This was an interesting week. I was interviewed by the CT Post for my work to raise money for Scouts Can (Habitat) and LiveSTRONG. It should be coming out soon in one of the editions this week. I'm excited... not for me being in the paper, but for the chance it gives me to further my fundraising and shirt memorial. My local By Scout District did a press release to many of the Fairfield and New Haven county media outlets so hopefully many others will pick this up as well.
I have been very much under the weather since Sunday and tests today were inconclusive but two possibilities are a stomach ulcer (not surprising with everything going on and all the stress) and possibly having become lactose intolerant. For those of you who know me, if the latter were to turn out to be true, that would be devastating! I love milk and my family and I go through a gallon every two days. I sure hope that is not the issue causing my GI distress. Today was much better, I actually ran about 4 miles so hopefully I am getting over it now.
Jan is leaving for an MCC (Monroe Congregational Church) church mission trip to Oaxaca, Mexico on Saturday morning so it feels very funny. Usually it is I who leaves on a trip with Jan staying behind with the kids. The opposite will be true for the next week and I'll sure miss her but she is doing something very good and I could not be more proud of her going down to help out at the Simply Smiles orphanage and building a house for one of the local dump families. If you want to learn more about where she is going, go to http://www.simplysmiles.org its a wonderful organization started by a young man from CT named Brian Nuremberger who has done so much for so many people there who have so little. The power of people is just amazing!
LiveSTRONG Jan and my other MCC friends! And safe travels...
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Race & Journey-to-Date Reflections
I met two very special people on the run (not to mention the many other nice folks I met). A police officer who carried a flag up the mountain, it was a black flag with a blue stripe through it, for an organization called the “Thin Blue Line.” He was honoring his fallen comrades in the US the police forces. In the flag, the blue line represents each officer who daily protects our nation. The black background was designed as a constant reminder of their fallen brother and sister officers. There was also a retired US Marine who carried a 3’ x 5’ American flag on a pole the whole way from the bottom to top and he has done this I think 12 times already! Wow, what a patriot and what a heroic man to honor the Corp and his country that way! It was hard to run up the mountain period, it must have been brutal to run up carrying those flags, especially in the wind above the treeline. They had to have some powerful motivation to make it to the top and I salute them both for succeeding!
Yesterday I carried the names and spirits of 23 special people to the summit of Mt Washington on my shoulders. I couldn’t help but reflect on that as I stood on top of the little brass USGS marker for the official summit. Minutes after I finished and before I started looking for my ride in earnest, I walked alone to that point to be able to say I brought your loved ones to the very top, not just the finish line. Later I took a photograph there but the first time I just went up alone to reflect on where I am in this journey of mine. This journey has become so much more than just 3 races for me, I feel a huge responsibility to get to the top each time because of what my shirt stands for now. I feel a tremendous drive to get to the finish line and my life and my perspective on it will not be the same after I have completed the journey.
I won’t break records for fundraising and I won’t break race records, but I’ve met some special people whom I would have never known and I learned much more about my friends and their family and friends so far. I have learned more about the struggles people have gone through or are going through due to cancer. I have spoken more in depth with others who feel equally strongly about what a wonderful program Habitat for Humanity is and how we need to help others less fortunate than ourselves. We cannot push through life amassing personal possessions and not stopping to enjoy our amazing world and the fantastic people around us for there is no guarantee of what tomorrow will bring. We cannot blindly pass by others who need an extra boost to make a decent life for their family too. Every one of us must, as they say, “get out of the stands and onto the court,” because if you are not doing something to make a difference, you are merely a spectator with no impact in this world.
To my Scouts in Troop 63, I encourage you to take the Scout Slogan seriously every day and do something to help other people. What's most important in life is not having the newest iPhone v2 or a PS3 or XBox, it's not buying a new car either, what's most important is knowing that you are leaving a wake of kindness in your path and its ripples will cause others to remember and imitate your actions too.
I am… Running for Other People’s Lives!
Yesterday I carried the names and spirits of 23 special people to the summit of Mt Washington on my shoulders. I couldn’t help but reflect on that as I stood on top of the little brass USGS marker for the official summit. Minutes after I finished and before I started looking for my ride in earnest, I walked alone to that point to be able to say I brought your loved ones to the very top, not just the finish line. Later I took a photograph there but the first time I just went up alone to reflect on where I am in this journey of mine. This journey has become so much more than just 3 races for me, I feel a huge responsibility to get to the top each time because of what my shirt stands for now. I feel a tremendous drive to get to the finish line and my life and my perspective on it will not be the same after I have completed the journey.
I won’t break records for fundraising and I won’t break race records, but I’ve met some special people whom I would have never known and I learned much more about my friends and their family and friends so far. I have learned more about the struggles people have gone through or are going through due to cancer. I have spoken more in depth with others who feel equally strongly about what a wonderful program Habitat for Humanity is and how we need to help others less fortunate than ourselves. We cannot push through life amassing personal possessions and not stopping to enjoy our amazing world and the fantastic people around us for there is no guarantee of what tomorrow will bring. We cannot blindly pass by others who need an extra boost to make a decent life for their family too. Every one of us must, as they say, “get out of the stands and onto the court,” because if you are not doing something to make a difference, you are merely a spectator with no impact in this world.
