The Corporate Challenge is a race that happens every year in Central Park and involves an obscene number of runners. It takes place over two days and there are around 15,000 participants on each day. Not only that, but it's only divided into four time groups. This might seem like a lot, but to put it in perspective, the New York Road Runners races are often divided into at least 7 different groups for thousands fewer runners. As a result, there are many people who mistakenly start in a group they're either too fast or too slow for.
The group I was placed in this year was I think about in line with the times I've gotten the past few years but slower than the pace I've been running more recently. This was apparent as soon as the race started and I found myself having to jump off the road and onto the grassy side in order to pass people because it was so packed. I also took a shoulder from some obnoxious guy who was running really fast in the opposite direction. I'm not certain, but I feel like that first mile was really fast because I remember thinking I was much more tired than I should have been after the first mile. The remaining ones were slower and my time overall ended up being 29:15 over 3.5 miles, which works out to an 8:25 pace. Not what I wanted it to be, but also not too shabby. I'm really sleepy or else I would write about other things that I have on my mind. Oh well, something for tomorrow!
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Gold Coast Tri, Here I Come
Last weekend I was casually browsing Facebook when one of the ads on my profile caught my eye. Not surprisingly, the ads that normally fill up my sidebar have to do with various running, triathlon, and general fitness topics and businesses. I tend to ignore them, as I'm sure most of us do. But for whatever reason, I was inspired to click on this ad for a sprint triathlon in (on?) Long Island. Port Washington, to be exact. I examined all the details with glee, happy that not only was it easily accessible from Manhattan, it also had a packet pickup here in the city! I clicked through a bit more to get to registration only to find that the race was full. Drat!
But I was in luck, as spots have since opened up an I was taken off the waiting list. I'm pretty excited about it since it's the first tri of the season but also a bit apprehensive. Although my run has improved vastly over last summer, I've very much undertrained on the swim and bike, so it will be interesting to see how that whole thing balances out.
Since the race last Sunday, I've also been thinking about my marathon goals. Now, I'm well-aware that 4 miles is hardly 26.2, but my pace for that race made me think that maybe qualifying for Boston isn't as impossible as it always seemed to be. I mean, clearly it will be a challenge, but it's one I can now see myself achieving some time in the near future, whether it's this year or next (but probably next). As a way to gauge the potential of this, I'm going to train for speed at the Queens half marathon next month. If all goes according to plan, I'd like to break 1:50. I initially wanted to to 1:44, but I think I'll take it one step at a time. If I hit 1:50, I'll aim for 1:44 the following month in the Bronx.
What else does this mean? Well, a lot of things. What I had in mind chiefly, though, is that I'm going to need a pair of shoes for marathon and half marathon training. Now that I've gotten into barefoot running, I think I'd like to try a shoe that's somewhere between a traditional shoe and vibrams. Something minimalist but definitely with some support. But that is a discussion for another day!
But I was in luck, as spots have since opened up an I was taken off the waiting list. I'm pretty excited about it since it's the first tri of the season but also a bit apprehensive. Although my run has improved vastly over last summer, I've very much undertrained on the swim and bike, so it will be interesting to see how that whole thing balances out.
Since the race last Sunday, I've also been thinking about my marathon goals. Now, I'm well-aware that 4 miles is hardly 26.2, but my pace for that race made me think that maybe qualifying for Boston isn't as impossible as it always seemed to be. I mean, clearly it will be a challenge, but it's one I can now see myself achieving some time in the near future, whether it's this year or next (but probably next). As a way to gauge the potential of this, I'm going to train for speed at the Queens half marathon next month. If all goes according to plan, I'd like to break 1:50. I initially wanted to to 1:44, but I think I'll take it one step at a time. If I hit 1:50, I'll aim for 1:44 the following month in the Bronx.
What else does this mean? Well, a lot of things. What I had in mind chiefly, though, is that I'm going to need a pair of shoes for marathon and half marathon training. Now that I've gotten into barefoot running, I think I'd like to try a shoe that's somewhere between a traditional shoe and vibrams. Something minimalist but definitely with some support. But that is a discussion for another day!
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Over the River
The East River, to be more specific. I may have mentioned this before, but my streak has caused me to take a more pragmatic approach to running. Rather than set aside time for a run, I'd rather run from one place to the other. I've called this a "functional commute" in the past. More and more, I'm finding this to be the ideal way to maintain my streak. The last two days have been good examples. I recently started a sketch comedy troupe with a group of friends with whom I also take improv classes. Our weekly meetings have turned into twice weekly meetings because we have a show coming up. Sometimes these meetings take place at my apartment, but the last couple of weeks they've been at my friend Tom's place in Queens. This is less convenient for me in terms of arriving on time after work, but it provides a unique opportunity for a change of scenery on the running front.
