Breaking Away

John Kilpatrick wrote:Cool stuff with the running maps. I love the fact that my Garmin is off elevation wise. I, then, can pretend that every once in a while, even I get to run a hill or two!

"Recovery" Hill Run: About 4 miles

Weather: Overcast, mild, a little muggy. 64 degrees, 74% humidity. Gear: FR2s, shorts, T. Fuel: Post breakfast, carried handheld with nuun.

I spent an hour this morning cleaning out the gutters, balancing barefoot on the roof, wielding a ShopVac, and my feet and ankles felt great, so I was excited to head out for a short run before work today.

I must have been too excited, or still recovering from my trail run Monday, because once I got out there, my body kept wanting me to turn around and head home. I wasn't in pain (well, my ankle was a bit sore)... but the get-up-and-go just wasn't there anymore. Weird. I debated turning around, and actually did at one point, but something made me keep pressing on. My brain said "keep going" louder than my body was whining "turn around." The brain won. I ended up doing the whole route, though I walked a couple of times.

(For those keeping score at home, the run had 377 feet of climbing and 758 feet total elevation change.)

At least you get to run in those beautiful mountain locations. I get to run in "sub-division city"

Ken Mello wrote:At least you get to run in those beautiful mountain locations. I get to run in "sub-division city"

Ew.

But-but-but... if you look in the northwestern corner of that view, there's a whole bunch of open space with brush. Dirt! Just waiting for you! (Okay, and some rattlers, and some scorpions, and irritable property owners... but hey! It's still dirt.)

Unfortunately, that area is actually relatively small, and extremely rocky - not much flat, smooth ground there. And you can bet that snakes and scorpions would be a concern in there - I've found both in my yard, so I know they're in there!

Ah, for a hill to run on.....

Ken Mello wrote:Unfortunately, that area is actually relatively small, and extremely rocky - not much flat, smooth ground there. And you can bet that snakes and scorpions would be a concern in there - I've found both in my yard, so I know they're in there!

Ah, for a hill to run on.....

Drat. And as for hills in your part of the Lone Star State... well...

I'm wondering why Ken's not taking advantage of that nice straight parkway at the bottom of the shot...

Mike MacLellan wrote:I'm wondering why Ken's not taking advantage of that nice straight parkway at the bottom of the shot...

Its a 4 lane road with a 65 mph speed limit, lots of traffic, and almost no shoulder. I do run on it sometimes, in the early mornings or when traffics not bad (Saturdays, etc) but there is a lot of semi traffic (stone quarry a few miles away) and trying to hug the tiny shoulder when a semi goes by at 70 is no fun!

Ken Mello wrote:

Mike MacLellan wrote:I'm wondering why Ken's not taking advantage of that nice straight parkway at the bottom of the shot...

Its a 4 lane road with a 65 mph speed limit, lots of traffic, and almost no shoulder. I do run on it sometimes, in the early mornings or when traffics not bad (Saturdays, etc) but there is a lot of semi traffic (stone quarry a few miles away) and trying to hug the tiny shoulder when a semi goes by at 70 is no fun!

Got plenty of those to avoid around here as well!!

Michele "1L" Keane wrote:

Ken Mello wrote:

Mike MacLellan wrote:I'm wondering why Ken's not taking advantage of that nice straight parkway at the bottom of the shot...

Its a 4 lane road with a 65 mph speed limit, lots of traffic, and almost no shoulder. I do run on it sometimes, in the early mornings or when traffics not bad (Saturdays, etc) but there is a lot of semi traffic (stone quarry a few miles away) and trying to hug the tiny shoulder when a semi goes by at 70 is no fun!

Got plenty of those to avoid around here as well!!

Yii! It's bad enough dodging SUVs at 45. Gravel trucks at 70? That sounds unfun.

Say, Ken... since you live in Round Rock, have you ever tried hopping in the car and looking for trails in the Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge? It looks like it's just a few miles away. Even if it's just some old gravel fire roads, it'd be better than sucking exhaust fumes. And from the satellite view, it looks like it's somewhat hilly, too!

