Inspired by Abebe Bikila

Rocktoberfest (Dowd) Half Marathon Recap!

2011-10-24T08:52:00.000-07:00

So I am 2 weeks out from my 8th New York City Marathon and I wanted to get in 13 miles at 6 minute pace on a rolling (hilly) course. That is just what I did this past Saturday as I ventured down to the Dowd YMCA in uptown Charlotte.

I parked my car less that 100 yards from the finish line at 7am and immediately saw the one and only race director, Tim Rhodes, who graciously comped my entry fee which I am very grateful for. I then took a nice leisurely 20 minute jog in the area until it was time to put my flats on (brand new Nike Zoom Kitana Racer). Did some easy strides and got to the starting line in my standard 2nd row spot. Saw 5 studs in the race and one was James McKeon who has been smoking me every race this year. Could I hang with him at the longer distance? We'll see...

So the gun goes off and I get right in to 6 minute pace mode and head down Morehead St. with about 10 guys in tow and a chick named Sonja. We were rolling easy. My feeling in the early going was not great yet never bad through the whole race. I was good with that. Finally got up and over Providence Road and was still rolling where I got to the 5th position as I got to the intersection of Providence Road and Fairview where I saw Paul and Sophie which was very cool.

Side note: Since I have been running and racing in Charlotte over the last 16 plus years, it still amazes me how many people personally root for me...I am grateful and honored!

Getting back to the race. At about the 6 mile mark I am feeling pretty good and decide to start reeling in the 3rd and 4th place runners who are up ahead. One is James McKeon who has consistently smoked me even though he is my age at 46! He is a tough competitor who seems to always bring his A game (as I would find out later, his calf was tight through the 2nd half of the race). None the less, by mile 7 and a half, I went by those 2 runners and set my sights on 2rd. That runner was about 30 seconds ahead and although I was rolling, I could not seem to bridge the gap. Finally got to the all too familiar Queens Road West and rolled through there until I hit Morehead and started climbing up what is the 13th mile. Cruised up Lexington to the finish line and crossed in 1:18 and change which was good for 3rd place. I was pleased with how I ran so consistantly on a rolling course like Charlotte which should bode well for New York in 2 weeks.

I was able to cool down with Caleb, JMar, and Caitlin for a couple of miles before it was off to breakfast, soccer, lacrosse and work. Good stuff...

My son went to his first Cotillion dance Saturday night. I told him not to be too nervous like his father use to be...Ha! Sophie scored a goal in a 1-1 tie. I'm trying my best not to think about the marathon every minute of every waking hour...HaHa!

24 mile run...w/ a little help from my friends!

2011-10-17T10:46:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday put me 3 weeks out from the New York City marathon. This meant my 3rd, at last, long run in my training cycle for the marathon. It may not sound like a lot, however, each one was run uptempo style. Saturday was no different...

My plan was to meet out at the Old Bell entrance to McAlpine at 6am and run 3 out and back 8 milers. Since our football game went into double overtime, I didn't get to bed until midnight. When I woke up and saw that it was 6:18, I knew that I had overslept. No worries! I knew Paul would be there at 6:50am. Anyway, I got to the park at 6:45am and waited for Paul to arrive. Sure enough, there he was at 6:50, we exchanged pleasantries, and were off!

This uptempo workout was inspired by Renata Canova where you run an uptempo 40k. I was ready. Paul did not disappoint as we hit 2 miles in 15 minutes (not fast yet we got out well...thanks Paul). Since Paul is knackered and nursing a small injury, he turned around at the 2 and a half mile mark and headed back. I ventured on solo. I kept my rhythm and ran tall with minimal arm swing. I made the turnaround at mile 4 in 29:50 and made it back having finished the first loop in 56:50. Good start since I was definitely trying to make myself tired.

I should say that at mile 7 with 1 mile left to complete the first lap, I nursed 1 Gu and then when I got back to the parking lot, I gulped down some water (15 seconds at most.) Ready for the second lap...

I started the 2nd lap with good turnover and ran all the way to the 12 mile mark along with my thoughts. Along the way, I crossed paths with Ben Hovis, Megan, Dan Matena (fresh off of his 2:43!) and John Compton (more on him later). Once again, I ran the whole 2nd loop with a stitch that thankfully did not keep me from running the pace that I wanted...

It was at this point that I spotted a young runner who I caught and asked him if he would run with me. He said yes. A nice kid named Kyle Hoffman who is running for the Myers Park cross country team. We ran together to the 15 mile mark where he ran into Boyce and I went strait. Running with Kyle kept me honest so I didn't slack off. We talked about all things running...

With 1 mile to go in the 2nd lap (mile 15), I decided not to take another Gu...I would just drink some Gatorade! Great choice...

So now I'm 2 laps down and starting the 3rd lap. I'm ready to go. I knew that I wanted to get as close to 48 minutes on the last 8 miles. The only way to do that for me would be to put pressure on the whole way. Guess what? At mile 17 (1 mile into my 3rd lap) I see John Compton coming towards me by himself! You gotta be kidding me! What does he do, he turns around and starts running with me. THIS WAS HUGE! Minimal words were exchanged as he knew exactly were I was in my running state of mind. He ran right off my left shoulder as to let me dictate tempo (also huge). At one point, we came up on a group of high school runners and just cruised right around them. We got to the 18 mile mark which is the start of the cross country course and he kept running with me. We got all the way to the turnaround at mile 20 and at that point I asked John what pace we were running and he said 5:55. I think we averaged 6:05 as he ran with me all the way to the 22 mile mark. Thanks for the 5 miles John! I still have 2 miles to go yet I'm in decent enough shape as I make it back to the end in 2 hours and 40 minutes and 40 seconds (last 8 miles in 48 minutes and 50 seconds)...I was pleased!

3 weeks until New York...

Lungstrong 15k...a race recap!

2011-10-11T14:43:00.000-07:00

With this years training for the NYC marathon, I have been trying to just let the workouts come to me. As I have gotten older, I have found that I just need more time to recover from hard efforts (workouts). Therefore, I have only been running 2 workouts per week. I am on a 7 day cycle. This also means that I have only done 2 twenty milers so far in my build up to New York.

Having said all that, here is how the race went on Saturday:

Got to Lake Norman early enough on Saturday morning to get a nice and easy warm up in. I met up with John Compton as I started my warm up and we ran together and had a nice conversation (as usual). Put my flats on and did about 5 or 6 easy strides...nothing too fast. Felt good for the start. Let me say that I have not tapered at all in my lead up to this race. Got to the line and he is how it unfolded...

The announcer said something about some dude breaking the course record. He raised his hand and I said to myself...this dude is not going to beat me! Period...

We all get out and I realize rather early that I could not run with the group of guys that I would have liked to have run with. They include Chad, Billy, David, James, Richard, and a couple of other studs...oh well. As it was, I was running 5:52 pace according to my breathing! That was high end for me yet I was rolling. I never felt great, yet I never felt really bad. I'll take that. So, I can't run with the studs, and I did find Kent and Greg who I ended up rolling with for a few miles. That was nice. The course record guy drafted off of me for a lot of miles and I kinda took it like he appreciated my pacing abilities. No sooner did I say that that he actually said that to me. Pretty cool...

So back to the race, Greg starts to slowly pull away from me at the 6 mile mark. I set my sights on Vincent and Kent. I developed a stitch at this point yet it didn't slow me down. I caught Vincent and finally caught Kent on the main road at about mile 8. I'm in 9th place at this point and really wanted to get under 55 minutes, yet I didn't know my time. As I approached the finish, I saw the clock that said 54:45 and whan I saw the results later in the day, Jim had finished 1 place and 20 seconds ahead of me...one tough customer!

Lots of people ran well not least of all John Compton! My average pace was 5:52 and I'll take that on a rolling course. Paul won the overall followed by, maybe Chad, Richard and Billy? Good stuff. I was shut out since I missed 4 races in the first 6...oh well!

10 mile tempo fun with Stephanie Pezzulli & Aaron Linz

2011-10-03T09:17:00.000-07:00

This was just awesome!

So after last Sunday's 20 miler, I sent my workout schedule for the week out to all my running Buds and actually got a response. I was beginning to think that I didn't have any pull within the club...Ha!

Aaron Linz e-mailed me back and said that he would like to roll the 10 mile tempo with me. Great! He then e-mailed everyone to see if anyone else was interested in joining and Pezz said that she would come out and do her workout. That would consist of a 3 mile, followed by a 2 mile segment, followed by a 5 minute 1 mile segment.

I got there e few minuted before 7 am and although the McMullen parking lot was full, there was no Aaron and no Pezz! No worries, as Aaron showed up a few minutes later and then Stephanie came. Aaron and I are ready to go yet Pezz needed a few minutes to get ready (for the warm up!) Maybe that's why she's already qualified for the O Trials Steeplechase and I'll be in the stands. Anyway, we run a nice and steady 2 mile warm up and get back to the parking lot for a little more circle jerking...

Actually, Pezz needed to use the restroom, change her outfit, and change her shoes. NOW...we are ready!

Since Pezz was starting off with a 3 mile segment, Aaron was going to run with her. So we take off and it becomes evident early that I was going to be chasing. I couldn't believe they left me in the dust so soon (15 seconds into a 10 mile run). Anyway, I get to the half mile mark and I look at my watch and see 2:45. I double that and realize that I'm still running 5:30 pace. I back off slightly and hit the mile in 5:45. I'm behind yet my mentality is that I have to work by myself for 9 and a half miles...I'm good with that! I settle in and just start clicking off 5:50 miles and at the 3 mile mark I pass Pezz in 17:15 and give chase to Aaron. I catch Aaron just before the 4 mile mark (he slowed up for me) and we run side by side to the 5 mile turn around.

Side note, Aaron is such a good/tough training partner who has a suttle cockiness to him...which of course being from Jersey...I love! So we hit the turn around in about 28:54 and I'm working and feeling fine.

We stay side by side until the 7 mile mark when Aaron looks over at me and drops a bombshell!..."Stephen, I feel like a million bucks, I'm gonna take off!" Are you kidding me...

Here I am runninig 5:50 pace and he hits me with that. Needless to say, I could not go with him...

When I got to the 9 mile mark, Pezz had just started her 1 mile segment and she looked strong. I finished up the tenth mile and hit 58:24 for the ten miles and Aaron was about 30 seconds up on me...great run for him!

Aafter walking around for a couple of minutes, Pezz came in and we all did a 2 mile cool down to finish. I was pleased because I didn't kill it and was able to recover rather soon after.

20 miler with Aaron and Justin

2011-09-28T09:50:00.000-07:00

This was actually 2 ten-milers with Gu and water in between.

We had a nice group that met at the Dowd Sunday morning including: Paul, Josh, Aaron, Billy, Justin, Carolyn, Richard, myself, and a few other blokes. Great group...

I was interested in making this an honest effort from the start. Before long, it was Aaron, Justin and myself. First lap done in a couple of ticks over 65 minutes. Quick brake, and then right back on it. I worked, and stayed smooth, and struggled, to stay with Aaron and Justin. Finally, after 15 miles they got a little gap on me that they held to the 17 mile mark when they shut it down which enabled me to catch and run past them and I made it back to the YMCA in a couple of ticks over 62 minutes. We were all spent!

The best part of the run was when we were all done and we hung out on the steps of the Y with just our shorts on, probably all pleased with our effort of the morning's run...

Aaron finally broke things up saying that he needed breakfast...a wise choice!

2011-09-26T11:59:00.000-07:00

Brixx 10k race recap!

2011-09-19T09:13:00.000-07:00

I did not taper for this race. I had a lot of fun at this race and here is my recap:

I parked at the Dowd (Central) Y for this race and ran to Brixx pizza to get my number (thanks as always to Tim Rhodes for comping my entry as I do not take that for granted). The volunteers who help out are always so nice...I like to think that I am too). I continued my warm up by just circling around Brixx and Reid's until it was about 7:30am. At that point, I took my warm ups off and put my singlet on. Went over to a vacant lot to do some easy strides. Felt ok...

I must confess that I was so inspired by what Galen Rupp had done the day before in Brussels in the ten thousand. Paul and I were talking about it right before the start of the race. He for Mo, Me for Galen...oh well!

The gun goes off (I think Tim said go) and strait away we all take off. Paul goes to the front, and then there is pack behind Paul. That pack was lead by Richard, then Billy, Jim, Chad and a few other players. Myself and Chris, and Eric and David and Kent were in a pack behind them. After a half mile, I said to Eric, "let's see if we can get up to that pack", and that is what I did. Eric thought they would come back to us...I wasn't so sure!
I took off and quickly joined the lead pack (behind Paul of course) just past the half mile mark. At this point, I am stoked to be with this group that includes Chad, Billy, Richard, Jim and myself.

We continue to press the pace as we reach the 1 mile mark, no split, still the pace continues. I'm still feeling good when Richard cranks things up ever so slightly, which Billy, Jim, Chad and I respond to. At the 2 mile mark, Richard amps it up a little more which Billy responds to, Jim and I also respond and it seems as though Chad lost the connection (not so fast). At the 3 mile mark and at which point we have been climbing for a while, Richard is in 2nd, he's got a gap on Billy, who has a gap on Jim and I. Jim breaks from me and at 3 and a half miles, Chad goes by me and offers a small word of encouragement (class act). I'm now in 6th place. At four and a half miles and with me suffering slightly, Chris Lamperski passes me. At around 5 and a quarter mile, Doug and David go by me and that was frustrating yet good for them! Just before 6 miles, I see that I'm gaining on Chris and I catch him at the 6 mile mark, we run together til 6.1 at which point he gets a 1 second gap on me which he holds to the finish.

35:40 (5:44 pace) good for 9th place. Fun to be competitive for the first half of the race and pleased with the time. Need to see if I can be competitive longer for the next race. We'll see...

Remembering the day!

2011-09-14T07:53:00.000-07:00

Our daughter turns 10 today. She was scheduled to be born on 9/11 yet because of the sickening (and heroic) events that took place that morning, the delivery date was set for 3 days later. She's simply awesome...

Just finished my mid week medium long run of 14 miles at a very comfortable pace. I have 2 easy/ steady 10 milers over the next 2 days and then a hard 10k on Saturday...should be fun!

Calling Captain Max!

2011-09-09T14:03:00.000-07:00

Forgive me for being just a little excited. My son has his first game for the Middle Scool here at CCDS and he was named captain. As you can see from the picture, he is tiny (rumor has it he has a huge heart!) I am not at the game as I am at work getting ready for our varsity game tonight. A friend e-mailed the picture to me and I sent it on to a few people...very cool! I'll report back on the quality of his play...

We had a nice easy 10 miler this morning at the park and I had the pleasure of Carolyn Maye's company (I know, it's tough!) along with Red, Megan and Josh...very nice!

Tomorrow morning, while everyone else is in the heart of Blue Ridge country, I will be running an up-tempo 20 miler. My goal is to keep the pressure on the whole way along with practicing taking in 3 Gu's along the way...

5 mile tempo w/ Chrisman, Bilbrey and Willis!

2011-09-08T10:17:00.000-07:00

Cool weather this morning. We all met up at Old Bell. 3 mile warm up to help get the legs ready for some work/turnover. I felt pretty good so I told the group that I was shooting for 29 minutes for the 5 mile tempo (progression run). For some reason, I was very confident this morning.

We started and it was clear that no one wanted to lead. After an opening mile of right at 6 minutes per Caitlin, I decided to throw in a nasty surge (a la Imane Merga) to break the field up. Yet when I made the turnaround at 1.5 miles, they were all close in tow. From then on, I kept the pressure on and my foot on the gas. I hit 3 miles in 17:20 and realized then that I needed 5:50's for the last 2 to hit 29 minutes flat which is just what I did. It was work, and the work was done. I got right in my car and went home to get the kids to school and me to work. My legs are feeling pretty good as I'm running easy tomorrow with Red and then I have a 20 mile up tempo run on Saturday.

Thanks for reading...

Mile repeats w/ Hovis, Beigay, Mainwaring, Chrisman, Bilbrey and Me!

2011-09-05T16:44:00.000-07:00

And with a late sleep in, we all met up at the Old Bell entrance to McAlpine for a workout of mile repeats...we would do 4!

The crue included: Ben Hovis, Caitlin Chrisman, Paul Mainwaring, Eric Bilbrey, Caleb Boyd...and Spada!

Aside from hearing that the first one was sub 5:30, I don't know the times...it simply didn't matter!

We had an awesome group, you were never able to settle, so you pushed the whole way.

Mike was pushing Paul, Ben was pushing Mike, Eric was pushing Caitlin, and Spada was just pushing...

We had great support from Meagan, Carolyn, Doug and Jason, Aaron, Tom and the whole crue from Butler!

Great stuff...

3 by 2 mile repeats w/ Caitlin & David

2011-09-02T14:38:00.000-07:00

That would be Caitlin Chrisman and David Willis (just met...very nice)

Met everyone out at McAlpine this morning for another Jay Holder pre, pre, send-off...always fun! I actually ribbed him this morning about Nope! Dope!

So we start running easy and all of a sudden we come up on a dead body...crazy stuff! It was Billy Shue and he pulled it off!

After a 3 mile warm up...it was time to get down to business. The workout would be 3 times 2 miles with a 2 minute recovery...fair enough! My plan was to hang out on the first one which we hit in 11:44. My plan on the second one was to open up on the second mile which I did as we hit 11:24. My plan on the 3rd one was to open up early which I did as we hit 11:14. I felt good the whole time even though I was working the second half of the workout. Caitlin was her usual strong self and David was a nice addition!

Got a long one in the morning with a great crue...should be fun!

Thousand meter repeats w/ Caitlin Chrisman & Lat Purser

2011-08-31T13:16:00.000-07:00

First time training with Lat...and what a pleasure!

Training with Caitlin...that always works!

We met up at the intersection of Dilworth Road West and East Blvd. for a workout consisting of 8 X 1,000 meters around the speed loop with a 1:59 recovery. After a nice and easy 40 minute warm up and very few procrastinations...we were off!

It became evident early that Lat would be our fearless leader as he quickly took the lead and set the tempo. Caitlin and I were squirrels just tryin' to get a nut! All rap aside, this was going to be a heck of a workout. I tucked in behind Caitlin and was barely able to stay within 6 inches of her which is what I did for numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4. At that point Lat let it be known that he would be dropping out after #5. He simply looked relaxed and effortless. Having said that, you can get a tiny bit of confidence when someone else is cutting a workout short. I took the advantage I could!

On #5, I was able to pull up along side Caitlin (we train so well together) and at the 400 meter mark, I was able to get the slightest of gap as I could hear her breathing was labored...mine was as well! I tried to maintain good form and finish strong no matter that there were still 3 more to go. Lat parted ways as Caitlin (sporting lululemon...who happens to be sponsoring Saturday's Big Wedding!) and I pressed on with #6. Same thing, between the 400 meter and 500 meter mark, I was able to get the slightest of gaps and ride it to the finish as I tried to pull both of us along. By the time we had reached the line, we were shoulder to shoulder. Upon completion of the workout, we were both spent! I got right in my car and pulled a Spada...Ha!

When I was driving away I could hear Red say..."I can't believe you don't get injured!"...Squeeze me?

Lat appreciated the workout as he asked to do it again...

Gettin' Beat up at Beatty!

2011-08-30T13:28:00.000-07:00

For last Sunday's long run, it was decided by the powers that be that we would meet up at Colonel Francis J. Beatty Park on Weddington Road in south Charlotte. Not too far for me. Since I hadn't been on the trails in a while and I needed to exercise some demons from the day before's debacle, I decided to show up...and it's a good thing I did!

Charlotte's finest were out in all things neon and Lululemon...no complaints here! So we set out for some easy running yet you have to be on your toes for the many roots that litter this single track trail. Note: it is way better to lead than to follow!

3 miles into the run I took a nasty fall! What do I do? The same thing Finland's Lasse Viren did in the '72 Olympic 10,000m final...I got up within 2 seconds and got back into the rhythm of the run! 2 miles later Jason Martin goes down real hard AND gets right back on the train. 1 mile after that, Meagan Nedlo trips and somehow maintains her balance and gets back into her groove...Nice! Next it's Megan Hovis's turn and what happens to her...a nasty bee sting! The stinger decides to stay in to keep the pain constant. After a brief respite to assess the situation, Megan gets back on the train! So now I'm leading and a large male flies by me on his mountain bike, yet I didn't let my pursuers know and he proceeds to take Megan out...not good! Yet like a true trooper, she gets back up (what Mohammad Gammoudi did not do in '72 during the early stages of the 10,000m) and Ben gives some encouraging words and she proceeded to nail her long run!

One side note, I also stepped on a notted root, which forced me to dorsi-flex my foot and I strained ligaments and muscle tendons that connect my soleus muscle to my calcaneus and tarsel bones...I'll get over it AND I will go back to Beatty for some more trail miles...thanks guys!

Greekfest Flop!

2011-08-29T06:29:00.000-07:00

On the down side...the race was a disaster! I never got going and had nothing to give. Still gave what I had which wasn't much...

On the up side...it was a great morning. Got to the race early enough and picked up my bib and saw Billy and Chad hanging out. I dropped my stuff off in my car and then as I was heading back to the start I caught up with Billy Shires! We got to run our warm up together and got caught up with all things running (training, book reviews, injuries, etc.) As we were warming up, 3 young, fit, Olympic Trials qualifiers streamed past us and I made the comment that that was pretty cool. He didn't get it at first until I explained that those 3 gazelles are going to Houston in January (Houston will have a problem with those 3...Ha!)

