Take it in Stride!

My hamstring issues haven't quite healed, but I'm beginning to see some improvement. While I still have a hard time getting proper leg lift, the constant throb/ache that plagued my running hasn't been as pronounced as it was a few weeks ago. It would be nice to think that I'll be ready to hit a few races and some speedwork in the next few weeks, but I think I'll continue to hold to easy running until I have full use of the leg again. Since the ambient conditions aren't necessarily prime for peak running, I'm actually in a good position to spend some time healing.

Now, that's not to say that I've dropped racing completely. I've run the Uptown 4th of July 5K since its first year, and I didn't want to miss this year’s race just because of a minor inconvenience. My intent was to hold back, ease into the first mile, and follow through with a relaxed finish. Of course, that was before my competitive nature got the better of me.

I did hang back through mile 1, but not as much as I should have (5:27 pace). I felt great pushing through the first mile marker, but that moment quickly faded as I realized that my leg wasn't quite ready for a hard effort. I backed down on mile 2 for a 5:38 pace; however, I pushed a bit on the last half of the race when I saw that I might possibly catch a few of my fellow teammates: Gerardo and Sam. I caught them, but not by much.

I'm not sure of my overall place, but I managed to finish 3rd in my age group with a time of 17:06. Not a bad time, but I'm sure my next race will be better…now that I've got something to shoot for. But this won’t be for some time since I've sworn off hard running until I can honestly say I'm healed.

Good speed and see you on the trails!

I've been struggling the past two weeks with a severe hamstring injury, but thankfully my physical therapy is moving me on the road to recovery - too bad I'm on the slow lane. I've cut out hill running and speed work of any kind in my effort to make things as easy for my thrashed hamstring as possible. It sucks being on the sideline, but if there was ever a time for me to be taking it easy, summer is certainly that time.

But even with an injury, I thought that I'd better secure my spot with the 2009 Houston Marathon (11th in a row for me) since I'm sure I'll be in shape to run (if not race) the marathon in January. Considering that the price tag for Houston's premier running event is about to go up AGAIN ($20 more) to $120 on July 1 and the capacity for the half and full races are at 74%, I figured I better get signed up before it was too late.

Now it’s just a matter of slogging it through the summer.

Good speed!

Last Friday (6/13) I ran a 2000 meter steeplechase with Jeff and a large pack of high schoolers, many of who had recently graduated, at the Rice All Comers Meet. Why would I run it? Mainly because I've never tried it before. Sure, I was risking injury (and possibly a fall into the water hazard), but for me the thrill of a new experience was well worth it.

The barriers were higher than I had expected, but luckily I managed to plant a foot fairly securely with each of my leaps. See, I more or less stepped on each barrier as I crossed over it. I think I only leaped completely over two of the 25 jumps, one of which was a water barrier. And speaking of the water barrier, that hurdle was the worst for me, not so much for the water, but for the drop I had to deal with. I jarred my hips and shins more on that jump than on any of the other ones combined.

In the end, I managed to move up from second to last to maybe 5th to last. Not a big difference, but certainly better than being totally powned. And for 2000 meters of steeplechase, I'm relatively happy with my 6:55 and change finishing time. Would I run it again - you betcha. Will I be sore the next day? Most assuredly so.

Good speed!

Today I and 20-30 runners helped Steve Shepard celebrate 30,000 miles of running with a 4 mile jog around his neighborhood. While it would have been awesome if the 4 miles had clinched the 30K for Steve, schedules being what they are, he won't actually hit his mileage milestone until this weekend (looks like Sunday is the day), but it was close enough for a well deserved party. Way to go, Steve!

Now if I was as organized as Steve, I wouldn't have any difficulty pulling my total mileage in an instant; too bad I'm still using journals and notebooks to log my miles. But now I'm curious to see just how many miles I've logged since I started running in Houston back in 1998. I figure for the 10 years I should have around 20,000 miles, but chances are that the actual number is less. I'll see what I can pull in the coming weeks.

Tomorrow is Friday and that means another Rice All Comers Meet. I was asked a few weeks back by the Flash - he's a recent high school graduate - if I'd like to run the steeplechase with him and his buddies. I've never run this event, so I figured why not. And now, Friday the 13th of all days, I'm going to run 2000 meters interspersed with a large number of barriers. What could possibly go wrong? Just my luck, someone is going to "stick it to me" - spikes and the dreaded water barrier, oh my! Regardless of how I run, I’m sure it’ll be a fun race.

I'm not sure how I'll feel after the steeplechase, Lea, but if I somehow manage to finish it in one piece, I just may be able to help pace you through a 3K. What's the 400 split you're looking at? Then again, you might have better luck with Chris. We can talk tomorrow.

Good speed!

Yes, I'm a Wills Hills Scumbag, or at least that's what I hear is the unofficial name of runners taking part in Wills Hills. A few weeks back one of Houston's prominent runners - he holds his own running clinics throughout the year - crossed paths with a few Wills Hillers, including Will Henderson (the guy who runs the show). I'm unsure of the exact exchange, but I do know that in the end we were branded as scumbags.

Now, I'm by no means an expert on intellectual property rights, but the way I see it, nobody has any exclusive right to hill workouts regardless of where or what time of day they’re held. So if a group of guys and gals want to meet in the morning for some intense hill work without the expense of a paid coach, then they should be free to do so. No one is entitled to the exclusive use of any workout, regardless of whom they are or how fast they are.

And I hear that at the Heights Run this past Saturday the word scumbag was also tossed about - and without provocation. Jeez, get over it already!

Anyway, tonight I made my way back to Rice University for a track workout after being absent for three weeks. It was a painful experience! The session was short: 500 (8 minutes rest); 300 (3 minutes rest); and 150 - all fast. The idea was to hit each leg at race pace, but with full recovery before the next one. I managed to hit the last two splits right where I needed to, but it was the 500 – the first split – that got me. I was totally unprepared for it, and I cratered heavily as I crossed the 400 mark - and then proceeded to run at a slow crawl the last 100. Ugh, so much for my leg speed, but maybe next week will be better.

Good speed!