Christmas Eve

It's Christmas Eve here in Colorado. I'm at my parents house for the holidays. We just got back from 2 days of skiing up in the mountains. Friday was Breckenridge, today was Vail.

Some great skiing today. It was perfect weather, not very crowded at all, and tons of snow. Packed powder and powder. Spent the day dodging trees in the back bowls. Had tons of fun, but my legs are objecting to the work.

The week leading up to now has been a whirlwind. A bunch of workouts ( including a 5900m swim on Wednesday morning ), wrapping up projects at work, shopping for presents, and trying to get the occasional bit of sleep.

I'm here until Tuesday, then it's back to work for two days, until I start another 4 day weekend for New Years! Ahh, life is rough. :)

Merry Christmas ( or other holiday of your choosing :D ) to all!

Aviator Dave

For David Fielding - May 30, 1967 - December 18, 2005

High Flight

Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds–and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of–wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,
I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air.
Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue
I’ve topped the windswept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or even eagle flew.
And, while with silent, lifting mind I’ve trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

–RCAF Flight Lt. John Gillespie Magee Jr.

Catnaps Rule

I went for a run around noon. It's a nice sunny day, about 15 degrees, and just a little bit of wind. Stayed warm during the run, but I always get a little cold when I'm done, during my cooldown.

I came back in, took a nice warm shower to warm back up. I had a cup of oatmeal and a mug of tea. Nice and super cozy. But wait, it gets better!

I wandered upstairs, and glanced in the guest bedroom. This room faces west/south, so the bed was fully in the sun. My cat orbit was sprawled out on the comforter, doing what cats do best. I decided that it looked like a good idea. So I sprawled out on the bed in the sun and promptly dozed off.

Woke up about an hour later, feeling nicely refreshed, and quite warm from the sun. Perfect for me, since due to the short days, I don't get to see the sun very much. What a wonderful lazy Saturday afternoon, I think I need to do this more often.

Running for Miles

I took a quick trip to Denver this weekend to visit my parents in Colorado. I needed a short trip before the end of the year to keep my mileage plus status. Turns out the Denver was just the right distance away.

It was a morning flight out on Saturday, and a return flight on Sunday evening. I got to meet my parents new dog, Kiley, a border collie. Very very smart and very very energetic. I think she played fetch the whole weekend.

The weather was totally different than Chicago. I went for a run today before coming back. The sun was out, the temp was about 45, and no wind. So, being acclimated to running in sub-zero temperatures, that was fine by me. I enjoyed a nice run through Cherry Creek park in my shorts and a shortsleeve shirt. Quite a change from just a couple days ago for sure.

Weekly Update

• Mon - 5
• PM Bike 1h30 (trainer ride)
• Tue - 6
• AM Run 35m
• PM Swim 45m
• Wed - 7
• AM Run 1h16 ( the infamous ice run )
  
• PM Weights + Core 50m
• Thu - 8
• AM Swim 1h15
• PM Bike 1h (trainer ride, big gear work)
• Fri - 9
• AM Swim 1h15
• Sat - 10
• Rest Day and fly to Denver
• Sun - 11
• AM Run 55m
  

Cool Running

Brrrrrrr. We're in the midst of a pretty brutal cold snap in the midwest. Of course, that doesn't stop me from running outside. I really really really dislike running on treadmills so much that I'll subject myself to all kinds of weather in order to keep running outside.

This morning, it was maybe 0 degrees F. I say maybe, as that was what the temperature was being reported a couple hours later after the sun came up. So figure more likely a couple degrees below 0. Then there was about a 5-10 mph wind. That all adds up to really freakin' cold.

The plan for this morning was 20 min zone1 warmup, 6 miles for time, 10-15 min cooldown ( cooldown? ). I bundled up with two pairs of running tights, a wicking shirt, a heavy weight bike jersey ( for the pockets and to add a bit more on the core ), 1 lightweight fleece, and my running jacket. Add gloves, hat, and my reflective vest, and I'm all set for a nice 5am run in subzero temps. Throw two fuelbelt water bottles (~7oz each) into the pockets, add a turtle fur in another pocket in case I decide I need it ( I didn't ) and walked out the door.