Went up to the starting line in plenty of time and saw Mo Campbell and the Boy...very nice! I went and wished Richard Harris good luck (that would prove invaluable) and waited for the start. Tim Rhodes let us go and we were off. It was muggy out there as I ended up 3rd Master and 15th overall finishing 1 place behind my perennial nemesis Mr. Bill Shires. He pulled away from me at about the 1 mile mark and never looked back.

When I got home, I mentioned to my wife that I didn't have it this morning and she asked me why I thought that was. I said that I don't question when I have a good day, so I don't question when I don't...just move on!

Looking forward to a nice run in the trails of Beatty Park...

Kickin' it Old School!

2011-08-25T05:21:00.000-07:00

The following post has nothing to do with running...just thought I'd share!

The other night my wife and I were getting the night before the first day of school dinner ready. My daughter was with us as well. My son was at football practice at the middle school and he was being driven home by friends of ours. She was carpooling a bunch of boys (no...my son is not doing cross country!) So I had hamburgers and chicken on the grill, french fries in the oven and broccoli in the microwave...Oh and sweet tea coming out of my gills!)

The car pulls up and my wife goes outside to chat with the mom. For whatever reason, I decided to bring the french fries outside to the boys! Call it old school or whatever, it just felt like the right thing to do. Obviously, the boys loved it and Dad got to feel cool even if it was just for a minute!

This incident harped me back to the days before air conditioning, listening to the Walkman, yelling out the window, and most of all, playing outside until it was too dark to see...

On a side note to show my age and with the recent Kardashian wedding, I was 11 years old when Bruce Jenner (our hero) was competing and winning the Olympic decathlon in '76 in Montreal. My dad, and my brothers and I went right to the back yard and made a long jump pit...great, great stuff!

Thanks for reading...

Billy Shue out...Michael Kahn in!

2011-08-23T07:01:00.000-07:00

I had a workout date with Billy Shue scheduled for this morning, yet with Jason G. Holder's bachelor gig this weekend up in the Big Apple (the city never sleeps!), I had a feeling that he wouldn't show...

When I pulled into McAlpine there was no Billy Shue...no worries! The posse was in effect and I knew I would find one brave soul to workout with me. Enter Sandman (aka Mikey Kahn!) Mike was gracious enough to help me with my workout. It consisted of: 2000 meters, 1600 meters, 1200 meters, 800 meters, and 400 meters all with a 400 meter recovery. I felt good throughout and I felt myself getting stronger as the workout went along. I didn't realize how compatible Mike and I are for training...it just worked! The only segment that I timed was the mile which was a tick under 5 and a half minutes...

My plan for the rest of the week is to run a 10 mile recovery run tomorrow, possibly take Thursday off, easy 8-10 miler on Friday and then break 17 on Saturday. If I'm feeling fresh (which is a rare occurrence), I have a shot! Some type of long run on Sunday...

7 times 1000 meters @ UNCC with Billy & Joe!

2011-08-22T12:30:00.000-07:00

Billy Shue was nice enough to reach out to me for a workout last Friday at UNCC's campus track. He even offered to pick me up at my house at 5:30am...I was ready!

We would be meeting up with Joe Nicolini (another Piasan!) at Jack in the Box for a track workout consisting of 7 by 1000 meters with a 400 meter recovery.

When we got to our meeting spot, there was no Joe! After waiting around for 15 minutes...he finally shows up! Oh to be 24...Ha! He still had to put on his socks and shoes and finally we started our 2 mile warm up on the path that would lead us to our execution (workout!) I was concerned because I know how strong Billy is right now and Joe looked fit. I'm not exactly chicken shoot! I was trying to remain calm yet getting worked up at the same time.

#1 takes takes us through all together in 3:23, #2 has us together in 3:17, For #3, Joe has a meeting in the men's room and I hit 3:17 again with Billy seconds up. #4 has Joe and I in lock step at 3:17 along with #5 (3:17), #6 brought another bathroom break for triathlete Joe as I hit 5:15 (I was working). For #7, we decided to run it on the way back as Joe and I were lock step as we hit 3:15 with Billy looking spritely at around 3:10...great stuff!

Cool down and we were good to go...

When Birds Attack!

2011-08-19T13:03:00.000-07:00

Absolute bizarreness!

Wednesday morning, I'm 7 miles into a 10 mile easy run just chillin'! I'm on Sedley Road in Foxcroft on the shoulder when I run under the over hang of a tree and I felt what seemed to be a branch scrape the back of my head. I didn't think that I was that close to the tree. No sooner did I think that when I look to my right and see this HUGE bird (Hawk, Owl, whatever...) fly off in a rage! I FREAKED! So now I'm goosed-bumped out of my mind, dropping F-bombs in front of the tennis courts, and it took me about a mile to calm down. At this point I feel violated (I love that term...it's for all of my liberal friends!)

I told my kids what happened and they told me not to tell Mom (I did anyway...)

Gettin' after it with the Big Boyz!

2011-08-16T08:14:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry Megan Hepp Hovis but that was awesome!

So the e-mail circulated last week for a workout this morning of: 3 miles followed by 4 by 400 meters. Fair enough.

And then I heard who was going to show up and I started to drool (for their running abilities...certainly not their looks!) the group included Paul Mainwaring, Aaron Linz, Ben Hovis, Billy Bob Shue...and Me! I knew I had to bring my A-game...

We ran our 2 mile warm up out to the 1 mile mark at McAlpine and back at a solid clip. After a little circle jerkin'...we were off!

Since we started at 5:30am and it was really dark, my concentration level was at an all time high (I didn't not want to trip and fall on a rock, divit or root.) Aaron got us out well and I was working early. Paul seemed content to let Aaron lead, as Ben, Billy and I followed close behind. At about a half mile, Paul pulled up to Aaron, and I pulled up to Ben as Billy followed close behind. At the 1 mile mark, I got my legs under me and decided to lead and do some of the work, as Ben responded and got next to me and we worked together to toe the field through the 1 and a half mile mark. Approaching Monroe, Paul had enough of this Jersey Boyz' antics and shot to the front with Aaron and the rest of us in close tow. We got to the 2 mile mark (which was the start of the Footlocker cross country course for those of you reading from out of town/state) all together and at that point Aaron was helping Paul and Ben was helping Billy and me as I was at my limit! My goal for the next mile was to stay on Ben and Billy as I did as they were only able to put 1 second on me by the time we hit the 3 mile mark (it must be noted that Ben is 1 week into his training which is a scary thought!)

Here are the numbers: 5:35, 5:41, 5:35= 16:51

We followed that up with 4 times 400 meters around the lake with a 200 meter recovery and my guess is that I ran them in 75 seconds. On these, I was merely a spectator...I simply have no speed which is okay!

A long cool down followed as we ran Paul back to his house and discussed who we thought in the running community was hot!

Long Run with Various & Sundries...

2011-08-15T06:07:00.000-07:00

These 2 a days have me oversleeping every morning!

I was at the Panther game (don't worry...I'm still a Viking fan!) Saturday night when I noticed on my Crackberry that a large contingent of runners would be meeting up at McAlpine for a long run...I'm in!

So we're supposed to meet up at 6am yet when I look at my watch on Sunday morning, it already shows 6:06...that doesn't work?! Without hesitation, I get up and brush my teeth, bathroom, shorts on and head out the door. As I'm driving over to Old Bell, I'm trying to figure out which way the group went. Low and behold but who do I see on Sardis...Paul Mainwaring! So I park and head back up to run with him and as we're running back down, he said that he was done and that he knew where the group was. So after leaving Paul, I head up to Alexander and as the pack see's me I hear..."SPADA!" which is always very cool...

This pack included: Nathan, Aaron, Jason, Mike, Alex, Josh, plus a new guy named Tyler (there were more). So we head back to the park and pick up the Hadley's and run to the 4 mile mark at which point I see Ben, Jordan and Justin. So what do I do since I'm a running snob, I go with that group. That was fun as we were rolling 6:20's. Nothing spectacular, however, it felt like a Sunday jog...very cool. Of course, Jordan was doing 90 second pick ups at which Aaron couldn't resist jumping in on a few...Ha!

Ben Hovis was just happy to be running and Justin, who I just met, was gearing up for the Detroit Free Press Marathon...

I went an easy 8 this morning because we're gonna get after it tomorrow morning (me, Paul and the Shue!).

I am just starting to feel like things are coming together with my running. That is a good sign with the weather being as stifling as it has been. This should bode well when the weather does break. One thing that I am doing is really trying to let the workouts and the paces come to me. What I mean by that is that I initially had a much more ambitious schedule on tap yet my body was telling me that I needed more sleep and to run less that what I had planned. I'm sure Caitlin for one would agree that this seems to be working.

Can I run a 16:59 in 2 weeks at Greekfest? We'll see..

Thanks for reading!

Being flexible...tempo gets moved up!

2011-08-11T06:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, my original plan was to do a medium long run, and then go easy on Thursday and tempo on Friday. I think what happened was that Caitlin was heading out of town on Friday so the tempo got moved up a day. No problem. Instead of running a 14-16 miler on Wednesday after running mile repeats on Tuesday and having the tempo run this morning, I decided to go 8 miles easy on Wednesday (8:30 pace) to be somewhat ready for the uptempo progression run.

Starting August 1st, the difficult thing for me is that 2-a-days started with football so needless to say, work (which I love) has been hectic. Which brings me to this morning. When I opened my eyes and looked at my "old school" Timex Ironman watch I saw 5:50am...eeck! I was supposed to meet Eric, Billy and Caitlin (and any other knucklehead) at 6am at the tennis courts by Freedom Park. What do I do? I casually got up, weed, got my stuff, got in the car and took off. My only hope was that they waited for me. I got on QRW at 6:02 and at the courts at 6:05. I heard, "that's Spada!" They f*****g waited!...I couldn't believe it!

I get out of my car, lace up my shoes and get over to the group which included Carolyn Maye! Short warm up means get ready mentally quick! I'm ready...

So it's a 5 mile tempo making loops around the booty loop which is a fair course. Good topography. I go with Carolyn for the first half mile, then I dart behind Caitlin, then get frisky and throw in an early surge, they come up to me, I throw in another surge and Billy catches up to me, then we run together for a while until he gets 2 meters on me, then I work to close the gap and we finish together for a total time of 30:25. Great stuff! Without a Garmin, my guess is: 6:10, 6:00, 5:50, 5:40 and 5:35. Cooled down back to the tennis courts, and then the group asked me if I could cool down more and I did. We ran the path that runs parallel to Kings Drive and then I turned around at Tarjaye and we said our goodbyes...

Easy 8 miler in the morning as well as Saturday and then long on Sunday.

Mile Repeats with 2 Live Crew!

2011-08-10T08:47:00.000-07:00

So I started my marathon training on Sunday with the twenty miler. Yesterday I just ran an easy 8 miler as a recovery run.I averaged over 8 minute pace which was just fine by me!

On Monday night, Miss Caitlin Chrisman reached out to me to see if I would be interested in running mile repeats with her. You have to understand, Caitlin is a strong and confident runner so if she wants to run with me, I'm usually in! We have developed a strong working relationship where if she ever wavers, I'll have none of it. Conversely, if I'm struggling, she doesn't let up (Paul M. is like that!)

We, along with Billy Shue, decided to meet up at McAlpine and got a nice and easy 30 minute warm up in before we started the first mile. Our goal was to do 5 repeats with a quarter mile recovery. We had no takers from the rest of the Miner's...too bad!

Because of the early start, we ran the first mile repeat on the first mile of the cross country course. After opening with a 96 second (6:24 pace) first quarter we ended up running 5:47...good start. We followed that up with a 5:34, 5:33, 5:31 and finished with a shot of adrenaline for a 5:28...I think we were all pleased!

2 mile cool down followed with the company of Megan Hepp Hovis (in the middle of a down week). So there we were, 2 Olympic Trials qualifiers, one PR setter race after race, and me...

This workout worked out well for me because I had interval day on my schedule (anywhere from quarters to 2 mile repeats).

The Journey Begins...

2011-08-09T06:48:00.000-07:00

This past Sunday I started my New York City Marathon build up with a 20 miler in 2 hours and 26 minutes. Nothing fancy yet it was a start. I got out the door at 5:45am by myself (I would have loved to have gone up to Davidson) and ran the sidewalks the whole way with a steady tempo while stopping at every water fountain (there were 4) and taking a Shot Block every 5 miles to work on my caloric intake. This loop takes me up to Colony Road, to Sharon, to Queens, to Morehead, to Euclid, to East, to Queens Road West, to Selwyn, to Park, to GlenEagles, to Quail Hollow, back to Sharon, to Fairview and back home.

I was junk the rest of the day yet I did not fall asleep at church! I continued to eat the rest of the day and chilled for the most part. I took the kids to the pool at night and just read Best Efforts by Kenny Moore for the umpteenth time. I am excited about my training block for this marathon.

My 7 day cycle will include the following: M- 8-12 miles easy, T.- Interval/repeat day (mile repeats, 800 meter repeats, 2 mile repeats, etc.), W.- Medium Long Run day of 14-16 miles, Th.- 8-12 miles easy, F.- Tempo day of 5 to 15 milers, Sa.- 8-12 miles easy, Su.- Long Run of Easy, Firm, or steady with a firm/ up tempo finish. I know it's aggresive and I know that my body will tell me if I can or cannot do a workout that day. This is just an outline. As I was telling Mark Hadley, while I would love to do a 10 day cycle, a 7 day one fits my schedule better.

2 comments: If anyone is interested in any one of these workouts (like I had company just this morning on my mile repeats) please feel free to join in. Conversely, if I see a tempting workout somewhere on Facebook or e-mail, I may show up...I'm easy!

Blue Points 5k Race Recap

2011-08-08T08:44:00.000-07:00

Warmed up with Brian, Billy and Mike Moran. Also picked up Bill Shires en route which was a bonus! My plan was to be competitive with the usual suspects which only happened for the first mile. Clearly, I was working too hard. After an opening 5:25, I followed that with a 5:35 on the rolling portion and then a 5:45 on the uphill portion. I pride myself on being a negative splitter and that did not happen on Saturday morning. 2nd Master and 17th overall. Back to the drawing board (or in my case, the cement sidewalks!)

"Somewhere in the swamps of Jersey!"

2011-08-03T04:27:00.000-07:00

Who says you can't go home?

I just combined Springsteen with Bongiovi...I know, they're both Liberal!

All right, so I just got back from my annual pilgrimage to New Jersey to visit my family and we had a blast. My parents are awesome to host me and the kids and my 5 siblings do a wonderful job of spoiling them...Love it!

Since this is my running blog I won't bore you with the details of the Jersey shore and all the calzones I had...

I will tell you about all of my runs:

After a solo 7 miler early Friday morning, my wife got up early to make us breakfast and then we were on the road by 6:45am...good start!

Saturday

I met my good friend Gary Rosenberg who reps for Garmin at 8am @ Madison High School for a track workout. Since it is so close to my parents, I just ran there. It was good to see him. Since it was so hot, we decided to do 8 quarters with a 200meter recovery. A short and sweet workout that we did in 74 seconds for each lap. Gary is 40 years old and he ran for Morris Hills back in the proverbial day!

Sunday

I met a group of guys at River Run Park off of 287 and I bonked on this run last year! I was determined not to have that happen again. This group consisted of former all-state cross country champions from New Jersey. One runner, Brian Harris, was a teammate of Brendon Heffernan who was the national champion in 1992. That was a really good year for New Jersey running as you had Heffernan, Ryan Grote, Chris and Tim Lear, Bob Keino, Brian Walsh and a host of others.

The run started off at 7 minute pace and since I was feeling good I didn't mind being aggressive even though the weather was oppressive as we STARTED running at 8am...these guys like to sleep in! I was on vacation so whatever...The course took us on Black River Road, Lamington Road, and through Donald Trump's new golf course...good stuff! I ended up finishing the run about 10 seconds behind Brian. I was both pleased and spent at the same time...

Monday

At the Kitchell Road entrance to Loantaka Park, I met up with a friend of my father's named Philippo Polcara who is from England, Italian descent, and has been living in the States from about 20 years or so. We enjoyed a nice and easy 8 mile run chatting about all things in general. "Phil" is 55 and he was lucking enough to run a half marathon in San Antonio recently where he received a VIP pass from his cousin to have dinner with the likes of Frank Shorter and Mebraton Keflezighi to name just a few...

Tuesday

Over the past weekend, I had received an e-mail from a guy who's wife is friends with 2 of my sisters. He was wanting to run with me. First of all, I think that's awesome when someone reaches out in that way. His name is Brian Bill who ran for Ocean Twp. and who now resides in Florham Park...my hometown! (yet another Springsteen reference) Anyway, we decided to meet up on the roads that Tuesday and he had mapped out a 14 mile run that would take us into the Great Swamp. And you thought I was kidding with my swamp reference! When I tell you that it was a pleasure to have the opportunity to run with Brian and to hear about his desire to break 3 hours in this years NYC Marathon, it was a treat!

Wednesday

Wednesday had me back on the track. This time at Morristown High School with Gary Rosenberg. We actually saw Nick Vena, National Shot Put champion, walking into the school.

Gary is a lot faster than me yet since he is coming back from over training and I am relatively fit, we are currently very compatible. We decided on 7 x 800's. Our times were: 2:43, 2:42, 2:41, 2:39, 2:41, 2:37, 2:34...nice! A cool down and we said our goodbyes...

Thursday

Since we were down the Jersey Shore in Spring Lake, I had set up a run with my cousin's cousin TJ Langella for our annual 8 miler that takes us through Belmar, Spring Lake, Sea Girt, Brielle and Manasquan...all nice shore towns! TJ was planning on competing in that Saturday's River to Sea relay race. He asked me to be on his team yet we were leaving on Saturday so I had to decline...next year for sure!

Friday

Back to Loantaka Park for another easy 8 miler with Phil and Gary. Gary, who reps for Garmin, was very helpful to Phil in helping him set up his GPS as well as letting him know the benefits of upgrading. Sweet tea all around.

Saturday

Since we were leaving to head back to Charlotte this morning, I didn't want the run to take a long time. What I decided to do was run an 8 mile progression run from my parents house. I felt relatively strong the whole way but that was probably because I didn't run that fast. Still enjoyed it.

I was very fortunate to have the company of great runners and quality people...thanks guys!

PMain & the Kinley's!

2011-07-21T13:31:00.000-07:00

Spada's playing catch up!

So 2 weeks ago Paul Mainwaring sent the e-mail out that called for a workout of: 3 miles, 800m recovery, 2 miles, 800m recovery, 1 mile. This would all be done at McAlpine with a Dew point we'll get to later! Paul knew that I would take the bait since I'm game for just about anything! What he didn't know was that the Kinley's (Jordan and Meagan) would commit. What a group we had...

We met at 7am and set off for a 3 mile warm up which left us drenched. Everyone except Jordan was concerned about the paces that we set for ourselves so we tempered them. That comforted Meagan. Lets face it, you can only run what pace you can run that day. Your body tells you what you have on any given day so take it! For Meagan and I, the first 3 miler would be run in 17 minutes and when we hit 5:50 on the first one I was pumped. Mile 2 was hit in 5:48 and we held that to the tape to get 17:26. Good start. I took off on the second segment and put a gap on Meagan which she proceeded to close and we ran the last 800 meters in lockstep. She is awesome to train with!

No water for Meagan...so now what? Proceed to drop a 5:40 last mile and leave me 2 seconds back at the line! Very cool...

Cool down and we were done!

Got an invite from said Kinley's and since my family was up north, I headed over to their pool at noon and stay there for almost 4 hours and had a blast. Strait out a Compton showed up before heading to the airport to pick up KFill and it was nice to hear all about the California running scene in the late 90's on from Jordan himself not to mention his Brown days...

Dew Point: So after the run I get the text from Meagan stating that the Dew Point was really high...stay thirst my friends!!!

Nathan & the Hadley's!

2011-07-18T13:07:00.000-07:00

So it was Saturday night a couple of weeks ago and I realized that I would be running solo on Sunday morning if I didn't get on my Blackberry. I reached out to Paul ('ol reliable!) and he said that Nathan Stanford would be at McAlpine at 7am. That was all I needed! I decided to run there and when I got there (4.5 miles later), in front of me stood Mark and Alana Hadley...along with Michael Kahn! This was a different group for me and I appreciated the company. It was nice to run with Alana and hear all about her meetings with some of her (and mine!) heroes of the running world. They included: Matt Tegankamp, Shalane Flanagan, Shannon Rowbury, and Kara Goucher to name just a few. Behind us I could hear Mark and Nathan going on about the different zones of training which is always interesting! On the other side of Alana was Mike Kahn just wondering why we all Marathon in the first place...good stuff! After we finished our 8 miles together, I headed home, Nathan still had 10 more miles to go, and Alana nailed her 3 mile tempo run in 18:30! Thanks guys...

"Easy on the eye, and hard on the ear!"

2011-07-05T07:28:00.000-07:00

Today's post title is a joint-ventured reference to Maria Sharapova as supplied by Paul Mainwaring and Stephen Spada as she was getting ready to take on Petra Kvitoka in the Wimbledon final last Saturday morning.

We, well we were getting ready to take on Mike Beigay, Meagan Nedlo and Jordan Kinley in our own little 8 mile tempo run at McMullen Greenway. It was all about the mugginess.

Going into this, I was hoping that 6 minute pace would feel ok. After a 2 mile warm up and some dilly dallying, we were off.

Initially, Paul set the tempo yet after 1 mile of running, I was not happy with the pace, I felt as though we were not working hard enough. I did my best to keep the pressure on to the 4 mile mark. At one point I looked back and was pleasantly surprised to Meagan breathing down my neck! We all got to the turnaround in a tick under 24 minutes, and at that point Mike and Paul made a point to up the tempo as I tucked in behind and hung with them to the 6 mile mark. At that point, Meagan shut it down as she encouraged Jordan to go and catch the guys. Jordan goes by me with some kind words as he got right up to the other guys who were 5 meters up on me. At the finish they were about 50 meters up as I hit 8 miles in 47:38...I was pleased with the effort. 2 mile cool down for all of us with some easy conversation followed.