To my Scouts in Troop 63, I encourage you to take the Scout Slogan seriously every day and do something to help other people. What's most important in life is not having the newest iPhone v2 or a PS3 or XBox, it's not buying a new car either, what's most important is knowing that you are leaving a wake of kindness in your path and its ripples will cause others to remember and imitate your actions too.
I am… Running for Other People’s Lives!
Mt Washington Epilogue
As every big run had shown up to this time, there would be big logistical challenges before the start. It turned out that our GPS had the Mt Washington Cog Railroad programmed into as a local attraction so when I jumped out of the car at the starting area, Jan and the kids let it take them to their destination. Here’s the kicker… it actually had the WRONG location programmed in! They were late, lost and in the end missed the train by 4 minutes so they never got to see me run. I felt horrible for them. It must have been a terrible feeling watching that train head up the mountain without them… especially since the $180 of tickets were non-refundable and non-transferrable so that was money out the window. Oh well, its only money. I will say this... the kids told me she said a couple of choice words along about that time in the car :-) tsk, tsk
Well I know now that I have a LOT of work to do to get ready for Pike’s Peak once I take a few days of slow and easy. I felt so ready, but my legs were SO spent at the end. I focused on training slow for the last few months but I think I need to change that through June and July. I think I need to keep my long run on the weekends but make it even longer and then my other two quality runs during the week need to be all about speed to strengthen my muscles. My weekly hill workout will probably change to being mile repeats at a 12 degree incline with lots more speed in the repeats instead of just a long slow run at expected race pace. My weekly tempo run will speed up gradually and lengthen up as well to where I’m working much harder. I’ll need to consult the “rundoc” (my friend Paul) for more advice as well on why I cramped up because if I cramp up at 6 miles on Pike’s Peak I’m toast with 7.3 miles left.
Pike’s Peak is different though… it is mostly trail running and it has a number of breaks from hills… there are flats, there are downhills and there is altitude. I feel like I can be ready for the altitude with my Altolab trainer and the 1.5 weeks in CO ahead of the race. I just need to get my legs ready…
LiveSTRONG my friends!
Well I know now that I have a LOT of work to do to get ready for Pike’s Peak once I take a few days of slow and easy. I felt so ready, but my legs were SO spent at the end. I focused on training slow for the last few months but I think I need to change that through June and July. I think I need to keep my long run on the weekends but make it even longer and then my other two quality runs during the week need to be all about speed to strengthen my muscles. My weekly hill workout will probably change to being mile repeats at a 12 degree incline with lots more speed in the repeats instead of just a long slow run at expected race pace. My weekly tempo run will speed up gradually and lengthen up as well to where I’m working much harder. I’ll need to consult the “rundoc” (my friend Paul) for more advice as well on why I cramped up because if I cramp up at 6 miles on Pike’s Peak I’m toast with 7.3 miles left.
Pike’s Peak is different though… it is mostly trail running and it has a number of breaks from hills… there are flats, there are downhills and there is altitude. I feel like I can be ready for the altitude with my Altolab trainer and the 1.5 weeks in CO ahead of the race. I just need to get my legs ready…
LiveSTRONG my friends!
Mt Washington: Mile By Mile
Mile 1: It was pretty steep and the crowds were heavy so I had to work to keep a pace of 11:00 to 12:00. Some good folks were quickly hurting here and breathing hard. I was not. I will say however that the incline was an unexpected steady 18% which was much more than I expected at the start.
Mile 2: It was pretty steep (that’ll be a theme here!) and the crowds were finally thinning out to where I could run unencumbered. I didn’t run any faster however, my pace was my pace and I wasn’t about to blow out my legs at the bottom. Breathing was still fine too but the incline was still well above the 11.5% average with stretches of 18% still... very hard on the legs.
Mile 3: It was pretty steep and my legs were tiring, I had started out feeling that I could last at least until mile 6 before I did some power walking but this was where I had to make a change to save my legs for the top. I walked for about .1 miles and then went back to running again for another mile. At 3.8 miles I was exactly half way. I’m not sure whose dumb idea it was, but they had music blaring at the half-way point… no it wasn't Eye of the Tiger or Chariots of Fire or Run Like the Wind, it wasn't an up tempo get-your-blood-flowing rock mix, instead it was terrible, horrible, dull Christmas music. As I passed I heard Hark the Herald Angels Sing playing and I couldn’t believe my ears!
Mile 4: It was pretty steep but I was past half way! We were now at what I’ll call the “rubber banding” phase. Those of us at the same approximate time would pass one another while running and be passed again while power walking only to repeat it again and again so a group of us started to hook up and synchronize to pull one another along. I met a guy named Marc from Rhode Island who was a great buddy the rest of the way and we ran with a number of other men and women nearly in a pack for the rest of the way. I knew now that I wouldn’t make my stretch goal of breaking 1:30 but I couldn’t allow myself to finish slower than 1:45 because that would be a huge blow to my Pike’s Peak confidence.