Running from here to there or vice versa is a challenge because it involves crossing the Queensborough Bridge. The bridge itself is 1.5 miles long and, as you might imagine, is half monstrous uphill and half monstrous downhill. This bridge is also featured in the New York City marathon (at mile 16, if memory serves). People often cite it as one of the most difficult parts of the race because of how late it comes as well as the fact that it is, in fact, a huge hill. Between the marathon in 2009 and 2010, another 18 mile long run route I've done four or five times, and the last few days, I'm no stranger to the Queensborough Bridge, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a challenge every time! Not to mention the temperature has been in the mid to high 80's over the past couple of days.
Despite my complaining about its difficulty, I've enjoyed the opportunity to run a different route than usual. Tomorrow I'll be doing a morning run with Jared. Have a good Friday!
Running from here to there or vice versa is a challenge because it involves crossing the Queensborough Bridge. The bridge itself is 1.5 miles long and, as you might imagine, is half monstrous uphill and half monstrous downhill. This bridge is also featured in the New York City marathon (at mile 16, if memory serves). People often cite it as one of the most difficult parts of the race because of how late it comes as well as the fact that it is, in fact, a huge hill. Between the marathon in 2009 and 2010, another 18 mile long run route I've done four or five times, and the last few days, I'm no stranger to the Queensborough Bridge, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a challenge every time! Not to mention the temperature has been in the mid to high 80's over the past couple of days.
Despite my complaining about its difficulty, I've enjoyed the opportunity to run a different route than usual. Tomorrow I'll be doing a morning run with Jared. Have a good Friday!
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Huge PR and Equally Huge Blister
Okay, just a warning about this blister. It's not normal and in fact is quite gross. Do not scroll down too much further if you don't want to be confronted with what is almost certainly the nastiest blister I've ever gotten. You might ask why I'd post such a picture if it's that bad. To answer that question, I'd say that even though it's gross and it hurts, I'm pretty proud of it. It was the result of one of my best races to date!
It ALL started this morning, when I had to wake up for one of the races I signed up for last Friday. After two and a half years, I've gotten the prepwork (lack thereof, really) for these races down to a science. I know exactly how much time I have and I generally don't even bother picking up my race number ahead of time. I know that, even though race bib pickup time technically ends half an hour before the start of a race, it really doesn't end until a few minutes after the race starts. So this morning, after hitting the snooze button four or five times, I rolled out of bed at 8:31. 29 minutes ended up being a perfect amount of time to get dressed, run to the 72nd Street Transverse, pick up my bib, and run back to my corral to start the race. I even had a few minutes to spare!
Once there, I wasn't really able to step into the corral because there were so many people also trying to get in so I sort of waited at the side. After the national anthem was sung we had to wait about 5 minutes before there was any movement in the massive clump-line of people waiting to start. Once we started moving, it took about another 2 minutes to cross the start line. I didn't actually notice what the clock said when I crossed, which plays into what happened later on in the race.
I came out of the gate pretty strong and remember thinking that the people in my group were running slower than I remembered. My pace on the first mile was fast, and when we crossed the first mile marker I remember thinking that I couldn't believe we'd only gone one mile. I didn't see the time there either! We kept going and finally hit the 2 mile marker, at which point I finally saw the time clock read a little over 22 minutes. At the time, I didn't know how much time to subtract for pre-start line crossing faff but I figured 4 minutes couldn't have been too far off the mark, so I calculated that I'd been running for 18 minutes and was probably running a little over 9 minute miles.
At this point in the race, we started hitting a few hills and I felt myself slowing down. I'm not certain, obviously, but I felt like my third mile was probably the worst and I was thinking that as I was running, and trying not to get discouraged and settle back into a comfortable pace. We approached the third mile marker and I grabbed some water, trying as ever to practice an on-the-go drinking technique taught to me by my friend Sharon, who's run something like 20 marathons. I was definitely rusty because I nearly choked on the two sips I took, gave up, and disgustedly flung my paper cup into a trash can before passing the clock and noticing (but not really taking note) that it read slightly over 30 minutes. I kept going for another couple of minutes, still struggling to avoid feeling defeated. Then I thought back to the clock and made a shocking realization. Bear with me as I work through the same simple math I was doing during the race. If the clock read around 22 minutes at mile 2 and then around 30 minutes at mile 3, it meant my third mile was somewhere between 8 and 9 minutes. The mile I thought had been terrible was definitely no more than 9 minutes and seemed like it was probably much closer to 8. Joy!