Thanks guys...

King Tiger 5k...a race (worthy of a ) recap!

2011-06-06T13:22:00.000-07:00

While I haven't been inspired to post in a while, Saturday's race gave me reason to. It is funny what a competitive race will do for your mentals!

Last Sunday I took my first running day off since December 22 simply because I was tired and didn't feel like running. Simple as that! I worked out Monday with Billy Shue as we did some minuters and felt reasonably well during the workout. I took another day off on Thursday and then ran easy on Friday for 10 miles.

I felt good on Saturday morning driving to the University area as I thought about my plan for the race. I was very lucky to meet Kevin Ballentine and Allen Strickland and get a nice 2 mile warm up with them. I then ran back to my car and put on my flats, jogged back behind the shopping center and did some striders to get more mentally prepared.

I ventured over to the starting area with 5 minutes to spare and surveyed the other runners. Gun goes off and for some reason I saw Chad and Billy out in front of me and I just quickly decided to get right behind them and we formed a triangle. I was in to the flow of the race early. Proceeded to check my vitals and realized that I was ok. Jim McKeon proceeds to join our pack and then Mike Moran, Michael Creason, Richard Harris, and a few others. I'm thinking this is pretty cool AND I'm in control.

Up ahead it's Paul Mainwaring, Jason G. Holder, and some kid that I later find out is Vincent Arey and then us. At about mile 2, Moran gets flamboyant and shoots out ahead of us, I thought that was aggressive, yet neither Chad Crockford, Billy Shue or myself panics. We gobbled him up and then at about 2 and a half, I pull ahead and start gaining on Arey. I start doing the math and begin to realize that I'm going into 3rd place and even if 2 people (Chad and Billy) pass me, I'm still on the podium in a grand prix race for the first time in 14 years!

Right after I pass Arey, Chad catches me and then Billy and we are on to the finish. Chad puts 6 seconds on me at the finish and Billy 4. As I'm rounding the last turn I see the clock for the first time (I don't wear a Garmin) and it flashes 16:47 and I think gee wizz, I got a shot to break 17! Not to be as I hit the stripe at 17:01...I WAS JACKED!

Quick cool down to my car with Billy and I was home by 8:25am (remember, the race started at 7:30am and it's a half hour away...good time, no?)

Thanks: to Billy Shue for driving my trophy all the way out to my son's lacrosse tournament at Elon Park. Very nice. They won all seven games over the weekend and won the tournament. Proud Papa...

1. Paul Mainwaring, 2. Jay Holder, 3. Chad Crockford, 4. Billy Shue, 5. Stephen Spada

Mile repeats, at McAlpine, w/ Beigay!

2011-05-12T10:48:00.000-07:00

Whenever I hear that we're doing mile repeats, my stomach drops!

I reached out to Billy and Mike to see if they would want to workout during Tuesday's miner run. Billy had worked out on Monday and Mike was game...cool!

We decided on 5 x 1 mile repeats using the 3rd mile of the Footlocker (was Kinney...that's old school!) cross country course followed by a 400 meter recovery. Here are the times:

5:34
2:30r
5:31
2:32r
5:29
2:34r
5:28 (Mike was 5 seconds ahead)
2:35r
5:27 (Mike was 5 seconds ahead and looking strong)

We were both very pleased with our workout. For me, the miles were challenging, yet my breathing returned to normal soon after completion.

A pleasant 2 mile cool down completed the workout and then Mike wished me luck on Friday night...if I run?

You down wit OPP?

Meeting up on Sardis...

2011-05-10T14:08:00.000-07:00

So last Friday morning, I parked my car on Lansdowne (only 1 D!) so after my workout I could make my quick getaway. I started running down Sardis Road when I noticed the thundering herd coming towards me. The pack included Paul, Jayback, Billy, Alex and Mike. We turned around and as we were approaching the start line of our impending heartache, we were all trying to figure out what we were going to do...I just knew it was going to hurt!

Jay was set on a progression run starting at 7 minute pace (whatever dude!) and going down from there. Paul was following Jay. Billy wanted to start at 6 minute pace and go down from there and do this for 45 minutes. Mike and I followed Billy. About a minute in, I could hear Jay and found out later that they started at 6:20 and quickly got under 6's. We were rolling and making good time. At about 22:40 in, Mike asked Billy how we were on time. I could tell Billy was working as was I, and that is when Mike surged. I went with him as the effort picked up. I couldn't hear Billy anymore. He would run 8 miles in 47:20 which was pre-marathon effort. Mike continued on as I maintained contact while working hard. At about 42 minutes in, we could hear footsteps and it was Paul realizing that there was ground to make up. Mike had let me catch up to him and that is when Paul got up to us and then at 45 minutes we were done with 7.75 for an average of 5:49 per mile on a tough rolling course. Jay came by looking outstanding as he begins to ramp up his training. Billy drove on...

Minuter's with Mike Beigay and Billy Shue

2011-05-09T12:20:00.000-07:00

Last Tuesday, I met up with Mike Beigay and Billy Shue for a minuter workout. Since I've gotten off the treadmill last month, one of the aspects of my training that I have focused on is speed development. Real turnover!

Last Tuesday at McAlpine did not disappoint! After a 2 and a half mile warm up, we did a workout of 15 times 1 minute fast, 1 minute jog. On the first 5, we were trying to work out the kinks and kind of figure out how we all felt. After those 5, we all decided to alternate who lead. It was funny because when you were following, you felt like you could barely hang on. Yet when you were leading, you felt this sense of bravado that enabled you to fly for a minute. I remember not being able to hang on to Mike, yet not hear footsteps when I was leading.

After a 2 mile cool down, we were all pretty stoked (do people still use that expression?) I first heard it when I was out at Ironman in the early '90's...

A reunion run with Richard (Rocky) Falcone

2011-05-06T08:04:00.000-07:00

I got a phone call (imagine that!) from Richard Saturday night asking me what I had on tap for Sunday morning. Since I had run long with Aaron Saturday morning, I was good for an easy 10 miler. He talked me in to running 12...no problem. The run was humming along and we were discussing various topics as we usually do at a comfortable pace until he asked me the big question...what about Pippa? That was fun and funny...

We enjoyed discussing all of the pomp associated with the wedding and agreed that the Middleton girls are a think of pure beauty!

One fine run with Aaron Linz...

2011-05-03T11:30:00.000-07:00

...that almost didn't happen!

I was planning on running Skyline (passed Billy and BMac in '10 at the 2 mile mark...Ha!) until I received a desperate e-mail from Aaron (our club President) asking if I would be so kind as to escort him on a 15 mile progression run at dark-thirty Saturday morning. People, when your club president asks you to do something, you do it!

My wife and I had our son's lacrosse team over for dinner after practice Friday night and with clean up afterwords, I got to bed late. When I woke up Saturday morning and looked at my Timex, the numbers said 5:45. That was the time that we were supposed to meet at the Arboretum. What do I do, What do I do? I got up and thought about running Skyline, thought about going back to bed, no, go to the bathroom, brush your teeth, put on your shorts and drive to McMullen and run back towards the Arboretum to meet Aaron. That's what I did and it worked out perfectly. He ended up waiting 10 extra minutes for me so as soon as we met up, I turned around and we headed toward McMullen and just started chatting and catching up (he won a race the previous night). We ran down McMullen to the end and then made a right and headed back to the Arboretum (I wasn't going to let him run back alone!)

After I dropped him off and we said our goodbyes, I ran the 5 miles back to the park in 30 minutes. Once I got to the park, I ran 2 easy cool down miles for a total of 20 miles...a great way to start the day.

Thank Aaron!

Speed Development Begins...

2011-04-28T10:10:00.000-07:00

I'd been planning on starting some shorter faster workouts for some time now. After some procrastinations, I finally had my first workout last week.

Let me first acknowledge the procrastinations. It is a lot easier to just head out the door and start running your run than it is to go to the track, run your 2 mile warm up, put your flats on, do your 2 laps of drills, stretch a little, do 6-8 80 meter strides, 4-6 100 meter accelerations, and then do your repeats, and finally your 2 mile cool down...there, I needed to get that off of my chest!

Here is what I have done over the last 2 weeks regarding speed sessions:

Last Tuesday: 2 mile warm up on the track in trainers, 2 laps of drills, 8x80 meter strides, 6x100 meter accelerations, 24x200 meters with about 1 minute walk around, and a 2 mile cool down.

Last Thursday (sore from Tuesday obviously): After my extended warm up, I got on the perimeter of the football field and ran the side lines hard (120 yards) and walked the end lines. I did this for 40 minutes. I could guess that I ran about 32 of them yet I wasn't counting. Cooled down after. I was sore on Saturday...

This past Tuesday (afternoon): I never run in the afternoon, yet I received an e-mail from the coach here at school inviting me to run 400 meter repeats with the distance runners and I just had to do it! I got to the track (I work at the school) one half hour early so that I could go through my full warm up routine...it stinks getting old...Ha! Right before we started, the kids did 2 strides and I ran with them so that I could better sense the climate...I gathered nothing! It was time to start the workout: For the high schoolers: 8x400 with a 5 minute interval and hammer the 4th and 8th one. 12 for me...

71
71
70
69
70
71
71
68
71
71
71
71

I was foaming at the mouth for the last 4 repetitions. 2 mile cool down. The whole workout lasted over 2 hours and I ran 13 miles. I got back to my office and I was junk! I drank and drank and drank.

I am trying to get out of my comfort zone. 2 days and 20 miles later and I am sore and dragging...

Aaron on Saturday...

My annual Kiawah 20 miler

2011-04-27T10:51:00.000-07:00

"Kiawah" is Kiawah Island in South Carlina which is a 30 minute drive from Charleston.

We as a family have spent Easter weekend there for as long as I can remember. It is as close to heaven on Earth. We stay at a 5 star hotel named the Sanctuary and they leave no stone unturned (I could live in a shack...but hey!) Kiawah Island is known for its golf and in 2012, the Ocean Course will be hosting the PGA Championship. My son and I played an hours worth of tennis at East Beach and had a blast. The Sanctuary is shaped like a "U" and in the middle is a big lawn that we spend a bunch of time throwing our "175 gram" frisbee on...lots of fun!

So Easter morning comes and I know I need to get out early and start my run so that I'm back in time to watch the kids open their baskets. Not good if I'm late. I end up leaving the hotel at 5:16am. I figured I would run at 7 minute pace so for a 20 miler it would take 2 hours and 20 minutes. I head towards Freshfields Village and circle around the roundabout and then head back to where I started and go straight all the way to the Ocean Course and then turn around and head back to the Sanctuary...2h20m). After the kids open their gifts and I showered, and since we were staying on the club level, we walked down the hall and had breakfast. From there, we walked to Night Heron Park for the famed Easter egg hunt and egg toss. Max and I made it far, yet not far enough! A little time in the Jacuzzi before it was time for our 2pm brunch...you want it, they have it! My stomach was stuffed...

If you ever get the chance to go to Kiawah...take it!

In the second Saturday in December, they host a Marathon, half marathon and 5k. For the last 5 years, it has coincided with the Thunder Road races in Charlotte. Now that Tim Rhodes has moved his signature event to November closer to New York, we can do both. They give out great carved pelican awards.

The Passing of Grete...

2011-04-21T13:32:00.000-07:00

This meant a lot to me and I'll tell you why:

Growing up in New Jersey, the New York City Marathon is a big deal from a telecast stand point. WABC TV devotes 5 hours to it's Sunday marathon telecast. In Charlotte, we may receive 1 hour from 2 to 3 pm which is fine.

From the mid-70's on, my brothers and I would would sit with my father (who is 81 and still comes in to Manhattan) in the TV room and watch the race unfold as it ran through the 5 boroughs of New York City. There are a lot of vivid memories that I have from those days including a brash Cuban from Wayland/Oregon who boldly predicted that he would break 2:10 in his first NYC Marathon...he ran 2:09!

Yet it was a Norwegian track runner who's last name was a contradiction in pronunciation for this 13 year old that grabbed our/mine/ and Jim McKay's attention. Grete Waitz (pronounced Veights: rhymes with Heights) won the NYC marathon 9 times and her name became synonymous with the race. Not unlike Paula Newby Fraser when you think of the Ironman!

In 1991, I dropped my friend off at the start of the race and right before he got out of the car he looked at me and said, "you're gonna do this race next year!" Having completed 12 triathlons all over the country that year, I thought no way. So I went home and watched it on TV and as I was watching it I said I was going to start training the next day. I trained the whole next year with the thought of breaking 2:40 for my first marathon goal. In the mean time Fred Lebow, the great mastermind behind the New York Road Runners and the Marathon, was battling brain cancer and wanted to run his race before he passed. He needed help. In comes his good friend Grete Waitz. She told him that she would run the race with him side by side after all that he had done for her. What a race:

Willie Mtola, a South African who's country's stance on Apartheid did not previously allow him to compete abroad, came to New York and won the race. Lisa Martin who married Yobes Ondieki won for the women. I hit 20 miles in 2 hours and 1 second and finished with a 42 minute 10k for a 2:42, yet the story of the day was Grete and Fred together for 5 and a half hours!

8 years before this historic day, history will show that Joan Benoit won the inaugural Women's Olympic marathon (they had been denied that opportunity because of what had transpired in Amsterdam in 1928). Joan made a break from the pack at 3 miles and ran alone the rest of the way. Why? Because everyone else was watching Grete and wondering when she was going make her move. On Tuesday of this week, she made her final move here on earth. She is in a better place...RIP Grete!

SouthPark RaceFest Half Marathon

2011-04-19T09:38:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday was the Annual SouthPark Race Fest Half Marathon and 10k starting and finishing on Morrison Blvd. in Charlotte. Scott Dvorak (aka: Scooter, ScottyD, etc.) does an awesome job of organizing this and any other race that he gets his hands onto (think SouthPark Turkey Trot 8k). Maybe it's his background of being a steepler at State or a '96 Olympic Trials 5k qualifier and he just knows what it takes. As you know, Saturday's weather was crazy to say the least and yet Danny White and Company were able to get the race started right at 7:30am. 1 minute to start...

Having raced well the previous week, I felt somewhat confident even though I wasn't quite 100% from my sickness. I saw the usual players at the start and the gun went off. To me, this is the toughest half in Charlotte. I chilled at the start and was well back. Since we started with the 10kers, it was hard to tell where you staked up. After a couple of minutes of running, I came up on Doug Campbell, Richard Harris, and finally Alice Rodgers with Meagan Nedlo in my sights. Hitting 3 miles in 18 minutes, I could tell that running 6 minute pace was going to be a challenge this morning. Some days you just have more than other days. I did get to 6 miles in 36 minutes and then we had to climb all the way up Sharon View and then I saw 42:15 and that was tough. Eventually, I got to 10 miles in one oh one(1:01) and the thought of 1:19 was a possibility and before I knew it I was at the 12 mile mark and the sky opened up to where it was raining so hard that I thought they might actually call the race off (at least that was what I was hoping) Did someone see lightning? Anyway, I needed to run a 6:20 going up Barkley Downs and I couldn't even do that. I was a few ticks over 1:20 and I was done. Richard Harris even passed me in the last half mile and I had no response. Oh well...

1ST Master and 9th overall so no complaints here. John Compton put out an awesome performance for the win. Jordan Kinley won the 10k with Aaron Linz behind him and Meagan won for the women with ARod finishing behind her...good stuff from the CRC'ers...

I didn't feel good yesterday...

2011-04-13T14:00:00.000-07:00

After an easy recovery 7 miler on Monday, it was time again to lace up the flats for a Tuesday morning workout.

I was a little tired going into the workout and still had (have) crud in my chest. After a 15 minute warm up, here is what I did...

The workout that I planned was 3 by 2 miles on the treadmill in 11 minutes. While that is aggressive, I always feel the need to really challenge myself on my workout (stress) days...that is just the way I do it!

So anyway, here is what I accomplished: 2 miles in 11 minutes, easy quarter mile (3 minutes) jog, another 2 miles in 11 minutes, easy quarter mile (3 minutes) jog, 1 mile in 5:30, 15 minute cool down. I simply had no strength to complete the last segment.

Do you know how sometimes when you don't do what you say you are going to do (it could be related to anything) you feel really bad about it? Well, not this time! When I got back to my office, I felt really week. It was to the point where when someone would walk by my office and ask me how I was doing, I would say not good.

For the rest of the day, I stayed low to the ground and moved around even slower. Last night we all stuffed ourselves with Maggiano's (I always get the chicken parm!) and felt a little better.

This morning, I ran an easy 7 miler (again, I am in the middle of a quasi taper week/down week) and I am just trying to get my strength back up. Tomorrow I'll plan on running another 7 miler with some strides embedded in for good measure. Believe it or not, I only started doing strides last week and the jury is not out yet. I'll keep you posted...

Thanks for reading (I would ask a question yet no one seems to answer them any more!) Ask me a question...I'll try and answer it...Ha!

Elizabeth 8k: Spada's recap!

2011-04-11T10:24:00.000-07:00

...and boy did it feel good to race again!

Considering that my last race was mid December with the Thunder Road Half Marathon (unless you count the 5k TT on the track at PDS). The Elizabeth 8k is a beautiful rolling race of 5 miles held each early April in the Elizabeth section of Charlotte, N.C. It benefits the areas "green & clean" campaign and by the looks of the trees...it's working!

I had contacted Lesa and Danny White, the wonderful husband and wife duo of RMS Sports, to see if they had a # for me and they did...I was grateful! Thanks guys...

On Saturday morning when I got to packet pick up, I saw Lesa and she said that she reserved #1 for me yet left it at home and gave me a random #, this was a good thing since I just said hello to John Compton...Ha!

As I started my warm up, I quickly hooked up with Larry Seavers and he proceeded to tell me why the Red Sox will NEVER leave Fenway Pawk...OK, I'll play! My Yankees had recently moved into a new stadium. It was great to get the chance to run with Larry as he is an institution.

From there it was onto the Crockford Files! I had the pleasure to continue my warm up with Danielle and Chad Crockford who are both preparing for Boston and are such great company. Chad and I are of similar ability (he is clearly ahead of me, yet somewhat compatible and we do not train together). Danielle wins her share of races in Charlotte. Time to put on the flats...

Although I was sick the previous week, all that remained race morning was some crud in my chest which did not present a problem...I still have some. I got to the starting line and was ready to go. Elvis (the starter) put the runners on the left and the baby joggers on the right as we started together. That was better than having the joggers go first, at least for me...

The gun goes off and Chad takes off and I got right behind him. After the first turn, John Compton cruises past us and proceeds to run off into the distance (I think he finished in South Park!). I settled in nicely behind Chad yet there are 2 other runners with us. The 4 of us played cat and mouse for a couple of miles until it became evident that Chad and I were the stronger 2 of this lot. At mile 3 Chad and I were together and as we approached the next hill, Chad made a move and I didn't cover it until we leveled off and started to go down the other side. After that, Chad had had enough of me and proceeded to slowly tighten the noose at which point I realized that not enough blood was passing through my carotid artery, and other arteries for that matter, and I began to loose contact. I held my pace as he lowered his...no complaints here!

Approaching the finishing strait was the first time that I saw the clock which read 27:47 and I thought I might have a chance to get under twenty eight minutes...I did! Results below:

John Compton, 25, Charlotte, N.C. 26:02 (he was taken off course and lost seconds!)
Chad Crockford, 29, Charlotte, N.C.27:28 (9 days before Boston)
Stephen Spada, 45, Charlotte, N.C. 27:58 (Podium finish)

Danielle was first for the women!

My cool down was with John Compton who is a class act and it was really nice to catch up with him and I got to hear about his resurrection with KFill...he was stoked!

Pleased with the training, the result and the effort!

For this week, my easy 10 milers will become 7 milers as I do a quasi taper for Saturday. I did do a 20 miler yesterday which felt ok and I will run a long interval workout tomorrow of 3 x 2 miles and then easy/recovery runs for Wed., Thurs. and Friday...we'll see!

Comment: My son made the A team for his travel lacrosse team...my Wife and I are proud!

Gut check!

2011-04-06T11:57:00.000-07:00

...I wanted to quit!

It's tough to do a workout when you're healthy. When you are under the weather (in my case with crud in the chest) it is extremely difficult.

I had been playing e-mail tag with Billy Shue and Paul Mainwaring to try to get a workout in with them this week yet I just couldn't get it to work out. That left me with my old reliable training partner Precor!

Goal: 5 X 1 mile @ 5:27 pace (11.0mph) and 1 % incline on the treadmill. 1 quarter mile recovery...

Actual: (See above). Somehow...I managed to grind my way through it! I used every kind of mental trick not to fall off the rear of the 'mill. Some people say that the treadmill is not the same as running outside. They would be correct! Nothing is the same as anything else! For me, without a physical body to latch on to, the belt is a nice alternative...

An easy 10 miler this morning, 8 and 6 on Thursday and Friday and then I may jump in a race on Saturday morning...we'll see!

Question: Who was the 1984 Olympic 3000m Gold Medalist?

Karhu Gummy Bears...Product Review

2011-04-05T11:17:00.000-07:00

Ever Since I ran out of my large supply of Vanilla Bean Gu's last month, I have been running my Sunday long runs with no fuel...not good!

While perusing the stock of goodies on the table set up on the infield of Providence Day last week for the 100 x 5k, I came across Karhu gummy bears. I was never really a fan of gummy bears unlike my kids, yet I took a couple of packs thinking that they would come in handy for my next long run...Did they ever!

