4-H Fair Race 2012

Well as sort of a last minute thing I signed up for the Elkhart County 4-H fair race tomorrow afternoon. It's a 5k and it's been a little while since I've done a 5k. I haven't trained specifically for speed so it should be interesting to see what sort of time I can put up. We finish on the dirt track, first making a lap around it. Last time it was all I could do to beat the guy in the Twinkie suit, and to be honest on the final lap I was passed by a guy pushing a jogging stroller. I wish I had the time to come up with a costume, but unfortunately I do not. Quite a few of my family members are also running in it so that should be fun. Until then.....

National Running Day

In case you haven't heard, It's National Running Day!

Damn You Procrastination, Damn You

So I woke up later than I wanted to this morning and as I was headed out for my routine long run on Sunday morning I had the bright idea to try a "two-a-day." I bargained with myself than I would do 7 miles this morning, relax for the day and then go back out for approximately another 10 miles this evening. Late afternoon morphed into a long nap and now it's early evening and I haven't even walked the dog. Unfortunately it won't happen today, in fact I won't make any guarantees that the dog will get walked. But hey, at least I got a blog post written.

Movie Night

Uh, I have so much to write about yet so little time. I did a solo 17.7 mile run Sunday morning since Garrick was recovering from his first marathon. I paced my miles pretty tightly and I would say it was a very successful run. I found an acceptable place to work in some hill repeats into my repertoire. A nice long gradual quarter mile hill, it could stand a to be a little steeper, but I'll work with what I can get. What I really wanted to touch on in this post however was the movie I watched Saturday night. Running the Sahara was very inspiring, three guys run across the Sahara desert, I believe they finally reached the Egyptian coast in about 110 days. The cinematography is cool, they touch on the local cultures as much as possible, though there is one scene in which a butchered camel's head is featured. A bit much for me, but nothing wrong with not sanitizing the film either. So many topics I want to write about when it comes to running, but I'm trying to juggle this blog with a novel I'm working on, plus trying to get in miles too! Some times it's hard to choose which to spend my free time on, but I'm not complaining.

Morning Fuel

I don't care what anyone says, strawberry rhubarb pie is the best breakfast before a long run.

It Follows You Wherever You Go.

My past two runs, the weather has been sunny and warm, in fact Sunday it was downright hot. I noticed something that I don't really spend a lot of time thinking about, my shadow. Saturday afternoon I enlisted my wife and a pair of clippers to administer a summer buzzcut. The newly rounded head of my shadow caught my attention rather quickly. During some of the tougher sections without shade, I found myself focusing on "him"(my shadow) and I was surprised at how fluid and rhythmic "his" movements seemed to be. I don't exactly think of myself as an uncoordinated runner with poor form, but I'm no ballet dancer either. Again on Tuesday I looked for my silent running partner. It was later in the afternoon so "he" lagged behind, but there "he" was again. "His" movements appeared so effortless that "he" almost fooled me into thinking "he" could attain elite status. I never will be elite, I won't kid myself about that. I'm not even that concerned about my times really, for whatever reason I'm more fascinated with distances. What about my shadow? Of course it isn't a living thing, it can't have thoughts, but I could almost swear "his" running style is slightly different than mine. Maybe I shouldn't assume that the two of us have the same running goals in mind.

18 Miles and Counting

Well, put another notch fuel belt, (I crack myself up) I hit the 18 mile mark today and man was it hot. We started at 9am and I'm pretty sure it was in the 80's by 10. I had a chance to use my fuel belt for the second time and had better luck with one bottle of gatorade and one of water. The only problem was that there was not much of a chance to refill along our route. We started our route at Northridge High School in Middlebury, took a jaunt on some backroads and picked up the Pumpkinvine Trail in Middlebury out to Shipshewana. The nice folks at DQ let us fill up our bottles with water even though G and I had no money on us to buy something. I use the Map My Run app for I phone to keep track of my long runs, but today the GPS was way off and 18 miles proved to be too much for the battery. It died as I was trying to save my run while getting into the car when I was done to plug it in. G is headed to Traverse City next weekend for the marathon, then he is onto the Sunburst in South Bend the following. My broke ass will be putting in long solo runs so that I'm better prepped, maybe we will start aiming for an even 20 on Sundays.

Just Walkin' The Dogs

I already do almost the entirety of my running in Vibram Five Fingers but during the past few days of walking our dogs I started going completely barefoot. Earlier in the week, it was only walking, but tonight only one of the dogs went for a walk, the faster of the two. I let her run and I kept up with her. Luckily the pavement in the neighborhood is pretty smooth. G and I are planning on doing 18 miles on Sunday in preparation for his marathon at the end of the month. My fuel belt will get another test!

