A Little Bit Of Everything

Finally, a Tuesday with a beautiful forecast!  Let's hope it holds up as we meet at the normal place and time.  (5:30 at OLP somewhere near the rental building.)  Last week the rain never showed up and turned out too nice and was a shock to almost everyone, heat wise.

The bits of everything -
A reminder that the Liverpool Relay For Life has changed dates this year.  Instead of Father's Day weekend, they have shifted it to the last weekend in May.  So, it's not this weekend, but next weekend.  Is anyone interested in coming out to that?  Please let me know.  (I'll bug the likely suspects on the side to see as well.)

A tip of the cap to Ben.  He completed his "half marathon" as some people call it, or the "hyman" as we call it on Saturday.  Despite being new to distance running and not quite trained up for the distance, word on the street is that he ran it in 1:55.  A very respectable time and extra impressive for a first timer!  Congratulations, Ben.  I hope you gave an extra treat to your early season training partner.  (There is a 95% chance that Ben never reads this blog...I guess I have to let him know about these accolades.)

Whenever I read running books I'm reminded at just how recent of a sport this is in a lot of ways.  The lack of participation by women, the lack of running apparel for women, what sneakers were like, and thoughts about distance running all have changed so much just within my lifetime.  (And I don't think I'm all that old.)  The latest book I completed was a simple read, full of stories about female runners  or groups of female runners or all female races (it was recommended to me in case I follow through on my sex change operation).  One story is about Grete Waitz who showed up for the 1978 New York Marathon never having ran further than 13 miles.  She did not know what to expect, but was a star in Europe at shorter distances and got invited to participate, so her and her husband agreed to it just because they both wanted to see New York City.  She shows up, wins it, and also sets a world record in the process.  Not knowing English (or miles) at the time, she did not even understand the mileage markers or the splits and spent most of the race not knowing how far she had left.  Supposedly she never wanted to do another, but eventually got coaxed into shifting her sights on marathon training and counting that first one, wins 9 of 11 New York Marathons.  That's cray-cray!  With modern competition, that stretch will "never" be duplicated, but it shows just how different things are 36 years later - she just showed up and fumbled her way into a world record.

Another story had a touching description of group running -
"...The women know something that all runners come to understand.  The image of the distance runner is the lone figure in a solitary battle for speed and endurance.  But running is actually one of the most communal sports. 'We're pack animals, we really are.'  And the more runners talk, the easier it feels.  Sure, you can chat during a round of golf or between sets of tennis.  But imagine trying to keep up a conversation as your golf partner lines up a putt or during an intensive volley at the net.  With running, on the other hand, the deeper the talk goes, the more the pain eases. ..."

I thought that was nice!  Even though I had to cut out the parts about sharing estrogen.

About that west shore trail extension -
Four TRYers and two curtain climbers checked out the grand opening of the Onondaga West Shore Extension (I'm not even sure what the official name is) on Sunday and walked away impressed.  We only had a couple hawkward moments.

Watch out, Berms, that guy from the zoo is totally photo bombing you as you are holding, Anakin, the harris hawk!


Hawkward!

I, for one, did not know how they were getting almost 2 and a half miles into that stretch.  Plus, I figured that the road noise from 690 would be intrusive.  But, it turns out there is more shoreline there than you would think so following that leads to a lot of trail length and the trail often is far enough from 690 that you do not hear a thing.  It seemed to have a lot of hill to it, a gentle slope, if you will, but my watch did not measure much elevation change.  There are views of Liverpool, Destiny, and downtown Syracuse and the Dome that are slightly different than any you have ever seen.  Plus there are stretches with trees between you and the lake where it feels like you are at a "nature trail at a zoo".  They even piped in bird noises, seemingly.  They have several break points, including benches, covered slightly, and bike racks.  But no bathrooms.  The stretch seen below only has a port a potty before and after, so you are going without amenities for a 2+ mile stretch.   They made more of an official parking lot, at one end of the "orange lot".  So, I think once they take down the cones, you will use the Solvay exit, drive up to the upper - upper lot, and have parking for a few dozen cars in a paved parking lot.  Basically the spot where I stopped my watch.

