This Is Alabama Football

It's the most wonderful time of the year and it begins Saturday against Clemson. I can't wait to be in the GA Dome with my wife and all my Bama buddies.




According to reports on all the major news networks this morning, Barack Obama's campaign headquarters has issued a statement to cease all distribution of campaign signs in Alabama. According to the statement, the Obama campaign has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to replace campaign signs that keep disappearing all over the state. Upon further investigation, it became apparent why this is happening.

TM Sucky Intervals

Late night attempt on a TM in Conyers, GA. Started around 10:30PM after being up since 5:00AM. Exercise was hot, humid and smelled, unless that was me. The TM was old, unforgiving and hard on my legs and back. I planned on 3 miles, but after a 1/4 warmup walk, the 1st 1/2 mile was torture. I changed my workout and ended up doing two (1/2 mile) intervals and two (1/4 mile) intervals with 1/4 mile walks between. Did I mention it sucked?

On the positive side, something is better than nothing and I got to watch Andy Roddick win his opening US Open match. Next to last point he just about decapitated his opponent with a 140 MPH serve. That my friends is a cannon blast.

It's hard to believe that it has been 26 years since I worked for the USTA and worked at the US Open. Jimmy Connors and Chris Evert Lloyd won that 1982 Open, the last time they won majors together.

It's 11:20PM and I'm exhausted and ready for bed. Back at it in the morning at 0500.

My Feelings Exactly

I'm not a big Tom Arnold fan, but he appears to be a pretty smart guy. Are you ready for college football!

Recent Runs

I've been a bit of a slacker keeping up with my blog (and runs) during the past week. Travel and Olympics contributed but not to blame.

I ran 8 miles downtown with Gerri and Team Tiara on Saturday morning. It was a nice run, although the hills were a killer. The worst was McDaniel as we came out of Cleveland Park. It's a bit over a mile up McDaniel and the steepest part is the initial segment before you reach Cleveland. Luckily the Spinx Half (and Full) will bypass that initial steep segment, but their course has plenty of other hilly portions. We also had to deal with cemetery hill on Main Street at the end of the run. Overall it was a fun run and I felt pretty good during and after. We all enjoyed some coffee and a Chocolate Banana Vivanno at Starbucks afterwards.

We had the girls, plus one this weekend. So I was bad and took Chelsea, Heather and Mattie to Skins for lunch. Yummy, yummy, yummy! We relaxed during the afternoon and then met Robin and Eric for dinner at Outback to celebrate her birthday. Good food and company.

We all went to NewSpring on Sunday and then Mimi's Cafe for lunch afterwards. The girls headed home in the afternoon and Gerri and I helped out her Mom and Francis for a little while at her home before heading to Copper River Grill for dinner. I had a nice soup and salad.

Monday morning I got a late start but did manage to get in a sweaty 3.5 miles in Westchester. Pace was okay for a recovery run but the humidity killed me. I'm waiting to get back to the point where runs feel fun and easy. I dropped my dead PC off at my friend Jimmy Cokers office and then drove the 6 hours to Waycross, GA.

I have to head to Hazlehurst later this afternoon and need to get in a run. Unfortunately hotels in the area leave a lot to be desired and no treadmills. I'll look for a track at a local high school once the heat and humidity let off a bit. Looks like I better eat early so that my food can digest.

TM Intervals

Late night post, so this will be brief since I have to be up in 5 hours.

Weather did not cooperate tonight, but I forced myself to follow the plan and hit the TM tonight in Statesboro for an interval workout. Intervals were 1/4 at a reasonable pace, knowing that going to hard too soon will increase chance of injury. Ending up running 5 1/4 mile intervals. Total running was 2.5 miles and an additional 1.5 miles walking for 4 miles total.

I'll be headed to Augusta tomorrow afternoon and weather permitting hope to hit the Greenway. I also need to get my push ups done.

Bedtime!

If It's Tuesday this must be Hinesville

I traveled south to Hinesville, GA yesterday afternoon. An uneventful trip except for several large convoys of Asplundh trucks heading south for the anticipated damage from Tropical Storm Faye. It was an interesting site. My Power Steering warning indicator came on again, so I need to have that checked out at a dealer soon. Driving without Power Steering equals a pain in the butt.

