The Race for Life is my third race back from the lava rocks of Kauai. Its actually part of a giant event called the Walk for Life, which brings thousands of people to downtown Columbia to raise money and awareness for breast cancer research. I’ve done this event each of the last three years to support a friend, Dana,  and my aunt Sue, both breast cancer survivors.  My wife and kids do the walk as part of “Team Dana”, and normally I do the race and run back to walk more than half the course with them.

I wasnt so sure about the race this time, as each week is a complete crap shoot as to how the gimp leg/foot is going to feel. Things have slowly been getting better. The week before the race I managed a total of 15 miles, which brought the grand total to 25 since July 15.  So basically Ive put in about a half week of my usual weekly mileage in 2.5 months. But hey, I’m running again, so no complaints here. I could still be playing Candy Crush on the couch.

I was able to run sub 8 pace at the Race to Read 5 miler and just over 8 pace at the wednesday night riverfront group run, so I thought I might actually put some effort into this 5k. I figured anything sub 7:30 would be great. The course certainly would help – its an essentially flat out and back with only one major hill about halfway in. There is a net drop in elevation, as you pass the original start line about 2.9 miles in and plummet down a mountain into the road on the other side of Finley Park for the finish. They used to finish in the park itself, but I found out they changed it last year when I sprinted into an open field and found..no one there.  Luckily I was able to get back to the course and maintain my finishing position last year, about 20 seconds later than originally planned.

I showed up about 45 minutes early with the family and let them go down to the meeting area for the walk at the bottom of the hill. Did about a half mile warm up and felt pretty good. Just wanted to loosen up the toe some. The 10k started 15 minutes before the five and I was able to see Eddie Vergara, Angel Manuel and Steven Johnson leading the pack. Lois Leaburn, Teresa Harrington,  Joe and Luke Naylor, Kate Ferlauto, Ted Hewitt, Kana Rahman, Missy Caughman, Dina Mauldin and George Summers were some of the familiar faces.  AFter the dust cleared from the 10k, I tried to scout out if I had any age group competition. This race has been a pure trophy hunt in years past, and Ive usually finished in the top 5 despite my decidedly less than elite status. This year would require a real stroke of luck, as I figured at best I’d finish in 22:xx. I didnt immediately recognize any age groupers. Code was down in Aiken at the Whiskey Road 10k, Angel was doing the 10k of this event, and Trophy was doing a long run with my marathon training group, so it looked fairly wide open.  PLexico showed up with no one else in his league to challenge him. The 621 ninjas did send a pretty fast contingent with Hedgecock, Erin Miller, Randy Finn and Coke Mann (as well as Steven in the 10k). Coke hardly races so I had forgotten he had already aged up, but it turned out Randy had taken his place in my brutal 35-39.  Veteran racers Pete Poore, John Gasque, Rocky Soderberg and Alex Ponamarev were all at the 5k start, smartly choosing the shorter race (the 10k is a compelte sufferfest).  CRCers Andrew Touzel, Emily Richbourg and TUS teammate Sydney Frontz were also on hand. Sydney was out to pace a friend at her marathon pace, so I hoped to stay ahead of her.

The start was a complete mob scene. There were hundreds of people in the race, and quite a few were starting out like it was a 400 meter track event. Even Rocky blasted by me, probably accessing some of that 1966 SEC mile champion speed. I settled into a comfortably hard pace. I wouldnt say the left leg felt normal, but it at least felt more like a part of the rest of my body , instead of like dragging a stiff wooden peg.  The first mile is awesome in this race – straight through the heart of downtown with a slight downgrade. I kept trading places with a blonde haired girl who was running in weird bursts of speed and then slowing down. There was also a pack of teenagers who were doing the same thing, except completely walking in between intervals of sprinting.  Im pretty sure this is not Jeff Galloway method. Im feelign pretty good about the first mile until I see everybody turning left in front of me. WTF? I know the course turns right, having run it the last two years. Instantly the race feels like a complete disaster, but I try to keep up some hope the course changed this year without me knowing. Nope. I see us making the turnaround already and mixing in with the back of the pack 10kers. We ended up cutting off a few blocks and that nasty hill, so I knew this was going to be really short. This took the wind out of my sails, but I tried to keep up my pace nonetheless. First mile ended up being 7:15, so better than I thought. Mile 2 was tough. Fortunately the gimp leg was cooperating but the lungs were complaining that this was even more difficult than level 75 of candy crush. Just sucking a ridiculous amount of wind. Turns out couch surfing, TJ Hooker marathons and Flying Saucer excursions do not do wonders for one’s cardiovascular fitness. Go figure. This is about the time when I realized that youre actually going up a slight incline all the way back home.  After mile 2 (7:18) it starts getting a little congested because of all the 10kers, so I lose track of who I’m actually racing against. Despite feeling like death, I cant help but try and throw down a blue shoe kick since I know this is to going to be way short. I pass Sara Hutchins, someone who I’ve never met but remember from my obsessive race result tracking of 2009-2010.  Just when I’m feeling good about the kick I’m laying down, a black woman about my age (enigmatically listed as S SUMP on the results) just chicks the hell out of me from nowhere. I go after her like a rabid sasquatch and overtake her on the last small hill of the course beofer plummeting down towards the finish line. Gimp leg , understandably, is not fond of rapid downward acceleration, though I’m still going six something pace. I start to turn the last corner when damned if I dont get SUMPED as she passes me at  Allyson Felix speed, and theres no way I can respond, especially with a sharp left turn on the bum leg. Truth is, she would have kicked my ass even at 100 percent I suspect. I cross the line in 19:38, 2.76 miles by my Garmin and 7:08 pace. 6:46 pace on the last 0.75.  Very pleased with the result despite the course misdirect and epic Sumpage. I was on pace for a possible sub 22, so I’ve made up the equivalent of 2 years in 2 weeks at the 5k distance.  Nicer to be at 2009 pace than 2007. The leg is getting stronger so I’m hopeful this will continue. I had to run back to my family and Team Dana, but I ended up placing 3rd in age group, 17th overall. 

In the 5k, Plexico had an easy win. I suspect he mailed it in after the misdirect, because he wasn’t too far off his full course 5k times. Hedgecock finished 2nd in 16:34.  Heather Costello tok the women’s win, barely beating out Erin Miller, who Im sure would have had a PR on a full course. Randy finished 7th and Coke 11th, In the age groups, Sydney coasted to first in the kids , i mean 20-24,  division in 19:49. Andrew Touzel won the 30-34 while Sara Hutchins took the 30-34 women. Since they only went 1 deep overall, Erin ended up first in age group, while the SUMP finished 2nd. Gasque captured the 50-54 while Alex and Pete went first and third in the 60-64.  Jan Hardwick won the 65-69 with an amazing 21:59. Margaret Holt took the 65-69 women while Rocky easily won the 70+

In the 10k, Eddie Vergara won the overall easily, with Luke Gleissner taking second. Angel and Steven Johnson finished 3rd and 4th despite being directed way off course in he second half of the race. I think most of the 10kers ran a full length, correct course.  Ive never heard of the female winners, but they were Nicole Heilman, Michele Wyatt and Sara Wagner. Ted Hewitt ran a strong 45:15 to finish 15th overall and 3rd in the tough 40-44 age group. Sadly, I could not capture on film the same face of pain from last year, though Ted was definitely blue shoeing it at the finish. Familiar names in the 10k include Tim Rollason-Reese and Jessica Chiu winning the 30-34 and Meme Spurgeon placing second in the 40-44.  Teresa placed 2nd in the 50-54,  John Hancock placed second in the 65-69 while Henry Holt took the 70+.

Stop number 2 on the comeback tour is the Race to Read 5 miler in Lugoff.  I decided I would actually sign up for this race in advance because there was no way I missing this one. Race to Read was my masters thesis in the study of trophy hunting, beautifully executed in 2010 to bring me my first holy grail: the overall win. The race turned into a brutal battle between myself and Greg Howell, two age groupers dead set on claiming the ultimate glory. I passed Greg with a quarter mile to go and kicked so hard I almost donated some Honey Bunches of Oats at the finish line. But it was sooo worth it.

My luck has been decidedly different over the past 2 years, with the Race to Read getting on the Palmetto Grand Prix as well as our Tour de Columbia. Suddenly people who were actually fast started signing up. Damn them.

But they cant take away my moment of glory, so I always come back. This is actually an awesome race even without the trophy moment. Betsy Long, who is a runner herself, knows how to put on a good event. The course is a beautiful rural route through the rolling hills near Lugoff, with a start and finish at Doby’s Mill Elementary. The start features a short incline followed by a mile of paved flatness. Mile 2 is almost all on a gentle downhill gravel road. You then turn back on a paved road with a big climb. After the 5k point, theres a turn then long downhill to mile 4. The last mile has a killer hill at the beginning then a weird detour onto a curvy paved nature trail on the elementary school grounds with a finish near the start in the parking lot. Despite all the rolling hills, times have been pretty fast on this course.