I started my watch (green pointer) once we turned around (walking), just before the bridge you have been able to see for a year next to 690 west.  Definitely a ton of road noise there, but you quickly get into the secluded part of the trail and do not deal with 690 again til almost the end.  I ended it just at the edge of the new parking lot (red pointer).



Finally - the Mountain Goat photos.  My computer betrayed me last Tuesday morning, then my internet connection was out Wednesday and Thursday so I saved them for this weeks update.  Enjoy!

Watch out world, Katie is done procreating (at least for now?) and is ready to rock:


It's the GW!  A race photo staple:


Long time, no see.  Hello Janna!


A repeat from last week, but why not take another look at the meat-less assassin:


And floating head Duerr!


Not a TRYer, but she's joining some of us on Team Beef thanks to Berms.  And I noticed her name as I was scouring for people I knew.  Donna O'beef:


It's VIP Steve on his way to his 10 second massage:


Speaking of Berm's here she is:


And her "roommate" Leo as well:


(Not wearing matching outfits...there must have been a roommate rift that day?)

Finally, Cynthia says forget the "Gerega Wave", I prefer the "Mead Mitten":


And a happy ending, with some of the finer points in life that has been denied to us for multiple years has returned.  This is someone I sort of know named Ashley.  I think Jake and her cross paths at cross-fit as I've noticed them in group photos, but I haven't seen him in person to ask about her.  Enjoy, but don't tell her, because she could undoubtedly kick my non-cross-fit ass.  Anyway, she has done the Mountain Goat the last 3-4 years and looks stylish doing it.  She wanted to come out to TRY at one point but her work schedule did not match up at the time.  Perhaps it's time for our recruiting chair to reach back out to her?

All Together Now - It's Centipede Time

I think this makes 3 out of 4 weeks that a beautiful (for that week) Monday gives way to a questionable (for that week) Tuesday, weather wise.  The forecast currently has a 40-50% chance that we'll see rain around TRY time.  So, be prepared to get wet.  At least it will be a way to stay cooler as we adjust to the sudden onset of summer temperatures.  It would seem that Mother Nature cannot find her Goldilocks moment this spring.  It continues to be too cold or too hot and never "just right".

Oh well.  Meet at 5:30 next to the rental building.  Don't forget that the park is accepting food donations for the food bank.  Share your cans and boxes with those who have less than you do!

I've been reading a running book filled with short stories and the latest "vignette" I read was about a recurring centipede team from the "Bay to Breakers" race in San Francisco.  (That is a crazy 7.4 mile race in San Francisco where you evidently can see a little bit of everything.  Just google "bay to breakers race images" from a non-work computer.  Yes, it is a race that lets people run naked.  Be warned that once you see it, you cannot un-see it.)

Here is a clean example of a centipede team with a minimalist costume - looks like they were playing up the races nudity angle with skin toned clothing:

The Bay to Breakers is where the concept of a centipede team first appeared. The story goes that a group ran linked together back in 1978 and it got enough attention that a centipede division was put in place the following year.  Their rules are that THIRTEEN members must be connected at all times and measure SIXTY feet in length.  There is no co-ed requirement, but they do have the antenna and tail specification.  They get elite teams there and from the story I just read, it sounds like the best all female team sometimes can break 6 minute miles.

Some of the fun quotes that I wanted to pass along that capture the uniqueness of running as part of a centipede:
"Running is usually an individual sport. It can be so isolating. This is the one time, when you are literally tethered together, you are truly running as a team."
"We ask out loud, 'Are you okay? Are you okay? all down the line. If you hear a yes, you push hard. If you don't hear anything, you look for water."
When picking out a captain - "We usually pick somebody that I know is aware of everybody's ability and is somewhat compassionate."

