2013 Katonah 5K Road & Trail Race

This weekend did another of those unexpected races - the 2013 Katonah 5K Road & Trail Race. I learned about the race a few weeks back when I saw a sign for it on the local streets. As it was on a Saturday - my normal day for a training run - I figured "why not"? The training run I was scheduled for was 6 miles but I figured I could just make up the additional 3 miles.

I signed up on line and I went to pick up my bib at Cross Sport Woman in Katonah on Friday the 6th. I was chatting with some other folks who were picking up their bibs (about parking, actually) and I mentioned that I was planning to get there early to put in an additional 3 miles before the race and Bettina at Cross Sport told me that the route for the 5K would be marked so I should just run the course. I thought that was a good idea. I also picked up my shirt and I was pleasantly surprised to find out that it was a very nice tech shirt - unusual for a 5K.

On the day of the race (Saturday the 7th) I got up early to get to the race. I decided to wear a long tech shirt because it was fairly chilly, and I put my WISH team shirt over it. I got to the location of the start of the race (Katonah Elementary School) at about 7:00 - an hour before the start. Some of the vendors and sponsors were just beginning to set up. I wanted to time it so that I would finish my first run right when the race was due to start, so I just hung around for a few minutes trying to stay warm. At about 7:20 I started running the course. As Bettina had promised, the course was marked with white arrows - for the most part. I had saved off the course map on my iPhone so I could refer to it, but I still managed to get lost. Part of the course went onto a trail and I messed up somewhere and I ended up backtracking. Good thing I had Google maps on my iPhone - I was able to get myself straightened out and got back on track.

Still, I just made it back to the start in time for the start of the race - or so I thought. They gathered all the runners at the start and proceeded to go through about 10 minutes of announcements. Organizationally I think that was my only real complaint - please start the race on time! Anyway, at about 8:10 the horn sounded and off we went.

Most of the course was on the street and it was quite hilly. I don't mind hills - I train on hills near my house regularly - but some of these were quite steep! Interestingly I find going down a steep hill harder than going up. I'd say the most interesting feature of the course was the trail portion which wound through one of the town parks. The only complaint I have about the course was that we ran on the grass for a bit which I hate early in the morning because your shoes get wet. And after that we ran on dusty trails so my shoes got quite dirty (not that my "veteran" running shoes look all new and clean). Still, it's a very nice change of pace to be running on a nice, shaded trail.

There were not a lot of folks out there cheering us on but there certainly were a few - and after all, it's only a 5K so there's not all that much opportunity for folks to get out there. There was also one water stop which appeared to have been set up by the folks who lived there.

I was really treating this like a training run. In fact I specifically worked on pacing myself. I use Jeff Galloway's run/walk/run method when I run. In other words, I incorporate regular walking breaks into my runs right from the beginning. This becomes a challenge if you are trying to pace yourself with another runner who is not taking walking breaks. So, what I did was to find a runner I wanted to pace myself with and go ahead of them when I ran and let them pass me when I walked. It worked out pretty well, but they later slowed down so I kept going.

Even though I was not really running full out I was still pretty happy with my time. And it was nice to get out there and do a race again.

My overall experience was very positive. The course was interesting and challenging without being too crazy. And the organization overall was very good. There were not a lot of runners there - about 200 I'd say - but everyone had a good time and I hope that more folks show up to future races. I know I will.

I can't wait for the Rock and Roll Providence Half Marathon in September!

It's official

It's official. I have signed up for my first full marathon, the Route 66 Marathon in Tulsa, OK +Route 66 Marathon on November 24 (a few days shy of my 56th birthday). I had originally planned on making the Philadelphia Marathon on November 17 my first my first, but I decided to change. The main reason I changed was because I got a call from one of my brothers informing me that he going to re-marry his first wife and move to her home in Muskogee, which is about 45 minutes southeast of Tulsa. We haven't seen each other since our mother's memorial over 2 years ago, so this seemed like a good chance to kill two birds with one stone.

