RUNNING WITH AL

I Love Cold Weather...No, I don't

2019-01-25T09:26:00.001-06:00

"If you can't play sports, run. If you can't run, run long" - unknown

Just got back from my morning run, and those blessed warm temperatures of the Alabama summer and fall are going the way of the white buffalo. No, it's not "Iceland Cold". I can usually handle the progressing cold weather as it creeps deeper into the calendar, but there comes a time in late December/early January when I just crack. I'm like a fighter on the ropes who keeps getting jabbed. I don't know what's wrong with me, but last night i looked at the 7-day forecast and the all-knowing weather people have been saying we won't get out of the 40's for a while (with that possibility of a "wintry mix"). Just flat ruined my whole dang week. Many of you have known me for many years and have had the thrill of training with me in cold weather. I will whine, complain, and be utterly disgusted during the winter months. Why? BECAUSE I HATE COLD WEATHER, THAT'S WHY!! In the summer, it's easy - shoes, shorts, and a singlet. When the Artic winds blow (or any temp in the 30's), it's every long sleeve, gloves, knit hats, and anything else I can get on and still move (except tights. It's got to be Mars-cold for that). Sometimes, I feel like that kid in "Christmas Story" that falls over and can't get up because he so many clothes on. OK, maybe I'm exaggerating a little, but not about that hating cold weather stuff - always have, always will! And I'm from New Jersey! Guess I didn't move far enough south! I want to sweat, I want to feel that sun beating down, I want my shoes to squish when I finish my run. I don't want to be shivering, I don't want my water bottle to freeze. I even got a new car with a keyless entry mostly because I don't want my fingers to be so cold that I can't turn the key at the end of my run. Now, we don't live in Maine, so the chances of getting frostbitten while we're running is pretty slim, but after running all through the Alabama summer, our blood is thinner (it's not really, but that's what my grandmother told me) and we feel the cold more.

I stepped out into the pitch black a couple of mornings ago and saw smoke (not actual smoke) coming from my mouth and felt the first uncomfortable wisps of cold filtering through my several layers of clothes. I know a lot of you LOVE cold weather (and for the life of me, I can't figure that out). I've been doing this running thing for over 40 years now, and I'll be damned that I still don't know how to dress when the cold Gods laugh at me. The colder it gets the entire process of getting the right combination of running shirts, turtlenecks, gloves, toboggan hat, wind briefs (essential) and every other piece of required clothing on (and off) is a long process. I'm always worried that I'll be too warm or not warm enough. Yeah, yeah, I know the drill...dress like it's 15 degrees warmer than the actual temp. Ha, that's a good one! If I ain't sweatin' in the house, I won't convince myself I'll be warm enough. The problem is these days of technology allow you to check the hourly forecast, so you can see on the bright display of your Smartphone (smarter than the Smartrunner) that it'll be 15 degrees warmer by the time you finish your run...but it ain't warmer NOW!!

Running in cold requires an extensive (read: expensive) wardrobe of technical (read: malfunctioning) layers. I generally barely have the time to plan my route ahead of time, let alone figure out whether I need a base layer, a midlayer, and/or a shell. The advent of layering systems and wicking technologies are heralded in running, but why is it that no matter what I wear, I am sure I will still be cold? Should I go with a single, heavier weight shirt and maybe a vest, or two shirts, or just get it overwith and wear a down jacket? Sometimes I wear mittens – me, a man, in mittens! And if it's real cold, I'll have another pair of gloves under those weenie mittens! Thank Goodness for The Trak Shak - every Mercedes Marathon in February, they give away free gloves, so I have absolutely no shortage of gloves...in my drawer, in my bag, in my car, everywhere! And...get this...I used to have a box of 40 Hand Warmers in the trunk of my car! I stopped that because it seems they tend to disintegrate after spending a hot summer in the trunk.

Another problem with running in the cold is nutrition and hydration. That's a joke, and a cruel one at that. My weekends are reserved for my longer runs, mostly on the trails where it is essential to carry water and Gu packs. I honestly have to struggle to open a Gu pack on a good Spring day, but trying to tear those little packs from the devil when you have gloves on is hilarious. Usually, your fingertips are non-functioning anyway, so I guess the gloves are not the major problem. As an aside, if any of you ever volunteer at an ultra event aid station, one of the most blessed things you can do for an approaching runner is open his Gu pack for him. I can fill my own water bottle, but if you tear open this damned pack of calories, I will shower you with thanks. Anyway, back to the solo cold runs, by the time I get those little buggers open, I’ve probably used up half the calories I was hoping to replace.

So, when the temp outside has warmed up to about 55 I'll feel silly writing this post, but during my run this morning (when I get most of my ideas of what to write) it was ALL I could think about. Of course, I know you warm up during the run and may actually not feel too bad. But, in the meantime, I'll just organize my winter wardrobe in nice little stacks in my drawer (thin long sleeves, heavy long sleeves, gloves, mittens, knit hats...you get the picture). I'll show up for my run with friends bundled up, and the girls who pass me will wear short sleeves, or worse, singlets(!), but I'll be perfectly content in my warm cocoon ready to yell at the heavens "bring it on". Spring is right around the corner. Ok, it's a big corner, but I'm goal oriented.

I'll see you on the cold roads and the frozen trails - Al

A Run Through Baseball History

2018-12-29T11:16:00.001-06:00

"The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt, and erased again. But baseball has marked the time." - Terance Mann (James Earl Jones), Field of Dreams

As many of you know, I just love baseball. From the time I was about 8 years old and my father brought me to the old Polo Grounds in New York to see the Giants play the Cincinnati Reds, I've been hooked. You have to remember that when I was 8, all TV was black & white, so when my dad and I emerged from the dank, dark, beneath-the-stands tunnel to our upper deck section, all I remember to this day was how very bright green the grass was and how fiery red the sleeves, hats, and socks were on the Reds uniforms. It was better than fireworks on the 4th of July.

As the years have flown by Opening Day to Opening Day, baseball has been the one constant of my whole life. My allegiance has wavered from the Giants (who doomed themselves to damnation forever by moving to San Francisco in 1958) to the Amazing Mets, who were the worst team ever in baseball until they collectively sold their souls to the devil and won the World Series in 1969, to my current addiction, the Boston Red Sox. As a child, I always rooted for the Sox, because my dad always taught me to be kind to others, but more importantly, hate the Yankees! And if you hate the Yankees, you root for the Sox. Why? Because they absolutely, positively, without a doubt, hate each other.

So, what does this have to do with running? Well, having been a long distance runner for decades, one of my pleasures is to be able to lace up a pair of running shoes and go explore, whether it be in the woods or the jungle of a city's concrete, asphalt, and steel. As the fates would have it, many years ago, my son got married, has 2 great children, and he and his wife moved to Boston. So, with frequent visits to Beantown, I get to often run to, and around, Fenway Park, along with the attached obligatory run to cross the Boston Marathon Finish Line (which as you know, is ALWAYS painted there on Boylston St).

Recently, I came across an article about the beginnings of professional baseball in Boston and decided to take my Hokas on a trip into the past. So, on a cold, December, Boston morning, I headed out to try to find the sites of the long ago demolished homes of Boston's two initial professional baseball teams.

My first search took me to look for the site of the long gone South End Grounds. It was a beautiful stadium built in 1874 and was the home to Boston's entry into the National Association (which became the current National League). Apparently, they had an identity problem as they rifled through many names in 40 years...Red Stockings, Beaneaters (yep!), Red Caps, Doves and finally the Braves (which eventually, after a stop in Milwaukee, became the Atlanta Braves). They played at The Grounds till 1914. The Grounds had a castle look to it and must have been quite stunning in it's day.

Looking from centerfield, it was still quite the park:

I looked up the layout of the old park and found out home plate was on the corner of Columbus Avenue and St. Cyprian's Place. Hard to find - not exactly a shrine, and I doubt many folks living on this alley realize they reside on a historical parcel of land. Not a very honorable site these days. This would be looking from home to centerfield:

About half a block towards what would be left field, is the Ruggles Street T stop (subway stop). Inside this cold, dark station is the ONLY reminder of this grand ballfield, and even this "remembrance" has a few inaccuracies:

The T stop is actually at what used to be the railroad yard bisecting the city. It was just beyond the leftfield wall of the Grounds. We'll get back to the Braves journey in a little bit, but first there was another site less than home run's distance away.

Literally, on the "other side of the tracks" was another stadium, The Huntington Avenue Grounds, built in 1901, and was the home to the American League Pilgrims, Americans, and FINALLY, the Red Sox until 1912. The most amazing fact about this stadium to me was the centerfield wall was 635 feet from home plate! Lots of room for the centerfielder to get lost out there. This was definitely NOT the stadium where Home Run Baker got his name.

The site of the Huntington Grounds is now engulfed by the campus of Northeastern University. Running through the narrow campus roadways and walkways around the university academic buildings and dormatories, I was on a mission. I had read that SOMEWHERE on campus is the site of home plate of the very first World Series (1903) and a statue of Hall of Fame pitcher Cy Young. I remembered it was close to Churchill Hall, wherever that was. After much retracing my footsteps (more mileage), I almost missed it as it was just sitting smack dab in the middle of a small patch of grass, and 60'6" away was the statue of ol' Cy (you have to look close...really close):

Leaving the Huntington Grounds in 1912, the newly-named Red Sox moved about a mile north to their present home, Fenway Park. As the 2nd oldest professional baseball stadium in the United States (behind Birmingham's Rickwood Field), it's not only an icon, but a shrine to Red Sox Nation. I circumnavigated the stadium, paying homage to the 2018 World Series Champs - take that Yankees!

Now, I had one more destination for these running legs to take me to complete my personal baseball odysey. Remember the Braves playing in the South End Grounds? Well, they were a terrible team year after year, but then in 1914, in the last 8 weeks of the season, the "Miracle Braves" became a legend, storming from 15 1/2 games behind. As they made their pennant push, the South End Grounds was too small for the tremendous crowds of fans, so for the last month of the season, they shared Fenway with Red Sox. The Braves won the pennant, beat the heavily favored Philadelphia A's for the 1914 World Series Championship, and never played at the South End Grounds again.

In 1915, the Braves moved a couple of miles west to a brand spanking new stadium aptly called Braves Field. Here they would play until 1953 when they high-tailed it for Milwaukee, and just 13 years after that, they again pulled up the moving vans and wound up in Atlanta. So, my last objective was to find the site of old Braves Field.

Turns out it's smack dab in the middle of the Boston University campus. It was the first stadium in the country to seat more than 40,000 fans (although the Braves went back to being terrible again and could have went back to their old place). In 1954, Braves Field was unceremoniously demolished, except for the old ticket office:

...and the old baseball field was torn up and is now the University's soccer/ lacrosse field. However, the rightfield bleachers were refurbished and are still being used today:

Mission accomplished! And so, on a cold, windy morning in Boston, I used my gift of running to travel back to a time whose DNA found it's way to a little 8 year old boy in New Jersey and continues in a 71 year old little boy in Alabama. I connected the dots of Boston Baseball first hand and took it Running With Al.

I'll see you on the roads or trails -Al

BUTS in Iceland

2018-09-07T17:19:00.001-05:00

Iceland is a tough place, man. When they have a good summer that means there has been more than eleven sunny days. And it can turn in a drop of a hat, the weather. It was pretty extreme ... It was very challenging but so, so beautiful. If you have a chance in your life to go and look at the sights and feel the culture of Iceland, do it,” - Russell Crowe, actor

So, what happened in August?...

Well, I go out to the mailbox one Saturday and there, like a punch to the gut, is a Jury Summons! I stood there staring at it, saying in a low , gravely voice, Oooooh noooo! I don't actually mind the idea of doing my Civic Duty, but it's 1) not something I really want to do, based on previous experiences of sitting and being rejected for 2-3 days and then being told "we don't really need you anymore", and sent home, and 2) my job is such that it is very difficult to find coverage when I am out.

So, first thing Monday morning, I send out a few texts to other therapists to see if I could get any coverage. Then I get on the phone to "Jury Central" and prepare myself to sound as pitiful as possible and try to plead my case to be excused. I had heard it is now nearly impossible to get excused without actually going down to the Courthouse and begging in person to some sympathetic judge why even though I love the democratic process, it would do immeasurable harm to the well-oiled wheels of Economic Society if I was sucked out of the work environment:

Them: Courthouse. Can I help you?
Me: Good morning ma'am. How are you?
Them: Fine. Can I help you?
Me: I need to talk to some (kind) person about getting excused from Jury Duty.
Them: Why do you need to be excused?
Me: I'm a Physical Therapist and it's awfully hard to find coverage and my (happy) patients can't be treated.
Them: Ok, we'll strike you.
Me: (Incredulously) That's it?

As soon as I got off the phone, I almost immediately saw that I had texts and I had coverage for 3 days! Now I had a week off that I hadn't planned for. So, I tell my wife, who is happy that we'll have some vacation time, but we don't have any idea what to do or where to go. After about a week or so of no idea, I say "What about Iceland?". Her facial expression is along the lines of "huh?". You see, I absolutely HATE cold weather, and here I am suggesting that in the middle of a perfectly good HOT Alabama summer, we pack up and go to ICEland. Crazy, right? Turned out to be a great vacation and not nearly as cold (or rainy) as expected.

I won't go into a detailed description of the trip, but here are some of the highlights:

-- ALL HOT WATER IS NATURAL...Iceland is the only country in the world that can claim to obtain 100% of it's heat and electricity from renewable sources. Geothermal water is heated deep in the ground due to the fact that Iceland sits on a gigantic fault line between North America and Europe that is responsible for 140 volcanoes (not all active) and the country being very earthquake prone. Geothermal water is used to heat 90% of Iceland's homes, and most of the hot water in the country is tapped through boreholes (where the water can be boiling) and transported through pipelines to the cities and houses. No hot water heaters! Hot water smells like rotten eggs because of the Sulpher Dioxide in the water. Can't drink it! All through the country, you see thick steam coming from these cracks in the earth. Some places it looks like a scene from "The Day the Earth Ended".

--NO TIPPING....The prices in Iceland are high, but there is absolutely no tipping...taxis, restaurants, hotel, tour driver, anywhere! So, you basically save 15-20% right there! I must admit, I did feel rather guilty.

--10,000 WATERFALLS...They are everywhere. Beautiful 200-300 foot falls. Absolutely gorgeous. Did I say they're everywhere?

--EVERYONE SPEAKS ENGLISH...all children are taught English in school from age 10 through High School, which goes to age 19-20. Amongst themselves, they speak Icelandic, which is basically the language of the Vikings and impossible for a southerner originally from New Jersey to even attempt to stumble through. Remember the volcano that erupted in 2010 in Iceland that shut down European air travel for 2 weeks? It's name is Mt Eyjafjallajokull. I rest my case!!