Wait! They have trails! Here's more information: Friends of Balcones

I don't know if driving to a running spot works for you all the time, but this place looks like it's worth trying out. It looks pretty, in a Southwest sort of way.

I drive 15-20 minutes into another state to get to the trail I use the most. (There's a trail closer to home, but it's been turned into a bog by $#@! horses.)

I see you have a conversation with Ken going on, but just wanted to stop by & say "hi Mark."

Ken you make me laugh man....welcome to suburbia boresville! I thankfully have a park only 3 miles away (which actually caught on fire a few days ago, it will be interesting to see what happened this weekend) that I can run to on the weekends but during the week it is the same boring suburban roads...BLEH!!!

Mark

Unfortunately, Balcones is about 45 miles away, and takes about an hour to get there (via small back roads). Once in a blue moon it would be OK, but I couldnt run there regularly. There is a trail not too far away I used to run on, but in the summer it is infested with snake habitats, so I need to wait until Fall to try to run there again.

Fun stuff! (and sorry for the hijack!)

Dave P wrote:I see you have a conversation with Ken going on, but just wanted to stop by & say "hi Mark."

Hi Dave! Thanks for stopping by. I haven't done a great job of checking in on other people's blogs, but I'm glad to see that you're making it through this training cycle intact. Good luck in Hartford!

Joel H wrote:Ken you make me laugh man....welcome to suburbia boresville! I thankfully have a park only 3 miles away (which actually caught on fire a few days ago, it will be interesting to see what happened this weekend) that I can run to on the weekends but during the week it is the same boring suburban roads...BLEH!!!

Guys, guys, guys... you can't be so surrounded by suburbs that you can't find some sort of adventurous route somewhere fairly close to where you live, can you? I mean, couldn't you at least find a country road and provide some target practice for beer-can-chucking rednecks?

Ken Mello wrote:Mark

Unfortunately, Balcones is about 45 miles away, and takes about an hour to get there (via small back roads). Once in a blue moon it would be OK, but I couldnt run there regularly. There is a trail not too far away I used to run on, but in the summer it is infested with snake habitats, so I need to wait until Fall to try to run there again.

Fun stuff! (and sorry for the hijack!)

Well, phooey. It wouldn't work every day, or even every week, maybe... but maybe every few weeks? Or once a month? Even a little variety can help mix it up a bit.

I have a similar problem, at least as far as great trails go. There are some amazing trails in the Columbia River Gorge, with elevation change that even Mike would appreciate, but they're a good 45-60 minutes away from here. Still, I think I'm going to have to see if I can head out there once in a while.

Dynamic Testing: Two laps around Pete Sampras (the building, not the person), for a total of about a half mile.

Sort of an "active recovery" day today, with a session at Nike, giving feedback on two different variations of a popular shoe. This wasn't one of those sessions where I was bedecked with reflectors; I simply put on the shoes, ran in them, and offered some feedback.

As a workout, it wasn't much, but it felt good to get the blood flowing. I was more sore than expected yesterday after my run. I'm not sure if was because I went back to pavement, or because I'd spent an hour before the run balancing on the roof barefoot as I cleaned out the rain gutters. (Anybody care to guess?)

Anyway, I loosened up pretty quickly, which means I should be fine to run tomorrow.

Mark B wrote:Dynamic Testing: Two laps around Pete Sampras (the building, not the person), for a total of about a half mile.

Sort of an "active recovery" day today, with a session at Nike, giving feedback on two different variations of a popular shoe. This wasn't one of those sessions where I was bedecked with reflectors; I simply put on the shoes, ran in them, and offered some feedback.

As a workout, it wasn't much, but it felt good to get the blood flowing. I was more sore than expected yesterday after my run. I'm not sure if was because I went back to pavement, or because I'd spent an hour before the run balancing on the roof barefoot as I cleaned out the rain gutters. (Anybody care to guess?)

Anyway, I loosened up pretty quickly, which means I should be fine to run tomorrow.

Suggestion for future gutter cleanings to save time and effort: use a leaf blower. Works like a charm and I assume you'll be raking leaves at some point, otherwise there wouldn't be a need to clean gutters, right?

mul21 wrote:

Mark B wrote:Dynamic Testing: Two laps around Pete Sampras (the building, not the person), for a total of about a half mile.