Mile 5: The trees were very scrubby now, and my legs were very fatigued (I won’t bother to say it was pretty steep anymore, that goes without saying). A guy I had met the night before said that the first half was much worse than the second. He lied! The second half was starting out to be mental torture. It felt just as steep (really wasn't), and with little to no tree cover now I could see up a few switchbacks to where other runners were. It looked so close but was SO HARD to get to! I have to say there were some nasty switchbacks and hills in here that took anything you had left in your tank. My cardio was great, I wasn't breathing hard at all yet, but my legs were tiring fast and my left hip flexor was getting sore but my oft gimpy Achilles tendons were GREAT so I felt confident all the same.
Mile 6: Seeing this sign was such a relief! I was now only 1.6 miles from the summit! I was now above the tree line and it was only rocks and moss around. At one point I looked down and could see the starting area WAY down below and I could also see probably 2 miles back down to a switch back where there still quite a few people and I felt good that I wasn't still down there. That actually gave me some extra push. Unfortunately right about there was where my right calf decided to knot up. Whenever it would knot up I would walk in a funky way to try and stretch it without stopping then start running again. The funky walking however led to my left quadriceps knotting up so I was then in a pinch. When my calf would cramp up I’d walk for a bit to loosen it and then my quad would knot up so I’d go back to running. It would continue this way to the end unfortunately.
Mile 7: We could kind of see the summit up there a few twists and turns ahead. I had a little bit left in the tank to give it that last kick because I had been alternating walking a running quite a bit for the last mile with cramps but because of those cramps there would be no sprint to the finish for me. The last 100-200 meters is a 30 degree incline. You may look at your handy-dandy compass and say “that ain’t so bad” but let me tell you, IT IS! Especially at 6,200 feet and after 7.5 miles and 4,600 feet of hill climbing before that. And on that last hill the race photographers are perched ready to catch us at our best slogging it up to the finish line. I’m sure mine is quite pathetic but we’ll see when the pictures are posted online.
The Finish Line: Yes! As I approached the finish line I heard the announcer say “and here comes Scott Redfern from Monroe, CT!” and it felt great to be there with quite a big crowd cheering for all of us! You know what? I all of a sudden had a ton of energy! I bounced around the flat finish area like I had just been on a short jaunt, I was looking for my ride down and my family but could find neither. I had only met Jim and Kim Whitehouse the night before for about 5 minutes to give Kim (the car driver) my bag of dry warm clothes for the summit and I thought I remembered what she looked like and what she said she’d be wearing. I had seen Jim at mile 4 and lost him so I wasn't sure where or if he had finished. 10 minutes later still no family and still no Jim or Kim. 15 minutes later, I heard the finish line announcer call out “Jim Whitehouse from NH” and I turned and ran for the finish line so I wouldn’t lose Jim as well. We soon found Kim looking quite like a pack mule with 5 bags on her back shoulders and arms for the 5 runners she would cart down the hill later. I had been looking for Kim in the wrong colored jacket so I probably looked right past her numerous times. I saw the “King of the Mountains” man finish just under 2 hours as he had planned and looking quite spent… great run King! I got my obligatory pictures taken at the top and we prepared to head back down the mountain to the food tent and celebration at the base once the road opened 3:02 after the race started.
Mile 2: It was pretty steep (that’ll be a theme here!) and the crowds were finally thinning out to where I could run unencumbered. I didn’t run any faster however, my pace was my pace and I wasn’t about to blow out my legs at the bottom. Breathing was still fine too but the incline was still well above the 11.5% average with stretches of 18% still... very hard on the legs.
Mile 3: It was pretty steep and my legs were tiring, I had started out feeling that I could last at least until mile 6 before I did some power walking but this was where I had to make a change to save my legs for the top. I walked for about .1 miles and then went back to running again for another mile. At 3.8 miles I was exactly half way. I’m not sure whose dumb idea it was, but they had music blaring at the half-way point… no it wasn't Eye of the Tiger or Chariots of Fire or Run Like the Wind, it wasn't an up tempo get-your-blood-flowing rock mix, instead it was terrible, horrible, dull Christmas music. As I passed I heard Hark the Herald Angels Sing playing and I couldn’t believe my ears!
Mile 4: It was pretty steep but I was past half way! We were now at what I’ll call the “rubber banding” phase. Those of us at the same approximate time would pass one another while running and be passed again while power walking only to repeat it again and again so a group of us started to hook up and synchronize to pull one another along. I met a guy named Marc from Rhode Island who was a great buddy the rest of the way and we ran with a number of other men and women nearly in a pack for the rest of the way. I knew now that I wouldn’t make my stretch goal of breaking 1:30 but I couldn’t allow myself to finish slower than 1:45 because that would be a huge blow to my Pike’s Peak confidence.
