Army Ten Miler Recap

Before I start in on a wonderful race, I am compelled to share this observation.  The Army 10 Miler (ATM for short) has a large percentage of military and former-military runners, or at least there were a lot running at my pace.  The entire race, I was overwhelmed with a sense of awe and pride and gratitude at these men and women who serve or have served our country in the armed forces.  And whenever I passed a wounded warrior -- in a handcrank or running with one or two prostheses -- it was truly a humbling experience.  If you run or spectate only one race, it should be ATM -- for this experience alone.

Now, sports fans, on with the show.  I was quite apprehensive in the days leading up to ATM.  What would my goal be?  Or should I say goals.  First, run a sub-70 minute race.  Second, run at a sub-3hour marathon pace (6:52 or faster).  Third (based on my speedwork during the past three weeks), run at a 6:30 pace for as long as I could.  All this seemed possible.  Then Thursday night at masters swim, during our last set of 3 x 50 meter sprints, my left calf cramped something fierce!  I breast-stroked to the wall and tried to massage the cramp out -- I could actually feel and see my calf muscle in a tight ball.  The muscle relaxed but was sore as hell.  WTF!  Would I even be able to run on Sunday?  Did all my goals just disappear?  crap crap crap

So I spent the next couple of days with my calf in a compression bandage, rolling it over an iced bottle, sleeping with the heating pad.  Anything to make it bearable Sunday morning.  Well, folks, I guess it worked. When I woke up Sunday at 5am, the calf, although tender to the touch, did not hurt when I walked or did some test strides.  I ate my standard pre-race PBJ, got my gear and headed off the metro.

Like the Marine Corps Marathon, ATM is VERY WELL RUN.  Got out of the metro at the Pentagon, dropped off my gear at bag check, and made my way to the port-a-johns.  Then off to the start.  "Right that way towards the green balloons, SIR" said an Army PFC volunteer.  You see, there were 30,000 registered runners at ATM -- two waves for the start, color-coded starting corrals.  I had a green bib -- second corral, just behind the elite and sub-elite runners.

At precisely 8:00 am, a howitzer fired and we were off.  Well, a minute later I finally crossed the start line.

Miles 1 -3 -- 6:51, 6:35, 6:35
I was feeling good, my calves were slathered in ben-gay, the temperature was great.  BUT,it was really crowded.  My one and only complaint was that the starting corrals were not well marshalled and there were too many, shall we say, non-green bibs getting in my way.  I was not able to get to my target pace that first mile.  But it was a beauty of a mile, running up Route 27 towards Memorial Bridge -- the Potomac to the right, Arlington Cemetary to the left.  Hit the first mile mark just before the bridge at 6:51.

Early morning, crossing Memorial Bridge, mist rising from the Potomac, the sound of thousands of shoes hitting the pavement.  God how I missed that sound.  April 2009 was my last road race.  I know, I know, I've done two 10Ks as the final segments of my triathlons, but it is not the same.  To run fast, to run fresh (not having swum and biked already), that is a unique experience.  And to be surrounded by other runners.  I was awash in a feeling for gratitude that I was not just running but racing again, and racing fast.  Although things were still crowded, I was able to start picking up my pace.  We crossed Memorial Bridge, rounded the Lincoln Memorials on the left and made our way (following a course similar to Marine Corps Marathon) to Constitution.  Hitting the 2 mile mark near the Federal Reserve Building at 6:35 pace.

Turned up 20th Street to Virginia Ave to the first "hill" or rather incline.  I was ready for that (well actually I had no clue about the elevation) but my years of running the hilly MT paid off.  I overheard one runner tell another that this is where the running crowd thins and he was right.  We rounded the Watergate turning south on along the Potomac, and hit the 3 mile mark.  Another 6:35.   Looking good Louis!  Feeling good Billy Ray!

Miles 4 -6 -- 6:37, 6:36, 6:26
After the 3 mile mark,the course went south along the Potomac, past the Kennedy Center, past the Lincoln, towards Independence.  Again, this was following familiar ground of the Marine Corps Marathon.  But at the 4 mile mark, we turned onto Independence rather than continuing on Ohio Drive to the windy and desolate Haines Point (yay 10 miler!!).  Hit the 4 mile mark at 6:37.

We continued along a pleasant Independence Avenue, hitting mile 5 and half way mark at 6:36.  I had been running somewhat conservative all this time.  Would my calf hurt?  Would my pelvic area hurt?  No and no.  Sure, I could feel "something" in the pelvic area, nothing sore though, nothing debilitating.  I was thinking, am I finally back in the racing saddle?  My body seemed to be saying yes.  So at mile 5 I decided I could crank it up a bit.

