Day 2 into the Chevron Houston Marathon/Aramco Half Marathon announcement that they are going to a lottery system for the 2011 race and the locals are still buzzing. I personally have very little history with the Houston race but it seems like every year they seem to come up with some bonehead decision to top the prior year's bonehead decision.
From where I stand, it seems like the race has a real identity problem. Last year was the first year that the race put separate caps on the half and full marathons. The caps were at 11,000 each. Sounds reasonable so far, right? The bonehead factor with that was that they allowed transfers between events even after the cap was met for one of the races. So what happened last year, people wanting to run the half marathon after the half reached its cap of 11,000 simply signed up for the full and then paid the $10 administrative fee to switch from the full to the half. Every other race that I've seen with separate race caps do not allow transfers once an event has reached its capacity. I somewhat thought this was merely an oversight by the race last year; however, with the same caps in place this year and the same transfers between events allowed, it seems clear that Houston doesn't really want to cap the half at 11,000. With that said, I don't know if they don't think the marathon would hit the 11,000 mark on its own. Otherwise, I don't see why they would just not allow switching between events, similiar to how they experimented with allowing race transfers between individuals but discontinued that process.
Another solution to Houston's filling so fast would be to eliminate the half marathon. That is kind of hard to do this year as the race is once again the mens and womens US Half Marathon championship. It would be difficult to have a 1/2 championship without an actual 1/2 event. Once again, there is an identity crisis.
I initially planned on running 2011 Houston 1/2 marathon as most of my running group participates in the event every year. When the lottery was announced, my initial thought was should I sign up for the full lottery and have better odds of getting accepted versus the half lottery which one would expect would have far more entrants. Upon further review, I think I'll just sit Houston out again this year. Thanks Houston for keeping things interesting!
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Medicine Bow Half Marathon
I had about 10 weeks to train for Medicine Bow after running back to back half marathons in DC and Wilmington in mid March. My plan was to follow a 6 week training plan that was published in an earlier Runners World magazine article. That never happened. I did train and did most of my longer runs on trails and hills at Huntsville State Park, I never got overly excited about training for this race. I think alot of it had to do with the fact that I knew that it is nearly impossible to simulate high altitude conditions when you train at sea level. Its also difficult to find hills that seem to go on forever. There are plenty of difficult grade hills in the area but nothing that goes on as long as some of these hilly away races.
Air travel to Denver and the car drive to Cheyenne went smoothly. After checking in at the host hotel/expo/pasta dinner location, we made a 25 mile westerly drive to the start of the course at the Lincoln Monument exit between Laramie and Cheyenne. They had a sign at the exit indicating that this was the highest point on I-80 in Wyoming at just under 8700 feet. There was still snow on the ground in areas. We drove the entire course, something that I rarely do before a race. I learned that drving and running a course is a totally different experience.
We headed out before 5 race morning for the same rest area for a 6am race start. This is one of the local laid back races that I am starting to enjoy more and more. There was a flour line marking the start; no chips or timing mats to be found on this course. The course was an out and back and there was one aid station to serve you in both directions. I was initially concerned about having to navigate 2 cattle guards twice on the course; this turned out to not be an issue because I was walking by the time I approached the first cattle guard.
The course had a 4-5 mile downhill start going from 8700 feet down to 8100 feet before climbing back up to 8500 feet at the turnaround point. I knew within the first 2 miles that it was going to be a long day. Just running with the flow at the start, I was at about an 8:15 pace and my legs felt fine since I was going downhill but I definetely noticed that I was breathing harder than I should have been. Once the uphill started, I pretty much started walking. I mixed in some running but did more walking than running on the uphill portions of the course. There were very few flat areas on the course; you were either running downhill or uphill.
I think I finished this race the driest that I've been at any race. With a chilly 29 degree start and a 20 mph or so wind and dry conditions (and all the walking) my dri fit clothes actually wicked moisture as advertised.
Wyoming was my 42nd state that I've run a 1/2 or full marathon in. It was also my 50th half marathon that I've run. It was also a PW for me but a Wyoming PR for me!!!!!!!