Saturday morning I ran a 24 miler and before I left, I stuffed my tights with the 2 packs of bears and headed out the garredge (British for garage...I stole it from Elton John). About 30 minutes into my run, I started to pop 1 or 2 gummy bears into my mouth after easily ripping off the paper closure. Mind you, I started this run a little under the weather. Although the texture was a little funky at first, the acids in my mouth mixed with my saliva easily started to break the bears down so that they were easily digestible and began to supply me with the needed sustained energy. As soon as I would swallow 1 bear, I popped the next one in my mouth. This continued all the way until I finished off the 2 packs of Karhu gummy bears.

One added benefit of taking in sustained energy in a small serving as these is that it really makes the miles fly by. Before I knew it I was at the two and a half hour mark with only 20 more minutes of running left. Although I did not feel well because of my minor sickness, the gummy bears were a huge help that I would recommend to any distance running who would like to keep their energy stores up for a prolonged period of time...thanks Karhu!

A special thanks to Meagan Nedlo and Jordan Kinley for supplying some of their product at the world record attempt last Sunday. A thanks, as well, to Scott Dvorak of Charlotte Running Company for supplying the T-shirts for the event.

Question: Before the London Olympics of 1908, what was the distance of the Marathon?
Bonus: Why was it changed?

Training Week

2011-04-04T09:27:00.000-07:00

Not the most exciting post yet I did want to share with you last weeks training...

After last Sundays 5 thousand meters on the track which I ran averaging 5:30 per mile (that is exactly what my current training had been telling me that I should run), here is what I did last week regarding training (all done in singles*) *=singles is Mark Wetmorespeak for running only 1 run per day:

Monday: an easy 10 miler.

Tuesday: Hill repeats on the treadmill. After a 2 mile warm up, I did 10 X 2 minutes @ 10 miles an hour (6 minute pace) and a 5 % incline, followed by 2 minutes of flat running, 2 mile cool down to finish.

Wednesday: Medium long run day. I ran 13 miles at a comfortable pace. I only started incorporating this medium long run into my training week about 3 weeks ago and I plan on making it a weekly staple. Any distance up to 16 miles should be fine.

Thursday: an easy 10 miler.

Friday: Woke up with a sore thought. First time in a few years that I have even been remotely sick. Thank God! Just another easy 10 miler.

Saturday: 24 mile long run, run at a steady pace. Started at 5am and had a stuffy nose. I usually run my weekly long run (a staple of Lydiard) on Sundays so I wanted to do it on Saturday in case I race this weekend. Had some sugar along the way and it helped. Otherwise I didn't feel so hot.

Sunday: an easy 10 mile recovery run at dog pace. Stuffy nose, crud in the chest, etc.

Question: Name 5 of the great Finnish distance runners known globally as the "Flying Finns?"

CRC's 100x5k Record (pending) Run...Spada's take!

2011-03-28T11:10:00.000-07:00

If I were to use my standard line of, "it was awesome", in describing this past weekends events of the CRC's pending world record run of 100 runners times 5 thousand meters, I would be doing a huge disservice to the coordinators of this massive undertaking and the runners that ran, and Ben Hovis would probably role his eyes!

Since I was running an easy 10 miler Saturday morning, I thought it would be a good idea to run to PDS (4 miles away) and catch the start of the record attempt. Smart move! Although it was not Barbados weather, there was an electricity there as I made my way to the infield to get a close up of the morning's first runner, Ben Hovis, as he was completing circuit after circuit of 77's! As Ben was still running, I was able to run with the day's 2nd and 3rd runner, Megan Hovis and Mike Beigay (my replacement) and keep them company with their warm up. As well, I got to chat with Aaron Linz who was acting as lap counter (certainly no easy task!) Time to go...

After running to work to get lacrosse set up, I ran home for some breakfast, and then it was time for my daughters soccer game. After the game, my son had lax practice, yet I had to go back to the track to check on my club mates. My son just wanted to know when Jordan Kinley was running! As I saw how the weather was progressing, I felt for the runners who were slated to run Saturday afternoon into Saturday night...oh boy!

I was plenty rested Saturday, as I knew I had a big morning ahead of me with acting as captain, along with John Filette, for the 6am-10am Sunday morning "shift". John, a very nice grad student at UNC, and I were responsible for making sure that our 10 runners were ready to go. To make sure that I was warmed up, I decided to run to PDS Sunday morning. Before leaving, and since I did not have a CRC logo-ed singlet, I decided to red magic marker my stomach (abs was my nick name in college some 25 years ago!) so shorts, arm and calf sleeves and a cap were all I needed...

As I approached the track at PDS Sunday morning, the first person I spotted was Richard (you all know him as Rocky) Falcone and he was gettin' geared up! By the way, I loved how serious everyone seemed to be taking this event! Rocky proceeds to drop a 15:56 to get us yet another 1 % closer to the record. After watching Richard, I went over to one of the start/finish areas and had a nice chat with Billy Shue and Alex Wernikoff who had both already completed their runs in PR fashion...

On the other side of the track were standing Aaron Linz (yet again), Mike Beigay and Emily Barrett in full support regalia! After watching Jamaar Valentine run his leg (g's off!), I had the pleasure of cooling down with him (and he told me that he enjoys reading my blog and it was a pleasure meeting me...really? More than likewise! As I continued my warm up, I spotted a female who I thought might be Christine Witte (one of the runners that I was responsible for)...it was! She looked fit, and I would find out later that she was...

It's almost go time. The runner who went right before me was none other then Jersey girl Rebecca Tomasson and I was able to warm up with her and have a nice chat with her about all things New Jersey! So she takes off like a bat out of Heck and I look at Aaron and we were both like "I hope she doesn't die!" She stayed strong the whole way with such determination because I knew she was hurting! "Spada, you're up next!"...

When Rebecca was on her last lap, that is when I stripped down to my shorts. Since I hadn't raced since Thunder Road half in December and I am on my 13th straight 83 mile week, I wasn't exactly sure what to expect. However, recent workouts told me that I could hold 5:30 pace...I averaged 5:31...not bad! I took it out from the gun and tried to put up with as much discomfort as possible. "The cheering that I received from the 20 other like minded runners that I passed on each circuit was chilling !" Now I can say..."it was awesome!"...take that Hovis...Ha! Enough about me...

Caitlin Chrisman and her posse came out to see my last 2 laps and I was able to do part of my cool down with her. Next up was some easy running with Daniel Eggers who ran for Charlotte Christian and was getting ready for his 5k portion. We got to reminisce about his quadruple that he ran on this very same track some 10 years ago (800m in sub 2, 4x800 in sub 2, a 2 mile in 9:53 and a 1600 in 4:33...good stuff! Next up was a 4 mile cool down with Eric Bilbrey. What happened all weekend is that you would see someone running who you didn't know, then you would start cheering for them by name, and then you would meet them afterwards. Very cool...

So anyway, Eric comes up to me after he runs and says, "Caitlin said that I should run with you because you know how to pace"...ok, I'll play! We had a nice run down to McAlpine and back and I get to find out that Eric was a 15:30 5k guy running club for UNC out of Tennessee...

It was now 10am and time to run home for some breakfast after running 22 miles. Not a bad little morning!

Although my son had a lax game that afternoon, I just had to go back and witness the trio of: Jordan, Megan and JC. They put on a show. A bunch of us including: Max (laxer), Paul Mainwaring (some said he never left), Michael Kahn (stitch at mile 1) Bill Shires (some said he had the toughest conditions) were on the infield kicking around the soccer ball as the runners were up to their neck in blood lactate!

Notable sightings included (and certainly not limited to): Larry Frederick, Scott Greenapple and Larry Seavers!

A special thanks to all of the organizers of this very memorable event, to Providence Day for the use of the track, to the timing and video production company, to Ben Hovis and Aaron Linz and Emily Barrett for all of their hard work and coordinating efforts...Great job! Get that paper work to Guinness!

Question: Does anyone know if there will be a list of some kind that lists all of the splits for each and every runner?

Corporate Cup & Shamrock out...Barbados in!

2011-03-23T07:57:00.000-07:00

First of all, congratulations to all of you who ran in these recent races...you all put up some fine performances!

I had originally planned on running these 2 races to kick off my 2011 racing campaign. When we set up our Spring break trip to Barbados, it turned out that those 2 Saturdays would be our travel days. No complaints here...

Since we were leaving early on a Saturday, I decided to do a workout on Friday before we left. I went to the track and did 12 quarters with full recovery (1 lap), certainly nothing fancy. Then Saturday morning, I just did a steady 10 miler before my shower, oatmeal and car ride to the airport. When we arrived in Barbados, I was determined to do my easy and long runs on the sidewalks. It was challenging at times because the sidewalks are so suspect. I could open up a cement mixing business...ha!

So Sunday morning I head out for my 2 hour plus long run. Can you say hot and humid? Oh boy it got tough out there. Fortunately I was running at dog pace. Anyway, I made it back to our room and proceeded to eat and drink the rest of the day and night. I absolutely love vanilla smoothies!

Monday I decided to leave a lot earlier so it wouldn't be so hot out there. I ended up running a 10 miler easy.

Tuesday, I jumped on the treadmill to do a workout because I didn't feel like I would be able to stress myself on the roads with all of the cars and the suspect sidewalks. I decided to do 10 hill repeats at 10 miles an hour with a 5 % incline (for 2 minutes) followed by a 2 minute recovery flat. 10 of those is pretty tough...try it sometime!

Wednesday I did my first medium long run ever. I ran for 2 hours and 5 minutes and called it 17 miles. Thursday was another easy 10 miler which set me up for Friday's second stress er workout of the week:

I ran a 10 mile progression run on the treadmill in 57:55. I started at 6 minute pace and it took me a long while to get somewhat controlled. Then I just started rampin' it up...pleased to be done!

Saturday morning was another easy 10 miler before a little more time on the beach before it was time to come back home (to reality)...

Barbados is a neat Island in the West Indies. It gained it's independence in 1966 when it had been previously ruled by the British. 70 % of the tourists to the island are British. It is about an 8 hour plane ride from England and about 4 hours for US. The people are generally friendly and I managed to befriend a few of the locales who invited my son and I to watch some "footie" which is a term for soccer and we took them up on it! Very coll...

Question: What Barbadian sprinter won a medal at the Olympics in the mid-90's?

Mile Repeats!

2011-03-10T10:10:00.000-08:00

Since my wife and I had a "come to Jesus" 6 months ago with regards to the beep of the house alarm waking her up at 5am every morning, I have moved my runs to a more functional 8am start time. The goods news of this is that I am not falling asleep at my desk at 3pm. The challenging part is that my mid week stressor workout has to be done solo. Not to mention the fact that I no longer take part in the Miner's run. The treadmill is my new training partner. This brings me to this past Tuesday's workout...

I didn't know what to expect or how I was going to feel/respond to this workout since I had a hard effort on Saturday, a long run on Sunday, an easy run on Monday and I planted 9 shrubs on Monday night! Having said all of that, I decided to go with mile repeats as opposed to hill repeats. I like hill repeats because they put pressure on my circulatory system and force me to run with economical form like no other. I like mile repeats because they are mentally and physically challenging for over 5 minutes. Not to mention the fact that you induce mitochondrial proliferation...put that in your pipe and smoke it...Ha! So mile repeats it was...

My goal was to run (5) 1 mile repeats all at 5:27 pace (11.0 mph) and at 1% incline. All with a quarter mile jog. Mission accomplished. I've done this workout a few times now and it's funny because when I started I would use a 10 minute interval which was giving me four and a half minutes to recover. The miles are still very challenging, yet I am able to recover a lot sooner to the point where I am only needing to take a quarter of a mile or less to recover. That is good stuff that is in turn giving me more confidence with my tempo runs with the horses on Saturday.

Yesterday and this morning consisted of 2 easy 10 milers, before I work out with the varsity sprinters of my High School's track team Friday afternoon. A little speed session in store...should be fun! I'll go for an easy 10 miler early Saturday before we jump on the plane...

I was very sorry to hear the sad news surrounding Sally Meyerhoff's tragic accident. I believe she was a teammate at Duke of both Shannon Rowbury and Kelly Fillnow, and Caitlin Chrisman had a memorable encounter with her at her Olympic Trials qualifying race...Say a prayer!

Running long w/ Kahn, Ballentine, Martin and Clayton

2011-03-09T09:37:00.000-08:00

For the first 6 Sundays of 2011, I ran a steady, hilly and solo 20 miler. After 6 weeks, I bumped it up 2 miles to a 22 miler. I just finished my forth week of this and I believe that I will continue to increase the length of this long run by 2 miles every 6 weeks up to when I start my New York City marathon training (I'll keep you posted).

Having done all of these runs solo, you could imagine how happy I was to see an e-mail circulate that a group would be meeting up at the Central (Dowd) Y for a Corporate Cup preview run at 7am. Since I usually leave my house at around 6am, I could run the 7 miles to the Y and do the loop with the group. Perfect...

My timing was perfect as I ran up to the steps of the Y at 6:59am and looked into the eyes of 4 sick runners!

They were: Kevin Ballentine (who I had never met before), yet we shared a love of lacrosse
Michael Kahn (who specializes in knocking large chunks off of his PR!)
Jason Martin (a talented local), and Clayton Venhuizen (?) who's name I knew yet had never met

Although the weather was miserable, we had a blast! It rained all day on Sunday, yet that could not keep us like minded folks from doing what we love.

Mike is planning on running the half marathon on Saturday that we previewed Sunday and as we were running up a hill, I would make a comment about how I would be thinking about his struggles as I was headed to Barbados! This was the same half that Jay Holder won last year with a solid 1:15. He'll be back...

With all of the rain that landed on me Sunday morning, my ipod did not survive the onslaught! I lost Cinderella, Poison, Marshall Tucker, Run DMC, Dire Straits, Bon Jovi, etc...I could go on and on!

Question: What was Deena (Drossin) Kastor's highest World Cross Country finish?

2 By 4 Miles w/ the Horses!

2011-03-05T11:41:00.000-08:00

So the call went out earlier this week by way of Coach Ben Hovis trying to recruit some studs for a workout out at McMullen consisting of (2) Four mile repeat/tempo runs with a 5 minute respite there in between.

I have to admit, when I saw who was going to show up, I was a little overwhelmed (Spada...you're in over your head!) So anyway, the players were Hovis himself, John, fresh off of his 70 minute half marathon Compton, and the always speedy Richard Falcone, and this 45 year old slug...that would be me!

We met at the park and did our 2 mile warm up. Got back to the lot for about a half mile of strides. A little more lallygagging and we toed the line...Go!

My goal for the 4 mile repeats were 23 minutes each. Actual: 22:18, 22:54

I have mixed emotions about the results (certainly not the effort). I am pleased that I was sub 23 on each one, yet I am somewhat disappointed that I wasn't more consistent with the times of each. Clearly, I went out a tick quick. Having the horses there really pulled me just out of my comfort zone (certainly not a bad thing).

I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to run behind 3 of Charlotte's finest distance runners and I don't take that opportunity lightly...so thank you guys! They all rocked their workouts...Wow!

Still haven't raced since December's Thunder Road half marathon and no races on the horizon. My first race looks to be the 5 thousand on the track @ PDS on March 27th. We'll see...

Question: (This is odd)...What bumper stickers are people now putting on their car to show how far (and slow...ooch!) they've run?

Work bouts...a la Jack Daniels!

2011-03-02T12:01:00.000-08:00

I followed Saturdays tempo with a long run on Sunday. I started this 22 miler knowing that I was not equipped with fuel/sugar/Gu, etc. So the question became...when would I bonk? I had passed a few people who had their Iraq belts on and they probably had all sorts of goodies in there. It wasn't until I was leaving Glen Eagles and making my way on to Quail Hollow that I was starting to hallucinate. It was at this point (mile 18) that a driver pulled up next to me and said, "Spada, you wanna doughnut!" He was kidding, yet my answer was...give me a doughnut! He didn't believe me at first. After he realized that I was very serious, he proceeded to tear the sticker off of the box of Krispy Kremes and handed me 1 glazed doughnut. I took it and was on my way and I hoovered it! No...I did not get a cramp! After an easy 10 miler Monday morning, it was time to go back to work for Tuesday's stress-or...

My goal was to do 10 hill repeats on the treadmill but this time with only a 2 minute recovery instead of the usual 3 minutes. Mission accomplished! I hold the speed for the hill portion at 10 miles an hour or 6 minute pace and the incline is at a 5 % gradient. Try it sometime...Jack Daniels equates those numbers with a 4:44 pace. I have no idea, yet it's a nice workout and you very much feel like you could fall off the back at any moment...

I ran an easy 10 miler this morning, I'll have another 2 easy 10 milers on Thursday and Friday before Saturday's monster workout...can't wait! Won't you please join us...

My training is actually starting to give me some confidence...dare I say that it is about time! I am very grateful that I am able to run so consistently and injury free...very appreciative!

Question (I know that I shouldn't ask this!)? What is up with Chuck Sheen?

10 miles in 57:24...NOT on the treadmill!

2011-02-26T16:36:00.000-08:00

While I tried hard to recruit more horses to help with the load of this workout, having Paul was awesome.

We rocked this workout! The reason why I posted that it was not on the treadmill is because I have been doing quite a few of my workouts on the treadmill. This 10 mile tempo run was performed on the path of McMullen starting at the start, turning around at the 5 mile mark, and running back to the start. The goal was 60 minutes...

We both got to the parking lot at just north of 6:30am, and proceeded to do a nice and easy 2 mile warm up. I was hoping that more people would show up yet this was not to be the case. GO...

In my mind I knew that in November I had run a 58:50 for this same workout chasing Billy and running real well at the time. Right now, I am in the middle of my 10th straight 82 mile week so I wasn't quite sure what to expect.

Paul and I said go and we were off! We rolled to the 5 mile turn around point in 28:48 and never looked back. Paul hit his watch at 56:58 and I was just behind in 57:24! I was jacked! 1 mile cool down...

A special thanks to Brian McMahon for the 2 shout outs!

With no races in sight, this was a very good workout for both Paul and I. Paul is racing next Saturday and I feel for his competitors...Ha!

Question: Does anyone else run on the treadmill?

Richard, Aaron, Paul, Jay...and Me!

2011-02-24T16:13:00.000-08:00

Before Paul went on his Disney trip, he was smart enough to round up the troops (horses) for a brisk 6 mile tempo which took place last Saturday at McAlpine. For most, this would be followed by some track work up at Christian.

Before I tell you about the workout, I must say that I blew off my favorite training partner (CaitCris) on Friday for her workout which she nailed (Sorry!)

So Richard Falcone, Jay Holder, Aaron Linz, Alex Wernikoff, Paul Mainwaring and myself set off for a 2 mile warm up to the XC start. From there, we proceeded to run the next 6 miles at sub 5:50 pace (34:55). The guys in front of me looked great (I finished in the back) and from there I had a 2 mile cool down and the horses took to the track for some speed play. Great way to start the day...thanks guys!

For this Saturday, I am meeting Paul at 6:30am @ McMullen for a 10 mile tempo/progression run if anyone is interested...should be fun!

Question? He was just acquitted of gun possession charges along with attempted murder charges and is an Olympic marathon champion. Who is he?

Mile Repeats!

2011-02-15T10:54:00.000-08:00

Seeing everyone around me put up some nice numbers is making me a little antsy (my first race of the season is not until mid march!) I'll just keep training...

Jumped on the treadmill this morning for a mile repeat workout and after a nice 2 mile warm up, here is what transpired:

5 x 1 mile at 5:27 pace (11.0mph) w/ a 1% incline...1/4 mile recovery jog. Cool down.

These miles were a bit challenging yet I persevered by maintaining good form. Speaking of form, over the last couple of years, I have been focusing on my arm carriage and the 180 step stride rate. Well, I have something else to work on. After reading Jack Daniels' Running Formula book, he recommends 2 breaths in with each step, and then 2 breaths out. As it turns out, I am taking 2 breaths in with each step, yet I am only expelling 1 breath out! This may have something to do with my side stitch issues that I have been having over the last 3 NYC marathons. Let me explain...

Over the last 8 weeks I have been running a 20 miler and taking in a Gu half way through with no stitch issues. Therefore and probably, the carbohydrates that I were taking in had nothing to do with the stitches that were coming on. When I discussed this with Scott Greenapple last November, he suggested that in some way, I could be putting pressure on my diaphragm. I may not be expelling enough air. I am going to start taking deeper breaths AND breathing out for 2 steps. I'll report back...

Back to training, 3 easy ten milers for the next 3 days and then the fun starts Saturday at McAlpine @ 8am...should be fun! A 22 miler scheduled for Sunday...

Long Run Increase

2011-02-14T09:27:00.000-08:00

After 6 straight Sundays of a steady and hilly 20 miler, I knew it was time to bump it up.

It was only a two mile increase to 22 miles, yet it felt good.

Most running experts agree that physical adaptations occur after 6 weeks of a given stimulus, and last weeks run felt routine. I was looking forward to the increase...

I will plan on keeping this long run in my weekly training regime all the way through my fall marathon preparation. When my fall marathon prep does commence, one of the long runs that I will focus on will be structured as such: first 2 hours at a steady tempo, and then the last 40 minutes at marathon race pace (which will be about 6 minute pace for me).

I'll plan on running some (5) mile repeats tomorrow morning, easy 10 mile runs the rest of the week before a dandy on Saturday: 6 mile tempo with the charges, followed by some track work at Christian...looking forward to it!

Question: She became the 3rd person from CRC to qualify for the Olympic trials. Who is she?