After leaving Hinesville today, I'll head to Savannah, eventually ending up in Statesboro, GA. Hoping to get a run in later tonight, either around Georgia Southern Univ or in the worst case scenario on the hotel dreadmill.

For those interested, my wife Gerri wrote a hilarious recap of our Saturday night adventure titles, "Lost in a gated community". I highly encourage you to read this recap of our adventures.

http://onemarathonatatime.blogspot.com/2008/08/lost-in-gated-community.html

Great Sunday

Today was an incredible day. We had intended to wake up around 5:15, drive downtown and run 7 miles. Unfortunately Mother Nature had other ideas as the weather was rainy with thunderstorms. I would have enjoyed running in the cool rain, but didn't want to dodge lightning bolts. So the alarm was reset and we got up for church.

NewSpring was off the chart today. The final day in the You Asked for It series, Are We In The End Times? The service started out with the band absolutely rocking out the place. Clayton King stepped in for Perry Noble today and hit a home run. How many times are you disappointed when church service is over? And to top it off, over 200 committed their lives to Christ today at the various services in Greenville & Anderson.

We had another fun lunch with our friends Eric & Robin. First time at Mimi's Cafe and it was really good. I'm guessing we'll head back again in the near future.

After a brief "rest" at home, we headed back downtown for the Drive game. This was a group night for Girls on the Run. Our seats were in right field, exposed to the warm direct sunlight. We stayed for about 6 innings, and then headed off for our run.

The plan was 7 miles, but it was hot and had been a long weekend. The 7 became 3 miles and we walked the last 1.8 miles back to the car. I wore my brand new Brooks Adrenaline 8's. Some minor left leg and left heel discomfort, but nothing horrible. Hoping for a better training week starting tomorrow. After the run, we stopped at Olive Garden before heading home.

Saturday Walk

What a great morning and day so far. Since Gerri cannot run until Sunday (per Doctors orders) she couldn't run with her training group. We decided that we would walk downtown this morning, then do a 7+ mile run tomorrow.

Our day started off at Fleet Feet for the organizational No Boundaries meeting. This is a basic Couch to 5K training program. We believe in the program because it worked for us and acted as volunteer coaches when they conducted their first NoBo group earlier this year. After a nice meeting with a good turn out, we headed out for our walk.

We walked all throughout the Augusta Road, into the West End, Downtown and then all the way up McDaniel. It was a nice 1:30 minute walk, roughly 5 miles. We walked naked (no Garmin) so I'm guessing a bit on the mileage based on the time.

After the walk we stopped back into Fleet Feet where I exchanged my Mizuno Wave Riders for a new pair of Brooks Adrenaline 8's. I have gone through 4 or 5 pairs of the 7's so hopefully the 8's will work just as well if not better. I'll be trying them out in the morning. Gerri also picked up a new pair of shoes plus an outfit and some Carb Boom.

We grabbed lunch (Beef & Cheddar Spud) and some unsweet tea next door at McAlisters's Deli before heading home. Looks like we'll spend the afternoon relaxing before heading to our good friends Mike and Nancy's for a Christmas Party. Yes, a Christmas Party. Their daughter is in from New York and since she won't be coming back down for Christmas this year they decided to hold it early.

Will have to be an early evening without much beer or wine since we'll have to start our run at 6:00am tomorrow.

Short Work Week

I made it back home last night in time to meet Gerri and Pizza House on 153 for dinner. Nice salad with feta & blue cheese, cheese garlic bread and spaghetti with meat sauce. In my younger days Wednesdays were Prince Spaghetti days! If you have no clue what I'm talking about, see the ad below.

My week was short so that I could be home with Gerri when she went for Lasik surgery this morning. We woke early, she went for a run with Team Tiara, hung out at Starbucks with "the girls" and drank a Banana Chocolate Vivanno. After a quick stop by the Life Center and McDonalds for some coffee we were off to see Dr. Anne Parker.

Everything seemed to go well and Gerri is now home and taking a nap. She has a follow-up visit in the morning, but the Dr. has told her she can get back to running on Sunday.

My knee is feeling a bit better, so I'm going to get a short run in tomorrow, rest Saturday and hopefully do 7 miles with Gerri on Sunday before we head to NewSpring for church.