I showed up about an hour early, not knowing if I could or should run the race. I still fight some stiffness in my left toe in the mornings, and the whole left leg is probably operating at 60 percent. I ran the dry run , 3 miles two days later and had an aborted try 2 days after that when I tried to run first thing in the morning and it just didnt feel right. Grand total of 10 miles since July 15.

I jogged a warmup with Billy and Trophy and after debating back and forth at least 10 times,I decided to go for it. This was scary, because there is no shortcut on this route other than skipping that nature trail at the end. Once you start, you either have to continue or head back the way you came. I kept having these horrible images of me limp walking half the race, with everybody passing me and finally the cop car flashing right behind me.

Yes, the Trophy was there.  With a perfectly good, free Gov Cup preview run the same morning, I can only surmise that the Trophy was out for Blue Shoe blood.  He can only ride out that 2010 Richmond marathon victory for so long. Early on, I was thinking Billy would win this thing, though power couple  Bedenbaugh and Shannon showed up a short time later to pretty much seal the overall trophies. Still, there were no other elites there. Sharon Cole has won this thing in the past I think, and she was back to defend her title.  Sure as the sun shines in the morning, Gasque, Henry Holt and Ponamarev were on board. Pete was surprisingly missing though. Birgit, Andy mikula, James Hicks and Valerie Selby were the rest of the CRC contingent. Mark Robertson and his two sons showed up, so figured they would be good to pace off.

With the start, the small field kept surprisingly together, as there were no Bishop/Plexico/Ashton types. A quarter mile in and I can see the mini pack of Shannon and Billy (with Bedenbaugh pacing) leading the race and its killing me. I’m always racing with those two when I’m at 100 percent. Oh well, I can’t be thinking of trophies with the gimp leg.  Speaking of the gimp leg, even when the toe loosens up it still feels different from the uninjured leg, so I really have to concentrate on the actual mechanics of putting one foot in front of the other. On the plus side, chugging along at 8 minute pace is not that bad cardio-wise despite the 2 month+ layoff. I keep up with the Robertsons for awhile then move up to Ponamarev pace, and pass mile 1 in like 8:05. This is blazing in comparison to my first race back with the 9:15 start. After the mile marker is another mile of all dirt road. The cushioned surface feels good and I speed up just a touch, passing a couple of people. Up ahead I can see two targets: Hicks and Ferlauto.  Just short of mile 2 we turn off the gravel road onto a paved one, and Hicks looks back. I try and wave a sign of support but maybe he took it as notice I was gunning for him. Maybe I was. With the toe actually working to push off I ramp up the pace and draw near James. We hit a long nasty hill before the mile 3 mark and I know I’ll catch him, because McGimpy toe loves uphills. I pass James about halfway up the hill and see my next two marks – a guy in a blue shirt (later identified as Garrick Douglas)  and the Ferlauts.  The hill has shrunk the once huge gap and I’m closing in just after mile 3. Unfortunately, the course then turns back towards home at this point and its downhill for a half mile. As much as Senor toe loves the uphill, he is not so fond of the downs. Garrick and Michael start to pull away again. Just after mile 4 is the worst hill on the course, the one I used to catch up with Greg in 2010 and capture my glory.  I try and really push it up the hill and this is the first time I’m really starting to suck wind. Pace has dropped into the low 7’s by time we crest the hill and start the nature trail. I’m really gassed from charging the hill but I catch up with Garrick, who resists and then finally relents to being blue shoed.  The nature trail veers out into the open and blows my cover on the stealth approach to Ferlauto.  Michael is looking like toast but the combined effect of the finish line nearing and the palpable shame of possibly being McGimped by one of his coworkers is enough to motivate him to kick it in.  He’s too far away once I get out of the trail, and my kick is probably 50 percent right now, so I have no chance. I still mount a little bit of headless chicken mode, just to make sure Garrick doesn’t decide to return the favor. I cross the line in 38: 50ish, 7:47 pace.

Pretty happy with the result – a big increase in pace from my first race back 2 weeks ago, and that was a 5k. Toe and knee felt OK afterward. Still far from 100 percent but heading in the right direction.

Bedenbaugh won the overall – he paced Shannon for 4 miles then decided to lay a beatdown on the rest of the field for the win. Billy actually wasn’t too far behind though for 2nd. Shannon easily took first female, though Birgit and Sharon Cole has strong times to place overall as well. Oh, and then there was Trophy. Trophy placed third male and claimed a rare head-to-head Blue Shoe triumph. Don’t worry Lady McGaha, I’ll be back.  They only did one deep in age groups, though the prizes were really cool – hand painted gourds by the Doby’s Mill kids.  Alex Robertson made his dad proud with a win in the 13-19, and Andy Mikula represented CRC well in the 25-29. Valerie Selby won the 55-59, while Alex Ponamarev took the 60-64 and Henry the 70+.

http://www.strictlyrunning.com/results/13race2read.txt

“It’s a long road up to recovery from here, a long way back to the light”  Frank Turner

OK, so its been a long summer. Nine weeks ago I was at my absolute running fitness pinnacle, racing a near 19 flat 5k in the dead of summer, and all jacked up to begin my attempt to qualify for Boston in November at Savannah. All of that crashed down, quite literally, in the span of about 3 seconds on a cliffside in Hawaii. Incredibly I survived, not only with my brain intact but no spinal or otherwise permanent injury. What I did get was a whole lot of everything else: completely wrecked forehead with 17 sutures, a nice bite through my lower lip which later required an emergency root canal on the tooth that did it, broken left hand, 2 severely sprained wrists, hugely swollen left knee contusion later diagnosed with a hairline femur fracture, and a severely dislocated left toe which caused a sesamoid fracture.

Recovery has pretty much been a bitch. Once you’re used to churning out 40-50 miles a week, being completely sedentary for the first three weeks was my own personal version of waterboarding. Kudos go out to my wife who dealt with having 3 elementary schoolers and a 4th very large, irritable child at home most of July. On the flip side, I’m now a freaking awesome Candy Crush player and I’m all caught up on the 1982 season of TJ Hooker. I went back to work August 4th and I’ve never been so glad to leave the house in the morning. I also started going back to races as a spectator. It was great to get out, though when you still look like you got your ass kicked, you’d better be ready to explain why….about 2000 times. But that’s OK, it was worth it to get off that damn couch. Watching races has been bittersweet – great to see my friends again, not so great to be relegated to the sidelines of the sport you love.

Oh and the “rehab”. I wasn’t prescribed any specific physical therapy. Its not like my freakish legs needed more working out. Trying to figure out how to maintain some level of cardio fitness has been challenging though. Turns out you have to basically assault an elliptical machine or spin like a cracked out spazoid on a bike to try and get your heart rate up to running levels. I will hand it to the stairclimber though…I sweat like a whore in church every time I jump on that thing.

My first attempt at running was 2 weeks ago, did 2 miles two days in a row. The first time was great, the second time the toe wasnt happy. I did find out that week my left sesamoid bone (little peanut m&m size bones that float in the tendons below your great toe MTP joint)  was indeed in two pieces at my follow up appointment. It had been like that since the fall, but hadnt been caught until the weird “sesamoid view” x ray. I had a CT of my foot the week after and now still have to see a specialist to see if surgery will be necessary. Doc was on the wishy washy side about continuing to run on it. I decided to give it another 2 weeks, which brings me to the race this post is supposed to be about…

The Dry Run has always been one of my favorite races. Its small, very “flat and fast” in Shandon, and usually held on one of the first cool mornings of the fall. This years edition was no exception, mid 60’s at race time. I swear I was just coming to take pictures at this race, but I got a wild hair just before heading out the door and grabbed my checkbook. I got there about a half an hour early and signed up, and suddenly I was all scared, hopeful this wouldnt be an epic disaster. Of course I had very little expectations for this race, and planned to treat it purely as a fun training run. For some reason there was a really small crowd this year. Usually there have been 70-90 registrants, but this year it was just over 40. At least a quarter of these were CRC peeps, so at least we represented.

Mike Hedgecock always does a great job organizing this race, even if he did lose the vote to continue the ironic pint glass awards (proceeds go to FAVOR, a substance abuse recovery group). He told me that Eric Ashton and Kathryn Cavanaugh were already out there somewhere, which basically sealed the two overall wins. Angel was on hand to easily take third. James Hicks, Andrew Touzel, John Gasque, Henry Holt, Alex Ponamarev, Meg Weis (with Luke in stroller for his first race), Geary MCAlister, Michele Parnell, Pete Poore, Del Soule were all part of the CRC contingent.

