Its Africa hot, well almost anyway

I was not able to make my normal Wednesday morning run. Instead, I ended up going out at lunch time. Boy was that a mistake. Not just because I was not fully over my exercise induced migraine from yesterday, but because it was much hotter out than I had thought. Despite running slower, drinking my entire water bottle, and walking quite a bit. I was still not able to stay cool, nor keep my heart rate down. That was a grueling 8 miles. Hopefully it will not trigger the migraine to come back.

As I was thinking during this miserable run, about how far it was out of my comfort zone temperature wise.. I thought, dang this feels like "Africa hot". We almost. As I got back to my
desk I decided to check the temperature in Addis Ababa today, its 90 degrees. So our 87 or so is quite close.

And just to have a little fun, I added a widget to the side of the blog to display the temperature in Addis. In in with the "Destination Addis" countdown.

Enjoy!

Destination Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

As a crow flies, it is approximately 7563 miles from Chicago to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Ethiopia is the destination for my family, God willing, within the next year. You see, my wife and I have recently began the process to adopt a child from Ethiopia.

To help pass the time, To help feel that progress is continuing when the process seems to grind to a halt, to help make the 'adoption' journey more tangible to us, my wife and I have decided to log all our fitness miles. Every mile we walk, swim, bike, or run counts. Our goal is to reach 7563 miles. The distance to Addis.

7563 miles is a considerably larger sum than the 1888 miles to Guatemala City, Guatemala. Guatemala City was the location of our first "Destination" journey. Given that we have hopefully less than 1 year, it is going to be a giant challenge. Although everything in life is a challenge.

With your prayers and support, we will take it one mile at a time...

Peace

11 days to go.. its time to get serious

With Memorial Day now behind us, and the obligatory BBQ's and other holiday fare past, it is time to get focused. Lately training has been, unstructured, and if I'm honest, that is probably putting it politely. I need to get focused. I think the body sculpt classes on Tuesdays are keeping the muscles toned. And the 1 to 1.5 miles sprints once or twice a week are helping to increase my foot speed. Nothing substitutes for race day. This Saturday might be the last hard day before tapering.

11 days until the Batavia tri. Is a new (PR) personal record in site? In 2006, I finished in 1 hour, 21 minutes, and 55 seconds. In 2005, 1 hour, 24 minutes, and 11 seconds. In 2004, 1 hour, 33 minutes, 03 seconds. We will find out. It only takes 1 second to come up with a new PR.

I have a sneaking suspicions my swimming is not were I need to be, but I might be quicker on the bike and run. June 10th will be the first Triathlon of the season, and a decent tuneup for the 1/2 ironman in July.

Meters and Yards

Following an extra 15 miles today from riding to Church and to our favorite coffee shop, it was time to hit the pool again.

What fun, the bulkheads were at the end of the pool. So it was a full 50meters in length. Just as with a few weeks again, I did two 1000 time trials. I was shocked at how slow I was, but thankfully, it was 1000meter rather than 1000 years. 1000m is equal to 1093 yards. Thus the majority of the time was for the extra 93 yards (almost an extra 100).

In the end I was still slower. Just about 2 minutes per 100 yards (once converted). It was nice to get 3200 meters in. So I know that I can swim 2 miles.

Only two short weeks before the Batavia tri. Time to get serious...

Trip down memory lane...

Well sort of. With 21days left before the 5th Annual Batavia Sprint Triathlon, it was time to hit the course.

Encouraged by the desire of a friend of mine that I talked into doing his first triathlon, I road with him through the Batavia road course today. The weather was good, not to hot, not to cold, and best of all, not very windy (which this road course can be).

It was a great ride. I like to think that I worked him pretty well, by keeping close to a 20mph pace while he was used to 17-18mph. All told, with mileage to/from the start of the course, I notched another 20 miles.

I think for both of us, we realized that we still have some progress that needs to be made before race day. Still, any day with a nice outdoor ride is a good day.

Peace

12-15 mph makes for a fun day

This past Saturday, I finally took the bike of the trainer and hit the road. It seems like its quite a few weeks later than last year. I decided to head out on my normal route. That route (according to the new cycle computer) turns out to be 47 miles and some change.

I felt great heading out. I was averaging 20+ mph. I was feeling good about all the indoor trainer work I had down as well. That is.. until I turned around. I was hit with a 12- 15 mph wind straight into my face. No wonder the ride out was 'easy'.

I made it out in 1 hour and 15 minutes, but it tool me 1 hour and 30 minutes+ to get back. That headwind was as brutal as I can recall during any outdoor rides. What was supposed to be a nice, get out ride, turned out to be very tiring endeavor. I was feeling it as well.

I probably should have known better. Just like running indoors on the treadmill, its nothing at all like running out of doors. I guess I thought the trainer would be different. Its good that I got out though. Now I know I have more work to do....

Peace

Race photo's are in

It has been one week since the end of the Great Western Trail 1/2 marathon. The Race photos are starting to come in. This is a shot on the left was taken at about the 5.5 mile mark. Thanks for the great shot J!

So how did I feel after the race?