I had read about the Route 66 Marathon some time earlier and thought it sounded like a cool race to run. From stuff I've read I guess it's not the most exciting course, but it has the reputation of being exceptionally well organized. They also design pretty cool medals, and they have a special medal if it's your first race. (I am unclear if you get the first race medal in addition to or instead of the regular medal - I guess I'll find out!) Finally it's a large race and I've found that I much prefer large races. So, I registered before the price went up, and I booked a car and a hotel. I'll book the flight in a few weeks. Very excited! be sure to follow me on Twitter and/or friend me on Facebook - especially if you plan to run this race (but go ahead and do it anyway...)

No vacation from training

Hi all.

First, my apologies for not posting in so long. For most of late July and early August I have been in "vacation mode". In July I spent a week with my family having a wonderful time in Bar Harbor, Maine. Then in early August I spent 12 days out West with my childhood friend Kirk (you can read about that trip on my other blog).

But training knows no vacation. Following training schedule, I had a 10.5 long run scheduled for while we were in Maine and a 14 mile run for when I was in Anaheim.

For the 10.5 mile run in Bar Harbor on July 15 (I did the run 2 days later than scheduled but hey! I was on vacation!) I ran down the main road toward town, back across the bridge into Trenton and then back again. It was a good course to run, I felt rested and strong, and and I was able to maintain  pretty good pace. And some of the scenery was beautiful!



For the 14 mile run in Anaheim on August 10 I ran around the Disneyland Resort (which was a lot of fun) and down Harbor Blvd. Harbor is flat with wide sidewalks, so I was anticipating a pretty easy run. I was wrong. The problem is that every corner on Harbor is a major intersection with a relatively long wait for the light which really broke up my pace. In addition I was concerned about being late for the D23 expo, so I ended up cutting the run short at 11.25 miles.



I got right back on the horse in two weeks with a 17 mile run. Being back home I ran at the local carriage trail. I was very happy with the results, feeling pretty strong throughout and maintaining a steady pace right up until the last two miles. This was my longest run to date. I'm feeling very confident about my first full marathon, the Roue 66 Marathon n Tulsa OK.

Well, I'm 100% back into training mode now, getting ready for the marathon. In the meantime I'll also be running a half marathon and a 10K - both are Rock 'N Roll races. I'll be posting full reports here.

I am still here!

Hi all,

Sorry for the lack of posts of late. I have been in full "vacation mode" this summer and have been very busy with that and other things. Rest assured I am continuing with my training. As the Fall race season approaches and as my training for my first full marathon approaches I promise to make more regular posts. And I hope to have an update by the end of next week-end. Thanks!

Officially Starting Training

After running the Fairfield Half Marathon last week I don't have any more races planned for the rest of the summer. I do plan on doing the NYC Electric Run with my family as well as the Rock and Roll Providence, but those are not until September. I also am doing the Rock and Roll Brooklyn 10K in October. But that's it for the summer. So, what do I plan on doing? Well, I am shooting for my first full marathon in November, so I am now in full training mode for that.

First, I had originally intended to do the Philadelphia Marathon, which is one that my chiropractor recommended. But then I had a change of plan. I found out that one of my brothers, who I haven't seen since our Mother's memorial in February of 2011, was planning to move to a town outside of Tulsa, OK. I also remembered a marathon I had heard about, the Route 66 Marathon, that was scheduled for November in Tulsa. So, now I intend to fly to Tulsa, visit my brother and sister-in-law, and run the Route 66 Marathon.

So, in practical terms, this means I am essentially switching from a mode of remaining in condition for running half marathons to stepping it up to training for a full marathon. I have been reading and referring to the book "Training Programs" by Jeff Galloway and I have been following one of his full marathon programs from that book. The only alterations I have done so far is that I ran a couple of half marathons which were greater distances than what he called for. Also I had not really gotten into the mode of running slower than you would for a race on your long runs - something that Galloway recommends. As of this week that stops and I am in full "training mode".

