0 weeks 6 days

got this from trailman today! kinda cool . . .

'after a time, you may find that having is not so pleasing a thing, after all, as wanting. it is not logical, but it is often true'

spock

and then he informed me that the above picture, although good, wasn't from that particular episode. soooo, just in case there are more trekkies out there, i'll include the right one!! sorry kev!!!

anyways, less than a week to go. not feeling as mental as before previous races, but i'm sure that will come. i'm actually a bit more organized this time, having my e-ticket printed off, insurance purchased, and rides to and from the airport arranged (thanks wayne and christine). week of training was pretty tame - only putting in 20 miles. couple more short confidence runs monday and tuesday and then i'm off to visit my buddy georgie and hopefully run a hundred miles!!

what could go wrong???

Sunday Night..... New Orleans and the Vikings tied at 21 and instead of enjoying the game, I'm looking at reruns of Sponge Bob, frantically looking for an episode when Spongie plans to do something stupid and succeeds !!!

My 13 year old just set me up on facebook.... I plan to post my epitaph when the daunting Dorah comes to the great state..... I alway get confused how to spell " Dufus "... as in You wouldn't be dead right now if you weren't a Dufus to try to run 50 miles !!

Just heard from both Sat and Jo, the affluent world travelers from the Trans Rockies experiment. Awesome couple.... part of an awesome group of fellow runners that I would love to live proximate to so we could share local adventures ( and food, of course ).

Well, I ran 10 on Friday and 10 on Sunday..... I think this is pretty much it for runs of any distance. I'm gonna " Jog " some and do a little eliptical work and im[portantly, get a massage or two for Cary the Hun as previously " blogged ".... the 60 lb weakling that beats me like the Vikings beat the Dallas Cowboys a week ago.

Unlike Kendra, who plans runs that are social events.... I run alone ( no insane friends )....so I am looking forward to hooking up with what appears to be a fairly large group at the Rocky Raccoon.
So far, there are over 650 runners and they are actually concerned they will top out at the maximum 750 authorized runners in the state park.

The Huntsville, Texas State Park appears to be fairly scenic in Texas Terms.... we will be basically running around a large Lake and is on a packed trail. Kendra, not to spook you... but the one thing that could " Pee on our Cheerios " is for us to have rain.... the Texas soil has a high clay content and if the Trail is wet, the clay sticks to your running shoes like glue.... heavy and mushy and just plain fun killing.

On to Happier thoughts.... we have confirmed our reservations at the spacious Super 8..... they are thinking about having a free breakfast in 2015, so we're staying at a facility with aspiration.
Doesn't matter, I'm bringing a bucket of Tylenol PM to help with the ambience.

Anyhow, I'm gonna sign off...... I'm getting excited to run and to see a good friend. I look forward to meeting all the other folks that will be there and hope to take a siesta from this crazy world and enjoy the run.

Oh, almost forgot to mention that the mealy mouth, ultra conservative, spineless, panty waisted Frederick the Apple, the infamous 2nd half of the world reknown Knuckleheads has decided not to come to Texas to be our NASCAR sharp support team of one. Fred, you have betrayed the Alphi pho code and are out of the Homo club forever !!

Back to the game, looks like Bret Favre has just been Terminally tackled...... this should be interesting.

2 weeks

the temp read -6 in the mazda as i drove over to coolis' to meet up with the guys. what a turnout! vents was back after a lengthy layoff due to injury - he looked kinda scairt! no worries baby - you'll never be last as long as i'm running! captain and digger drove up from the city, with digger amazed at how much snow we had up here 'in orangeville'. moose looked like his eyeballs were going to fall out and he smelled kinda sour, having left shoeless joes only 6 hours earlier! robbie came over from waterloo and brought a new recruit - what was his name??? and onions arrived sporting a pair of shorts and his new gps - a christmas present from the lovely lucy. this is the guy who didn't even own a watch up until now! hopefully he won't pull a 'laaaaaadies man' and disappear after a couple more runs! the plan was to run over to 9 and back, and see who was left standing. the trails were in amazing shape and we made for a decent pace. once back at the cars, me and digger stripped down to shorts, much to the captains' dismay. it took a bit of convincing . . .

but he eventually joined us for a picture.

vents figured that was good enough for him, so he headed out. the rest of us took off for k2 and met up at centerville creek, where we shared stories of running into low branches, falling on our heads, and dropping things on our head. we then came back up and opted to finish with the dingle, warning the new guy - what was his name - that it's uphill both ways! at innis lake we stopped briefly to discuss the tree that was hanging over the trail about halfway down - careful guys!

and got a picture of the new guy - we decided to call him steve.


as i was climbing the first hill on the way back, bringing up the rear as usual, i thought i heard someone yell 'duck', and assumed they were at that branch. once at the top, i found out that it was robbie who yelled, and that he had managed to run right into it, not yelling 'duck', but something that sounded almost the same! hehe! stoopid robbie! finally got back to the cars and after saying goodbye to moose and the new guy, the rest of us drove to timmies for a coffee. outstanding run! trails were in the best shape so far this year!