Interestingly their teams are allowed two blockers to run ahead clearing the way and two floaters who can take over if someone has to jump out of the team to tie a shoe or make a pit stop.  Obviously the top teams take their centipede-ing very seriously, while having a bit of fun too.

The Paige's Butterfly Run centipede division, removes the seriousness, keeps the fun, but insists you do it in a family friendly way.  The TRY entry has won the division the last four years and last year we also had a second team along for the fun.  Who wants in this year?  Paige's Butterfly Run is in 4 weekends (June 7th) so we really needed to decide on our teams this week.

We'll end with a tradition like many others...our twice yearly race photo binge.  (Done after the Mountain Goat and Boilermaker, with the intent to both honor and embarrass - because how often does a mid-race photo turn out good - the TRYers that lit up race day.)

Alright, the photo site is not working correctly right now.  :-(  So I'll have to spice this up with photos later today.

Here is your appetizer though.

It's Meat Loaf.  Full time awesome, part time running ninja.  (Don't mess with the running ninja.)

Sixo De Mayo

Meet at OLP at 5:30.  Run or walk at 5:35 after picking your goal for the night and aligning with like minded TRYers.

I was challenged last week to actually provide running relevant content in this running group blog.  While on it's face it seemed like an outlandish challenge, I accepted.  Be warned that this entry contains information that actually could make you a better (and more informed) runner.

But first, let us get the elephant out of the room, shall we?  Every year at this time, Sue Wait (may she rest in peace) liked to remind anyone who would listen that "cinco de mayo" did not celebrate Mexico's Independence Day.  (That's September 16th.)  Her quest in life was to right this wrong and make sure that people learned that it actually celebrates the Battle of Thermopylae where King Leonidas of Sparta led an allied Greek army against the invading Persian army of Xerxes.  Read all the details here.  Thank you, Sue, for your dedication to the truth.  The world is a sadder, and less informed, place without you in it.

This past weekend was TRY runner-ific.  A few of us braved the drive and the weather and contributed to the Making Tracks for Celiacs event in Jamesville.  The highlight for me was using my Jeep like the very manly vehicle that it was and towing a truck out of a tricky spot where it had gotten stuck in 0 inches of muck and mire.  Seriously, for 24 hours, I felt like such a man that I did not even have a single urge to play this Shania Twain hit. Another high point was watching one of my nephews ice the field in the 5k.  Unfortunately he was not pushed, so he cruised to a victory without having to show his true skill.  Lastly, it is always nice to have TRYers come out and support another TRYers passion project.  So, thank you to all of you who made it out and to all of you who could not make it out but made a point to donate to the cause.  Me and my first wife appreciate it!

On Sunday several TRYers delayed their Star Wars Day celebrations to light up 10 miles of pot hole free asphalt through Syracuse.  The ones I saw in person and the pictures I saw on Facebook were sporting smiles so it seemed like "the Goat" delivered another great race day experience.  The only negative I noticed was that Escalade bragged online (and therefore implicated her father in the process) that she was "doing the baby goat".  Not only is that immoral...but I'm pretty sure that it is illegal?!  Escalade, you may want to move in with a relative and lay low for awhile until this whole thing blows over.

Lastly, and also on Sunday, at least one (elusive) TRYer ran through 3 miles of colored cornstarch and showed the world that dad rhymes with RAD.  Congratulations to the ever elusive one:




Now, the "challenge" for this week.  Sit down. Follow these links. And learn:

1) This beauty goes into the mechanics of your stride to convince you that you need strong and flexible hips, glutes, and hamstrings to help you run faster.  The "Hip Extension" and "Recovery Phase" sections are the best description I have ever read on the subject and truly do help to visualize the suggestions I've passed on in the past about "good form running".  Then it has a few exercises and a stretch that could all be done at home if you have an elastic band.  (And 3 of the 5 do not need anything other than your body.)