Air travel to Denver and the car drive to Cheyenne went smoothly. After checking in at the host hotel/expo/pasta dinner location, we made a 25 mile westerly drive to the start of the course at the Lincoln Monument exit between Laramie and Cheyenne. They had a sign at the exit indicating that this was the highest point on I-80 in Wyoming at just under 8700 feet. There was still snow on the ground in areas. We drove the entire course, something that I rarely do before a race. I learned that drving and running a course is a totally different experience.
We headed out before 5 race morning for the same rest area for a 6am race start. This is one of the local laid back races that I am starting to enjoy more and more. There was a flour line marking the start; no chips or timing mats to be found on this course. The course was an out and back and there was one aid station to serve you in both directions. I was initially concerned about having to navigate 2 cattle guards twice on the course; this turned out to not be an issue because I was walking by the time I approached the first cattle guard.
The course had a 4-5 mile downhill start going from 8700 feet down to 8100 feet before climbing back up to 8500 feet at the turnaround point. I knew within the first 2 miles that it was going to be a long day. Just running with the flow at the start, I was at about an 8:15 pace and my legs felt fine since I was going downhill but I definetely noticed that I was breathing harder than I should have been. Once the uphill started, I pretty much started walking. I mixed in some running but did more walking than running on the uphill portions of the course. There were very few flat areas on the course; you were either running downhill or uphill.
I think I finished this race the driest that I've been at any race. With a chilly 29 degree start and a 20 mph or so wind and dry conditions (and all the walking) my dri fit clothes actually wicked moisture as advertised.
Wyoming was my 42nd state that I've run a 1/2 or full marathon in. It was also my 50th half marathon that I've run. It was also a PW for me but a Wyoming PR for me!!!!!!!
Bolder Boulder 10K
After having fewer than 300 participants run the Wyoming races Sunday, Memorial Day Monday had runners everywhere as over 50,000 people participated in the second largest 10K in the United States. The weather was much nicer than the largest 10K has July 4th weekend in Hotlanta I'd imagine.
We headed out early for the parking garage near the finish line. There was no absolutely no traffic driving to the finish area; the garage was almost empty as well. After hanging out in the car for awhile, we decided to find the Boulder bus that would take us to the start line. We probably walked at least 1/2 as far to get to the shuttle versus just walking to the start line. Walking directly definetely would have been quicker as the bus ride took awhile with traffic. No worries though as we were at the start with plenty of time to spare.
I'm not sure exactly how many corral starts Boulder had, but there were more than I'd ever seen for a race. They started within a minute of each other and that seemed to work fine in keeping the course moving. It was crowded the entire race but never clogged. I can definetely say that my own breathing limitations and not the course crowd is what slowed me down.
Another interesting thing about the Boulder course was the fact that both mile and kilometer markers were on the course. It got rather confusing as to where you were on the course as the mile/K number was visible before the mile/km designation. There were also timing mats at every mile marker.
We didn't stay for the Memorial Day tribute at 11:40 as we had an afternoon flight back to Houston and didn't want to get caught in post event traffic.
All in all, Bolder Boulder 10k was a fun race in a nice town.
We headed out early for the parking garage near the finish line. There was no absolutely no traffic driving to the finish area; the garage was almost empty as well. After hanging out in the car for awhile, we decided to find the Boulder bus that would take us to the start line. We probably walked at least 1/2 as far to get to the shuttle versus just walking to the start line. Walking directly definetely would have been quicker as the bus ride took awhile with traffic. No worries though as we were at the start with plenty of time to spare.
I'm not sure exactly how many corral starts Boulder had, but there were more than I'd ever seen for a race. They started within a minute of each other and that seemed to work fine in keeping the course moving. It was crowded the entire race but never clogged. I can definetely say that my own breathing limitations and not the course crowd is what slowed me down.
Another interesting thing about the Boulder course was the fact that both mile and kilometer markers were on the course. It got rather confusing as to where you were on the course as the mile/K number was visible before the mile/km designation. There were also timing mats at every mile marker.
We didn't stay for the Memorial Day tribute at 11:40 as we had an afternoon flight back to Houston and didn't want to get caught in post event traffic.
