Lonely runner in the city

Today's run (street): 2.5 miles

Today is my last "Summer Friday" in the office and I slightly regret not planning a run in Central Park. This would have been the day to do it, with moderate temperatures and partially cloudy skies. Unlike the last two summers, I've barely hit the city venues on Fridays. Instead I've opted to do my morning running in my neighborhood. Some of that is due to the high mid-day heat we've had this summer, but really it's because most of my running partners are no longer in the city. I still enjoy running alone in NYC, but I didn't feel like it today.

This morning I went out and followed my usual route, all the time thinking about the effort it will take to meet my predicted finish time for Cow Harbor. I covered the first mile at a moderate pace but picked up my speed to the point where I was running in the high eight-minute range by the time I finished. I know going directly from sleeping to running affects my performance so I was happy where I ended up.

As long as hurricane Irene waits until Saturday afternoon to come through the NY area, I should be good to go for a long morning run tomorrow. With only three weekends left to train for Cow Harbor's challenging and rolling 6.2 mile course, I need to reinforce my base and work on those hills.

Update on Emerging Runner's 2011 goals

Today's workout (elliptical): 25 minutes

This has been a big week for nature, first with the earthquake and now hurricane Irene is threatening to disrupt my weekend running. When you're a runner, it's all about the weather. Since there's not much I can do about that, I thought I'd focus on things where I have some control.

2011 Goal review

It's almost September and we're through 75% of the year. Let's see how I've done.

1. Run a half marathon.
Did it! I ran the LI (Half) Marathon in May and I'm still tired.

 2. Score settling: Run my best times ever on the Dirty Sock and Cow Harbor 10K's. Beat my time in the New Hyde Park 8K (44:42 two years in a row!).
So far I'm on track. Achieved best ever times in both the NHP 8K and Dirty Sock 10K. Cow Harbor 10K happens in three weeks.

3. Running tourism: Run outside of Long Island at least six times. Bonus for competing in a race outside of LI.
I ran in Florida in January and Massachusetts more than once this year. Lots of running in New Hampshire and Maine. Still no races out of Long Island.

4. Hit those trails: Add Caleb Smith, Sunken Meadow and one more state park to my trail running experience.
Still no runs at Caleb Smith or Sunken Meadow but that could change by year's end.

5. Performance: Run 1 mile under 7:50/mile or 2 miles under 8:00/mile.
My last serious speed workout in July did the trick. First mile at 7:50 and did 8 x 200's at 6:50. I also ran two continuous miles at 8:20 which doesn't meet the goal, but it's not too far off.

With four months left in the year I'm hoping to fully meet every goal. Right now I'm pleased with my progress.

Post-earthquake run

Did you feel that?

Today's run (street): 2.65 miles

Yesterday afternoon, the city was abuzz with excitement about the tremors from an earthquake that had hit the DC area. Though I was out at that time, I completely missed the experience. Buildings were evacuated and even my wife and kids felt it in Long Island. To me, the most amazing thing about it was that the LIRR still ran on time last night.

This morning I knew I needed to step up the pace for my run. Yesterday morning I gave myself a break and did a slow recovery run. It's seductive to do that because it feels great to run without straining. This is especially true when you go out right after waking up.

I wore my Hattori's for the first time in a week, having switched to the Mirages for Dirty Sock training and recovery. It was nice to have lighter shoes, but I noticed the zero drop more than I usually do. I worked on keeping my turnover steady and hoped that my cadence was edging toward the high-80 SPM range. I ran a different route and covered a little more distance than I normally do. I was satisfied with the effort, overall. Though my pace performance wasn't above average, it was solidly back to normal. I hope to improve that this weekend.

Here comes the Great Cow Harbor 10K

Today's run (street): 2.5 miles

Well, it's official. I'm signed up for this year's Cow Harbor race in Northport, NY. Dirty Sock is probably a more difficult race, with the high heat, oppressive humidity and variable surfaces. But with its scale and national attention, Cow Harbor looms larger. Cow Harbor is an interesting race and a fascinating experience. The course has a number of "features" that need to be understood, like the James Street hill that rises steeply over a 1K distance including a section that rises over 100 feet in less .2 of a mile.

I read yesterday that your first run after a hard race should be slow and easy to allow your muscles to repair. I took that to heart this morning and went out at a comfortable pace. It seemed to take forever to complete my route, but it only took two minutes longer than normal. With the temperature at 65 degrees, I was hardly sweating by the end. Despite that, I felt it was a beneficial workout. This weekend I'm looking to put in some long miles and spend some time on the hills. Cow Harbor is coming and I plan to be ready.

Thoughts on yesterday's race

Yesterday's race wasn't the toughest run I've faced this year, but in some ways I consider it my best effort. That's true, even with the LI Half Marathon I ran in May that was both difficult and humbling. On that race, I missed my performance target by a significant sum, but I am proud that (even with an injury) I didn't walk a single step over its 13.1 miles. Still, I feel that yesterday's Dirty Sock 10K represented my competitive best. There wasn't a single moment when I backed off the throttle, even as my energy levels dropped sharply near the end.

You'd think I would have done better than I did with the effort that I put forth on Sunday. I'll admit that I felt dismay at the hordes of people who caught up and passed me at various times during the race. I thought, "Why are they all running faster than me? How have they trained compared to me?"  The answer is probably a mix of things. First, I'm no longer in my 20's or 30's. Second, I suspect that many participants in yesterday's race probably train regularly at 10K-plus distances with an effort that I usually reserve only for race day.

With that, I'm pleased with the work I did on Sunday to achieve the best time I've ever attained in that race. Like this year's NHP 8K, I've done better the third year than in any previous year. As long as I can hold the gains I feel that I'm on track with my training. It will be interesting to see how I do at the Great Cow Harbor 10K. I don't know if I'll improve over 2010's time, but I know I won't regret my effort.