Tuesday = Rest Day

Rest in this case means no running. I'm still up around 5:00 AM for work. That started in Gainesville today and ended up in Austell this evening. Dinner at Carabba's. Some strange liquid is falling from the sky, I think I remember that they call it rain. It's been so long since I have seen a slow, steady rain. Hope that it sticks around for a day or two because we need it so bad.

I'd love to run in it, but that probably won't happen. If I get a run in it will be an easy one tomorrow night. My knee is still a bit uncomfortable, so I will be watching it carefully and adjusting my schedule as needed. In 18 months I have not had any knee issues, so I don't need to start now.

I Don't Like Mondays

Anyone remember the song by the Boomtown Rats? I actually don't mind Mondays, but after a tough run this morning the song popped into my head. My plan called for an easy 3 miles today, but it was anything but easy. I went over to the nearby Westchester subdivision, the temp and humidity were not unreasonable for 8:30AM, about 80 degrees/40% humidity.

I felt fine starting out, then my left knee started feeling "wonky." Wonky is a "medical term" that I learned from my wife to describe her ankle. It wasn't painful, just a slight discomfort. At about 1.25 miles, I started to feel some discomfort in my left shin, and then a short time later in my left exterior ankle. I pushed ahead, but at mile 2 decided to walk for a period to see if that would help. I started back up, running another 1/2 mile before deciding that it wasn't worth pushing it another 1/2 mile to reach today's goal. I walked the rest of the way back to the car.

I'm assuming the "pain" today is a result of running the 7.5 on Saturday. Even though it was at a very easy pace, it was still much longer than my body has run a month. I'll see how it feels tomorrow and give it an extra day of rest if needed.

I ran by and picked up a large Dunkin' Donuts coffee (decaf, one Splenda and skim milk). The woman in front of me got a medium with 5 Splendas! Like it sweet much sweetie? I did show good restraint passing on all other temptations, even though I wanted the eclair really bad.

After getting back home, I completed Week 1 Day 2 of the 100 Push up Challenge.

A quick note on Sunday. We had another amazing church service at NewSpring. Then went with Eric, Rob and Heather to lunch at the Liberty Tap Room. Unfortunately it was not as good as last week. We chilled a bit in the afternoon, and then drove the 2 hours to Columbia for the 3Day Film Festival. Over 30 students (middle and high school) had entered and only 3 got completed projects done. Chelsea was one of three and did a really terrific job with her first "public" film. I'll post a link one she posts it on youtube. As you can probably tell, I'm a very proud dad of an amazingly talented daughter. Heather was the actress in the film (along with a white rat) and she also did a really good job. Nice to see sisters getting along and working towards a common goal.

7 miles with Team Tiara

Yes, you read that right. Gerri is training for the Spinx Half with Team Tiara. They meet three times a week for group runs and Saturdays is their long run day. She has asked me to come run with them a few times, and I usually respond by rolling over and going back to sleep. Not today.

The alarm went off about 5:00am. For a brief moment I debated taking a pass to enjoy a few additional hours of sleep, but the internal voice let me know that this was something I needed to do. We got up, ready and headed to downtown Greenville. A quick stop along the way to drop off some water for the group. We met the group of around 6:00 and got started. Two runners were doing 9, the rest 7 and since I was only planning on an easy 5, I let everyone else go ahead so that I wouldn't be tempted to go faster than I should.

I caught up with the group within a few minutes when they stopped to wait for another team member that pulled up in her car late. The air was cool, humidity wasn't bad and the pace was comfortable. I stayed in the back and eventually a few of the women dropped back and joined me. Conversation flowed and I really enjoyed the course and the chance to run with a group. I was amazed at how many other groups are running around Greenville around the same time.

As we headed back up Main Street, I was a bit disappointed that 5 miles was coming to an end. Kim was hurting a bit, and decided to stop at 5 miles. I didn't want Nadia to have to run the last 2 miles by herself, so I decided to keep her company. The pace was slow, but I enjoyed the route and the opportunity to help her achieve her longest distance ever. We finished with about 7.4 miles and around a 12 minute pace. The pace is nothing to write home about, but I'm thrilled to have my longest run in since the marathon in May.

Afterwards we walked down to Starbucks and had a very yummy Banana Chocolate Vivanno.

Donations to Gerri's fundraising effort to support Girl's on the Run are greatly appreciated.

