are just chatting with one of the construction guys, quite oblivious to the traffic problem. So I pull over and open the window and tell them the light's not working, and traffic is getting backed up. And why don't they do something. I was quite careful not to say, why didn't they f**king do something. But I probably had a bit of attitude in my tone of voice. And the cop looked at my like he didn't like being talked to that way, or maybe he was just annoyed that he was actually going to have to do something. But I knew I'd said enough and moved on, no point in pressing my luck. And feeling good for having said something. But not too much, because a cop is still a cop, and a cop can make life miserable for you even if you haven't done anything wrong. I think as I get older I'm more like to speak my mind. Which is good. To a point. | ||
| C • Fraud 3 | ||
Thursday May 1 | ||
| Note | |
| weight:141lbs | ||
| Sometimes you are just glad to be home. Spent the last 24 hours preparing, and then just got back from, well, I'm sure Dave Barry describes it better.
Seems like it went ok. One very small polyp removed and the doc said I should come back in ten years. It does have a beneficial, though I presume temporary, effect on the G. ---------------------------------------- Dave Barry: A journey into my colon -- and yours OK. You turned 50. You know you're supposed to get a colonoscopy. But you haven't. Here are your reasons: 1. You've been busy. 2. You don't have a history of cancer in your family. 3. You haven't noticed any problems. 4. You don't want a doctor to stick a tube 17,000 feet up your butt. Let's examine these reasons one at a time. No, wait, let's not. Because you and I both know that the only real reason is No. 4. This is natural. The idea of having another human, even a medical human, becoming deeply involved in what is technically known as your ''behindular zone'' gives you the creeping willies. I know this because I am like you, except worse. I yield to nobody in the field of being a pathetic weenie medical coward. I become faint and nauseous during even very minor medical procedures, such as making an appointment by phone. It's much worse when I come into physical contact with the medical profession. More than one doctor's office has a dent in the floor caused by my forehead striking it seconds after I got a shot. In 1997, when I turned 50, everybody told me I should get a colonoscopy. I agreed that I definitely should, but not right away. By following this policy, I reached age 55 without having had a colonoscopy. Then I did something so pathetic and embarrassing that I am frankly ashamed to tell you about it. What happened was, a giant 40-foot replica of a human colon came to Miami Beach. Really. It's an educational exhibit called the Colossal Colon, and It was on a nationwide tour to promote awareness of colo-rectal cancer. The idea is, you crawl through the Colossal Colon, and you encounter various educational items in there, such as polyps, cancer and hemorrhoids the size of regulation volleyballs, and you go, ''Whoa, I better find out if I contain any of these things,'' and you get a colonoscopy. If you are as a professional humor writer, and there is a giant colon within a 200-mile radius, you are legally obligated to go see it. So I went to Miami Beach and crawled through the Colossal Colon. I wrote a column about it, making tasteless colon jokes. But I also urged everyone to get a colonoscopy. I even, when I emerged from the Colossal Colon, signed a pledge stating that I would get one. But I didn't get one. I was a fraud, a hypocrite, a liar. I was practically a member of Congress. Five more years passed. I turned 60, and I still hadn't gotten a colonoscopy. Then, a couple of weeks ago, I got an e-mail from my brother Sam, who is 10 years younger than I am, but more mature. The email was addressed to me and my middle brother, Phil. It said: ``Dear Brothers, ``I went in for a routine colonoscopy and got the dreaded diagnosis: cancer. We're told it's early and that there is a good prognosis that they can get it all out, so, fingers crossed, knock on wood, and all that. And of course they told me to tell my siblings to get screened. I imagine you both have.'' Um. Well. First I called Sam. He was hopeful, but scared. We talked for a while, and when we hung up, I called my friend Andy Sable, a gastroenterologist, to make an appointment for a colonoscopy. A few days later, in his office, Andy showed me a color diagram of the colon, a lengthy organ that appears to go all over the place, at one point passing briefly through Minneapolis. Then Andy explained the colonoscopy procedure to me in a thorough, reassuring and patient manner. I nodded thoughtfully, but I didn't really hear anything he said, because my brain was shrieking, quote, ``HE'S GOING TO STICK A TUBE 17,000 FEET UP YOUR BUTT!'' I left Andy's office with some written instructions, and a prescription for a product called ''MoviPrep,'' which comes in a box large enough to hold a microwave oven. I will discuss MoviPrep in detail later; for now suffice it to say that we must never allow it to fall into the hands of America's enemies. I spent the next several days productively sitting around being nervous. Then, on the day before my colonoscopy, I began my preparation. In accordance with my instructions, I didn't eat any solid food that day; all I had was chicken broth, which is basically water, only with less flavor. Then, in the evening, I took the MoviPrep. You mix two packets of powder together in a one-liter plastic jug, then you fill it with lukewarm water. (For those unfamiliar with the metric system, a liter is about 32 gallons.) Then you have to drink the whole jug. This takes about an hour, because MoviPrep tastes -- and here I am being kind -- like a mixture of goat spit and urinal cleanser, with just a hint of lemon. The instructions for MoviPrep, clearly written by somebody with a great sense of humor, state that after you drink it, ''a loose watery bowel movement may result.'' This is kind of like saying that after you jump off your roof, you may experience contact with the ground. MoviPrep is a nuclear laxative. I don't want to be too graphic, here, but: Have you ever seen a space shuttle launch? This is pretty much the MoviPrep experience, with you as the shuttle. There are times when you wish the commode had a seat belt. You spend several hours pretty much confined to the bathroom, spurting violently. You eliminate everything. And then, when you figure you must be totally empty, you have to drink another liter of MoviPrep, at which point, as far as I can tell, your bowels travel into the future