To begin with, I am going to maintain a slower pace for the long runs. In addition to Jeff's recommendation for taking it slow in general, he also recommends slowing down when the temperature gets hot. Well, this morning was one of those days. On the schedule was a 9 mile run. While it was not horribly hot - about 70° as i started my run but it got up to about 78° - it was also extremely humid. So, I made sure to bring along a lot of water as well as some electrolyte drink and I took it very easy, maintaining a steady pace of about 14 minutes per mile. And as a result the run was very pleasant. I felt no aches and pains at all and I felt as thought I could easily have continued on for a few more miles.

Finally, as to my training schedule, from here out I will follow Jeff's training plan with only one alteration. According to the Galloway I should be doing 6 miles on September 29 but instead I will be doing a half marathon. Even the weekend of the Brooklyn 10K works out because the schedule calls for 6 miles. Here is my training schedule:

 Any feedback on my training plan appreciated, and stay tuned as I track my progress!

Stratton Faxon Fairfield Half Marathon

HOT! HOT! HOT!

Last Sunday, June 23, I ran in the Stratton Faxon Fairfield Half Marathon in Fairfield CT. What follows are some of my thoughts about the race.

First, I was hoping that I would achieve a PR at this race - something that was not to be due mostly to the heat. Anyone who follows this blog knows that I am not exactly the fastest runner on the course - my best time to date for a half marathon in 2:42 - and I was not able to beat that in this race. But I get ahead of myself...

The town of Fairfield in CT is right on the Long Island Sound and boasts some beautiful beaches. It's only about a 45 minute drive from my house so it seemed like a natural choice for me to run. I registered for the race a few months back and, after using Google Earth to check out some of the course, I was really looking forward to it. I got up early and hit the road a little after 6:00, arriving at the venue about 7:00. From there we caught a bus to Jennings Beach where the race was to begin. While in line waiting for the bus I started chatting with a couple of other runners, talking about other races, etc. So, anyway, here are some of my thoughts...

Race day was an absolutely beautiful, sunny day without a cloud in the sky. The only issue, as I wrote earlier, it was HOT! The race time temperature was about 70°, getting up to the upper 80's by the end of the race. There was very little breeze, and the sun was out in force. This obviously effected my enjoyment of the race - as well as my time - but there's not much the organizers can do about the weather (except maybe start the race earlier? Just a thought...)

Organization: With the exception of a few minor quibbles, this is an exceptionally well organized race. It should be remembered that this is a community organized race manned by volunteers, as opposed to professional race organizers. So I would not be too critical of a few minor issues. On the plus side, the bib pickup was smooth (despite the fact that there were no opportunities for early pickup). There were plenty of volunteers helping out and ample facilities. I was a little concerned when I was not able to pick up my shirt before the race, but they had a booth set up to pick up shirts after the race so it was not an issue. The parking, as I mentioned above, was not close to the start but there were plenty of buses (albeit non-air conditioned school buses) to shuttle runners and their families. I did notice that there was some confusion around where people parked because some parked at the "old" train station while others parked at the "new" train station. This did not impact me personally though.

I do have a couple of suggestions. First, I would set up porta-potties in the parking lots to alleviate crowded facilities at the race start. Another minor quibble is that you have to walk through some sand to get to the start, and it is difficult to avoid getting sand in your shoes. This can be very irritating. Again, this was no issue for me but I did chat with a few folks who had to empty their shoes before the race.

Community support was one area where this race really shines! The community spirit and support was awesome! When you're like me and one of the folks that bring up the rear of the race you really appreciate all the folks that are still out there cheering you on. And at this race they were still there and not only cheering, but cheering enthusiastically. If anyone reading this is not a racer but rather a race supporter, let me just tell you how much your efforts are appreciated. You are the greatest! There were also several bands, again something that is much appreciated. There were also some terrific signs (including a little girl holding up a sign that read "WORST PARADE EVER" - an oldie but a goody). There were also a lot of folks helping out with the heat, including a couple of kids who were running a lemonade stand ("FREE TO RUNNERS"), folks manning the ample and well labeled water and Gatorade stands, and the kind folks who set up water sprinklers for us to run through. Very refreshing! The only (again minor) issue was that they ran out of cups at one of water stations. No big deal - that only happened at one of the stands. They also had Gu at the half way point but ran out before I got there - I bring my own fuel so again, for me, no big deal.

