Run thru the Hills

My wife (Terri) & 9 year old son (Dante) ran a 5k and I did a 10k this Sunday in the town we live in. It was cold (25-30 degrees) and overcast. It appears that spring weather is still quite unpredictable this early in the season. At least it was a little better condition that last weeks Shamrock Shuffle run. Terri and I ran 7 miles on Saturday and I wasn't sure if that was a mistake for me. This race is called Run thru the Hills for a reason. I ran the 5k last year and thought it was a tough course, but for some reason, thought I would challenge myself with the 10K. I figured it would be good training since I don't get enough hill work in anyways. Terri finished the 5k with a time of 27:20 and Dante with a time of 32:15. Dante managed to beat one of my poker buddies who decided to run this year. I finished the 10K with a time of 55:41, not my best, but considering the course conditions, I was pleased.

There was a pancake breakfast after the race at the Village Hall that we attended. We were sitting at a table eating when they started announcing the top finishers in each age group, when we heard them announce Terri's name. She couldn't believe it, but she took second place in her age group and won a medal. She placed 2nd out of 25 people. She still doesn't feel her time warranted a medal, but I am proud of her nonetheless. I am also proud of Dante for getting out there. He was one of two 9 year olds who ran, but was placed in the 19 and under age group.

This was a pretty tough course for me. The second leg of the run was very challenging with large hills up and down. I ran with my neighbor's 23 year old son for most of the race, up into the last mile. I told him to go and not let me hold him back, with that he took off. I saw him in the distance but couldn't catch up to him.

All in all it was a nice day and I enjoyed the fact that we didn't have to travel very far for a race. I am looking at the lists to find the next race we can do together. I think my wife and son are on their way to becoming addicted to running as I have. Maybe some day I can win a medal, until then I will keep at it anyways.

Sunday's Chicago Shamrock Shuffle 8k

I woke up Sunday morning to a boatload of snow in my yard, driveway and everywhere else.






My wife and were supposed to run the Shamrock Shuffle Sunday in Chicago. Since we live about 50 miles away from the city, I figured it might not be so bad on the course. We got ready, loaded the Explorer and headed out. The moment I pulled onto the road, I knew we were in for a long drive into the city. The roads were only partially plowed and the stoplights could not be seen because they had been iced over. You couldn't tell if the light was green or red. I proceeded cautiously until we got to the highway, which had not been plowed all that well either. I put the car into four wheel drive, just for extra precaution and went along as fast as the weather would allow. We finally made into Chicago, and the next trick was to find parking. I drove along Michigan Avenue and found an open garage just a few blocks from the race. I love Chicago and the parking rates $26 for a few hours.

We suited up with our layers and headed out to the course. At home we had about 6 inches of snow, but it had only snowed a few inches downtown. The problem is that the streets and sidewalks were covered in a slushy water, that quickly left your shoes completely wet. We arrived at the lineup for my corral and I wished my wife good luck as she proceeded to the open start. Inside the corral, it was cold and windy and started to snow in a blizzard like condition. The corral quickly filled and it seemed like forever before we started moving. By this time my feet were frozen and I could barely feel anything. I was wearing a hat, headband and mask on my face to keep warm, but couldn't do anything about the water and cold feet.











We were off and luckily the movement started to warm me up quickly, although I still could not feel my feet. We were running through water 3-4 inches deep and a slushy snow. This was the most brutal conditions I have ever run in. If I was at home, I would have been thankful for the treadmill. After a the first mile, I was getting into my grove and was doing the best I could, considering the weather. I pushed through, just wanting to finish and get out of the messy road. I finished with a time of 45:13 and an average mile pace of 9:06.

Once I finished, I waited for my wife to come across the finish line. She crossed the start line about 20 minutes after I did, so I knew I would have to wait at least that long. There I was wet, cold and no where to wait but in the open. I stared to get really cold and was starting to get concerned that I needed to get out of the weather. Finally after 25 minutes, she appeared. We did not stay for any festivities and just jogged back to the parking garage and into the car. I did not bring any extra shoes, but luckily dry socks and a dry shirt. I changed and proceeded to crank the heat and drive home in my socks. There were 32,000 people signed up for this race and only 13,294 actually ran. We did have some other friends that were supposed to go, but they bailed out the night before. I told my wife, I was going regardless if she did or not. She toughed it out and completed the race at 49:34 and a 9:59 pace.

