13.1 Miles Closer to Curing Cancer

For the Rock and Roll Chicago 13.1 Half Marathon, I will be running for Determination!

Please donate to a great cause by visiting the links below:

http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR?px=28461078&pg=personal&fr_id=35350&fl=en_US&et=ICOwS1uItNOAKaGAJswW4g&s_tafId=744342

April 30th 5k time trial

I have been running on and off since the New Orleans 13.1 and am officially kicking off my training plan for the Chicago 13.1 on July 22nd. This will I will be doing 5k and 10k time trials to track improvement over the next few months.

I ran the river trail here in Atlanta. Its a flat man made trail that out and back is just under 5k. Below is the GARMIN details for the run. I made it with an average pace of 7m 45s per mile. My 5k goal before race time is 7m per mile.

The Bob Callan Trail

I found a great trail behind the apartments we are staying in. Its a paved trail with great space and there are also some dirt trails that split off for some trail running.

Here is the route:

Elevation (this was a run with some big hills):

Pace and grade:

Rock and Roll New Orleans 13.1

I will start to back post some of my training runs for this race too, but below are some of the details from the Rock and Roll Series, New Orleans 13.1. The race was awesome! I loved the course layout and it was a relatively flat run the whole way.

We obviously prepared the 24 hours before by eating awesome local New Orleans food. My personal favorite meal was a penut butter and bacon hamburger for lunch the day before. We also didnt let the race deter us from having a late Friday night and enjoying the city while we were there!

Official finish time was just over 1H 53M, a personal best!

My run:

Stats:

Long 7.0 mile run in Singapore

Just going to post the GARMIN data for this run. It was a really good long run that Ashley and I did during our last week in Singapore. We ran out and then a small loop at the end to hit 7.0 miles. Then took a taxi back :)

Pengerang Malaysia Run and Bike

Just over the harbor from Singapore is Pengerang Malaysia. You can take a bum boat from the Harbor port near the Singapore airport and an hour later be on the shore of Malaysia. The following photos are from our trip to Pengerang:

 

There really isn't anything exciting in this part of the world, but the deserted roads and very very small town made for a nice get away from the big city of Singapore. While over in Pengerang, Ashley and I went for a run on the first day. On the second day, while Ashley took a GMAT practice test, I hopped on my bike (brought all the way from the US) and went out for a nice ride.

The Run:

The Bike:

Long training run in Singapore

This was a great route to go from or apartment in Clarke Quay to the Botanic gardens and back!

The data:

The route:

Starting to train in Singapore

Long story short, I am really really really out of shape. So I am going to try to devote myself to training for a half iron race in March/April with the hopes to finally move on to an iron man later in the year.

I am in Singapore for business at the moment and am thinking of joining up with a local group called MetaSport: http://www.metasport.com/

Tomorrow I have my initial practice with them at the Botanic Gardens, so that will be my next post.

Today I ran a 5k in just around 30mins... not good.

I have joined the barefoot revolution

I admit that I never put a lot of stock into the whole run barefoot, anti-shoe company, hippy speak surrounding barefoot running. But the book Born to Run really changed my viewpoint on the topic. I also like the mentality that the human foot is the product of millions of years of evolution and we should put a little more trust in it. Anyway, here is the pic of my new Vibram fivefingers Bikilas.

* I do still plan to run occasionally in my Newtons as well as compete in them for longer events.

So its been about 10 months

Looking back at this blog I realize its been about 10 months since I have posted anything here. I can explain that with one simple answer... new job with 80hr+ work weeks. But enough excuses. I recently have decided to pick up my game a little and start getting back into a rhythm. Now I dont have an Ironman as a target but hope to do a couple shorter events next spring.

Anyway, here is a run I did while home visiting my parents as a bit of a kick off to the new workout commitment.

http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=3979147

Mill Creek Canyon

The first time I rode Mill Creek Canyon I wasnt able to share all the usual stats with you because I had forgotten my Garmin. Today, I woke up and went to watch the Steelers beat Favre and the Vikings. After eating far to many Nachos and having had pancakes for breakfast I thought it best to get out on my bike and repeat the Mill Creek Hill Climb from a month ago.

The start was pretty rough as my muscles were rejecting the idea of the hill climb, and it it definitely starting to get pretty cold in the canyon. The sun provided occasional relief as It poked into various parts of the canyon, but for the most part it was pretty cold. I broke out the gloves, arm warmers, and leggings for the first time this year on the bike.

The canyon goes up further than I ended up climbing but it was due to cold more than exhaustion. I made it to mile marker 6 which was the initial goal.

As Always, Garmin stats are below.

GE Surgery Healthymagination 5k

For those out there that don't already know, I work at GE Healthcare in their Information Management Leadership Program. My current role has take me to Salt Lake City where I work in the surgery business. Its a much smaller enviroment than back in Milwaukee where most of our GEHC businesses are located. However, we are still strong participants in many of the company initiatives. The largest and most important being Healthymagination. I am sure many people have seen the commercials, but copied below is a recent press release link on the initiative: HealthymaginationPress Release

This week has involved many healthy events around the office. Today at 7:30am we had the Healthymagination Surgery 5k run. It was a small event which most people walked to show support. However a few of us gave it our all. I came in 2nd place overall winning a wonderful $25 gift certificate which will be donated to our iCare charity auction as a part of a larger gift basket for people to bid on.