-- ICEBERGS AND GLACIERS...when I was in grade school a hundred years ago, we learned about glaciers, but it was like learning about Mars - it was pretty abstract. I mean, a solid river of ice so big and so heavy, it moves due to it's own weight hundreds of miles (or even thousands in an ice age) and literally destroys everything in its path, carving the shape of the landscape. When it reaches water, it breaks off in pieces, and ta-da, you have icebergs. Some are gigantic (the Titanic mean anything?). To see these boyhood curiosities was magnificent. Glaciers cover 11% of Iceland's ground surface and the one pictured in the backround below is bigger than Kentucky!

--BEER...love my beer, and Stout beer in particular. I always say Lite beer is just for people who like to pee. Anyway, found me a friend, and so did Wendy, at The Drunken Rabbit.

--BLACK BEACHES...Alabama has the most beautiful pristine white beaches you could ever find, and I've seen pink beaches in Bermuda, but in Iceland, when the glaciers grind all the volcanic lava to fine dust, you wind up with black beaches. Pretty cool!

--SHEEP...ok, no big whoop. Sheep are everywhere, but in Iceland , sheep are literally EVERYWHERE. Around May or June, all the sheep farmers let their sheep (and wild horses) loose to roam free all over the country to go and get fat. Wherever you go away from the towns, there are grazing sheep. Come Autumn, in a huge holiday-like celebration, the herders roundup ALL the sheep and determine who belongs to who by their ear markings (the sheep, not the herders).

--FINALLY RUNNING...Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to run too much while there. Running around the city of Reykjavik presented a little problem in that you don't just try to remember the street names so eventually you can find your way back to the hotel.

...however, you will see some beautiful scenery in the early morning (gets light by 5)

...and artwork and sculptures all over the city

And best of all...there are NO SNAKES in all of Iceland. That gets them the instant Al Seal of Approval.

And so, a week that was supposed to be spent sitting on some metal chair outside some jury room in Birmingham, Alabama transformed into a vacation in a wonderful country that even a month ago never crossed my mind of visiting. Like MC Hammer said..."Life comes at ya fast".

I'll see you on the road and trails - Al

Four Decades on the Road and Still Loving it.

2018-08-03T17:16:00.001-05:00

I don't mind growing old. I'm just not used to it. (Victor Borge)

Well, it's hard to believe it's been over 2 years since I've written a RWA post. I used to crank these out weekly, and enjoyed doing them because I like running and I like writing so I just figured I would combine the two and see if I could get somebody to read whatever I could figuratively put down on paper. After (just about) 2 years of weekly posts of my doings and thoughts, I just sorta hung it up for a while because the brain had run dry and I didn't want to subject those few of you that were reading RWA to my dwindling mileage and whining that even I hated. However, I continued running and I would occasionally run into other runners on the road, or on the trail, who would sometimes ask "When are you going to write RWA again?". My answer would usually be "My running isn't interesting enough". You see, gradually, I just got slower, my miles decreased significantly, and although I still would get out there and enjoy it, there was literally nothing new. I'd still race some, but I usually don't like to write race reports, especially when it's not really a "race", but a trot in the woods at the same time a lot of other runners are trotting much faster way ahead of me. So, RWA took a nap.

Anyway, just for fun, as this month marks my 40th anniversary of consistent running, I thought I'd take a stab at writing a celebratory post of what's been going on with Al (at least in the running world)...and see if anybody reads it.

In a nutshell, I have always been active growing up living in New Jersey. In High School, I played soccer and baseball. I loved those sports (still do), but the one aspect I HATED was the running. It was punishment..."Hey DiMicco, you're out of position. Take a lap", "Hey DiMicco, you let that ball go through your legs. Take a lap". "Hey DiMicco, don't swing at pitches over your head. Take a lap". My defense at that last dig was I wasn't tall, so the pitch was closer to the ground than other player's heads. Had to take another lap for being a smartass. Well, I never played enough to earn a High School letter (do they even still have those?). So, comes the last sports season of my senior year and I knew if I went out for baseball again, I'd just sit on the bench. I knew I could run (if I had to), so I went out for track. That's like somebody who hates cold weather moving to Alaska! Anyway, at first I ran the 440 (this was the 60's, so this was yards, not 400 meters) and then the 880. I couldn't believe some guys that actually ran a mile...at one time...without stopping or throwing up! I hated the 440 because it was like four 100-yd dashes tacked together without a break. I did ok for about 300 yards, and then my legs started screaming "I can't breathe". Compared to that torture, the 880 was a long distance endurance event that I could pace a little, so I "enjoyed" it more. I got the letter...gave it to a girl...broke up with the girl...got the letter back...not sure where it is now.

Now, we fast forward through the next 15 or so years. Moved to Birmingham, Alabama. Went to Physical Therapy School, got married, had a son, worked, and generally tried to stay active but consumed more calories than I burned, and developed a significant "pudge" (50 pounds worth). Then, on August 4, 1978, my mom passed away. Four days later, I found myself on the UAB track...not sure why. It just seemed like running might help my pudge and get my mind settled. I ran one mile on that rectangle track and felt pretty good about myself. "That wasn't too bad. Let's run another one!!". No problem...the next day I couldn't walk! And so my running journey began.

It was a rather rapid progression with my running with 10k's (no 5k's in the 70's) and a half marathon or two. Then, 14 months after that first UAB mile, I ran the old Vulcan Marathon. I did 3:14 and was hooked. The real transformation came about in '81 when I amped my mileage up and for some god-forsaken reason did the Mississippi 50 mile Run in Leland, Miss...36 times around a 1.37 mile park loop!! 6 weeks later I ran the Strolling Jim 41.2 Mile Run in Tennessee. Hard to explain the high I got from pushing myself to go distances I never dreamed of. I was having a party...I just don't know who invited Father Time to my party!

I don't want to go into the whole running history (that's even boring to me), but, thus far, I've done 151 marathons/ultras, run almost 86,000 miles, did Boston 5 times, seven 100 mile runs, and run from point A to point B in many states and several countries. I've run in 5 decades, and if I make it 18 more months, I'll make six!

I've met the most friendly, kind, and giving people anybody could ask for. I've run for hours piled on hours and miles upon miles with groups that I've coached or Pace Groups that I've led in Marathons. I've run for hours piled on hours and miles upon miles with some great friends where we talked and laughed for many hours. And I've run for hours piled on hours and miles upon miles where it was just me...all were wonderful.

I've pushed to what I thought was the outer fringes of my limit, and I've constantly found those fringes had new limits. David Goggins (a former Navy Seal who I have followed for years) says when you think you've reached your limit, you're about 40% done. I used to think that was pure garbage, but his mantra pushes me even now...that along with MY mantra for 40 years...Every Step Is a Step Closer.

When you're older than the Harry Truman administration, maybe things are catching up. When you've run more miles than 3 times around the Earth, maybe things are catching up. When you've averaged almost 4 marathons/ultramarathons per year for 40 years, maybe things are catching up. All I can say is "Well, shoot!"...I don't like things catching up!

My current mile pace for one mile on a flat paved road is SLOWER than the pace I've run 100 miles in the past! Geez!!!!

So, where am I now? I still love to get out on the trails on an early morning. Well, you know what? A 15 minute mile is still as far as a 7 minute mile, and an hour is still 60 minutes, and a 50k is still 31 miles! So, I take that 15 minutes to run that mile, use up all those 60 minutes to fill the hour, and watch those 31 miles roll by slowly on my GPS. Yes, things take longer, but the alternative is don't do it, and that ain't gonna cut it.

Yeah, it's harder to get through those long runs because you just don't glide through them anymore. I think one of the things I miss most are the stray thoughts I would have while running. I could solve all the problems in the world while running, but even in my younger days, by the time I finished my run, I forgot those solutions. Running takes a lot more effort now, and it doesn't give my mind a chance to wonder....watch that root, run through that creek instead of jumping it, here comes a hill, walking feels good, etc.

I don't really train anymore. My pace is the same no matter what. When a race is coming up, my emphasis of training is getting familiar with the course. That doesn't always work because when "raceday" comes along, I don't know what's in store. Somedays my body responds by moving forward fairly smoothly and somedays it's "failure to launch".

I still love to get involved in a "race" (God knows I need another shirt), but I look for races with HUGE cutoff times, get the geriatric "early start", or run the (one-loop) shorter distances and race the guys doing the full two-loop distance. I hardly run roads anymore, but love to be on a trail with runable hills. If I'm on a course with these killer inclines, I know I look like those Discovery Channel clips of guys about to summit Everest...take a step, pant pant pant, take a step, pant pant pant. I've learned to talk to myself a lot, as in "What the hell are you doing?".

So there we are with the current state of Running With Al...much less ultras, much less miles, much less zip in the legs. But, I have just as much addiction to the sport, if that's what you want to call it, and just as much gratefulness for being able to lace 'em up a couple of times a week and get my Hokas dirty, get myself sweaty, and no matter how slow I am, I'm still Running With Al.

I hope to find some things interesting enough to write about at least monthly...we'll see. Glad I'm back, but I never really went anywhere. Meanwhile, I hope to see you all on the roads and Trails - Al

The Apple Finally Fell From the Tree...But Not Far

2016-02-24T16:04:00.002-06:00

He followed in his father's footsteps, but his gait was somewhat erratic. ~Nicolas Bentley

Last week, I got a call from my son in Boston..."Dad, yesterday I think I did the stupidest thing I've ever done. Ok, let me first tell you the second stupidest thing that I did a couple of days ago...".

Now, let me give you some backdrop to the 2nd stupidest thing. Despite both of our fair amount of Good Sense, we are completely devoid of any ability to deal with a plumbing problem and some of our encounters have almost become legend. One time, for instance, I was in our second floor bathroom and a sink was leaking...just leaking! No BIG deal, but just enough for my male genes to begin to awaken and clamor in unison, "We can fix this". So, I get my trusty wrench, because all I was actually going to do was tighten the faucet thingy at the top of the sink...Hmmm, a little tight... Better push a little harder. All of sudden, the faucet comes flying off the sink, I mean like an ICBM missile, HITTING THE BATHROOM CEILING, and water comes gushing out of the sink hole like Old Faithful where the faucet used to be. On top of all this (prepare yourself for a couple of "on top of all this"), it was the HOT water side!! Instant panic. The water is actually pouring out of this hole like the iceberg hole in the Titanic, flooding the bathroom floor. I'm grabbing towels left and right like a madman, trying to somehow stop a million pounds of hot water pressure with some hand towels! Remember, HOT water. I open the cabinet under the sink to try to cut the water off, but of course it's rusted in the open position and a Sumo wrestler ain't gonna budge it. I start screaming for my wife...you see, ON TOP OF ALL THIS, she is about two weeks out of back surgery, and is trying to avoid stairs, but she makes her way upstairs to the horror of water everywhere, her husband drenched with hot water, an inch of water on the floor, and a literal fountain of hot water spraying all over...I mean ALL over.

ME (screaming): "I don't know what to do".
HER: "I'll hold the towels and you go down in the crawl space and shut the water off".
ME: "You can't hold the towels. It's hot water".

I start thinking the only thing to do is just let go, run real fast down three flights of stairs, open the combination lock, find the cutoff valve in the dark crawl space, and not worry about the great flood upstairs. All of a sudden the water goes off! My first thought is we've drained the reservoir, but then I noticed my wife is gone. She ambled down the three flights of stairs and found the cutoff valve. Before coming back upstairs, she also called the plumber for a late night call. I did not volunteer that I could fix this. Except for my Blood Pressure being around 500/300, it was a great cardio workout, and I got my wife off the couch to test this new back!! Plus, the floor (and the walls, and the ceiling) all got cleaned. And all with only minimal leakage down to the first floor. Holy Cow!!

So, back to son #1 and the 2nd stupidest thing...see if this sounds familiar...leaking sink...."I can fix this". The big difference is he is working on an original sink in a house that's nearly a century old. He sees he cannot tighten this bolt (or whatever the heck it is) from the top. So, underneath the sink is a totally rusted bolt that he gives a pretty good tug on...won't budge...must need a gooder tug...AND HE CRACKS THE WHOLE SINK!! I'm so proud of him. That's my boy!

Ok, on to what he calls the stupidest thing. Although he has periodically tried to get running in his blood, it never really lit his fire. But, he has always been interested in cycling, going back to his High School days when we used to cycle some together. The Tour de France was an annual father/son bonding experience that we still enjoy. But, life got in the way of being able to cycle regularly or seriously, until this past fall when he bought a very good road bike and has been cycling around the streets of Boston or on his trainer (because snow is slippery). He's been enjoying working up a sweat and setting PR's on Heartbreak Hill.

This past weekend, he decided to sign up for a 200 mile, 2-day, fundraising cycling jaunt across Massachusetts. After being a Leukemia Team-in-Training Run Coach for 15 years, I'm proud of him for signing up to help folks that will never be able to thank him, but also, I'm really tickled that he is taking that first dive into endurance sports. Someone once asked me what describes an endurance activity and I said it was one where you had to eat during the event to keep going. Yes, some carry that eating thing a little far! After doing dozens and dozens of marathon and ultramarathon running events (and 6 cycling centuries), I sure feel like it's in my blood, and it's not something that's easily described to someone who has never experienced doing an athletic event for hours upon hours. I can't wait for him to get deep into the training for this and then to feel the pride of doing something you never thought you'd even attempt to do. I hope he gets hooked.

No son, it wasn't stupid. I like to think it's just something that I passed down to you and you finally answered the calling. Ok, I also passed that plumbing thing down to you...hahaha...cracked the whole sink....that's hilarious. I love it!Guess I'm next up.

Time to go for a run. The trails are calling. No cycling for me. Too much time lost changing flat tires. I'll see you on the roads and on the trails - Al

"One child lost is too many...One child saved can change the world"

When The Planets Align

2016-02-08T08:28:00.000-06:00

"I don't pretend to understand the Universe -- it's a great deal bigger than I am" - Thomas Carlyle, Life of Carlyle

Back last April, I wrote a post about how very much I enjoy running in the early morning, and although I positively HATE cold weather, the best part of running in early winter mornings is that I get to run with the dark, morning sky (you can read that post here). You see, I am a secret astronomy nerd. There, I've said it. No, I don't have telescopes in my backyard and I don't have a glow-in-the-dark map of the Universe on my bedroom ceiling (but it would be cool). But you sure can see a whole heck of a lot more when the sky is dark than you can when the closest star to us is high in the sky at noon.

So, as the sky of my morning runs got darker and darker in the lengthening of the to Fall nights, I greeted Orion, which to me signals the cold weather, so we have a strained relationship. He rises early in the evening, so by the time I run the following morning, he is high in the sky sporting 3 of the 10 brightest stars in the heavens, and that in itself makes him stand out pretty easily. With the dark, cold skies this past fall and winter, I also got to see a couple of meteor showers. Now, those are pretty tricky to see while you're running because...well, it's pretty obvious that running while looking up is not too safe, especially for someone who has trouble keeping his balance walking across the living room floor. But, if you're willing to actually stop on your run for a few minutes, it is so impressive to see a piece of stardust the size of a grain of sand streak across half the sky in a flaming display reminiscent of those sparklers I used to play with as a kid. And as I also mentioned in my post almost a year ago, you really have to subscribe to this site so you know when you can see the International Space Station zoom across overhead (it's the brightest thing in the sky). Probably goes over Birmingham about 4-5 times a month. I'll plan some of my runs around the ISS's schedule - it's that cool!