Mile 5: The trees were very scrubby now, and my legs were very fatigued (I won’t bother to say it was pretty steep anymore, that goes without saying). A guy I had met the night before said that the first half was much worse than the second. He lied! The second half was starting out to be mental torture. It felt just as steep (really wasn't), and with little to no tree cover now I could see up a few switchbacks to where other runners were. It looked so close but was SO HARD to get to! I have to say there were some nasty switchbacks and hills in here that took anything you had left in your tank. My cardio was great, I wasn't breathing hard at all yet, but my legs were tiring fast and my left hip flexor was getting sore but my oft gimpy Achilles tendons were GREAT so I felt confident all the same.
Mile 6: Seeing this sign was such a relief! I was now only 1.6 miles from the summit! I was now above the tree line and it was only rocks and moss around. At one point I looked down and could see the starting area WAY down below and I could also see probably 2 miles back down to a switch back where there still quite a few people and I felt good that I wasn't still down there. That actually gave me some extra push. Unfortunately right about there was where my right calf decided to knot up. Whenever it would knot up I would walk in a funky way to try and stretch it without stopping then start running again. The funky walking however led to my left quadriceps knotting up so I was then in a pinch. When my calf would cramp up I’d walk for a bit to loosen it and then my quad would knot up so I’d go back to running. It would continue this way to the end unfortunately.
Mile 7: We could kind of see the summit up there a few twists and turns ahead. I had a little bit left in the tank to give it that last kick because I had been alternating walking a running quite a bit for the last mile with cramps but because of those cramps there would be no sprint to the finish for me. The last 100-200 meters is a 30 degree incline. You may look at your handy-dandy compass and say “that ain’t so bad” but let me tell you, IT IS! Especially at 6,200 feet and after 7.5 miles and 4,600 feet of hill climbing before that. And on that last hill the race photographers are perched ready to catch us at our best slogging it up to the finish line. I’m sure mine is quite pathetic but we’ll see when the pictures are posted online.
The Finish Line: Yes! As I approached the finish line I heard the announcer say “and here comes Scott Redfern from Monroe, CT!” and it felt great to be there with quite a big crowd cheering for all of us! You know what? I all of a sudden had a ton of energy! I bounced around the flat finish area like I had just been on a short jaunt, I was looking for my ride down and my family but could find neither. I had only met Jim and Kim Whitehouse the night before for about 5 minutes to give Kim (the car driver) my bag of dry warm clothes for the summit and I thought I remembered what she looked like and what she said she’d be wearing. I had seen Jim at mile 4 and lost him so I wasn't sure where or if he had finished. 10 minutes later still no family and still no Jim or Kim. 15 minutes later, I heard the finish line announcer call out “Jim Whitehouse from NH” and I turned and ran for the finish line so I wouldn’t lose Jim as well. We soon found Kim looking quite like a pack mule with 5 bags on her back shoulders and arms for the 5 runners she would cart down the hill later. I had been looking for Kim in the wrong colored jacket so I probably looked right past her numerous times. I saw the “King of the Mountains” man finish just under 2 hours as he had planned and looking quite spent… great run King! I got my obligatory pictures taken at the top and we prepared to head back down the mountain to the food tent and celebration at the base once the road opened 3:02 after the race started.
Mt Washington Race Day!
Well I did it, I made it up Mt Washington! I made it on foot power alone. I made it without stopping. I made it without crawling. But unfortunately I did not make it running the whole way. Yes, I did have to walk at times because my legs got fatigued but I survived.
My goal was to finish around 1 hour 30 minutes, and although I did not make that time I came in at a respectable 1:40:43. The winner was done in just over 1:00 and the cutoff time was 3:02; about 1,000 people started, 859 finished and I placed 337… since it was the US Mountain Running Championship race with an elite group of mountain runners from around the country I think I did well. So here’s how the day started out…
I was up at 6am and ate my usual pre-race breakfast consisting of a banana and grapefruit with whole wheat toast and jam (would have preferred a whole grain bagel). By 7:30am I was like a caged lion in the hotel room while my family got ready. I wasn't really nervous but I was very anxious to get going and just pacing the room. I had checked in for the race the night before so all I needed to do was show up at the starting line, but I still just wanted to get there. My daughter Erica started singing The Lion Sleeps Tonight and I couldn’t get it out of my head so I went off to the race singing it in that high voice that the song is recorded in (though not nearly as well). My family dropped me off at the starting area and headed off to the Cog Railroad to meet me at the top.
I called the Mt Washington Autoroad office to get a report on the summit, and it was expected to be about 44 degrees at the summit at race time with 20+ MPH winds and a chance of rain… just as weather.com had predicted a day earlier so I knew I needed some warmth for above the tree line.
The prerace flew by… I stretched, I drank, I took my Gu electrolyte gel, I warmed up, and because I was so anxious I went to the bathroom 3 times and still needed to go again at the starting line! I felt ready though. I was unsure about wearing my long sleeved shirt under my sleeveless race jersey because it was about 65 degrees at the base and I was quite warm in it after doing my warm up. I stuck with it though because I knew above the tree line with the wind and lower temps I would be glad.