5 mile Tempo (Progressive Effort)...

2011-02-11T07:56:00.000-08:00

Once I realized that I was not going to be running the 5k tomorrow, I decided to do some sort of effort based workout this morning.

I got my inspiration for this mornings workout from 3 different sources. They are:

*Meb Keflezighi...I am currently reading his latest book entitled: Run to Overcome. On Friday, he does a 5-15 mile tempo run that is very challenging for him. Since I am not even near marathon mode, I opted for the 5 miler.

*Bill Shires...one of Bill's recent posts was about the run up to the top of the Duke Energy building. The thought of that got my heart racing and gave me fodder for how I was going to construct this morning's workout.

*Mark Hadley...In one of Mark's recent posts, he talks about ramping up the effort of a workout as you approach the end of it. This to simulate the feeling you experience as you move through a race.

So here is what I constructed...nothing fancy:

5 miles in 30 minutes on the treadmill (I chose the treadmill because of what I wanted to accomplish...you'll see!) After a 2 mile warm up:

Below is all at 6 minute pace...

Minutes 1 thru 5...flat gradient
Minutes 6 thru 10...1/2 % gradient
Minutes 11 thru 15...1 % gradient
Minutes 16 thru 20...1.5 % gradient
Minutes 21 thru 25...2 % gradient
Minute 26 @ 2.5 % gradient
Minute 27 @ 3 % gradient
Minute 28 @ 4 % gradient
Minutes 29 & 30 @ 5 % gradient

Followed by a 3 mile cool down.

Again, nothing fancy and very controlled.

Hey guys, thanks for the inspiration!

Prediction (no question today): I think that John Compton will run a 1.09:41 in his half marathon debut...

Thanks for reading...

5 x 1 mile repeats...on the treadmill!

2011-02-08T11:33:00.000-08:00

Thinking that I might jump in the Cupid's Cup 5k on Saturday, I decided last night to do a mile repeat workout this morning on the treadmill at work.

Nothing fancy: 5 x 1 mile @ 5:30 pace(11.0mph) all with a 1% incline. Full recovery...

Felt good. It's interesting, not having done a real workout since November, I'm surprised at how good I feel with all of these easy miles and long runs. I have to say, I am really focusing on my minimal arm swing/carriage, and the all important 180 steps per minute (stride rate). I am definitely not plodding...most of the miles are just over 7 minute pace.

My Super Bowl was at 2pm on Sunday...let me explain:

Now don't get me wrong...I love my American football! (I am a long (suffering) time Vikings fan. I still can't believe that the Packers won...

So anyway, perusing Let's Run.com last week I noticed that the Boston Indoor Games were going to be televised on ESPN2 on Super Bowl Sunday from 2-4pm. So the first thing I do is get the clearance from my wife! By the way, at 1:59pm, she asked me to walk the dog...I did! I think I mumbled some unkind words under my breath...

The telecast was awesome and there is something about knowing all of the players (I am a geek!) that really makes it very interesting and compelling.

If you ever look at the right hand column of my blog you'll see that I have a few items of running related interests. One of those is "The Voices". As much as I was sorry to see Larry Rawson leave his position as lead commentator for track & field telecasts, it was with great pleasure that he was replaced by one of my all time favorite commentators...Tim Hutchings! The man is simply brilliant!

Tim's running career highlight was when in 1984, at the Olympic Games of Los Angeles, he finished 4th in the 5ooo meters behind (if my memory serves me correctly): Said Aouita, Antonio Leitao and Marcus Ryffel. In the booth, he is flanked by a man who always does his homework: Ato Bolden and the astute Dwight Stones. Down on the infield is the great questioner, Mr. Lewis Johnson.

Question: Who finished last in the great 5ooo meter final in Los Angeles of '84 (he was the world record holder whose pelvic had tilted during his semi-final)?

Tempo w/ Hovis, Compton, PMain & Falcone!

2011-02-07T09:00:00.000-08:00

So the e-mail went out from Budic to the messanger (Paul) calling for an 8 mile tempo, followed by some track work for some, and more tempo for others. For me, the 8 mile tempo was plenty fine...

The takers were stout! They included Ben Hovis and John Compton who are both training diligently for the Myrtle Beach Half coming up in a couple of weeks, Richard Falcone who was his his usual fit self, Paul Mainwaring who was chomping at the bit for a quality workout, and myself who was just happy to be included in the e-mail train...Ha!

We all met up on Sardis and did the usual jerk around until it was time to line up at the start on Landsdowne to get after it!

My goal for the 8 mile tempo was 48 minutes...my actual was 46:40...I was pleased! I won't bore you with the details except to say that I absolutely did not go near the well...the other guys looked fabulous!

Question? Who is now the lead announcer for the televised track meets (one of my all time favorites!)?

This Post has no Title!

2011-02-03T12:16:00.000-08:00

Thoughts...

The Boston Indoor Games are this Saturday and it is shaping up to include some fine distance running fields! Do tune in...

I did another treadmill hill workout Wednesday morning which included 10 x 2 minute work bouts of 10 mph and 5 % grade...felt good.

All of my filler/easy runs are 10 milers with over 7 of those miles on the Race Fest Half course. Seven minute pace is getting more and more comfortable as the base continues to grow.

Since I have been running from work later in the morning, I really have missed the Miner's...sorry guys & dolls! For Bill, I believe that it is a signature run...

I am looking forward to Saturday's 8 mile (M&M)r with the fast crue...should be fun!

Good luck to CRC's Alana Hadley who is running in a competitive cross country race this weekend...

Glad to have Jay Holder back running from his injury. As for the DNC...not!

Question (this is tough): Today's post title refers to what Reginald Dwight tune from "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road?"

January Mileage...372!

2011-01-31T11:25:00.000-08:00

All of these miles were done in singles* (that is Mark Wetmore Speak for running only 1 time per day). Most of the miles were run with an easy/relaxed tempo, and I was able to run five 20 milers within the month. I ran a couple of treadmill runs and a couple of tempo runs with Paul and Billy. Clearly, this was a base building month which I plan on continuing through February and into March.

After running 3,635 miles in 2010, I am surprised how well my body does hold up. Knock on wood, I have only had 1 injury in the last 20 years of running since I started running consistently. What do I contribute this to? I am very sure that luck has a lot to do with it! Beyond that, here is what I do: I soak my body with nutrients (meaning that I eat all the time), I sit and or walk slow the rest of the day (my wife says that the only thing I do fast is run!...I would even argue that!), this might sound contraindicated, yet I wear flats/light weight trainers almost all of the time. That way I engage a plethora of muscles, ligaments, muscle tendons, etc. with each foot strike. Believe it or not, I run on cement most of the time.

I started weight training earlier this month and I am enjoying it. More for aesthetic reasons that anything else.

Question: Who just won the Wannemaker Mile at the Garden?

10 X 2 minute (10mph, 5% grade) workbouts on Treadmill

2011-01-26T11:56:00.000-08:00

Since it was raining this morning, I decided to run on the treadmill (as most of you know, I like the treadmill as much as any other surface).

All of my runs over the last 5 weeks have either been 10 mile easy runs, 20 mile long runs, or an occasional threshold run as I continue to build my fitness. I also started to incorporate some weight training into my programme for general fitness.

Today, on a whim, I decided to throw in a repetition workout of 10 workbouts as prescribed by Jack Daniels in his book titled "Running Formula."

The workout called for 10 x 2 minutes of hill running (10 miles an hour at a 5 % grade) on the treadmill with equal recovery. During the 10 minute warm up, since I had mirrors and a clock, I was able to focus on my arm carriage and the all important 180 foot strikes per minute.

The workbouts were challenging yet I could feel that I was really opening up my thorasic cavity. My hope is that these type of workouts will make 6 minute pace feel that much more controlled.

Do you KNOW how much "sub 2.40:00" means to me?

Question: Who just pulled out of London with an injury (hint...crackers!)?

One fine tempo run w/ Paul Mainwaring!

2011-01-24T09:16:00.000-08:00

The e-mail went out last Saturday from Paul asking if anyone was interested in joining him for a 6 mile tempo run from McAlpine. I saw the address list and knew for sure that there would be some stud and studettes showing up! The timing would work out perfectly for me as I had a wrestling tournament in the mountains that afternoon. Since Paul M. said that he would be doing some track work at Charlotte Christian after the tempo, I decided that I would park at Christian so that I could make one of my now infamous getaways after the tempo!

So I park at Charlotte Christian and as I'm running down Sardis I glance over to my right and see no one in the McAlpine lot? I keep running towards Paul's house (we wouldn't want him to have to drive anywhere...Ha!) and then at 8:29am I see Paul with this frantic, abnormal (albeit highly effective) gate coming towards me! Of course me, with my sarcastic New Jersey humor ask..."so where is everybody?"

We run into the park and head to the starting line of the course where we would start the tempo. You know when you are warming up with a 7 minute pace effort that this is serious. Right before we started I mentioned to Paul that I would be happy/satisfied with "36 minutes." You just never know if your treadmill runs and all of the base work will translate.

Off we go! We got out well and I made it to the turnaround at the 2 mile mark about 1 second behind Paul. I pulled even with him at the 3 mile mark and extended my hand just to let him know that I was going to be sticking around. His hand touched my hand. From miles 3 to 4 he got his 1 second back (truth be told, Paul was working a lot less than I was) and that is a tribute to his fitness level and his powerful engine. Paul kept me 5 meters at bay for the remainder of the run and I ended up hitting 34:45 for the 6 miles! I was tickled. Paul continued on to his track portion of the workout and I went to work...

I managed a nice, solo, cold and hilly 20 miler early Sunday morning to get yet another 80 plus miles for the week. I am enjoying this base building block of training which will continue on through February, at which time I will introduce some speed training into my programme. This will include 50's, 100's, 150's and 200's as I will still keep my base up along with my weekly long run.

Question: Please list some of your running goals for 2011?

Not feelin' it!

2011-01-19T09:08:00.000-08:00

This morning I ran my weekly treadmill run and did not feel that great. I set the speed at 6 minute pace (10.0 mph) and ran for 1 hour (10 miles). It started to feel difficult after 10 minutes so I knew that the rest of the workout would be a grind. Obviously some days you feel better then others, yet I was still able to summon the mental toughness to press on for 50 more minutes.

As I told my son 2 weeks ago when he got pinned in the 1st period in 4 of his 5 matches (pinned in the 2nd period in the other), we grow and develop as a person during the challenging times. The following week he would go on to register his first fall (pin).

We, as runners, train 360 days a year with very little extrinsic reward (maybe 2 or 3 really good races a year), yet how we feel after each daily run is priceless. So what I am trying to say is that I was happy that I was able to get something out of today's workout even though I wasn't feelin' it!

Question: Who took Louie Zamperini's picture in the Berlin Stadium after his 56 second last lap to finish 8th in the Olympic 5000meter final?

My week in review...

2011-01-18T10:00:00.000-08:00

And the base building continues with the following:

Monday: 10 miles on the treadmill real easy while it snowed outside. I did catch grief for not running outside!

Tuesday: 14 mile run (9 with the Miner's including Michael ( aka Stephen Page) Kahn, Megan and Ben Hovis (got some great stories from Ben from the Distance Summit)

Wednesday: Another easy 10 miler outside on the roads...

Thursday: 12 miles on the treadmill @ 6 minute pace (focusing on minimal arm carriage and 180 steps per minute)

Friday: Another 10 mile easy run over the Charlotte Racefest course.

Saturday: My 3rd hilly 20 miler for the month out to the Dowd (I think I saw some nut job inside doin' a tri...Ha!) back down East, over QRW to Selwyn to Park to GlenEagles to Quail Hollow to Sharon to Fairview back home. I really like this loop!

Sunday: Another easy 10 miler...

86 miles for the week with no real workouts yet the base building continues...

Question: A local prodigy just started a blog. Who is it?

Alana Hadley...thanks for the inspiration!

2011-01-13T09:04:00.000-08:00

Thunder Road half marathon was my last race of 2010. After that race, my plan was to just do some base building for the next 6 week training block which has gone rather well. Easy 10 mile daily runs with a 20 miler on either Saturday or Sunday. 80-85 mile weeks with no thought of a specific workout.

I enjoyed a swift 8 mile tempo run last week at Landsdowne with Billy and Paul as well as a nice 7 mile tempo run with Megan and Caitlin last Saturday at McAlpine.

So last night I was on Facebook seeing what everyone was doing and I saw that Alana had done a threshold run on the treadmill and it gave me inspiration!

This morning I got to work (school) and jumped on the treadmill for 1 hour and 12 minutes of six minute paced running. For me, this was a cross between steady state and marathon paced running. Thanks Alana! Inspiration can come from anywhere...

Question: Who just won his second consecutive high school Footlocker cross country title?

Thunder Road (Springsteen) Half Marathon Recap

2011-01-04T09:20:00.000-08:00

What can I say...every time I hear or think of the Thunder Road Marathon, all I can think of is Bruce Springsteen's title cut from his 1975 classic...Born to Run!

It must be a Jersey thing...

The Kiawah half marathon use to be the half marathon of choice for Charlotte area runners looking for a race in mid December. That all changed when Tim Rhodes decided to stage his marathon festivities for the same time.

I decided to do this half marathon back in '97 and have done it every year since. The conflict for this year was that it was also going to be held on the same day as the Club Cross Country Championships.

My good friend and rival Bill Shires reached out to me last December inquiring about getting a Masters team together to compete. I thought that it was a great idea and I was on board. As it got closer to race day, the Thunder Road half marathon seemed to be a better fit for my schedule (the half started earlier, my son would run the 5k while I was running the half, etc.) What I am trying to say is that I backed out of the deal...I had stood Bill up!

3 days before the race I called Rich Falcone to wish him luck for his cross country race and he said that he felt reasonably well and that maybe he could have a decent performance (he would end up 8th overall in the masters race!) I told him that I was running the half and asked if he thought I could run a 1:17. He said..."you got that in the bag!"

On race morning, Max and I headed over to park at the Dowd (I love parking there for uptown races) Y and set out to walk the 1 mile to the race start. Since it was cold outside, we decided to hang out in one of the uptown buildings. When I thought the race would be starting soon, we went outside and they started playing the national anthem. Out of respect, we were stationary all the way until the end of the song.

Panic mode! The race is about to start and I'm a tenth of a mile from the start with packed side walks that I need to navigate through. There is no way I am going to make it...what was I thinking! So I do my best/worst impression of walking the streets of Manhatten and make my way up to the start and step over the barrier and behind the timing mat...in the nick of time!

The gun goes off and I take off with an adrenaline surge...first mile in 5:45! I was supposed to run with a cheerleader from Wake Forest (a one Billy Shue) yet that plan was scratched early as I started out behind him and then went past him early (I had a race to run and he had a marathon to conquer) He did that in 2:41! Jordan Kinley won in 2:24! Daniele Crockford won in 2:59! The CRC'ers rocked the city streets!

For me, after the first mile, I didn't pass anyone and no one passed me. The support along the way was top notch as people were cheering my 5:55 paced effort the whole way. They included parents whose kids I coach, Aaron, Jay, Ben & Megs, Mo Campbell and Tim Rhodes. A shout out to Tommy from Pasta & Provisions for the great "Eat pasta, run fasta" sign along Providence Road. To Tim Rhodes for his continued support and great race.

Result: 7th overall and a 1:17 and change!

Question: Where are the 2012 track trials being held?

Southpark Turkey Trot 8k Race Recap

2010-12-13T09:08:00.000-08:00

Finally!

I apologize in advance for the delay in my lack of posts as I've been extra busy with coaching middle school wrestling (I am a wrestling fanatic!)

So the week of the Turkey Trot e-mails started circulating from some of my running buddies trying to soften me up by saying really nice thinks about me...Ha!

We (Bill Shires, Michael Heafner, Billy Shue and myself) decided to meet at the starting line the morning of the race for a 2 to 3 mile warm up. Everyone seemed to be feel reasonably well and we managed to pick up the eventual winner, Bert Rodriguez, as he warmed up with us as well.

After watching my son take 3rd overall in the mile, it was time for the 8kers to line up!

All of the usual suspects were out along with some out of towners in to take part in some bread breaking later in the day. (then of course you get Dallas and Detroit). I didn't realize now that there is actually a 3rd game that day?

So anyway, the gun goes off and I shoot out on a mission! Now you have to understand, I have been racing Bill Shires on and off for the last 16 years (we are the same age) yet we had not raced at all in 2010. Usually, we are separated by 10 seconds and he usually comes out on top. I knew he was coming off of a 2:40/41 double so I knew what shape he was in. I also know how competitive he is so I knew I had my hands full.

Within a half mile, I was running with Michael Heafner and we were cruising. After the mile mark, Bill gets right behind me and he seemed content to draft off of me and I enjoyed dictating tempo in the early stages of the race. It wasn't until the 3 of us were on Sharon just past the 3 mile mark that Mike does his best Marvin Lee Aday impression "like a Bat out of Hell!" and puts 10 meters on the 2 of us! I was having no part of that so I just hung out. Bill saw that I didn't react so he tried to bridge the gap which he eventually did by the 4 mile mark. I was still back a ways...

When I made the right onto Colony, I started to feel good and I decided to go after Bill. I had a little less than a mile to catch him. Mark Hadley was cheering me on along with a whole host of very nice people. I was gaining on him. When I made the left onto Morrison, I still had a half mile of uphill running to try and catch Bill. I thought about all of the residual junk that clearly must have been in his legs (from his 2 superb marathons) and that there was no way that he could hold me off!

I'm working and driving and gaining on him as we're getting closer to the finish and just as I was about to pounce...Paul Mainwaring decides to give me a shout of encouragement which was great except for the fact that it jump-started Bill to take the shot of adrenaline/dopamine/testosterone/cortisol and bury me buy a second! It was epic! Loved every minute of it...

Gotta give a big shout out to the following: Danny White of RMS for the support, Scotty D for putting on such a wonderful event, Tim Rhodes, CRC, and Bill Shires for always bringing out the best in me...Thanks!

Question: What 3 songs are referenced in Kenny Chesney's song "I go back"?

Runnin' with the Shoe!

2010-11-22T12:07:00.001-08:00

Billy Shue that is...

I had a blast on Saturday morning running the last 10 miles of the Thunder Road Marathon course with Billy as we were cruisin' 6 minute pace. Man it is nice when you actually feel good during an effort based run.

My goal for the 10 mile tempo run was anything under 60 minutes.
The actual was:59:55 feeling rather spritely (is that a word?)

Billy and I met up at Dowd (formally Central) Y on Saturday morning @ 7am and after some procrastinations, we were off for a 3 mile warm up to the 16 mile mark of the course (10 miles for Billy). What made this run even more special was the fact that there were so many runners out taking part in the second Thunder Road preview run.

The course took us on the other side of uptown through the Plaza-Midwood and North Davidson sections of Charlotte and then we finished up on 2nd. Having lived here for almost 16 years, I'm embarrassed to say that I was not familiar with the area. This was evident with the fact that I had to keep asking Billy when we should turn (I'm sure that he was getting annoyed, yet he would never let me know it since he is such a nice kid...hey, he is 20 years younger than me!)

So anyway, we're climbing up Hawthorne and I see Caitlin Chrisman and I had to give a big shout out since I was feeling so good! Good to see her...

No more workouts this week because I'll run Turkey Trot on Thursday and Footlocker on Saturday. Easy 7 milers the rest of the week.

A special shout out to the Charlotte Running Club for their great newsletter and the energy that they bring to the Charlotte Running Community!

Question: Why did Jimmy Carter "pawn" our athletes back in the Summer of '80?

Jay, you can't answer this!

First workout since NYC and noteable Richmond performances!

2010-11-16T10:56:00.000-08:00

Since the New York City Marathon, I have strictly focused on 7 mile recovery runs with one longer run last Saturday with Billy Shue. Muscle cell trauma (soreness) is just about gone completely.

This morning I planned on running with the Miner Crue yet it would have been difficult to get back home in time to go with my son to the middle school for the Father's Coffee in the gym.

So last night I decided to run on the treadmill at work at dark thirty!

The goal: 10 miles in 60 minutes with a 1% grade
The result: 10 miles in 60 minutes with a 1% grade (as Mark Hadley would say...a callousing effort!) It was work and I noticed with my foot strike that I still land slightly with my heel with a braking motion. How counter productive this is! I wish that I could land on the balls of my feet with my feet under me.

I believe that this is how Alberto Salazar is trying to correct (change) Dathan Ritzenhein's gate. I am not saying that that is a bad thing. I hope that they find success with this approach. AlSal has always been a tinker with all things running (think DMSO!)

10 mile progression run with the Shoe on Saturday from Dowd...should be fun!

Richmond:

Paul Mainwaring- 2.35:11 running very even splits. The Captain and his coach were justifyably proud! Having trained with (run behind) Paul at least once a week over the last 6 months, I can tell you that he is driven, consistant and thoughtful. Outstanding result!

Jason Holder- 2.40:28 running with stomach discomfort. Jay went with higher mileage this cycle and posted some outstanding workouts over the last 3 months. He was ready...the new PR proved it!

Aaron Linz- 2.41:32 while grinding his way through the streets of Richmond! A new PR! While he is pleased with the effort, he knows that there is more in the tank (those are his words)...

Also...OBX Marathon:

Bill Shires- 2.41:33 running the first half in 1:18 and change having just completed his last marathon some 6 weeks ago! Amazing stuff from the 45 year old and an inspiration to me...

Congratulations guys!

Question: She hails from Marblehead, Mass., just ran her first marathon in 2:28 which was good for 2nd overall @ NYC. Who is she?

New York City Marathon Recap!

