Sunday, January 27, 2019

Weekly Log 21-Jan to 27-Jan-2019: Wild Weather Swings, College Sports History, and another Indoor Meet

Another week gone by, which means another blog post.  Aren't you excited?  :)  As long as I write a short blurb each day, it's easy for me to write and post on a timely basis, and I can include details that I otherwise quickly forget.

Monday:  10
Frigid MLK Day run with Matthew and Chris, followed by catching up with injured Mikey and Tommy 5K at Dave's Coffee.  I hadn't seen Mike in about a month, so I'm glad he reached out to me to get together.  Hopefully he's back into more running soon, as well as T5K.
On my way out the door for the short drive to Burlingame:
FRIGID!

The run itself was 1F (yes, only one degree) and 3F at the finish.  The high for the day in Westerly was 6F, which I heard on the news later was the coldest day overall in RI since 1994.  25 years!  Those that know me well know that I tend to dress on the lighter side (think comfortable in shorts at 18 degrees last weekend), but this one I was concerned about and dressed much heavier today (two layers on bottom, two on top, thick hat and gloves, wool socks that Boston Marathon '57 winner John Kelley picked out for me, Gortex running shoes).  It did the trick as other than a little bit cold in finger tips in the first mile, I was warm the whole way.  On his Strava posting, Chris would later write, "worst I've felt on a run in a long time"; I was aware of the added breathing complexity from his balaclava, but hopefully whatever else ailed him is short lived.
Ice in the beard.

Nanook of the North

Tuesday:  7
Another single-digit morning when I woke up.  By the time I went out for a run at 4pm, the temp had risen all the way to 22 degrees!  Ran three different Pumpkins loops today:  1) the first loop of 8K (XC course), 2) the second loop of 8K (Hansel & Gretel), 3) the first loop of 8K in reverse.  I was annoyed by the frozen ruts from bikers, but forgot about it when the two bikers I did see out there were friendly and joking that I was running faster than they were riding.

Wednesday:  10
Three tough trail runs:
7AM:  Hale Reservation, Dover, MA.  5 miles.  Ice-encrusted snow, attacked with Yak-Trax.  Hard work and slow going.
My Yak-Trax Run (carbite bits up front, coils in back)
would save the day for me.

Without Yak-Trax (or some other suitable traction device),
even the short road section I was on would have been a nightmare.
With the Yak-Trax, it was actually kind of easy to run right across sections
of solid ice like this.

Beautiful out there today!
3PM:  Big River.  0.3 miles.  Solid ice, which I can navigate with the Yak-Trax Run, but with frozen footprints all over the place, it was just a miserable mess.  Bailed.

4PM:  Baker Pines.  5 miles.  Ran out on North-South Trail, back on Arcadia Trail.  Just ten miles south of Big River, but much, much more runnable.  Unfortunately, I found out the hard way that the trails were not COMPLETELY ice-free, as early on I slid in a boulder field and banged my shin into one of the boulders.  A classic move for me.
Crashed and burned early on in run.
Thankfully, no major issue or pain.

I fell somewhere on the trail through this boulder field.
Hard to believe anyone could fall here, right?  :)
Crossing partially frozen rivers like this were really tough,
especially as getting dark, because the rivers were frozen
over, you had to get across, but yet you couldn't tell
where the ice was safe and where it wasn't.

Thursday:  8
Awoke to strong wind gusts, and opted to postpone my open road long run a day and sleep in.  Went out for a Noontime run at B-game instead.  Downpour, 30+ mph winds, which I knew about beforehand, but it was also 51 degrees and I got to wear short sleeves for the first time in ... well, so long ago I don't remember.