I don't know if I would endure these conditions again, but I am proud to say that I ran it. I somehow feel stronger knowing that I did it.

Father Son Bonding

This past week my son, Dante was off school for spring break. I took off work on Friday so we could spend some quality time together. I had to go to Chicago (Navy Pier) to pick up my race packet for the Shamrock Shuffle 8k on Sunday, so I decided to go on Friday and make a day of it with Dante. We took the train into the city, which I do every work day, but to a nine year old there is something special about riding the train. We arrived in Chicago and headed to Navy Pier. I like to walk, so I figured that we would start out walking and take a cab when he got tired. We made there, three miles with no problem. We stopped at a few stores on the Magnificent Mile (Michigan Avenue) to warm up and browse. Dante is a big hockey fan so we stopped at the Blackhawk’s store, where he got a new hat. After arriving at Navy Pier and swimming our way through the sea of people, we headed to the packet pick up and health expo. This section was located in the farthest end of Navy Pier so we had to fight crowds all the way there. I was picking up race stuff for myself, my wife and wife’s friend which required me to wait in three lines for each envelope and then I was directed to the other end of the hall to get our bags and shirts. We waited in three more lines for shirts and bags since there were three different sizes. After that, we walked around looking at the booths for freebies and to see if there were any deals on running stuff. I did end up purchasing a new pair of sun glasses for $30, which wasn’t too bad. We were standing at the Wrigley Gum table getting a brochure and free gum, when a lady asked us if we wanted tickets for the Chicago Bulls (basketball) game on Saturday. We said sure and she handed us two tickets. She said they were donated at their office earlier in the day and she gave them to us. My son was so excited, a train ride to the city, a new hat and now this.

After we left Navy Pier, we stopped for lunch across the street from the Trump Tower, where he proceeded to call mom and explain what had happened. After lunch, we headed to Millennium Park to see the Bean (see photo below) and other touristy things at the park. We walked the whole way and by this time, I estimate we had logged in about 7 miles. What a trooper, I am proud of him for going so far. He was getting tired so we took a cab back to my office, where we took a little break and then proceeded to the train home.

I enjoyed spending the day together and it made me feel good to see how much fun he had.

We did end up going to the basketball game the next day on Saturday. It was an afternoon game, so it was no problem driving into the city and finding parking at a reasonable rate $13. We parked about 2 blocks away and were inside sitting in our seats in no time. Dante was still in awe that a complete stranger had given us these tickets the day before and we were actually at the United Center watching the Bulls game. Again, I was thrilled to see all the excitement in his face, as this was his first pro basketball game. The bulls played the Pacers and ended up winning 112 to 106. I think he will remember this day for a long time, I know I will.

Work Woes

I seem to have been feeling a little discouraged this week. We have had a major restructuring of the company and things have been a little stressful. I seemed to have acquired more responsibility, without additional compensation, yeah me! I know, I should feel lucky to be employed, but I still feel a little slighted. Enough of the pity party, I promise.

I have continued with my lunchtime walking program this week. I have been getting about 2-1/2 miles each day. I ran on the treadmill last night for a mediocre 3 miles and plan on running outside today, in hopes of a better quality run.

I am getting exited for my first race of the season, the Shamrock Shuffle 8k in downtown Chicago this Sunday. I will be one of 32,000 people running in this event. I am also anxious, as this is my first race where I have been placed in a seeded start. I have qualified, based on previous area runs, for corral C, which starts fifteen minutes before corral D and the open class. The weather is supposed to be fairly crappy, so I am trying to plan on what to wear and what to bring to change into afterwards. Please no snow or rain. I have never run with so many people before and I assume that it will be crazy, before, during and after!!! There is post race party with a band and beer tent, but I am sure it will be mobbed. I will try and sneak in immediately after my run since I will have the fifteen minute head start. I am also looking forward to running this race with my wife and a few other friends.

Flat Tire

Saturday morning my wife and I headed out for a run together. The temps were in the 50’s, the sun was shining and it was shaping out to be a great day. I forgot to download my Garmin from Friday’s lunchtime walk so I was pushing buttons to try and clear the information so Saturday was the only data I saw, but no such luck. I would just have to subtract 2.33 miles from everything. We started out at a nice 9:30 pace and went a total of 10 miles at 1:40 for a total of a 10:00 pace. This was my wife’s farthest distance to date and she had a goal of ten miles and wasn’t mentally prepared to go any farther. All in all it was a nice run and best of all we were outside in the sunshine, what else could you ask for.

