The Race for Education

Kyler had his "Race for Education" today at school. I was able to get off work in the afternoon, and join him. I was so proud, he ran his first mile, and at a pretty good pace. After that, we ran 100 yards then walked 100 yards for the remainder of the time. Despite the heat, he completed 19 laps - 4 and 3/4 miles - in an hour. He finished tied for first in his class and I believe tied for second in the first grade.

"Marathon Man"

Camping at Twin Grove

We went on a family camping trip with friends this past weekend. Tristan and I arrived at the KOA Friday night after a miserable drive through what seemed like a hurricane. We couldn't find our cabin, and once we did, we didn't have any power due to the storm. Luckily, I threw in a flashlight and we got unloaded then went to bed.

Tina and Kyler joined us the next day after Kyler's soccer game. We had a great time. The boys enjoyed the rides and arcade and being able to run free. Later in the afternoon, the boys and Makenzie went trick-or-treating. They were both impressed with their haul.

We had a great camping supper and hung out by the fire for awhile then we headed back to our cabin. I wasn't tired, so I went out on the porch after the boys were down. Struck up a conversation with our neighbors in the next cabin and was invited to join them around their fire. We had great conversations and a lot of laughs.

Got up Sunday and played with the kids at the campground after brerakfast then packed up and headed to the "Chinese Wall," or "Box Car Rocks" depending on what you want to call them. We had a nice time hiking on such a beautiful day.

Here's a few pictures from the weekend:

Marathon Season XIII

One week to go, 6 days actually. Last week was a good week of training until I did my long run. Tuesday was 5x1000 on the track at about a 6:15 pace. Wednesday I swam 1500 yards and Thursday was a 6 miler: 1 mile easy, 3 miles at 6:45, then 2 miles easy. We went camping this weekend and I got off my normal weekend routine. Got home Sunday, and decided to go out for a run in the middle of the day. My training plan called for 10 miles at marathon pace, which is 7:40 pace. Started out at 6:58 pace and was feeling good until I came to a long uphill. Once again, I was stupid and went out too fast in conditions that were too hot. I quickly began to fade. I was going to throw the towell in at 8.5 miles, but my buddy Scott saw me and pulled along side. "Do you need something to drink," he said. Ahh, relief, he gave me a whole bottle of Propel, which got me through the rest of my run. I managed to hang on for a 7:44 pace, but I was hurting. Thank you, Scott!!!

Marathon Season XII

Two weeks to go until the MCM. I had a good week of training. Tuesday was 10x400s along with Pilates in the evening; Wednesday I swam and set a PR for 1500 yards; Thursday I ran 7 miles at 7:20; Saturday I ran 13.1 in 1:38, which is well below BQ pace; and Sunday I went for a 25 mile bike ride. Despite the wind, I was able to crank out an 18 mph ride. In light of how I've been running, and more importantly how I've been feeling, I'm revising my MCM goal to 3:20. This is down 10 minutes from my original goal of 3:30, which is my BQ time. I have also given serious consideration to running the Harrisburg Marathon on 11/11. Might as well run while I'm in shape and before winter sets in.

Chiquesalunga and the AT Too

It was a nice weekend to get out, but it was a little on the warm side. My buddy Andy came up Friday afternoon and we hit the Chiques late in the day. We did well and each caught five different species of warm-water fish: Smallmouths, Green Sunfish, Red Breasted Sunfish, Rock Bass and Creek Chubs (venerable creek chubs as Walton would say). The smallies were quite nice and feisty. Andy took the prize for the largest one at just over 13". Great fun on 4wt rods. Andy also showed me how to ID rusty crayfish, and Asiatic Clams which, unfortunately, are now in the Chiques watershed. Capped of the day at Bube's.

Saturday we hiked into the Shikellamy Power Dam located between Rt. 183 and Rt. 501 on the AT. There was a kid fly fishing at the dam, so we set up camp then headed downstream. Perhaps I should say "downtrickle." The drought has really taken it's toll on small brookie streams, however, we each managed to hook a few. We then went back up to the pond and each caught another fish. The pond was loaded with brookies, but it was hard to fish, because the edges dropped off fast and it was hard to generate a back cast. After supper we explored the boulder field near our camp. Then at dark, we went on a "herp" hunt. We identified two species of salamanders in the stream near our camp. Oh, and an American Toad.

Sunday, after a leisurely breakfast and coffee, we headed out. We drove to the Northkill Creek and fished for an hour or so, but again, low water made it difficult. Decided to call it quits, and headed to the Union Barrel Works in Reamstown for lunch. This turned out to be a great find, and I would recommend it to anyone, especially the trout chowder and their pale ale.

Here's a slideshow of the weekend:

Marathon Season XI

It's so nice to be tapering. Last week I ran 6x800m @ 6:15 on Tuesday and a 6 mile tempo run @ 7:30 on Thursday. Wednesday I rode the bike trainer for an hour. It was a mistake to go that long on the trainer. Unlike road riding, the trainer keeps you in a more static position for a longer period of time, and I paid for it with a bout of sciatica.

I didn't run this weekend, because I was backpacking, which provided two nice aerobic workouts on Saturday and Sunday.

Marathon Season X

Let the taper begin, Woohoo!! Last week was a good week of training despite not being able to get in a speed workout. On Thursday, I resumed my training and went for an 8 mile tempo run @ 7:30 pace. I lifted on Friday. I felt a need to add this back into my routine, because on a long run two weeks ago, I felt my upper back tighten up from the fatigue of holding up my arms. Saturday was my last long run. I was scheduled to do a 20 miler - my fifth one - but I stretched it out to 21. I maintained a 7:48 pace, well below where I need to be for the MCM. Sunday, was a beautiful day and I was able to get out for a 20 mile ride. I was averaging 20 mph over the first 2 miles, and was going to see if I could maintain that over the next 18 when my GPS bonked out. Forgot to recharge it. Not knowing my pace, I decided to ride hard, but not too hard. From here on out it is taper time.