and start eliminating food that you have not even eaten yet. After an action-packed evening, I finally got to sleep. The next morning my wife drove me to the clinic. I was very nervous. Not only was I worried about the procedure, but I had been experiencing occasional return bouts of MoviPrep spurtage. I was thinking, ''What if I spurt on Andy?'' How do you apologize to a friend for something like that? Flowers would not be enough. At the clinic I had to sign many forms acknowledging that I understood and totally agreed with whatever the hell the forms said. Then they led me to a room full of other colonoscopy people, where I went inside a little curtained space and took off my clothes and put on one of those hospital garments designed by sadist perverts, the kind that, when you put it on, makes you feel even more naked than when you are actually naked. Then a nurse named Eddie put a little needle in a vein in my left hand. Ordinarily I would have fainted, but Eddie was very good, and I was already lying down. Eddie also told me that some people put vodka in their MoviPrep. At first I was ticked off that I hadn't thought of this, but then I pondered what would happen if you got yourself too tipsy to make it to the bathroom, so you were staggering around in full Fire Hose Mode. You would have no choice but to burn your house. When everything was ready, Eddie wheeled me into the procedure room, where Andy was waiting with a nurse and an anesthesiologist. I did not see the 17,000-foot tube, but I knew Andy had it hidden around there somewhere. I was seriously nervous at this point. Andy had me roll over on my left side, and the anesthesiologist began hooking something up to the needle in my hand. There was music playing in the room, and I realized that the song was Dancing Queen by Abba. I remarked to Andy that, of all the songs that could be playing during this particular procedure, Dancing Queen has to be the least appropriate. ''You want me to turn it up?'' said Andy, from somewhere behind me. ''Ha ha,'' I said. And then it was time, the moment I had been dreading for more than a decade. If you are squeamish, prepare yourself, because I am going to tell you, in explicit detail, exactly what it was like. I have no idea. Really. I slept through it. One moment, Abba was shrieking ``Dancing Queen! Feel the beat from the tambourine . . .'' . . . and the next moment, I was back in the other room, waking up in a very mellow mood. Andy was looking down at me and asking me how I felt. I felt excellent. I felt even more excellent when Andy told me that it was all over, and that my colon had passed with flying colors. I have never been prouder of an internal organ. But my point is this: In addition to being a pathetic medical weenie, I was a complete moron. For more than a decade I avoided getting a procedure that was, essentially, nothing. There was no pain and, except for the MoviPrep, no discomfort. I was risking my life for nothing. If my brother Sam had been as stupid as I was -- if, when he turned 50, he had ignored all the medical advice and avoided getting screened ? he still would have had cancer. He just wouldn't have known. And by the time he did know -- by the time he felt symptoms -- his situation would have been much, much more serious. But because he was a grown-up, the doctors caught the cancer early, and they operated and took it out. Sam is now recovering and eating what he describes as ''really, really boring food.'' His prognosis is good, and everybody is optimistic, fingers crossed, knock on wood, and all that. Which brings us to you, Mr. or Mrs. or Miss or Ms. Over-50-And-Hasn't-Had-a-Colonoscopy. Here's the deal: You either have colo-rectal cancer, or you don't. If you do, a colonoscopy will enable doctors to find it and do something about it. And if you don't have cancer, believe me, it's very reassuring to know you don't. There is no sane reason for you not to have it done. I am so eager for you to do this that I am going to induce you with an Exclusive Limited Time Offer. If you, after reading this, get a colonoscopy, let me know by sending a self-addressed stamped envelope to Dave Barry Colonoscopy Inducement, The Miami Herald, 1 Herald Plaza, Miami, FL 33132. I will send you back a certificate, signed by me and suitable for framing if you don't mind framing a cheesy certificate, stating that you are a grown-up who got a colonoscopy. Accompanying this certificate will be a square of limited-edition custom-printed toilet paper with an image of Miss Paris Hilton on it. You may frame this also, or use it in whatever other way you deem fit. But even if you don't want this inducement, please get a colonoscopy. If I can do it, you can do it. Don't put it off. Just do it. Be sure to stress that you want the non-Abba version. | ||
| C • The worst part 7 | ||
| trail running 33:27 [3] | |
| shoes: Montrail #2 | ||
| Against doctor's orders, up to the power line (18:49) and back (1:38).
Well, not exactly. The orders were: Do not drive, return to work, or operate any machinery for 24 hours. Do not make any important decisions, sign any legal documents, or engage in any activity which depends on your full concentrating power or mental judgment to ensure proper completion. Go directly home from the hospital and rest quietly for the rest of the day. And so on. I tried. Gail drove me home, though we did stop on the way to get some FOOD (36 hours on a diet of clear liquids is more than enough). And then I went and lay down and took a nap, except my cell phone company called to see if they could sell me something, so I swore at them a few times, but that got me up, and eventually it just seemed like some exercise was called for. It was the nurse giving the orders, and a very fine nurse she seemed to be. It seems that whatever drug they gave to put me in la-la land for a while is a short-term amnesiac, and she was particularly concerned that I might venture off from home and forget where I lived and not be able to find my way back. Shades of my mother's trip to Buffalo? :-) But anyway, I found my way up to the power line, found my way back. Legs actually felt ok other than slow as molasses. And along the way I found myself wondering, hmm, that drug was so good, I remember absolutely nothing from a couple of minutes after she pressed the syringe to about an hour later, and then at some point on the way home I asked Gail something, and she said, oh, dear, I just asked her that 5 minutes earlier, was this what I was going to be like when I get Ahlzeimer's. Maybe. But it certainly took care of any anxiety I might have had. | ||
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