But, probably the cherry-on-the-cake is happening right now and will be going on for the next two weeks and I wanted to be sure you all knew about the treat waiting for you outside. From when we were kids in elementary school, we (I have to be careful here because I was taught in the pre-Sputnik age) were taught there were 9 planets circling the same sun that keeps us warm. Well, if you look up early in the pre-dawn morning, all five naked-eye planets known since antiquity are visible at once. This is actually pretty cool, and it’s visible from anywhere in the world. Very generally, if you go outside well before dawn (4:30–5 a.m.here in Birmingham CST) and look south (in the Northern Hemisphere; face north if you’re in the upside-down part of the world), you’ll see the planets lined up across the sky.

I had read that this array was going to be visible, but we've had so many cloudy, rainy mornings lately, I almost forgot about it (it doesn't get much press coverage to remind you), so when I went out this past Thursday, it was a crystal clear morning and I immediately saw above me a very bright "star" that I knew had to be a planet. Knowing Jupiter was the brightest object compared to Venus, and since it was too early for Venus to wake up, it hit me like a dope-slap on the back of the head of what I was looking at (or for). The waning crescent moon (about halfway between a quarter moon and a New Moon) was fairly high up there at about 45 degrees from the horizon. I knew the order from their apparent positions from the Sun in the sky were Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Mars, and Jupiter.So, to the right of the moon (and in order from the far right), I could make out the very bright Jupiter, the rust-colored fainter Mars and then the pretty bright Saturn. A cool thing I found out later is that Pluto was right next to Saturn, but you'd need a telescope to see it. I know, I know, Pluto is not technically a planet, BUT I was taught that it was and I think it got a raw deal, so there! I was looking at ANOTHER planet!

Well, time was a-wastin', and I still had to get this run out of the way and get to work, so down the road I traveled west. When I turned around and faced the slightly illuminating sky, I was surrounded by many trees and couldn't see anywhere close to the horizon. At about halfway home, there was a break in the trees all the way to the ground, and there it was in all it's glorious brightness - Venus! And a little below it, right off the horizon was it's fainter companion, Mercury. I looked above, and without any problem, I could see all five (or six, if you count where Pluto was hiding) of the of the visible planets in our Solar System. Plus, as an added bonus you might not remember, we're standing on another orb, Earth! So, the only ones missing from Al's Celestial Parade were Uranus and Neptune. Wow!

My run wasn't all that great, but you know, all of sudden, running didn't seem like the most important thing going. The sun came up and the planets were gone like a puff of smoke. Oh, they were still there, but all that was left was the memory. No proof. But, I knew they were there because I saw them!

This show will be going on until about February 20th. It hasn't happened in the past 10 years, but if you miss it this time, there will be an encore performance this year from August 13-19. It'll be a lot warmer then, and for you night runners, this time it will be in the evening sky.

If I'm not looking up, I'll see you on the roads and on the trails - Al

"One child lost is too many. One child saved can change the world".

The Return of Running With Al!?!

2016-01-29T14:18:00.001-06:00

"Father Time is undefeated" - unknown

Hey guys...been a while since I sat down at this computer and opened the drain of my mind and let my thoughts (mostly about running) pour out. After (just about) 2 years of weekly posts of my doings and thoughts, I just sorta hung it up for a while because the brain-well had run dry and I didn't want to subject those few of you that were reading RWA to my dwindling mileage and whining that even I hated. When you've been a long distance marathon and ultramarathon runner for eons, the last thing to go is the mind. So, I still picture doing fast paces and running up and down the hills on the long trails because my mind is in ~~good~~ decent shape, but shoot, between my chronic ankles and some persistent back crankiness, my running sure has taken a huge hit. I've hated not writing these running posts but I was afraid it would be so repetitious and would just turn into a big Pitty-fest. Heck, I even gave up keeping any kind of meaningful running log (except for the very cold stats that I download onto Strava). Whereas I used to keep a very daily detailed written log of my running for years, it became very repetitious and vanilla even to me, the beloved author. When I began entering many more zeros in those little blocks than monthly mileage numbers, the writing interest waned. So, I put RWA on the shelf for a few months (since last April actually), and continued running what I could, trying to find the right things to improve. Hasn't gone quite as good as I had hoped, though I'm not done trying.

Those that don't run will probably say "All that running is no good for you", but those that do run know better...much better! However, when you're older than the Harry Truman administration, maybe things are catching up. When you've run more miles than 3 times around the Earth, maybe things are catching up. When you've averaged over 4 marathons/ultramarathons per year for over 35 years, maybe things are catching up. All I can say is "Well, shoot!"...I don't like things catching up!

Now, I'm not saying I am giving up on running, especially the trails (where running seems so much easier), but maybe I have to reset some goals. I mean, I'm not washed up!! But, I can no longer be concerned about things like how long it takes me to run at a trail race - I just have to find races that have a generous enough cutoff time to allow me to drag my butt around the course (having fun while dragging said butt, of course) before everybody packs up and goes home. Maybe I shouldn't be concerned about "running" downhill on some of the technical trails and have my ankles screaming "How do you like me now?". After all, I can probably walk down them at the same speed. Maybe I can't handle a road marathon (or half-marathon, or 10k even) anymore, but where I once could run 50 miles on the road with fair regularity, roads just don't light my inner fire much these days. But if "these days" will let me run/walk surrounded by nature or friends on the roads or the trails with it still being fun, then what the heck would I complain about?

It's just this mind adjustment that's got me bumfuzzled. I mean, it's not that I don't want to be the runner I once was, but I'm not stupid (some will contest that) and in my profession (Physical Therapy), I know what the inevitable slowdown is. Slowdown is acceptable, but rust from inactivity is not, so I won't stop trying to do the thing I love. But, it's not like flipping a light switch where I decide to accept the runner I am today rather than the runner I was a couple of decades ago. When I run with my same-age buddies, Moha or Ken, we fill up much of our runs with rehashing old stories about runs and races we've done in the past. This is usually followed by one of us blurting out "Usta", as in "We Usta do that", or "Who was that person". I can picture gliding along without a running care in the world, while in actuality, I feel like a jalopy traveling down a bad dirt road! My current mile pace for one mile on a flat paved road is SLOWER than the pace I've run 100 miles in the past! Geez!!!!

Ok, so here's the deal. I want to continue to run, but I'll make the necessary adjustments so I can continue to do what I can do and work to enjoy every doggone moment of it. I don't want to be beating myself up after my runs. That's absolutely NO fun! But, I love to run...much more on the trails than the road. And I will work like the dickens to be thankful for the fact that I am still moving forward. If I have to wear Hokas because of their cushioning and my ankles say "thank you", and if I have to wear a sacroiliac belt to give my back a little help along the way, then that's fine. I've run for almost four decades, and have a boatload of memories and two boatloads of friends just because of running. And I want to add a few more of both. If I move slower than cold molasses, then well, I'll have to accept that.

RUNNING WITH AL has returned, and hopefully, running Al will never have to stop. I may be slower, and at times, I may be cranky, but hopefully I'll keep it to myself and most importantly, I'll continue to see all of you on the roads and trails - AL

"One child lost is too many...One child saved can change the world"

Running With the Night Sky

2015-04-04T18:35:00.002-05:00

There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened.

DOUGLAS ADAMS, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe

This morning, as I usually do on a Saturday, I headed out to Oak Mountain for a long trail run. Those long runs have been more moderate (as opposed to challenging) as of late and I can't seem to get my groove back to grind out a good 3+ hour run just because. I understand that if I want to keep taking part (not saying the word "racing") in trail races and the Southeastern Trail Series, then I better keep my butt moving forward down the trail at a pretty consistent clip. But, working on my feet all day, running a couple of early morning runs each week, and running on the weekends takes a lot out of this old thoroughbred's giddy up.

But one of the things I really enjoy about running is that I've become a solid early morning runner. Now, it has it's downside. Like if I miss that early morning run, there's just about no way I'm going to make myself get it together to run after work. Put a zero in the books. End of story. That's unfortunate too, because the few times I have run later in the day, I find that run is much more smooth than the ones where the alarm goes off, I hop out of the sack, and 20 minutes later I'm ~~bounding~~ shuffling down the dark road. But, that's me, and that's what I do.

There is one big...make that giant...advantage to going out before the sun pokes it's head above the horizon. It's just me and the sky. Since I was a wee lad, I have always been enthralled by the immenseness of the universe. It has amazed me since long before I took field trips to the Hayden Planetarium in New York as an Elementary School student in New Jersey, that we are rather insignificant in the totalness of it all. Astronomy was always my favorite subject in all levels of school, and probably if I could have figured out a way for it to pay for life, I might have gone down that avenue instead of Physical Therapy. However, there never was that fork in the road, so a "decision" never had to be made, but the interest still fascinated me.

So, what the heck does this have to do with my running? Well, three things came to mind today as I had a ran around the beautiful Yellow, Red, and White trails of Oak Mountain:

1) At the beginning of fall, when the early runs are starting in the dark, the constellation Orion (“The Hunter”) hangs low in the eastern sky. It is unmistakable and nearly everyone recognizes it from the 3 classic stars that comprise his belt. When I first see Orion, I know the cold weather that I absolutely hate is right around winter's corner. But, Orion is like the Big Dipper, you've seen it since you were a kid, and he's as reliable to show up when it gets cold as snakes are to show up on the trails when it gets warm (hate cold, hate snakes). Orion's been with me once again all winter, every morning. Now, he hangs high in the sky, but soon he'll be gone for his summer vacation. I'll miss him because of his brightness and clarity...on his right shoulder is the red star, Betelgeuse, which is the 10th brightest star in the sky. On his left knee is Rigel, the 6th brightest star. And then just off his belt is Sirius, the very brightest star in the whole night sky! Hard to believe that light from Sirius took 8.6 years to reach my eyeball, traveling over 50 trillion miles (a lot longer than my run).

2) Being the closet sky nerd that I believe I am, I sign up for an email that will let me know when the International Space Station will be flying (?) over my home in Birmingham. The email will say something like "the ISS will pass over at 5:09am, at 58 degrees, traveling ENE to WSW and will be visible for 6 minutes". The first time I got the email this winter I knew about how far into my run I would be when I might be able to catch a glimpse. I've seen many satellites in my day...Good grief, I'm so seasoned I actually saw the Russian Sputnik in 1957!!...but when I saw the ISS for the first time, I was a kid again. It was, by far, the brightest object in the sky, and it was really moving fast! Actually, it's going over 17,000 MPH, which is fast, but IT LOOKED FAST! I stopped dead in my tracks and just stared at it until it was gone. How utterly cool! Over the winter, I've probably seen it about 20 times. I'm gonna miss that pre-dawn show. If you're interested in getting ISS alerts for your home area, click here

3) Finally, here's what prompted this post - this morning, I'm about to run at OM and I see the moon about to set in the west. Pretty, but no big deal, but then I noticed the shadow just didn't seem right... the left side of the moon was covered, and my semi-nerd mind realized that the sun was going to rise FACING the moon...there should be no shadow! Holy crap! It's a lunar eclipse! I had seen them before, but never unexpected. Unfortunately, right before it went total, this big frickin' cloud comes along and kills the moment. But what a cool moment it was.

As the days get longer, I won't miss running on those cold mornings, but I will miss running with the night sky.

I'll see you all on brighter roads and trails - Al

Rambling Thoughts From the Mercedes Weekend

2015-02-25T14:37:00.000-06:00

"So, I ran to the end of the road. And when I got there, I thought maybe I'd run to the end of town" - Forrest Gump

This past Sunday, I "ran" the latest (14th) local Annual Mercedes Marathon and although it was my slowest marathon ever (at least I'm pretty sure it was), I had a ball. I'm not crazy about reading race reports, but I thought I might give a quick view from my place in the back of the pack.

1) Can you run a marathon mostly from memory? - Although I've been fairly consistently running with middle distance runs and races (15-22 miles) on the trails, I really haven't had any desire to run long on the roads. If you've been reading RWA, you know that I just absolutely love the trails, especially Oak Mountain. When I hit the road, it's usually an early morning run before work, or to be with friends, or it's just more convenient. As the Pace Team Director for the past 13 Mercedes, I'm lucky(?) enough to get a free entry into the marathon. Well, when you don't feel trained for 26 miles of pavement, but you've been handed a "gift", it tends to add some pressure in your innards. I wasn't crazy about doing the marathon, but felt "I'm Al, I can run this from memory". We'll get to the mechanics of the run in a minute, but I pretty much keep proving one of my principal coaching axioms (I've got a million of them)...It's hard to get into long distance shape, but it's not hard to stay there!

2) The Run/Walk - A friend of mine, Jim, has done several marathons in the past and has been experimenting with run/walk for a while now. Those who know me at all know that I am VERY old school and have always referred to r/w as "the girlie thing"... Please, please, don't get all PC on me!!! I know, I know! Anyway, to me r/w has always been run a mile, walk a minute, or run 10' and walk a minute. But, to me, you're supposed to RUN a marathon...the whole damn thing! Well, that was the old me and I guess running trails has softened me with it's hills that make walking pretty strategic to not falling apart. But Jim, who I did three long runs with, had taken this to another ridiculous level...he would run two and a half minutes and then walk one! I broke out into a rash when I first heard that. Good grief, we'd NEVER finish! But, to make a long story a little shorter, we did both our 13 mile training runs on the course and a 20 miler three weeks before the race at surprisingly the same overall pace I had been struggling with trying to run the whole thing. In the race, Jim got some unexpected cramps the last 6 miles, but up until then, we held strictly to our plan and were on pace to finish about 5 minutes faster than last year when I pretty much crashed and burned trying to run the whole thing! And the biggest surprise is I felt great at the end, not completely wasted and ready to burn my shoes.

Ok, a couple of other short observations:

3) Dressing for the weather - the forecast was for rain the whole day with a temp in the 40's. I'll bet I got a dozen emails asking how to dress...Long sleeve? Short sleeve? LS+ SS? Rain jacket? You know, I've been running almost 40 years, and it's these inbetween conditions that still drive me nuts! You don't want to be cold, you don't want to overheat, you want to stay as dry as possible, but it's not a 5k, it's 26 freakin' miles!! All you can do is have a basic idea mixed with common sense, listen to very latest ACCURATE forecast, step outside right before the gun goes off and then race with your decision. Remember, you make good decisions from experience, and you gain experience from making poor decisions... and at almost 4 decades of running, I'm still learning.