Recovery went pretty smoothly. Sunday itself was a wash, despite walking an extra 4 miles in a parade that afternoon. I did have a wicked headache, but it was gone by Monday morning. Monday was a complete rest day. Tuesday I was back at it with a "Cardio Challenge" at work. A 1 mile sprint (5:57), 1500 meter row(6:12), 50 floor stair climb (6:30), and an 8 mile ride (11:35). So I must have been feeling good. Ahhh no.. I was wiped out, big time, afterward. Wednesday and Friday were off days again. I did attend a spin class on Thursday, but was not able to go as hard as usually.



All told, it was a good experience. We will see how it translates when the Spirit of Race 1/2 Ironman comes along. Finishing that race is a goal of course. I have to come up with a concrete goal for the race. I do not think its safe to believe I can hold a 7:39 pace for a 1/2 marathon after a 1.2 mile swim and a 56mile bike ride.

The interesting part of that Spirit of Racine race, is that 14 days later I will be participating in the Copperman sprint triathlon. The Copperman is quite likely to be a "just for fun" race. It complete depends on how fast I recover from the 1/2 ironman.

The photo at right, was taken at the finish line. Not a bad shot. It seems most finish line shots with me in it are dreadful. This shot also has a good view of the Team World Vision race shirt.

Now, its back to the training. More on that in the next post...

Great Westeran Trail (completed)

Today was the Great Western Trail 1/2 marathon. This was not only my first 1/2 marathon, but actually my first run-only race ..ever.. My goal was to finish in under 2 hours. So how did it go?

Awesome. I finished with a time of 1:40:19. That far exceeded not only my expectations, but even what I thought I had in me. 1:40:19 ends up being a 7min 39sec pace per mile. This morning, before the race, I was hoping for about an 8min 30 sec per mile.

1 hr, 40 minutes, and 19 seconds was good enough for:

• 20th in my age group (35-39) out of 66 runners
• 94th overall for male runners out of 327
• 109 overall out of 662 race participants

I am personally very pleased, and the post race cramps, stiffness, headaches.. well that just comes with the territory. As stated on my blog's welcome page and my sponsorship page, I'm not doing this for me. I am doing if for the children and families of a community in Ethiopia in called Quacha Birra. Today, I feel pretty good, that I helped to make a small difference.

Peace

p.s.
I'll post some race pictures in a day or so. Also, a big update on "Destination ??????", the paperwork has been sent, and the destination is known. More to come.

Alas poor "sleep", I knew you well

It is not the most positive news, three days before the 1/2 marathon, and I am dog tired. I've allowed myself to be spread to thin, and the result is a noticeable lack of sleep. With a busy Friday and Saturday, I am not sure where I am going to catch any extra Zzzzz's

I may need to put a Coffee IV into my arm soon, or else I could be running on fumes on Sunday. Maybe there is still time to turn it around.

Inspirational Song for the Day:
"We Remember" from Jeremy Camp's album, "Beyond Measure (Special Edition)"

We worship you, Lord in the splendor of your holiness
In the beauty of your righteousness, holy, holy
We offer you thanks, for the endless love you have displayed
For the sacrifice you freely gave, worthy, worthy

[chorus] You are holy, precious lamb of God
Forever you will reign, forever you will reign
King of glory, risen son of God
Forever you will reign, forever you will reign

Father of light, your radiance and majesty
Set your son to set the captive free, holy, holy
Infinite love on the cross, you saved us from our sins
Conquered death and returned again, worthy, worthy

[chorus]

We remember, we remember the cross
...

[chorus]

New Swim drills

I just read a new article from D3multisport.com. They put out a nice Tri newsletter every so often. This most recent article has a segment on swim drills. It included the standard:

• catch up drill
• closed fist drill
• finger-tip drag drill
• single arm drill

But it included a couple that I have not heard of that sound quite good. They brought up the:

• three/six drill
• sculling

For all of you out there looking to make improvements in your stroke, you might want to check it out. You can find "The Extra Mile" article from D3multisport.com at this link.

4 Days and counting

As I look to the counter on the right hand side of this blog, I am reminded that I've got just short of 4 days until my first ever, running race. While I have been jogging and running on my own for years, I've never entered or competed in a running even.

So why start small with a 5k? Lets go for one of the big dogs, a 1/2 marathon. 13.1 miles. I think I'm ready. Certainly ready as I'll ever be. Most of my long runs over the past two months are already in the 12 to 13 mile range. So finishing is not an issue, its just trying to finish in under 2 hours.

2 hours or less, that's the goal. I can hold a 6 min/mile pace for 1 mile. In last years Accenture Chicago Triathlon, I held a 7:46 min/mile pace for the 10k. But holding those paces for a full 13.1 miles is a completely different story. To achieve a sub 2 hour 1/2 marathon, I need to essentially hold a 9 min/mile pace.

As I'm tapering this week and stuffing myself with pasta, we'll see how well the preparation pays off. The 3 weeks of vacation layoff, and the post vacation haze is finally worn off. Hopefully its impact will be minimal.

If you're the praying kind, say a prayer for me. After all, its not for me that I'm running. Its for the Kids (see my "Welcome Message" for more info)

Peace