I spoke to a guy before the start who had a funky outfit on. He had very long black socks on, long black shorts and for you Tour de France aficionados, he wore the white with red polka dot “King of the Mountains” jersey. He said he wasn’t really the king of this mountain and was going to be happy to come in around 2 hours. Many of us had some pretty “outstanding” outfits to make us recognizable in the crowd.
The starting gun is actually a canon. I knew this but it still scared the tar out of me when it went off! I took off slowly with 1,000 of my closest running buddies. There is literally about a .1 mile slight downhill/flat at the very start and there wasn’t a single downhill or flat place again until we reached the summit 7.5 miles later. The Mount Washington Auto Road turned up as soon we hit the trees and never let up again… not for a second!
My goal was to finish around 1 hour 30 minutes, and although I did not make that time I came in at a respectable 1:40:43. The winner was done in just over 1:00 and the cutoff time was 3:02; about 1,000 people started, 859 finished and I placed 337… since it was the US Mountain Running Championship race with an elite group of mountain runners from around the country I think I did well. So here’s how the day started out…
I was up at 6am and ate my usual pre-race breakfast consisting of a banana and grapefruit with whole wheat toast and jam (would have preferred a whole grain bagel). By 7:30am I was like a caged lion in the hotel room while my family got ready. I wasn't really nervous but I was very anxious to get going and just pacing the room. I had checked in for the race the night before so all I needed to do was show up at the starting line, but I still just wanted to get there. My daughter Erica started singing The Lion Sleeps Tonight and I couldn’t get it out of my head so I went off to the race singing it in that high voice that the song is recorded in (though not nearly as well). My family dropped me off at the starting area and headed off to the Cog Railroad to meet me at the top.
I called the Mt Washington Autoroad office to get a report on the summit, and it was expected to be about 44 degrees at the summit at race time with 20+ MPH winds and a chance of rain… just as weather.com had predicted a day earlier so I knew I needed some warmth for above the tree line.
The prerace flew by… I stretched, I drank, I took my Gu electrolyte gel, I warmed up, and because I was so anxious I went to the bathroom 3 times and still needed to go again at the starting line! I felt ready though. I was unsure about wearing my long sleeved shirt under my sleeveless race jersey because it was about 65 degrees at the base and I was quite warm in it after doing my warm up. I stuck with it though because I knew above the tree line with the wind and lower temps I would be glad.
I spoke to a guy before the start who had a funky outfit on. He had very long black socks on, long black shorts and for you Tour de France aficionados, he wore the white with red polka dot “King of the Mountains” jersey. He said he wasn’t really the king of this mountain and was going to be happy to come in around 2 hours. Many of us had some pretty “outstanding” outfits to make us recognizable in the crowd.
The starting gun is actually a canon. I knew this but it still scared the tar out of me when it went off! I took off slowly with 1,000 of my closest running buddies. There is literally about a .1 mile slight downhill/flat at the very start and there wasn’t a single downhill or flat place again until we reached the summit 7.5 miles later. The Mount Washington Auto Road turned up as soon we hit the trees and never let up again… not for a second!
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
I'm BACK!
I started this post a while ago but my life has been SO hectic for the past few weeks that I couldn't even find the time to get it posted. So here it is a few days in arrears.
Well this past 2 weeks has been tough! I have been swamped at work, with the end of year events for Boy Scouts and my workout routine. Put that together with not enough sleep and you have the perfect recipe for getting sick and sick I was. The day of my last entry, I was socked by a bad cold which hasn't wanted to go away. My chest and sinuses have been congested and my lung capacity has been decreased, making it tough to get quality workouts in. What keeps me going is the commitment to each of you and to the memories and successes of good people we are honoring on my shirt. If it wasn't for that I think I would cry uncle sometimes.
I had to stop my altitude training because of the cold and congestion. Even when I resumed it recently, pure exhaustion caused me to literally fall asleep while doing my high altitude breathing sessions. I am simulating 20,000 to 30,000 feet (Mt Everest) for short bursts to cause my body to start reacting and building more red blood cells to compensate and carry more oxygen to my muscles and vital organs. That thin air however makes me very light-headed even for short bursts and combine that with just being plain old tired and you get Scott falling asleep with the tube in his mouth... even worse, Scott falling asleep, tube falling out and Scott slumped over drooling :-) Jan wants to snap a picture next time to post on the web site, how nice!
I'm going to cut this short and actually get some sleep tonight. I'll post again soon.
Well this past 2 weeks has been tough! I have been swamped at work, with the end of year events for Boy Scouts and my workout routine. Put that together with not enough sleep and you have the perfect recipe for getting sick and sick I was. The day of my last entry, I was socked by a bad cold which hasn't wanted to go away. My chest and sinuses have been congested and my lung capacity has been decreased, making it tough to get quality workouts in. What keeps me going is the commitment to each of you and to the memories and successes of good people we are honoring on my shirt. If it wasn't for that I think I would cry uncle sometimes.