What I DIDN'T count on was black ice.  I was bombing straight through a deep puddle, when I slid on ice I felt underfoot, but could not see and did not expect in today's warm temperatures.  In that split second, I just knew this wasn't going to end well.  Went into the air, and landed hard back into that same puddle and black ice on my back, slamming my right forearm and jamming my thumb into the sheet of ice.  Dang, that hurt (it still hurts as of writing this evening, as does the chafing in groin - don't worry, no pics of the latter.)
Pretty gross, eh?
By the time I finished, despite 51 degrees,
you can see goosebumps as I was drenched and
feeling cold.  
Friday:  20!
I set the alarm for 4:50am, and pressed the snooze button not once, but twice.  Between snooze resets, I was envisioning excuses in my mind and formulating shorter less-time consuming (and much less distance) routes, as I really didn't want to get up in the dark.  My arm still hurts from yesterday (above), it's too dark, there might be ice on the road and I'll fall again, it's too close to Sunday's planned race to be running long, my chafing hasn't healed enough yet to run, etc., etc.  There are a myriad of unfounded excuses I was quickly preparing, but somehow, when the alarm went off for the THIRD time (how absurd, right?) at 5:08am, I got my lazy fat a$$ out of bed and got moving.

That was the hardest part!!  Once out the door, the weather was agreeable (30 degrees, clear skies, almost no wind) and there really was no issue.  There were very few cars on the road, and as I've turned into a safety running fanatic over the past few years, I had on my new fluorescent WTAC winter hat, neon green quarter-zip, and pulsating front and rear headlamps.  I'll never win any fashion awards, but hopefully these will ensure that I'm visible to motorists.

The miles went by pretty quickly, I ran a comfortable pace of mid-7s, and despite some soreness and discomfort from the previous two day's trail injuries, once I stepped out the door there never was any doubt that I would finish twenty.  Mind over matter, and I'm so happy that somehow I didn't cave and sleep in.

Saturday:  6
Body is feeling it today.  Guessing partly due to yesterday's long run, and partly due to still feeling the physical effects of the two trail spills from Wednesday and Thursday.  Regardless of the cause, with a planned race tomorrow, prudence dictates taking it easy today.  REALLY easy.

Went to Ninigret Park and ran 8+ minute pace on grass fields, trails, and even a portion of the Chili 5K already partially marked for this afternoon's race.

Afterwards, drove up to University of New Hampshire to watch Matthew's final home indoor meet of the season.  In between events, I walked around the fieldhouse hallways taking in the really incredible display they have of every varsity athletic team* they have fielded from 1894 to the present.  (*I also learned the only year they did not field any athletic teams was in 1944, as it was at the height of World War II.  Interesting fact!).    I truly found this collage to be fascinating.  Do most colleges do this?  Anyhow, a select few that especially caught my eye:
The first year of track at UNH.  I bet those uniforms were abrasive.
Apparently, you weren't allowed to smile back then.
What on earth is the sport of "Numeral Women"?!!!
Of course I WAS in college in 1929, but we didn't have this varsity sport
at my school.
I'm curious what this is.  If you're going to "cheat" and Google this,
before you do so, at least give it an educated or even whimsical guess
in your response as well.
Can't recall the sport of "Pepcats" either, but the participants in the 1951
Pepcats team seem happier than the 1929 Numeral Women team.
Maybe because it's coed, and the guy in front is being touched by two women?
Would that be allowed today?
I was really shy about asking any girls out in my high school/college days,
but I'm certain I would not have had the cojones to ask any woman out that
was on the rifle team!  (1939 team pictured here)
---------------
The response to my proposition would have been, "Sure, Jeff,
I'll meet you out in the woods.  I'll even give you a 50-yard head start before I start shooting."
  Yikes.  No rifle women for me.
Now, moving in to the modern era (2009 team pictured above), I was pleasantly
surprised to learn that UNH fields both a nordic ski team AND alpine ski team.
How much fun would either of those be?!!
---------
Can anyone identify that hotel in the background.  Yeah, too easy, right?
If you're one of the few regular readers of my blog, you've perhaps read more than once about how one of my life regrets (Monday morning quarterback here) is playing varsity soccer in high school instead of cross country.  What else would I do differently (with regards to organized sports only; otherwise, the list would drag on)?    It's settled:  when I'm reincarnated, for my next life, as a student/athlete at the University of New Hampshire, here are the sports I will play:
  • Fall:  Cross Country
  • Winter:  Nordic Ski
  • Spring:  Numeral Women

