Thankful

After 26 days of running, I did something I was not quite ready for; I ran in my first race since March. This morning I ran in our local Thanksgiving 5K and ran a dismal 20:04. However, I did have a great time being back in the running community on this sunny frigid day and it made me reflect on why I am thankful I am a runner. So on this day that we pause and offer thanks for all our blessings, here is a list of my top 5 running blessings:

Number 1: I am thankful for my former high school teammate and friend Shannon. After 25 years, she still loves the sport, has passed it down to her son, Tommy, and always makes me laugh and smile with her outgoing personality. (Shannon, note that I did not mention you running with an iphone today and then stuffing it in your... oh wait, I guess I just did.)

Number 2: I am thankful for my guys that I coach! On a freezing arctic morning, they chose to get up at the crack of dawn, pay $25 and give it 110% for a good cause! Not only that, they had a great time racing some of the best open/college runners in our area. You guys are savages!

Number 3: Coach Dave Bronzan. What can I say, here is the man who introduce me to a whole new world of running with his passion for the sport and he was out this morning taking pictures and encouraging all past, current and future COS runners and more!

Number 4: Our current runners who are attending and competing for Adams State, Chico State and Humboldt State who came home and ran in our local race and provide a great example for our young runners to look up to. Through their hard work, dedication and commitment, they have taken their running to a whole new level. Keep it up fellas!

Number 5: Although it was slow, I was still able to run! I can still put one foot in front of the other, the way I love to do it best! I love this sport. It is part of who I am. I have been blessed with a healthy body and I still get to enjoy cold mornings, rainy afternoons, and sunny days out on a trail pushing my body to its limits.

So to all of my running friends, have a blessed Thanksgiving, eat well, and Thank You for being a part of my running life! As always, stay healthy and keep running!

That's All You Got?!!

"Poseidon, Poseidon! Is that All You've Got?!" You might think those words came from Odysseus from the Odyssey, however, those were the very words that dripped from my training partner Lino's mouth as we turned into the torrential downpour that occurred three miles into our afternoon eight mile run. As he conjured up the Greek mythological gods to taunt them in the midst of the deluge of Biblical proportions, we plunged forward into a whipping side wind that pelted us with liquid marbles as animals charged by us two by two! To say the least, we were having a blast splashing through puddles like little kids! It is days like these that make me glad I took up this sport. I love running in the rain!

Even though we were having fun, we were still clipping along at 6:30-6:45 pace for most of the run. It felt good to be running along at such a pace; the first time in a very, very long time. As I finished day 25 in row, I am ecstatic that I was able to do it at such a decent pace and in my favorite weather to run, wet and cold. So as I peel off my soaked tights and socks, I look forward to tomorrow's run and I hope Poseidon, Zeus, and Phidippides provide another opportunity to tempt the gods to an incredible day of running.

As always, stay healthy, stay dry, and keep running.

The Week that Was

I have now ran 23 straight days and this last week was the first week that I actually felt like a runner again. I ended up with a total of 43 miles for the week. Not too bad, considering I am fighting a cold and my wife has been sick all week, keeping me up most nights with coughing fits. As we head into Thanksgiving this week, my goal is to reach 50-55 miles. I hope by keeping this running blog-log it will help me formalize my training and give me a new tool in which to reflect on my journey as an older athlete as I record my training and racing in a new format. For those of you who read my blog, I just want to say thanks for your encouragement. I really do appreciate it. Sometimes just that simple response or word makes a world of difference on those days that "I just am not feeling it." Well, it is time to head out and make it day 24.

As always, keep healthy and keep running!

Techno Runner

My cross country runners surprised me the other night at our awards banquet with a super cool gift, a Nike+ Band. For those of you who are not familiar with this gadget, it is a sleek band that fits around your wrist with a small usb jump drive and a sensor that is placed in your shoe to keep track of how far you have ran, your pace, and how many calories you have burned! I can even log online and track my run and keep a record of all my mileage by plugging the little usb drive in my computer. So instead of a clunky Garmin on my wrist, which I do not own, I wear a device roughly the size of a Livestrong bracelet. This morning I ran 6.18 miles at 7:30 per mile pace and burned 880 calories! Melt away oh flabby flesh of man boobs!

Now, for anyone who knows me, knows that I am Mr. Old School runner, minus the tube socks and afro, and have shunned the heart rate monitor, ipod, Garmin, water belts, camel backs, and cross training. I run. I run in cotton socks and deal with blisters and take pride in my blood stained shoes. I wear cotton t-shirts and deal with bleeding nipples. If I get chub rub, vaseline works wonders. I have always said all I need is a good solid running watch, but I have to admit, this little gadget is COOL! After calibrating it yesterday, I was super excited to try it out today. The best part was that it confirmed that my internal gps is fairly accurate and I still know how to listen to my body to determine my pace. As I am falling back into the running life it is nice to have a device that allows me to accurately track my running, minus the watch. So to my guys, Thank You very much for such a cool gift. You guys are the best.

As always, stay healthy and keep running!

Bloody Nipple!

I just finished my 7-8 mile run and I noticed the weather was a little chilly, but I was not expecting this! Feeling a little sensitive in the pectoral department, I reach to examine the area only to discover an excruciating electric shock from my nipple to my toes! Owwww! Not only that, a little stream of blood flowed from the hamburger that was once part of my anatomy. Man, I am even more glad than ever that I am a man and not a woman. My hats off to you ladies and all that you have to endure. It is bad enough being out of shape, but now my man-boobs are mocking me and protesting my efforts to eliminate them. But alas, oh sensitive fatty flesh, you will soon be dissolved and will taunt me no more. However, until then, I think I need to invest into some vaseline and band-aids or else it is going to be a long, bloody winter!

As always, keep healthy, keep running, and protect those sensitive areas!