4) The BUTS aid station - I am so proud to be a member of this group - the Birmingham Ultra Trail Society. Once again, they manned (and womanned) the aid station at 11 & 24 miles and what a party they had! Their aid stations are becoming legendary. The runners were greeted by loud music, a mix of Mardi Gras dancing, pancakes, bacon, beer, all kinds of aid station eats, and the best gauntlet of BUTS guys that each runner got to run through. And if you were a BUTS member, like me, it was Superhero time. Ever see a baseball player get mobbed at the plate when he hits a game-winning home run? That's how BUTS treats their own. I loved it!!!

5) The Pace Groups - Any leader's (sports, business, whatever) principal goals is to surround themselves with good people. This was the 13th Mercedes Marathon that I have directed the Pace Groups. For many years, I was one of the pacers myself, but now-a-days, the Balloon Lady gives me a run for my money. So, year after year, somehow God smiles on me and sends me the greatest pacers. This year, each Pace Group got their followers under the balloons less than 3 minutes under their desired times. It is incredibly hard to be a pacer...keep everyone in a group, try to run an even pace, allow for hills, aid stations, etc, and most of all, no matter how crappy you feel, you have to be positive ALWAYS. Thanks guys (and girls).

6) Going the wrong way - apparently, at the end of the half marathon, the 3 lead guys took a wrong turn and the 4th place guy got an early Christmas present. There were some scathing emails and comments that Mercedes was in the wrong. First of all, the pace car can't go over the finish line and had to turn off. Second, there were course sentries pointing the right way and a gazillion spectators yelling at them that they were going wrong. And third, apparently they weren't trained by Coach Al because another one of my absolute axioms is learn the (damn) course. Know where the aid stations are, the porta-potties, the hills, and certainly the turns near the finish. Good grief guys, don't blame the race because you didn't do your homework! Sure, you're giving it your all, busting a gut and slobbering all over you chin and your shirt, but as in every other sport...keep your head in the game!

Ok, guys, that's it for Mercedes for another year. If you get a chance head on down to The Trak Shak and tell them what a great job they did, and/or send Valerie McLean, the Race Director, an email (val@trakshak.com). Believe me, her job must be one HUGE headache.

Whether I'm running or walking, I'll see you on the roads (or trails) - Al

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world"

Do I Need To Train at My Race Pace?

2015-02-07T19:25:00.002-06:00

"The statistics on sanity are that one out of every four Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of your three best friends. If they are okay, then it's you."
- Rita Mae Brown

Hi guys. Been quite a while since I last blogged. Actually, it was around the time of my last trail race back at the Tranquility Lake 50k Race back in November. I'm fine, but I was pooped from a second year of the Southeastern Trail Series, and a big upturn in my work level as a Physical Therapist. That, and a big denial that I am slowing down at 67! Man, I hate that, but am accepting it better (honest, I am). Before the Tranquility Lake race, I felt I had repeated as the Grand Master Point Leader again, and resting on my laurels, decided to just run the 25K instead of the 50k (remember I said I was pooped). Well, that plan worked as well as Seattle throwing THAT pass in the Super Bowl...I wound up losing first place by 0.5 points. That was a kick in the butt. Oh well, just like Richard Wilson said after throwing THAT pass...oops!!! I kept running in December and January, though cut down a bit and felt like nothing exciting was going on for you guys to read in RWA, so my writing went into semi-hibernation. I say "semi" because for the past several months, leading up to the local (Birmingham, Al) Mercedes Marathon, I have been writing a weekly training blog "Training With Al". That race is in just 2 weeks, so TWA will soon go into hibernation, and now I'm ready to wake RWA up. As the my "race" season gets cranked up again, I'm sure things will pop up in my head that I'll put down on paper (hahaha, my 6 decade mind knows there's no paper, but "I'll put it down on screen" doesn't sound quite right).

I was running this morning on the Oak Mt trails by myself and feeling I was doing pretty good, glanced at my GPS to see my overall pace. Hey, I'm flying (a relative term), but then I hit the Yellow/White connector and suddenly, I wasn't flying. It's a mile uphill at about a 15% grade, so flying is out of the question. Anyway, I started thinking that when I was coaching marathoners, one of my cornerstones was Specificity of Training...if you're going to run a hilly marathon, train on hills...if you're running in the heat, train in the heat...if you want to run 9'/mile, do most of your running at 9'/mile. And therein is one of the big differences between road running and trail running. On a road, you can pretty much pace yourself fairly evenly, despite some ups and downs, and monitor that pace as you proceed during your run. Even pace is the key, right? Well, hit the trail and all that goes down the toilet. Hills, mountains, roots, rocks, ruts, water crossings, etc, plays havoc with your pace. So, I started thinking, does it even pay to waste your time fretting how fast (or slow) you're going at any particular moment in time during your trail training run?

It’s interesting how the range of view on appropriate training paces is rather narrow for virtually every running event up to the marathon, but once we move into the realm of ultras (particularly trail ultras), the near consensus all but disappears. Many people appear to advocate the value of training at your target pace to get your body accustomed to everything that that pace involves, while others would advise training faster than race pace to better build strength and fitness.

One of the shortcomings in some discussions may be the failure to recognize how a lot of people actually run during their ultras. First of all, except for the gifted few, of which most of the folks I know are not, you better conserve your energy at the beginning or you'll blowup well short of sniffing distance of the finish. Trail ultras force most of us to move at a relatively wide range of paces for various periods of time. We run when we can, walk when we decide that it’s more efficient to do so, or want to, and generally just try to avoid any significant physical or mental breakdowns along the way.

It’s natural (and mathematically convenient) to think about our race goals in terms of a single pace; the minutes per mile pace we hope to average over the length of the course in order to achieve a particular time. This may work fine on the road up to a marathon distance, but unfortunately, this average pace might not be particularly meaningful (apart from the finish time it yields), particularly for those of us who run our ultras in the middle or back of the back. For example, in the Oak Mt 50k Trail Race I ran last March, my average pace over the course was 17:03 per mile (ok, I know I didn't blaze that one, but I got under the 9 hour cutoff) – but I didn’t actually cover much of the course at anything near that pace. I went back and looked at the data broken up by my GPS watch (which died at about 7 hours). I only ran one mile at 17:03! The miles are broken up into 10 points per mile, and in the 250 points in the first 25 miles, 141 points were faster than 17:03 and 109 were slower. When I looked at the one minute zone around my average pace (i.e., 16:03-18:03), I found that only 8 miles fit in that zone – that’s not much more than 33% of the recorded distance.

Looking at the totals for various pace ranges, it becomes even clear(er) that my average race pace might not be particularly useful for structuring my future training because I was usually racing quite a bit faster or slower than that average pace.

If this is how I’m going to run an ultra, why would I try to build my training around that average pace? And if my goal is to run that same race next year and knock 15 or so minutes off my time, and run it at an average pace of 16:30/mile, would it really benefit me to spend more time on my feet at a 16:30 minute pace? The answer, I think, is that becoming more efficient at moving at 16-minute pace probably won’t help me as much as other training would. After all, I probably won’t do much of the race at that pace. If I were to try to maintain a 16:30 pace on the tricky rocky downhill section of the White Trail of the course then I’m going to take a flying header into a tree. And if I cruise the dirt jeep road and easy trail sections at that pace then I’m leaving way too much in reserve. Perhaps on long trail runs, where I’m going to be out for a few hours, I’ll average something that comes close to that goal race pace. But again, I’m likely to be moving faster or slower than that single goal pace during the training run. As with most aspects of life, you just do the best you can...this is where perceived exertion, I think, is the linchpin of trail training. Run hard when you can, run easy when you have to.

Oh heck, this was just a mental exercise to amuse me during my run today. Tell you what, I'm going to go out on the trail, enjoy every aspect about it (except the snakes) and at the end, I'll check my OVERALL pace and see how I did. But you know what? If I'm back at my car, I did good.

I'll see you on the roads or the trails - Al

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world."

The Passing of a Ballplayer, a Friend, a Hero

2014-11-15T18:58:00.000-06:00

"Every player should be afforded the opportunity of at least one season with the Chicago Cubs. That's baseball as it should be played - in God's own sunshine. And that's really living" - Alvin Dark, Ballplayer, friend, hero

Hi guys, remember me? Yes, it's been a while since I've sat down and written in RWA, mainly because there's not a whole heck of a lot going on that I think might hold somebody else's interest for longer than 2 seconds. I'm running fairly well. The fabled ankles, though stiff as cement pylons, haven't been too sore, and with our Alabama trails covered with a thick layer of leaves hiding the roots, rocks, and ruts, ol' Al is pretty thankful for that. And I've had no rants lately and I'm sure the world is breathing easier knowing Al will let it spin smoothly for a while more. I have been writing weekly in my other blog, TRAINING WITH AL, about training for the marathon, mostly directed at those in the Birmingham area training for the Mercedes Marathon, being run on February 22, 2015, so check it out if you're training for a full or half marathon and want some basic guidance getting to that finish line based on my thousand years of successes and failures.

One of the things I do just about each evening when I get home from work, is sit down with my tablet and cold beer (or hot coffee, depending on the temperature) and read briefly through Facebook (I have selectively very few "friends", so don't try) about what my running friends are up to. Also, I'll quickly rifle through a couple a hundred posts on Twitter. Most posts are garbage, but I get a kick out of the few that are funny or point you to interesting sites.

Last Thursday night there was a short post on Twitter (has to less than 140 characters afterall) that read that Alvin Dark had passed away at 92 years old in South Carolina. Alvin Dark was a baseball player of moderate success (was Rookie of the Year in 1948 with the old Boston Braves, and later played with the NY Giants, Cubs, and Phillies. He was an All-Star three times, played in three World Series, and managed 5 teams). Never heard of his passing mentioned on Sports Center or the news, so I was glad I was looking at Twitter that evening. You see, as a child, I knew Alvin Dark personally. My dad was an automobile dealer in New Jersey back in the early 50's and sold a car to Mr. Dark. A friendship ensued and for a few years, Alvin Dark was my hero...I knew a professional ballplayer! When he left the NY/NJ area, we still stayed in touch for several years. And as an adult, I collected all his baseball cards, not because I was a collector, but only to have them. Let me share some of my memories:

-- He gave me my first real baseball glove. I was about 8 years old and it was one of his just discarded pro gloves (he was a shortstop). On the back of the glove was written "#19". I used that glove throughout High School.

-- When I was around 6 years old, my dad took me to my first pro game. It was at the now-demolished Polo Grounds and I remember it so clearly. We walked out of the dark runway under the stands into the bright sunshine and I clearly remember two things: how green the grass was, and the red on the opposing player's uniforms (the Reds or the Cardinals?). Looking back, I realize any ballgames I saw on TV were in Black & White, so this color thing was crazy exciting. We got to wave to Mr. Dark as he warmed up before the game.

-- In 1961, the Giants had moved to San Francisco and Mr. Dark was now their manager. My dad and I drove down to Philadelphia one night to see them play the Phillies and were going to have dinner with him after the game. Unfortunately, the game went 15 innings and ended in a 3-3 tie because it went past midnight. So, sadly, no dinner. But, I did get to meet Orlando Cepeda and Jose Pagan, two SF stars, after the game in the locker room.

-- In 1967, I was going to Jr. College in Miami, which happened to be the Spring Training home of the Baltimore Orioles. Mr. Dark was then managing the Kansas City A's, so when they came to Miami, I went down to see the game. I wasn't sure he would remember me (hadn't seen him since that '61 non-dinner). I snuck down to the rail next to the dugout before the game and called for Mr. Dark to come over. I introduced myself and immediately he smiled and recognized me. Surprised the heck out of me. He leaned up against the rail and talked to me for 20 minutes about my dad and what I was doing. I sure felt like somebody.

That was the last time I saw him...47 years ago! And, though it's been so long, his passing hit me. Obviously brought to the surface many pleasant memories. Maybe it's that next piece of childhood that we have to let go of, or realizing how fast time flies, or just realizing how much of life we have filled up...I dunno. I'm glad I was reading Twitter last Thursday or I might have missed it. Mr. Dark's passing is sad to me, but not knowing...that would have been very sad.

I'll see you on the roads - Al

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world"

Sticks and Stones (and Hills) WILL Hurt Me!!

2014-09-08T20:58:00.000-05:00

"She went past me like I was sitting in my bathtub reading a book" - Anita Ortiz commenting on Darcy Africa passing her at 92k of the 100k Miwok Race

When I was a kid growing up in New Jersey about a hundred years ago, I used to wonder what it would be like to be all grown up. My last post dealt with the craziness of being active daily in those younger days and how I wonder if that helped shape the 67 year old body that I carry around now. Here I am, still wanting to get up early in the morning and shake it up with nature for a while. I feel like Sylvester Stallone or Robert DeNiro in "Grudge Match"...going through the same motions, but in slow motion.

I’m really struggling with my race-goal times these days (This is where we insert the Serenity Prayer, especially the part about “…the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.“) Ah, the wisdom part. It’s so damn intangible. Last Saturday, I ran another of the local Southeastern Trail Series Races. This one was the Ridge to Ridge race and consisted of 21+ miles of hilly, rooty, rocky, trail that gradually (from about a mile into it) eats you up. It has about 3100' of elevation, which if you're reading this in Colorado sounds like a flat single track. The worst part is the Yellow/White connector which is a trail that rises 600' over exactly a mile and has suitcase sized Lower-Appalachian-Trail-hardness rocks that don't give any when you trip into them. You do this loop twice and there is no doubt the second time is a real "let's get that heart rate up to maximum" test. As you know, I don't like to write race reports and I won't write one here. I have read some great race reports, but I just don't have the journalistic talent to make mine sound in any way interesting, at least to anyone but me.

But, the gist of this cloud over me is that I am 67 years old, which is not THAT old, but older than I've ever been. The age doesn't bother me, it's the daggum slowness that accompanies it on the road or trail. It's the declining balance that usually makes itself known as I'm trying to navigate a stream by stepping on the well-placed (for anybody else) rocks. Near the end of a long race, you know, that point where you're close enough to realize you might finish this god-forsaken test, but not close enough to say Yahoo yet...actually, I usually don't say yahoo until I'm directly under the finish banner...actually, there is no Yahoo, it's just a very slight pumping my fist into the air about the height of my chest, I feel like I'm nine million years old. I’m past-dead. A Coke will usually re-ignite the spark of life, but I am spent. A happy, proud spent, but spent none-the-less. And MUCH more spent than the runner in my head should be.