Sunday:  8
A month ago, I had my first foray to indoor track racing, running a 10:18 in the 3K at a BU Mini Meet.  Apparently I have short term memory, as this week, I signed up for a second indoor race:  USATF East Region and New England Masters Indoor Track & Field Athletic Championships.

Two remarks on that name:
  1. Is that the friggin' longest name you ever heard of for a race?
  2. The word "championships" seems a bit of a misnomer to me, as 1) the field was much more stacked at BU, and 2) there's nothing you need to do to qualify except be age 30 or over.

So I signed up for the 5K.  Tried to drag Chris along to have another local WTAC runner, but he had some lame excuse of suddenly losing 70 pounds to a stomach virus.  Or was it 7 pounds?  Seriously, hopefully we'll drag him and maybe some others for a future track race.

When I arrived, it was quickly obvious that the number and depth of runners would be much less here than at BU.  A few runners came up to me with comments like "Um, do you realize this isn't a trail race?".  Yeah, point taken, funny.  Warmed up with fellow trail runner Kenny Shardlow and track runner Scott Grandfield, and got ready to go.  Ambling over to the start, I ran into Dave Principe, who told me he said to Bob Jackman that he saw Jeff Walker in the signup list, and supposedly Jackman said, "No, that guy's a trail runner."

The start:  16 of us toed the line.  I was seeded 5th (as opposed to seeded 80-something at BU!).  I knew full well that this would be 25 laps around the oval, but somehow seeing the big "25" on the laps to go countdown sign was all of a sudden intimidating to me.  The gun went off, and it was time to focus.  The first lap, or at least the first 100 meters, was pretty chaotic to me, with runners in every lane, and trying to figure out my place.  Coming in to the end of the first lap, four of us runners had kind of settled into a pack of single-file runners, with Dave Principe doing the work and leading us.

Consistent pack run:  And so the first 2K (first ten laps) would go:  single-file, pack of 4, Principe leading us.  Kudos to Dave for pulling off lap after lap of consistent splits of 41 seconds (see splits below).  As at BU, there were times when I needed to work to stay with the pack, but having this format and someone doing the work made it "easy" for me.

Falling apart on my own:  I don't remember approving this next stunt, but unfortunately, with ten laps in, the guy in 2nd (2nd in our pack, not overall) pulled ahead of Principe.  It's hard to tell, but it seemed that Principe responded, but didn't catch up.  The 3rd guy (guy right ahead of me) also broke apart from our cozy pack, so now all four of us split up our own ways.  Damn - that wasn't in the plans.  Now what I do?  It was a struggle fest for me for the remaining 3K:

200m splits:

  • Kilometer 1:  41, 41, 40, 40, 41
  • Kilometer 2:  42, 41, 41, 41, 41
  • Kilometer 3:  42, 42, 43, 43, 43
  • Kilometer 4:  44, 44, 44, 44, 43
  • Kilometer 5:  44, 45, 45, 45, 44

    The ugly finish:  As you can see from my splits above, I just kept getting progressively slower, especially after 2K.  By the final kilometer, I had lost all track of where Principe was, how many laps I had left, etc.  The final two laps were especially ugly with rookie mistakes, as with two laps to go I stepped one foot onto the metal divider and was afraid I was just going to tumble over it and be DQ'd, and then with one lap to go, I crossed the finish line, slowed almost to a stop, asked the official if I was done, and she said, "No, one more to go.".  Ugh.  Picked up to finish one lap.  I'm glad no one took pictures, as it likely would have shown me with arms flailing, stooped over, head to one side, and drooling on myself.
    My official results:  17:58.28
    I asked one of the officials how the above age-grading works,
    and was told that based on my [advanced] age and stats on age-related running deterioration,
    that converts to a 16:05 if I were running in the open (15-29) age group.
    Pros:

    • To start with, I actually came out for another indoor race and got it done.  As Dave Principe said to me later about indoor track in general, "I didn't hate it as much as I thought I would".  Yeah, I can really relate to that sentiment.
    • I seeded myself at 18-flat and accomplished that by running 17:58.  That's my fastest 5K in more than three years, and I'm told I would likely run faster on a banked track (I don't appreciate those nuances of different tracks yet).
    • I am very happy that Dave Principe was in the race.  Otherwise, I really didn't know anyone around me, and I still have no idea how to pace at these things.
    • Having been to PCTA many times as a spectator, it was good to go to one as a competitor and see that through a runner's eyes.
    • White Electric Coffee, just a short walk from PCTA.  Went there post race for a "special turkey" sandwich and an iced mocha for the ride home.  It did not disappoint.
    • As always, catching up with other runners I know:  Scott Grandfield, Kenny Shardlow, Scott Mason, Leslie, Jackie, Principe, Jackman, and Brightman.

    Cons:

    • Obviously, progressively slowing during the final 3K of the race was disappointing.  I could feel it and I knew I was falling apart, with the only silver lining that I thought was slowing even more than the 2-4 seconds per lap that I actually was.
    • Unlike at BU where I never lapped anyone and never got lapped, starting at lap 4, I was running in lane 2 to lap other runners seemingly constantly and got also lapped by two runners (one double-lapped me).  Thus, towards the end of the race, I stopped looking at the lap counter as it didn't apply to me and was confusing me.
    • Similar to at BU, my cool-down was on some pretty lousy streets and sidewalks, and I got jeered by some sketchy locals.  (I guess it's pretty unrealistic, though, to expect nice rural roads or paths to run on adjacent to an indoor track as those masters or open indoor races are probably always in cities around here?)
    • That dry air is just horrible.  Even before halfway through the race, I just felt "cotton mouth".  Was parched post race, and still have some residual dry hack as I write this ten hours post-race.
    Seemingly representation from runners from every NE state,
    plus a few surrounding
    View of the PCTA track
    (start of mens' 3K)

    Weekly mileage:  70

    Weekly synopsis:  Just a month ago, a weekly mileage of 70+  from me would have been followed by multiple exclamation marks after the number.  Now, it's more like, "Another week where I hit 70 miles.  Not bad.".  If that sounds pompous, I don't mean it that way at all, and I realize the number of miles run is unique to each individual, their training, injuries, etc.  It's just to me that I'm having a really good streak of running and mileage lately, and after a disheartening 2018, I am quite happy about that!

    Weekly highlight:  The snow run at Hale Reservation.  Thus far I've had very little opportunity this winter to run on snow, and I do enjoy getting out there in the snow.

    Weekly lowlight:  Thursday's fall.  Wednesday's shin crash was pretty minor.  Thursday's fall still hurts a bit three days later, and I was embarrassed at work that afternoon when someone had to point out to me that my dress shirt sleeve was soaked in wet blood and asked if I was OK and what happened.  I told just enough of the truth (I slipped on ice, and just need to clean up) to dodge and abruptly end the well-intended questioning.  Had I explained the situation of running through the woods and crossing cold streams in a rain and wind storm in January during my lunch hour, I probably would have been referred for a psychiatric evaluation.

    Sunday, January 20, 2019

    Weekly Log 14-Jan to 20-Jan-2019: Battles with the Alarm Clock

    It's the latter half of January now.  Time to start planning out some 2019 races.  While the schedule will certainly change, here is my first draft:  Tentative 2019 Races

    Monday:  0 run, 1/2 swim
    Core stretching regimen before work.  Legs still pretty sore after 20 miles on Saturday and 12 more on Sunday.
    Easy non-stop 900 yard swim at lunch at Westerly Y.