Madison 3 Miler

Sounds like a great name for a race, but today it was just an easy run through a gated community in Madison, GA. The subdivision was about 2 miles from my hotel, so I drove down and ran "behind" the gates. Very quiet. No cars, two walkers and one woman jogging about a quarter mile behind me. Lovely estate homes, a few "lakes" and lots of green space thanks to the Long Shadow Golf Club. Course looked nice, might have to see if I can get on there sometime when I'm down this way.

It felt a little strange to be back on the roads, not that it has been all that long. I felt really bouncy at first, but found my stride and settled in. I went out a little fast, started to get winded and then backed down and was comfortable the rest of the run. Well other than needed a bathroom. Finished the 3 miles in a 10:30 pace. Nothing to write home about, but I've promised myself to take it easy as things ramp back up. Temp wasn't too bad, 70 degrees but humidity was 89%, and it felt like it.

Rest Day

Well at least from running, tomorrow will be another story.

My work day started early this morning in Warner Robins. I got done around 4:00pm, grabbed an early dinner at Olive Garden, no I don't have blue hair, and then drove through a torrential rain and thunderstorm to Madison, GA. It was about a two hour drive using the GA back roads. At least the rain cooled off the temps and only lasted for brief, wicked bursts.

I've checked emails, blogs, Tidefans, and other various sites while watching Big Brother 10. As soon as it's over, I'll head over to the Krystal for a night shop. I've been asked by the franchisee to spend the day at the restaurant tomorrow to provide some training.

There appears to be a nice gated community about a mile from my hotel. Luckily there is a space to park near the entrance, so my plan is to get up early in the morning for a nice 3 mile run. Hopefully the cooler temps will help.

3 Miles on Dreadmill

As Dexter Poindexter would say, today was "HOT, HOT, HOT!" Okay, I'm showing my age with the Dexter Poindexter reference, but it was hot in Warner Robins, GA. When I got into my car to leave the restaurant around 3:00, the exterior temp showed 106 degrees. A local nearby bank showed 107. Weather.com showed 100 with heat index of 105. It was way to hot to start my training outdoors on the pavement, even as the sun retreated in the afternoon.

That left the dreaded hotel treadmill. By hotel standards, the two available TM's were not horrible. I choose the better of the two. My plan was an easy 3 miles with a 1/4 mile warm up and cool down walk. As I started turning the speed up, the TM started screaming at me to slow down, or was that my body speaking to me? It has been about a month since I ran 3 miles, Peachtree 10K probably. I started out very slow, much slower than I have ever run, and gradually increased the speed throughout the run.

I was not going for records today. This is day 1 of 33 weeks. The goal is to start slow, build slow and stay injury free. While I start getting my endurance back, I also want to start on some strength and core. To that extent, I finally started Week 1, Day 1 (W1D1) of the 100 Push up Challenge. I know, I blogged about it some time back. It's time. In addition, it's also time to begin focusing on eating properly again. After the run, I headed off to Subway for a foot long Turkey Breast on wheat, baked chips, and good old H20. Most importantly, I PASSED on the cookies, my weakness when visiting Subway.

I'd like to drop 8 pounds minimum to get back below the Mendoza line (199) and would love to get down to 190 pounds, or 17 pounds. I know this would not only improve my overall health but also take some of the strain of running off my body. Research says that each pound dropped equals about a 2 second per mile improvement in running speed. Wouldn't that be nice!

It feels great to once again have some goal races and a training plan in place. Day one is in the books. Stay tuned...

Spinx Runfest Half Marathon

My first Half Marathon was in October 2007. The Spinx Runfest was a challenge. My training had been poor the two months leading up to the race, maybe even pathetic. A twelve mile training run on a hot, humid August morning running the Green Valley route was the beginning of my downfall. I began to doubt myself, my ability to complete a Half Marathon. I ended up running the event and was happy to complete the hilly course in just over 2:16 with only a brief walk break. Since then I have completed two additional Half Marathons (Tybee Island & Greer) as well as the Vermont City Marathon.

Post marathon, the summer heat, travel and my own lack of motivation and excuses have limited my training. We now are about 2 1/2 months away from the Spinx Runfest and it is time for me to get my training in gear. I need to sit down, work out my plan and begin to execute. Nobody can do this but me, I am solely responsible for my success or failure.

The Spinx Runfest routes are finally online and much different than in previous years. It's look like a fun, exciting and hilly run. Tick, tick, tick...the clock has started.