"Raineth drop and staineth slop,
And how the wind doth ramm!" ~ Ezra Pound

What is this moment?

Hills, heat, humidity, urban runoff, dripping bird, rain down the drain, slop in the wind, and drafting is a breeze.

"That's the thing about running: your greatest runs are rarely measured by racing success. They are moments in time when running allows you see how wonderful your life is." ~ Kara Goucher

Running log (past two weeks)

Sunday: 3.94 miles (8:59)

Monday: no running

Tuesday: 3.5 miles (9:02)

Wednesday: no running

Thursday: no running

Friday: no running

Saturday: 5.16 miles (9:29)

Week Total: 12.6 miles.

Sunday: 3.94 miles (8:59)

Monday: no running

Tuesday: no running

Wednesday: 3.32 miles (8:56)

Thursday: no running

Friday: no running

Saturday: 7.16 miles (9:41)

Week Total: 10.48 miles.

Labor Day morning I'll be running in my first 10k. The weather is predicted to be sunny, 70 to 75 degrees, with ~ 60% humidity. My goal is to finish in under one hour. I'll need to maintain an average pace of 9 minutes 40 seconds per mile or better. I believe this to be a reasonable expectation considering the weather conditions and my past performances. I'll see. My mantra: "Unless you puke, faint, or die—keep going! You can rest after crossing the finish line."

10 miles under 1 hour is ambitious, but totally doable from your time last week.
GL.

Thanks lapka. My race is 10 kilometers, only 6.21 miles not 10. I agree it's doable, my only concern is that the place where I usually run is relatively flat. The 10k race has some hills to climb. I know those hills are going to slow me down.

"Out on the roads, there is fitness and self-discovery and the persons we were destined to be." ~ George Sheehan

Franklin Classic 10k

This was my first time running in a 10k race. I ran the Franklin Classic last year, but I ran in the 5k. One thing I recall from that 5k race was that it was incredibly crowded. It seemed as though I spent the first two miles of a 3.1 mile race maneuvering around walkers. It was like running an obstacle course. There were fewer participants in the 10k and it's an actual run whereas the 5k is a run/walk. The 10k was still fairly crowded, but almost everyone was actually running.

My goal for this race was to finish in under an hour. I knew I was not going to win a prize. In my age category I knew there would probably be several finishing in under 45 minutes. The race route is very pleasant. We began in the square in downtown Franklin, a city just south of Nashville Tennessee. We ran by the Harpeth River and within a mile we're out in the country. I looked around, to the right was a corn field and to the left was woods and I thought who would guess we're so close to a city. It seemed the whole race was going up a hill or down the other side with very little level ground. Eventually we ran through Jim Warren Park then back into downtown Franklin. I finished with an official chip time of 58 minutes 31 seconds.

Thanks lapka.

"A photo of me crossing the line revealed a mask of distress (a photo I would look at in wonder and awe but never show to anyone else). That moment, however, was one of joy. The effort didn’t result in a record or an award. It didn’t feel good. But it gave me the chance to feel good about myself." ~ Jonathan Beverly

Running log (past week)

Sunday: no running

Monday: Franklin Classic 10k 6.21 miles (9:26)

Tuesday: no running

Wednesday: no running

Thursday: no running

Friday: no running

Saturday: 7.83 miles (10:18)

Week Total: 14.04 miles.

I'm registered to run in my next 5k on October 1. My goal for this race is to finish in under 26 minutes by running an average pace of 8:23 or better. Hopefully the weather will be cooler an less humid by then.

great job!

Thanks ScreaminAsian.

"And you run and you run to catch up with the sun but it's sinking
Racing around to come up behind you again
The sun is the same in a relative way, but you're older
Shorter of breath and one day closer to death" Time by Pink Floyd

I might be running in a relay marathon. I saw on Facebook where someone was seeking people to participate on their team. I would either be running a five mile leg or an eight mile leg. This is quite different from what I'm used to. I'm accustomed to running on relatively flat smooth paved surfaces. The 5k race I'm running on October 1 starts out on a dirt road, then transitions to a hilly paved road to a turn around point then back to the starting line. This relay marathon is hilly, partly on trails and partly cross country. I told them I'm interested in joining their team, but they'll likely find someone younger and faster who they would prefer over an old bald guy like myself.

baldness is a bonus. less wind resistance. eliminates drag.

That is most certainly true. My head is aerodynamic.