I’ve been running marathons since 1979 and Ultras since 1981 with a somewhat varying degree of self-competitive success this entire time. In the first 20 years or so, I put in some pretty good times, was competitive with the general group of runners around the same age, and hit some peaks that I'm rather proud of. Running was fun. Running faster and farther was funner. In my mind, the party was just starting. But dang, who’s the jerk that invited Father Time? In the early 2000's, I began to have some ankle pains that began to limit my performances. I realized that as I grew older, there was, of course, a birthday-candle-to-race-performance ratio that was not going in my favor, but this ankle thing was a wildcard that was dealt. I watched my times go off the Continental Shelf but I kept at it because I just didn't want to let go. I'm a PT, did my exercises, got orthotics, wore all kinds of supports, but when you pound down 3-4 times your body weight on your ankles EVERY step, it just doesn't give it a very good chance to improve if you keep trying to run long distances. So, I eased up for a couple of years, ran VERY slow and cut down the training mileage a heap. Gradually, very gradually, the ankles got better, not great, but better. They still stiffen up after sitting a while, stairs are a test in mental tenacity, and there is a loss of range of motion that doesn't allow me to jump higher than a cup or further than foot or two. If I see a snake on the trail, I can't jump out of the way, so I just scream like a little girl and hope the snake laughs itself to death. A few years ago, I re-entered the Ultra world and have been testing the the limits since.

Two things are incredibly different. First, any speed is non-existent. My morning "training runs" are like a caboose going uphill without an engine. If I try to drop my speed to faster than a trot, my ankles are shot the rest of the day, and a limping Physical Therapist doesn't lend itself to instilling much confidence in your patient that you're going to get them better. And secondly, my endurance has taken a huge tumble. Oh, I can run-trot-walk for several hours during a race (did it for 7 hours Saturday), but the little energy-producing mitochondria in my muscles are screaming the whole way. I can pump them with Gu's and Coke and electrolytes, but they are just a bunch of flat piss-poor inefficient energy producers. Every race, I finish last or pretty doggone close to it. So many candles on the running cake these days means it–or I–could blow up and/or fizzle out any moment now. When IS the ‘expiration date' on my running?

Here comes the intangible part: at what age do you go, “Yeah, I’m gettin’ kinda’ old… could I really meet my goals, or should I re-think them? Can I think more positively and self-talk my way into turning this around, or is the door closing?”. I mean, I don’t have "verygross" veins (well, ok, I do in ONE leg), I don’t have cataracts and I can still touch my knees! Of course, there is the morning show of getting out of bed and stiff leg it to the bathroom before you get dressed for your morning run. How many mornings have I said to myself "Oh yeah sure, you're gonna run for an hour and you can't even get your leg high enough to put your shorts on!".

After how many merry-go-rounds on this planet do you logically accept REAL slow race and training times? Is there a formula? Do you factor in ‘X’ number of sucky runs plus ‘Y’ number of missed goals plus a few bad falls and five or more niggling ouchies and divide it by 12 or something?

In the ultra world, we are hardwired to ignore any physical or mental glitches that might for a zillionth of a moment bring us down. Our culture emphasizes that we "suck-it-up-buttercup" (favorite quote of my buddy, Eric) and re-frame any bummer thought. We are trained to visualize any deterrent to our plans before they happen so we can deal with it. It’s mental leprosy to start allowing doubtful thoughts to crack one’s rock-solid confidence veneer. I train to perform at and to reach my genetic potential. You can’t get any better than that, correct? At some point, inevitably those DNA strands start unraveling and turning to slush. You can’t will or Pollyanna positive-think or train harder to outrun that process, literally. It sucks, but you’re just not going to run as well at 70 as you did at 50. I am guessing that it has something to do with cellular regeneration beginning to lag far behind cellular destruction, and probably a hormonal shift that makes your muscles shrivel. Or something like that. When your DNA starts to go haywire, it ends your heyday. Or maybe the running fairies go, “Time’s up little guy.”

This post went down a darker road than I wanted it to. I'm not moping around because of my run performances. Oh, I ain't happy about it either. But hey, give me the choice of speed on the roads or sluggishness on the trails, and I say bring on the dirt. I like to run long. I like to run on trails. I DON'T like to run extremely slow. I DON'T like to make race officials wait for me (though they never seem to give it a second thought). I'll keep setting goals, but those goals are less specific, like "Let's see if I can finish this run before my watch battery dies". I can still run and I am always thankful for that. I keep telling myself to run in the moment, not in the memories of the past. Much of the time it sinks in...sometimes, not so much. But, as always, I'll continue to see you on the roads and trails - AL

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world"

Young Self, You Made a Monster

2014-08-13T08:08:00.002-05:00

Al's note: I have been having trouble sending RWA to those of you that subscribe by email, so I'm trying some tricks using paperclips and gum and see if that works. I apologize if you get this post twice - Al D.

"Where'd all the days go, when all we did was play? And the stress that we were under wasn't stress at all, just run and jump into a harmless fall" - Paolo Nutini

One day recently while having one of my solo run-arounds, my mind, as it usually does, started to wander. Here I am, a runner for 35 years and numerous marathons and ultramarathons, a runner who still likes to just get out there in the rain, heat, cold (ok, not so much the cold), and all kinds of conditions just to get in my fix. I was wondering on this run, how did I get in this way? I don't mean how did I start running, but what formed me to want to live part of my life outside, running up and down hills, on the roads, on the trail, sometimes for hours at a time.

Have you ever wondered about how the experiences you have as a child form what type of adult you become? Me neither, until this run where it just popped into my noggin. As I grow older, I begin to sound and act just like the stereotypical grandfather...I don't mean complaining about everything in site and passing gas all the time, but having some strong opinions about the world that surrounds me. I keep having the thought that the youth of today is going to hell in a wheelbarrow. I know it's not true, or even 50% true, but for goodness sake, so many kids today are so reluctant to get off their butts to do something physical. On top of that, we live in a world that protects kids from doing anything dangerous or allowing them to get themselves into situations that they have to figure out how to get out of. They can't play with anything sharper than a ping-pong ball or anything smaller than their foot!

What I remember of my young childhood, or what I perceive I remember, was playing all the time outside. In the summer, or on Saturdays, I would go out early in the morning, meet friends, and "mess around" all day until it was time to get home for dinner. Some days, we would play baseball, football, or soccer, but most days were spent playing games we made up as we went along. Games that would begin as tag would evolve into some form of tackling each other until you got your friend in a hold that he couldn't escape. Bike riding would become this mad dash down a hill on a road until you made a hard right into the woods at full speed and see how far you could get before you smacked into a tree. The further you got, the more adoration you got from your friends. I can recall jumping off this 100 foot cliff (probably 20-30 ft) onto the soft dirt below. The object was to see who could jump the furthest from the point at the top of the cliff you took off from. Probably explains a lot about the ankle problems I have today - can't even jump a log on the trail. And races...we always had races - bike races, running races, tree climbing races. No rules, just "I'll race you to the ____". Of course, this usually began when you were already running someplace, so the guy who called the race usually got a head start, which was ok because things always evened out and you got left in the dust just as many times as you were the first to kick up the dust.

So, how does this tie into my running self? Does the type of play you have as a youngster smolder until one day it becomes the type of play you have as a full-fledged grownup? I'm 67 years old and my play is to lace up my shoes and go for a run for a couple of hours down the road or through the woods. Sometimes I run down a singletrack and smack into a tree. Sometimes I jump over streams to see if I can get to the other side dry. Sometimes I "race" myself or my fellow runner, though you'd be hard pressed to actually say I was racing. If I didn't play as a child, would I be playing now? If it wasn't fun then, where would I be now? What kind of future are today's kids being pigeon-holed into with more video games, more social media relationships, more homework, and year-round organized sports. Oh, I know these kids will turn out fine. They'll learn that sharp things cut and hot things burn. My world was different from my child's world, and his is different from his child's. But, don't you think that so many aspects of your childhood mold your adult self? I do, and I think one of the biggest reasons running and me have this bond now is because we had this bond a long, long time ago. Yeah, it was different. Yeah, it was the same.

Maybe I shouldn't write RWA sitting on my deck on a hot summer day with a good, cold beer by my side, but this idea spawned in my head on a run, not from the heat or the beer. I've said many times in these blogs that running is a part of me. I used to think it was because I had nurtured it in all these years that I have been running, sorta like a good habit. But, now I think that fire was sparked many years ago when I was running a block, not a mile. Jumping over a cliff and not a log. Running with friends and...well, thank goodness, I'm still doing that.

I'll see you on the roads and trails - AL

"One child lost is too many. One child saved can change the world"

Young Self, You Made a Monster

2014-08-10T19:01:00.001-05:00

"Where'd all the days go, when all we did was play? And the stress that we were under wasn't stress at all, just run and jump into a harmless fall" - Paolo Nutini
One day recently while having one of my solo run-arounds, my mind, as it usually does, started to wander. Here I am, a runner for 35 years and numerous marathons and ultramarathons, a runner who still likes to just get out there in the rain, heat, cold (ok, not so much the cold), and all kinds of conditions just to get in my fix. I was wondering on this run, how did I get in this way? I don't mean how did I start running, but what formed me to want to live part of my life outside, running up and down hills, on the roads, on the trail, sometimes for hours at a time.

Have you ever wondered about how the experiences you have as a child form what type of adult you become? Me neither, until this run where it just popped into my noggin. As I grow older, I begin to sound and act just like the stereotypical grandfather...I don't mean complaining about everything in site and passing gas all the time, but having some strong opinions about the world that surrounds me. I keep having the thought that the youth of today is going to hell in a wheelbarrow. I know it's not true, or even 50% true, but for goodness sake, so many kids today are so reluctant to get off their butts to do something physical. On top of that, we live in a world that protects kids from doing anything dangerous or allowing them to get themselves into situations that they have to figure out how to get out of. They can't play with anything sharper than a ping-pong ball or anything smaller than their foot!

What I remember of my young childhood, or what I perceive I remember, was playing all the time outside. In the summer, or on Saturdays, I would go out early in the morning, meet friends, and "mess around" all day until it was time to get home for dinner. Some days, we would play baseball, football, or soccer, but most days were spent playing games we made up as we went along. Games that would begin as tag would evolve into some form of tackling each other until you got your friend in a hold that he couldn't escape. Bike riding would become this mad dash down a hill on a road until you made a hard right into the woods at full speed and see how far you could get before you smacked into a tree. The further you got, the more adoration you got from your friends. I can recall jumping off this 100 foot cliff (probably 20-30 ft) onto the soft dirt below. The object was to see who could jump the furthest from the point at the top of the cliff you took off from. Probably explains a lot about the ankle problems I have today - can't even jump a log on the trail. And races...we always had races - bike races, running races, tree climbing races. No rules, just "I'll race you to the ____". Of course, this usually began when you were already running someplace, so the guy who called the race usually got a head start, which was ok because things always evened out and you got left in the dust just as many times as you were the first to kick up the dust.

So, how does this tie into my running self? Does the type of play you have as a youngster smolder until one day it becomes the type of play you have as a full-fledged grownup? I'm 67 years old and my play is to lace up my shoes and go for a run for a couple of hours down the road or through the woods. Sometimes I run down a singletrack and smack into a tree. Sometimes I jump over streams to see if I can get to the other side dry. Sometimes I "race" myself or my fellow runner, though you'd be hard pressed to actually say I was racing. If I didn't play as a child, would I be playing now? If it wasn't fun then, where would I be now? What kind of future are today's kids being pigeon-holed into with more video games, more social media relationships, more homework, and year-round organized sports. Oh, I know these kids will turn out fine. They'll learn that sharp things cut and hot things burn. My world was different from my child's world, and his is different from his child's. But, don't you think that so many aspects of your childhood mold your adult self? I do, and I think one of the biggest reasons running and me have this bond now is because we had this bond a long, long time ago. Yeah, it was different. Yeah, it was the same.

Maybe I shouldn't write RWA sitting on my deck on a hot summer day with a good, cold beer by my side, but this idea spawned in my head on a run, not from the heat or the beer. I've said many times in these blogs that running is a part of me. I used to think it was because I had nurtured it in all these years that I have been running, sorta like a good habit. But, now I think that fire was sparked many years ago when I was running a block, not a mile. Jumping over a cliff and not a log. Running with friends and...well, thank goodness, I'm still doing that.

I'll see you on the roads and trails - AL

"One child lost is too many. One child saved can change the world"

Me and The 10,000 Hour Rule

2014-07-19T22:03:00.000-05:00

"At first people will ask why you're doing it, but eventually after the hard work pays off, they will ask how you did it..." - Steve Prefontaine

While looking at some of my ~~awesome~~ ~~adequate~~ pitiful statistics on Strava, I wondered how much of this is really meaningful. Except for those extremely frustrating occasions when my Nike+ Sportswatch doesn't makes friends with my personal running satellite, I download my runs to Strava (I hate the Nike Website). Strava will track all types of numbers that have to do with your run, and probably none of it has helped me become a better runner at all, but sometimes it's fun to look at.

Years ago, I used to be almost obsessed with getting in the miles, so that's what I would look at most. Could I get in my arbitrary weekly/monthly quota? Several years, I ran over 3000 miles, averaging better than 50 miles a week. Holy cow! That's a bunch. My all-time weekly high was 108 miles. Nearly killed me...did it in July...in Alabama...running to and from work from my home to downtown...over two significant mile-long hills each way. Yeah, did that once!

Now, when I download my runs, I still look at miles, but mostly as an interesting curiosity. I only run 4, or occasionally 5, days a week. I average about half of those "glory day" mile totals. These days, I like to look at elevation gain because I run about half my miles on trails over hill and dale and because I have no idea how to measure dales, I keep track of the hills. When I struggle through a Sunday run on roads with my non-trail running friends, I usually mention that I ran trails yesterday - "How far did you go?" - "Well, it was only 12 miles, but it had 2500 ft of elevation". Deaf ears...means nothing...may as well have told them it was 25,000 feet. But, I follow it. I know several thousand feet climbing will knock me on my can the next day! The time that used to get me 20 miles on the road barely gets me 10 miles on the trail now, but I usually don't keep close track of how the hours pile up.

In Malcolm Gladwell's book, Outliers, he repeatedly mentions the "10,000-Hour Rule", claiming that the key to success in ANY field is, to a large extent, a matter of practicing a specific task for a total of around 10,000 hours. This ~~nonsense~~ controversial idea has been pretty much disproven, but seeing that he is one of my favorite authors, the premise has stuck in my mind. So, as usual during my solo trail runs, like this morning, I got to thinking. I began to wonder exactly how much time I spend running. Do I really spend that much time preparing for the "events" I choose to do? I know I get up early in the morning for just about all of my runs and I feel like that's pretty doggone dedicated to do that, but how does my training fit into Gladwell's "flat-earth" theory?

So, I consulted Professor Strava. Last year I ran 1370 miles in 303 hours. In 2012, I did 1424 miles in 290 hours (sigh! I know, slower!). So, in 2 full years, that's 2794 miles in 593 hours. I'll save you the trouble...it's 12:42 min/mi - hey, those hilly trails slow me down!!! Now, looking at elevation gain, in the past 18 months, I've climbed over 119,000 feet...That's over 4 times from sea level to the tip of the summit of Mt Everest! Still, even with the elevation excuse of slowing me down and adding to the "hours" spent running, the 300 hours per year average is not really that much of a dent in the 10,000 hour rule, is it?