It was a little weird at the start. One, the tiny crowd made it feel pretty sparse out in the street, like a moderate size group run. Two, I wasnt toeing the line this time, but  almost all the way to the back. With the start, Eric took off like the beast he is and soon he and the pace car were out of sight. I took it super easy in the first quarter mile, and it seemed the toe was going to hold up. I admit, it was hard to see almost the whole competitive field leave me in their collective dust. I was probably trucking along somewhere north of 10 minute pace to start off. By the first half mile, the toe started loosening up further and I felt more confident in pushing off of it, which quickened my pace considerably. I could see Henry and Pete pretty far ahead and I tried to remain in the same ballpark with them. I hit the first mile at about 9:05, which was OK, since I figured anything sub 30 would be great after the last 9 weeks. Knee felt almost normal, though certainly the leg strength wasn’t there.

After the successful first mile, I felt a little more assured everything was going to hold up structurally, so I tried to ease into my old (i.e pre-cliff dive) easy run pace of around 8 minutes. This actually felt great – the stride started to flow more naturally and I started catching up to people. With the bright sun and a nice breeze on a cool morning, I’d be lying to you if I said I wasn’t a little emotional. The moment was a little dampened by the fact that this was a lot harder from a cardio perspective than 2 months ago. Turns out reaching level 76 on Candy Crush doesn’t do wonders for the lungs.  I hit the second mile in like 8:18 and finally caught up with Henry and Pete. I passed some guy who I didn’t know and he actually cheered me to finish strong. A nice change from the attitude of the pack I’m usually racing, who would give up their position over their cold, dead, bodies. Me included. The last half mile I was kind of overcome with the euphoria of being able to finish and even have a respectable time, so I felt a little bad about blue shoeing Ponamarev and Gasque in the last stretch, but they know I take no prisoners!  I turned the last corner and was shocked to still see 25’s. I resisted the natural urge to headless chicken a sub 26 and crossed the line in 26:06.  The 2nd slowest 5k Ive run, but definitely one of my favorites. There were moments in that Hawaii ambulance when I wasn’t sure this would ever happen, so to say I’m grateful for every day on this planet since is not an overstatement. Being able to do what I love is just a tremendous bonus.

But hey, lets get to what’s really important: age group placement! I finished 2nd in the 35-39 and even finished 14th overall. Not bad for a gimp toe.  Eric and Kathryn of course won the overall, and even finished 1-2 as well. Angel finished 2nd male/3rd overall with Alex Wilcox taking 3rd male. Meg , coming back after her baby, took Luke on a brisk stroll and ended up 2nd female. Not bad. Michele Parnell took 3rd. Geary easily won masters without that pesky Tisdale guy to challenge him. In the age groups, Michele’s daughter Brianna won 1st in the 2-14. Andrew Touzel is also coming back from injury and rocked a 23:40 in a PR first in 30-34. He did have to suffer the shame of James Hicks crushing an all out blue shoe to nip him at the line. He won the 35-39. John Gasque ran a strong race and finshed just 5 seconds behind me to win the 50-54. Ponamarev also easily claimed the 60-64. Racing legends Peter Mugglestone and Henry Holt took the 65-59 and 70+ categories. They only went one deep with the awards, and now just have a crystal coaster instead of the pint glass. Geary , who probably has a mound of age group and overall awards in his home gave me his. Hopefully I can keep it as a memento of the start of the road back!

http://www.strictlyrunning.com/RESULTS/13DRYRUN.TXT

So I usually reserve TDBS for race reports, but since this incident will definitely put a wrench in my race plans for the next two months, I figured it was worth a post.

Mary and I celebrate our 15th anniversary this month, and we always said we’d go to Hawaii for a “second honeymoon”  since we were dirt poor and a week before starting med school in 1998 when we got married. We had planned for the big trip to be for our 10th, but our oversized Nordic bundle of joy (aka Drew) arrived the day before our anniversary in 2008, and the romantic getaway turned into Mr Friendly’s to go at Baptist Hospital.

Fast forward five years and Mary planned out an awesome 8 days in Kauai, Hawaii’s northernmost island. Kauai looked awesome as there was all the scenery and activities of the other islands with a lot less people. We were booked at the Marriott resort on Kalapaki beach, which was amazing, and we had all kinds of things planned for our week.

We got there on Thursday and basically ate dinner , checked out the beach and went to bed, since the time difference is 6 hours behind. the east coast. Between getting up at 4 am EST and 2 mai tais, I was done. Friday we spent all day in Waimea Canyon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waimea_Canyon), called the “Grand Canyon of the Pacific” and hiked a couple of miles up on the trails there. Saturday we did the helicopter tour of the island, which was incredible, except I wanted to puke most of the ride. Damn that motion sickness. Sunday we went to the North shore, site of countless pro surfing competitions and a really bad 80’s movie (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Shore_(film)) . Seriously I think they showed it daily on HBO in 1988.  We hiked 2 miles from Ke’e Beach to a remote beach called Hannakap’ai which is tucked in between the cliffs of the Napali coast. Pictures of this place do not do it justice. Basically a ridiculous over-the-top caricature of paradise, except its real. Sea caves, dramatic lush green valleys, turqouise-clear water, white sand.  Mary was a trooper for finishing the 5 mile out and back route, because it was no joke. Lots of elevation gains, rocks and quite a few sheer drop offs. On the ride home I was devastated because I couldnt find my iphone with all the pics of Hannakap’ai. Mary ended up calling it when we pulled over. I was relieved when I heard it buzz then about had a stroke when I opened the door and saw it precariously balanced on the EDGE OF THE ROOF. Somehow it had survived about 3 miles of backing up, stopping/starting and going over about 4 one lane bridges. I must be one lucky guy, right?

The next morning we had plans of catching the Hawaiian sunrise. I had run a route to the lighthouse at the entrance to our cove the day before and had found a good spot for us to go about a half mile north of our hotel by the golf course. Here you could see the sun coming up with the waves crashing against the shore, which was all jet-black lava rocks. Unfortunately we got up at 5:40 am, which is already late by Hawaiian sunrises. Mary and I basically rolled out of bed and headed out the door. By the time we got to the place I had scouted on my run, it was already pretty light. We had a nice vantage point on the dirt path before the shore but then I saw a green patch in between the rocks below. Mary was a little nervous about going down the steep path in her flip flops, so I decided to check it out to see if she could make it. I took 2 steps and…

Fell suddenly on my butt, and in a moment of sheer terror, felt the momentum carry me straight over the edge. I have one memory of looking at the lava rocks from about 2 stories up, then the next sitting on them in a lot of pain. I could hear Mary yelling to me, but I just kept wondering what the hell happened???. I could feel blood all over my face and hands, and I was sure my left foot was broken. Mary finally made it down to me and asked me for my phone (since she didn’t bring hers in the rush to leave). I searched my pocket and there it was…without a scratch. Mary called 911 and tracked down a runner on the trails above, who in turn got security out to our location. Somehow, between two large, brave dudes (who risked falling themselves) and my sheer adrenaline, I hopped up the cliff path on one leg, and EMS luckily showed up right in time. They strapped me in a cervical collar and a headboard and whisked me away to the only real hospital on the island. Wilcox Medical.  Apparently the paramedics found it unbelievable that a guy with his face bashed in is complaining primarily about his toe. Hey, a runner has his priorities. My face wasn’t that pretty to begin with. At this point I wasnt quite sure what was more incredible – that I my vacation just got thrown in the crapper in 2 seconds, that I almost died, that somehow I was fully alert despite head butting a lava rock at 20 mph or that my iphone is apparently immortal.