Running is what I do. Running is what I love. Running is—to a large extent—who I am." ~ Scott Jurek

"What we eat is a matter of life and death. Food is who we are." ~ Scott Jurek

"Get up and run. Whatever the problem in my life, the solution had always been the same: Keep going!" ~ Scott Jurek

Today I finished reading Scott Jurek's book Eat and Run: My Unlikely Journey to Ultramarathon Greatness. Scott Jurek is a champion racer in the sport of ultrarunning. When I checked this ebook out of the library I assumed it would be a reference book on nutrition and exercise. The book does contain science and practical advice concerning diet and exercise, but it's actually an autobiography telling the stories of Jurek's life and racing career. In Eat and Run, Jurek describes his childhood and how he overcame hardships. In one chapter he tells how he was in the middle of a one hundred mile race when he stepped between two rocks that were hidden beneath leaves and tore the ligaments in his ankle. He took stock of his situation and determined he could continue without causing any permanent damage. He went on to win the race and set a new race record. In Eat and Run, Jurek also explains how he made a transition to natural foods and natural training methods. He tells how over time he went from a meat and potatoes diet to being a vegan, and there are vegan recipes provided at the end of each chapter. Jurek claims it's not so much that people need to learn how to run or eat well, but they need to unlearn the bad habits caused by modern lifestyles. Eat and Run is a very good book and I enjoyed reading it.

"This was a game of enduring, of finding out how much would break me, I always ran that hill just to see if I could—to see if I could still make myself do it today just as I had done it yesterday. Finding out if the hill would beat me—knowing one way or the other—that was the point." ~ Running With the Pack by Mark Rowlands

Running log (past week)

Sunday: 5.21 miles (9:22)

Monday: no running

Tuesday: 2.62 miles (9:14)

Wednesday: no running

Thursday: no running

Friday: no running

Saturday: 8.15 miles (10:09).

Week Total: 15.98 miles.

I've had no reply from the marathon relay team looking for runners. I suppose they'll contact me when they're desperate enough or probably not at all.

"If you're going to face a real challenge, it has to be a real challenge. You can't accomplish anything without the possibility of failure. Pretty much everybody you see go out there, you want to see them succeed. You know that most of them won't. And there is kinda maybe a dark humor to all the things that go on. Some of the failures are spectacular and really funny. But you really like to see people have that opportunity to find out that something about themselves." ~ Gary "Lazarus Lake" Cantrell

I just watched a documentary on Netflix called, The Barkley Marathons: The Race That Eats Its Young. It was fascinating. The Barkley Marathons is a multiple loop foot race through the rugged mountain brushy terrain of Frozen Head State Park in Tennessee. This race is a grueling, approximately one third trail, two thirds off trail, ultramarathon. It's so difficult that only 17 out of approximately 800 participants have ever completed the race. No one finished the first race in 1986, and the annual race had no finishers until 1995. The race has many odd rules and traditions, for example the entry procedure is secret, and limited to 40 entries. The race does not start at a specific time and has ambiguous route instructions such as, "When it hurts more, you're on the right path."

The race founder, Gary Cantrell is a colorful character who looks like an old hillbilly redneck. The race was inspired by the James Earl Ray prison break in 1977. Ray had managed to travel only eight miles in 55 hours before being recaptured. Cantrell believed he could have covered 100 miles in that length of time. From that Cantrell had the idea of a foot race where runners travel 100 plus miles through wilderness in under 60 hours.

One of the race participants claimed in the documentary that this race was a well kept secret, if you belong you'll find your way. Another said it is one of best known races in Europe. I dunno. I live in Tennessee, I used to live within 40 miles of Frozen Head State Park and the Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary. I can remember when James Earl Ray escaped prison, but I had never heard of the Barkley Marathons until I saw this documentary. The documentary is excellent, informative and entertaining. The race looks exciting, but I'll pass, I will not be seeking entry into the Barkley Marathons.

Nice blog! I loved that documentary, very interesting stuff. I'm training for my first marathon in November but couldn't imagine attempting the Barkley course once, forget 5 loops!!

Thanks FL Pkrdlr

Good luck training for and running in your marathon.

"You have to wonder at times what you're doing out there. Over the years I've given myself a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it started. It comes down to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement." ~ Steve Prefontaine

Running log (past week)

Sunday: no running

Monday: no running

Tuesday: 3.13 miles (8:57)

Wednesday: no running

Thursday: 3.57 miles (9:11)

Friday: no running

Saturday: 8.10 miles (9:52).