I began running obsessively regularly in 1978 and have since run over 80,000 miles. Now, I was faster "back-in-the-day", so why don't we say the 36 years all averages to about 9:30/mi. Let's see, applying my New Jersey education, 9.5 x 80,000 = 760,000 minutes divided by 60 = 12,666 hours!! Obviously, this is well and above Gladwell's threshold for excellence! So, why am I so damn slow and always finish in the buttend of races? Yeah, yeah, age...blah, blah, blah. Ankles from hell...blah, blah, blah.

So, while I plodded around Oak Mt, I realized that the 10,000 Hour Rule doesn't just require lacing up your Hokas and moseying down the trail or road. Learning how to improve any skill requires top-down (brain-feet) focus. We have to strengthen the old brain circuits and build new ones for a skill to become sharpened and improve our outcome. It requires paying attention. When practice occurs while we are looking at the scenery or talking to our friends about that & this, the brain does not rewire the relevant circuitry for that particular routine, in this case, running up the Yellow/White connector. So, what happens is that each time I hit that Y/W connector, I huff and puff, stop and take deep breaths, slowly step over the boulders, and generally don't practice attacking the weak parts of my running. Daydreaming defeats practice. Complacency defeats practice. And yes, things like age and ankles defeats practice. But, paying full attention is what we have to do for everything to sharpen us into that "success" that Gladwell proposes in his 10 Grand Rule, not just simply putting in the time.

So, although I've worn down hundreds of pairs of shoes past the magic 10,000 hours, what Strava doesn't tell me is how many hours were actually spent focusing on those skills in order to get the most out of the vehicle I carry around. Oh, I wish I could run the hills just a little better, but you know, my mind was wondering on the trails this morning because it was warm, it was raining, it was quiet...yeah, that's fine with me. Do I really want to make work out of it? Nah. Maybe in the formative years, that's fun, but not now. Maybe I didn't use all those hours to it's utmost to achieve "success", but I did OK. For now, as Popeye said, "I yam what I yam".

I'll see you all on the roads and trails - AL

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world"

Jabbering On The Trails

2014-07-14T13:50:00.000-05:00

Today, while running with Moha on the roads, Ken joined us in the middle of his 2nd 20+ miler of the week. Ken's one of these runners that just runs until he's tired and then checks his watch to see how far he's gone. Anyway, me and Moha were bantering back & forth and Ken said "Is this how it goes on for hours on the trail?". Well Ken, yes it does. Here's just some short snipets of the many conversations we had huffing and puffing and hammering up and down the hills yesterday:

Moha: We didn't go up this hill last week, did we?

Me: Yes we did.

Moha: I must've been in better shape last week.

Talking about James Durant, a local runner. I was mentioning that he's a very good runner -

Me: You know, he's a year older than me (68) and he'll finish the Hotter 'n' Hell race an hour faster than us.

Moha: Yeah, but he doesn't have your bad ankles or my big belly.

Both of us love soccer and Moha was trying to convince me that soccer is really catching on here in the states - 

Me: You're full of baloney Mo. Soccer will never catch on. Folks won't support it here. 

Moha: Oh, it's very popular. People in Atlanta support their team a lot.

Me: They don't even have a team in Atlanta, except maybe a women's team.

Moha: Yes they do. I remember seeing them when I lived there in 19...

Me: STOP right there. You're argument just fell apart. 19?? was at least 15 years ago.

Moha: Well, IF they had a team, they would support it

Standing under Peavine Falls, which is no more than a low-pressure-garden-hose trickle due to the lack of rain -

Moha: Can you drink that water?

Me: Yes, you CAN drink that water. How much toilet paper did you bring?

Coming out of the trail and onto road for maybe 20 yards to hit the Green/Yellow connector trail, we encountered the transition area of the popular Buster Britton Triathlon going on -

Moha: Now I have to suck in my gut

Me: Yeah, like that's gonna happen!

Just recently got my new Hoka Bondi 3's after 4 pairs of Bondi 2's -

Me: I don't like them as much. The tongue is not padded, the loop on the heel is too small to fit your finger(s) to pull the shoe on, the cushioning doesn't feel as soft, and they just seem more cheaply made.

Moha: Anybody else complain?

Me: Well, I went on line, but I couldn't find anybody else complaining.

Moha: So, shut the hell up!

Moha was recalling the recent Peavine Falls race on July 4th, an 8.2 mile race, 90% on road, last 10% on a twisty trail-

Moha: I came out of the trail and there was this guy just ahead of me. So, I ran as hard as I could and passed him. I was feeling good and then the son of a b*t*h passed me right at the end. Should have beat him.

Me: But you didn't

Moha: Nope.

Me: So, shut the hell up!

Just as we're finishing up our run, we come on the road to the parking lot and I noticed the gate to the Peavine Road is locked -

Me: Why is the gate locked?

Moha: I don't know. Why do you think it's locked?

Me: I just asked you because I didn't know

Moha: Do you think it's locked to keep cars from going on the road?

Me: Um, I would guess that's the point.

Moha: I wonder why they would lock it.

Me: Geez!!

Near the end of the run, coming down the Tree Top Trail -

Moha: How much more to go?

Me: A little over a mile

Moha: We're there, brother!

Me: Yep, we're there.

Moha: If we're there, why do we have to keep running?

Me: Excellent point. Keep running

And that's a piece of how I fill up two and half hours of running with Mo. Runs like this weekend I feel like an ice cube melting in a coffee pot, but laughter will get you to keep moving forward. So, yes Ken, this IS how it goes for hours on the trail when I run with Moha. Now, if I can just get these dang legs moving a little better. Next week....yeah, that's it...next week.

I'll see you all on the trails and roads - Al

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world."

Jabbering On The Trails

2014-07-13T19:45:00.000-05:00

"A long run is easy until it gets hard" - unknown, but well known to experienced endurance athletes

Man, it is hot out there. There being Birmingham, Alabama...in July...where it's supposed to be hot. I used to relish running in the heat, but as I get as old as Methuselah, the heat melts me down pretty quickly. Actually, yesterday, I ran better on the very hilly trails of Oak Mountain than I did this morning on the flat roads of Homewood. I was a wilted cowboy when this one was done. I'll never be ready for winter, but I won't argue with a little cooler weather.

Today, while running with Moha on the roads, Ken joined us in the middle of his 2nd 20+ miler of the week. Ken's one of these runners that just runs until he's tired and then checks his watch to see how far he's gone. Anyway, me and Moha were bantering back & forth and Ken said "Is this how it goes on for hours on the trail?". Well Ken, yes it does. Here's just some short snipets of the many conversations we had huffing and puffing and hammering up and down the hills yesterday:

Moha: We didn't go up this hill last week, did we?
Me: Yes we did.
Moha: I must've been in better shape last week.

Talking about James Durant, a local runner. I was mentioning that he's a very good runner -
Me: You know, he's a year older than me (68) and he'll finish the Hotter 'n' Hell race an hour faster than us.
Moha: Yeah, but he doesn't have your bad ankles or my big belly.

Both of us love soccer and Moha was trying to convince me that soccer is really catching on here in the states -
Me: You're full of baloney Mo. Soccer will never catch on. Folks won't support it here.
Moha: Oh, it's very popular. People in Atlanta support their team a lot.
Me: They don't even have a team in Atlanta, except maybe a women's team.
Moha: Yes they do. I remember seeing them when I lived there in 19...
Me: STOP right there. You're argument just fell apart. 19?? was at least 15 years ago.
Moha: Well, IF they had a team, they would support it

Standing under Peavine Falls, which is no more than a low-pressure-garden-hose trickle due to the lack of rain -
Moha: Can you drink that water?
Me: Yes, you CAN drink that water. How much toilet paper did you bring?

Coming out of the trail and onto road for maybe 20 yards to hit the Green/Yellow connector trail, we encountered the transition area of the popular Buster Britton Triathlon going on -
Moha: Now I have to suck in my gut
Me: Yeah, like that's gonna happen!

Just recently got my new Hoka Bondi 3's after 4 pairs of Bondi 2's -
Me: I don't like them as much. The tongue is not padded, the loop on the heel is too small to fit your finger(s) to pull the shoe on, the cushioning doesn't feel as soft, and they just seem more cheaply made.
Moha: Anybody else complain?
Me: Well, I went on line, but I couldn't find anybody else complaining.
Moha: So, shut the hell up!

Moha was recalling the recent Peavine Falls race on July 4th, an 8.2 mile race, 90% on road, last 10% on a twisty trail-
Moha: I came out of the trail and there was this guy just ahead of me. So, I ran as hard as I could and passed him. I was feeling good and then the son of a b*t*h passed me right at the end. Should have beat him.
Me: But you didn't
Moha: Nope.
Me: So, shut the hell up!

Just as we're finishing up our run, we come on the road to the parking lot and I noticed the gate to the Peavine Road is locked -
Me: Why is the gate locked?
Moha: I don't know. Why do you think it's locked?
Me: I just asked you because I didn't know
Moha: Do you think it's locked to keep cars from going on the road?
Me: Um, I would guess that's the point.
Moha: I wonder why they would lock it.
Me: Geez!!

Near the end of the run, coming down the Tree Top Trail -
Moha: How much more to go?
Me: A little over a mile
Moha: We're there, brother!
Me: Yep, we're there.
Moha: If we're there, why do we have to keep running?
Me: Excellent point. Keep running

And that's a piece of how I fill up two and half hours of running with Mo. Runs like this weekend I feel like an ice cube melting in a coffee pot, but laughter will get you to keep moving forward. So, yes Ken, this IS how it goes for hours on the trail when I run with Moha. Now, if I can just get these dang legs moving a little better. Next week....yeah, that's it...next week.

I'll see you all on the trails and roads - Al

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world."

Karma on the Trail

2014-07-07T11:55:00.001-05:00

"Youth ages, immaturity is outgrown, ignorance can be educated, and drunkenness sobered, but stupid lasts forever" - Aristophanes, Greek Playright

So, this past weekend, me & Moha ran the Oak Mountain Hotter 'n' Hell course AGAIN, trying to get comfortable with the constant ups and downs of going over Johnson Mountain, up the one mile BUMP Trail, down into the Peavine Gorge, climbing out of said gorge, soon climbing up the 20+% grade of the white/green connector, dumping out onto the rocky Green Trail downhill, and finally trudging back the final 1-2 miles to the beginning. And that's loop ONE! Ok, the total 2 loops is only 18 miles (David Tosch "miles"), but there is no way you are crazy about doing loop #2 after winding up at the aid station/finish line after loop #1. But, in three weeks, I plan to do it, as I did last year. I'm getting older and definitely slower, but it does please me that I continue to get out on these trails and try to push all the juice out of the lemon.

But, in addition to getting slower, I seem to be getting more cranky. Now, granted this was the July 4th weekend, and I'm sure that there were a lot of "cityfolk" on the trail over the holiday that thought it would be a good idea to go see Peavine Falls. Ha, that's a good one! First of all, it's a pretty strenuous trek to get to the falls and I'm sure there were many well-meaning "hikers" that reversed course halfway up, and another group that literaly cried when they got to their destination, because due to the lack of rain around these parts, Peavine Falls has been reduced to no more than a very small trickle. Now, for any trail runner climbing down the gorge, this was still a welcome site because the water is ice cold...OH YES!!! The hell with Giardia, I'm dousing myself with this stuff!

OK, so what do I have to be cranky about? It was the disgraceful amount of trash littering the trails. Every week, I'll pick up a few Gu or candy wrappers, or Honey Stinger/Powerbar wrappers (which I know can only be bikers...no self respecting trailrunner can down a Powerbar on a run!). But, this week was crazy. By the time I got to the Treetop Nature Center 8 miles into the run (the 1st trashcan), I had my pockets and waterbelt stuffed with 4 waterbottles, including a 32oz Gatorade bottle, wrappers of all types, plus a large Potato Chip bag! Moha had his pockets equally filled too. I know it wasn't the bikers, because we weren't on the Red (bike) Trail TOO much. And it wasn't trash from the Peavine Falls Run July 4th, because that's 90% on road. And I doubt it's from any trailrunner, because we do respect the trails. Under no circumstances are you allowed to litter. Period. You carry it in, you carry it out. We all know this. In a race, the items you take from an aid station are fine to take on the trail with you, but you keep your garbage with you until you see the next trash can. There is a zero tolerance policy here. Littering is unacceptable. As this sport grows, this is one sure way to ensure races get cancelled by state parks. But, I guess all we can do is police ourselves.

I am amazed by the growth of trail running lately (especially thanks to BUTS in the Birmingham area). We have many new runners joining our races that have never run trails before. In October, the SouthEastern Trail Series will have another free race for Birmingham Track Club members. Last year, it was incredible how many showed up. And they all loved it, despite David Tosch's attempt to discourage them with his usual up-the-mountain/down-the-mountain course. Those of us that have been doing this for a while must serve as a mentor to new trail runners. New trail runners may not know the rules. Tattoos are not a rule...facial hair is not a rule! But, trail running is a different culture than road running. In road running you’re not expected to carry your own water bottle. It’s ok to throw your cups on the ground during a race. In some cases, new trail runners may not know the rules of the trail. It’s our job to coach and mentor.

Birmingham has great trail systems all over the area. It really pained me to see the trash on the trails this weekend. We are fortunate to be able to run in great places. But as this sport grows, each and every one of us has a responsibility to leave only footprints.

As I get older and slower (and more cranky), I keep telling myself that I have to look for all angles to keep myself going. TAKE CARE OF THE TRAILS AND THE TRAIL WILL TAKE CARE OF YOU.

I'll see you on the roads and trails - AL

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world"

My Running and Blogging...Like Google Search, It's Loading Slow!

2014-06-07T17:47:00.000-05:00

"There's no such thing as writer's block for writers whose standards are low enough" - W. Stafford, writer

This morning, on an incredibly humid morning in Birmingham, Alabama, me and my buddy, Moha, went out to Red Mountain and had a very pleasant run for a couple of hours on the trail. No falls. No snakes. Lots of laughs. We met some trail runners we had never met. And, I discovered a new favorite Gu flavor...Chocolate Peanut Butter!!! Yes, even better than plain, old Peanut Butter.

Now, wasn't that interesting? Of course not. One great thing about blogging about running is that you always feel there is something new to say. There's definitely a symbiotic relationship between my workouts and my posts. One inspires the other. And, I have a bunch of thoughts rattling around in my head that I'm sure you're just itching to hear. But hold on a second...maybe you're not itching to hear these rattling thoughts after all. How interested are you in what I think? You have to admit that it's a leap of faith I take every week or so that what I put down will actually hold your interest longer than it takes you to find and hit the Delete button. There is NOT always something new or interesting to say. Every blogger likes to to think he has the hook in every reader that has read his or her mental meandering, but the fact is that that intellectual thunderbolt is not always there for the blogger and boom!...you've lost your readership.