The sixth mile took us into the main body of the crowd -- along Independence Avenue by the museums (Ag Dept, Hirshorn, Air & Space).  The course would eventually return on the other side of Independence.  At around the 5 1/2 or 5 3/4 mark, I saw the front runner coming back towards the 14th Street bridge.  Holy flying squirrels Batman!  that guy was fast -- easily a mile and half ahead of me.  A few seconds later, more front runners.  Yikes.  But it was inspiring.  Mile 6 was just before we turned left onto 3rd Street.  I hit it in 6:26!


Miles 7 - 9 -- 6:32, 6:35, 6:30

We turned onto 3rd Street to make a loop around theh Capitol Reflecting pool before returning to Independence Blvd.  The water stop was mobbed on the right side of the road, and an Army seargent was yelling no one's on the left!  I took his advice, veered left and had my pick of soldiers from which to choose the perfect cup of gatorade.  Of course to just gulp it down (had to wash down the chocolate gu I had ingested at mile 5).  Just past the water station, there was a woman jogger waiting to cross 3rd street so she could jog along the Mall.  From the look on her face, I get the feeling she was unaware that there was a race today.  She just stood there on the sidewalk jogging in place.  I felt like telling her there are 30,000 runners, you're going to be there for a while unless you just make a mad dash, frogger style, and cross the street.  But then, I was cruising and had no time to talk.  On the back side the reflecting pool, between the pool and Capitol, I passed a double amputee in a hand crank (outstanding performance, brother!) and another amputee with a prosthetic leg (way to go runner!)  I felt a twinge of embarrassment that I had been so depressed over something as minor as a stress fracture.

Anyhow, continued down Independence.  Hit mile 7 around the FAA bldg.  6:32.  Only 3 miles to go.  The crowds were cheering on both sides.  To my right, the bulk of the racers were heading up Independence.  A stream of runners.  I realized that they were probably looking at me and thinking the same thing as I was when I saw the elites.  Or maybe not!  Passed the Agriculture Department again, turned left onto 14th Street, gatoraded up at the last aid station and passed mile 8 mark near the Mint.  6:35.


Two miles to go with just the dreaded 14th Street Bridge. Memories of four Marine Corps Marathons filled my head. I hate this bridge -- at least I do when I hit it at mile 20 or so.  On too many marathons, it would be on this bridge that my pace drifted above the sub-3 hour mark never to return.

But not in a ten miler!  And not today.  I attacked the 14th street bridge with renewed vigor.  After all, I only had 2 miles to go -- less than 14 minutes I told myself.  I picked up the pace, passing tiring runners.  I hit the 9 mile mark at the Virginia side of the bridge in 6:30.

Mile 10  -- 6:21
I hit the mile 9 mark and really started putting things into high gear.  I was almost done and was running a really great race, considering I had not raced all out in over a year and a half.  Again, the ATM course tracked the Marine Corps Marathon course.  In the marathon, as you leave the bridge you turn left at the bottom of the exit to begin the trek down to Crystal City before returning north, so at this point you would have about 4 or so miles still left to run.

Not with ATM.  We turned right and there was the finish.  I started to kick.  I passed one runner and was passed by another runner -- we sort of globbed off each other's energy, so I think all three of us finished faster and stronger than we would have had each of us finished alone.  Finally split 6:21.

The Finish -- 1:05:38
I crossed the line, stopped my watch, looked at it and saw 1:05:38!  Holy crap -- that was A LOT faster than I thought I was running.  I was so focused on speed that I never quite did the math during the run to realize what my overall time would be.  Although my muscles were sore, and my calves felt like they would cramp at any minute, they did not.  My sore left calf never bothered me during the race.  My pelvic region, while I could feel "something," never bothered me during the race.  It was a good race.

I also ran something I have rarely ever done -- negative splits.  Maybe because I started out somewhat conservatively, I ran faster the second half than first.  My average pace for miles 1-5 was 6:38.  My average pace for miles 6-10 was 6:28.  My overall average pace was 6:33.  I met all of my goals:  run sub 70 minutes, check; run sub 6:52 pace, check; run as close to 6:30 pace as possible, check!

So how did I fare compared to the others?  30,000 runners signed up for the race, 21,636 finished.  I placed 536 overall (top 2.5%), 490 out of 12,040 males (top 4%), and 54 out of 2016 in the male 40-44 age group (top 2.6%).

My team, the MCRRC Hurricanes, placed 3rd out of 13 teams in the Mixed Masters division.

So in conclusion, this was a great race for me, physically, mentally, and emotionally.  I am back in the running groove and I actually feel stronger as a runner than before (even though I missed a 10 mile PR time by little over a minute and a half).  I feel very confident in my marathon ability, and hope that proves to be true when I race Shamrock Marathon in the spring (although stay tuned on that front, I might have a few surprises before the year closes).