2010-11-09T11:49:00.000-08:00

The Numbers:

90th: American Man (Made the leader board)
247th: Overall Place out of 44, 827 finishers
2nd: Finisher from North Carolina
2:48:17: Finish time
15th: Age Group Place

The Preparation:

I thoroughly enjoyed my training cycle for this race! It was so much fun to be able to A. train with all of the strong runners of the Charlotte Running Club on a weekly basis and B. to do 2 quality workouts a week with 2 or 3 recovery days in between each hard workout (I need that!)

The Goals:

1.) Break 2:50
2.) Take what the day gave me (you never know how you are going to feel)
3.) Get as close to 2:40 as possible
4.) Top 10 in my age group
*Grade: 80% (we will actually get a grade from the race report) We'll see what they say?

The Support:

Family- My wife and kids were at home in Charlotte tracking me on the computer and on the Blackberry to see how I was progressing and my wife could tell that it was a grind during the second half. She was there for all of my 2:30 marathons when I was in my late 20's and early 30's so even at 45 she still expects me to hit the half in 1:18!
My parents and siblings in Jersey get so into this race for me and their support is just awesome. From picking me up at the airport to taking me to the expo to driving me to the race start and all of the "breaking of bread" that we did was very memorable.
My best friend Gary who had me over to his estate after the race so we could watch his Cardinals against my Vikings (we won!) and enjoy all the pizza that we could! Very nice...and then to go on the computer to check the results and see that I made the USA leader board (albeit 90th American)

Friends- How sweet it is to receive so many e-mails with kind words from so many like minded peeps! Great stuff...

The Race:

So I'm hanging out at my corral at Fort Wadsworth in Staten Island and I run into Michael Kahn and we had a blast chit chatting as we were waiting to make our way up onto the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge for the start. We get up onto the bridge and after the obligatory runner introductions by Mary Wittenberg (the race director who is a very shrewd women...she managed to get Geb!) we were off!
The first mile is strait up the bridge and then down the other side. As I was climbing, the wind was so strong that it was blowing me to the side (I know that I'm only 160lbs. but come on!) Saw the clock and I was over 7 minutes...oops! From then on it was a grind.
I never really floated any of the miles away. I had to work for each one. I did what I could and eventually got to the 5 mile mark in just over 31 minutes.
One of my mini goals was to run each of the 5 miles in about 31 minutes so when I saw the clock I thought OK!
Kept running and never really ran with anyone on a consistent basis. Some guys would draft off of me for a bit and me off of them as well. Got to the 10 mile mark in 62 and change. I'll take that...
I wanted to make sure that when I got to the Brooklyn Bridge at 13 that I was running reasonably well (a couple of people passed me and I passed a couple of people)it was a wash...
Got to the half in exactly 1 hour and 21 minutes. What do we always do at the half? We double it! Well, you actually have to run the second half...imagine that!
Got to the 15 mile mark in 1:33 and change so still doing reasonably well considering that the whole race was a grind (it was very windy). Now at 15 I(we) have to climb up the Queensboro/59th Street Bridge which is a long way up and then I relatively steep way down (this is where I broke Haile and he dropped out...Ha!) I still have my sense of humor...
Anyway, as you're going down the bridge you have to brace yourself for Phil Spector's "Wall of Sound" that will be pulsating through your veins once you pounce on First Ave! Boston fans...imagine Wellesley yet deeper and for 3 to 4 miles...Nuts!
So I get onto 1st Ave. (let me say that the energy on Forth Ave. all over Brooklyn was high octane!) and I immediately start hearing people yelling my first name and no, I did not have it on my bib! That was very neat...

Fuel:

This was a very big concern for me because at my last 2 NYC marathons I have gotten 2 massive stitches under my right rib cage at the 18/21 mile mark. I had my oatmeal at dark thirty and that was it along with water. Some my big question is...when am I going to take my Gu? I never eat anything in Charlotte before or during a race and never have a problem. I asked Megan Hovis and she said that she likes to take 1 Gu at mile 18. That was my plan.
So I pull it out at 18 and just hold it in my hand. I'm afraid to take it! These stitches are debilitating!...
Over the Willis Ave. Bridge and it was into the Bronx at the 20 mile mark. That is when I saw 2:06 and change (I was expecting 2:04?) Oh well, as I always say..."you run the first 10 miles with your head, the second 10 with your legs, and the last 10k with your heart!" At 20 and a half, I decide to start taking the Gu and I made it over the Madison Avenue Bridge at the 21 mile mark and that's when she returned for the 3rd time in 3 years. I immediately threw the rest of the packet to the side of the road and dug deep (no pun intended). I grinded the last 5 miles through Central Park and did what I could (passed some and got passed by others). I pride myself on consistency, durability, dedication and running a mature race...I was suffering!
Made it to the finish...

Organization:

Mary Wittenberg and her staff of the New York Road Runners Club who organize the New York City Marathon deserve a gold medal for the job they do to make this day the success that it is. This was my 7th year running "New York" and it just gets better and better as it gets bigger and bigger. That bearded Jew from Romania (Fred Lebow) is looking down from up above and he is smiling (and probably shedding a few tears as well) for the chaos in the city that he started some 40 years ago...Enjoy!

Question: no question for today...enjoy the fact that you are able to run!

Thanks for reading...

Last Stress Workout...4x5, 3x1

2010-11-03T05:12:00.000-07:00

After my strong workout on Saturday, I followed that up with a 7 mile recovery run on Sunday and easy 7 milers on both Monday and Tuesday. This set me up nicely for this mornings workout...

It was 4 days out from the big one and I wanted to keep my metabolism up and keep the pop in my legs. So for this morning, embedded in a 7 mile run I ran 4 X 5 minutes with a 2 minute jog (stolen from Mark Hadley by way of Jay Holder). I followed that with 3 X 1 minute with a 1 minute jog (stolen from Bill Shires). I felt good.

For the rest of the week: 6 easy on both Thursday and Friday, and 4 easy on Saturday morning.

Itinerary for the weekend: Playoff game on Friday night, early run Saturday, shower, oatmeal, say goodbye to family, neighbor drives me to airport, brother picks me up in Newark, takes me to packet pickup (Jacob Javits Center), to parents and to spend the day with my huge, beautiful family (they all come into the city to watch), my brother drives me straight to the Verrazono/Narrows Bridge Sunday morning, chill until race start for me which is 9:40am (runner track me #1236), run strong for 26.2, sister drives me back to Jersey, enjoy rest of day with family (my wife is going to be planting pansies with her Blackberry, and having beeps go off every 5k), fly back on Monday morning, wrestling practice and parent meeting on Monday afternoon, we'll hope for the best...

For the New York City Marathon, there are 3 waves plus an elite womens start. The elite women go off at 9:10am (this race serves as the womens marathon national championship), 9:40am is the elite and sub elite mens start (me), and 2 more waves after that in 20 minute intervals. It is a little crazy because our staging area is at Fort Wadsworth, and then about a half hour before the start, the organizers herd us onto the bridge and that gets a little tight...

Thanks to all of the club members who have helped get me to this point. They include: Paul, Billy, Aaron, Caitlin, Jay, Megan, Mike, Ben, Jordan, Stan, Mo, BMac, Chris, Meagan, Bill. I appreciate it...

Question: What famous "sub" spokesperson will be running Sunday with 44, 000 other runners?

10 mile progression run...8 days out!

2010-11-01T10:24:00.000-07:00

I've always done a 10 mile tempo/progression run the week before a marathon as a test to see where I am at.

This past Saturday I met up with Billy Shue who brought along Kent Morris and Michael Heafner to help out with the workout. The plan for me was to work my way into the run and hit 60 minutes or just over if I wasn't on. We met up at McMullen Greenway in South Charlotte and it was brisk. After a 2 mile warm up and some procrastinations (they call it stretching...ha!) we were off...

I thought we got out reasonably well, yet when I looked at my watch right at the one mile mark it showed 6:44 (dang), no worries...

We started progressing from there and I think the second mile was just under 6 minute pace.
The splits were as follows:

1 - 6:44
2 - 5:56 (12:40)
3 - 5:50 (18:30)
4 - 5:46 (24:16)
5 - 5:44 (30:00)
6 - 5:46 (35:46)
7 - 5:50 (41:36)
8 - 5:47 (47:23)
9 - 5:45 (53:08)
10 - 5:42 (58:50)

From the second mile on it was work, yet it never got harder than work! A good sign I think...

Billy and I worked really well together and here is how it went:

We're together at 1, Billy surges and puts 2 meters on us, I bridge the gap by 3, we run together to the turnaround at 5, we're still together at 6, I hear him laboring (I was as well, albeit not too bad), I get a gap on Billy, he catches me at 9, at 9.5 he throws in a surge, which I cover, with a quarter to go, he throws in another surge and finishes 3 seconds up!

Very nice to have Kent and Michael out there. Very cool to to see BMac at the 2 and 8 mile mark! I high fived 'em at the 8 mile mark. The second to last piece...

Had a nice workout with Jason G. Holder on Tuesday for 3 X 25 minutes w/a 5 minute jog...tough!

Since I am only doing 2 workouts/week and 5 easy/recovery days, I feel as though I am tapering each and every week. Therefore, I am really not tapering for my race on Sunday. I have really been focusing on my 2 key workouts for the week and keeping my mileage at about 65/week. We'll see how this prepares me for Sunday...

My next post will be somewhat of a prediction...

If you are runner tracking me, My bib # is 1236, and you can go to the NYRR website.

Question? What was Abebe Bikila's (my inspiration) bib # in 1964 in Tokyo?

The Marathon Simulator

2010-10-25T05:35:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday I ran my first stress workout of the week solo and it consisted of a road 10 miler with 7 X 5 minutes w/a 2 minute recovery jog embedded (did reporters during the Afghan/Iraq conflict make that word vogue?) in it. Following that, it was 3 easy/recovery runs of 7 miles each which took me about an hour to run.

Although, knock on wood, I rarely get injured, in the last 2 weeks I've had my share of kinks (L-O-L-A!) First, when I ran the 10 by 800 behind Jay and Paul: I pulled my hamstring on the push off of #1. Second, on an easy 7 miler, my left foot developed a pain that came on at mile 2 and was gone by mile 6 (oh well). Third, my lower back started to mildly hurt last week. Forth, I felt like I had a rock in my throat last week that made it difficult to swallow (it's almost gone). OK, I'm done complaining.

I tell you all of this to try and explain why I did not complete my simulator this past Saturday. My plan was to run 10 miles on the roads (it was mostly the Racefest course by my house), then jump on the treadmill at work/school for 10 miles, and then run a 3 mile cool down to home.

Actual: 10 mile road run in 1:14:00 (nice and comfortable)
8 mile treadmill run in 48 minutes (6 minute pace) 1 % grade
3 mile cool down back to my house...

The concern for me was that I planned to do 10 miles on the treadmill and I fell short. I was frustrated for a couple of hours afterwords, and then I realized that it was my body's (central governor) way of telling me that I was done (sore throat?)...

A nice 'n easy 9 mile recovery run yesterday an and easy 7 miler this morning should set me up nicely for tomorrows stress workout...

Other stuff: The Yankees are done, the Vikings stink (they are my 2 favorite sports teams) Out to dinner on Saturday night at a nice burger joint on East Blvd. spotted Jordan Kinley (my son was impressed!)

Question: What Carolina Panther was a 3x High School 400 meter sprint champion?

Lungstrong 15k Race Recap

2010-10-18T06:42:00.000-07:00

Saturday was a beautiful day to run what turned out to be almost 9.5 miles according to most everyone's Garmin. Since I don't wear one, it was 9.3 for me in 55:12 @ 5:56 pace for 1st Master and 15th overall. 5 more workouts until the big day and I'm looking forward to each one!

It was a beautiful rolling course over the streets of Cornelius and around Lake Norman with a whole host of CRCer's coming out to put on a good performance. They included: Jordan (who came straight from his Ekiden race in Japan), John (who picked off my good friend Rich at the 8th mile...no relation to M & M!), PMain (who just gave himself and his coach a huge confidence boost for Richmond with his performance), Jay (I use to beat Jay...that was then, this is now, I knew he was ready after his 800m workout on Wed.), Aaron (he and I found the good parking spots), BMac (tellytubby to follow!), Billy (are the PR's ever gonna stop for this kid?), the Crockfords (just back from ChiTown), the Hadley's (Alana would claim top honors for the women), and the Hovis' providing the cheering section!, etc.

Personally, I opened up with a 5:58 mile and just kept each of the 9 miles under 6 minute pace and felt reasonably well doing it. I Got to run with Doug Campbell, Chad Crockford and Greg Issacs during the run which really made the race fly by...went home and had a nice 'n easy 7 miler with the dog (I am not a dog person but it's 3 against 1!) SOL...

This week I have a 6 X 5 minute w/ 2 minute recovery workout on Tuesday and a 10 mile road run followed by a 10 mile treadmill run at 6 minute pace and 2 c/d on Saturday (22). 5 easy/recovery days to fill in the week.

Question: He won the 5ooom, 10,000m, and the marathon at the Olympic Games of Helsinki. Who is he?

2 X Cherokee 10 milers...7 with the dog!

2010-10-12T11:28:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday, I ventured over to the Dowd Y to run an old standby called the Cherokee 10 miler. I would run this 2 times to get my longest tempo/marathon paced run 4 weeks out from New York City. Unlike Dathan Ritzenhien, I didn't have to travel to the Nike campus to do it! Ha!

I knew that I was flying solo on this run, and therefore, I had to do all the work myself. Up at 5am, I started the first 10 miler at 5:40am (very early) yet it will be 9:40am come race day, so naturally, my heart rate will be a lot higher to start (that is a good thing).

I stopped at 10 miles, had a Gu, drank some water, and started the next 10 miler. Here are my splits:

1st 5 miles: 32:15
2nd 5 miles: 31:22
3rd 5 miles: 31:34
4th 5 miles: 30:49

Total time: 2.06:00...reasonably pleased!

I was disappointed with the overall time as I would have liked to have gotten closer to 2 hours. Having said that, I was very pleased with how I felt and how I kept my foot on the gas. It was early and dark...

Drove right home, had oatmeal and fed the dog, then took the dog on a 7 mile run in 56 minutes for a total run of 27 miles!

Easy 7 miles for Mon., Tues. and Wed. and then 10 * 800 with the fast guys...should be fun!

Question: Who is the only female marathoner to run 2.15?...sick!

Randolph Road Hill Repeats

2010-10-07T10:35:00.000-07:00

This past Tuesday was my first stress workout of the week (I am currently only running 2 stress workouts a week). I only had 2 recovery days since Saturday's marathon paced run and I could have used 3! I wanted to save the 3 for this Saturday's 20 miler (2 X Cherokee Rd. loop from Dowd) Anyway...

Back in 2000 when I was preparing for my assault on the Charlotte Marathon, every Monday I would go to Randolph Rd. (it was convenient since we lived in Cotswold at the time) and run up and down the section from just past Shasta up to Sardis Rd. I thought it would be a good idea to do this workout as another simulation of what I would be experiencing in the big apple in 4-5 weeks (that would be those 5 bridges that we have to run up!)

Each repeat takes about 2 minutes to climb and 3 minutes to descend and I ended up running 11 repeats for a total workout of 10 miles. I focused on climbing aggressive and yet staying smooth at the same time. Looking forward to Saturday...

I don't know if I mentioned this or not...Caitlin Chrisman qualified for the 2012 Women's Olympic Marathon Trials to be held in Houston next January! (Megan Hovis already qualified) I get to run with both of them usually once a week...how cool is that! Bill Shires, 45, just ran a 2:40 at the same race...what a remarkable result! Mike Beigay ran a strong 2:47 and is already eyeing his next one!

Question: Who is the only man to finish 4 Olympic marathons?

The Big Three! Chrisman, Shires and Beigay...

2010-10-04T10:19:00.000-07:00

This post was supposed to be about Jay and Stephens' marathon paced run on Saturday, and after what transpired on the streets of downtown Minneapolis on Sunday, you can read about it at the end of this most important post.

The results are in from yesterdays Medtronic Twin City Marathon:

8th Overall woman: Caitlin Chrisman, 24, Charlotte, 2.41:52...$3, 750. Qualified for the 2012 Women's Olympic Marathon Trials in Houston (she'll be joined by Megan Hovis, and maybe even...?)

10th in the 45-49 age group: Bill Shires (85th overall), 45, 2.40:o2 (splits of 1:19 and 1:20!) Awesome!

17th in the 30-34 age group: Mike Beigay, 32, 2.47:16...very strong run!

Having watched them train first hand, I am still so happy, proud, inspired and in awe of what they were able to do with their legs, head and most importantly, their hearts!

Congratulations fellow CRC'ers...you made us all proud!

On Saturday morning @ McMullen: Jay Holder cranked out 16 miles at 5:56 pace. I rolled though 15.2 miles at 6:03 pace. We were singing "Teenage Dream" on our cool down because we got hit with the runners high!

Special thanks to Ben Hovis, Aaron Linz, and Mark and Bryce Hadley for their moral and liquid support. That was huge!

Question: What place did Lasse Viren get at the Moscow 10 thousand?

10 miles, 60 minutes, 1% grade, treadmill...tough!

2010-09-28T07:00:00.000-07:00

So after Saturday's race effort, I had 2 nice 'n easy 7 milers that served as muscle massagers...

This set me up nicely for this mornings stress workout. What made this workout difficult was the fact that I ran it from 5:30am to 6:30am and I only got out of bed at 5am. I did have a good night sleep (the Packers lost!)

The workout was a marathon paced run on the treadmill. The speed was set at 10 miles an hour (six minute pace) for 60 minutes. The key for me for this workout was to have the incline set at 1% (I know that it doesn't sound like much, and it isn't, yet at times you feel like you may go off the back if you don't keep your foot on the gas. I didn't fall off!

At 30 minutes some negative thoughts started to creep in to my head but a good song on the ipod squelched those thoughts and I was able to roll on. I was pleased with the effort and I plan to do one more workout on the treadmill (I'm thinking 13 miles at 6 minute pace w/a 1% grade) We'll have to see how the progression goes...I would do it at 8 in the morning. Yet another piece...

Easy 7 milers the rest of the week to be set up for Saturday's "jaunt" with Jason G. Holder and Co. We'll see how long we can hang...should be fun!

Question: What Duke grad from San Fran won Sunday's 5th Avenue mile?

Hit the Brixx 10k Race Recap!

2010-09-27T08:26:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, it was back to seeing all the familiar faces at the races!

The venerable who's who of Charlotte running included: Hadley, Kinley, Rogers, PMain, Crockford (x2), Holder, BMac, Shue, Harris, Austin (x2), AA, Rose, etc. Notable absentees (report to the principal) included: Nedlo, Isaacs, etc...

In the spirit of full disclosure...we had a football game in Raleigh on Friday night and I did not get home until 2am and then to bed at 3am (no milkshake! Since running with Megan, I've become lactose intolerant...whatever!) Anyway, since my legs have been feeling really good as of late, I wasn't too concerned about the short sleep.

After running a nice and strong 60 minute marathon paced run on Tuesday with Caitlin and Jordan, I had 3 easy 7 milers for the rest of the week leading up to the Brixx...

I parked at the Dowd so that after the race I would have a guaranteed cool down. After I picked up my bib 'n chip, I warmed up with Alice Rogers and got to hear her play by play of the Blue Ridge Relay from the previous weekend. She assured me that the vans were odor free (I was thinking not so much!) Right before I got to the line, I said hi to Tim and Mark and wished Alana good luck. I was thinking 5:50 pace...

The gun goes off (actually someone dropped their hand) and we were off. Kinley goes to the front, and this time, 4 or 5 people go with him. Hadley is all alone for the women. I'm with Chad. We settle into a nice rhythm, and for the first mile and a half, we pick a few people off. As we were cresting 7th, I was not able to stay with Chad and he got away (it was a very good day for him). After going by Harris Jr. for the first time this year, I had my sights set on Alejandro (sore foot) who I wouldn't catch until the 6th mile and finish a respectable 9th overall. I was pleased with the effort and the pace (5:51). Yet another piece of what is the NYC marathon puzzle. 10 mile marathon paced run in the morning...

Notable performances were turned in by Jordan, Paul, Jay (who thought the course may have been long), BMac, Billy, Chad, Alana, Alice and Danielle!

After tomorrows MP run, I'll have 3 easy/recovery days before Saturday's simulator at McMullen. Please join us if you are able...7:30am for a 1 mile warm up, 16 miles at marathon race pace, 3 mile cool down...go Bears!...I'm a Viking fan...

Question: Back in the 60's, what great American distance runner ran 350 miles a week for 6 straight weeks and later on in life went awol on his family?

Davidson Half Marathon: Race Recap!

2010-09-20T06:18:00.000-07:00

I had a long tempo/marathon paced run scheduled for this past Saturday so when I saw that there was a half marathon up in Davidson, I decided to run it.

I am really enjoying my training and especially only doing 2 workouts a week. I am on a 7 day cycle which allows for 2 recovery days for one workout and 3 recovery days for the other workout. I could really use an 8 day cycle but functionally that doesn't fit into my schedule (certainly no complaints here).

After Wednesday's workout with Paul and Jason, I ran 2 very easy 7 milers to be somewhat fresh for Saturday's thirteen point one.

This race was neat in that you could see online who was entered into the race. In looking over the entrants, I decided that I would finish in 5th place. 1 through 4 would be: Jay, Aaron, Tim, an unknown and then me...

I parked on Griffith so that I could make my getaway after the race (no joke: I ended up getting home at 9:31am). I had to walk the dog and my son had a football game (he's starting to figure it out...very cool!)...Budic, get ready!