This blog started as way to capture my singular experience as I ran over 3 decades up hill and dale from here to there. Marathons and ultramarathons. Roads and trails. From my young self to my current older self. I didn't want it to be simply a chronicle of my training and racing, but rather a reflection of how running changed my life, how my views of running had changed, and most importantly, how these scattered thoughts might relate to you. Many times I write "It might just be me, but..." and then I get a ton of comments saying, "No, it's me too!". That is always comforting. But, you know, I haven't got a ton of comments yet saying "Yeah, my trail pace has become slower than a slow boat to China too", I'm sure you'll let me know it can't be just me.

Seriously, by shear stats, and word of mouth from my very kind friends and family, I've discovered that many other people relate to the site. I recently checked my traffic and saw that Running With Al has had almost 40,000 page views since I began posting four years ago. It's awfully hard for me to believe that I have 262 subscribers that get RWA delivered to their already crammed mailboxes every week or so. I have readers in all 50 of the United States, and most astoundingly to me, I've had readers in 89 countries. I understand there are about 204 countries in the world, so I guess I have to send a few cold posts to folks in those countries to boost my stats. Yes, I know 90% of these readers don't say "Oh yey, another RWA has arrived" and devour it word for word. Sadly, most readers probably hit that handy Delete button before even opening it, but for those that do read it, I honestly thank you. And just a word that I'm sure is universal...all bloggers are voracious for comments, so please don't hold it in. Let me know what you're thinking. How else do I know you're reading?

Obviously, this week is what is commonly called a blank slate as far as an interesting subject is concerned. Hey, this happens in running and blogging. I love to do both, but each effort is different. Like the song, "Somedays are diamonds, somedays are stone". Thanks for reading.

I'll see you all on the roads and trails - AL

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world"

Running...What's It To Ya?

2014-05-27T20:51:00.000-05:00

"You're in pretty good shape for the shape you're in!" - Dr. Seuss

This past weekend, I "celebrated" my birthday and as a birthday present to myself, I ran a tough 12 mile trail race that will literally suck the air out of your brain. Actually, it has nothing to do with a birthday present, it's just that the race was scheduled the day before my birthday, so I figured I'd close the old year with a bang. Running that race, and the other solo runs of the Holiday weekend put me in a reflective state--thinking about my life, what's important, where I came from, where I am and where I'm going. That's what having another birthday does! I mean, c'mon, this was the 67th anniversary of me coming into this crazy world. From the moment I was born, I guess the majority of my plans have taken a right or left turn from their intended destination. Oh, not a hard, 90 degree turn most of the time, but rather a wide turn like a giant steamship trying to avoid the iceberg up ahead. Oh, there was nothing deep about my reflectiveness...nothing with a large meaning, but just
drifting.

After running for over 3 decades, I think often about where running has brought me. It's about far more than lacing up the shoes and putting one foot in front of the other in pursuit of my own goals. Running has helped make me who I am. Running is not me, but it is definitely a major part of me. I've said often in this blog that running (or whatever your interests are) can't help but define your very nature. Running brings peace amid the occasional chaos of life. I remember when I worked in a clinic that allowed me to run at lunch, how much I looked forward to that escape. When I'm out the door, problems can disappear, even if only for an hour or so, and I return with a new sense of calm and better perspective.

Running provides quiet times of reflection. Life often gets so busy that simple reflection takes a conscious effort. When I run, I have time to reflect. I often think about my dad. He never saw me run and passed away in 1982, one year after I did my first ultramarathon. As the years pass, he gets bigger in my mind, and thankfully, those memories stay crisp. I think of him often because I want to think of him often and running on a smooth single track trail provides the perfect opportunity for me to do just that.

Running provides friendship. Most of my closest friends today are fellow runners who I see every Saturday and/or Sunday. But it's more than that. Like any runner, I can go to any race and even if I don't know anyone there, I'm still surrounded by friends. I meet folks that I've jabbered with on Facebook, but never officially met "in life". I'll introduce myself to folks more often than not with "I'm sorry, but I don't remember your name". At least these days I can blame it on age! We all share the many threads that make up our running selves.

Running has allowed me to figure out what I'm made of. Whether at mile 20 of a marathon, mile 35 of a 50 miler or mile 80 of a 100-miler, I always learn at these critical junctures in a race what's deep inside of me and will it keep me going forward. Oh, it's not an instant revelation of "So, this is what I'm all about", but rather one that hits you sometime long after the race has finished. You think about those dark moments in the run when the thoughts of quitting really didn't sound that bad, but something said "Ha, that's a good one" and on you pushed. One's character often comes out in times of great stress and suffering. And I've come to realize that, amid my flaws, I must have a strong character and the courage to endure because as much as I usually want to, I will hardly ever FULLY pack it in. But man, I sure can whine a lot during a race (just ask Moha).

Running allows me to plan my day. My early-morning run before the sun rises takes off the edge, making me just tired enough to focus on what's in front of me. My job as a Physical Therapist is not necessarily hard, but trying to convince some of these folks to exercise when they have no more desire to exercise than the Man in the Moon can be taxing, especially to somebody like me who loves to sweat! On the mornings I run, I can approach my patient load with a "Get-through-them-one-at-a time" attitude.

Running brings emotion. Not the wide swing of emotions, but the ones that catch you by surprise. Running doesn't usually make me sob, although some of my runs have been pretty sad, but I remember when I finished my first Boston Marathon in 1995, I had a very unexpected, but controlled rush of happy tears. It just meant a lot. It was a different scene when I crossed the finish line at the Pikes Peak Marathon...instant uncontrolled sobbing. Not sure if it was just a release of emotions from finishing the toughest race I can remember being in, or if I was just relieved to get off the damn mountain before the thunderstorm got me. Another emotion is just one big "WOW". This happens every time I come to the top of a trail ridge where you can see what seems like forever. We have one such place here at Oak Mt called King's Chair. If you're blessed enough to make it to the top of the Blue Trail, you can literally see for 40 miles across the valley. If you don't say WOW to that, your heart is harder than the stone that King's Chair is made of!

Running brings out my competitiveness. I know, I'm 67 years old, and I pretty much finish last or daggum close to it in every race. I'm not racing anybody, but I get out there and think I'm moving along pretty good and although it might be pushing times I could clock with a sundial, I am running with (not against) my younger self. In the race I did Saturday, climbing up the 15-20%, one-mile long, White Trail (twice) is a killer. Back in the Day (God, I hate that term), I could run up at least part of it. Saturday, I looked like those newsreels of climbers taking their last steps before the conquering of Everest. But, I wasn't trying to conquer the trail this time. I was competitive to the point that if the mountain gave me anything, I would take it and give a big Thank You back.

So I run knowing running makes me a better person, at least to myself. Those of us who have such a pursuit--be it painting, cooking, building model airplanes, etc.--I guess we're the lucky ones. We have an inner call that has to be answered. I don't want to make it more than it is, but to many of us, it is more than lacing up our shoes.

I'll see you all on the roads and trails - AL

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world"

Doing It By Memory

2014-05-11T21:09:00.000-05:00

"Sometimes distance running is as effortless as floating. Other times it's like giving birth" - Katie Arnold, ultrarunner

Surprisingly, mostly to myself, I managed to run another ultra a week ago, completing the Run For Kids 50k at Oak Mt. I meant to post this at least 5-6 days ago, but I was mired in a much too unfamiliar bout with bronchitis. More on that later. Ok, back to this 50k thing. Now, don't get me wrong, I wasn't blazing it and my only goal was to finish the daggum thing in fairly good shape. The RFK50 is run on what I affectionately call the "Sissy Trail". Oak Mt can have some significant long mother climbs that seem to go on forever at about a 15% grade, but this 3.3 mile loop has about 90' of elevation each loop. Just some constant PUDS (Pointless Ups & Downs). On those tougher runs with those long mother hills, the walking sections are pretty much determined for you..."I've got to walk this hill"..."I've got to walk. There's a hill coming up"..."I see a hill way out there. Think I'll walk now". But, on the Sissy Trail, you're reduced to walking when you get the first wave of fatigue (or the first wave of imagined fatigue). Without it being set out before you, it's damn embarrassing to walk a piddly incline that's barely more than you'd see on a residential driveway. But, there it is.

So, this run is basically 10 loops through the woods, which to some sounds incredibly boring. But, if you set your head right, it really is quite pleasant. The main (and only) aid station is never far away. You really don't have to carry anything at all. I chose to carry a water bottle because I always train on the trail with one and would feel positively nekked without it. By the 6th loop or so, you pretty much have every rock and root memorized and know how far it is from here to there. That makes it cozy mentally. It's pretty impossible to get lost...Well, almost, as Moha, my invaluable running partner, actually ran off course during the 8th loop. If I wasn't right behind him, he would have merrily ran his way into the next county.

I'm not going to give a loop-by-loop account of this race, because that WOULD be incredibly boring. But, here are some of my observations from last weekend:

I've gotten extremely slow in doing these runs, but it's amazing how satisfied I feel that I'm doing them. I think I said to Moha during the race "Why do I feel so good about doing these when we suck so bad?". Actually, the only thing that sucks is my speed when I compare it Days of Yonder. But, that shouldn't come as any surprise...I'm a hundred years old, I've got two ankles out of warranty, and most of all, for the past three years, I've only averaged about 25 miles a week in training. But, I find great delight (and surprise) that I can slowly cruise through 31 miles where I'm not really going THAT much slower at the end than I am at the start. So, with all this, I guess you can pretty much do this by memory as long as you have a good base and don't expect more out your body than is realistic. I really think the most important part of trail running is that most races are going to have some steep hills in them, so you better train on the hills. I think this is more important than putting in God-awful mile upon mile for hour upon hour.

My nutrition during this run was pretty straight forward. Up until about mile 25, I drank strictly water, and had one Peanut Butter Gu each loop. I used to be Gatorade junkie, but the more I read about hydration, it seems that there are better ways to get electrolytes in you than Sugar Water. I carry some Nuun tablets with me if I feel my electrolytes are tanking, but I didn't use any in this race. You just add these to your water bottle and are purely electrolytes. The last two trips through the aid station, I drank Coke (I know, the Ultimate Sugar Water), which I wish was de-fizzed, and a bite of great Ham & Cheese wraps (plus the Gu). As I do more of these runs (this was #141 over 3+ decades), I seem to have discovered Coke, both as a late-in-the-race drink and as a go-to drink immediately after the run. I'm not saying Coke as a brand name, but as a generic sugary soft drink. Anybody else find that this really works quick to pick you up? Guess it doesn't matter if it's in my head or not, but I'm convinced it helps, so I'll keep it up until I crash on it someday and then I'll find another miracle.

Friends are invaluable. I've posted many times about my runs with Moha. We run basically the same pace, fatigue at the same points, argue enough about everything and love the game of European Soccer. We basically have a good time for a whole day in the woods every time we run. But, in addition, on a course like this, we are constantly being passed by the front runners. This race also had a 12 Hour Run going on, but unless you saw the color of their bib (which is pinned on the front, making it hard to see when they come screaming on you from behind), you mostly didn't know what race they were in. But, I will say that, without a doubt, every runner that passed always had a friendly word to say, be it encouragement, friendliness, or concern (as in "Are you OK? You're moving mighty slow"). When you finish the race, the leaders are on their 3rd beers, but they still take the time to clap and offer a genuine form of "Good Job". It seems like at the end of most races up to the marathon, the first question other runners ask you is "What was your time?", but honestly, when you finish one of these, time just doesn't seem that important. A hand shake, a fist bump, or a good ol' slap on the back is what you want and it's what you get. Yes, friends are invaluable.

Usually, I recover pretty quickly from these runs, but this has been a little different. The weekend before the race, somehow, my Superhuman immune system allowed it to be taken over by some alien strain of bronchitis, stopping my running for a week...Crazy tapering! So, I reluctantly made a trip to Dr. Doc-in-the -Box, got a shot and anti-biotics and was able use smoke and mirrors and finish the 31 miles through the forest. Can we all say relapse? I wasn't as sick, but these coughing attacks brought about by what feels like a hairball of feathers in my throat is driving me nuts. I went out for something this morning for 8 miles, but it sure wasn't what I call a run. Holy cow! I felt like I was in the last stage of a stress test. Oh well, I've got two weeks before my next race. The Crazy Taper continues.

Ok, finally, a word of praise for a couple of fellow BUTS (Birmingham Ultra Trail Society) buddies. 100% of the proceeds of this race went to Camp Smile-a-Mile, an Alabama camp for children with cancer. Donna Arrington, still coming back from foot surgery, raised over $2000 doing over 54 miles in the 12 Hour Run. Great job Donna. And then there's Suman. Surely you remember him from a few posts ago...he's the one that bumped UP from 50 miles to the 100 miles at the Lake Martin Ultras the night before and finished his 1st hundred miler in 25 hours! Well, he did it again...get this...bumping up from the 10k to the 12 Hour the day before. He did 60.5 miles! I saw him this morning and he sounded like the 60.5 miles pretty much did him instead of the other way around. Quite a string of performances Suman. He swears he's cutting back for a while...yeah, right!

Ok, and now I have to figure out the antidote to this Kryptonite poisoning and get my Superhuman powers back. Until next time, welcome the warm weather, run smooth, force fluids, and be sure to wash your hands.

I'll see you on the roads and trails - Al

"One child lost is too many...One child saved can change the world"

Boston Strong: A Year Later

2014-04-12T17:54:00.002-05:00

The Boston Marathon has always been the THE marathon...everyone knows THE Yankees, everyone knows THE Notre Dame football team, everyone knows THE Kentucky Derby, and everyone knows THE Boston Marathon...just known as "Boston". Six times I was fortunate enough to qualify to run the race, and five times I was able to fulfill that dream and travel the runner's sacred 26.2 mile path from Hopkinton to the middle of Boston. I ran it enough to now be able to visualize the whole course in my head and feel the sneaky downhills of the first half of the race, hear the Scream Tunnel of the girls of Wellsley, battle the three (or is it four) bumps of Heartbreak Hill, and cherish the "Right on Hereford, Left on Boylston" to the finish line. I haven't run it since 2007. No excuses. I'm just not anywhere speedy enough to qualify anymore. But it's still ingrained in my very fiber and means more than just "my favorite race". Running Boston provides you entrance into an elite club...at least those of us that have done it feel it's an elite club. It's still a rush to answer "yes" when somebody asks "Have you ever done Boston?". With all it's quirks and traditions that have flourished in a race well over a century old, with all it's history of great battles for the victory with sprints down the last few hundred yards of Boylston, and even with it's growing commercialism and busting-at-the-seams participants, there is a Disneyland presence of being THERE.

Or maybe there WAS a Disneyland presence. We all know of the terror of last year's race, and the terrible aftermath. I certainly won't recount it here. We all know somebody who was there and we remember feeling helpless. The terrorists didn't hate runners, they just chose a venue of runners to do their evilness. We hated them for what they did to innocent families. We hated them for further deteriorating the security that living in the USA gives us. And selfishly, we hated them for staining the sport we loved.