Sort of an "active recovery" day today, with a session at Nike, giving feedback on two different variations of a popular shoe. This wasn't one of those sessions where I was bedecked with reflectors; I simply put on the shoes, ran in them, and offered some feedback.

As a workout, it wasn't much, but it felt good to get the blood flowing. I was more sore than expected yesterday after my run. I'm not sure if was because I went back to pavement, or because I'd spent an hour before the run balancing on the roof barefoot as I cleaned out the rain gutters. (Anybody care to guess?)

Anyway, I loosened up pretty quickly, which means I should be fine to run tomorrow.

Suggestion for future gutter cleanings to save time and effort: use a leaf blower. Works like a charm and I assume you'll be raking leaves at some point, otherwise there wouldn't be a need to clean gutters, right?

That means I'd have to BUY a leaf blower, Jim. Besides, the crap in the gutters isn't leaves (the trees aren't that tall yet)... but the grit that washes off the asphalt shingles (that and fallout from my neighbor's July 4th fireworks display). It was at least a half inch deep in some spots. Hitting that with a leaf blower would have been nasty.

How do you get to be a person that gives feedback on shoes? Sounds fun.

Don't they have screens you can put on gutters to let the water in but keep all the crap out so you don't have to clean them? Or is that too good to be true?

Penelope wrote:How do you get to be a person that gives feedback on shoes? Sounds fun.

Don't they have screens you can put on gutters to let the water in but keep all the crap out so you don't have to clean them? Or is that too good to be true?

Hi, Kathy! I filled out a card that was in a marathon goodie bag. Once they accepted me as a long-term footwear tester, I eventually got invitations to be a dynamic tester for their footwear testing group and test subject in their research lab. It helps that I'm persnickety about shoes (and verbose), and that I live close enough to be able to drive over to Nike World Headquarters in Beaverton.

If you're interested, they're accepting applications for footwear testers right now.

Click this link to go to the NIKE Testing site.

About the gutters: they do make screens for them, but that's for leaves and such. It probably wouldn't keep the shingle grit out. It's not too big a deal. I think this was the first time the gutters were cleaned since the house was built about seven years ago. I'm ready for the drizzle!

Hey, I got name-dropped!

Which reminds me that I've been wanting to ask a very tentative question: when is the best time of year (in your opinion) to run up there? Please say early summer (late May-late June). I'm thinking road trip to all the places people have mentioned (Trinity, Mt. Lassen, a few spots in Oregon, and Washington) this summer...

Also, be careful on the roof. One Halloween years ago, my dad was on our roof doing God-knows-what and fell off. None of us had any idea he was even up there. Fortunately, no serious injuries, though he did smack his head on something (I think this was before he fell off) and had a nice lump for a week.

Mike MacLellan wrote:Hey, I got name-dropped!

Which reminds me that I've been wanting to ask a very tentative question: when is the best time of year (in your opinion) to run up there? Please say early summer (late May-late June). I'm thinking road trip to all the places people have mentioned (Trinity, Mt. Lassen, a few spots in Oregon, and Washington) this summer...

Also, be careful on the roof. One Halloween years ago, my dad was on our roof doing God-knows-what and fell off. None of us had any idea he was even up there. Fortunately, no serious injuries, though he did smack his head on something (I think this was before he fell off) and had a nice lump for a week.

Silly Mike. It's ALWAYS the best time to run up here. Well, except during the rare ice storm, but honestly - that's about it. (Unless 38 with torrential drizzle is bad in your book.) Anyway, it's usually very pleasant here in the late spring and early summer (unless you have severe allergies, because the pollen can be a problem for some), mild and sometimes even sunny.

Trails at that time can be a little muddy... but if you want to plan a race, there are several up here at about that time.

Forest Park 50k (Late May) - This is where I do my trail runs. Big trees, hills but not mountains.

Beacon Rock 50k/25k (Mid June) - I did the 25k last June and it kicked my butt. LOTS of climbing with eye-popping scenery.

Both of those are definitely possibles for me next year. (I really want revenge on Beacon Rock.)