As I was running up to get my bib, I saw Aaron and Jay who had just completed their pre run of about 8-10 miles(?) I got about a 2 mile warm up in...felt o.k. Got up to the start line and tucked in behind Justin Breland (would go on to finish 2nd overall) and he gave me a sip of water...

The gun goes off and I immediately "settle" in to 6 minute miles which I clicked off rather comfortable for the next 13 miles. It was a hilly course (my interpretation) and I just ran behind a guy on a bicycle until the last turn.

Besides feeling very comfortable, the highlight of the run was at the turnaround when Aaron and Jay were screaming for me (that was neat), and then the rest of the run all of the other runners were saying very nice things to me (oh to feel like Jordan Kinley for a day!)...ha!

The race director said that he would mail me all my goodies...

Yesterday was neat 'cause I got to run a ten miler at McAlpine with Megan Hovis (somehow she got me to run an extra 3) and I got to hear all about her Australia marathon experience (Houston qualifier!)...an easy 7 this morning as Caitlin Chrisman and I are doing 60 minutes at marathon pace tomorrow morning...great stuff!

Question: What great American marathoner never broke 2:10?

A Brit, A Journalist, Lansdowne...and Me!

2010-09-15T08:24:00.000-07:00

So after Saturday's simulator, I had 3 days of easy 7 mile runs to aid the rejuvenation process...

This set me up nicely for what transpired this morning: 3 X 13 minutes of strong running, with a 2-3 minute recovery.

The players involved were myself, Paul Mainwaring (looking sprightly) and Jason G. Holder (aka...the Jaunting Journalist).

After a couple of miles of warming up, some butt kicks and stretching and a little procrastination...off we went!

Now is when I am supposed to tell you what pace we ran for each 13 minute segment. And since I don't where a Garmin...I can't! And frankly, I could care less! I have always been an effort based runner, and I won't change now (unless, of course, someone gave me a Garmin...ha!)

We all had run this workout a couple of months ago and I tell you that to show that when I got to the point of where my watch had read 13 minutes then...this time I was at 12:20. I was covering more distance.

Paul looked like he was driving through the whole workout. Jay looked like he would lead Paul early and then tuck in behind. Although they both gaped me pretty early on the first 2, I was hoping that I could catch Jay on the 3rd one...he was too strong!

I need to take a moment to thank Mark H. for having me do this workout and focusing on some turnover. I think it will set me up nicely for my next effort. After another 2 easy days of 7 milers, on Saturday I will run 13 miles at marathon race pace in Davidson. Another piece...

Question: Who finished 2nd in the 1988 Hawaii Ironman Triathlon World Championship presented by Bud Light and his 12 year old daughter just ran a 16:48 cross country 5k against college athletes?

Marathon Simulator!

2010-09-13T10:29:00.000-07:00

On Friday night, our football game did not get over until 11pm and I did not get home until midnight. And with my milkshake, I didn't get to bed until 1am. That, however, was not going to stop me from taking part in what transpired on Saturday morning in Huntersville!

About a week ago, an e-mail from Bill Shires started circulating regarding a planned 10 mile warm up, followed by a 12 mile marathon paced run, and finally a 2 mile cool down. I immediately thought of 2 things: #1. this is exactly the type of workout that fits into my training for New York and #2. when Ryan Hall and Terrance Mahan were training for London '08, they would focus on their "marathon simulator" run. Their plan was 10 @ 6 min. pace, 10 @ 4:55 pace,and 2 cool down.

On Saturday morning, I pulled into the Huntersville Business Park at 5:20am and immediately spotted Mike Beigay. Caitlin and Jay followed. Followed by Paul, Nathan, Derrick, Adam, and Bill. What a group...I was stoked!

The 10 plus mile warm up was a nice comfortable pace and I got to chat with Adam who I just met that morning (very nice). I thought Jay was a little quiet and I asked him if he was getting himself ready for the second loop...he was! I asked Paul how his breathing was and he said that he felt like he was walking...oh boy! As for my first loop, I was feeling pretty good. I couldn't get a read on Bill (it doesn't matter with Bill...he always brings it!) Caitlin was chatty...and fit!

After we got our Gu, water, bathroom breaks and flats...here was the plan:

Nathan (super nice expectant guy who I also just met that morning and would take pictures of us on our second loop and supply Gatorade and bananas) and Derrick (I thought was AJ) would sit out the second loop.

Paul and Jay would absolutely "rock" a 58 minute 10 mile tempo! And...

Mike, Bill, Caitlin, Adam and myself would do the 12 miler...

Mike was awesome especially when he threw in a 5:57 uphill 3rd mile that left us all somewhat gassing. I recovered quickly and decided to throw in a surge of my own. Caitlin was glued onto my right shoulder blade until she turned right to go on and run 10 miles at 6:10 pace (which, incidentally, was my pace for the 12 miles). Bill would go on to run a total of 28 miles! Adam looked good the whole way to think about a sub 3 for his next one. A mile and a half cool down to finish the run.

Special thanks for all of Nathan's support! That was a nice touch. Thanks, also, to all of the runner's for bringing their A game. Another piece of the NYC puzzle for me...

In looking at my training from last year, I was doing 3 workouts a week plus a long run, and 3 10 mile recovery runs. This year, I am doing 2 runs a week and that includes my long run, plus 5 easy 7 milers. My training is sort of based off of Kyle and Drew Shackleton's training for their last marathon...lots of marathon paced running.

For this week my 2 workouts are: a 3X13 minute interval workout on Wednesday morning, followed by a 13 mile tempo (marathon pace) run up in Davidson on Saturday morning.

I would appreciate any comments regarding my training...thanks!

Question: Who was the first man to break 27 4 10?

New York City...Dialed In!

2010-09-08T11:21:00.000-07:00

After reading Mark Hadley's lastest post, I was inspired to write my own!

Mark has a crafty way of articulating what all of us distance runners are experiencing. In his latest post, Mark talks about "callusing" your mind so that you can better handle the demands of marathon paced runs.

The day after I ran Greekfest (20 seconds faster than last year), I started my New York City Marathon training in earnest. First of all, because of the solid 5 thousand, I went into my specific training with a bit of confidence.

That first Sunday run a week and a half ago with Caitlin and Jordan was almost an hour and a half of marathon paced running. It was difficult, and it was a start. 2 easy days of 7 mile runs followed.

That set me up for my 12 mile tempo run on the treadmill at 6 minute pace for 72 minutes of solid running (no hills and no wind resistance). Another 2 easy days followed.

Last Saturday, it was time for a hilly, solo, road 20 miler. Mark talks about 3 different paced long runs. On this one, I wanted to do the steady 7 minute pace one. 2 hours and 12 minutes later, the run was completed...I was pleased. Another 3 easy days followed (1 solo and 1 Miner's run).

This set me up for this morning's run which was a 10 mile tempo run at marathon pace of about 6:15/mile. My actual time on this hilly run was 1:02:40...not bad. I was supposed to run with Caitlin(tight calf) as she'll be back on Saturday.

Saturday's run will be 10 miles at around 7:30 pace, followed by 12 miles at marathon race pace, 2 mile cool down.

So after 8 months of 300 plus miles a month and 3 workouts a week and 4 easy days of 10 mile runs, I am now doing: 1 long mpr, 1 long run (1 MPR option), and 5 easy 7 milers...

Comments on my training? Thanks...

Question: Who can tell me why , in 1998, their were 2 movies about Steven Prefontaine made?

Treadmill Tempo Run

2010-09-02T13:47:00.000-07:00

My plan on Wednesday morning was to do a 10 mile tempo run on the roads.

I guess I was watching too much U. S. Open tennis on Tuesday night because when I woke up Wednesday morning my Timex had the time at 6:36 ante meridiem. My first thought was that I had a nice "lie-in"...British speak for sleeping in!

After quickly doing the math, I realized that I would not be able to get my early morning jaunt in. So after taking the kids to school and getting to work (one in the same), I readjusted my plan to do my 10 miles on the treadmill. I am a big fan of the treadmill (as I am a fan of hills, long runs, barefoot running, sand dunes, track workouts, etc.)

Let me say briefly that I understand that running on the treadmill does not carry the same degree of difficulty as the roads or the trails. Having said that, you also cannot let up!

Incidentally, the Alaskan Christine Clark trained exclusively on the treadmill for the 2000 Olympic Marathon Trials (which she won).

After getting my ipod all set up, I hit start and went right to 10 miles an hour. After a bit, I realized that my breathing was controlled and my form seemed relaxed...I was having a good run. After a half an hour of this, I readjusted the workout to make it a 12 miler. I, therefore, finished 72 minutes after I started...pleased!

As I said on Facebook (that right, Spada is now on Facebook), that workout was 1 piece of the New York City Marathon puzzle!

Thoughts of the treadmill?

Question: Who stayed with Hicham El G. when he took down Nourredine Morceli's mile record back in '99?

Various & Sundries

2010-08-31T06:34:00.001-07:00

I was starting to feel like my sleeping had gone to the dogs! (sorry Jay)

Thanks to Caitlin for getting me to post again (truth be told, ever since I returned from my New Jersey trip, work has been very busy with football 2 a days and the start of school). That's my story and I'm sticking to it...speaking of Caitlin...

I had the good fortune of meeting up with her and Jordan at McMullen on Sunday for a marathon simulator that was all about Caitlin's fitness (and boy is it improving). She ended up running 15 miles at about 6:10 pace with her last mile right at 6 minutes (good stuff)

Jordan Kinley...my domestique! (let me explain) During the aforementioned simulator run, at around mile 6, Jordan could sense that I was losing contact with the group. What does he do? He falls back to me, gives some words of encouragement, and within a minute I'm back with the group! (all I could think of was Armstrong climbing the Alps and Roberto Heras coming back to bring him back up to Jan Ullrich)

Greekfest 5k recap: Last Saturday was the Greekfest 5k (was there a runner in Charlotte that didn't know that?) Anyway, all of the players were out including Richard Falcone (looking fit and NOT 40) and as Richard and I were warming up, we ran into JoKin and I introduced them and we continued our warm up together. I was secretly hoping to dip under 17 minutes (I would run 17:03 good for 14th place). I had my great usual battle with Meagan Nedlo who is so tough. She ran the last mile with Caitlin and I could hear her telling Meagan to "catch Spada"...it was neat. Good performances were had by Kinley, Falcone, Paul who was "knackered", BMac, Aaron, Billy, Chad, Pezz, Meagan, Alice, Alana and Danielle from Jersey! Hit the Brixx is coming...

If you look at the right hand side of my blog I have a section called "recommended reads" where I list running books that I have read. While it does not look like I update it very often, I am reading constantly. I am half way through reading "Lore of Running" which is 1,000 pages. When Men's Health or Running Times comes, I'll put the book down and read the whole magazine. Having said all of that, I just finished reading "Open", which is the autobiography of Andre Agassi who was one of my favorites. I broke from tradition since it is not a running book. I did this because whenever Andre needed to get back in shape, his friend and trainer Gil Reyes, would have him run up and down "Gil Hill" right outside of Vegas (I remember that at the time). Long story short...read the book!

Miner's Run: This morning I took part in the Miner's Run which takes place every Tuesday at 5:30am and you can meet at either Old Bell of PDS. This morning's run included Stan (under 18 at Greek), Bill (fresh off of a nasty trail 10k), Mike (picture taker at Greek and getting stronger by the week), Paul (starting his Richmond build up), Billy (keep the pr's coming!), BMac (with his devastating kick), and Jinnie and Mo!

Nike Air Pegasus'...$75, Timex Ironman watch...$59, Hit the Brixx entry fee...$20, watching Jordan run a 200 meter repeat last Tuesday morning on the track...priceless!

If you remember the commercial over the summer during the Tour de France on Versus where you had a group of athletes sitting around a coffee table in the living room. They were discussing what was essential that they carried when they were riding their bike. Bob Roll said it was a Bazooka, Dean said water, Levi said it was his headlamp, and for all of them it was their "Road ID". Well my son just got me the "Road ID!"...I love it!

With only 2 races to go for the RFYL Grand Prix series, some interesting sub plots are forming: Can Billy Shue crack the top 5? Does Alice or Meagan win it for the women? Can Brian, Stan or Chad win their age group? We'll see...

A special thanks to Mark and Bryce Hadley for supplying water and Powerade last Sunday for the run...it really helped!

Now that my New York City marathon training has commenced, I'll be focusing on long tempo's (10 to 18 milers) and long runs (easy, steady or easy with a hard finish). I'm done with the short stuff!

Question: What former Michigan Miler just ran a 3:41 in Europe (he's coming back)?

"Who says you can't go home?"

2010-08-06T04:18:00.043-07:00

I know that P Diddy says, "it's all about the Benjamins" but for Spada it's all about the family!

Last week I had the annual good fortune of taking the kids up to Florham Park, New Jersey (my hometown) for a week of family, food and fun, and of course...running. I come from a very large German/Italian/American (and sometimes I wish African (see Kenya/Ethiopia)) family and watching my kids interact with all of their cousins is priceless.

We drove up right after the Run For Your Life 4 Miler. My wife stocked us with a bag of goodies from Dean & Deluca. Although I was disappointed with my race, that feeling was gone once I hit 77 North, and looked in my rear view mirror and saw 2 kids in the back seat with earphones on their heads and smiles on their faces.

Record time was made on our ride up as we pulled into my parents driveway 9 hours after we departed Charlotte. My mother was so surprised at our early arrival that she decided to take us out to La Piazza for pizza and calzones (imagine that AND what a great way to kick off the trip).

Sunday morning came and that meant it was time for me to head down to Bedminster for a 13 mile run with my old friend and running buddy Gary Rosenberg (who is now working for Garmin). Well Gary brings with him a who's who of past New Jersey state champions in XC and track...what a group! It was hotter than Hiati and I lost it with 5 to go. Oh well...

Breakfast, Church and then all of the family came over for a wonderful meal and good conversation...

Before I left for New Jersey, I made it a point to set up runs with various people/former training partners, etc. So Monday came and my dad and I drove to Loantaka park to meet Filipo (a nice guy originally from Manchester) who my dad had befriended a year ago. We had a wonderful 8 mile run together and we both discussed our New York City marathon experiences. This run was performed at a very generous pace as I knew that I had a big one the following night...

"Phil" drove me back to the house and came inside to break bread with the Spada family...good stuff! He left and we decided to do it again on Friday...

Monday afternoon was a calzone lunch and ping pong at my sisters house a short drive up in Booonton Twp. and I was treated to a jam session by my nephews which for this rocker was a treat (my kids thought it was too loud).

No run on Tuesday morning since I would be meeting my old club mates from the Sneaker Factory that night in Morristown. Tuesday was reserved by my brother for a day in spectacular NYC! My daughters #1 focus for New York was Dylan's Candy Bar (Dylan is the daughter of Ralph Lauren) and when my brother informed her that we would spending most of the day in southern Manhattan island (i.e.- Chinatown/Little Italy) she was not too happy. However, my bro rallied and we ended up spending 45 minutes at a place that would have made Gene Wilder gush! Great shrimp ceasar salad at a nice Italian restaurant for lunch in Little Italy and good conversation followed.

After dropping my kids off at my other sisters house, I headed over to the South Street entrance to Loantaka Park in M'town for my annual 8 mile progression run with the Sneaker Factory. One of the highlights for me is the drive over when I get to listen to WABC's Mark Levin (author of Liberty and Tyranny). My goal for the run was to chill for the first 4 miles, which I did at 7:30 pace. Then I wanted to hit 24 minutes on the way back (it hit 23:30 and felt reasonably well), and then another easy 2 mile cool down. Over to my brothers for pizza...

Wednesday was my lone solo run which consisted of an old 8 mile Florham Park/Madison loop that makes you do a lot of reminiscing. After a great breakfast it was off to the Jersey Shore which for us would be Spring Lake. To get to the shore, you have to take the Garden State Parkway which is in pristine condition...a beautiful ride. On a side note, there is a little question that people will ask you if they hear that you are from New Jersey...what exit? So anyway, I had my friend (actually my cousin's cousin) drop off a surf board at the hotel for my son which was greatly appreciated. A long day at the beach was followed by dinner at Vic's in Bradley Beach with my friend who lives in Manasquan and then it was on to Jenkinson's boardwalk in Point Pleasant where my son won his sister that big teddy bear (it was actually a pink pig). As we're leaving the boardwalk there were batting cages and my son asked me if I was going to hit. I use to always do the batting cages with my friends when I was a kid and pretend I was Don Mattingly (crouched over the plate). Some munchies and off to bed...

Thursday morning came and my cousin's cousin met me outside the hotel at the crack of ba- Jesus for an easy 8 miler that would take us on the boardwalk and thru the towns of Avon, Belmar, Wall, Manasquan and Spring Lake Heights...beautiful! We said our goodbyes and he said that he would be yelling for me on 1st Ave. come November 7th! Then it was a nice breakfast on the porch at the B & B that we were staying at followed by some more beach time. Thursday night let the kids sleep over at another set of cousin's and they had a big time.

Friday morning had me running with Phil again for another easy 8 miler (He seemed surprised at how easy a pace we started out) at the park. After Sunday's heat furnace, the weather the rest of the week backed off which was nice. Side note, those of us running Blu Points...it's gonna be hot! Friday afternoon I took the kids to my Aunts house (the house was built in 1789) and she gave us a nice tour and it was the house that my father grew up in...

Visited with some more family and friends the rest of Friday and I managed to have my nephew set up a 10 miler with me and the local running stud in town for Saturday morning. After about 10 open ended questions, he finally opened up and revealed to me that he is a fan of Bernard Lagat. To breakfast at the Florham Park Diner (why are there no diner's in Charlotte?) and we said our goodbyes to everyone (not before my kids got their 30th scratch off game!) and it was on the road.

I'll be back on the 6th of November to go to the Javit's Center to pick up my packet for the marathon...

Question: Who sang duet with Jon Bongiovi on today's post title (good luck Danielle)?

"...somewhere in the swamps of Jersey!"

2010-07-21T11:13:00.000-07:00

Actually, New Jersey is a beautiful state and I think it gets a bad rap because most visitors fly in an out of Newark Airport (or it could just be Snookie)...

On Saturday, at the conclusion of the Run For Your Life 4- miler, I'm heading up to New Jersey with the kids to spend a week with the Spada Clan (annual event). It's a big family and the week is already filling up and will include: Bagels, Pizza and Calzones (favorite food) and Lasagna (it's awesome and yet my wife's is actually better...sorry Mom), a day in NYC with my brother and his wife (my kids have already named 5 stores that they want to shop in), going to Spring Lake (Jersey Shore), out to dinner with my cousins cousin, followed by the boardwalk at Jenkinson's in Point Pleasant, an 8 mile progression run with my old running club (the Sneaker Factory from 15 to 20 years ago)...how cool is that!, etc. etc.

When I get back from Jersey, it'll be August 1st and that will be 3 months out from the New York City Marathon and I will begin my preparation (hopefully with some help from the Hovis') Speaking of training:

I have not felt good recently, and yet I did manage to have a fairly decent workout on Tuesday with Paul, Jay and Aaron. The workout was 6 X 1600 all in at 5:30 followed with a 1 lap recovery...not bad.

We'll see what Saturday brings...

Question: Today's post title refers to what Springsteen song?

McAlpine run...McAlpine fun!

2010-07-08T07:12:00.000-07:00

Caitlin set up a workout at McAlpine of 6 X 1200 meters with a 3 minute recovery using the 3rd mile of the cross country course.

Met Meagan and Jordan, and Paul, Thomas, Billy and Justin at Old Bell and ran towards the course where we picked up Caitlin and Stephanie (Pezz) Pezzuli and continued our 3 mile warm up to the 3rd mile of the course. Paul and Jordan were going easy and, therefore, not taking part in the workout. Got to chat with Jordan which is always enjoyable.

After some last second procrastinations, we were off for the first one. My plan for the workout was to chill out for the first 2 by hanging back in the rear. Stick my nose up front for #3 and #4, and then open up on the last 2. I wanted to assess everyone's cadence, form, etc. Meagan and Caitlin dictated tempo on the first 2 and did a phenomenal job...the boys and Pezz tucked in behind.

For #3, I decided to get up front and run with Meagan (she is awesome!) and help out. Well, Meagan says, "Here comes Spada" and at that point I gave it a little gas and opened up a little gap. At this point, my guess is that Pezz saw this happening up front and wanted to get in on the action. So Pezz starts to go by me and we end up finishing together. It was only #3!

As we are recovering, Pezz sees my signet ring and asks me where I went to college (obviously she thinks its a college ring), so I say Montclair State University and I graduated 22 years ago. To which she says...that's impossible! You're 30 right? Plus 15! Anyway, I have to think about #4, to which Pezz is our leader and Thomas is starting to stick his nose up front and Meagan and I battled all the way to the line (Billy also wanted a piece of the action). #5 starts and Pezz goes to the front yet again, Meagan tucks in behind and now I got a battle on my hands with Caitlin and Billy (at the end, Caitlin would have none of Spada (she was awesome) Still one to go...

#6 was the last one, and I think it is safe to say that everyone wanted to finish up front. The pecking order was Stephanie, Meagan, Billy and me and Justin. Great workout as it was nice to run with such a fine group...

The week in review...

2010-07-05T07:26:00.000-07:00

Training update:

Sunday: 6/27- Aaron sent out an e-mail to meet at McMullen at 7:30am last Sunday and when I got there and it was already 90 degrees, I looked at Aaron and said, "7:30...Really?" There were about 10 of us and we started out not much slower than 7 minute pace. We ran to the end of the greenway and got up on the road and when we did that I could hear a lot of heavy breathing. People would surely be falling off the pace shortly (A pace that was set by Jay and Aaron). I played the role of the great former British middle distance star, Ian Stewart...never leading...always following! With 4 miles to go, the leaders decided to bring the pace down to just over 6 minute pace and I was the only runner able to maintain contact. By the time we finished, 14 miles later, a solid progression run was completed! Good stuff...