I had to stop my altitude training because of the cold and congestion. Even when I resumed it recently, pure exhaustion caused me to literally fall asleep while doing my high altitude breathing sessions. I am simulating 20,000 to 30,000 feet (Mt Everest) for short bursts to cause my body to start reacting and building more red blood cells to compensate and carry more oxygen to my muscles and vital organs. That thin air however makes me very light-headed even for short bursts and combine that with just being plain old tired and you get Scott falling asleep with the tube in his mouth... even worse, Scott falling asleep, tube falling out and Scott slumped over drooling :-) Jan wants to snap a picture next time to post on the web site, how nice!
I'm going to cut this short and actually get some sleep tonight. I'll post again soon.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
The Ryan B Spirit Award
I didn't win a trophy for being fast today at the Sprint for DARE, but I was honored for something ultimately more important. I was honored with the "Spirit Award" which is now named after a young man who inspires us all to persevere when faced with the greatest of challenges. The award is given tor an individual who shows courage and personal conviction and it was given to me due to my journey to the top of Pike's Peak and the awareness campaigns I have attached to my journey.
It's not the award that means so much to me however, its the young man whom it is now named after that gives the award so much meaning. I have been running the Sprint for DARE for many years now and this young man, Ryan B (sorry once again I'll withhold his last name for internet safety), has been too. A number of years back he was in a serious accident and sustained a traumatic brain injury that severely affected his motors skills and could no longer walk, but the next year he was back out there doing the Sprint for DARE in his motorized wheel chair... wow, how humbling yet inspirational for the rest of us! He finished with his family at his side and we were all amazed at his perseverance and courage. In the following years I have seen him each year and cheered him on as I pass by, Ryan has graduated from his motorized wheel chair to crutches to canes and every year he completes that 3.1 mile course with us! As big a challenge as it is for me to run up the slopes of Pike's Peak, that challenge is nothing to compared to Ryan's and his family's. I look forward to one day when he can again navigate the Sprint for DARE's course unencumbered by any artificial supports and hopefully even run it again some time after that. I am proud to have received an award with Ryan's name on it. I felt that it was karma today, as I walked up front I noticed that Ryan too was wearing a bright yellow LiveSTRONG shirt... just like me!
I will paraphrase what Lance Armstrong has said of his "LiveSTRONG" mantra... yellow is more than just the color of the Tour de France's leader jersey. It's a symbol for hope, courage, and perseverance; it inspires people to overcome adversity and adopt the channeled, focused energy that Lance used in his own battle with cancer.
Keep living STRONG Ryan and Mikey and Carole and Mom and Karen and Kelsey and Regina and Marty and Reese and ...
(you all know who you are and cancer is not the only adversity that we must persevere against in life)
It's not the award that means so much to me however, its the young man whom it is now named after that gives the award so much meaning. I have been running the Sprint for DARE for many years now and this young man, Ryan B (sorry once again I'll withhold his last name for internet safety), has been too. A number of years back he was in a serious accident and sustained a traumatic brain injury that severely affected his motors skills and could no longer walk, but the next year he was back out there doing the Sprint for DARE in his motorized wheel chair... wow, how humbling yet inspirational for the rest of us! He finished with his family at his side and we were all amazed at his perseverance and courage. In the following years I have seen him each year and cheered him on as I pass by, Ryan has graduated from his motorized wheel chair to crutches to canes and every year he completes that 3.1 mile course with us! As big a challenge as it is for me to run up the slopes of Pike's Peak, that challenge is nothing to compared to Ryan's and his family's. I look forward to one day when he can again navigate the Sprint for DARE's course unencumbered by any artificial supports and hopefully even run it again some time after that. I am proud to have received an award with Ryan's name on it. I felt that it was karma today, as I walked up front I noticed that Ryan too was wearing a bright yellow LiveSTRONG shirt... just like me!
I will paraphrase what Lance Armstrong has said of his "LiveSTRONG" mantra... yellow is more than just the color of the Tour de France's leader jersey. It's a symbol for hope, courage, and perseverance; it inspires people to overcome adversity and adopt the channeled, focused energy that Lance used in his own battle with cancer.
Keep living STRONG Ryan and Mikey and Carole and Mom and Karen and Kelsey and Regina and Marty and Reese and ...
(you all know who you are and cancer is not the only adversity that we must persevere against in life)
The Sprint for D.A.R.E.
Okay, so two things made me realize that today I wouldn't quite be "sprint"ing:
1) After my trail run yesterday, my hip was bothering me where I got the rasberry, and my legs were tired. I know wha, wha...
2) My IHT training program, which I had just started last weekend to be ready for the Mt Washington Race in 3 weeks, was quite clear in saying that my performance would decline for the first 7 days and then begin to improve.
I proclaimed to myself that it was okay that I would not get a PR (personal record) here on my home course, and that it was more important that I got my hill and trail workout in the day before and had started my IHT training. That was all a bunch of hooey though! It is never okay deep in recesses of my brain to have a subpar day in a race and I would prove that to myself later.