2) Ever wonder about a post race massage and whether it would be worth it to wait in line to be rubbed down by someone still covered in the previous 17 runners sweat?  Or maybe more recently, ever wonder how good of a time Steve was having in the VIP tent?  (Should we call him "VIP Steve" from now on?)  Well, wonder no longer, as this article gives scientific answers to your massage questions.  Don't feel like reading it?  Then at least know that massage does aid in recovery and light self massage can be useful beforehand.  (Not THAT self massage, Ron.  I mean foam rollers and tennis balls and the like, which I've written about in the past.)  The part I found most shocking in the article?  That compression apparel seems to be a lie.  There was no proof found to show that it increased performance or prevented injury.  But there are mixed results showing that it can boost recovery.  As Meat Loaf famously did not sing (this Meat Loaf, not our meat free Meat Loaf), "One out of three ain't bad".

3) End with a quick one saying that 4 seasonal produce items are the best in season options for runners.  (Fine, don't read it, but at least know that it's asparagus, beets, kale, and strawberries.  Hmmm, how would those four taste in a smoothie?)

That's it.  Yes, I realize I crushed that challenge...you're welcome planet Earth.

(Major bonus points for anyone that clicks every link and reads the three challenge articles and listens to all the songs.  Please post a comment to claim your prize.  Seriously.)

Phone Addiction? Be Safe Out There.

One of these weeks, the weather on Tuesday will be as nice as the weather on Monday.  But not this week.

We continue to meet up at the normal time and place and get in our miles.  See you there?

This weekend is a busy one for TRYers.  On Saturday, the Making Tracks for Celiacs 5k cross country run or 1 mile walk is at Jamesville Beach county park.  Let me know if you have questions about that.  I'm hoping a few of you can join in.  On Sunday, it's the Mountain Goat Run throughout the city of Syracuse.  And after that, it's Star Wars Day at the Syracuse Chiefs.  (Much to do, there is.)

Sometimes a common theme pops up in my various sources for information and I decide to share it whether it truly has to do with running or not.  This has to do with life.  And since most TRYers are in fact alive, despite what this years turnout most weeks would indicate, I feel it will be of interest to everyone.

In the last couple weeks I've stumbled across 3 unique takes on cell phone addiction.

A team of students at SU have won a couple competitions and are in the process of funding "an antisocial media app".  Which is ironic, don't you think?  To get an app for your phone that rewards you to not use your phone?  Read the article, and watch the quick embedded video.  It's interesting to think about.  Has our phone use gone too far?  I know I'm bad.  But how much worse are people 15-20 years younger than me?  A couple of the quotes in the article are fascinating.

Should we enforce a no phone use rule during our post TRY outings?  Or emphasize that they can only be used at a bare minimum for life essentials only?  (You know, for looking up urban dictionary definitions?  The real "hawkward" is still languishing in third place.  :-(

My (first) wife sent me this NPR article about how using your phone too much in front of your children leads to behavior issues.  (In the children.)  Really?  They admit the study was not at all scientific, but since following families around Walmart must have been beneath them, they observed families at fast food restaurants and noted more phone usage led to children acting out more.  Well before this reading, me and my (first) wife made some guidelines for when we can and cannot pull out our phones, but this made us re-consider that...how much phone use should we do in front of impressionable youngsters?  Yes, I am the bigger culprit of the two of us, but Joseph is rightfully scared of the back of my hand and mostly leaves me be.

Lastly, and very seriously, a woman in North Carolina died in a car accident right after updating her Facebook status.  Read the article if you want to, but the takeaway is that during the investigation into the crash they found a exceedingly trivial Facebook update (and honestly, which ones aren't trivial?) had been made within the last minute.  They also found that this driver had a habit of posting selfies while she was driving.  Really?  Is this what the world has come to?  It's scary that we have to share the road with drivers like this while we are driving.  But what about when we are running on the side of the road?  Or for you bikers, for all those miles you put in while sharing the lane with drivers?  Be careful out there and extra alert. Reconsider wearing headphones while you run on shared roads.  (Save the music for when you are safely running in local parks.)  Assume that the oncoming car is not fully paying attention to their driving.  We have a half generation of drivers out there now from the "low attention span" generation.  That's scary enough to make a status update about:

#suebrokethelatestgeneration

Time to Share our Cans and Boxes

Somehow we manage to keep missing great weather days and landing on not so great weather days.  Oh well, it'll be a lot nicer than last week, so hopefully a few more people are inspired to come out.  The long steady runs of April continue for a couple more weeks.