This gave me a second wind and I rocketed along the West side of the park, finding people to pick off as I went so that I would stay motivated to the very end. When I crossed the finish line, the clock was between 38 and 39 minutes. I knew the results had to be significantly better than normal because, even if I could subtract no time, it would have been better than a 10 minute mile, which has been my benchmark for the past few years.
A few hours later when results were posted, I was stunned to find that my time was 32:29, which works out to be an 8:08 minute mile! The fastest mile I'd ever run at an NYRR race up to this point was 9:20. I can already tell that this is the start of a new, faster chapter in my running career and I am thrilled about it.
It ALL started this morning, when I had to wake up for one of the races I signed up for last Friday. After two and a half years, I've gotten the prepwork (lack thereof, really) for these races down to a science. I know exactly how much time I have and I generally don't even bother picking up my race number ahead of time. I know that, even though race bib pickup time technically ends half an hour before the start of a race, it really doesn't end until a few minutes after the race starts. So this morning, after hitting the snooze button four or five times, I rolled out of bed at 8:31. 29 minutes ended up being a perfect amount of time to get dressed, run to the 72nd Street Transverse, pick up my bib, and run back to my corral to start the race. I even had a few minutes to spare!
Once there, I wasn't really able to step into the corral because there were so many people also trying to get in so I sort of waited at the side. After the national anthem was sung we had to wait about 5 minutes before there was any movement in the massive clump-line of people waiting to start. Once we started moving, it took about another 2 minutes to cross the start line. I didn't actually notice what the clock said when I crossed, which plays into what happened later on in the race.
I came out of the gate pretty strong and remember thinking that the people in my group were running slower than I remembered. My pace on the first mile was fast, and when we crossed the first mile marker I remember thinking that I couldn't believe we'd only gone one mile. I didn't see the time there either! We kept going and finally hit the 2 mile marker, at which point I finally saw the time clock read a little over 22 minutes. At the time, I didn't know how much time to subtract for pre-start line crossing faff but I figured 4 minutes couldn't have been too far off the mark, so I calculated that I'd been running for 18 minutes and was probably running a little over 9 minute miles.
At this point in the race, we started hitting a few hills and I felt myself slowing down. I'm not certain, obviously, but I felt like my third mile was probably the worst and I was thinking that as I was running, and trying not to get discouraged and settle back into a comfortable pace. We approached the third mile marker and I grabbed some water, trying as ever to practice an on-the-go drinking technique taught to me by my friend Sharon, who's run something like 20 marathons. I was definitely rusty because I nearly choked on the two sips I took, gave up, and disgustedly flung my paper cup into a trash can before passing the clock and noticing (but not really taking note) that it read slightly over 30 minutes. I kept going for another couple of minutes, still struggling to avoid feeling defeated. Then I thought back to the clock and made a shocking realization. Bear with me as I work through the same simple math I was doing during the race. If the clock read around 22 minutes at mile 2 and then around 30 minutes at mile 3, it meant my third mile was somewhere between 8 and 9 minutes. The mile I thought had been terrible was definitely no more than 9 minutes and seemed like it was probably much closer to 8. Joy!
This gave me a second wind and I rocketed along the West side of the park, finding people to pick off as I went so that I would stay motivated to the very end. When I crossed the finish line, the clock was between 38 and 39 minutes. I knew the results had to be significantly better than normal because, even if I could subtract no time, it would have been better than a 10 minute mile, which has been my benchmark for the past few years.
A few hours later when results were posted, I was stunned to find that my time was 32:29, which works out to be an 8:08 minute mile! The fastest mile I'd ever run at an NYRR race up to this point was 9:20. I can already tell that this is the start of a new, faster chapter in my running career and I am thrilled about it.
****WARNING: PICTURE OF BLISTER TO FOLLOW****
I wore my Vibrams to this race because I think my form is much better and I tend to run faster in them. The only downside is that I occasionally get blisters. Not all the time, or even often, but when it happens they tend to be pretty large in terms of surface area. This one was no different. I could feel it there even before the race was over but was still surprised to see how large it was once I took my shoes off. Also, it's a blood blister!
Friday, May 27, 2011
Nope, Still Busy
So I was really hoping to be able to be more attentive to this. As it turns out, business continues. The streak rolls on, however. Mostly Phoebe loops and extended Phoebe loops. For reference, an extended Phoebe loop is the normal 1.43 mile loop and then some blocks tacked on for extra distance. 20 city blocks is a mile. When I want to run a 5k, I run an extra 16 (15 plus 1 to account for the .1) to 75th and Madison. When I want to run 4-5, I run to 90th and Madison, and so on and so forth.