The course is another area where this race really shines. You start at Jennings Beach and run through the town. We were informed that some of the roads would be open to traffic, and I did see a few cars, but not many. The best part of the course came at about the half way point when we ran for about 2 miles on a road that ran next to the beach. That was definitely the highlight of the course. There were some hills on the course but it wasn't too bad. That said, I think my opinion of hilly courses may be skewed after my second race, The Sleepy Hollow Half Marathon. After running that race nothing seems hilly!

The post race activities were also well above average. There were lots of vendor tents set up on the beach as well as ample post-race food including fruit, garlic bread, yogurt and - best of all - free pizza for the runners! That was a very nice touch. I would have stayed to check out some of the vendor tents but it was just too hot and I wanted to get home.

The bling was, honestly, a bit hot and cold. The shirt was a very nice tech shirt - always much preferred of a cotton t-shirt - with the race logo. The medal, well I have to admit I'm not crazy about the design. It is also the race logo but I'm not sure it works on a medal. That said, it is a custom design (not just a generic medal with a logo slapped on it), which is nice. Still, I will proudly show off this medal to anyone interested (and even those who aren't).

So the big question is - would I run this race again? The answer is an enthusiastic yes. I most certainly will run it again and highly recommend it to anyone looking for a well-organized and run half marathon.

Hot but happy

My Left Foot

One thing that I have been having a lot of trouble with, yet have not really written about, is my left foot. It starts giving me trouble at about 2 miles, getting worse and worse until about the 6th mile or so where it becomes unbearable. The way I describe the sensation is as if my sock is folding up under the ball of my foot causing an irritating bump. This then turns into a tingling in my toes. The only thing I can do about it is to stop, take off my shoes, rub my foot for a minute, then put my shoes back on. This only provides temporary relief - maybe a mile or so - so you can imagine this doesn't help my times much.

I've talked to several people about this issue. Unfortunately it had not yet really become an issue on the one time I saw a podiatrist - I know now that he would have diagnosed the problem right away. Anyway, I mentioned it to my chiropractor (who is a runner), guys at running stores, and I even emailed a guy known as "The Sock Geek". Nobody knew what it could be.

As I wrote about in my last post, I fractured my elbow 2 weeks ago. When I went to the physical therapist I described the issue to her, and she said it sounded like a "neuroma". I looked it up and in the description it read that it "may feel as if you are standing on a pebble in your shoe or on a fold in your sock.". I felt like Charlie Brown talking to Psychologist Lucy: "THAT'S IT!".

So, according to what I read, the cause and the solution are very simple. Well, simple for most but not so much for me. See, the issue is that your shoes are too tight in the toebox. So, get wider shoes. Easy, right? Well, not so much for me. My show size already is 9 1/2 EEEE. That's right, quadruple-E. As far as I know there is only one running show made IN THE ENTIRE WORLD that is wider - a specific model of 6E New Balance running shoes.

Still, armed with this information I went to a really good local specialist running show store where I had gone in the past. They told me that the shoes I had been running in are definitely too tight. In fact I realized that this issue, while I had it with my old shoes as well, definitely got worse with this new pair. After trying on several pair we landed on the New Balance M1540. We also upped the size to 10. Interestingly, while this is the one model that goes to 6E, the 4E seemed to be fine for me. The thing is, these things look like friggin' paddle boats. They are about the ugliest running shoes I have every seen. I admonished my wife and daughter to not make fun of them But you know what? If they solve my problem then I could not care less what they look like.

Shoes or boats?

I'll be breaking them in this week and will report back in my next entry. Next week I'm only doing 4 miles but that should be enough for me to know if they are working. Then the weekend of the 23rd I am running the Stratton Faxon Half Marathon, so that will be the real test.

More to follow...