I'm sure some of you have noticed the sign on the infield of the Ally Loop - the park is collecting items for the Food Bank this year.  I asked inside the visitor center and the collection will be going on for at least "a while" which makes me think it may go on all season.  I thought it would be nice if people occasionally brought something in.  So, on a week you remember please bring an item to donate and drop it off in one of the collection bins inside of the visitor center.  (The building with the bathrooms in it.)  To keep it fun, when you do donate, post on our TRY Facebook page or on this blog with a comment like "I shared my cans" or "I gave a box"...or something along those lines which will remind others to do the same in a future week.  That way TRY can randomly help out the Food Bank throughout our running season.  Thanks in advance!

A reminder that the "Making Tracks for Celiacs" event is coming up in two Saturdays.  It will be held on Saturday, May 3rd at Jamesville Beach park and involves a fitness walk or a cross country 5k.  Due to my late notice, we are now in the "full price" time of $25.  Thanks to Katie F, Lockheed Martin employees can get a free entry again though, so definitely get a hold of me for what you have to do for that option.  I found out that the shirts will be cotton again this year, but supposedly they will not be white for the first time in years.  If you have questions, let me know, otherwise check out the website (you have to click on Syracuse, NY on the left hand side).

I've been checking out some playgrounds recently and a certain brand of equipment uses this sign to remind people how to play.  I thought it was packed with good information for adults and for play that has nothing to do with playgrounds.  Here are some tips on the smart way to play:

Take turns, watch the "rough stuff", be wary when the equipment is wet, and check out the reverse side for fun and safety recommendations!  And above all, have fun!

Ball Me, Blazer.

What a week we've had!  Last Tuesday, one indifferent dog, four brave men, and one even braver and very lucky lady did the TRY workout in somewhat non-ideal conditions.  But, as typically happens (9 times out of 10?) the weather broke just so and the conditions during the run were much better than it could have been.  We really seem to get lucky on how rain and thunderstorms hit and very seldom are in the worst of it on Tuesday at 5:30.

That said, tomorrow's forecast is anything but ideal and attendance is always optional, so if you do not want to be out in almost winter like conditions, save it for another week.  Some cray-cray's will always show up, so, if you are brave or a cray-cray yourself, you can attempt to weather the weather.

I'm not inspired this week since it's winter again, so nothing controversial after last weeks scandalous ending...

Jill has passed along an invitation from the "Syracuse Silver Knights Foundation" for a fund raising dodgeball tournament event in late May.  If Sue was still around I'd make her help me organize a viewing of the "Dodgeball (A True Underdog Story)" movie so that we could all brush up on the 5 D's of Dodgeball and prepare properly for this event.  But Sue left us.  So, F-U Sue!  #suebrokeupthedreamteam

Here is a screen capture of the event flyer:

Key takeaways - It's the morning of May 24th at Jones Road.  Minimum 1 female to start each game.  Double elimination, with three game series for each game.  $200 per team, with a minimum of 6 and maximum of 10 players.  Jill thought TRY would be just the type of group that would be interested in such a thing?  Was she right?  Are we more "Average Joe's" or "Globogym"?  (And no, blind people are probably not allowed to play.  Nice attempt though, Escalade.  :-(

Lastly a link that my lovely wife (my first wife, that is), stumbled across.  I know I failed in my prediction post last summer when I forecasted both "cup free racing" and "Prancercising" in this post...if you haven't seen the prancersize video go there now and read the last paragraph.  BUT, I am confident that this time my prediction is on point.  These masks that simulate elevation training are going to take over the fitness world.  How could they not?  Who would not want a higher quality workout in shorter time.  Jake - have these shown up in local cross fit circles yet?