    Tuesday:  12
    AM:  After a fitful night where I must have gotten up at least eight times, when the alarm clock went off, I only had this response, as I climbed further under the covers:
    Noon:  6 mile progression run, on a usual quiet room from the Y downtown out to White Rock / Springbrook and back via the North End.  Ran from 7:40 down to 5:47 pace for the final mile.  Winded.
    PM:  Late afternoon recovery run in the Barn.
    Beautiful sunset at the end of my run at
    Wequetequock Cove.


    Wednesday:  5
    My planned morning run was once again thwarted again by me being a wimp.  Dark and 18 degrees when the alarm went off.  How does Jeff Vuono get up religiously to ride at 4:30am, when the guy is retired??!!!

    Late afternoon run in Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge.  Sign at main entrance (Route 1) advising to enter at your own risk, due to embarrassing federal shutdown.  Deserted out there.

    Thursday:  12
    Finally got my sorry butt out of bed when the alarm went off and summoned to me, "Get up, Fatty".  Fatty (me) got up.  Drove to the Y at 6am and ran the Boombridge loop out to North Stonington and back through Ashaway.  23 degrees; comfortable.  Once I got out there, it was great.  It got light after a few miles (beautiful red sunrise, in fact), but I'm so glad I started out with a headlamp, as the first mile along Canal Street was a little busy and very dark.

    Friday:  4
    First visit ever to "Grills East" trailhead at Route 91.  Interesting terrain back there.  Some trails a little hard to follow, but it looks like more to come.  At one point, it looked like I was entering someone's private field, so I turned around, but I'm not sure if I was.  I think I ran all the trails in there, but once they add more, this could be an interesting place.

    There was a historic cemetery on "Cemetary [sic] Trail", so of course, I went in to read some of the visible stones.  Some of the interred were born back when this was British soil.  The largest and most prominent stone was quite ornate and featured the words "In the midst of life we are in death".  I found that interesting and attributed it to the fact that he was age 14 when he died, in the midst of his early life, but when I Googled it, found it came from something called "The Common Book of Prayer" (?) and had medieval origins.

    Saturday:  18
    Local, long run through Weekapaug, Misquamicut, Watch Hill, and Avondale.  Mixed in two 5-mile sections at MP.  Ran them at 6:25 pace, thought it would be relatively easy.  It wasn't.  Isn't MP supposed to be at conversational pace?  Will need to try a few more MP sections and then decide what makes sense based on reality.

    Sunday:  10
    Woke up in Waterbury, CT (family wedding)
    to several inches of snow and freezing rain.
    While I love to run in new areas, I would have been
    relegated to running icy city streets and dodging plows.
    Skipped the run.
     

    On the drive home through inland CT, so many tree branches were snapping
    under the weight of ice.  At this awkward juncture, I had to back up the car
    and find another way around.
    Got home, and by mid-afternoon the freezing rain and rain had stopped, and it was time for a run.  Did a "'Round the Pond" run with Matthew, with trails in Champlin tacked on to get ten.  Very windy; roads completely flooded in Misquamicut.

    Weekly mileage:  60 miles run, 0.5 miles swum

    Weekly synopsis:  Good week with the mileage I was looking to get.  Had a minor knee annoyance twice this week, but both times it went away after a mile or so.  Hopefully nothing.

    Weekly highlight:  Barn sunrise run.  Fun run, beautiful sunset, got to play with dogs at the cove.

    Weekly lowlight:  Multiple lazy responses to morning alarm clock calls to get my lazy butt out of bed and get running.  Mind over matter; it really shouldn't be that hard.