I was a little more nervous today than usual. I always get that prerace jittery excitement, but it was more today because I knew that as people registered, they would also get my bright yellow and black flyer telling them to look for me on the course with my bright yellow shirt. I got up early, ate my prerace banana about 3 hours ahead of time with my milk and vitamins (yes I have very specific rituals before my races... we runners are VERY superstitious). I put on my racing socks, the shoes that I prefer to race in, shorts & special shirt and headed over to open our church for Sunday services. Seems the day I am scheduled to open the church is always a busy day for our family. When I got back home I quickly grabbed my GPS watch and headed out to run the 1.1 miles from my house to the start as a nice easy pre-race warmup.
The Sprint for DARE is such a great race! It is as much about fellowship as it is about a race, we all know each other here in town and spend the pre-race time catching up and encouraging each other. In a bit of a self-preservation mode, we always tell each other why we won't be able to perform as well as we should too. I fell yesterday and was sore, my friend John has a gimpy achilles, one of my Scouts was sore from his overzealous run on Friday, another friend had a bad back acting up, etc. etc. etc.
Remember when I said that it's NEVER okay to have a bad day? Even when you say it is? Well that became abundantly clear at the starting line. I made sure to work my way up in front of all the people I felt would not be finishing in front of me. I saw my wife and kids and was bouncing up and down waving so they could see me but it was no use, I just looked rather silly and they had no idea where I was in the middle of the mass of people. When the gun went off, I was flying down the road towards the first turn at a comfortable pace and when I reached the first mile marker I had clocked a 6:04 first mile. Fast enough for a PR but way faster than I should have been trying to run. The second mile taught me a lesson, my quads started to fatigue from my mountain run the day before and the mild hill slowed me down considerably, even though I continued to pass other runners. In mile 3 I hit the biggest hill (not very) and continued to pick off other runners as I caught up to one of my Scouts who was slowing on the hill. All he needed to hear was his old Scoutmaster's voice nudging him on from close behind and he sped up amazingly well. I again caught him on the final stretch and that voice from behind was all the motivation he needed to speed up one last time and avoid being beaten by the old guy. I finished 23rd out of about 320 people at a time that was slower than I've run a 5K in years... 20:14 (the official timing says 20:16 but my daughter caught a photo of me crossing the line with the clock in the background as proof that it was 20:14). It truly was a respectable run given that it was not the focal run of my weekend but I would have preferred to at least have broken 20 minutes. Next year I'll break 19 when I am back to training for speed.
1) After my trail run yesterday, my hip was bothering me where I got the rasberry, and my legs were tired. I know wha, wha...
2) My IHT training program, which I had just started last weekend to be ready for the Mt Washington Race in 3 weeks, was quite clear in saying that my performance would decline for the first 7 days and then begin to improve.
I proclaimed to myself that it was okay that I would not get a PR (personal record) here on my home course, and that it was more important that I got my hill and trail workout in the day before and had started my IHT training. That was all a bunch of hooey though! It is never okay deep in recesses of my brain to have a subpar day in a race and I would prove that to myself later.
I was a little more nervous today than usual. I always get that prerace jittery excitement, but it was more today because I knew that as people registered, they would also get my bright yellow and black flyer telling them to look for me on the course with my bright yellow shirt. I got up early, ate my prerace banana about 3 hours ahead of time with my milk and vitamins (yes I have very specific rituals before my races... we runners are VERY superstitious). I put on my racing socks, the shoes that I prefer to race in, shorts & special shirt and headed over to open our church for Sunday services. Seems the day I am scheduled to open the church is always a busy day for our family. When I got back home I quickly grabbed my GPS watch and headed out to run the 1.1 miles from my house to the start as a nice easy pre-race warmup.
The Sprint for DARE is such a great race! It is as much about fellowship as it is about a race, we all know each other here in town and spend the pre-race time catching up and encouraging each other. In a bit of a self-preservation mode, we always tell each other why we won't be able to perform as well as we should too. I fell yesterday and was sore, my friend John has a gimpy achilles, one of my Scouts was sore from his overzealous run on Friday, another friend had a bad back acting up, etc. etc. etc.
Remember when I said that it's NEVER okay to have a bad day? Even when you say it is? Well that became abundantly clear at the starting line. I made sure to work my way up in front of all the people I felt would not be finishing in front of me. I saw my wife and kids and was bouncing up and down waving so they could see me but it was no use, I just looked rather silly and they had no idea where I was in the middle of the mass of people. When the gun went off, I was flying down the road towards the first turn at a comfortable pace and when I reached the first mile marker I had clocked a 6:04 first mile. Fast enough for a PR but way faster than I should have been trying to run. The second mile taught me a lesson, my quads started to fatigue from my mountain run the day before and the mild hill slowed me down considerably, even though I continued to pass other runners. In mile 3 I hit the biggest hill (not very) and continued to pick off other runners as I caught up to one of my Scouts who was slowing on the hill. All he needed to hear was his old Scoutmaster's voice nudging him on from close behind and he sped up amazingly well. I again caught him on the final stretch and that voice from behind was all the motivation he needed to speed up one last time and avoid being beaten by the old guy. I finished 23rd out of about 320 people at a time that was slower than I've run a 5K in years... 20:14 (the official timing says 20:16 but my daughter caught a photo of me crossing the line with the clock in the background as proof that it was 20:14). It truly was a respectable run given that it was not the focal run of my weekend but I would have preferred to at least have broken 20 minutes. Next year I'll break 19 when I am back to training for speed.
