PurpAnd

I went running this morning for the first time since… ugh, I don’t know when. I wanted to give myself and my knees a good rest before starting my training again this year for the events that I hope to run.

The Davis Stampede.
The Shamrock’n Half Marathon.
and the SF Half Marathon.

I told myself that today would be an easy day, so I picked a short course over to Alta Plaza Park. Total distance was just over two miles. It was a good workout, challenging enough due to the elevation change to the park, which is about 100 feet above (roughly 4% grade) our house.

The park has fantastic views at the top. I found this image on the web…

This photo is a view from the park looking southwest, toward our neighborhood.

Anyway, the Davis Stampede is a month from now and I am just not confident enough yet in my ability to run another half-marathon. I have not yet registered, but may look to do the 5K or 10K instead. That seems more reasonable and gives me less opportunity to disappoint myself.

Well, I got overwhelming interest in how I did last Sunday on my Cowtown half-marathon run in Sacramento. (Actually, no, I didn’t, but I like to pretend I did).

To be honest, I didn’t really advertise as much as I could have, because I wasn’t convinced I was going to run. But, I did run.

I hadn’t trained as well as I could have and I had played golf the day before. So, I showed up in Land Park the morning of the run and actually felt pretty good. I was running alone, and brought my iPod with me, and was ready to set another PR (personal record).

The good news is that I did in fact set a PR. My time of just under 2:05 was an improvement of nearly eight minutes since my run on August 3 in San Francisco.

The bad news is that my goal was under 2:00 and my stupid knees let me down at about Mile 9. I was motoring along and all of a sudden my left knee tweaked a little. Then, I think because I was favoring it, my right knee went about a mile later. I had to finish the race in walk/run fashion since my old-man knees wouldn’t let me run for more than a quarter mile before they got angry. It was like there were little claw hammers banging at the bone. Not quite sure what that means physiologically, is there a doctor/nurse in the house?

I strongly believe that this all happened because of my shoes. I think they are over-mileaged and it’s time for new ones… that has to be it, cuz as Sick Monica would say on Friends, “I’m in the prime of libe.” Anyway, I’ll get new shoes soon and that could be the deal breaker. If the new shoes don’t help the situation, I may be looking at running shorter distances.

Until then, I am still looking ahead toward other runs I can do. In February, I can head back to my hometown of Davis and compete in the Davis Stampede. With the luck that Davis has with public events, it will be raining that day. In March, West Sacramento/Sacramento host the Shamrock’n Half-Marathon. You start and end at Raley Field, where the AAA baseball team Rivercats play, and when you finish, they show you on the big screen and announce your name. I think for good measure, I’ll sprint around the bases too. I’ve always wanted to do that in a professional park.

So stay tuned, I’ll keep you updated on my geriatric knees and my running plans. Perhaps some of you would like to join me. I’m not much competition, but I’ll keep you entertained while you run. I know all the prime numbers up to 11,311.

I read that running long distances can weaken your immune system.

Ok, so I don’t actually have any scientific evidence to back this up, but it makes sense. Kinda like not getting enough sleep, except instead of not sleeping enough, you ran your body systems too much. Opposite activity, same effect.

So, let’s add a weakened immune system to the list of numerous negative aspects of running. But let’s also see what else sucks about this stupid form of exercise:

- injuries (knee, calf, foot, etc.)
- it’s hard to do (for most people)
- to get really fast, you have to train like an Olympian
- you get made fun of (”Run Forrest! Run!”)
- running shoes are expensive
- so are gym memberships, if you can’t run outside
- and the aforementioned immune system issue

But all this griping aside, I still love it. And, I’ve already signed up for another half-marathon in October. You may ask me why, but the only answer I can give you is, I’m addicted. Better this than drugs or alcohol, right Mom?

T-

Yesterday morning you weren’t sure you wanted to run this silly race. I don’t blame you… the most miles you had covered in a training run was 6. That’s a big difference. However, you decided to give it a try anyways and look what you did. You made it! And you crossed that finish line in a much faster time than you thought you would! I am proud of you for trying and proud of you for finishing. It took a lot of courage for you to do what you did and I think you did a fantastic job.

Which run do you want to do next?

Love,
A

Sunday’s Half-Marathon was a success. The day after brings minimal signs of damage, which makes the experience even more satisfying.

I finished in 2 hours 12 minutes (just over a 10 minute mile) which was good enough for 1,738th place overall, just seconds from First Place in the Men’s Half-Marathon. Actually, my time is a little behind the middle of the pack given there were 2,983 male runners in my event. The winning time was paced at under 6 minutes per mile! Across all events (Marathon, First and Second Half-Marathons, and 5K) there were over 14,000 finishers.

Our day started at 3:45am with a light breakfast and a bus ride downtown with T to meet my sister. We walked together to the starting line and since T was starting in a wave 30 minutes after us, my sister and I loaded up on the corral with hundreds of other runners at 5:55am, before the sun was up.

It was cool at the starting area because they had music going (Eye of the Tiger) and people were chatting, laughing, stretching, and warming up. And when it was time to go, we moved as a herd. The first few miles seemed to go by rather quickly. My sister and I found a comfortable pace (one we stuck with the entire race) and soon we were running through Chrissy Field. We passed spectators and cheerleaders and volunteers, and all were encouraging.

Then… we neared Mile 5 and came face to face with the hill up to the Golden Gate Bridge. This hill was steep. Not very similar to any of the hills I had trained on, so it was tough. Many people stopped to walk, some keeled over, and others threw themselves over the guard rails. One guy, not much younger than me, came scooting passed us and yelled, “Who put this hill here?” People laughed, but laughed even harder when the fit older man next to me shouted back, “Wait til you’re 60, dude!”

Once on the bridge, our trouble switched from hills to wind, as a noticable cross wind came in off the ocean. I nearly lost my hat twice. It was sorta foggy so we didn’t get to see much, but I had never been on the roadway of the Golden Gate Bridge before so I was still impressed.

After the bridge, we traversed several more hills through the Presidio and into Golden Gate Park. The last mile was nearly all uphill and I would question the coursemakers’ decision on this. (Runners talk about courses being ‘fast’ and this one definitely wasn’t.) Heading into the final curves in the Park, people were lined along the street cherring us on. Within 50 yards of the finish, the crowd was pretty dense and the live band was jamming and people were screaming.

Crossing the finish line was really cool. I felt pride, relief, happiness, and a little disbelief in what we had just done. We saw our family and friends at the end and it was great to have their support. (Thanks to all of you who came, I know how difficult it was to get up early and stand and wait in the wind.)

We managed to complete the run without ever stopping to walk. That was my main goal and I am glad I was able to pull it off. There were questions whether I would do another one of these. Sure! I don’t think I would want to do this course again because of the hills, but I am up for doing another one somewhere else.

I think now that I know I can do it (long distance running, that is) I would like to work up to running a full marathon. After running 13 miles yesterday I can’t imagine running 13 more, but with the right training, I am sure I can do it.