Whenever there's a storm, the sun eventually shines, and the sun here was how the running and non-running community solidified around this tragedy. A nation gave Boston support, and the City of Boston rallied behind a collective force that became BOSTON STRONG. Immediately after the bombings, makeshift memorials sprung up around the scene. Running shoes, shirts, notes of love, letters of grief, trinkets of all kinds were placed along the Crime Scene barriers. When the investigation was over, the memorials were moved to a park, and not until June were they carefully packed up, but with the Mayor's promise that there would be a fitting display in the near future.
This weekend, one week before this year's 118th running of the Marathon, my wife and I are visiting our family in Boston as we try to do about every other month. From the moment you get off the plane, there are signs everywhere signifying BOSTON STRONG...banners, signs in storefronts, on buses, on taxis, on lightposts, literally everywhere. And so, I had the opportunity to visit the very recently opened "Dear Boston" exhibit at the Boston Library.

It is free and will run until the middle of May. It was a beautiful remembrance of those days one year ago...no music playing, no somber lighting, no photos of the day of the race. This was a tribute to a community by that same community, but never with the arrogance of "Don't mess with us", or "You picked the wrong city". It was a display of this happened and we care. Walking through, you felt proud for what we can be as a society. We can rally for the good of all. We can pick up the pieces. Heck, runners do it all the time, but this was for all to see, for all to feel, for all to be a part of.

I, as all of us do, pray that we never see anything like this again. But sadly, we know we will. It may be man-made, it may be nature, it may be something else. But, when the smoke begins to clear, all we can hope for, and pray for, is to be strong...like Boston...Boston Strong.

Until next time, I'll see you on the roads - AL

"One child lost is too many...One child saved can change the world"

In Awe of My Friends

2014-04-02T13:37:00.000-05:00

"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work" - Thomas Edison

Ok, the truth is I'm getting older and slower. I know that. You know that. Any of the world who has known me over the past three decades knows that. Big deal. I wish it wasn't that way, but it's the way of life. The alternative to keep from running slower is to stop running. Well, that, of course, is not going to happen. At least not until I look pretty doggone stupid trying to put one foot in front of the other, and then someone is going to have to convince me that I really do look stupid, because sometimes I feel like I'm flying at 17 min/mile heading down some trail.

A few months ago, I wrote a post here about the changing paradigm that is taking place in running. So many runners are doing runs that years ago were on the outer fringes of being possible for the masses. Now, they get more and more commonplace...half-marathons, marathons, ultramarathons, trail races, etc. However, now it seems there is another paradigm shift (I really don't know exactly what the word means, but it just sounds so cool to use it). That shift seems to be in the way and attitude runners are approaching training and running races.

Many years ago, I read a book by Alvin Toffler called Future Shock. Basically, he wrote about too much change in too short a period of time. Of course, he was talking about the development of society as a whole, as in agriculture, industrialization, and technology. He said something like if man on earth was represented in a 12 inch ruler, 99% of all the civilized developments of man would be in the last 1/4 inch. I'm sure Ol' Alvin had no reference at all in mind relative to my running, but if I viewed all the primitive ways I developed my running from the 70's (the same decade as Toffler's book) to what's going on in the past "1/4 inch" of running. There certainly seems to be a parallel that I find "too much change in too short a period of time". In a future post, I'll chronicle some of those changes, but I've got one change that seems to be getting more and more prolific, and I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around it.

Let's back up a little and return to those thrilling days of yesteryear. I ran my first marathon in the Fall of 1979 after 6 months of very specific training. I did well and caught the fever. At the time, there were two marathons in Birmingham...the Vulcan that I had just completed and the Magic City Marathon held in February. Marathoners in B'ham were a small group and I was desperately trying to become a solid member. I wanted to run the MCM 5 months after my first Vulcan, but was warned it was TOO CLOSE. You just didn't do 2 marathons in less than 6 months apart! Well, I was thick-headed and did the race. Finished about 11' slower than my first and blamed it on "squeezing" those runs so close together. I obviously hadn't recovered adequately to put forth a good effort. The 10k's I did were done for PR's, but they were really training to get faster in the marathon distance. This was serious stuff folks. In the 70's and 80's, you ran balls-to-the-wall to do your best time every time you pinned on a bib number.

I did more and more marathons and started to enter the Ultramarathon world, but still would TRY to be careful not to get crazy with piling on the distance. If I had races coming up close together, I would try to cut back on my training miles. Throughout my "competitive" years, my mileage was pretty steady at 60-70 miles per week. My biggest training week ever was 108 miles and my longest streak was 80 days. Why do I remember those numbers? Because they both almost killed me!! You planned your long training runs weeks ahead of time, and races were cross-haired several months down the road (and not because the race filled an hour after registration opened!). And there in lies my problem (awe).

I definitely hang out with wrong folks. They say if you want to look skinny, hang out with heavy people. If you want to look smart, hang out with some...well, "not-so-smarts". So, if you want to look like a fast runner, hang out with slow runners, or if you want to look like a big stud ultrarunner, hang out with folks just beginning a Couch-to-5k program. What I'm saying is this paradigm train just went flying by me. Go on Facebook, and I see my friends posting "Hey, leaving from the BMX Track at 6:30 in the morning for a 20-25 miler. Who's in?". Before I get to snicker, there are 15 "I'm in" responses. No thought process that might hint that a 25 miler, comprising 5+ hours on the trail might be a little much on 12 hours notice. Geez! A few weeks ago, my friend Suman posted that the next weekend he was going to do an "Epic" 40 mile trail training run at Oak Mountain. Tons of people wanted to join him and many did, at least for much of it! What happened to planning for these runs weeks in advance?

Ok, that's not what prompted this post, it just set it up. A few weeks ago, my Twitter/Facebook buddy, Eric from St. Louis decided on close to a whim he was going to run in the Howard Aslinger 24-Hour Run. I doubt he had more than 2 weeks to have a mind/body meeting to see if this was a good idea. As far as I know, his "only" ultras in the past 3 years were 2 finishes at the Leadville 100. This was his first stab at going 24 hours straight. He did 115 miles!!! HE WON THE DAMN THING!!! I've done several 24 Hour runs in my younger past, but I remember being in a panic for months before the race.

But the tip of the Ten Gallon Hat goes to the aforementioned Suman (of Epic Run fame). Since January, he's done a couple of marathons, a couple of 50k's, and several spontaneous runs on the forest trails. So, a week before the Lake Martin 50/100 he decides this would be a good time to run his first 50 miler - a week before! He shows up the morning of race, in a total cold downpour, and decides to BUMP UP to the 100...nobody bumps up!!! He finishes 3rd overall in around 25 hours. I give up!! I'm finally convinced my way of thinking was totally flawed. Preparation is obviously wwwaaaaayyyy over-rated. Spontaneity is the name of the game now!

Apparently, you can break the 4-minute barrier for a mile.

Apparently, you can put a man on the moon.

Apparently, you can mix peanut butter and chocolate (yum).
Apparently, women can run and their uterus won't fall out.

And apparently, you can do ultra long runs without the fear of lack of preparation or killing yourself.

It's just switching your mindset, being realistic with your goals, believing in your talent and gene pool, and most of all, having the courage to put it out there in front of God and all humanity. Sure, you may trip a few times along the way, but when things click right...man, do they click!

I'll see you on the always beckoning roads and trails - Al

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world"

My Morning Fight With Good & Evil

2014-02-27T09:03:00.000-06:00

“Morning is wonderful. It's only drawback is that it comes at such an inconvenient time of day.”
― Glen Cook, Sweet Silver Blues

Some of my patients often ask me about my running when they see some of the trinkets I might have innocently hanging in my office, or when I slyly slide a comment in that I'm a little tired from running 15 miles yesterday. Recently, when I told a person that I run at 4:30 in the morning they said they wished they could do that and I'm fortunate that I find that an easy thing to do. I didn't correct them (how can you explain voluntary suffering to a non-runner?) but it made me think about what I do to maintain a consistent schedule of running.

I used to run every day at noon for probably 25 years or so, but then the location of my job changed, and suddenly I found myself without a convenient shower. To me, returning to work at 1:00 sweating like a hot pig in July was fine, but my higher-ups felt this might be a roadblock to proper patient care, so I was forced to alter my running schedule. I tried a few times to run after work, but that was a complete disaster. I mean, there were all these distractions, like the paper, the TV news, a beer, plus another shower and dinner after the run, and Boom! all of a sudden it's time for bed.

So, around 7-8 years ago, I switched to a morning runner to get it in before work. The weekends are no problem, never have been. I do my longer runs then and seem content to get the run done and know I can relax afterwards. But, two mornings a week, I do the before-work thing. Now, don't get me wrong, I have grown to absolutely love to the solitude of a run before the sun comes up, but dang it, every morning, when I wake up, I know I'll need to talk myself into my daily activity. Oh heck, actually it starts the night before and each of the times I'll wake up during the night, I have to say "YOU HAVE TO RUN IN XXX AMOUNT OF HOURS". I lay out my clothes the night before so all I have to do is turn the alarm off, grab my pile of clothes, and get myself dressed. Yeah, that sounds easy. But, it seems EVERY morning while I'm brushing my teeth, there's this constant battle between Good and Evil. Staying in bed for another hour sounds SOOOO good. But I want to run. This epic daily battle starts with guilt. I know that if I give into the desire to rest I'll regret that decision for the rest of the day. I mean it will eat at me and drag me down in everything that I do. Not to mention the 10 pounds I will automatically gain because I didn't run for 45 minutes. It's a slippery slope and inconsistency only makes it harder. When I went out this morning for my run I knew that I'd be facing more than sleepiness once the first slap of chilly air hit my face. My stupid Nike+ doesn't particularly like to sync with those distant satellites while I'm still in the house, so I have to stand outside like an idiot standing in a freezer, hearing (I'm sure) my watch laughing until it feels it is appropriate to yell "READY". The starting point was 20 degrees and the wind probably pushed it down to 50 below! Ok, that's an exaggeration on the wind chill, but I really hate cold weather. I almost always listen to music or podcasts when I run solo, so this helps to deflect that stiffness that my legs like to exhibit a mere 20 minutes after waking up. So, down the familiar streets I go until my requisite 4+ miles is done. Some runs are slow as all get out, and some are a little faster than slow as all get out. This morning was the latter, so I was happy I ran (as I usually am).

The crazy thing is that although every run is not something to write to grandma about, I ALWAYS feel better when it's done. And the crazier thing is that before the first step of that run is taken, I KNOW I'll feel better when it's done. That part is learned, but unfortunately, not ingrained. I don't spring out of bed every day in anticipation of my running experience. There's a figurative wall to climb to get out the door. Sometimes that wall is so high it seems impossible to breach. Most of the time (not ALL the time) I figure it out, even if I have to trick myself into doing it. But I know that the only way my collection of race numbers and medals and just pure satisfaction of still being able to get out there will grow is to do what I do each morning I've made the pre-decision to run. Good will most of the time win out over Evil because Good is in better shape than Evil! Plus, that 1st cup of coffee at work tastes so good. Oh, and then there's those crazy patients..."Did you run this morning?". What kind of an answer is "No, I slept in."?

I'll see you on the early roads - AL

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world"

Running Three Times Around the World

2014-02-15T09:03:00.001-06:00

“Consistency requires you to be as ignorant today as you were a year ago.”
― Bernard Berenson

Are my running numbers that important? I guess they are because I always download my data from every training run I do. I can take the information that's somehow stored in that computer thing strapped around my wrist (Nike+ Sportswatch) and even though I have to export that info to other sites to see everything (because the Nike site really, really sucks), I enjoy looking at what I've done on the road and trail. Do I ever use this information to help me run better? Not really. Do I say, "man, I was tired in December. Let me look at the log and see if I ran more than the experts say I should."? Nope, never do that. But, I am a big fan of looking at totals and then move on. I know that most people are happy to estimate the distances they run, but I need to know exactly what I've accomplished. I mean, I have to measure every course, every run, even if I have run that same course a thousand times. How will I know if that 4.1 mile course is STILL 4.1 miles? And for some reason, I'm an elevation freak and think running vertical does more for building endurance strength than just about anything. Anyway, I look at that.

I can look at last year and see that I ran 1353 miles, which is less than half of my total in my heyday (haha, my heyday). My pace is faster than a turtle trapped in a tar pit, but it's a ton slower than the good old days. Of course, I'm doing a lot more hilly trails the past couple of years and that has slowed me down (yeah, that's it...the trails...the hills). I can look back and see I averaged close to 4 days a week, again less than the 6 I used to do. But, I've found that if I want to keep up a fair resemblance of what I consider running, I better show up a reasonable number of times per week regardless of the present circumstances. I still run longer than most folks say they get tired driving which is all well and good if I were running somewhere where I'd normally drive.

So, what does this have to do with me running for the past few decades? Here it is in a very BIG nutshell. Thank Goodness this has been a "taper week" for the Mercedes Marathon, which in itself is hilarious that my training schedule actually has a "taper" built into it. Anyway, Birmingham was socked in with a couple of Winter Storms this week that curtailed my usually monster running schedule. I posted a photo on Twitter of one of those info signs that goes across the Interstate saying "Winter Storm Warning from 6pm Monday to 6am Thursday". I don't live in Minnesota, I live in Alabama! So, back to my story - Because we didn't have to report to work until late morning on Thursday, I managed to get out on the thawing roads for a short jaunt. Not a great run by any means, but during that little, flat, wet, non-interesting, time-consuming run, I crossed the 80,000 mile mark of miles run in my lifetime...well, since running became an integral part of my life in 1978.

That's a heap of miles. More than three times around the fat waist of the Earth. Ten times through a hole down the center of the Earth that would lead to China and back. Eighty times to run up to Boston to see my Grandkids. Ok, enough of that nonsense, but it is a long way mostly done on asphalt for the first 20 years and about evenly divided between the dreaded road and the much more ankle-agreeable trails since. I've done it in chunks from one mile to 111. On the flat lands and up Pikes Peak. In the stifling heat of Mexico and the bitter cold of...well, all cold is bitter to me!

So, this weekend I'll traverse the 26.2 miles of the Mercedes Marathon for the 13th time and it will be my 139th marathon or longer. About probably 60-70% of my runs have been done in total solitude, but, I must say, my most enjoyable of those 128,000 kilometers (doesn't that sound MUCH longer?) has been the constant interaction with friends new and old. And I have a pretty sure idea that I haven't met all those friends yet, so you know what? I'm going to keep going, keep adding on those miles, and most importantly, keep literally running into these friends. As the most interesting man in the world might say, "I don't always run with somebody by my side, but when I do, they are all friends". Run strong my friends.

I'll see you on the roads - AL

"One child lost is too many...one child saved can change the world"