    Wednesday, January 16, 2019

    2018 in Review; 2019 Goals

    Time to start the annual running review.
    (Well, I started this December 31, but it took me 2+ weeks to write this, on and off; 
    very late compared to Seth, Leslie, Beth, etc.
    Finally it's done:  2,192 words, 2 graphs, 30 pics [Yes, I'm a total stats nerd])
    Let me just get it out there that 2018 was not my best running year by any stretch.  This was given the initial drought due to a crazy work project having me work 7 days per week and nights, and then a long non-running period over the summer due to a nerve injury and recovery.  I'm conscious of writing a balanced review instead of spewing negative drivel.  Hmm, so in that light, how I would I classify the running year 2018?

    • It was the best of times; it was the worst of times?  No, too cliche, and too dramatic on both extremes.
    • The ends justify the means?  No, only one of the two bookends (end of the year) was good; beginning of the year was mired in non-running due to a major work project consuming my time.
    • Good things come to those who wait?  Yes, this works for me.  Patience is not really a virtue of mine when it comes to running, but finally, as of this writing, my running is back to where I want it.
    Yikes!  What caused the precipitous decline?

    Drilling into my 2018 running failures

    Per the usual order of year-end review writing, let's jump into the 2018 goals and try not to get too depressed.  Goals copy/pasted verbatim from a year ago, with year-end responses in red:

    2018 Goals:

    • Mileage:  2,600.  Time to up it again!  Fail.  Not even close.  1,721.
    • Marathon:  Run a spring marathon.  Not signed up for any yet, but a repeat at Newport (April) or Providence (May) are both possibilities.  On the other hand, would prefer not to drag marathon training out until May, and it also increase the risk of heat.  Fail.  Never ran a marathon all year.
    • Run at least one new trail race.  Success.  Sort of.  Ran the Twilight "Trail" Race in June, although with mud the RD wimped out and removed the single-track sections.
    • Run a race that I've never run before (e.g., snowshoe, indoor, mud, etc).  Success.  Ran the BU Mini Meet #3 in December, 3K indoors.
    • Left over from 2016:  Document history of one of my favorite and most frequented running areas:  Woody Hill.  The WLT has requested that I research and write up the history on Wahaneeta, which I'll do but include adjacent Woody Hill and Sunnyacres Preserve.  Fail.  I do want to do this at some point, and was just asked by the WLT for an update, so I'll put it on yet again for 2019.  Will it be three strikes and you're out, or the third time is the charm?
    • Go on night headlamp group runs.  Pass, unless I focus literally on the single versus plural "runs".  Ran a cool headlamp run with Chris, Jonny, and Jonathan in the snow in late January.
    • Run at least two of the USATF-NE mountain circuit races.  Sure, I'd like to run all 8, but let's start with something more practical.  Fail.  Ran zero.  Signed up for Loon, but was injured.
    • Frequent big chain coffee shops less and independent coffee shops more.  Success.  A trio of us at work walk several times per week to Wakin' Up Waggin'.  I made a lot of visits in 2018 to Dave's Coffee.  I also really enjoy The Bakery in Charlestown and Fresh Grounds in Richmond.  The former pairs well with beach runs in Charlestown, and I think Chris turned me on to the latter on a bike ride a few years back.
    • Go camping at least one night.  I miss it.  Success.  Camped six nights in 2018!  Four nights in Maine, and two in NH.

    Pretty poor goal success rate at only 50%, but it is what it is.  Next, on a more upbeat note:

    Monthly pictorial highlights of 2018:

    January:  running in snowstorms, usually with my friend Tommy, is always a winter highlight for me!
    February:  Old Mountain Field 5K - my favorite of the Galoob winter trail series.
    With no schedule as of this writing, is this series really going to happen in 2019?

    March:  more fun with Tommy in the snow!

    April:  Clamdigger!  Chilly, windy race.  Very slow 5K time of 19:22,
    which somehow won the race (the faster guys were running the 5-Miler).
    On a sad note, this race would be the last time that I would see friend Steve Bousquet.