In other news, it's once again that time of year when I realize I'm behind on my marathon qualifiers and so sign up for a bunch of races to rectify the situation. Another contributing factor was that the NYRR Sprint Triathlon and Queens Half Marathon were close to reaching capacity. What I've signed up for so far:
It's not on this list, but I also signed up for the Sprint Tri. And on Monday, I'll be doing the Memorial Day Marathon, only I'll probably do the half marathon course. This is the exact same course as the Easter Marathon, plus I expect it'll be warmer so it will probably be a tough run.
It's hot outside today. You know what that means.
IT'S RACE SEASON
In other news, it's once again that time of year when I realize I'm behind on my marathon qualifiers and so sign up for a bunch of races to rectify the situation. Another contributing factor was that the NYRR Sprint Triathlon and Queens Half Marathon were close to reaching capacity. What I've signed up for so far:
ING New York City Marathon Tune-Up
Sunday, September 25, 2011 7:00 a.m.Achilles Hope & Possibility (5M)
Sunday, June 26, 8:30 a.m. (wheelers at 8:20 a.m.)NYRR Celebrate Israel Run Presented by JCRCNY
Sunday, June 5, 9:00 a.m.ING New York City Marathon Long Training Run #1
Saturday, July 23, 7:00 a.m.Queens Half Marathon
Saturday, July 30, 7:00 a.m.ING New York City Marathon Long Training Run #2
Sunday, August 21, 7:00 a.m.Bronx Half-Marathon
Sunday, August 28, TBDFifth Avenue Mile
Saturday, September 24, various starts
It's not on this list, but I also signed up for the Sprint Tri. And on Monday, I'll be doing the Memorial Day Marathon, only I'll probably do the half marathon course. This is the exact same course as the Easter Marathon, plus I expect it'll be warmer so it will probably be a tough run.
It's hot outside today. You know what that means.
IT'S RACE SEASON
Monday, May 23, 2011
My Moderately Triumphant Return
I haven't taken a break this long since I started writing regularly and I feel terrible! But then, part of the reason why I haven't blogged and why I have been feeling bad is also that my workouts have been really under par recently. The only thing I've really managed to do is keep my streak going, which isn't very hard now that I've gotten used to it. But that's going to have to change here soon because tri season is getting underway!
During my blog hiatus I traveled to sunny Miami. As I mentioned in a previous post, I'd hoped to do a tri there the weekend before last. Alas, it was not to be. I didn't find an affordable way to transport my bike in time. I thought I would just rent a bike there (even though the road bikes were all rented out for an MS 150 race) and sign up but even that didn't work out! I ventured from our hotel to South Beach in search of a bike shop that I'd sought out who rented hybrid bikes. Got there, rented a bike, and, since that was taken care of, figured I should sign up for the tri. Big mistake not doing it sooner. It had sold out not hours beforehand. Once again, I made myself a victim of my complete lack of planning and foresight.
On the bright side, I got to do all my streak runs on the beach. Or at least partially on the beach. When I returned the bike to South Beach, I ran the four-ish miles back to the hotel. It was a nice change of pace and I pulled onto the beach for the last mile of it. One thing about Vibrams that I never really considered was how convenient they are to bring places. They take up hardly any room. The downside is that they need to be washed VERY frequently to avoid offending everyone within a five foot radius with the stench they can produce. Did I learn this the hard way? Yes, yes I did.
But back to the story. Running on the beach is not easy and I was pretty grumbly when I first got into it. I mean, yes, I chose to run on the beach but I don't think one can ever be prepared for how difficult a task it is. I had barely gotten accustomed to it by the time we had to leave! On a two of the days I only did the requisite mile, but one of them I did a whole 5k on the beach. All while being chased by a thunderstorm. It was epic. Between maintaining the streak and riding the bike around Miami Beach for a day, it was actually a much more active vacation than I would have had otherwise. So I guess that's something.
In other news, I'm a proud spokesperson for a recovery beverage called reGen! I'll be posting much more regularly in general, but about this in particular. If any of you are local, train, and are interested in trying this out, let me know! Additionally, if anyone knows how to create ads independent of Google AdSense I would love to know how. Firstly to promote reGen, but secondly because my AdSense account was suspended awhile back (thanks, Google).
Oh, one more thing. I decided to get more active with the whole twitter thing. Up to this point, I'd only set one up for myself. I'm still skeptical of it, but willing to give it a try. My twithandle is cheaptriathlete (obvi).