As to the whole "plunging to your death" bit... I have to admit that thought occurred to me, especially as I was leaning over the edge of the roof, directly over a pool I'd set up on the patio, vacuuming out a gutter with a ShopVac, wondering if the power cord would unplug before I hit the water if I fell, or if I'd take myself out in one big splash-splat-zap.

Luckily, I remained safely on the roof. We didn't need any more stories in the paper, anyway.

Hey I run to the park once a week due to the distance from the house and it gets me away from suburbia boresville. I get to see armadillos, rabbits, deer, skunks and even wild boar all while running in pitch black darkness for at least 1/2 the run. I enjoy it a lot and wish I could there more often. As for hills, what are those? There aren't ANY hills within probably 50-100 miles from my house unless you call freeway overpasses hills (but there is no way in he!! I am running on a freeway overpass no matter what time of day). During marathon training I get to go the park more often due to the length of my mid-week runs but not during other training. I don't live in a beautiful area like you do but once I retire I plan on moving away from this boring landscape.

Joel H wrote:Hey I run to the park once a week due to the distance from the house and it gets me away from suburbia boresville. I get to see armadillos, rabbits, deer, skunks and even wild boar all while running in pitch black darkness for at least 1/2 the run. I enjoy it a lot and wish I could there more often. As for hills, what are those? There aren't ANY hills within probably 50-100 miles from my house unless you call freeway overpasses hills (but there is no way in he!! I am running on a freeway overpass no matter what time of day). During marathon training I get to go the park more often due to the length of my mid-week runs but not during other training. I don't live in a beautiful area like you do but once I retire I plan on moving away from this boring landscape.

You know, Joel, some people would consider a lack of hills a blessing. While I don't exactly live in the mountains, there is no truly flat route available to me unless I drive over to the track. That used to bug me, back when I was compulsively tracking speed vs. heart rate. Now, it's not such a big deal. But it's entirely possible that I've simply gone bonkers.

I would love to see armadillos and wild boars on a run (skunks, not so much). That sounds more interesting than watching a parade of Expeditions, Sierras, F-250s and minivans whizzing by.

But you know what? This shows how committed you are to running. To go out in the dark in the middle of "suburbia boorsville" day after day after day takes a lot more grit and determination than heading out the door to go frolic in the woods.

So, really: Who is more hardcore? You.

While I agree that there are some positives to running flat all the time, there are some real negatives too. Definitely some muscles not getting worked on a regular basis. And when you travel to races where there ARE hills, you're in trouble. When we went to the mountains in New Mexico this summer, the hills were KILLING me. I used to have great hill fitness, living in Vermont, so when I ran flat it felt super easy. The opposite is not true - running flat makes hills feel harder.

Even running in cul-de-sac city, I see those same animals every day. This morning I saw a raccoon and an armadillo within the first quarter mile. The other day I saw a fox, and I see deer almost every day. Just because there are lots of houses here, the animals havent gone away. And i didnt even mention the scorpion that was in my house a few weeks ago.....

Ken Mello wrote:While I agree that there are some positives to running flat all the time, there are some real negatives too. Definitely some muscles not getting worked on a regular basis. And when you travel to races where there ARE hills, you're in trouble. When we went to the mountains in New Mexico this summer, the hills were KILLING me. I used to have great hill fitness, living in Vermont, so when I ran flat it felt super easy. The opposite is not true - running flat makes hills feel harder.

Even running in cul-de-sac city, I see those same animals every day. This morning I saw a raccoon and an armadillo within the first quarter mile. The other day I saw a fox, and I see deer almost every day. Just because there are lots of houses here, the animals havent gone away. And i didnt even mention the scorpion that was in my house a few weeks ago.....

+1 on both parts Ken...running on flat then going to hills is SO MUCH HARDER than the reverse. I too saw 3 armadillo this morning, one which nearly ran right in front of me because it has such terrible eyesight.



Mark - Me hardcore? I guess but my wife has said "crazy" a few times about my running addition, but I am just doing what I have to do for something I love doing and that is to run. You do the same thing so we are in the same boat...and I believe your wife has called you "crazy" a time or two as well.