Monday: 6/28: Just an easy, uneventful 8 mile run with the ipod...

Tuesday: 6/29: As of late, I have been doing some of my workouts with Aaron and Jay (great training partners who are both about a zip code in performance outcome ahead of me). I certainly appreciate the fact that they let me tag along. For this workout, we met out at McAlpine and ran a couple of miles on the roads before we started the workout portion at the Old Bell entrance. Mike Beigay and Caitlin Crisman joined us for a marathon pace run of 45 minutes. What we ended up accomplishing was 7.2 miles in 43 minutes which was about 6:03 pace. That pace would put me just under 2:40 for NYC on 11/7. Maybe a stretch and you gotta dream big! It was warm out there and I want it to stay hot so that when the weather breaks in the fall when marathon training kicks into full gear, we'll feel that much better.

Wednesday:6/30: Just an easy 8 miler with the ipod (Jovi, the Crue, White Lion, and Jordan Sparks (?)...

Thursday: 7/1: Got an e-mail from CaitCris to meet her at McAlpine and when I showed up it was actually Thomas (who I've never run with before) and Meagan Nedlo (again, never run with and she was coming off of a 16:59 just 36 hours ago!) About a mile into the park we caught up with Caitlin and Justin and ran to the start of the XC course to start the workout which would consist of 14 X 1 minute followed by 1 minute and 15 second recovery. I must admit, when I heard this workout my first thought was...what am I going to do with minuters?" Since I hadn't run with these peeps before, what I decided to do was hang in the back and just assess the situation and see how everyone looked. Well, the girls set a visciously fast pace up front and it was all I could do to stay close behind. This went on for about 7 reps and one of the things I noticed was how Meagan's feet never seemed to be on the ground (it was rather impressive). After 7 reps, I decided to stick my nose up front and help share the effort with Caitlin and Meagan. This went on 'til the last one when I just needed to clean out the pipes! A good workout was had by all...

Friday: 7/2: Another easy 8 mile recovery run with the ipod...

Saturday: 7/3: Usually I run long on Sunday and since it was the 4th, Caitlin reached out to see if anyone was willing to go long (17 miles) on Saturday instead. I figured that I would be the only one showing up at the Monroe Rd. entrance to McAlpine. Boy was I wrong! Jordan, Ben, Mike, Caitlin, John, Jason, Paul and myself. At one point I looked at Paul and said...can you believe this? What a group...

The weather was cool for this run and the pace was comfortable UNTIL I was talking with Jason and we looked up and the pack was 10 seconds ahead of us. We finally caught up as we were in the 6:30 range and Caitlin was rolling. We still had the course to run and that is when things got fun. Jordan made a break (he hadn't had an effort based workout since his 14:59 4 days before) and Mike and Caitlin followed. I finally got a second wind and was able to go by them and go after Jordan (NOT!) Still a good long progressive run...2 hours of tennis in the afternoon...Prefontaine after that and then the Tour de France on Versus...great stuff!

Sunday: 7/4: A 10 miler at 8 minute pace and beautiful weather...

Monday: 7/5: Just an easy 8 miler because we're getting after it tomorrow...

Question: Since there is so much happening in the world of sports including the World Cup, Wimbledon, the Tour, Prefontaine...what performances have impressed you?

For me it was Rafa and Wheating...

How often are you "ON"?

2010-06-25T10:02:00.000-07:00

This past Tuesday I had the good fortune of running a mile repeat workout at McAlpine with Aaron Linz, Jay Holder and Ben Dyke. Aside from my 20 miler on Sunday, I felt like I was coming into this workout relatively fresh. When we arrived at the parking lot, I heard from Jay that Caitlin was under the weather (I was hoping to run with her). Therefore, I knew I was going to have my hands full trying to hang with the big boys.

Since it was Tuesday which is Miner's Run, I decided to get some extra warm up so I headed up towards PDS to meet some of the Miner's. I met up with Mike Beigay and Ben and that's when I talked Ben into running our workout (always recruiting). When we got to the parking lot, the 4 of us immediately ran to the 3rd mile of the famed Footlocker cross country course (lest I remind you how fortunate we all are to have this wonderful course in our back yard).

The workout: 5 X 1 mile with a 2:30 recovery followed by 2 X 400 meters.

As usual, before we started I got my mind ready. We all got to the line and Aaron said, "Let's go boys!" Immediately, Jay and Aaron went to the front, and Ben and I tucked in behind our fearless leaders. I stuck right behind them for the whole mile as we hit 5:37 (good start...1 down). As we approached the start of the 2nd mile I thought, "you stay with them!" We hit the 2nd mile in 5:27 as we were separated by inches. Upon completion of the 2nd mile, Paul Mainwaring was jogging when I looked him in the eyes and said...I'm on!" I did this because it is so rare for me during a workout or race to have it...today I did.

I knew I had more after the second mile so I was determined to stay with Jay and Aaron for the 3rd mile which I did as we hit 5:22. At this point, Ben said that he would sit out #4 and jump back in on #5. I still had more in the tank for #4 so I made a decision to not let Jay get away from me. Again, we finished separated by inches as we hit 5:16. One to go as I felt like I was going to have to go to the well. You can all guess what Jay and Aaron yelled at this point..."UNO MAS!"

We all got out well on #5, as we were together until the start of the minor hill. At this point, Jay and Aaron put 2 seconds on me which they held (and I maintained) until the finish as I hit 5:14. We finished up with 2 X 400 meters that we equated to glorified strides. 2 mile cool down to finish.

I felt compelled to write this article because it is so rare for me to feel really good/to be on on any given day. Specifically, it amounts to feeling good about once a month. The rest of the time it is a grind. This can mean heavy breathing, legs that want to go into the ground, big arm swings, etc.

My question is this: How often are you ON?

The Vibe That is...The Charlotte Running Club!

2010-06-17T08:08:00.000-07:00

The purpose of this blog entry is my attempt to pay homage to just some of the members that make up The Charlotte Running Club.

I was at a race last summer and as I was cooling down I overheard some guys talking about a tempo run that was going to take place the following Saturday at McMullen Greenway. As soon as I heard that I thought..."I'm there!" When I got there I couldn't believe what I saw...10 super fast runners! I was stoked! I recollect that the workout was an 8 miler and I finished last in about 47 minutes and I was happy about it. My only connection to this group was Ben Hovis (he and I had coached together 10 years ago at PDS, he is still there and I'm at CCDS). Other then Ben, I knew no one. Ben introduced me to a couple of the other runners.

After that first tempo run, somehow I hooked up with Jay Holder for a repeat 800 meter workout at the Dilworth Road loop. Another awesome workout was had. Jay is one of the original founders of the Charlotte Running Club (along with Caitlin Chrisman and Aaron Linz).

My initial meeting with Caitlin was in a highly aerobic state as we were battling the 3rd mile at Greekfest together (she smoked me!) and then my son met her at the Grand Prix banquet. Very cool...hopefully, I will make it to next Thursday's 6am run from Dowd to run with Caitlin and Co...

I can't remember when I first met Aaron and what struck me was how much energy he has (I thought I was into it!) We have had some classic workouts over the last year and it has been fun. One of Aaron's main objective with the club is to make everyone feel welcome and a contributor to it. Last week, Paul, Bor and I were fortunate enough to watch the opening Cup match between England and U.S.A. (something other than running...imagine that!)

A couple of months ago, my kids and I went to Rabecca Tomasson's house for her monthly pasta party and I got a chance to meet some of the club members there. The food and fellowship were phenominal...

Over the winter, some of us club members started the now infamous "Miner's run." This run is held every Tuesday morning @ 5:30am and leaves from the PDS parking lot and we run down into McAlpine usually for a 10-12 mile run (be careful: the pace has a tendency to progress). The cast of characters on this run may include (and certainly not limited to): Mike Beigay (runs a 5k with a baby jogger faster than most of us run solo), Paul Mainwaring (my current training partner and a great Brit), Ben Hovis, Megan (see below), Bill Shires (the top masters running in N.C.), Mo Campbell (2009 Thunder Road Marathon champ), Stan Austin, Aaron, Jay, Billy (who sets P.R.'s by the week), Mike Kahn, etc...

Let me go back over 2 years ago: the gun goes off to start the Elizabeth 8k and I settle in with the top female and an Aussie on a bike. Me, who talks to any and everyone (my wife calls me the mayor), asks the woman what her name is and she says, "Megan!", to which I respond, ("oh, Megan Hepp!" We proceed to run the next 4 and a half miles together until she decides to slam the hammer down on me! That night, my wife and I go to a wedding engagement/going away party and who do we walk in with...Megan and Ben (what will become) Hovis. Megan and I have had some wonderful long runs together and most recently last Sunday at Beatty Park. Megan finished 12th at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Women's Marathon Trials. Good stuff...

If you peek over to the right hand column of my blog you can see what a running geek I really am (Love it!) A club member, Paul M. noticed all of the books that I had read and asked if he could borrow one (a book club was formed). If you ever read my Athleticore entries, you'll see that I sometimes run with the likes of Rhiannah, Miley, Marshall, and Co. Jay picked up on this and the "ipod" exchange was initiated! It certainly helps the solo runs fly by...

Over the winter there was about six inches of snow on the ground and I met up with some of the members out at McAlpine for a long run and a guy shows up on a mountain bike with his daughter (it was Mark Hadley of MPR fame and his daughter Alana (37plus minute 10 K @ 13). Mark is a very generous person with his knowledge of all things running and he is never hesitant to offer you advice. You can ask Paula Radcliffe and Kara Goucher what they think of Alana...wow!

Just recently, the Division 2 Track & Field Championships were held at JCS University and club member Meagan Nedlo (current GPx leader) finished with All American status for the "5 &10!"

Some of the other members that I have met/ran with over the last year include (so far): Chad and Danielle Crockford, Boriana Bakaltcheva, Billy Shue, Jordan Kinley (2009 Thunder Road Marathon champ), John Compton (standout for Wake/PDS), Dan and Val Matena, Alice Rogers, Brian McMahon, and plenty more.

When you show up at a Grand Prix race or any other race for that matter in Charlotte, there is electricity in the air because you see so many faces that you know and people that you train with and are getting ready to do battle with that it makes it so special.

The Charlotte Running Club is a group of semi-competitive, passionate runners who enjoy running and want everyone around them to experience to many benefits of this life long sport...thanks Charlotte Running Club!

Quad City Runner...

2010-06-16T12:26:00.000-07:00

Last night, my daughter and I ventured over to Myers Park High School to run the track series put on by the Charlotte Track & Triathlon Club. And what a night of running it was...

While my daughter was content to run the 100 meters and the 4X100 meters, I was a little more ambitious (crazy?) and ran the 1 mile, 400meters, 800meters and the 2 mile!

We got to the track at 5:40pm and I immediately started jogging to try and get the kinks out from my 2 hard weekend workouts. Did a 3 mile warm up and then put the flats on. I did another 2 miles of drills, strides, exercises, etc. and then watched my daughter run the 100 meters (very cool).

Paul Mainwaring came out, along with Jordan Kinley (he would pace Paul for the first 3 laps of the mile), Brian McMahon (to run the 8oom and the duece), Meagan (to watch), Pender (mile), Danielle and Chad (very nice couple and Chad would smoke me on each of our 3 meetings), and a few other characters...

The first event was the mile and when people asked me what I was hoping to run I would say sub 5:20 (secretly I was thinking inside of 5:05 and close to 5 flat, sub 70 sec. for the 400 meters, sub 2:30 for the 800 meters, and as close to 11 minutes for the 2 mile. Here are the results:

1 mile run: 5:04

400 meters: 64 sec.

800 meters: 2:25

2 mile: 11:01 (5:30, 5:31)

Pleased with the effort and determination to run 4 hard races, disappointed with Father Time!

I have to give a big thank you to the following people who let us blokes come out and run these races: My sponsor, Tim Rhodes, Tom Deming, Lana Torkildson, Al Pearman, and everyone else who helped out (we are very fortunate). All we have to do is put out!

A nice and easy 8 miler this morning with the ipod (Mathers, Snoop, Train, etc.) and tomorrow there will be another workout with: Aaron, Jay and Paul. We'll be getting after it at McAlpine and the workout will consist of 3 X 11 minutes...

Question: Today's blog title refers to what '90's hip hop/rap group?

Kinley Kontinues Domination @ King Tiger! Mainwaring(3rd)McMahon(6th)Spada(10th);Nedlo tops among Women!Rogers(2nd)Walther(3rd)...

2010-06-05T16:06:00.000-07:00

What a Race in Oslo! Lagat gets the 5K AR in 12:54 and Solinsky runs 12:56 'n a half...Great stuff from the Americans!

2010-06-04T17:15:00.000-07:00

The week that was...running!

2010-05-31T16:20:00.000-07:00

Great Harvest 5K: Race Recap

2010-05-24T07:36:00.000-07:00

The 4th race in the Grand Prix series and 3rd for me.

3 hard workouts in the previous week with Paul M. leading up to this race which seemed to be a bit much for me.

Parked my car at the library and jogged the mile to the Piper Glen Shopper Center to get my # and chip. Ran back to the car for more warm up and ran into B-Mac with a new do!(rockin'). Warmed up a little with him and then I saw Paul with headphones on! He goes..."Stephen...I'm crankin' Bon Jovi!" Jon Bongiovi is from Sayerville (NJ) and I'm from Florham Park (NJ) so we got the Jersey connection and Paul is grew up about a mile from Motspur Park west of London (how cool is that?).

Make my way to the start and we got: Issacs, Compton, Shue, Kinley, C'Ford, and what really stood out for me was how strong the women's field looked (including but not limited to: Rogers, CaitCris, John, Walther and Nedlo...

Gun goes off (actually it was a guy from the bread company with the apron on who does the standard routine of "r, s, go!"...I had heard that the first mile was tough so I took it very conservative (maybe too as I hit 5:46), and then it hit me that I needed to start getting after it and press the pace.

I look over on the far side of the road and there is Megan Hovis and how can I resist not giving her a "High Five?" back on the gas as I move up from 45th to 9th place. After I passed Chad C., we quasi decide to work with each other(I think). Hit the 2nd mile in 5:29 (11:15). Made sure that I acknowledged every runner that I saw. Chad had a little more than me at the end. Nice race for him.

10th overall in 17:31...

Top 10 men: Kinley, Compton, Mainwaring, MacMahon, Harris, Issacs, Arreola, Crockford, Poindexter, Spada

Top 5 women: Nedlo, Chrisman, Rogers, Crockford, John

Ran back to the car and went home, had oatmeal and took my son back to the finish (we parked in the shopping center because I was dressed like a civilian and I did wonder if I was going to get a ticket). My son and I got muffins at Great Harvest (gotta support the sponsors) and then went to the awards. Mainwaring wondered what the heck I was doing there...

Got to talk to some of the usual suspects. John Compton gave me his whole race in detail and said he gave JoKin a battle for 2 miles and then tried to surge up a hill yet it was actually Jo that did the surgin'...I received a recap from Billy as well...

See you at the Tiger...

Ritzenhein sets AR for 5000 meters!

2010-05-18T08:43:00.000-07:00

I know that this happened in August of '09 (Zurich) and as I was watching it today during lunch, the last 2 laps had me in tears! The way in which Dathan ran his last 5 laps faster than everyone in that high class field was captured brilliantly by the announcer, Tim Hutchings (one of my favorites). If it is inspiration that you seek, check out the video of this race on "you tube" by simply googling "Dathan Ritzenhein"...enjoy!

Speaking of great races with phenomenal finishes, check out the final of the men's 10,000m from Sydney (2000). I have it on tape from Bud Greenspan's collection and I never get tired of it!

While checking out my e-mail messages this morning after a fabulous 11 mile Miner's Run with the crue (Motley), I received a nice follow up e-mail from Weldon Johnson (of Let's run.com fame)...very cool!

Hat's off to Solinsky, Eaton, Derrick, Gay, Blood, Acosta and everyone else who has preformed so well recently...

Tempo @ Micky D's...

2010-05-15T11:34:00.000-07:00

Check this out! Overslept, got up at 6:20am and made it to McAlpine at 6:29am (God's honest truth!), Aaron, AJ and Paul were gracious enough to wait for me. I did a couple of small loops around the parking lot (warm up?) and then we were off!

6 miles in 34:49 and then a 1 mile recovery and then a mile in 5:39 and I was back at my car. The workout was awesome. We all got out well and then Paul made a break from us at around 2, and Aaron was nice enough to hang around me, then he put a gap on me and I was able to get back to him and I kept going past him and made it to the turnaround and then stayed strong to the 2 mile mark (6 miles in 34:49 and 34:13 for Paul I believe), and Aaron was just a tick behind me. A 1 mile recovery followed and then 1 mile back to the lot in 5:39 and Paul was there at the finish to cheer me in, and I turned around and there was Aaron. It was nice that Aaron and AJ came out and joined us. I'll do just an easy 8 at McAlpine tomorrow morning because we're getting after it on Monday...

RMFY Twilight 5K Race Recap

2010-05-12T07:46:00.000-07:00

This was the 3rd race in the RFYL Grand Prix series and 2nd for me.

I parked at the Dowd Y so that I could make my break after the race (mother in law in town). I ran the mile over to packet pickup on Tyron (bib and chip), and then went outside to meet Billy for our warm up. No Billy, no worries. I ran the course easy and felt ok. Actually, I was really tired from the day and the week. And that was fine.

Although it was a night race and I always run at 5:30am, there was electricity in the air and on the streets of uptown Charlotte last Friday night!

It was a different cast of characters from Skyline...and no short on talent. Maybe a top 10? Steve Shonts (50) said something to me about what Masters were there (uh, my mindset is overall). I spotted Kinley, Paul, Aaron and Brian on the sidelines, and scores more getting ready to get after it. I felt confident and fit (albeit tired). When I saw Paul, he was giddy (and it was because there was a Budic sighting) and he had his flats on! Purser and Shue, Rogers and Bor...

After the baby joggers went off, I went over to Tim Rhodes (sponsor) and thanked him as I always try to do. 2 signs of the cross and the gun went off!

The first mile was flat and straight and into a head wind and I failed to latch on to the pack in front of me. It simply was not my pace. All of the runners of similar ability were in that pack and I saw Budic just hangin' out! I was working hard and breathing heavy and with a good attitude. When Budic left the pack, I started to work my way up. One by one, I started going by each one of those pack members. Froelick, Purser, Shue, Arreola, etc. and going after Budic. This took me all the way to past the 2nd mile.

First mile was 5:31 and the 2nd mile was 5:29 as I hit the 2 mile mark at 11 minutes. That was ok, however, we still had that 3rd mile to contend with.

From the gun I could feel that my form just wasn't relaxed and it really became accentuated during the 3rd mile. Going up the hill during that 3rd mile, Lat went by me (which usually doesn't happen), and I went with him a little bit and not really (he would finish 3 seconds in front of me).

As I made the left hand turn for the long straight for the finish, the crowd support was fantastic and yet I thought that they could not all be cheering for me. Sure enough, Alejandro was trying to catch me and on this night I would have none of that. He was extremely gracious afterwards.

Although the race started at 7pm, I made it HOME by 7:44pm! Quick shower and a nice dinner with the family. Well of course I kept checking my BlackBerry to see the results (I've resigned myself to the fact that no one is going to call me...Ha!). Top 10?...I was hoping...10th overall @ 17:23!

Top 10 (men): 1- Kinley (sock God), 2- Bender (Kinley would have none of that), 3- Bailey, 4- Mainwaring (training partner), 5- Askey, 6- Isaacs, 7- Harris, 8- Budic (workout guru), 9- Purser (got me), 10- Spada (hangin' on)

Top 5 (women): 1- Rogers, 2- Walther, 3- Mercer, 4- Bakaltcheva, 5- John

1,900 runners...good turnout.

See you at GH...

"It was carnage!"

2010-05-04T05:48:00.000-07:00

I knew I was tired. This was a butt kicker! Met Paul at P.D.S. for a track workout. Three and a half mile warm up and then a mile in 5:23 which I was pleased with, and then a 1 lap recovery and then 2 X 1K which were brutal and I even had to walk the recovery and then start again with Paul, and then a 6 hundred, followed by a final 1K, and then I ran right home and made it back by 6:29am 'cause my wife and daughter were leaving at 6:30am (I was more impressed with leaving my house at 5:20am, running to P.D.S., doing the workout with Paul, and running home by 6:30am) then I was with my effort with the workout...it was carnage...I could not even jog the recovery...I'll try to recover by Friday night...I can't imagine that people are training this hard...however, that is only part of it and I will not get the benefit without the recovery (super compensation)...we'll see...

Journal edit

That was tough!

2010-05-03T09:17:00.000-07:00

The following workout on Saturday came from Paul (by way of Tim Budic):

I ran 2 miles on my own and then met Paul, Billy and AJ (first workout with AJ) at McAlpine for a tough one! Another mile and a half warm up and then a 3 miler that I did in 17 minutes on the dot (and it was pretty close to all out/very hard) as I was 10-12 seconds back of Paul (no complaints there), and then an 800 meter recovery which I needed all of, and then a mile in 5:30, followed by another 800 meter recovery (again, I needed all of it), and finally another mile in 5:40 and then a mile back to the car (the girls were getting their hair done for the 1st communion mass). Very pleased with the effort, disappointed with the second mile that was 10 seconds slower than the previous, and very pleased with my assertiveness on the 3 mile tempo. Overall I give it a solid B! Great to have the guys out to share the pain with...