December 2024: Closing out the Year

Running stats:

Miles run:  285.3

Elevation gain:  22,674'

Weekly miles (for weeks ended in month):  50, 59, 59, 50

Running distance returned to normal post-marathon;
higher elevation due to cross-country trip with runs hillier than my RI runs!

Primary running surfaces:  Roads (139 miles), trails (105)  

Primary running locations:  Charlestown (54 miles), Westerly (35) 

Other disciplines:

• Walk / hike:  34 miles

Quick synopsis:

• No long runs.  That'll change next month.
• No races.
• Eleven states:  RI, CT, CA, AZ, NM, TX, AR, MO, KY, WV, MD.

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Interesting runs:

• Joshua Tree National Park, California, December 12.  12 miles.  First time to this park; outer-worldly run.  

  

  Amazing unique scenery.  And fun fact:  "Joshua Tree" (pictured here) isn't a tree at all, but rather a succulent.

  
  

• Saguaro National Park, Arizona, December 13.  6 miles.  My 2nd visit here.  

  

  Another really cool place to run through!

  
  

• 13th Annual Christmas Light Run 🎄, Westerly, December 23.  5 miles.  Fun to keep up the tradition!

  

  
  

  
  
• Newport in the Rain, Newport, December 28.  12 miles.  Rainy run pretty much on the half-marathon course, from Easton's Beach CCW around Brenton Point.  

  

  I love how every year someone places and decorates
  a small Christmas tree at Easton's Beach.

  
  

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Races:

(None)

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Miscellaneous:

I liked my old plates, and the Plum Beach Lighthouse
(north side of Jamestown Bridge), but the plates
were seriously delaminating to the point
the final digit was barely readable 

Of course I love Beavertail as well!

Dec 5:  Christmas tree selection!
Went earlier than normal due to my 
impending cross-country trip, but the 
timing worked well with snow on the ground!

Love the old-fashioned aspects of this:  snow, cutting and
hauling your own Christmas tree.  As with manual transmission
drivers, I'm in the minority of Americans that buy a real
Christmas tree (23%), but it's how I grew up and what makes
me happy!

8.5' Korean Fir

Dec 22:  First day back from 11-day cross country trip.
Happy to be back for a run with Brady; a little snow for Christmas
was an added bonus

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Looking ahead to January:

Just one race planned:

• Winter Wonderland 5-Mile Race, Milford, CT, January 25.  First race of the 2025 USATF-CT Road Grand Prix series.

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Monthly highlight: 

Running in Joshua Tree National Park. (will have a separate post on overall trip w/ more photos)

Monthly lowlight: 

Spending time in Arkansas, especially in Paris, Arkansas.  My first time ever to this state, and while I had low expectations, it was even worse than I had imagined.  Run down, dilapidated houses with trash strewn in the yards, impoverished, and redneck.  I Googled "most redneck state" and Arkansas came up.  No surprise there.  (On the opposite spectrum, least redneck:  CT, RI, HI, MA, NJ).

November 2024: Marathon Age-Group Course Record at Indianapolis!

Running stats:

Miles run:  197.2

Elevation gain:  9,546'

Weekly miles (for weeks ended in month):  56, 47, 23, 37, 57

Sharp drop in both mileage and elevation in November.
Low mileage reflects marathon taper and recovery;
low elevation reflects training for and running a flat marathon (Indianapolis).

Primary running surfaces:  Roads (88 miles), trails (87)  Pretty much evenly split.

Primary running locations:  Charlestown (61 miles), Indianapolis (27), Stonington (20)  Obviously not a normal distribution, skewed by the marathon and lower mileage.

Other disciplines:

• Walk / hike:  16 miles

Quick synopsis:

• No long runs.
• Three races.
• Five states:  RI, CT, PA, OH, IN.

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Interesting runs:

• C-town MLR, Charlestown, November 1.  13 miles, with 4 of them at MP for my final pre-marathon workout.  Hit my targets with mid 6:20s.  
• Easy & Breezy, Narragansett, November 25.  12 miles.  Fun run on a mix of South County Bike Path and quiet roads.  

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Races:

Indianapolis Marathon (November 9):

Indianapolis, IN

This was my goal marathon race of the year.  Signed up back on New Year's Day to get "monumental" pricing, had a single goal of taking down the M60+ age group CR, and got it by more than 3 1/2 minutes!