All in all, Bolder Boulder 10k was a fun race in a nice town.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
El Chupacabra de Houston Nighttime 10k Trail Run
I somehow let a month go by without a running update. Not much to report on the running front these days; I'm enjoying being injury free and am running a somewhat light 15-20 miles a week average these days. I ran my longest run since March on the trails at Huntsville State Park last Sunday.... a tough 10 miles in humid conditions with horseflies chasing most of the way. Horseflies can be persuasive motivation to continue moving forward.
Last night was a first for me. I ran a nighttime 10k trail run at Lake Houston Park in New Caney (TX). Now I've run a night race, a 10k and trail races before but never all three disciplines in the same event. I thought the race was well organized, especially being the first year for this event in the Houston area. The race organizers have had a similiar event near San Antonio the past couple of years.
I ran the first 5k of the race somewhat harder than I planned on running. My first mile was slower than I wanted due to the narrow trail and slower runners ahead of me. It wasn't worth the effort to pass people on this portion of the trail so I waited/conserved energy so that I could make my move when the trail opened up. My second mile was much faster given better running conditions and the fact that I could pass runners. When I hit the lap button at mile 2, I thought my average pace was 9:58. I picked up the pace even though in my mind I felt like I was running faster than a 10 minute pace. Turns out I was; at mile 3 I realized that I was at an 8:58 pace.... running without glasses at night makes 8's and 9's look identical.
I stopped at the halfway point and refilled my hand held water bottle (practicing for next week's 1/2 in Wyoming where you have to carry your own bottle). From that point to the finish I did a good mix of running and walking averaging around a 10 minute pace for the last 3 miles. My unofficial time was 1:01:01 per my Garmin. Definetely not my fastest 10k; actually pretty comparable to my 6 mile barathon times back in New Orleans. Different obstacles but just a much fun.
The post race party was excellent for the event. They had bar b que and lots of beer. I do believe this will become an annual event for me.
Next up is my continued economical travel. I run my 42nd state a week from today in Wyoming followed by my first Boulder Bolder 10k race in Colorado. It will be interesting to see if altitude in Boulder or darkness, humidity and trails is the tougher challenge.
Last night was a first for me. I ran a nighttime 10k trail run at Lake Houston Park in New Caney (TX). Now I've run a night race, a 10k and trail races before but never all three disciplines in the same event. I thought the race was well organized, especially being the first year for this event in the Houston area. The race organizers have had a similiar event near San Antonio the past couple of years.
I ran the first 5k of the race somewhat harder than I planned on running. My first mile was slower than I wanted due to the narrow trail and slower runners ahead of me. It wasn't worth the effort to pass people on this portion of the trail so I waited/conserved energy so that I could make my move when the trail opened up. My second mile was much faster given better running conditions and the fact that I could pass runners. When I hit the lap button at mile 2, I thought my average pace was 9:58. I picked up the pace even though in my mind I felt like I was running faster than a 10 minute pace. Turns out I was; at mile 3 I realized that I was at an 8:58 pace.... running without glasses at night makes 8's and 9's look identical.
I stopped at the halfway point and refilled my hand held water bottle (practicing for next week's 1/2 in Wyoming where you have to carry your own bottle). From that point to the finish I did a good mix of running and walking averaging around a 10 minute pace for the last 3 miles. My unofficial time was 1:01:01 per my Garmin. Definetely not my fastest 10k; actually pretty comparable to my 6 mile barathon times back in New Orleans. Different obstacles but just a much fun.
The post race party was excellent for the event. They had bar b que and lots of beer. I do believe this will become an annual event for me.
Next up is my continued economical travel. I run my 42nd state a week from today in Wyoming followed by my first Boulder Bolder 10k race in Colorado. It will be interesting to see if altitude in Boulder or darkness, humidity and trails is the tougher challenge.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Rocky Mountain.... How High????
With a little over 5 weeks to go before my next half marathon, I decided to look up the elevation that I'll be dealing with for both the 1/2 in Wyoming Sunday and the 10k in Boulder the following day. (I was asked the day before as to the elevation and had a deer in the headlights look so figured I needed to educate myself.)
