peregrineblog

2007-11-12T19:37:00.002-05:00

I accomplished something significant on October 20, 2007. I successfully completed the 30th annual Detroit Free Press Marathon, after 3 months of training.

It's funny to go back and read my last posts, when I was just beginning to entertain the idea of running a marathon. 10 strong miles, hah! I don't remember when I decided to run for sure - I think it was after I hit a 16 mile trainer without injury. But that post was really the first time I thought about it. I guess the old saying putting your goals in writing really works.

The marathon itself was a great (and greatly painful) experience. I spent the night before at the Detroit Marriott. Got room service, a nice bowl of oatmeal for the pre-race. Then to the starting line. I got in the queue at the 4:00 sign. When the start gun went, I got choked up and nearly shed a tear. I don't know why. Maybe the cumulation of so long of a training time. I've never felt more alive.

I breezed through the first 4 miles, across the bridge. I stayed with the supposed 4 hour pace. I hit the bridge, went over, and finished 4 miles running 8:30's. Way too fast, and the fastest I'd start 4 miles in a long, long time. So I throttled back, made my way though Canada, and saw Randy Champaign on the path. I came out of the tunnel at 9 miles, on the Ren Cen driveway. I was back on pace averaging 9:00 miles. Only problem was I started to get sore. Not a good thing, a third of the way in.

I was okay until 16 miles. At that point, I was very sore. I walked most of mile 16, and a good part of the Belle Isle Bridge. On Belle Isle, I cramped up. I settled into a run 4 minutes, walk 1 minute pace until mile 18, when I cramped up HARD. At this point, I thought I might not finish. But, I was a long way from downtown, and was not going to search for a meat wagon. So I soldiered on.

By mile 20, I was walking more than running. About that time, on one of my short running bursts, I passed a guy limping along with cramps. I knew the look well. I shouted some encouragement, and kept going a bit. On my next rest, he came up on me, and we started talking. Gary was his name, a regional jet pilot for Northwest. Running for his friend who has cancer. We chatted, and pushed each other to run in between cramping torments. I nearly face planted a half a dozen times when my hammy would lock up in mid stride. But I kept it going. Having the companionship made all the difference through that stretch.

I managed to run the last 200 yards or so unbroken. That was the most agony I'd ever been in. But I did it, I finished. 4:40, not very pretty. But it's a finish.

After a Whole Food Snack, I headed back to the hotel. I could hardly move, and stairs were torment. I actually forgot my finisher's medal in the room, so I don't have it any more. But, the memory and sense of accomplishment is better than any medal. I actually limped around for the next 3 days, and had pain for a week.

Baseball Note

2007-07-03T21:53:00.000-04:00

I love baseball. The pastoral game is my game of choice. And as a fan of the (formerly) hapless Tigers, I am thrilled to see my team playing meaningful games near the all star break.

Lots of interesting baseball notes for me recently. First, Justin Verlander's no-no. It's the first I've seen since watching Bud Smith with B. Kennedy in college. Just incredible, I bet he gets 2 more in his career. Last night, Roger Clemens put down his 350th win. Probably the last 350 game winner I'll see in my life. Craig Biggio made his 3,o00 hit last week, punching his ticket to Cooperstown. And the steroid boys are rolling in as well, with Sammy Sosa hitting his 600th and Barry Bonds and his fantastically huge head sitting at 751, 4 away from Mr. Aaron's rightful record. All and all, a pretty historically significant month, I think.

Today, not as historically significant, but a very strange twist on a seldom called rule. Rafael Bettencourt of the Cleveland Indians (with whom the Tigers are in a heated, neck to neck divisional race) is easily the most boring pitcher in history. He takes FOREVER on the mound, frequently sending all spectators into comas. Tonight, he finally got called for an automatic ball for taking over 20 seconds with no runners on base. I love it.

Sunday is Long Run Day

2007-07-01T15:17:00.000-04:00

A great run today, a 9.75 miler at Island Lake on the blue trail. Of course, it's only marked as 9.3. But, you go past the 9.25 mark, on a little ways, then merge with the shorter yellow trail at the finish. You pass the 5.75 mile mark on the yellow, then the 6.0 mile mark. That means a minimum of 9.5. So, one of the marks is messed up and I think it's the blue.

Anyhow, 10 strong miles and I felt like I could do a couple more. This is seriously bolstering an idea that's been kicking around my head, which is doing the Detroit Marathon. If I hold to my schedule, I'll be at 18 miles on trail by DWD in early September. That's nearly marathon shape, and improving for the extra month should be no big deal. Barring injuries, of course.

2007 Northville Solstice 10K

2007-06-24T11:34:00.000-04:00

I ran the Northville Solstice 10K yesterday. It was, as I remembered it, a great event. Well organized, great course, and a nice party afterwards.