Thrilled to get my name up on the leaderboard!

Coming in to the finish

Race report here

Li'l Rhody Runaround (November 17):

Charlestown, RI

In retrospect, I should have either run the shorter 4M course or better yet, just skipped this race.  I clearly wasn't recovered from the marathon a week earlier, and I paid for it as I was sore both during and after the race, which really shouldn't be the case for a relatively easy 8M trail race.  53:03, one of my slower times in recent years.

Finished well, but couldn't
make up for lost ground

Race report here

Pie Run (November 28):

Middletown, RI

Final race of the year.  My 4th and unfortunately slowest time running this fun Thanksgiving Day race in a 31:02.  Still won my age group, as everyone was penalized to some extent by the wind and rain.

Race report here

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Miscellaneous:

Nov 1:  Great post-run lunch and refuel after a workout
in Charlestown

Nov 9:  Toledo, Ohio, on way home from marathon.
Nice to stop for dinner with my cousin Bill and his wife Marsha.

Nov 15:  Beach Pond, Exeter.  Leading a WLT hike
on the Tippecansett and Pachaug trails.

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Looking ahead to December:

While I'm done with races for the year, my key adventure will be an 11-day cross-country trip from California back to Rhode Island.

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Monthly highlight: 

Indianapolis Marathon, and taking down the M60+ course record in a 2:53:26.

Monthly lowlight: 

Li'l Rhody Runaround:  live and learn that an 8-mile trail race is just too much for me a week post-marathon.

Pie Run 2024

 

Middletown, RI

Thanksgiving Day 2024

This was my 4th time running in Newport County YMCA's annual Thanksgiving Day Pie Run.  Previous years running this race:

• 2016:  30:08
• 2019:  31:01
• 2022:  29:20

Picked up Keith and the four of us (including Brady and Jana) were off.  On the way over, Keith asked if I had a goal in mind.  I explained that just two years ago I ran 29:20, and said anything sub-30 I would be happy with.  When I asked him the same, he had a smarter answer of having A, B, and C goals.  I do often have those, but typically reserve that wider range for goal races (of which this was not one).

It was forecast to be raining and windy during the race, but when we arrived at the Newport County Y, we remarked that it didn't seem that bad.  Did we luck out?  Wishful thinking as we were still about 75 minutes before race start.  We got a really good parking spot almost in view of the start/finish line.  Wind was "only" 10mph as went for a warm-up run with Brady and Keith, and it was not raining (yet).

I went for a 2-mile run, and Keith continued on for another 2.  I had plenty of time to change into race gear, including singlet and NB NYC Marathon Elite V3 shoes.  Opted to go inside to use "real" bathrooms and stretch a bit, coming back outside with just ten minutes to go.  Ran a few strides and just two minutes before race start, Keith and I took off and handed our quarter-zips to Jana for safe keeping until the finish.

The timer motioned for us to move right up to the starting mats.  I noticed the timer was on oxygen, and I'm thinking this can't be good.  Unfortunately with a dog barking repeatedly, I couldn't hear any of the race instructions.  If there were any mention that we were about to start or a countdown, I didn't hear it, and all of a sudden a gun went off (I heard that!) and it was time to go.

Start of race.  In blue singlet and blue cap.

Mile 1:  Wind had increased to 13mph and just a few raindrops now.  As with many races, a bunch of runners blew past me at the start, and many of the them I had re-passed by the end of the mile.  Mile 1 split 6:03.  Not where I wanted to be, but it's still early.

Mile 2:  We continue out to Easton's point in a partial headwind.  I'm still passing a few people here, but feel like I'm barely moving.  Mile 2 split is a 6:18.  Yeah, this race is about over for me in terms of a sub-30 shot.

Mile 3:  Holy moly, headwind picked up with gusts of over 20mph as we head down Sachuest Point Road to the turnaround.  I see the lead trio heading back towards me.  This is rough.  6:21.

Mile 4:  Turned around and headed towards home.  We're with the wind now, but we do have a 100' climb up past St George's.  6:24.  

Mile 5:  Final mile downhill with the wind.  I actually pass a couple of runners here and have a fast 5:37 closing mile, but my race is shot.  

