Some Color and Sound for the Holiday Weekend

Tonight's workout will have a component of rain in it again, as that seems like it is going to be a regular visitor on Tuesday nights this summer.  After our adventure to Bad Idea Hill last week, we will keep it in the park tonight and do either quarter mile or half mile intervals.  (To be discussed and decided at the start.)

This is a couple weeks late, but it would be a shame to miss out on the yearly tradition of posting Mountain Goat Run race photos.  Instead of fighting with the site to get individual photos, I just did screen captures of the full set. So, some TRYers only got one, while others got multiple.  Here we go:

Kelly knew that her husband would be along soon and uncork 'the wave', so she did a preemptive strike.  I believe this is called "The Murlick Point and Smirk" (the rightmost one).

 

Adam made it back-to-back compressed TRYers while looking radiant in white.


And here it is..."The Gerega Wave". Always a race photographers favorite!


Not looking weak at all, although she is suspiciously sizing up the woman in pink...it's Miss Strong.


You can almost see the shin splints forming in these final strides as Mr. Finch comes into the finish area.


Here is a case of intra-household payback as Steve makes Cynthia pay for sprinting him in the week before at the Celiac 5k.


Take that Cynthia!  You can have the 5k, I'll take the 10!



For those newer to TRY, you owe it to yourself to see the all-time greatest moment in Mountain Goat race photo history.  And what I believe is the only "NSFW" entry in the TRY archives.  (Scroll down to the photos...please.  You need to see this if you have no idea what I'm referring to.)

Lastly, here is a look back at the Paige's Butterfly Run Centipede team entries that TRY has had the last three years.

2012's Runder Construction:


2011's Centipediatricians:


2010's Centipediatricians:

Hill Time

Terry says it is time for hills.  Is everyone ready for it?  We will leave from the usual place, up over faith hill, and into Liverpool to a longer hill.  You should run up at 7 out of 10 effort, and it is most beneficial to jog back down.  I'm not sure how many we will do, but we will work together through it.  Here is a Runner's World article that gives some tips on running hills:
http://www.runnersworld.com/workouts/so-inclined?page=2

If you aren't in shape or aren't interested in the hill workout, you can still join us in the run to and from our hill.  We can point you to a couple of nice loops to run while others are doing the hill workout.

Make sure you do the workout that is right for you.  I had a tough week of workouts (70 mile ride/brick + 10 mile run this weekend) and may adjust my workout if my body isn't up for it.  Always listen to your body and take it easy when you need it!

--Kelly :)

Goat, etc...

We are a little behind here, but no worries....a quick update will get everyone back up to speed..

First up - Mountain Goat:  It was a warm but beautiful day...perfect for cheering but a little warm for a 10 mile race :)  Good job to the following TRY-ers who completed the goat:  Aaron, Steve, Cynthia, Corey, Duerr, and Janna.  Thanks to Terry, Catherine, Malinda, Sue, Tiffany, and Bob/Rob for coming out and showing your support.  Did I miss anyone?

Congratulations to Tim and Lindsay!  They got married up in Vermont this weekend, and I think they will be missing us while on their honeymoon...or not :)

I don't think anyone raced this weekend, but let me know if I missed some accomplishments.

 My recommendation for tomorrow is quarter mile repeats.  I'm not sure how many I'll do, but I'm thinking 5 sounds like a good number.  Make sure you run a little faster than your 5k pace.  Don't run too fast.  As usual, you should have plenty in the tank to do a solid jog between intervals and are as strong at the end of your workout.

For those not doing intervals, I recommend adding a little distance to you workout.  If you did 2 miles last week, try adding an extra quarter or half mile.  If you keep adding a little distance, you will be up to 4 miles before you know it!

Make sure to take time to talk to your fellow TRY-ers and encourage them in their workout.  We all have the opportunity to improve together while getting to know a diverse group of people.  That's what makes this group great!

Edited to add: Post-TRY outing will be to Village Burger for anyone who is interested.  I haven't been there yet and am looking forward to it.

--Kelly :)

Why?

For the workout...let's continue Kelly's wise advice of staying within ourselves when we do our intervals.  If you cannot do the final one at a very similar to pace to what you started out at, then you've pushed too hard and should adjust your strategy the next week.

AND, if you are pushing moderately hard on your intervals (which is recommended), then you should plan your week with an easy day on either side of your Tuesday night.  Intervals are a hard workout, so plan you workouts accordingly for either cross training or lighter running on the days around it.

Before shot:

Now on to WHY?  As in why are gimmick races so darn popular?  Five TRYers volunteered at the Color Me Rad run in Liverpool on Saturday morning and we walked away still not knowing why.  It's not a race.  They don't even time it.  At it's core, participants paid good money to get up early, get bused to the event, to be pelted in various body parts by colored corn starch.  Yet, for the most part, people seemed to love it.  I see several Facebook friends who did the event and posted all sorts of before, during, and after photos.  (Just like obstacle course events...this one looks really good as a Facebook update.)  At least one of my friends is already posting excited comments about doing the "Run or Dye" event that is coming up.  Another acquaintance said she "loved the vibe" of the event and would probably do it again in a future year.  So, they've been hooked...or dyed in the wool?

From our perspective, the "experienced" runners who volunteered still don't quite get it.  But I suppose that is irrelevant.  These events aren't targeted at runners.  They are meant to be fun.  They are meant to be for anyone.  And they appear to be here to last, at least for a while, as business appears to be booming.  7000 people were in Saturday's event and two more "color" runs are coming through Syracuse this summer.

During shot (not a shot of life on Mars):


And a final takeaway from this weekend: Be nice to race volunteers.  I know you pay to get into the event and you expect the event to be spot on.  But the people providing most race amenities to you are just volunteers...who probably had to get up earlier than you did that morning.  So, be courteous and be patient.  And if you want to see the other side of a race, there is no better way to do so than to volunteer.  You give back a little to the running community and you learn a lot about life.