3 more weeks

i guess the surprise of the weekend was georgie finally getting around to posting on 'our' blob! about time mister!!! thanks for helping me guilt him into it mimi !! and yes, what georgie says about her is true! she's one of the few chicks i know who could wear one of those skort things, and still look stunning even after running for 5 hours! this is her on the left with 2008 TR team cheetah partner sjohn.

saturday was a beauty day out on the trail. parked on duffys and ran the humber valley at least twice. lots of people out hiking. even came across christine and kevin on their bikes . managed to get in a good solid 6 hours. spent the evening watching a few episodes of 2 1/2 men. love that show! might have had a bit of ice cream to replenish low carb stores . . .

sunday i got up feeling pretty stiff. wasn't sure what condition the rail trail was in, so i dug out my blue screw shoes just in case. i took my time getting ready and eventually got going by about 10. ran over to kennedy road before turning back and then kept going to palgrave to finish off my distance. it makes you wonder what goes on sometimes when you're out running for hours! now who could have done this . . .

wait a minute, i know those tracks!!! it seems homey was up to his usual tricks!!!


and so, i made it through my last weekend of big mileage. put in 10 hours and 48 miles.

we'll see in less than 3 weeks if i've done all my homework!! argh!!!

Well, I have been humbled into once again posting on this esteemed site..... prompted by the indomitable Miss Kendra and a mutual running buddy, the genteel fashion savvy Mimi !

This post is done with energy in that I just has a massage from one of Texas' finest.... Carrie, the Hun ! Yeehah..... she weighs about 60 lbs and beats me like a bad habit when I get on her table... Awesome massage especially now that I worked up the courage to remind her that glutes need to be rubbed at length to optimize a runner's massage. Yes, may I start by purging my need to let the world know that I like my butt rubbed.

So how is my training ? I have no fricking idea, is the honest answer. It is hard to benchmark now that I am almost 57 years young. I asked a running coach recently why I feel just as strong and just as fast as I did 25 years and yet my times are 60 % longer. She gracefully told me that there was too much sugar in all of my birthday cakes.... bitch ! She also confirmed that my hairline is receding on the left side... I maintain that it was a windy day.

I have run in excess of 15 miles about 25 times but have not done the real long back to back runs that my scripted training plan calls for. I'm listening to my body and intuitively think that a day of recovery is appropriate as opposed to a back to back. I am somewhat comforted by the fact that I did not follow the script for the Trans Rockies several years ago and " Survived ".... although the aforementioned Mimi the genteel told me the night before we began our adventure that she followed the training plan to the T and Freaked me out. Side bar..... the night before the Trans Rockies began a relationship with 8 other close friends that ate more food in 7 days than the Dallas Cowboys will eat in the next 4 weeks leading to the inevitable Super Bowl. Kendra, we have to find a way to get a DVR into our luxurious Super 8 motel for the Sunday football games.

So the honor of spending some time with one of the sweetest people on the planet is just 3 weeks away. I'm really looking forward to that as much as the run itself. Kendra has Texans to hug and I believe that her spirit could even solve the illegal alien problem here in the great state. She could have each side of the border hugging each other in just a few short days.

I would be remiss not to point out that the double dealing, lowdown, lowrent, lazy partner of the infamous knuckleheads is not participating in the Rocky Raccoon...... I will have a plaque on my casket reminding him that he has wimped out ! He will undoubtedly outlive me now that President Obama ( I never know how to spell his first name ) has given us National Health Care !

Anyhow, I am gonna try to be diligent in posting my thoughts through February 7..... I really would appreciate any thoughts / philosophies that folks have to help me plan and execute this stupid endeavour.

warming up and low branches

so be careful if you're out running on the humber in the dark, especially if you're over 6 feet tall. moose, our favorite chiropractor, was moving along early monday morning, not paying very close attention to the trail, when all of a sudden he found himself 'charlie browned' and not knowing how he got there. apparently he was dicking around with his mitts, failed to notice a recently downed branch, and brained himself quite nicely!

temps this week got a lot milder. ran in rolled-up tights on thursday on the humber. trail conditions were pretty good! did 3 hours wednesday from humber station to hwy 9 and footing wasn't too bad. got a couple of nice pictures of the haunted forest by the gore.

planning my last 'long run' weekend starting tomorrow. then i can taper and get my poor old body ready for this next big adventure.

rumour has it that georgie started tapering a few weeks ago. 'what could go wrong?'

resolutions

i guess i'd better put them down in writing. it seemed to work last year with the abs/no cookies thing! so, starting tomorrow, jan 11, i resolve to do a minimum of 150 pushups, 50 chinups and 3 days of solid abs per week. oh ya, i'll give up cookies again.