First the good news (well relatively good news).... Bolder Boulder has a max elevatin of 5391 and a min elevation of 5284. The Woodlands has an elevation of 160 so I'll be right around 5000 feet higher than I'm used to running. That really shouldn't be a problem as I'll be running at 8700 feet in Wyoming the day before. The trail 1/2 between Laramie and Cheyenne starts at 8700 feet with a nice descent to around 8100 feet before ascending back to around 8500 feet at the 1/2 turnaround. The last 5 miles should be pretty much all uphill gaining back the 600 feet descent that we got to enjoy the first 1/2 of the course.
8700 feet will be the highest elevation that I've run in to date. I started the Georgetown to Idaho Springs 1/2 just west of Denver back in 2007 at 8500 feet. That course had a 1000 foot descent to a finish in Idaho Springs. That race didn't go so well for me as I pulled a hamstring around mile 4. The other western event that comes to mind is the Race to Robie Creek 1/2 that I ran in 2007 as well in Idaho. That 1/2 started at an elevation of 2725, climbed to 4797 and then dropped to 3065 at the finish. Thats the only race where I had a nose bleed along the course. Yet another Rocky Mountain disaster.
So maybe I was better off with the deer in the headlights look when asked about the altitude I'll be facing at the end of next month. My goal is to finish around 2:10. This will keep Georgetown and Robie as my 2nd to last and PW times respectively. Of course that goal will be secondary to enjoying myself on the course and logging my 42nd state.
First the good news (well relatively good news).... Bolder Boulder has a max elevatin of 5391 and a min elevation of 5284. The Woodlands has an elevation of 160 so I'll be right around 5000 feet higher than I'm used to running. That really shouldn't be a problem as I'll be running at 8700 feet in Wyoming the day before. The trail 1/2 between Laramie and Cheyenne starts at 8700 feet with a nice descent to around 8100 feet before ascending back to around 8500 feet at the 1/2 turnaround. The last 5 miles should be pretty much all uphill gaining back the 600 feet descent that we got to enjoy the first 1/2 of the course.
8700 feet will be the highest elevation that I've run in to date. I started the Georgetown to Idaho Springs 1/2 just west of Denver back in 2007 at 8500 feet. That course had a 1000 foot descent to a finish in Idaho Springs. That race didn't go so well for me as I pulled a hamstring around mile 4. The other western event that comes to mind is the Race to Robie Creek 1/2 that I ran in 2007 as well in Idaho. That 1/2 started at an elevation of 2725, climbed to 4797 and then dropped to 3065 at the finish. Thats the only race where I had a nose bleed along the course. Yet another Rocky Mountain disaster.
So maybe I was better off with the deer in the headlights look when asked about the altitude I'll be facing at the end of next month. My goal is to finish around 2:10. This will keep Georgetown and Robie as my 2nd to last and PW times respectively. Of course that goal will be secondary to enjoying myself on the course and logging my 42nd state.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Buckeye Upgrade
I was able to remember my login information and get back into the new and improved Buckeye Outdoors website. Its been about a year since I started using Buckeye as my training log for all my runs. I also went back and entered all my prior marathon and 1/2 marathon races in the Buckeye calendar.
Buckeye now uses garmin connect so that I can now download my run information directly from my Garmin into the Buckeye training log. The prior version required a download from Garmin to SportTracks (Zone 5 software) and then upload to Buckeye.
Syncing with Facebook and Twitter is now easier as well. This seems to be the case where new & improved is actually an improvement!
Buckeye now uses garmin connect so that I can now download my run information directly from my Garmin into the Buckeye training log. The prior version required a download from Garmin to SportTracks (Zone 5 software) and then upload to Buckeye.
Syncing with Facebook and Twitter is now easier as well. This seems to be the case where new & improved is actually an improvement!
Monday, April 5, 2010
Buckeye Upgrades
I guess the Buckeye Outdoor upgrade happened late on April 2nd as advertised on their website. None of my Buckeye sidebar boxes are presently visible on my blog; no PR's, no completed races, no upcoming races, no workouts. Hopefully there is a quick fix to get the information back. I've become spoiled with the no data entry required log maintenance that I've been able to do with Buckeye the past year or so.
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