It is not letting me embed it directly and it's too late for me to figure out why, so I'll just provide the link to the video.  It's only 31 seconds, so you have the time.

Of course, the bad news to this is that everyone will look like Bane from the last Batman movie.  Who knew he was such a trendsetter?  (Let's hope this makes people sound like him too.)

From Bringing Home the Bacon to Thanks Facebook Grandfairy

As our buildup of a running base continues in April, we'll discuss our plan for the night in person and split up into like-minded groups.  For less experienced runners, please ask questions of your more experienced comrades.

This weeks post is a grab bag of "insights":

First, it is important to realize that "love" means very things to different people:



Really, it's all uphill from there.  Let's start the climb with a little bit of overdue research.  I promised Matt an answer about a month ago on making a treadmill workout more equivalent to running outside but I could not find a consensus answer.  Definitely found recommendations about using an increased incline on the treadmill to help offset what is an easier workout.  But some things said 1%, while others said higher.  One thing that made perfect sense to me, was to do varied workouts while on the treadmill, such as doing interval workouts to make sure the workout is a quality one and to not worry so much about the total distance.  So, in the winter, mix in a treadmill interval workout from time to time and now that you are outside most of the time, if you do get stuck inside on a bad weather day, do an interval session on the treadmill instead of a steady pace.

Continuing the climb from bacon love, here is an interesting race report from Kate F from the Syracuse Half last month, given over multiple messages:
"In short, I thought it was a great race. The course was unique and interesting. With the start/stop at the Oncenter there was plenty of space for everyone to keep warm right up until the start and to use actual bathrooms instead of port-a-potties beforehand. The water stops were well-organized (which was one of my gripes about Empire State). Packet pickup was easy--I went with Claire after her soccer practice Saturday and they got me in and out of there before any toddler tantrums occurred (bonus: they gave her a lollipop) and there was also an option to pick up your packet pre-race at the Oncenter. The post-race hot breakfast was a very nice touch. Crowd support was surprisingly good for such a cold day. Race shirts and medals were both nice quality. Honestly, I don't have much bad to say about this race. It had the perks of both big city and small town races and I had a lot of fun running it. Oh also forgot to mention, most roads weren't closed, but in most spots there was at least one full lane dedicated to runners and there were cops at every single intersection directing traffic. Never was nervous about cars driving by too closely.  Oh and parking! Lots of close, convenient parking!"

(Thank you for the detail!)

Now a mix of articles that I liked from the last month or so:
For newbies, "10 Things I Wish I Knew as a New Runner".
For advanced peops, "[3 Things to do to Run a Faster 5K]".  Includes core work, quick feet, and hills.  (The hill part caught my eye - says to FULLY recover during short hill repeats like Faith Hill.  Hmmmm?)
For everyone, "8 Weight Loss Mistakes Runners Make".
And if you want to be reminded how to burn fat while running, think about "Duration, Intensity, and Frequency."  There is a good chance you could use this reminder.

OK, this post has peaked and it's time to plummet to depths even I rarely sink to.  The following links are all brought to you via someone I can only refer to as my "Facebook Grandfairy".  Randomly, inconsistently, I'll get messages from this special person that never fail to amaze.  So, thank you Facebook Grandfairy for teaching me (and us) that today, April 7th, is "International Beaver Day".  Here is the proof:
A local news story from a few years ago.
And a current story that mentions its a "great time to hike into the woods to spot some of these noble gnawers".  (Really, when would NOT be a great time for that?  So if you are reading this on Tuesday...hike into the woods anyway.)
Finally, a partially "not safe for work" (NSFW) song...unless your boss has a soft spot for Scott Baio from when he was on Charles in Charge?  This does shed some light on a hawkward mistake we've all been a part of.  (Most likely.)