sunday

sunday is my sleeping-in day. meaning i get up when i want and i start running when i want. saturday i try to work it out so me and homey can run together, but sunday is usually just me. after a big bowl of oatmeal and fruit, i got myself ready and drove over to the humber valley trail on duffy's south. it was a beauty of a day and the sun was nice and warm. i had thrown the dions in the car just in case. trail conditions were amazing - it was like a huge pack of people on snowshoes had stomped it down - best so far this winter! i made my way over to the north end before heading back. just as i topped the homey shite hill and was approaching my car, i came across my good friend lexi-girl ! she was just starting out on her snowshoes. 'hay, wait up' i said, 'i'll go throw mine on and join you' !!

she had done the mega-day 3 hour bike training with greg pace on saturday, and didn't seem to notice how slow i was!!! we had a great time but eventually had to turn back so she could get to her nieces' birthday party. soooooo good to see her!!

i felt i still had a bit left in me, so i decided to run down to the tennis courts and back. again, footing was good and i made it in half decent time. another saweet day of training out in the snow for a total of 3 and a half hours. one more big running weekend left and then it's time to taper.

only 4 more weeks

pretty quiet week. had bootcamp twice with my CDS kids - lots of lunges and pushups! did a speedy snowshoe run with barb in palgrave on tuesday. managed an hour in semi-deep stuff. wednesday the captain was in town so he joined me and homey for a couple laps of the forest. followed that with lunch served up by homey! also discussed ideas for our pylon spring road trip - i've never been to tennessee before . . .

friday was steady with clients, but still fit in an easy 90 minutes.

the weatherman was calling for chilly-cold temps on saturday, but me and homey ventured out regardless at 8am. it was -25. but, after about 30 minutes, and the arrival of the sun, we were pretty comfortable. homey had domestic duties to attend to , so he turned around just past centerville creek. the snow was all crystally from the rising sun as i was trudging up k2, so i had to grab a couple of pics.

AND even better, the groomers were out and coming my way just as i approached the dingle! yep, our friends the japanese hikers, about 2 dozen of them, were in the process of stomping me an awesome path from innis lake all the way down k2. thanks guys! sure made my life easier for a few kms.

i turned back at innis lake and had another nice surprise when i reached the gore - snowshoe tracks - lots of them - making a nice, smooth path! my ankles were happy! i got to duffys and opted for one loop of the forest to fill in some time. despite the cold temps, it was an amazing sunny day to be out on the trail for over 4 hours!

busy first weekend for 2010

well, after reviewing the weekend weather, i took a gamble that friday would be the best day for a long run. thank bloody hell i was right. despite the snow north of 9, it was a good temp and the footing wasn't too bad. i parked on duffys, and got going just after 10. when i hit humber station, i saw a black toyota parked by the road, and some big footprints on the trail ahead of me. just as i started up k2, i met the moose coming back down. after a few words, and a new years' hug, we said goodbye and carried on our respective ways. i slowly made my way over to the 7th before turning around. i found i felt better with every km i did??? on the way back, i stopped at hwy 9 to change sox, as my feet were pretty wet from all the snow i'd plowed through. when i finally hit duffys, i opted for a few more km in the forest so i could up my time for the day. i finished just before 4 with a running time of 5:48. not bad!

i woke up saturday feeling not too bad, but stiff through the calves. temp reading was about -26 with the windchill. after putting on a good 4 layers, i drove over to cooli's and had in my mind i would try and get in at least 3 hours. it was realllllly cold at first, but once i got going, it was actually quite invigorating! i again made it to the 7th before turning around. i just kept thinking this was so much better than laying around doing nothing. once i got back to the car, i refueled and made my way down the dingle, which proved to be in amazing shape! i could actually reach stride for the first time in 2 days. and with one last side trip down k2 and back, i had managed almost 4 hours. after a quick photo, during which i almost froze my hands, i jumped into the car and drove home a very satisfied runner! 9 1/2 hours in two days!

oh ya, in case any of you are wondering about georgie, remember him, the guy who is supposed to be blogging with me?? well apparently he is training, and he is serious about this race, as the email i got from him on saturday would indicate.

"so this friend of mine from brazil wants to go out to dinner tonight, drink wine and have a pyjama party! how do i explain that i can't cause i have to run 27 in the morning and more importantly, i am doing 3 loops for psychological reasons. she doesn't speak english that well! my portuguese is limited to one word . . . boa, with i think means 'good' ! i am such an idiot . . . but i'm already in a zone to run a marathon so once again, i'll blow my opportunity for a latin experience !!!"

way to go georgie! keep up the good work!!!

on sunday, kevin drove up from mississauga, (where there was very little snow) for a hike. i warned him to bundle up, put on his magic jeans, and be prepared for some major windchill. once in the forest though, it was actually quite nice. i made him email me once he got home, just to make sure he got there! he said i didn't have to worry, as the snow wasn't even staying on the roads down there.

AND, just because i hadn't done quite enough exercise yet to satisfy me, i managed to drag christine and october out for a snowshoe in the forest.

not quite sure what christine's doing here . . .

after 3 tries with the timer we finally managed this pic . . .

some last shots before we bundled ourselves back into the car.

thanks ladies for a great end to my weekend of playing in the snow. i think i'm happy in my head and am now mentally prepared for rocky raccoon. less than 5 weeks to go! ack!!