I hit the ER and the staff is super nice. The doc (Scamahorn) does a once over and then sends me to the radiology suite to have every last bit of my anatomy scanned. He tried to give me opiates, but I was scared to take them – my mom vomits like the exorcist on them and I had never had anything stronger than tylenol. So I turned him down. After all the imaging, the results came back. Three orbital and one frontal skull fracture, but miraculously no brain bleeds ,  trapping of eye muscle or notable outside deformity. Melon head is good for something, I guess. My left 4th metacarpal of my hand is broken,  a lot of soft tissue swelling in my left knee but no break, and a wickedly dislocated left toe (but again no break). My toe must look pretty gruesome because all I can see are the faces of people looking at it, and “disgust” would about sum them up. Dr. Scamahorn comes back and shoves a needle in my toe so he can try to reduce (i.e. pop it back in place) it. Feels like he stabbed a steak knife into my foot followed by trying to yank the thing off with all his might. Definitely secnd guessing the opiate decision now, but too late for that. No luck on popping the toe back. Ortho comes in a few minutes later and does some Breakin 2: Electric Boogaloo move with my toe and all of a sudden I can move it again. Success!! He then says its unstable and wraps it up in a cast, saying I’d have to be off my feet for 4 weeks. BUMMER. My left hand gets the same treatment. Having a hand and a foot out of commission relegates me to a “platform walker” which makes you look even more feeble than a regular one, if thats possible. Before PT can come to get me my walker, Dr Scamahorn comes back with the unenviable job of putting my face back together. I saw my face a few times in reflection in the radiology suite , and it looks like I got in a bar fight with Anderson Silva. Every color of the rainbow is represented on the right side of my forehead and eye area. And lets not forget my left lower lip, which got cut by my teeth completely through. Three or four lidocaine shots that feel like an icepick to the eye, 25 sutures, and about 45 minutes of painstaking work and I’m all patched up. After all of this I finally relent on the opiate front and take some IV morphine, which is ” a hell of a drug”. No nausea luckily and needless to say I felt a lot better. They were possibly going to discharge me, but one look at my pathetic self in the platform walker with PT and Scamahorn decides to push surgery to admit me overnight for observation. This was a good thing, since they tried to transition me to oral Percocets at some point, and I felt nauseated while experiencing a color and light show when I closed my eyes that Jerry Garcia would be proud of. Turns out just plain low-dose oral morphine and toradol did the trick. I got discharged the next day and had the depressing experience of being at a beachside resort without being able to enjoy any part of it. Also, total stareapalooza everytime I left the hotel room, not that I blame them. The stares only increased when I started the long, painful journey back home. USAir did try to get people to change seats, but no one was willing to give the gimp a break for the seats with more room. Luckily Mary and I got seated together, though all the way in the back of both flights. People did seem a little uneasy about the beast in the back with the towel head, black eye and dark sunglasses though.

So, no races for a while, but given that I’m alive with no brain or spinal injuries, I have nothing to complain about. Hopefully I ‘ll use this time to rest up and come back stronger. Still hoping for Savannah, but I may need to step back to the half. I have some follow up appointments this week that will hopefully give me a better idea on my timeline for recovery. Thanks to everyone who has sent me a kind word or checked up on me since the accident – I’ve been overwhelmed by the support!

The Born in the USA 4 miler and relay is an anuual event on Independence Day put on by Strictly Running. Run on a modified Cold Winters Day course, the race typically draws a pretty competitive field, though it varies considerably with it being held on a holiday. SR decided to ramp up the elite factor for this race this year by offering “time bounties” of $1000 for a sub 19 and $400 for a sub 20 (21 and 22 minutes for women).

Although I was clearly tempted by the cash for a sub five minute pace 4 miler, I opted for the 2×2 relay instead. Relays have always been phenomenal trophy hunts. Not only is this the undercard of the event, but the impression of most people is that the 2×2 in this race is for people incapable of managing the epically long distance of 4 miles. But they offer 50 bucks for the winner, and I have no shame mowing down soccer moms, beer bellied dads, same day race shirt wearers and kids for the opportunity at glory.

The first time I did the relay was in 2010 with Trophy, with our team aptly named “Trophy Hunting“. I had no idea what to expect and was surprised to see a fairly small crowd at the relay point 2 miles in. I waited for Trophy, who came in way slower than he said he would, but then I  realized I was the first person to leave the zone.  With sheer lust for the overall win, I about donated breakfast at the finish line but was able to hold the lead. No matter that we were slower than 8 other individuals, we took our 50 bucks and our watermelon prizes with great pride to the accolades of like 5 people who stayed around all the way to the end of the award ceremony. It was beautiful.

Have you ever seen someone so maniacally happy over a check and a watermelon??

I guess other, actually fast, people took note of our ridiculous win, because since then the relay has grown significantly. We were nowhere close in 2011 and I skipped the event last year since I was in Folly Beach.

But “Trophy Hunting” part  III was back in action this year. Or maybe not… Trophy had been laying low the last couple of weeks when I text him (Trophy doesnt believe in verbal phone communication) and he’s saying something about a hurt calf. Mind you, this is 48 hours before the race. Before I can decide whether “hurt calf” is really “beach weekend with the girlfriend” or “its too hot“, Trophy gets the Code to sub in for him. Code is a freak about relays. Hand him a relay oppourtunity and he’s as giddy as a schoolgirl. A pale, hairy schoolgirl with a big lump on her ankle,  but you get the idea.  Trophy Hunting was back in business.

I gave Code the second leg, because historically he’s been faster. Its pretty close right now. We were both going to shoot for under 12 minutes. Leg 1 is kind of brutal though, since you pretty much climb a very long hill right off the bat and then face another nasty incline just after the mile mark. The last .75 of the 3 miles is pretty flat to downhill though.

Code and I carpooled to the race and got there about an hour early. Most of the Columbia scene was there, which tends to be the case for the Strictly races. I had already stalked the registered relay teams and started to get a little excited that we could pull off the upset win. I saw David He (i.e. 17:59 at Jailbreak) had a team, and my suspicions were confirmed that Angel was his teammate when I got to the race.  Doh! I could feel my trophy slipping away.  Brian Clyburn and Joel Pierstorff  (Road Testes) and Ken/Kenneth Vowles (Team AEIOU) were our other known competition.  Being the leg 1 guy, I had no idea what the other teams looked like, since everyone starts together with the 4 milers. I was hoping to try and keep Angel in sight.

We started in the decrepit parking lot behind Coplon’s that looks like a war zone. Big pot holes and puddles. I had started in the 2nd row, so I was trying not to go plowing through all the water while avoiding getting trampled from behind too. Just after the mini steeple chase portion is the brutal Trenholm Rd hill. Its not steep but it lasts forever. Its tough for me to cover at 2 mile pace. I actually have no idea what 2 mile pace is, since I tend to run 5ks like a headless chicken anyway, but I figure its 5:50ish. I am definitely not doing 5:50ish on the hill, plus my lungs are trying to find their way out of my chest. Why am I doing leg 1 again??? Fortunately there’s a long decline after you scale Mt . Trenholm with the mile marker pretty much in a valley. They have clocks at each marker and its just over 6 minutes when I get there (actually a 6:08 by Garmin). The wind suckage has subsided slightly. I’m still getting Yergered, which is bothering me since he’s doing the 4 mile. He did say he was aiming for 6 minute pace though. Angel, who crushed me on the hill, is not too far ahead now.  Just when I want to pick up the pace to try and blast out the second half, they throw in that aforementioned nasty incline, which starts the gasping again. Long downhill after this. Near the bottom I draw even with Rob and realize I have a half mile to go. We’re both wearing the Team Utopia South singlets so I try to focus on our Monday night 800 meter sufferfests at USC track.

I surge head of the Yerg just in time for a photo op, and then really try to drop the hammer. I’m catching up with Angel, but of course he’s starting to kick it in too. Suddenly I round the corner and the exchange is right there. The clock registers 12 minutes just a step or two before I cross, and Code blasts off like a beast.

After catching my breath, I try my best to guide the Diesel home, but he catches a bad case of the walksies on one of the hills on this “flat and fast” course, so I drop him on my cooldown.  If only I hadnt given Trophy the camera at the start. Later I  find his son Brady, who’s having a rough day but still battles to the finish. I keep telling him to man up and not be a wuss like his dad. OK, not really.

When I get to the finish , I find the Code ran almost exactly the same split with a total time of 23:59, just breaking the 6 minute barrier. I thought this put us in second, but later we realize there were actually two teams of younger guys even faster than the David/Angel combo, knocking us down to fourth. Damn meddling kids. Its all a moot point anway, because in the relay its winner take all. Brian and Joel’s wives Jennifer and Amanda (aka the awesomely named ” Ovaryachievers”) end up winning the female relay, while the coed division is won by a father/daughter team slower than the Ovaries. Any ladies up for a trophy hunt next year??

http://www.strictlyrunning.com/results/13BUSA.txt

https://www.facebook.com/alex.mcdonald.3139/media_set?set=a.10151719556035419.1073741855.777475418&type=1

4 miler race results from the CRC newsletter, because I’m lazy, and hey I wrote it anyway:

Taking home first place and 450 bucks was the appropriately namedMichael Banks from Charleston. Banks blasted a 19:14 , crushing the course record in 4:49 pace. USC Upstate alumnus Gilbert Kemboi battled Banks most of the way but fell just short in 19:24 for second. USC grad and Pal-metto runner Robert Razick took 3rd in 20:46. On the women’s side, Heather Hunt took overall honors in blazing 5:52 pace at age 38. Heather Costello and Samantha Hughes finished together just under 25 minutes to round out the top 3.