    May:  no races or major running fun this month;
    proud to be part of Matthew's signing of National Letter of Intent
    to run for University of New Hampshire
    June:  Back Road Ramble - fun time with my WTAC comrades
    July:  my 16th annual Blessing of the Fleet
    Pretty embarrassing time on the clock, but after a long injury,
    I was just happy to be out there and finally able to run at all.
    (This race was all about Matthew, with his blazing 55:30 finish)
    August:  Mt Katahdin, crossing one off the bucket list.
    My longest hike ever.  Remote and worth it.
    September:  My 16th consecutive run at the
    Charlie Stavros Memorial On the Beach Run.
    I always have so much fun at this race.
    October:  Run for the Pumpkins 8K,
    my favorite of the WTAC Fall Trail Series
    (probably because of the varied, hilly terrain and 0% asphalt)

    November:  it was a wet and wild ride at Li'l Rhody this year,
    amidst the wettest fall in my memory.
    (Yes, this is the course!)

    December:  Christmas 10K in Newport,
    where I ran my second fastest ever 10K in 36:38!
    I'm feeling that I'm back and ready to tackle 2019!

    Other memorable moments:


    Of course I continued another year of blood and gore on trail runs.
    This carnage was after I cleaned up the wound at home after a nasty
    fall at Brrr-lingame trail race, but before going to Urgent Care
    to get this thing properly cleaned of sand and debris.
    Painful.  I'm such a clod.
    Proud to be part of the team that rebuilt the Bradford Preserve bridge
    (on the Pumpkins and XC courses) as part of Matthew's senior project

    Camping and fires!  (This is in Baxter State Park, Maine)
    So happy to return to camping.
    It's Brady!!  This pic is while running the trails with him at Bluff Point State Park, CT.
    Mark's dog came to visit us for four weeks at Christmas time.  (Mark came as well.)
    He really brought so much fun and laughter into our lives each and every day.
    I was previously ambivalent about dogs, and now concur with several comments on Strava
    and this blog that maybe it would be beneficial to get a similar
    canine companion and running friend.
    Time will tell ...

    Housing woes:


    My 2018 woes and worries were not limited to running alone -
    May 2018:  Scattered clues that we needed some exterior house remediation included:
    small rot sections such as this,  
    broken wood clapboards at their joints,



    and cracked, split, and warped clapboards.
    However, we thought these were small, localized areas that would be minor repair work.  Unfortunately, as the contractors started to "peel back the onion":

    June:  After seeing many areas of exterior damage,
    the plan and contract that we arrived at was to remove and
    replace all of the clapboard and old tar paper,
    and replace with new "Typar" and new wood clapboard
    However, every time the contractor uncovered
    rot or mold on the underlying cheap particle board,
    work stopped, and that had to be removed,
    and replaced with solid plywood

    ... unless of course, even the beams behind the particle board
    were also rotted and moldy, in which case those
    and even the sheetrock (internal wall) that you see here
    had to be removed and replaced.
    Yeah, pretty disgusting.  We had no idea this was lurking behind
    our walls.
    ----------------
    Ugh.  Definitely a stressful and very expensive time,
    as each finding of rot or mold added days and thousands
    of dollars to the project.
    In the worst cases (such as the picture above this one with rotted mold-infested
    beams), that meant the entire exterior and interior wall had to be completely 
    torn down and rebuilt.  (Here we're looking from our family room
    directly into the backyard; obviously rain days caused further delays)

    Sometimes I'd wonder if we'd ever make progress
    and stop the wallet drain, but eventually things
    started to be rebuilt and replaced, and with
    better craftsmanship and better materials.
    (Note original cheap particle board on left, and
    new "CDX" plywood replacement on right)

    The new Typar weather barrier went up, and is supposed to be much better
    at keeping air and water out than the original tar paper that was on the house
    from when it was built in the 1990s.
    ---------------------
    (Not sure if my analogy is right, but I'm thinking cotton running clothes from
    the 90s as compared to wicking technical running clothes today)
    We found the deck to be partially rotted as well,
    but had to draw the line somewhere, so we had
    the contractor "patch" it for now and we put it onto
    the 2019 replacement project list for a new deck/patio.