10/10/10

10-10-10


As everyone knows, last Sunday was 10/10/10. Chicago and Steamtown Marathons are being run today (i'm sure there are others as well). I'm kinda bummed. I've run 9 marathons to date. Had I been better, I could have run my 10th marathon on 10/10/10. Pretty cool, huh?

Here's another interesting tidbit about today. 101010 in binary (i.e. base-2 numbers) equals 42. Guess how many kilometers there are in a marathon? Yep, 42.

I ran 15 miles instead, as I taper for Army 10 miler on 10/24.

Gratitude

October 1st marked the one year date from when I got my first of two pelvic stress fractures. For better or for worse, my running life will never be the same. For better, as I've discovered triathlons and multi-sporting, I've (hopefully) learned to train smarter, I appreciate running more and no longer take it for granted that I can run. For worse, every twitch in the lower abdomen makes me wonder am I getting re-injured. Will I ever be able to run as fast? Will a sub-3 hour marathon forever escape me?


Anyhow, I marked the day with a 6.11 mile run in the woods at a 7:57 pace. Not bad.

Am I 100% recovered from the stress fractures? Who knows. But I do want to express some gratitude. To an inanimate object. I am forever grateful to the JCC pool and steam room. I logged countless laps last winter in the pool when I could not run. Always followed by a nice steam in the steam room. I certainly credit staying in shape because of the pool. It also helped with my sanity!!

I am 1 week out from the Army 10 miler -- my return to road racing. Not sure what my goal is. Run sub-70 (sub 7 min mile)? Maybe just finish? We'll see...



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Naylor's Beach Triathlon Recap

Howdy sports fans, it's been a while since I posted anything. Anyhow, time to write about Naylor's Beach olympic distance triathlon (1.5K swim, 42K bike, 10K run) held Sunday, September 26, 2010 in beautiful Warsaw, Virginia on the Rappahannock River.


Woke up at 4:40am, ate a boiled egg, and into the car for the 2 hour drive to the race site. Got there shortly after 7, got my packet and number, got numbered (in tris, they write your number in black magic marker on your arms and quads, then right your age on your calf), and proceeded to set up my transition area. Having done this once before, I felt a little bit more confident as I racked my back and laid out my cycling and running gear.

I finished laying out my gear with about 45 minutes to go before race time, so I was able to visit the portajohn a few more times and just hang out.

The weather was much more enjoyable than the 90F start temperatures at Rocketts Landing. I think it was upper 60s and overcast. The forecast threatened rain, and I felt a few drops waiting for the race start. This had me a bit concerned because I have absolutely zero experience riding the bike in the rain or even on wet pavement.

Swim Portion
The water temp was 75F near the shore and 70F in the channel making it wetsuit legal. So this was my first tri in a wetsuit. The swim portion was a modified trapezoid -- in water start, swimmingn against the current to the first yellow turn buoy, then with the current to the next turn buoy, then to the swim exit point.

I was in wave 2 -- males 40 and over. We started at 9:05, 5 minutes after the 39 and under males. I was feeling pretty good and very quickly got into a good rhythm. I think the masters swim is finally paying off, as I felt like I had a nice smooth and strong stroke. My sighting was good and I made it straight to the first turn quicker than I thought. After the turn, I could really feel the current helping me and felt like I was swimming well. I even started passing some of the slower wave 1 swimmers. Again, I think I've finally got the 3 stroke-then sight rhythm down.

About midway through this leg of the swim, I got totally thrown off. Another swimmer was passing too close to me and his hand came down on its down stroke landing right on my head pushing me underwater!! I wasn't expecting this, so I'm swimming along when suddenly a hand is pushing my head underwater. I freaked for a slip second before realizing it was just another swimmer passing too close and not someone trying to drown me (the water is too murky to really see anything underwater). I lift up to breathe and he does it again! WTF? So now I'm trying to swim away from him but he's sticking right next to me, whacking me on the side with every stroke. So I finally do a backwards stroke to get away from him. I saw him later in the swim and realized he was probably just trying to sight on me (some swimmers who have not mastered the art of looking up ahead to sight will try to swim next to a swimmer so they can look at him/her when they breathe -- I guess I should be flattered that I looked like someone who knows how to sight/swim).

Anyhow, I regained my rhythm pretty quicly, made the last turn and headed towards shore. Our exit point was marked by a pair of yellow flags -- I actually had a bit of trouble locating them, but eventually locked on and made my way. It was at this point that I realized the swimmer who kep hitting me was probably just trying to sight --- he was way off course!

I made it to shore and headed toward transition one. Swim time 26:47 (22nd fastest out of 128).