Finishing in light rain

Final result:  31:02, 15th of 667 overall, 1st in age group.  Full results here

Besides winning my age group, I was also the first 50+ today, and I was one second off from being 1st master.  But in terms of time goals, not only did I miss sub-30, I didn't break sub-31 even.  I try to rationalize this with the wind obviously a factor.

I am getting cold standing around in the wind and rain, so I head out immediately for a cool-down with Keith and Jacob Mageira (and Brady!).  Post cool-down, I take a hot shower at the YMCA, get my award for a 1st place age group finish, and we're out of there.

Age group award:
Sweet potato pie,
and a bag containing a winter hat
and a $15 gift card to Custom House

Stopped at Custom House on the way out to redeem our gift cards, but unfortunately they're closed for the Thanksgiving holiday.  Today's race didn't go my way, but weather was clearly a factor and I'll be back.

Li'l Rhody 8-Miler 2024

Charlestown, RI

Sunday, November 17, 2024

The 34rd annual  Li'l Rhody Runaround Trail Races.  My 20th time running in the race, although unfortunately not consecutively, as last year I had to sit out due to a broken rib.  So the only two consecutive streaks I still have going are Blessing of the Fleet 10-Mile race and Stavros Memorial On the Beach run, both at 22 consecutive years.

As Race Director I had already gotten in my pre-race remarks, for whoever listened to them, when I headed to the start.  At the start line, I was asked by the timing company to give any additional remarks now that I had a captive audience lined up, but I declined, as I really wanted to have the race start on time (we had a late start at Grills).

Start of the 2024 Li'l Rhody

Race start and first half:  On the first 3/4 mile heading down the dirt road (Sanctuary Road), as expected, my younger WTAC teammates Jared and Matt were both pretty much even with me.  Jared pulled ahead of me at the course split as we entered the single-track, but I wasn't far behind him as we went through the campground.  The rest of the first half was pretty uneventful with no changes in position, but I could sense at least one runner and probably more directly behind me the whole way.  At the water stop, I was surprised to see retired WTAC runner John Hammett handing out water, which was much appreciated on this very warm November day approaching 60°F.  

(Sidenote:  we were in a drought where for the first time in my 20+ years of participation no outdoor fires were allowed in the state, and if there were a silver lining, it was that the warm temperatures didn't warrant the fires that have become a trademark part of this event.)

Fire from 2022 Li'l Rhody
(hopefully the fires and at least slightly colder temps will
return next year)

Back half:  After going through the water stop and onto the short section of Buckeye Brook Road, Matt Sweeney went past me.  He and I go back and forth in many races, so maybe I would see him again and maybe not.  Re-entering the woods a short time later, I became aware of soreness in my legs.  I shouldn't have soreness during this race, and certainly not four miles in!  But this must all be due to having run Indianapolis Marathon the previous weekend and not being fully recovered.

Just after the short rock scramble, Mitchell went past me.  He is a young guy I had just met a few weeks earlier at a Kelley's Pace run, and incidentally is from Indianapolis.  After a few turns, Mitchell was completely out of sight and I was running "as an island", not a position I want to be in, as I just naturally tend to slow down when not being pushed or having anyone in sight.

As we got towards the end of the trail portion of the race (about a mile to go), I was surprised to once again see a runner of me.  It was Matt, so Mitchell must've gone past him as well.  I exited the trail onto my least favorite section of the race, the final 3/4 mile all on pavement where I just try to hang on and hope that I don't get passed by too many runners.

As I made the right turn off Kings Factory Road onto Prosser Trail, I glanced back and saw Tommy 5K behind me.  While he's not in my age group, it did give me incentive to pickup or at least not slow down at all for the final 1/2 mile of road.  Averaged 5:54 pace on this final section, but it wasn't enough to salvage my slower than normal Li'l Rhody.

Within sight of the finish line

Final result:  53:03, 8th out of 177 overall, 1st in age group.  Full results here

Not the result I was looking for, and I think a lesson learned on racing hard a week post-marathon.  Not only was my time off, but my legs were sore during the race and even more sore that evening.  Live and learn?  A great race from a participant perspective, as it was our biggest overall field (4M and 8M) in ten years.

Some of the WTAC crew today