Age group honor roll:Brady Ward managed to endure a Blue Shoed monkey on his back in the second half to claim 2nd in the 2-10. Parker Roof cruised to 2nd in the 11-13 while the Golbus twins dominated the 14-16.“Trackstar” Eddie Vergara had to settle for third in one of the most brutal 20-24 age groups ever, running a 5:43 pace. Even more rough was the 25-29, with Tim Jeffreys taking 2nd behind Kemboi in 21:07. Ridunkulous. Jen-nifer Lybrand ran a strong race and took 3rd on the female side. In the 30-34, Jessica Workman, Amber Todd and Tricia Roland cleaned house, while Team Utopia South coach Justin Bishop made the pace hot by winning the male division. Ja-son Dimery placed second. In the 35-39, Rob Yerger missed his goal time but had his 1st in AG to console him. Ken Cobb thankfully left his pink speedo at home and placed third. Naomi Rabon returned to her runner girl roots and placed 2nd on the female side. In the 40-44, Shannon Iriel continued her tear through the racing season, crushing the competi-tion by almost 6 minutes. The 45-49 had lots of familiar fac-es, with Paul Reardon, Jeff Brandenburg and Greg Howell sweeping the category. Sherry Fadel took 2nd on the female side. Birgit Spann obliterated the 50-54 by exactly eight minutes, while Billy Tisdale and Howie Phan took top honors among the males. In the 55-59, Larry Bates continues to dominate, while Mike Compton picked up third. Lorikay Keinzle was the class of the women’s field, with Carol Wallace finishing second. Lynn Grimes took an easy first in the 60-64, while Fred “Squirrel” Mullen and Alex Ponamarev finished 2nd and 3rd among the men. Del Soule and Ken Lowden battled it out for first and second on the 65-59. Nancee Sneed took top honors among the women. All the top 70+ elites were on hand for this race, with John Sneed winning first over Arnold Floyd and Henry Holt.

But don’t forget us relayers. Two miles all out on this course is no joke. Taking first in 21:11 was the men’s team “RV Champs 2x”, while the decidedly cooler named “Ovarychievers” of Jennifer Clyburn and Amanda Pierstorff took the women’s title in 28:44. First coed team was “Juice Box” in 29:01. Other teams competing included Angel Manuel and David He’s “Run like the Wind”, my Trophy Hunting (with Code subbing in for Trophy last minute), Team AEIOU with Ken and Kenneth Vowles, Road Tes-tes with Brian Clyburn and Joel Pierstorff and Team Weber with Rob Weber and his daughter Katie. Taking 13th overall and first in the costume contest was the middle school beast team “Freedom Foxes run Fourth” of Marie Demetriades and Bri Hartley.

OK so this post is a little late, because I feel a little shame for falling off the wagon. I ran 10 hard miles on Friday morning and even went to see “Man of Steel” with the wife and kids until 9:30 pm. I was all set to run with the 621 ninjas the next morning when the addiction struck at 10 pm and I was back on the computer, looking for any race I could find. I scoured my usual sources and came up empty until I checked out the last bookmark I’ve added, Carolina Running Company. And there it was…the Lickety Split. Its in Hartsville, which just barely makes my one hour drive limit, but is actually a race Ive done before in 2011. This is in the dark period of the Blue Shoes, a 6 month era after my 2010 Richmond Marathon implosion that was the veritable Middle Ages for my blog. They had race day registration – so I was in.

This is actually a really well done race. Its put on by the YMCA there and features a well marked, if challenging, course with timely awards and nice facilities (the Y itself). Its also OG country, and I swear everybody in Lee county knows Robbie. A local celebrity. Masters beast Paul Reardon also calls Hartsville home.

Hartsville is surprisingly cool. Its at least 20 minutes from 1-20 and pretty far from both Florence and Columbia, but its about the hippest rural town I’ve ever come across. There’s a quirky coffee shop, thai food and a spa in just the small area I went through. They also have Coker College and the  Gov School for the Arts. Pretty interesting place.

This course is tough though. Somehow theyve found every hill or incline in Lee County. You essentially run past Coker, down a long decline, followed by some rolling hills. This culminates in a brutal climb back up right at the 2 mile mark, with an essentially flat finish. Did I mention its in mid June in South Carolina? Its not going to be cold, either.

I meant to show up an hour early but the trip took longer than I thought. You have to go through Bishopville and metropolises like Lydia and Cypress, and I am always fearful of  small town police.

I did a couple miles to warm up before the race. Legs didnt like it one bit after the hilly 7:30ish pace 10 miler from Friday. Guess I was going to see what I had on tired legs. Didnt know hardly anybody there except for Paul, Nicole and the OG. Jay Nester was MIA. Erin Roof and her daughter were actually there for a pageant, but were on hand to watch from the aforementioned funky coffee shop (http://www.midnightrooster.com/).

With the start, I was surprised how many people were kicking my ass right off the bat. With only 2 known players in this game, I was at a loss whether any of these guys was for real. Mile 1 started off flat, then plunged down a hill, followed by some surprisingly tough little inclines as you weave on the side of the mountain. I hit mile 1 at 6:07 by the marker but my Garmin didnt beep back until 6:21. Legs were not loving it. The good thing was the heat wasnt too bad (about 70) , though you could definitely feel it with the high morning humidity we have in SC. I lost touch with Paul and another shirtless older guy by this time, so I didnt knwo where I stood in the race. I had a glimmer of hope at a trophy hunt for an overall placement before the race, but I think I had already resigned this hope by then. I was trying to stay with the OG but he was really getting it. I kind of latched on to him. I figured I was at least 8-9 people back at almost 2 miles in, but then we hit the beast of hill on Wood something rd. People started dropping like flies as the OG powered up the mountain with a large blue-footed monkey on his back. I didnt look at my mile 2 split. By the time we reached the flat last half mile or so, I was hurting pretty bad. Legs had no spring and every time I surged Robbie had an answer. He was not going to give up easily. Plus, I know he has a wicked kick of his own, having destroyed me at the 2010 Get in the Green in the final 100 meters, beating me at my own game.

(Above) The OG crushing my spirit in the 2011 JA 5k in Shandon

Finally, with about 400 meters to go, I blasted into hyperdrive and went “all in” for taking him down. I passed him in the final curve and  flew down main street deathly afraid of Robbie returning the favor. What I didnt even notice is how quickly I was closing in on the next guy. I made a conscious decision not to headless chicken it and try and overtake him at the line. I figured we were battling it out for 5th place or something, and I knew my time was going to be on the slow side anyway.

Nope, it was for third. I had been locked in a mano y mano with Robbie for so long I had lost sight of the race at large. So I settled for 4th place, 19:27,.  A little slowish for me but I’ll take it with the hills and lead legs. I was finally able to return the favor on the OG for the above pic too. Luckily, did not miss out on cash or trophies, or I would have been devastated. Yes, I am that sick. Awards were YMCA hats, which are nice…except for people with freakishly large craniums. Paul crushed it out there with a low 18’s win, and the OG has obviously returned to form with a 19:30 for 5th. Oh, and I did win my age group. The Lickety Split wins the prize for the weirdest AG’s. Mine was 36-43, the mid-life crisis category I guess. I also ran into Amy “the Tiny Terror” after the race, as she was up in Hartsville for her husband’s HS reunion. We had to get a picture of the best running blogs in Columbai and Charleston, right? Or maybe I just want to look even more like an albino sasquatch next to her.

http://www.carolinarunningcompany.com/results1.html

The Jailbreak is in its seventh year , and I think this marks my fifth year running it. The race starts and ends at the Lexington County detention center and goes to benefit the Lexington County Sheriff’s Foundation. They always have tons of police out volunteering and Sheriff James Metts makes an appearance to give out awards.

For whatever reason, this race is insanely competitive. Yes, they give out prize money for the overall winners, but that does not explain the other 50 or so going sub 20. Last year a guy (Scott Wietecha) ran a 14:47 to win. Nuts. I finished 26th with like a 19:34 and barely got 3rd in AG. And that was a weak field for this race. I’m thinking this may be the goal race for a lot of people, since its the only event for Memorial Day weekend and its basically the last chance to race before Columbia begins its annual descent into hell…also known as  summer.

I was unsure of what I’d be capable of in this race. Last week I had an abysmal run at Red Bank but I was technically still recovering from being sick. I had put some good training in over the past couple of weeks and gave myself 2 days off before this race….an eternity in Blue Shoes time.

Although this race is usually on the warm side, they couldn’t have asked for better weather this year. Cool..very cool, like in the low-mid 50’s. In Columbia. In late May. For those of you that don’t live here, that’s practically an Arctic blast for this time of year.

Showed up 45 min early and already the place is crawling with some blazing fast peeps. Just driving in I see the SR elite ladies (Kenzie, Shannon, Erin) , Kathryn Cavanaugh, John Charlton  and David He. I did a warmup with the grandmaster beasts of SC, Billy Tisdale and Geary McAlister. Trophy and the Code are there, along with all the Diesels (even Roxie).  Ken Cobb and Angel showed up, further dimming my age group chances. Amy and her mom Valerie, along with Joyce, Sydney, Tracy Meyers, Travis Moran, Ken and Kenneth Vowles are all there for Team Utopia South. Other CRCers included Marie Demetriades, the Holts, Rocky, Birgit, Jeanna Moffett, and Ashley Horton. Meg Weis is back post baby and on the road to kicking my ass again. OJ Striggles, Eric Ashton , and Jason Dimery were some more people that would destroy me. The Plex was noticeably absent.