Transition 1
I had been worried aout how long it would take me to get out of the wetsuit. Whenever I swam at the pool in it, it always seemed like it took me ages to get it off. My brother would tell me: if the wet suit is not in a jumbled mess on the ground, you are taking it off too slow. Well, I did not take it off too slow! A slipped out (tearing a huge hole in the leg), got my socks and cycling shoes on, put on my shirt, race belt, helmet, unracked my bike and off I was to the bike mount area.

T1 time: 2:28 (68th out of 128)

Bike portion
The first thing I noticed as I clipped in and started the bike segment was it was VERY WINDY! This did not bode well. After clipping in, I took an energy gel to replenish after the swim. I wish someone had told me one of the Brightroom photographers would be located right near the start -- I hope there is not a picture of me with chocolate gu on my face!

The second thing I noticed was that I was riding pretty well. The course had some nice flat portions and some rolling hills. Having put enough miles on the bike, I now know almost never to use the highest gear. I decided to ride aggressively fast, and was doing pretty well with speeds usually around 19 - 21 mph. Less riders seemed to be passing me this time than at Rocketts Landing in July. I attacked the hills strong -- taking them in a standing position, rather than putting the bike in lowest gear and staying seated. On the downhills, I put it in highest gear and cranked. I reached 37 mph at one particular steep downhill.

Things were going pretty nicely until around mile 15 or so. Suddenly my right foot was off the pedal, almost causing a wipe out. I tried to click back in when I realized that my shoe had broken. Or rather, the screws that held the cleat to the shoe must have fallen out, as the cleat was still clipped on to the pedal. So for the next 10 or so miles, I could only downpedal on the right side (the benefit of being clipped onto the pedals is that you get power on both the downstroke and the upstroke when you pedal) and my foot kept slipping off the pedal. And attacking the uphills was much more difficult as I could not stand and pedal (foot kept slipping off). Oh well, so much for my aggressive bike phase.

I finished the bike portion, a bit frustrated. But when I talked with my brother (who has done dozens and dozens of tri's) after the race, I assured me that when he and his friends would do pre-race equipment checks NO ONE ever thought to check their cycling shoes to see if the cleats were firmly attached to the shoe. Oh well, it could have been worse!

I almost forgot, the last 1/4 mile before bike dismount was on a road with speed bumps. My butt really enjoyed that!

Bike time: 1:21:43 (51st out of 128)

Transition Two
Dismounted and ran to my transition zone, racked the bike, took off my helmet, and changed from cycling to running shoes and off I went. Great transition number 4, called out one of the course marshalls. Sweet!

T2 time: 1:23 (54th out of 128)

Run portion
Finally the run! I took off at a good clip -- 7:02 pace. My legs were still a bit wobbly from the bike, but I powered through anyway. Running is my element, and I thought now I get to pass all those swimmers and bikers who passed me. I was passing people from the get-go. I figured, if I could maintain a sub-7 pace at mile 20 in a marathon, I can maintain a similar pace now.

The course was almost entirely flat out-and-back, with only a small hill around the turnaround. Around 2 1/2 miles, I passed a marine running with an American flag. Oo-rah I yelled. Oo-rah came the return call. Almost immediately my legs forgot they had swum 1500 meters and biked 42 kilometers. I powered on, passing runners left and right.

One nice thing about tri's, is that they write your age on the back of your calf. I sometimes wondered why they did that, but now I know. Most of us are competing in age-group categories, so it only matters where you place in your age group. I love it that when someone passes me (on the bike, hasn't happened on the run yet) I can quickly look to see if I care (i.e. whether they are in my age group). I wish running races did that. Plus I love the ego boost when I pass a runner with 35 or 28 written on his or her leg and they get to see the 43 on my leg!!

Around mile 5, someone cheered out my name (a friend from masters swim -- she was doing the sprint triathlon) and I began to really pick up the pace. The final mile and half or so was at a 6:40 pace! I kicked strong and passed two more runners in the final 1/4 mile.

Run time: 44:11 (13th out of 128)

Total time: 2:36:30 (23rd out of 128/ 5th out of 23 in my age group)

So overall, I was very pleased with my time. I was about a minute faster than Rocketts Landing. Swim, run, and both transition times were faster. But for the equipment malfunction, i would have had a faster bike time too.

Going forward, I think I am a strong swimmer but still too timid -- that is, I think I could do the swim portion faster. I probably need to work on the bike-to-run transition -- that should be faster than it is, more in terms of getting my legs to recover from the bike to the run. The most work is on the bike. I rode less than 19 mph and I need to get that into the 20s to be competitive. Hello trainer this winter!

So there you have it sports fans. Next up, Army 10 Miler on October 24. Very curious to see how I do in a pure running road race.