I have to have a blog title?

I  made my last trip down to the Eastlake Sam. trail today for my last double-digit run before Chicago next Sunday. The hydros were racing on the lake, it was overcast and humid, and I made the run an easy progression run running the first two miles with Cherie at ~9:20 mpm, then going from 8 mpm to 7:10 mpm over the next 11 miles. I stopped taking my 2400mg dose of IB (for my left foot/ankle injury) a couple days ago as I want the drug out of my system before race day, so my foot/ankle ached a little in the latter part of the run and afterwards.

It was clear and cool this morning - perfect weather for an easy recovery pace run.

I did 7 miles today after waiting for the weather to warm up a bit. I wanted to run in a T shirt and wanted to get 2 MP miles in. For whatever reason my HR was high from the very beginning, and the 2 MP miles were off pace and way high on the HR. Whatever ....

On the bright side it's only 4 more days until I get to take a break from running for a while!

My legs felt heavy and slow on today's easy recovery pace run -not what you want two days before a marathon! Ah well, it looks like it's supposed to be 80* in Chicago so I'll be taking it easy anyway.

Finally it's rest and healing time! I've been waiting to get this over with for a couple months now. I registered for Chicago months and months ago with the hope it would be my big goal race (and big PR) for the year. Unfortunately I had a tough late summer and fall but resolved to run the race anyway as I'd paid the entry, the hotel, and the airfare. Also my wife was hoping to BQ in Chicago, and I felt she had a great chance at it.

The Chicago Marathon was a nice experience. The parts of the city the race goes through were diverse and interesting. The buildings are fun to look at, and the people were very nice. The race organization was the best of any megathon I've been to (which I confess only includes Boston, New York, and now Chicago). The start corrals were very effectively managed and easy to get in to, and there was plenty to drink on course.

My goal for this race expired back in late July with a back injury I couldn't shake for nearly a month, followed by a medication reaction that dramatically affected my blood pressure and pulse rate, followed by a foot/ankle tendon injury in August I'm still suffering from. I reduced my weekly mileage from a goal of running in the 80s miles per week to running around 50 miles per week with all runs being recovery and easy pace but for a very few slower progression runs. I was able to get in several  runs of at least 20 miles, so even though I wasn't going to be fast I felt I could easily handle the distance - and I made it to the race AMA (against medical advice).

I decided to just run the race by effort monitored by my HR and take what I got. I expected to be able to run in the 7:00 to 7:20 mpm pace based on a 10k time I ran several weeks ago. Running slow for so long definitely doesn't make me faster!

It turned out my waning fitness was the least of my worries however. Chicago once again had an atypically hot day in store for the race. The temperature at the start was already near 70*, and it was in the 80*s at the finish. I resolved to drink more on course than I ever had before and run with a smart, conservative effort and finish with no further injuries.

My time at CIM last December put me in the A corral, and after dodging the pee puddles at the start I quickly established a pace and thereafter just monitored my HR to keep it in the 171~173 range. I ran a race at a 170 HR (on a much cooler day) way in April and still got a 3:01, and my PR came at an average HR of 175 last December. I drank one cup of Gatorade and one cup of water at each of the 18 or so aid stations, and followed that up over the last several miles with a third cup over  my head. At around the half way point it seemed like lots of people really slowed down. I probably passed several hundred runners over the last half - and I had lots of energy left for a fast last 2 miles. I finished in 3:08:49 too easily.

I think I was too concerned over my lack of fitness and my foot injury to see what I could really do even on a hot day with sub-par training. I believe I ran far too conservatively based on how I felt at the end. I could have kept running at that pace for several more miles. On the one hand it was great to be passing people for half the race, but I almost feel guilty I didn't leave everything out there like many of the people I passed. The heat I'm sure made my HR higher than it would have been for the effort, and my plan to run based on HR probably cost me several minutes - but in the end what matters is I'm still bipedal and will be ready to go again soon I guess.

I couldn't find  much in the news, but I can tell you the ambulance sirens were pretty  much going non-stop for several hours. A great many runners left the course in the back of a rig with needles in their arms - and I didn't!

ps. My wife, Cherie, had a tough day with the heat and some late hamstring cramps and missed her BQ with a 4:04 (needing a 4:00). She did get a 2+ minute PR though. I've been telling her she did great on a less than ideal day, that a PR is something to be proud of no matter what, and that she'll get to Boston and there's no hurry.

My wife and I spent today exploring the waterfront downtown area of Chicago. We had already checked out of our hotel, so we walked several miles with our bags slung over our shoulders. It was good for the legs but hard on the shoulders!

Day four of  my 'reset' recharge and injury rehab break underway now! I'm headed out to the hills for a week of deer hunting, so even though I'm not running I'll still be getting some hiking in and enjoying nature and camaraderie.

Even with a couple week (at least) break it looks like I'll demolish my mileage goal for the year of 2010 miles. I'm at around 1960 already with 2.5 months to go. I'm really hoping to build off this base next year!

I came back from deer hunting a day early due to poor hunting as a result of hot days and cloudless bright moonlit nights. I did get lots of hiking in though, and enjoyed some terrific views of Mt. Rainier, Mt. Stewart, and the fall colors.

Mt Rainier in the morning light.

Lightning-struck tree - impressive.

Self portrait.

My huge Chicago blood blister finally popped inside my hiking boots, and the hot spot I had on my little toe from the marathon resolved to a full 'cape' of my little toe - all the skin from the whole toe came off in one piece! Like a  hood! I've never had that happen before.

I'm looking forward to trying to get a bike ride or two in before the weather changes, but I have work all weekend with teaching EMT class on Saturday and doing refreshers on Sunday for the Ski Patrol. I'm also hopeful of running again in another week or so.

I kicked stuff out of the way and pulled out the bike trainer this morning for an easy 5 miles. I'm already frustrated about not running, especially when I see runners going by out my window. It's going to be tough keeping away from it for as long as the dr. wants me to.

Nice weather outside! After an easy 11 miles on the indoor spin bike it's time to brave the elements and go search for my hot tub cover.

We had a surprise sunny weather day today, so I went for a road bike ride. I rode ~ 20 miles to a friend's house in Sammammmmmish, then transfered to one of his mountain bikes to try and break a bone in the Duthie Hill mountain bike park. This place is pretty cool for a young, fearless teenager with lots of features (huge jumps, rails, doubles, drops, etc). I took the 'chicken' path around lots of the bigger ones, but still got a good workout in without any permanent damage to myself. I ended up with around 27 miles total, which is the  most bike miles I've put in since spring. I'm sure my fanny will feel it tomorrow.