I actually line up a couple rows back at the start, because I’m standing in a sea of SC running legends, and I dont want to get trampled. Good thing I outweigh most of them by at least 30 pounds. Amy is standing next to me and nervously waiting for Justin to show up and guide her. For a few tense moments I thought I might have to step in but the “A standard” showed up with just a couple of minutes to spare. The start is nuts. People blasting out of the gate, dodging and pushing. Thankfully they have a start mat so you can have an accurate chip time.

The whole first mile I try to balance out the urge to crush it on the flat part of the course. I know the first mile and a half are basically flat to downhill, followed by some roll and then a gradual uphill last mile, which is pretty brutal if you’ve gassed yourself early on. See proof:

Yeah, that was Jailbreak ’09. That’s Greg Howell (who I didnt know at the time) looking all cool and smooth, and me looking like I just got shot in the back, or had a stroke, or both. Beautiful.

Anyway, I’m hating life because I’m used to being able to run without too much interference. But with all the competition, its like I’m in the middle of a huge pack, all doing about 6 flat pace too. I hit mile 1 at 6:03 by Garmin, though the actual time caller gave me about 6:10. There’s a long steady downhill after the mile mark and I admit, I got lazy. I figured I would let gravity take my sasquatch physique down the hill at a decent pace. But Howie passed me, then Erin Miller, then Shannon, maybe Billy too.  I havent slowed much, so these guys must be killing it. I latch on to this pack and try to keep Angel and the Code in sight. Cobb has already left the rest of the 35ers for dead. Its a battle for 3rd since OJ is on our age group and actually probably wont place overall in this monster field. I try not to panic because this course has played to my strengths in the past – hill climbing and finishing speed. One only need to look at the header to this blog to see the epic 2010 finish, leaving poor Trophy in the dust, him wondering what could have been.

There’s a long incline after the water stop at 1.5 miles, which gives me an opportunity to power up the freak quads and break free of my pack. Some kid blue shoes me on the ensuing downhill. I’m always flopping around and doing all kinds of unnecessary braking on declines, like a semi in the truck lane. Finally we make a turn at the stop sign on Roberts street and its go time – a long steady incline to the finish with a flat stretch at the top. Somehow I’ve caught up with Amy and Justin, and I think for a second that I’m absolutely crushing it, but then I realize she must be having a bad day, since she’s fading. I pass them with just over a quarter mile to go, and Bishop tells me its 400 meters from the next stop sign. Of course he’s basically jogging and speaking in full sentences while I’m gasping for dear life. So I throw down as hard as I can once I pass the sign. Everybody starts getting reeled in as I step further into the pain cave, walking the thin line between puking, collapsing or both. I pass Angel with about 200 meters to go, though he had told me earlier he was just going to 10k pace this race. Hey, I’ll take it. Suddenly the Code comes into view. I had already given up on catching him, but now he’s so close. Its coming right down to the wire as the kick blasts into 4 minute pace..and BAM we basically cross the line together at 19:14. We should have held hands…orrr maybe not.  Actually I’m pretty sure he got me by a half step. But damned if I didnt blast through the finish sensors at mach 5 trying to catch him. At first I thought the moment was lost because Strictly’s pics didnt have the finish line, but then I found the facebook page of one Henry Dukes. The dude literally has about 2000 pics of the race. And I found this:

Damn you Scott Brewer! I pulled to the side a millisecond after this pic to avoid an epic collision, though it looks like Code still had the “win”, i.e. the oh so important battle for 30th place. I do like this pic because it looks like we’re beating both Angel and Eric Ashton in the background. Awesome. This was also a course PR for me, so that helped me feel better about missing a chance to blue shoe the Code. But wait…at the award ceremony, I’m literally focusing my camera on the Code as he starts to go up to pick up his 3rd in age group when they call out my name. The look on Code’s face is priceless. Oh wait, I got that one!

Perfect. Code did beat me by chip time 19:10 to 19:11. I think the second mat picked up his chip while the first got mine.

The results for this race are nuts. Forty seven people broke 20 minutes, 170 something were under 25. The winner was Robert Razick, who actually beat Eric Ashton. Robert blazed a 15:03 while Eric ran 15:12 and 93 percent age grade. Thats world class for 45 years old. Teenage prodigy and tri stud Tony Morales took 3rd in 15:41. The rest of the top 10 are guys that win most races they enter – Tim Jeffreys, Irv Batten (who ran a 16:42 at age 50. Holy crap.), OJ, Hunter Janus, Eddie Vergara, John Charlton and Jason Dimery. All beasts. David He broke 18 minutes for the first time and finished 13th. Kenzie Riddle had an incredible race, winning the women’s overall and PR’ing at 18:02. We finished Cold Winters Day together, so clearly she’s doing something I’m not. Probably has something to do with more talent and about 80 pounds. Paul Reardon finished just behind her. Kathryn Cavanaugh smoked an 18:18 and finished 2nd overall female. Ken Cobb finished in 18:38 and took 2nd in my AG, thankfully fully clothed this time. Kenneth Vowles came oh so close to getting sub 19 but finished in 19 flat. Serves him right for beating me. Travis Moran continued his streak of finishing just ahead of me with a 19:05. Erin Miller crushed a 19:27 and beat Amy by a second. I think thats a PR for her as well. Shannon definitely got a PR at 19:46 and won female masters. Billy Tisdale finished just ahead of her , edging out Howie for the grandmasters win. Geary took 3rd GM. Ken Vowles had a huge PR with a 20:13, and Birgit also had a personal best with a 20:18 , 2nd masters. Jeanna Moffett, Mary Howk and Tracy Meyers took the female grandmasters overall.

In the age groups, teenage racing machines Parker Roof and Marie Demetriades each placed in the 11-13. Sydney Frontz took 2nd in the 20-24 in a good day for Team Utopia South. Ashley Horton took 3rd in the 25-29 while James Hicks placed 2nd in one of his last 30-34 races. Good luck in the age group from hell, James. Newest CRC member Amber Todd took 3rd in the 30-34. Meg is only a few months post baby and is already age grouping, placing 3rd in the 35-39. Joyce Welch actually made it out of the portapotty on time this race and won the 40-44. Ty Thomas threatened the Trophy (20:41) but still took 3rd in the 45-49. Strong work, Trophy. Thomas Tapp took 2nd in the 50-54, while Sandy Smith finished third the same age group. Valerie Selby rocked another sub 29 en route to a 3rd in AG, while Lynn Grimes easily captured first in the 60-64. In the mens 60-64, the Squirrel Fred Mullen took 1st, while Ponamarev took 3rd. Peter Mugglestone took 1st in the 65-59, while Margaret Holt won the female division. Arnold Floyd crushed the 70+ division with Rocky finishing 3rd.

Not many races coming up, but beware July 4th when team Trophy Hunting (Blue Shoes/Trophy) makes another go of it in the 2×2 mile relay at Born in the USA. Our goal: take down team K-Vowles. Better ramp up the speed, Trophy.

http://www.strictlyrunning.com/results/13jailbreak.txt

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/317743839

Run Red Bank is a 2nd year event put on by the YMCA, with a start and finish at White Knoll High School. The race had over 400 people  last year, which is pretty amazing for a first-time event.

I was pretty torn about choosing a race this weekend. I’ve done See Spot run for each of its 4 years in existence, and I’ve done Going the Extra Mile twice as well. Both are fun, well-run races, though they both have some pretty brutal courses.

Always looking for something different, and always looking to avoid hilly courses, I thought I’d give Red Bank a try. With the two competing races and registration apparently down in all three, there might of been a trophy hunt element as well. I didnt think this one offered much of a chance, since it was on Strictly Running’s Palmetto Grand Prix, but winning a YMCA race is like hitting the jackpot. Mega swag.

My first worry about the course of this race came earlier in the week, when I saw Justin Bishop (the 2012 champ) posting something about how hilly Red Bank was. Ruh roh. Then I looked at the USATF map of the course, and most of it ran through a neighborhood called LEXINGTON HILLS. Seriously?? I instantly started trembling , remembering the Lexington Jingle Bell 5k that is a proverbial mountain range. But surely it couldn’t be worse than the ungodly brutal See Spot, right?

So I was a little nervous about the course. I also had been wrecked with a GI virus last weekend that completely sidelined me for 4 days, and my “comeback” this week had been on the sluggish side. On the plus side, I was 5 pounds lighter. I most certainly do not recommend that weight loss method.

