Gu & Snot Bubbles

It was that kind of morning on hilly Highway 350 this morning. While the temperatures weren't as advertised it was still a blustery 27 degrees out there. I strongly considered not going. I contracted some type of cold or sinus funk on Thursday. It was worse yesterday. Last night, I told the wife if I felt sick this morning I wouldn't go. 

I woke up at 7 a.m. almost hoping the funk would be worse as the forecast was for 18 degrees and I didn't feel like another bout with the Screaming Barfies. When I woke up I wasn't that sick. I convinced myself to get dressed and jumped in the car. I'm glad I did. I had a really nice 15 mile run. The sinuses and snot were an annoyance, but I still enjoyed the run. 

John Aiken introduced me to a new term this morning. He said he was running with a group last Thursday in the cold and the group titled themselves the 'Nucking Futs'. 

I ran in sub 20 degree temps on Thursday morning, too, with Greg and Lee. We ran on Highway 45 from Eastview to Guys and back. Going South I was pretty hot, but when we turned around to run North back to Eastview the wind cut through my clothes like a hot knife through butter, pardon the cliche. Another degree colder or 10 minutes of running and the Screaming Barfies may have returned. 

Luckily, the wind wasn't too bad this morning.

Another highlight for me today was that I kept up with Koach. I told him at the 10 mile mark that this was the first time I'd ever seen him at 10-miles. Usually, I say hello and goodbye to him at the starting line. While I wish I could credit my improved speed for this, I think it had more to do with Koach being tired. He's been training hard for his latest stunt. I guess I caught him loafing. 

Good run.

It was a light week. I'm almost ashamed to publish it, but here it is anyhow:

Tuesday: 6 miles, 54:35, 821 cal

Thursday: 6 miles, 1:01:54, 845 cal

Saturday: 15 miles, 2:19:06, 2067 cal

Total: 27 miles

Rainy Saturday

The devil and the angel were debating in my ear at 5:30 this morning. I looked out the window and it was raining. The devil was telling me to get back in the bed. The angel said, "You have to run. You'll feel like a slug if you don't, and you'll feel great if you do." 

The radar on the Weather Channel showed a line of rain just to the west of Corinth, Mississippi. I knew without a doubt, if I ran, I was going to get wet. Luckily, I had told Greg Cooley and Lee Rodgers I would run with them this morning. Greg had assured me he would call me by 6 if the run would be scratched due to weather. There was no call. I couldn't leave my boys hangin', so out the door I went. The only dry mile was the first one, but it was a good run and I had fun running and chatting with Greg and Lee. Ten miles in the rain felt really good. Here's my week:

Monday: 6 miles

Tuesday: rainout

Wednesday: 6 miles

Thursday: 6 miles

Saturday: 10 miles

Total: 28 miles

Next Saturday, if conditions are right, I would like to run at least 14. 

ANITA BETH UPDATE: She swam two times this week in the lap pool at Shiloh Ridge. I'm proud of her for not letting the fractured hip get her down. If she keeps it up she'll probably be in better shape than ever when the Doc clears her to run.

INJURY UPDATE AND GOAL UPDATE

ANITA BETH'S INJURY

Okay, so by now everbody knows AB is crippled, but the diagnosis is slightly different following her visit to the orthapedic on Tuesday. Anita Beth DOES have a stress fracture in her hip. She'll be on crutches for at least two weeks, or until the pain stops. She should be able to resume running in three months. 

What does Anita Beth's injury mean for me? Well, first off I'm completely bummed that she is not going to be able to run in the short term. I have really enjoyed sharing a common interest with her other than work. I feel like running has been great for our relationship. We had so much fun at the St. Jude Marathon last month! But, she's only going to be out three months. My job now is just to encourage her to rest and to help around the house as much as I can. She'll be back at it in April! Faster than ever!

TRANSROCKIES OUT FOR 2009, BUT LOOK OUT 2010

The Transrockies is a no-go, but that's okay. I feel confident that the Transrockies will happen again in 2010 and you can bet Anita Beth and I will be there, or at least try to be there. With an extra year of training under our belts, the mixed division better watch out!

ADJUSTING THE GOAL

As for my running, I'm shifting my goal to focusing completely on getting fast. It may not be realistic, but I'm shooting for a 3:10 marathon before my 35th birthday. That gives me about 18 months to work my time down from 3:57. Impossible? Maybe. But it's going to be fun trying. I'm going to take my training up a notch and see where that gets me at the Country Music Marathon in April.

THE BLOG

I'm thinking I should change the url of the blog if for no other reason than to not mislead 2009 Transrockies participants. Therefore, the new url is http://jakeanitabethrunning.blogspot.com/

Get well soon AB! I can't wait to run with you in a few months!

Transrockies

Anita Beth had her bone scan today. The good news is she does not have a stress fracture in her hip. The bad news is the Radiologist thought he saw the beginnings of a stress fracture in her femur. Here's what happened to our Transrockies trip:

Mississippi Blues Marathon and Half-Marathon

1-03-08

I ran the Mississippi Blues Half-Marathon today.

All I can say is, wow, that was one HOT, HILLY course!

The temperature was every bit of 70 degrees. 

I saw one guy handing out popsicles it was so hot. But even more ridiculous than the heat was the hills. It was one short steep hill after the next.

At about mile 10 I was really huffing and puffing as we were entering the Belhaven neighborhood. I told the closest guy to me, "I had no idea Jackson was so hilly," to which he casually chuckled as said, "Yeah, where you from?"

"Jackson," I replied. Never saw that guy again.

But seriously, it was a very hilly course. I would not recommend it to anyone for their first half marathon or marathon.

However, I did really enjoy the race. It was a pretty course, and very well run. The Expo and packet pick-up on Friday was very well organized and made the race look very big-time. My only real complaint was that on day this warm I could have used a couple more water stations. 

My finishing time was about 1:52, which beat my goal of 1:56, so I was pleased. I say about 1:52 because I forgot to stop my watch as I crossed the finish. The highlight of the race for me was my family being there to greet me at the finish line. There's something about knowing your girls are waiting for you that really helps you through that last mile. Check out the pics.

Here's my training log for the week:

Tuesday: 6

Wednesday: 5

Saturday: 13

Total: 24

I took it easy to be sure I'd be fit to run Saturday. I'm looking foward to resuming my regular schedule next week.

UPDATE: My official time in the Mississippi Blues Half-Marathon was 1:52:13.