As always, below are the Garmin Stats:

Great Ironman Workout Plan

Awesome Ironman Workout here: http://www.trifuel.com/triathlon/ironman-workouts/

9-29-2009 SLC Run

This run felt really good.

Angel's Landing Hike, Zion National Park

The Sign at the start of the Angel's Landing trail shows a figure falling from a cliff. The warning reads "falls from cliffs have resulted in death." That's how I knew right from the start that we were going to be going up and that we had definitely chosen the right hike.

The start of the trail was difficult as you were constantly climbing higher and higher, especially with sore legs from yesterday's bike ride. About half way to the top, it levels out for about a quarter mile and you can catch you breath before heading into "The Wiggles" which are about 15 cutback where you zig zags up as if you were climbing very steep stairs. Once to the top of the wiggles, the fun really begins.

It levels out to an amazing view. However, the summit is still about 30mins away for a fast hiker/climber. There is a very narrow trail with a 500ft drop off to one side and an 800 ft drop off to the other. They are kind enough to have one chain along the trail to hold onto if you need some extra stability. It was an amazing view the entire time (or at least when you weren't looking down for your next step). I will be posting photos of the hike soon, but neither Justin or I brought our digital cameras and will need to have our disposable camera developed before I can post images.

Zion is definitely one of the top national parks I have been too (which are admittedly very few), and this hike has some of the best view and the most exhilarating drop offs I have seen in a while.

Zion National Park 24mile Ride

Justin an I drove South the Zion National Park last night following work. We departed from SLC around 5:30PM and arrived at about 11:30PM at our camp site. The trip down was interesting. First we almost ran out of gas and then we were not entirely sure where we were going to camp. Justin had been to a free campsite outside of the National Park before but the trick was going to be to find it at night. We were finally able to do so. However, finding an open spot to camp was also a challenge.

After we got somewhat set up, Justin and I loaded up the bikes and drove up the mountain road. We needed to drive because you can't ride through the tunnel that runs through the mountain. It is about 3 miles long and there isn't any lighting (other than car headlights). Once through the tunnel we drove another mile or two until we came across a good spot to leave the car. After changing, downing a few more bottles of water, packing and filling our camelbacks, and locking up the car, we took off.

Originally we were looking to do somewhere around 50 miles. However, we didn't hit the road till around 12 noon and it was soon over 90 degrees with direct sunlight. We reached about 11 miles out and decided it best to turn around. Rather than heading straight back we too a detour up a side road that led to a few ranches and took that for a few miles before turning around.

Our ride was also plagued with various stops as we each needed to work out some mechanical issues. Justin was having trouble with his speedometer and pedals. I had to make a few adjustments to my front break and seat height. However, by the time we turned around to head back those issues had been solved and we were able to ride consistently the final 15 miles or so. It is a beautiful park and I hope to post some photos in the near future for everyone. I hope to return for a little bit longer of a ride!

As always, the Garmin stats are below and the map is above!

Post Work Mill Creek Canyon Ride

After work today, Justin, Paul, and I rode 6 miles up the Mill Creek Canyon road. Unfortunately, in my rush out the door I left my precious Garmin on the counter. I put the image below together using the gmap pedometer and then overlaying it onto a topographic chart. Its really cool to see the mountains like this. I wish I had the typical elevation change and speed charts because this was one of extremes. While Mill Creek isnt the most difficult canyon, its not easy. It was 90% up hill while heading into the mountains. The climb took us about 51 minutes. The decent was amazing. The roads through the canyon are very well maintained, and with the exception of areas surrounding the restaurant traffic was very minimal. I estimate a decent speed of around 45mph max. Justin's Spedometer stopped registering on the way down at 41 but I imagine we broke that speed during a later decent. I will be sure to ride this one again and next time to wear the Garmin.

5k 5:30am morning run

Justin and I kicked off our morning workouts today with a 5k run that started at 5:30am. We met in between our two apartments and then ran north till we hit 1.6miles. Somewhere on the return trip we lost some mileage because my total at the end was 3.0. It was also a nice ward 46degrees out. As always, the Garmin stats are below :)

Its Been a While

A few months ago my training came to a fairly abrupt stop and with it this blog. I'm not going to go into great detail as to the reason I stopped training but rather a quick synopsis and an assurance that I am again starting to train again.

The major blow to my 2009 Iron Man plan came when GE gave me the approval to go to China for a three week training course. This coupled with some personal traveling threw a Major wrench into the Iron Man Season and my training plan. Without the motivation of my big event, my training began to suffer.

The second blow came when I purchased a condo that required a lot of attention and re-work during the months leading up to my China trip.

And Finally, I have just moved to Salt Lake City, and moving is always difficult.

HOWEVER, This week I have been doing some baseline tests to see how far I have fallen and create a foundation for my upcoming workouts. I am also happy that I live in SLC in close proximity to my friend Justin who will be training with me. This will no longer be an individual endeavor.

I have some back posts that I will be putting up of an event or two that I haven't talked about or uploaded my Garmin data for. Look for those this evening and look forward to a winter of great training!

Hartland WI Ride

I went for a ride out in Hartland WI. We left from Bob Johnson's house in the Bristlecone Pines Golf course and rode a quick out and back. Stats are below!