Marathon Maniac #957
Good Morning!
Historically, the average temperature for this date in my area is 41 degrees. Today's high is supposed to maybe hit 9 degrees.
Erika - you can take this stuff back at any time, ya know....
Rest day for me today.
Only 1 more week until March!
Life is a headlong rush into the unknown. We can hunker down and hope nothing hits us or we can stand tall, lean into the wind and say, "Bring it on, darlin', and don't be stingy with the jalapenos."
Who says March is going to be any better?
Bitter cold coming back this afternoon. Got out for 2 miles on mostly dry sidewalks. Will try to see McFarland movie this afternoon while Marj heads out to a water park to spend quality time for a couple of days with DD and grandkids.
Bad faerie
Henry, that just wasn't nice.
Last month, we'd wobbled over our planned four-day bolt to Florida for spring break, thinking it was expensive and maybe we should just spike it.
Thank heavens we didn't. Even four days of warm and sun will feel like a miracle. My standards have become so low that when I got out on my MTB and trundled around dirt roads in 22F and sunshine on Saturday, I was in Full Frolic Mode. Yesterday was also relatively warm (mid-20s) and I snatched another outdoor run before it all slammed in again this morning at -10F at dawn.
I think I could make a fortune if I were to zip over to Windsor, hit the Canadian Tire there, and bring back a dozen engine block heaters. They're normal in the Canadian market (Edmonton even has plugs for block heaters on parking meters) but positively exotic here on this side of the Detroit River. There were more than a few meetings delayed this morning by "car won't start."
Anyway, I will be indoors again today and will probably ride a Sufferfest video in the basement when I get home. Maybe "Blender." Maybe "Violator." Maybe "Downward Spiral." Don't they sound fun?
Blogjoy
I do, absolutely! Of course, it wouldn't take much to be better than this February has been.....
King of PhotoShop
Well, March signals the beginning of spring down here. But today we got freezing rain and sleet, so the roads are icy and all the schools are closed. In the northeast this would be a day at the beach but down here the people are going crazy. The Today Show got cancelled so the local news could show film of people sliding all around on the highways. I get such a kick out of it.
The Saint and I did 2.2 slow miles on the stuff, just local streets, as I'm not taking the car out for any reason today. So the menu is: grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch and pasta, sauce and meatballs for dinner. A great "snow day" at the Rib Cage.
Wrote about "McFarland, USA" in the News today but didn't say too much about the movie, only my experience watching it with a lot of runners:
http://runningblog.dallasnews.com/2015/02/mcfarland-usa-and-those-spectacular-mexican-runners.html/
Spareribs
Erika, the RR run is not a race like it sounds. Every Saturday morning there is a group run, headed up by David's XC coach and attended by several of the runners on David's team, that meets in a town nearby called Rogue River. it's right on an extended bike path system, so very easy for varying paces as they do an out and back on the path. So on Saturdays when we are able to, David and I meet up with the group at 8:00 and do a run there.
Today is rest and lots of work
Tammy
Ribs, I think we have almost similar conditions here, although our ground and roads are deeply frozen and the rain we had Saturday night freezes immediately on contact. Things were pretty slushy in spots (they brine and salt the intersections) but today they're frozen and slick again. So... schools closed, university classes canceled but campus still open. We are supposed to use our judgment and go to work if we can do it safely. Judgment? Hey, I ran 12 miles on ice yesterday, who says I have judgment?
Henry, for sure here there is no assurance that March will be better. Just more of the same, really.
Sal, block heaters are required equipment here. We pay a fee for our parking decals, largely to pay for plowing and electricity for the plug ins.
Will probably do a TM run tonight after work. Seems a shame to "waste" a warm day like that, but snow and possibly more rain is on tap for today. Ick.
Ribs, good column. I like the term "wordlies". I'm estimating that in my 41 years of running I covered over 41,000 miles ( I did,t keep logs until I turned 70 and then , until these last 2 years, I ran about 1200 miles/ year.) So, I guess I'm a worldlie.
Sayhey! MM#130
Hiya and good afternoon!
Wish I could send some good or even halfway decent weather to you all. Spent the weekend in Tampa at the Gasparilla Distance Classic, and many, many positively GIDDY runners of all varieties from north of here. It was so much fun, a family-oriented celebration of running. There were waves for the 5K start (14,125 registered for it alone) and so I passed folks heading to their start after I'd finished. Saw several young men with strollers, so I took that as a sign that the moms were competing . Lots of folks into their 80s as well.