A close call... whew... and the irony of it all!
I started out Saturday morning, May 31st to run a much anticipated mountain trail run. The idea was to get in a good 10 miler before the heavens opened up with the forecasted thunderstorms. As any self-respecting Boy Scout would do, I brought along my micropack on my back with a rain shell, a cell phone and a few other emergency things packed away since I would be in a remote area. It felt great to be out in the woods where clearly no one else had been recently based on the lack of tracks or wear on the path, surrounding grasses and rocks. While running I love to noodle on problems at work, challenges with my Scout troop, or things that need work around the house (they never end). I also tend to think about what I should write in my blog about my most recent running experience.
As I careened down a rather steep trail, nearly out of control, I was thinking how much I dislike running on trails that are covered with leaves because you never know what is beneath them... could be a hole, could be a rock, could be a bear (not!). Going so fast I was also thinking that this is exactly what we Scouters (adult Scout leaders) teach our Scouts NOT to do because of the danger of falling and getting hurt. It was at this moment that I had decided I would write in my blog about that feeling so that when my Scouts read my blog they would hear me say it one more time. It was also at this exact moment that the unthinkable happened... I went to scuff my foot through a pile of leaves before me and it turned out to be a very well set rock under a thin coating of leaves. My foot stopped dead in its place and I took a header, tumbling down the trail. When I sat up, had the cuts on my elbow and nice egg on my knee cap not hurt so much I'd have chuckled at the irony of it all! I sat for a minute or two to make sure nothing was badly injured. I had some nice scrapes on my hands and elbow, my kneecap was swollen, I had a nice rasberry on my hip, my shirt was covered with dirt, and leaves were stuffed in my shirt sleeves and jammed between my shirt and pack. All in all, a rather impressive fall :-) I got up and continued to walk then jog down the trail and 1/4 mile later I realized I was not on the right trail! I turned around and ran back up about 1/3 mile, past where I fell to the wrong turn I took. Running uphill actually releaxed me, stretched me out and made me feel much better. I had to chuckle again at the thought that had I not taken a wrong turn (you'd think a Scoutmaster could follow trail markers better), I'd have never come upon that steep, leafy, dangerous place where I took such a nice fall.
The rest of my run was much less eventful. I had planned on running 2 loops around the trails to get to 10 miles but by the time I got back to my car, the egg on my kneecap was starting to hurt and I decided I was time to call it a day. After all I did have a race Sunday where I had 400+ flyers stuffed in the race packets calling everyone's attention to me running in my shirt.
I think I shall take a break from running at Sleeping Giant State Park. The last two times I ran there, I rolled my ankle badly and took a header. I'm in the important season of my training and can't afford any injuries that take me out of my routine.
As I careened down a rather steep trail, nearly out of control, I was thinking how much I dislike running on trails that are covered with leaves because you never know what is beneath them... could be a hole, could be a rock, could be a bear (not!). Going so fast I was also thinking that this is exactly what we Scouters (adult Scout leaders) teach our Scouts NOT to do because of the danger of falling and getting hurt. It was at this moment that I had decided I would write in my blog about that feeling so that when my Scouts read my blog they would hear me say it one more time. It was also at this exact moment that the unthinkable happened... I went to scuff my foot through a pile of leaves before me and it turned out to be a very well set rock under a thin coating of leaves. My foot stopped dead in its place and I took a header, tumbling down the trail. When I sat up, had the cuts on my elbow and nice egg on my knee cap not hurt so much I'd have chuckled at the irony of it all! I sat for a minute or two to make sure nothing was badly injured. I had some nice scrapes on my hands and elbow, my kneecap was swollen, I had a nice rasberry on my hip, my shirt was covered with dirt, and leaves were stuffed in my shirt sleeves and jammed between my shirt and pack. All in all, a rather impressive fall :-) I got up and continued to walk then jog down the trail and 1/4 mile later I realized I was not on the right trail! I turned around and ran back up about 1/3 mile, past where I fell to the wrong turn I took. Running uphill actually releaxed me, stretched me out and made me feel much better. I had to chuckle again at the thought that had I not taken a wrong turn (you'd think a Scoutmaster could follow trail markers better), I'd have never come upon that steep, leafy, dangerous place where I took such a nice fall.
The rest of my run was much less eventful. I had planned on running 2 loops around the trails to get to 10 miles but by the time I got back to my car, the egg on my kneecap was starting to hurt and I decided I was time to call it a day. After all I did have a race Sunday where I had 400+ flyers stuffed in the race packets calling everyone's attention to me running in my shirt.
I think I shall take a break from running at Sleeping Giant State Park. The last two times I ran there, I rolled my ankle badly and took a header. I'm in the important season of my training and can't afford any injuries that take me out of my routine.
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