On race morning I drove out to Red Bank and decided to drive the course. I can say one thing about this race – they have no shortage of volunteers. They must have had 50 young people (man, am I old enough to use that term?) dressed in brown YMCA camp shirts out there. And they must have had a espresso maker on the volunteer bus, because these guys were JACKED. I was literally getting “good jobs” and cheers for DRIVING the course. It was probably a diversionary measure to distract from the torture that was unfolding ahead of me. I turned off highway 6 into the VERY APTLY NAMED Lexington Hills Rd.  One nasty mountain, followed by a decline and then a long  slog back to platt springs rd. But that was just a teaser for the hill d’ resistance, a quarter mile of pain right before the finish. Because there’s nothing nicer than hitting a nice long hill when you’re on fumes. Yeah, it would have been better just not to know.

I did a 2 mile warmup on the last mile of the course, which was tough at 9 minute pace. On the plus side, I was cheered throughout by caffeinated teenagers like I was winning the Boston Marathon. I picked up my packet to yet another blast of screams and cheers. I was kind of disappointed no one cheered my successful code brown in the red bank stadium restroom. Hey I was cheering.

A decent crowd was at the start, though certainly not the 400 from last year. Maybe they all got scared off.  “Trackstar” Eddie Vergara was there to ensure I didnt have any trophy delusions. Daniel Patrick, the winner of the Rose Fest 5k was also there, so maybe I could pace off him. Geary, Rocky, the Holts, Birgit and James Hicks were the CRC regulars. It being a YMCA event (Erin Roof directing) so Parker and Joe Roof were on hand. I’ve been hoping to help Parker get his sub 20, but I knew it wasnt happening at this race.

The start was about a quarter mile in the huge White Knoll High parking lot, followed by a big downhill, i.e. the same one we’d be slogging up in 20 minutes. There seemed to be a lot more people ahead of me than I had anticipated. Eddie took off in a sprint, and it looked like Parker was trying to follow him. I knew going fast early on would be a disaster given the nightmare ahead. Most of the first mile was downhill, and I wasnt pushing that hard, so the 6:14 mile split I got was OK. Unfortunately it was probably a good 10 seconds behind the actual mile marker.  I passed a few people and Parker on highway 6  right before the mile.  On my back though was the all to familiar sound of Geary’s “industrial machine” breathing. I didnt even need to turn around. A little bit after the marker was the turn on to Lexington Hills. Wow. Between the sudden headwind in my face and the 5 percent grade, I was waddling up this mid course mountain. En route went any vestige of hope I had at this being a good race. I was toast not even halfway through. Geary had surged just ahead on the hill but I managed to re-pass him on the climb. We basically went down the following incline in tandem.  You hit mile 2 right near the bottom of the decline. It suddenly dawns on me that the whole last mile is basically uphill. And you might as well stick a fork in me because I am done. I dont know whether its still being weak from last weekend or the warmth/humidity but its taking every ounce of effort to fight off the McAlister machine behind me. It doesn’t help that there’s no one to chase down. Daniel is the only guy I can see and he’s way too far to try and catch. I know I’m running fifth and the best I can do is just hold it. Left turn and I did a face plant into Mt Red Bank. Basically redlined it all the way up this monster,  desperate to be done. Mile 3 beeps on my Garmin and its pretty far from the finish, so I know its going to be long by Garmin (course is certified). Finally I flop myself into the parking lot again and I try to push it, but I realize I’m not even going to break 20. Finished in 20:08, 5th overall, 1st in AG.

I hate going over 20, but this course is just brutal. Combine it with a warm morning and its awfully tough to run a decent time. I have new respect for Amy and Flicker putting up low 19’s last year here.

Eddie smoked this race in 17:21 for the win, which I guarantee equates to a sub 17 on a flat course. Bob Sams, who finished 2nd at the Rose Fest 12k , finished 3rd behind a high school kid, John Drummond. Daniel placed 4th in 19:24.  Geary took 6th about 20 seconds back from me with Birgit winning the female race at 20:59 Parker had a rough day but still placed 1st in the 2-14. James took 2nd in the 30-34 while Joe won 2nd in the 45-49. Lynn Grimes won first in the 60-64 and laid out a wicked blue shoe kick to smoke a 36 year old at the finish. It was a thing of beauty. Henry beat Rocky for the 70-98 crown.

Four years into racing almost every weekend, there are very few races I haven’t done in the Columbia area, but this was one of the last holdouts. The Festival of Roses races are a 12k and a 5k that are associated with a festival of the same name in Orangeburg, SC. They’ve been around a while, and at least recently has been put on by the YMCA. They’ve been on our Tour de Columbia the last two years and also Strictly Running’s Palmetto Grand Prix.

I usually wouldnt be much into driving an hour to a race, but this one has a double dip built in to the event, and actually has an award for the fastest one who can do it. They call it the “Double Down” and involves running the 12k first at 7:30 followed by the 5k at 9:00. Insane. And awesome. I was in.

I had little idea of what to expect in Orangeburg. Justin Bishop, who won the 12k last year,  said it was flatter than Ray Tanner. I figured to give the 12k an all out effort and see if I had anything left for the 5k. My hopes of PRing in this odd distance werent that high. Ray Tanner in 2012 was a 49:12 6:36 pace effort, which I consider one of my best performances at any distance.

Also, I’ve been training like a beast recently with a couple of 50 mile weeks and a micro Robbie “O.G.” McLendon streak of 12 days straight. I certainly wasnt going to be at my freshest. Only about 3000 more days to go to catch up to the O.G. though. To boot, I was out late the night before catching Band of Horses at the Township, so I didnt get to bed till about midnight and a few 9 dollar beers. Yes, this is 2013 Alex late, not 1995.

Had a 5 am wake up call and felt OK. Once youve done a few relays you can run on no sleep, so 5 hours was a bonus. Took me a good hour to get to Oburg, and I by the time I got my packet and wrecked a perfectly good portapotty it was about 10 minutes to race time.

Quick check of the 12k start and its decidedly less competitive than I thought it would be. Amy was pacing 13 year old Marie Demetriades so I didnt have to fear another YMCA race beatdown a la the Bunny Hop a month ago. I became a little fearful I might have inadvertently stepped into a trophy hunt. At least Billy Tisdale was there. He’s pretty much my running clone, but beats me the longer distances. Ted Hewitt, the Outlaws, Birgit, Larry Bates, Pam Griffin, John Sneed, Nonie Hudnall were all on hand.

With the start, two unknown guys take off of my right at like Mach 5, and Billy surges ahead of me. There’s kind of a long nasty incline right at the beginning and I begin wondering if Bishop is delusional. Luckily the course levels out immediately afterward. Its an out and back, so I know the long incline will make for a nice finish on the way home.  I latch on to Billy, who’s about 10 meters ahead. He runs the 10k like a beast, so I make a note to keep him in striking distance. Mile one comes back at 6:39, which is just about perfect. All of my PR’s have had close to even pace followed by the patented blue shoe kick, so this is right where I want to be. And all of a sudden it gets very quiet. The two leaders have left us behind and we’re now out of sight of the rest of the field. And thats just about what the race is the rest of the way out. Billy and I all alone in rural Orangeburg locked in a brutal one-on-one. He surges ahead on the downhills and I catch him on the upswing. There really arent many hills on the course, so Coach Bishop – you were right. Thanks to having Billy to pace, the miles tick off like a metronome – all low 6:30’s. I feel surprisingly strong either despite or because of the crazy recent weekly mileage. Its pretty comical with seemingly just two people in the race. Billy asks me if I have any stories to tell him to pass the time. Finally we hit turnaround and a little after mile 4 we meet up with the rest of the pack still heading out.  Its a nice distraction as I bide my time, knowing this is going to come down to a painful fight down the stretch.  The pace starts to get a little quicker in miles 4 and 5, right at 6:30 a piece.  Billy has let me shoulder some of the pacing for awhile, though he is breathing down my neck the whole time.  Im starting to hurt a little but I’m more anxious of what I know is going to be a showdown coming up. As we go past the 10kish mark, I start to amp it up a bit. Billy follows right behind. This is not going to be easy. Finally we hit a quick double turn and the beginning of a long incline. All of a sudden I realize we may be approaching that downhill finish on the other side.  I glance down at the Garmin and see around 6.8 miles (12k is 7.46) and I decide its time to go all in. Billy has faded just a touch, and its like blood in the water.  He’s  way better than me on the downhills, so I blast up the last incline with everything I have, praying I havent miscalculated the course. As I crest the hill I can faintly make out the finish line in the distance. Im in a world of hurt from flying up that hill, but something dark and evil comes over me when I see that clock. I ramp it up as hard as I can go, deathly afraid of Billy catching me on this almost half mile long downhill stretch. Just before the finish theres an abrupt switch to a short uphill, and it about kills me. The Honey Bunches of Oats want to make an appearance but I manage to push breakfast down. I hear someone screaming that someone is right behind me, so I lose all form and headless chicken it to the line.  Total fumes. I look up as I cross and cant believe its at 48:13. A PR by almost a minute! 3rd overall. I pretty much collapse at make sweet love to the pavement trying to breathe again. Turns out it was Tigs yelling at me (she and Eric were doing the 5k) and “right behind me” apparently meant 30 seconds back. I am just total toast. Looking back at the Garmin data shows a 6:20 mile 7 and a 5:29 last 0.46. That would certainly explain it.

