Training Log Archive: PG

Hemenway Road (dirt). Trying to run gently, back still achy afterwards. Mid 50s, no rain.

Mount Toby jeep road, from the gate.

Gunn Mountain Road from Falls Road up to North Mountain, and back. Jeep (ie. a little rockier than the basic dirt road). Pretty hard effort. But it was a cool day, so why not.

Back has been achy the last month or so. Certainly noticed it after this, though not much while doing it.

Two bits of walking, a couple of minutes.

North to Montague Center, back along the river. NW 10-15.

With Gail, north along the river, back via Montague Center.

Back to my regular eye doctor to see if new glasses are called for. Turned out to be a quite unexpected experience.

Started off with the technician as usual, she's the one who does most of the work. I was feeling in a very picky mood, wanted to end up with glasses that were as good as possible, but also not that optimistic as to what was possible. The left eye, the one that was operated on, still seemed a good bit worse than the right.

We spent quite a while on the usual drill. She'd make some change in the gizmo, ok, which is better, #1 or #2? Another change, which is better, #1 or #3? And so on, a bunch of times until it seemed like we had it as good as it was going to get.

And then she said she needed to check the astigmatism setting, so more number 1 vs. 2 comparisons.

And all the time, me still totally aware than the vision still isn't great.

And then she said she needed to check the axis, I guess that's another part of the astigmatism stuff, said she didn't check this normally because it didn't change, but after surgery it sometimes did.

So she was turning some sort it dial, and all of a sudden it was like looking through a set of binoculars at sometime that is a little out of focus and you turn the dial and there it is, nice and clear.

And my mind is going a hundred miles an hour. What just happened? Is this for real? And apparently it was, I was still just using the left eye and the vision was way better. And I'm sort going nuts.

So more time on getting that setting as good as possible, the overall change being something like 50 degrees in the axis. And then I ask, of course, can she check the axis on the right eye.

They normally don't change, she said.

You have to check it anyway, I said, just for my mental/emotional health. So she checks it, and we do more #1's vs. #2's, and we end up with exactly no change.

And I was still trying to process all this, as I am now. Does this mean I have two pretty good eyes? I think so. But I really won't believe it until I get the new glasses.

Off to the optician in a little while. Keeping my fingers crossed.

C • Wow! 5

Thought it was time to do a proper 5K, but didn't see any reason to choose a course of the standard "flat and fast" variety. So over to South Sugarloaf, just across the river, two loops, the first on trails, the second up and down the road.

The first time up had me worn out pretty quickly, to the extent that much of the time coming down was devoted to thinking about whether one lap was going to be it for the day. But going up the road, just walking, was a lot easier, as was coming down it at the end.

Overall, nice job of pacing myself, negative splits. The course turned out to be right on 5K. And the time certainly leaves room for improvement. :-)

My route from yesterday at Moreau.

Time for another trip down memory lane, the joy once again courtesy of Attackpoint.

I was looking up when I had last been at Moreau. Seems it was May 2013, US Middle Champs, Brown course, speed through the woods 17:46/mile but only out for 31 minutes.

And then I remembered that the Billygoat had come up at some point during our car ride yesterday, I'd remembered that I'd walked it but couldn't remember how close I'd been to 3.5 hours. It seems that was in May 2012, and I made it around in 2:45, 20:03/mile.

And then, since I was there, also read the log entries for the day.

Still smiling as I wrote this....

Visiting Ratlum Mountain. Hiked out to Indian Council Rocks, in all the years I've visit the area I'd never been to the rocks. Certainly no need for them to feel any inferiority to their Pawtuckaway relatives.

Not much zip, but then there was no need for any zip. A few stops along the way, including one where we were serenaded by a couple of tree frogs (ID courtesy of Charlie).

And then back to Ratlum for good food, drink, conversation, cats, and an awesome video of mama bear trying to get her four tiny cubs across a busy road. Seems like herding bear cubs is just as hard as herding cats.

Up to the start, feeling old/slow/tired, but entertained by the birds.

C • old, slow, tired 9

Green course at Moreau SP, 5.5 km, EMPO remote O. You could use UsynligO and have your phone sing when you got close. Passed on that, so just looking for the streamers.

Orienteering pretty well, but effed up the last control, a look at Glen's track shows I never was at the right place. Was tired, feeling the heat (mid 80s). 90 minutes is way longer than I'm used to and I guess my brain wasn't up to the task. Interesting, didn't get pissed, just mostly gave up, wandered around a bit, eventually shuffled off to the finish, glad to be done.

Also messed up #2. I was in the right place and didn't see the streamer, nor, when I did find the streamer, could I find the reentrant it was supposed to be in. Whatever, moved on.

Carpooled with Phil and Charlie, excellent as to be expected. Met up with Charlie at the Tesla Superchargers in Lee, which led to some reminiscing about my Tesla days. And saw David Hunter and Janet Findlay in the parking lot, nice to catch up a bit.

Thanks to EMPO (Grant Staats course setter, I think) for doing this! Though I think I should think twice about heading out when it's hot, tips the balance between satisfaction and struggle too much in the direction of the latter.

C • think twice about heading out when it's hot 2

From the finish back down to the parking lot. Feeling wobbly.

C • Wobbly 2

Green - Splits

With Gail, north along the river, back through Montague Center.

On Mount Toby. From the gate, over to the start of the power line power climb, hike up it to the top, ran back on the jeep road. Longer than usual outing. Already getting warm, about 80 when I was done. Not croaked, but probably would have taken much more.

With Gail. Warm, gusty NW breeze.

Event: EMPO Moreau Lake SP (UsynligO)
 

Rattlesnake Gutter road (dirt). Actually ran the ups this time, a gentle pace so no particular suffering. Excellent!