That's all I have for today. Get ready for a busy summer season!
During my blog hiatus I traveled to sunny Miami. As I mentioned in a previous post, I'd hoped to do a tri there the weekend before last. Alas, it was not to be. I didn't find an affordable way to transport my bike in time. I thought I would just rent a bike there (even though the road bikes were all rented out for an MS 150 race) and sign up but even that didn't work out! I ventured from our hotel to South Beach in search of a bike shop that I'd sought out who rented hybrid bikes. Got there, rented a bike, and, since that was taken care of, figured I should sign up for the tri. Big mistake not doing it sooner. It had sold out not hours beforehand. Once again, I made myself a victim of my complete lack of planning and foresight.
On the bright side, I got to do all my streak runs on the beach. Or at least partially on the beach. When I returned the bike to South Beach, I ran the four-ish miles back to the hotel. It was a nice change of pace and I pulled onto the beach for the last mile of it. One thing about Vibrams that I never really considered was how convenient they are to bring places. They take up hardly any room. The downside is that they need to be washed VERY frequently to avoid offending everyone within a five foot radius with the stench they can produce. Did I learn this the hard way? Yes, yes I did.
But back to the story. Running on the beach is not easy and I was pretty grumbly when I first got into it. I mean, yes, I chose to run on the beach but I don't think one can ever be prepared for how difficult a task it is. I had barely gotten accustomed to it by the time we had to leave! On a two of the days I only did the requisite mile, but one of them I did a whole 5k on the beach. All while being chased by a thunderstorm. It was epic. Between maintaining the streak and riding the bike around Miami Beach for a day, it was actually a much more active vacation than I would have had otherwise. So I guess that's something.
In other news, I'm a proud spokesperson for a recovery beverage called reGen! I'll be posting much more regularly in general, but about this in particular. If any of you are local, train, and are interested in trying this out, let me know! Additionally, if anyone knows how to create ads independent of Google AdSense I would love to know how. Firstly to promote reGen, but secondly because my AdSense account was suspended awhile back (thanks, Google).
Oh, one more thing. I decided to get more active with the whole twitter thing. Up to this point, I'd only set one up for myself. I'm still skeptical of it, but willing to give it a try. My twithandle is cheaptriathlete (obvi).
That's all I have for today. Get ready for a busy summer season!
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
90 Day Streak Mark
I know my streak pales in comparison to, say, the ones on this site, but back in February I did not expect it to last this long. I still don't imagine it will last a year, but who's to say? All I know is things have been getting much crazier now that springtime is here. It's going to take a lot to keep my training on track.
As an exciting sidenote, I'm going to Miami with some friends and I'm hoping to do the Tri-Miami while I'm there. I haven't signed up yet because I'm trying to figure out what to do about a bike. Airlines will generally let you check them in a cardboard bike box, but they charge a $150 fee. If I got a hardside bike case, I could check it as a regular suitcase, unfortunately these can cost anywhere from $200-$500. Granted, it's reusable, but still quite pricey. The other alternative is renting a road bike. It's sort of dependent on whether or not I could rent a road bike specifically. I may not be a pro, but I also don't want to pay the fee to race if all that's available is a cruiser.
So that's what's happening, briefly. Streak summary: NYRR Run and Learn 4/25, Phoebe Loop 4/26, 5k on Upper West 4/27, Herald Square to home 4/28, Phoebe Loop 4/29, Phoebe Loop 4/30, Midtown to Kips Bay 5/1, Phoebe Loop 5/2. Too many Phoebe Loops. The bigger problem, though, is that there's not enough time in the day!
As an exciting sidenote, I'm going to Miami with some friends and I'm hoping to do the Tri-Miami while I'm there. I haven't signed up yet because I'm trying to figure out what to do about a bike. Airlines will generally let you check them in a cardboard bike box, but they charge a $150 fee. If I got a hardside bike case, I could check it as a regular suitcase, unfortunately these can cost anywhere from $200-$500. Granted, it's reusable, but still quite pricey. The other alternative is renting a road bike. It's sort of dependent on whether or not I could rent a road bike specifically. I may not be a pro, but I also don't want to pay the fee to race if all that's available is a cruiser.
So that's what's happening, briefly. Streak summary: NYRR Run and Learn 4/25, Phoebe Loop 4/26, 5k on Upper West 4/27, Herald Square to home 4/28, Phoebe Loop 4/29, Phoebe Loop 4/30, Midtown to Kips Bay 5/1, Phoebe Loop 5/2. Too many Phoebe Loops. The bigger problem, though, is that there's not enough time in the day!
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