After about 5 minutes of sucking wind I finally come to the painful realization I have to do a 5k in just over a half hour. Its not looking good – the legs, which felt pretty great for the first 6 miles, were definitely complaining about that last 1.46. I took a bunch of pics of the 12 k finish. Good to see Birgit crush the women’s field for the overall win, chicking Ted (who won the 40-44) in the process. Steve Annan is 67 and ran 52:08, an 82 percent age grade. John Sneed and Nonie Hudnall also had near 80 percent performances. In fact, I was the only finisher in the top 14 under 40. Who says it gets easier when you get older? Chuck Hiers easily won the overall male with Bob Sams finishing 2nd. Marie won her age group of one with a strong 1:03 performance, good enough to get Amy a first in AG as well! Pam Griffin, Cheryl and Tommy Outlaw all age group placed. Billy had to settle for 2nd because they only went one deep in the overall. Brutal. Larry Bates won the 55-59 by seven minutes. Impressive.

I was hating life by the time of the 5k start, but what are you going to do? Erin Roof, the race director, hoped that I could pace her son Parker to another sub 20 attempt. I remember her saying something on facebook about not “wearing yourself out too much in the 12k”.  She forgets that self-restraint is certainly not my forte. Billy, Marie and Amy, the Outlaws, and Hou Yin Chang are a few of the people returning for the Double Down. Sarah and Eric have come out to run the 5k only, along with Marie’s mom Kimberly. I am acutely aware that neither of the top 2 12k finishers are returning.  Looks like the Double Down championship is coming down to me and Billy.

At the 5k start, some kid in a blue shirt takes off and Eric falls in behind him. I let a bunch of people pass me. Why? My legs are giving me a major “Are you f#$%g serious??” reaction. On the other hand, I can at least match my 6:30ish pace I had locked into in the early part of the 12k.  Parker , who blasted out to a 6:00 mile in our last 5k, is smarter this time around and is only a few meters ahead. Tigs is also ahead of me, and I’m already dreading the crap I’m going to take from her when she beats me. And damn that Billy, he’s a good 30 meters ahead only a half mile in. I hold 6:30 pace and start to catch quite a few guys as I approach the mile mark. Just past the mile (6:32) I catch up with Tigs and Parker. Tigs tells me she hates me. I love it. I tell Parker he’s right on pace but I think he’s fading a bit. I surge ahead though Im not going any faster. And then suddenly its just me and Billy again. Billy is a good bit ahead, and I start trying to calculate how many seconds I have to still get the Double Down if he beats me. I am slowly gaining on him though. I hit mile 2 at 6:39 and realize that most of the soreness has dissipated. Oh jeez, time to throw down again. Blood is in the water again as a quick surge puts me right on Billy’s heels. We hit the same incline as the 12k finish, and its complete deja vu. I blast up the incline, pass Billy and give a million percent effort all the way down. Honey Bunches of Oats start getting jumpy again but thankfully stay where they belong. Unbelievably I still see 19’s on the clock and blast it out to a 19:41 finish, 3rd overall again!  Didnt think sub 20 was possible after those first two miles. At first I thought there was a short course, but I had 3.09 on this certified route.  Garmin check reveals a 5:59 last mile. I have no idea where that came from, but apparently if you offer me a trophy chance I will virtually kill myself to get it.

Eric battled it out with the young guy for the 5k win and they had a virtual photo finish, with the same time. Unfortunately for Eric, the other guy (Daniel Patrick)  must of outleaned him at the tape. Tigs took home the women’s overall . Parker didnt get his sub 20 but still took first in his age group. Marie was by far the youngest double downer (13), finished 3rd in her age group in the 5k and won the female double down championship!  Ashley Horton finished 2nd in the 25-29. I think her sister finished 3rd. Amy won her age group even with a 26 minute time. Ted managed 2nd in 21:52, which is probably the best 5k performance of the double down compared to our usual times. Parker’s dad and Erin’s husband Joe Roof finished 2nd int he 45-49. Billy easily won his age group with Mike Griffin in a  strong second. Both of the Outlaws won their age groups, despite both doing the double down. Alex Ponamarev finished third in a tough 60-64.

Oh, and so I won the overall double down! Between the two age group wins I picked up 3 pint glasses total. And even better..a $150 gift card to Grove Park Pharmacy. I first had visions of a cartload of toothpaste and shampoo, but it turns out this store has a big selection of high end sunglasses. I went there right after the race and picked up a pair of 150 dollar Costa polarized shades. Awesome. Erin Roof and Todd Heinecke are definitely the road race swagmasters! Thanks guys!

http://www.strictlyrunning.com/results/13rosefest.txt

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/307697645

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/307697617

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151601027125419.1073741840.777475418&type=1

So April 27th had been a weekend I had already thought about taking off. “Off” is a relative term, since I had run the Run for Your Life Downhill Mile on April 25 (Thursday). But if I’m not pinning on a bib on Saturday morning, then its “off” for me. The option I had was to run the Harbison Firebreak 10k or half, but readers of this blog know that trails are my kryptonite. Sure its fun to go easy pace in the woods, but when I race on trails, all I do is stare at my feet the whole time trying not to wipe out. And then there’s this race, the Providence Heart and Sole 5 miler.  It seems like a really cool race, except I don’t think they’d take too kindly to a 6’3″ albino sasquatch trying to bully his way into a women’s race. Plus, I’d get chicked…bad. So here is Jen “Mrs. Diesel” Ward’s race report.

 The Providence Heart and Sole 5 miler is one of my favorite races. It offers a 5-mile run, a 5-mile walk, and a 3-mile walk to create greater awareness of women and heart disease.  Long before my days of running began, I would walk the 5 miler with a group of ladies. I think part of the reason I have always loved this race, is because I enjoyed the car ride alone. I also enjoyed not having the pressure from Diesel telling me what I need to do, although he did send me a text that said… “You need to sub 42:00. Last years time 45:03 weak.”

Diesel apparently has no shame hiding behind his kids …or his wife.

Packet pickup was from 7-8 a.m. and I arrived at Arsenal Hall at 7:58 a.m. I figured I would let the crowd die down and since I am not one of the “fast runners,” I have never felt the need to show up an hour early to scope out the competition or warm up.

Jeez, what kind of obsessive freak would do that??

The race started at 8:30, so after socializing with several different people, I lined up with one of my friends from high school that also participates in this race each year. She asked me what my goal was; I told her my goal for every race is to just finish it faster than I did the year before. 

The course starts out pretty flat with dancers, vendors & volunteers cheering you on. Mile 3 is the climb up Gervais Street!

I decided to camp out and take pics at that site. Everyone appreciated me catching them walking up that monster.

I won’t list all my splits in case you guys are like me and skim that part of the blog each week. 🙂

Ouch. I’m sorry, I’m a numbers freak.

I will just say mile 3 was a minute slower than mile 2. The last two miles are pretty flat & I just kept waiting to see the downhill finish. I had to dodge a group of young “Girls on the Run” who were finishing the 3 mile around the same time. I was happy to see them out participating and was even more happy to see the clock, as I finished at 41:05- a 3 min. & 58 second PR. I did not come close to placing, but I did get a rose, chocolate covered strawberry & the satisfaction of doing better than Diesel had ordered! Joan Tangwar of Spartanburg, won the 5-Miler with a scorching time of 27:54! Congrats to Kristin Schmitz, Sharon Cole & all the others who placed in their age groups!

Congrats Jen! I’d like to see Diesel face Mt. Gervais without catching a case of the walksies. The SR team did really well at this race (Kenzie, Shannon, Erin, Mary Claire) with them all finsihing in the top 10 I believe. Kenzie got 3rd overall and Shannon got first masters. Birgit Spann finished 2nd masters and Janice Addison won 1st grandmasters. This race featured two brutally competitive age groups – the 45-49 group finished within 17 seconds of each other with Sharon finishing 3rd at 35:20. Karen Manning won the group at 35:03. Mary Howk, Lynn Grimes and Catherine Lemepesis filled out an all-elite 60-64 with Mary breaking 40 minutes. Speaking of breaking 40, Joyce Welch also crushed a 39:07 PR and 2nd in her AG.

A lot of fun to watch this race – huge crowd and lots of enthusiasm. Jeanna Moffett does a really good job directing this race, which has really grown over the years. Now if I can just get my rose and chocolate covered strawberries at my next finish line!