Have to take pleasure in a good outing. :-)

And apparently the word spread quickly, because by the time I got home, Ms. Turkey had already dropped by to celebrate.

With Gail, to the north. Getting a little bit faster.

Bring-your-own-map at Earl's Trails, Green course, 4.8 km, set by Phil. Very nice course.

Warm day, low 80s, felt quite hot actually. So not a whole lot of energy. It also seemed like woods aren't as nice as I remember them. Note that that doesn't mean it's true, just my perception. Certainly there is stuff I used just run through without much thought. But not now.

Anyway, got around OK. Didn't think I could break an hour, expected to break 70 minutes but that didn't seem to happen. Hot weather has never been my friend and today was no different.

But I did get around without doing any damage to myself.

Livelox

Green - Splits

With Gail, north.

Short ride north along the river and back, lovely afternoon, breeze from the NW.

From the gate at the start of the Mount Toby jeep road, up the road not quite two miles, then back on the Link and the Robert Frost. Good effort, running the gradual ups but walking anything more. A bunch of rocky downhills on the way back.

Nice day, 60, sunny and low humidity, NW winds (hence the choice of route).

Who Knew and North Mountain as far as the power line.

Short ride just before dinner. Legs were well rested.

Event: NEOC Earls Trails BYOM
 

In Austin, with my brother around Town Lake, wide mostly dirt path. Beautiful morning, sunny, low 60s, low humidity. Ran the whole way, easy pace, felt pretty good.

With Donna in West Austin.

Flew to Austin to visit my brother and his family, including the part that lives in Denver. First time on a plane in 18 months, ditto for seeing them. Wonderful (well, at least the seeing them part).

Dealt with the flying part pretty well. Lots of thunderstorms in the Atlanta area, enough to make for some rough air, enough to have us heading to Austin by first going south for 100 miles, but fortunately not right over the Atlanta airport. Kept my anxiety pretty much under control. And no real sense of vulnerability in the planes or airports (hopefully justifiably so). Another step in getting back to normal.

Rattlesnake Gutter road, just a little bit of walking. Working harder at the end but not feeling too bad.

Yesterday was election day in Sunderland, local offices only. My term on the school committee was up, but I wanted to serve another as I know I contribute a lot. There was a second seat up for election too, but she decided that her two terms were enough. Usually it's a problem finding folks willing to serve, so I figured we'd recruit someone and than that would be it, still an election but not contested.

Wrong. We recruited someone but then two others got themselves on the ballot and now there was a contest, 4 candidates, two seats, voters can vote for up to two and the top two get seats.

Not really what I had bargained for. I was somewhat pissed, not wanting to deal with campaigning (such as it is in a very small town), but also not really wanting to lose.

After some thought I decided that a phrase that I have used in the past also could apply here -- I should treat the election and the campaign as an "interesting life experience." Meaning, it will be something that you might not enjoy, but you might learn something, there's a value to doing something new, and with the right attitude it might not be that bad,

I had a campaign manager of sorts, another committee member who knew lots of people and wanted me to stay on the committee. That was good for morale. There were two things I figured I needed to do. One was to talk to folks I had known over the years here. The other was to prepare for the debate.

I made a list of folks I thought I should contact, came up to about 40. I really had little desire to start calling on them, but at some point it had to be done. And, as I had hoped this interesting life experience might be, there were certainly positive aspects. A variety of conversations ranging from a couple of minutes to half an hour, every single one positive. I kept it up until a couple of days ago, got just about all the way through my list. Last one was a guy I've known for a long time, conservative, concerned that the anti-racism curriculum that the school started working on last fall would also contain a bunch of liberal indoctrination. Went to his house a few mornings ago, coffee at the kitchen table, walked out not quite two hours later, big smile. Great conversation, a lot of life stories on both sides, figuring out where you had things in common, where you had differences. Just a joy.

The other part was the debate, more precisely a Candidates Forum. Zoom meeting, moderated by the library director. The rules were that you had up to ten minutes for an opening statement, then there would be questions from the audience, then at some point a couple of minutes for a closing statement.

I am used to speaking off the cuff, also used to speaking before crowds, but I figured it was best if I actually wrote out my opening statement. So I did, the day before. And read it through, about 5 minutes. And then edited it, and edited it some more, and some more, finally about 7 minutes, and read it through a bunch of times. Just because, well, I may be used to speaking before crowds but that doesn't mean I don't get nervous. Seriously nervous.

But the moment it started the nerves went away. And it was another interesting life experience in the best sense of the phrase. When it was over I had the feeling I'd done really well.

But you still never know who is going to vote.

And so yesterday, back with the nervous routine. Silly, really, my life would be a lot simpler if I lost. But as much as it adds stress to my life, especially the last 13 months as we have dealt with the changing circumstances of the Covid era, I still really like it. Like the fact that I make a serious contribution.

The Town Clerk called me up a while after the polls closed. 198 voters showed up (about a 10% turnout), I had 153 votes, the woman we had recruited had 95, the other two 53 and 49. What can you do but smile. And then talk to the Town Clerk -- I've known her for some 30 years -- for probably half an hour, just about stuff in town, real good vibes.

Another big smile, and at this point in life, smiles are always a good thing.

-- The flyer for the Candidates Forum
-- The Candidates Forum on Youtube, if you are really bored. I'm the third speaker, and then there are a bunch of interesting questions that we all respond to.
-- Article in today's local paper.
-- Note that very observant readers of this log might recognize the photo I submitted. It was this one, suitably cropped. :-)

C • Congratulations 9

With Gail, to the north. Seems there was rain on the way that I wasn't aware of, but the wind was picking up as got home and the rain came a few minutes later.