Dathan Ritzenhein won the half in 1:03 (something the Michiganders here will enjoy) and the coverage in the Tampa Trib was curious, focusing on this having been his "earliest" race. (It starts at 6 am, due to heat). We learned he was planning on a nap later, etc. Jen Rhines was the women's winner, in 1:12 and she's 40 . YAY Masters Runners!
DH finished the 15K in 1:47 (he did jog a bit, so not all racewalking). He is really happy about that. I did all 4 distances, the 15K and 5K Saturday and then the half and 8K Sunday. That WAS a challenge. It totaled 30.4 miles for the weekend, which is what I often run on a weekend. On the one hand, you get a nice break between the two races (the half starts at 6 and the 8K doesn't start until 9, the 15K starts at 6:45 and 5 K at 9), but on the other hand, that's opportunity to sort of stiffen up and creak out to the second start. There were 704 of us who took up the 4 race challenge. The rankings are by total time, e.g., mine was 3:54, which put me in 59th place OA and the 14th female.
Thought I'd outline the event in case you want to make a note for next year. As Mustang Sally observes, it could "feel like a miracle."
Next year's date is: 2016 Publix Gasparilla Distance Classic February 18 – 20.
I'm with Holly: March will at the very least result in more daylight. And while there will still be snow, there will be portents of spring.
warm grins,
A
https://agratefullifedotnet.wordpress.com/ (for a piece or two of my mind)
New skirt in town
It is only 16F and the windchill is below 0F, but the mid-30's temps this past weekend and the brighter sun managed to get some good snow melting in. The roads are 2 inches wider, which may not seem like much, but it's just THAT much more breathing room during drive time. The commuting has become much saner and safer as a result, just as the kiddos returned to school for their first Monday back IN A MONTH! It is amazing that we've had school-closing storms every Monday, except for last week, which was vacation week. People are starting to have a little hope for a return to normalcy!
My new Yaktrax arrived today, but I haven't used them. Today was an elliptical day, and I'm still being a good doobie with my recovery plan.
--Robin
NO MO MELANOMA! Help me run 26.2 miles and raise $5000 for the Melanoma Foundation of NE. Visit this page to learn more: http://tinyurl.com/NO-MO-MELANOMA
Well, February had been an awfully low bar to hurdle.
Apparently we had no days at with temps that got above freezing.
-22°C this morning.... the car started OK, damn it..... meaning I had to make a decision what to do at the gym before work.
Calves were a bit sore from yesterday's road run, so opted for 20 minutes on the spin bike and a good stretch.
.....Nancy The road to hell is paved....... run trails!
My new Yaktrax arrived today, but I haven't used them. Today was an elliptical day, and I'm still being a good doobie with my recovery plan. --Robin
Hang in there sistahh. Spring is just around the corner.
Speaking of spring, we are gearing up here for a terrible wild fire year again around here due to the low snow fall this winter....arhh...
Ran 9 miles after work tonight while witnessing an amazing sunset.
The World is so funny, one is craving for the snow to go away, the other one is craving for the snow to come to avoid another devastation of wild fires in the summer.
"Champions are everywhere; all you need is to train them properly..." ~Arthur Lydiard
We're sort of in between... we had less snowfall than usual, and mostly warmer temperatures all winter except the middle two weeks of February which were "back to normal" for temps (although we sure whined about it). Now we're hoping we don't have a hot dry summer but praying we don't have the constant deluge of last year. Argh.... things are definitely not normal. Or maybe this is our "new normal"?
Today's conditions here were pretty bad. Icy roads all day, temps hovering around freezing and then it started snowing mid-afternoon. Just awful. I was still pretty sore from yesterday's run, so opted for a short easy run on the TM tonight. Couldn't wait for it to be over.... 3.5 miles is all I could stand.
Amy, you're crazy tough.
We have average snowfall this year. Colder temps. Just the way I like it. The day started out at -20oF. One of the stops was at a place where we delivered a 23 ft wide door. When it's fully open, the entrance is 15' wide. I went to take a picture of it installed. However, the builders put up a temporary wall on the inside and out in order to protect it from construction damage.
SteveP
Steve - how does a 23' wide door make an opening that is 15' wide?