Race Report - Flying Feather Four Miler

Thanksgiving morning took us out to Dublin again this year for the Flying Feather Four Miler. Last year, we showed up right about as the race started, and had to fight our way through a huge pack. It wasn't chip timed, so our finish times weren't all that accurate.

This year, the race limited the number of entrants, and also decided to use chip timing. Nice moves both, and I thought it was a better race overall.

The plan this year, as dictated by my coach, was to go out easy, then hit the last three miles hard. After a 10 minute warmup, we got in the corral and awaited the start.

For the first mile, I tried to ease into the race, but didn't do a very good job of it. Even so, I felt pretty good until the end of the second mile, where I started to get a stitch in my side. I had to back off until it went away, and then just hung on until the finish. A girl tried to outsprint me at the end, but I managed to hold her off around the corner.

I think I worked pretty hard at this one, and it was about 6 minutes faster than last year. Taking into account the couple minutes we spent getting to the start line in 2007, I'd guess it was about a 4 minute PR. I think this was also my best placement in any good sized race.

Mile 1: 8:17
Mile 2: 7:56
Mile 3: 8:10
Mile 4: 8:06

Total: 32:49
30/112 Age Group
273/1896 Overall

T-Minus 7 Months

Wow, already time for another monthly update. That seemed quick.

Biggest Challenge This Month:

Getting used to two workouts a day! Even in my heaviest marathon training, I've never had to do more than one session a day, and now that's the norm. I'm averaging about 10 per week right now, with a pretty even mix among the three sports.

Biggest Success This Month:

I was pretty happy with the effort I put out in my heart rate tests. It's been interesting getting used to that style of training, and I think it will pay dividends.

With the early onset of winter around here, my biggest success has probably been getting my bike on the trainer for some long rides, and continuing to go out for runs despite the cold. This will be my first winter with any serious training, since all my marathons have been in the fall.

How I Feel About Training:

My body is a little beat up right now, but I'm in the last few hard days before falling back next week, so that's expected. I don't look forward to the trainer or the cold, but to this point, I'm getting them done. My swimming is coming along - there's another test in the near future there, so it'll be interesting to see if I've improved.

How I Feel About The Race:

Glad that it'll be outdoors, and above freezing. :)

I'm pretty sure I could swim 2.4 miles right now, though it might not be pretty.
I know I can train and do 26.2 miles of running.
It's still tough to visualize biking for that distance, though.

What's Next?

I'm signed up for the 4 miler on Thanksgiving. The plan is to build for the first mile, then go hard for the remainder of the race. It's a fairly big race, so it's not like I'll be competing for a place or anything. My only other 4 miler was this same race last year, and I don't have a time from that one. So, I'm not really sure how to gauge my performance other than "somewhere between my 5K and 5 mile pace".

Edit - Hmm. I guess they did have results last year after all! How about that. I ran a 39:05, for a 9:47 pace. That's a little deceptive, though. It wasn't chip timed, we showed up late, and the start line was a huge bottleneck, so it was some time before I hit the start. Still, it's something to go on. I heard a rumor that this year's is chip timed, but now I can't find anything about that.

Two days later, I've got my second swim test, another 10x100 all-out bundle of fun. It's somewhere in the space between anticipation and dread. :)

I'll also be going past 2 hours on the trainer, and getting close to 3, I'd imagine.

7 Months Out Theme Song:

"You've Got To Make It Through The Winter", from Seven Brides For Seven Brothers



If I heard it right, the lyrics go like this:

You've got to make it through the winter
And hope for some racing in the spring.

You've got to make it through the winter
The time will come when cowbells will start to ring

Just be patient till the spring.
(clarinet solo!)
(till the spring)
(till the spring)
(till the spring)

Hurry up, spring. Hurry!

Serenadipity

Serenadipity (n) - The convergence of life and a random song on one's iPod.

Example: During my hour and a half hill workout on Friday, I had my iPod on shuffle, and this song came on:



Have you ever experienced serenadipity?

2008 CSTM

My coach posted an excellent summary today of a book arguing that talent takes a back seat to good old fashioned hard work when it comes to athletic achievement.

So, how do we gauge this? Who, I ask, is more naturally talented than a celebrity? Finding this list led me to draw up an inspirational list of famous people I've beaten in a marathon. (Discounting course, condition, age, and other minor details)

So, in no particular order, a partial list of the 2008 Celebrities Slower Than Me:

Katie Holmes
Mario Lopez
Freddie Prinze, Jr.
Oprah Winfrey
Sean Combs
David Lee Roth
Lynn Swann
Al Gore

You're next:

Sarah Palin
Meredith Baxter
Will Ferrell

Who's on your list?

Triditarod

Cold? Check.
Wind? Check.
Following dogs? Check.

Saturday's ride was debated from the start. Meredith thought I was crazy to ride outdoors, but I really wanted to get out there, since in Ohio, you never know how even remotely reasonable weather will last in this time of the year. So, I bundled up in booties, gloves, mitten covers for the gloves, a coat, a hat, a helmet on top of that...and I went out for my 90 minute ride.

I was supposed to start getting used to nutrition on the bike with this ride. My first nutrition turned out to be a vanilla Clif Shot gel sample from some past race that had gone bad. At least I hope it had gone bad. If that's what they actually taste like... *shudder* I had to spit it out and dump the rest in a trash can.

Once done with that, things were well, and only got better. I hit my first of two low-cadence portions on a nice flat road, and I let my legs loose on it. Quickly, I was up over 20 mph, and feeling good. Also feeling good? The dog on a farm I passed. It decided to run along the road with me (who was hoping there was an invisible fence installed). And the race was on.

At first, Mr. Dog held the advantage. He got about a 10 foot lead on me, and at 22 mph, was holding me off. So, I pedaled a little harder...23...24. The gap narrowed, and he appeared to get tired. Finally, as I passed him and put a few feet in between us, he gave it up. Score one for humanity.

Again, I underestimated the effect of the wind out in the flat farmland. When I turned to come back home, it hit me, and the second low-cadence section was a grind. I wish I had video of one farm's windmill, which was spinning like crazy, and pointing exactly the same direction I was riding. That may have been the same farm with miniature ponies out front. I couldn't figure out a way to have them pull me, but given more time, I think I could come up with something.



Eventually, my 90 minutes came to a close, as evidenced by the joyous little song on my Garmin. The only problem? I was still 20 minutes from home. So, my 90 minutes turned into a 1:51 ride. When I finally got home, I was beat.

On Sunday, I was not looking forward to my 70 minute run. Funny enough, it ended up being a very good, comfortable run in zones 1-2. I wound up covering a little over 7 miles, which isn't bad for me in those zones. Chalk up one good workout for the weekend to bring some positive energy for the week ahead!