Like Us On Facebook

Hey, we are on Facebook and you should "Like" us even if you don't run, don't have a mustache, and don't know what existentialism is. It's all in good fun. Really. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Existential-Mustache-Running-Society/130712143646835

I Wish My Schedule Would Slow Down and My Run Times Speed Up

In the last 10 days I've been to two weddings, ran a half marathon, went to a dentist appointment, drove an hour to mow a lawn. (long story) My schedule has been crazy but I still squeezed in a 3.1 mile run on the treadmill at the hotel in Traverse City Michigan the morning of the latest wedding. I've been putting in 10 hour most days at work and I managed to squeeze in a 6.5 mile run this afternoon. That's my life and probably the direction this blog will be headed. Needless to say every time I get myself amped up to put some effort into this Existential Mustache Running Society project(s) other areas of my life need some attention as well. I have a couple of draft posts I hope to work on this week, maybe even some posts with some mediocre attempts to actually tie running and existentialism together. The mustaches, as always, will be represented through artistic photographic imagery.

Borgess Half Marathon 2012

I was very impressed with my first shot at the Borgess Half Marathon in Kalamazoo. There were a lot of people there, possibly more than the Sunburst in South Bend. (I'm not going to take the time to look up the numbers) I had a chip time of 2:03 and some change which landed me right in between my other two half- marathon times. I probably could have shaved another 2 minutes off, had I not needed a pit stop around mile 5. There were lots of volunteers, lots and lots of great fans cheering us along the way, and numerous bands playing along the route. I saw a few people in costumes which was cool, I heard (did not actually witness) that there were some runners who went completely barefoot, at least for the 5k. I really only had a few small complaints, some of the mile markers for the half were non-existent, though in their defense there were pace runners holding flags. I passed the 2:15 guy and never caught up to the 2:00 guy, as pointed out by my chip time. Also as we were lined up in the street waiting for the start, random people in street clothes came walking through, against the crowd. I suppose they were lost. My only real disappointment of the day was that Arcadia Brewing Company had brewed a special beer for the day called The Big Finish (I think) The beer tent didn't open until noon however and to be honest I was feeling a little too dehydrated for beer. Next year I plan on doing the full marathon and I don't plan on missing the beer tent.

Kalamazoo Half

I have a wedding to attend to this evening, then I will be attempting to better my time of 1:54 in the half-marathon on Sunday morning May 6. It won't be easy and to be honest I haven't really looked at the course, but I'm assuming it will be flatter than the "Hilly Half" that I ran back in October. Honestly, I don't even know where to park yet. Honestly there is a greater than 50/50 chance I will be suffering from at least a mild form of hangover. Honestly, I can't wait. I have a feeling there will be a pretty significant turnout and I'm feeling pretty strong despite my less than consistent training. G and I did 15.3 miles last Sunday and took on a wicked hill in the last mile and still finished pretty strong. I got my Jelly Belly Sport Beans ready and it's almost race day. Yep.

May Flowers Bring May Races

Well my training has been a little like the weather, hot when it's not supposed to be and cold when it should be lukewarm. Anyway, it's all good. The training base miles that I kept up with through last summer and fall have paid off. I thought I would be starting nearly from scratch after an inconsistent winter and some time off due to a slight knee injury playing basketball in early March. Over the past few weeks I've gotten back on track and really bumped up the mileage. This Sunday is my first race of the season, picking up right where I left off last year with a half-marathon. I had hoped to be ready for a full marathon by this time, but I still have the rest of the year to try and find a decent full that works into my busy summer schedule. KZoo here we come!

Why? Just Because.

We Here, Or We're Here, Or as in We Here at the...

We here at the EMRS are busy contemplating races for the spring and summer. Work schedules have made things difficult, but more than likely G and I will be running the half marathon in Kalamazoo in May. I (derick) have a multitude of weddings and free beer to attend to this summer. I have decided that I will run my first full Marathon in this predicted year of the Mayan apocalypse. It will not be with G in Traverse City however. It is also looking less and less like it will be the Sunburst. So that leaves open some other options. A trail marathon for my first time? Could be...

Winter, continued....

Just when I think this winter is going to end, it doesn't. My running routine has been less than consistent, and my cultivation of facial hair hit some roadblocks this winter. Fear not for what the rest of the year may hold.