As I am not yet in very good shape, I decided to take it very easy for the first mile and step it up if I could. I finished the first mile at 8:45, felt great, and stepped it up a bit. Second mile flew by in an easy 8:20. I stepped up again with the third mile in 7:50, and settled into that pace for the rest of the run. I finished with a strong kick and gas in the tank. Not great for time, but very good for self confidence, as I know I can go out next time and make a big leap in time. I finished in 50:17 (8:06 min/mile pace). As it was the first official 10K I've run, I guess it's a personal record, but one that I hope to significantly better.

Most importantly, no pain. This is a great rung on the ladder to DWD 2007.

History of Running

2007-06-24T11:01:00.000-04:00

I am a runner.

In some ways I always ran. Initially, I did it because I was really good at the half mile. But I hated it. Then it was a means to an end; namely, making my high school soccer team. And I hated it.

Then, after a few years of a very sedentiary lifestyle (college), I realized I was no longer an athlete. I had been an athlete my whole life, and that was a fundamental part of my self perception. Sure, I was still playing men's league soccer, but I wasn't really an athlete anymore.

About this same time, I got a new set of very active friends by virtue of a new job out of college, many of whom are runners. So, hearing all their great stories, I started running, mostly because I wanted to get back into shape. Lo and behold, I didn't mind it. Too much. I couldn't run a 5:30 mile like I used to, but that didn't seem so important anymore. I was feeling better and better every time out.

Then, a very good friend invited me to run in the 2003 Galyan's Solstice 5K in Northville. I wasn't in shape, and posted a time of 25:13 (8:07 min/mile pace), which was better than I expected at the time. But I loved it. I felt like an athlete for the first time in years.

By the next year, my times had come down, and I could see shadows of the athlete I used to be. I ran the 2004 Northville Solstice 5K again, this time posting a more respectable 21:50 (7:02 pace). As word got around that I was running, I got invited to fill an empty spot on a Dances with Dirt DWD) team and accepted. That day changed my life. I discovered the call of the trail, the allure of the backcounty, and the joy of slogging through swamps and mud. I trained hard, and got through the day. It was one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life.

This was also one of my first real forays into nature, and opened up a whole new series of activities to me - hiking, backpacking, and climbing among them.

In 2005, I didn't run any events except DWD. But I trained hard, and loved it. DWD had become one of the major highlights of the year.

In 2006 I had great designs on what I wanted to do. I would run a 5K, a 10K, the Crim festival of races, DWD, and if I could keep the training going, maybe even the Detroit Marathon. While training early in the year, I discovered the bane of running injuries. I developed plantar fasciitis, which plagued my through the whole year. I only ended up running DWD, which I wasn't in great shape for. I got severe calf cramps halfway through the last leg, gutted it out to the finish line and collapsed at the end in some of the most intense pain of my life. I finished, but it wasn't pretty. Despite my struggles, our team still finished in 70th place, just good enough to place in the prizes. I then took 4 months off running to let my feet heal.

This year, 2007, I started training early, but the plantar fasciitis started to show up again very mildly. I took another month off, came back, and the injury started to show up. I'd never had this problem before, and I suspected a new set of New Balance trail shoes I'd gotten the year before. I switched back to my old style of Adidas running shoes, and the problem went away and hasn't come back. I started training, then got a new Sheltie puppy named Cooper, which put another dent in my time and set back my training another month (though he is showing pormise as a running buddy when he gets bigger.) But, I'm now back on track to (hopefully) run a new schedule of races, cumulating in my 4th DWD experience.

Last night, a friend asked me why I run. It's a great question, one that I think every runner should ask themselves periodically. The reasons I run are for the sense of accomplishing something very challenging, to be out in nature, and for the incredible runners high I get every time I finish a good run. It also fills my innate need to feel like an athlete. And, more fundamentally, it has become a part of who I am. So, I'll be keeping a record of the races I run in future posts.

Peregrineblog - Reset

2007-06-24T10:50:00.000-04:00

After 18 months of inactivity, I've decided to recreate peregrineblog. I'm doing this for several reasons. First, my initial love of blogs was an opportunity to express myself, and to attempt to cultivate a readership with the types of odd and interesting things I loved finding on the internet. In this pursuit I was mildly successful, by my own standards. But over time, it lost my attention and slowly faded.

Now, I have a slightly different idea on the potential value of a blog. Rather than share things for others, or make on online diary, post witty comments, or share things of interest, I'm going to try a new experiment, all for myself. I'll be using this space to document things that I do and would like to remember. Sort of a verbal picture album, or online diary without the personal commentary or insight into the soul, and more of a digital record of things I do that maybe someday I'll enjoy looking back on. A path to trace the course of my interests over time, and map out the change of the things I liked to do in times past. A way to see what in my life are fads, and what are permanent, and maybe, if I'm diligent enough, be able to reflect back on how I got to whatever place I am someday in the future.

I don't expect many others to find this sort of thing interesting, or even readable. I don't plan on saving any links, save for maybe a few great friends, and I don't even know about that. But that's okay by me. And so begins the relaunch of peregrineblog.....