On Sunday, I had a great idea that I wanted to get a bike rack for my vehicle so we could load up the family bikes and head to the local trail. I went to Dick’s Sporting Goods and found what I wanted and checked out. I assembled the pieces that required assembly and looked at the piece that was supposed to fit in the hitch receiver on my Explorer. That’s right, I said supposed to fit, I have a standard truck hitch and the bike rack was made for a smaller car hitch. I have never seen a hitch on a car, so I didn’t even think there was going to be an issue. After going to two automotive places and numerous phone calls, I knew I wasn’t going to be able to find a hitch adapter going from 2” to 1-1/4” today. I did find some on the internet, but that wasn’t going to help me for hitting the trail today. My wife suggested we try and fit the bikes in the back of the Explorer, I was skeptical, but tried nonetheless. Unbelievably they fit. I did have to take of my tire and carefully maneuver everything, but they fit and we headed for the trail.

We unloaded the bikes and headed out. We had no particular goal in mind, but I brought my Garmin to track our mileage. I even remembered to download the data out of it so we were good to go. We started out in Crystal Lake and continued ten miles following the Fox River to East Dundee at the Dairy Queen. My wife and I had a small cone and my son had the mint Oreo blizzard. I was amazed that we had gone that far considering my nine year old was riding a single speed bike. After our ice cream and rest break, we continued back for the return 10 miles. About a mile and a half away from the car, my wife got a flat tire. I gave her my bike and proceeded to run, with a bike for the last part. This was not what I had hoped to do after riding that far, but I had no other option. We all made it back in one piece, some of us a little more exhausted than others, but nonetheless we had a nice day. I need to remember to get a new tube for the bike and get that hitch adapter and I will be all set for next time. I love the warmer weather and the outside activities that go with it.

2 Miler

Last night after work I planned my normal routine of trying to squeeze a run in between, dinner, spending a little time with the family and of course the Thursday night poker game. Before running, I decided to do push ups (100 total) and bicep curls. After my pre-run work out I decided to stay inside, it was a little cold and I didn’t feel like putting all gear on to deal with the weather and so I jumped onto the treadmill for my run. From the beginning, I was feeling sluggish and my legs felt heavy. I have felt like this before but always have been able to push past it. Last night I just wasn’t able to do it, so after 2 miles I was done. Two miles seems pretty lame. Was it the treadmill or me? Earlier in the day at lunch I walked farther than that. I don’t know what to make of it, I guess I need to move on and forget about it and focus on the weekend. Oh yeah, the weekend is here!

I am still debating weather to rest tonight and go for a long run tomorrow, or get a few miles in tonight as well as tomorrow. This may fall into the category of junk miles. I guess I will see how I am after the train ride and decide. Hopefully, I can avoid the pitfalls of riding the train home on Friday evening. The group I ride with will be stocked with plenty of cocktails for the ride home. This is a weekly Friday thing for most and daily for some of the train group.

Have a great weekend!

Getting out of the Office!

Since Monday, I have logged in 9.71 miles of walking during my lunch break at work. I have recently felt that I could capitalize on time that I normally wouldn’t be doing much with anyway. I even gathered a couple of other recruits from the office to join me. I have been using my Garmin to track mileage so I can accurately see what kind of distances we are actually going. In addition to my walking, I have been keeping up with my normal running schedule, so this is just an additional way to burn a few extra calories I didn’t need anyway. I also get to see different parts of the city that I wouldn’t normally go to. Here are some addition pics of my lunchtime walks this week.

With the warmer temperature, the neighborhood has come to life. It seems to have been desolate all winter and it is great to see the flurry of activity outside. My son (in the blue shirt) and some of the neighborhood kids were on my driveway playing basketball. I was even able to wash my car from all thee salt and winter grime. Even my dog was wanted to come out and play.

On the running front, things have been going well. The unseasonably warm temperatures have made outside running very nice. Monday we were up to 74 degrees, however today the temp is only around 40. I have officially gotten my bike out for the first ride of the year and went on a bike ride with my son last night for a little trip around the neighborhood. I hope to take advantage to use the bike to cross train as to not injure myself with too much running.

Work has been hectic this week and I am looking forward to the weekend already. Tonight is also poker night, so that will be a nice break and a chance to catch up with friends. Tonight’s game will be back to our regular low stakes so if I loose, it wont be like last Friday’s game at my friends house.