    Finally, it was great to see "real" progress when all new flashing,
    window and door trim, and pine clapboards (pre-primed) were installed.
    By the time we got to this stage, my stress levels went down a bit,
    as we knew we had at least reached the end of the project delays and cost overruns.

    My neighbor came over to tell me he really liked
    my new "lawn ornament" and that we might
    wake up one morning to find the door open
    with him sitting there with nothing but a
    newspaper in his hands.  Thanks, Mike.
    -------------------
    I told him if there was enough money left over
    after this project, we might just spring for indoor plumbing.
    The project started in early June, and by late July,
    all of the carpentry work had been done and the site was cleaned up.
    All that remained was for the painting crew to put on two coats.

    And by early September, the painters were done.
    African Gray is the new color.
    What a relief to have this behind us.

    Now onto 2018 stats:

    • Races run:  25 (2017: 22, 2016: 29, 2015:  36)
    • Race breakdown by terrain:  Road - 12, Trail - 11, Beach - 1, Tri - 0, Indoor Track - 1
    • Age group wins:  14
    • Miles run:  1,721 - lowest since I started tracking in 2012
    • Elevation run:  121,509' 
    • Most elevation gain in a single run:  1,647' (yeah, pretty pathetic.  This was on a run in Yawgoog)
    • Hours run:  246 (2017:  360)
    • Days run:  240 (2017:  315)  Yeah, that's pretty bad.
    • Lowest mileage week:  0 (injured in early July)
    • Highest mileage week:  77 (final week of December, finished the year strong)
    • Highest mileage day:  18 (long run in late December)
    • Highest mileage run:  18 (ditto)
    • Longest running streak:  21 days (again, late December)
    • Longest non-running streak: 12 days (long forced break in early July due to injury; many walks)
    • Number of tickborne diseases:  0 (only possible benefit from my July injury, as I had 1 in 2017, and 3 in 2016)
    • Number of segment CRs:  7 (only four retained by year-end)
    • Number of states run in:  8:  RI, CT, MA, NH, ME, NJ, VA, NC (down from 15 previous year; this was the first time in 4 years that I didn't run in all New England states)
    • Number of countries run in:  1 (Guess which one?)
    • Run furthest from home:  Greensboro, NC

    And, finally, some 2019 goals:

    • Mileage:  2,600.  Same goal that I failed miserably in 2018.  Let's hope I keep injury at bay.  
    • Marathon:  Run a spring marathon.  Again, a failed leftover from 2018.  
    • Run at least one new trail race.  
    • Left over from 2016 and 2017:  Document history of one of my favorite and most frequented running areas:  Woody Hill.  The WLT has requested that I research and write up the history on Wahaneeta and Woody Hill.
    • Become a mountain goat, by running at least six of the eight USATF-NE mountain circuit races.  Definitely a stretch goal and super aggressive, especially as last year I failed to run any, but again this is contingent on staying injury free, which I couldn't do in 2018.  
    • Run in every New England state.
    • More dog runs (besides those I already ran with Brady in early January).
    • Run a warm-up, cool-down, or other non-race run with someone I've never run with before.
    • PR in any distance I've already run.  Now, what makes me think I can possibly PR in my advanced age, especially given I haven't had a PR since 2015?  The fact that in 2018, I ran just 16 seconds off my 10K PR.  I would say my 4M, 5M, and 10K are all possibilities, albeit a bit remote.  This is why we have goals; to give something to shoot for!
    And that's a wrap!  Looking forward to a much more successful year in 2019, and continued fun with running friends and frenemies alike.