I set out, and after about 10 minutes, was starting to warm up nicely. Hit the 20 minute mark and took off. Did I mention this was in the pre-dawn dark? Not exactly light outside. Oh, and to make things more fun, the running path doesn't get plowed/shoveled, so it was kinda chunky in a few spots.

I managed to pull off the six miles in just over 46 minutes, or about 7:40 per mile. I'd hoped to run it faster, but considering the conditions, I've now decided that I'm pretty happy with that time. Give me a couple more months of running, and I should be hitting a even stronger pace. Woohoo!

Oh, and here's a picture of what I looked like a couple minutes after I got back. It melted a bit, but you get the general idea:
















Yes, those *are* icicles hanging off my chin.

Slipping and sliding

The Race

Well, I survived the race. I managed a fairly respectable time too, all things considered. Came in first of 4 on my team, and second overall of all the club members that raced. Of course, the really fast guy wasn't racing. There were just over 1,000 finishers, so it was a bigger field than I was expecting.

I ended up finding a thin enough pair of wool socks to fit into my running shoes, and then fashioned some makeshift gaiters out of duct tape to keep snow from getting in at the ankle. Decided that there wasn't anything I could do about the shoe getting wet, other than finish fast, and change. That strategy worked pretty well.

Overall time was 42:36 for the 8k. About 8:30 pace. Considering the terrain, that is pretty good. There were some gnarly hills that were slow going. The pack really jammed up and it was hard to go at the pace I wanted to, there was no way to pass. Not to mention that normal running shoes + a couple inches of fresh powder on top of leaves = slippery! There were some fun obstacles, including a fence, marsh, frozen stream, several fallen trees, another marsh, and a couple steep hills. Definitely a lot more difficult than your average road race.

There were some real crazy people. A few girls wearing running shorts and sports bras. A couple guys just in running shorts. It wasn't *that* cold, but it wasn't exactly that warm either. It was about 20F maybe, with a couple mile an hour wind. I don't really have anything to prove, so I stayed warm in my multiple layer system.

I'm definitely going to invest in some good trail/winter running shoes, as my coach has informed me I'm going to be doing some more xc/winter races. I think that'll go on my wishlist for xmas.

Weekly Wrap

• Mon - 28
• Rest
• Tue - 29
• AM Run 1h10
• PM Massage ( ahhhhhh! )
  
• Wed - 30
• PM Swim 1h20
  
• Thu - 1
• AM Run 1h
• PM Swim 45m
  
• Fri - 2
• Rest
  
• Sat - 3
• AM Run 35m
  
• Sun - 4
• AM Run XC Race

The rest week is over, and it's back to work. This week should be fun. 4 Runs, 3 Swims, 2 Bikes, 2 Weights. One of the runs includes a 6 mile time trial. Should be interesting to see what I can push myself to do.

Let it snow!

Actually, please don't. See, I've got an 8k cross-country race in the morning. I'm running as part of a team from my new tri club and it's currently snowing. It's expected to keep snowing until we get a couple more inches, stopping sometime tomorrow morning. I can't just bag the race as I kind of might be the team captain. Doh!

I suppose it can't be too bad, after all everyone runs the same race in the same conditions. It'll be a great character building experience. ( I cringe when I say that... ) The thing is, I have no decent winter running shoes. Just your regular normal everyday trainers. The only wool socks I have are way too thick to fit inside my running shoes.

What to do... what to do...

My snowshoes ( both pairs! ) are at my parents house in Colorado. Who ever thought I'd need them here?! Not me apparently. With the expected 6" of accumulation, though they're almost going to be mandatory.

I guess I'll just suck it up and find a way. I'll bring my normal running shoes, run in those, and make sure I've got a dry/warm pair of socks and shoes, as I have a feeling whatever I wear for the race is going to be soaked at the end.

Official report to follow after the events tomorrow, provided I don't succumb to hypothermia or frostbite. Wish me luck, and send warm thoughts to my toes.