Week Total: 14.8 miles.

I've not heard from the marathon relay people, at least not officially. I did speak with one of the people involved. He told me that he's not certain, but thinks that six people have expressed interest in joining the team. If we can get two more people we can form two teams. Otherwise, I'm probably out. Also the race routes have been changed. It was two legs approximately eight miles each, and two legs approximately five miles each. Now there will be one eight mile leg, two 7-1/2 mile legs, and one 3.2 mile leg.

"No matter how old I get, the race remains one of life's most rewarding experiences." ~ George Sheehan

Running log (past week)

Sunday: 3.53 miles (9:04)

Monday: no running

Tuesday: 4.11 miles (9:05)

Wednesday: no running

Thursday: no running

Friday: no running

Saturday: Grey Ghost 5k 3.1 miles (8:48).

Week Total: 10.74 miles.

It was a beautiful morning, sun shining, birds singing, hardly any breeze, 53 degrees, 95% humidity. The Grey Ghost 5k starts and ends at the historic Oaklawn Plantation, a pre Civil War mansion in Spring Hill Tennessee. The race is a pleasant run in the country surrounded by pastures. Along the route there are trees, a few houses, a pond, barns and silos. This race is relatively small. Whereas the Franklin Classic had more than 2,500 participants, this race had only 565 entries.

My goal for this race was to finish in under 26 minutes. The race begins on a dirt driveway. We ran approximately a quarter mile to a paved street. From there it was up and down rolling green hills along a winding road to the turn around point and back to the start. I finished with an official chip time of 27 minutes 19 seconds—not even close to my goal. I did get third place for my age division so I'm not too disappointed.

Why is the race called the Grey Ghost? This is from the race website:

"'First, they will examine their feet,' said Pyle, prompting a guffaw from someone in the crowd. 'What's the idea?' demanded Pyle, who hadn't thought he had said anything funny."

"Well, if a man enters a 3,000-mile foot race, the first thing to examine is his head."
~ C. C. Pyle's Amazing Foot Race by Geoff Williams

I finished reading C. C. Pyle's Amazing Foot Race: The True Story of the 1928 Coast-to-Coast Run Across America by Geoff Williams. This is a history book telling the story of a foot race from Los Angles to New York. It's interesting to read about how different the world was in 1928. In the decade of the 1920s there was a craze around feats of endurance, and endurance competitions: flagpole sitting, dance marathons, roller skating, swimming, walkathons, etc.

The race offered a $25,000 first place grand prize, other place prizes, plus daily prizes. A race caravan with carnival traveled with the runners to publicize the then new US Highway 66. Many of the participants saw the race as an opportunity to see the country and maybe make some money. The race began with 199 runners. A third of the runners dropped out before reaching Arizona. Some of the runners were Olympic athletes, but many of the participants in this race were woefully unprepared for long distance running. One man for example was a mailman who had to walk daily to deliver mail so he assumed that experience was sufficient training for a foot race across the country.

People of the day had a limited understanding of training and nutrition. For example, some people at that time thought there were health benefits to drinking and bathing in radium water, not aware that radioactivity is deadly. Also they had little of the training equipment used today. They didn't even have running shoes, at least nothing like what we have today. One runner wore heavy logging boots, one leather street shoes, another had shoes made of cork and asbestos, some were barefoot. The author said one fellow developed "giant calluses tougher than any shoe." The race was nicknamed the Bunion Derby.

The participants ran for weeks through desert heat in California, Arizona, and New Mexico. They ran through a snow storm in Texas. Some of them had no clothing other than shorts and the shirt they wore. The longest daily run of the entire race was 74.6 miles. Some of the runners were hit by cars. Some quit after being injured. Some quit from exhaustion. Some quit from boredom. A few were disqualified for cheating. After 84 days, of the original 199 racers only 55 finished the race. Some had not shaved, changed clothing, or bathed for the duration.

It's difficult to imagine what these men went through. Running for hours on dirt roads to their destination, usually arriving to find inadequate food and no bathing facilities. Sleeping in cold tents on cots with dirty blankets. Running with feet bleeding, blistered, bruised, toes scraped raw of toenails and flesh. Ankles swollen to twice normal size, shin splints, and sunburn. Some would get out of bed barely able to stand then run another leg of the race, another 30, 40, 50, or 60 plus miles. Continuing this routine day after day for months with no rest days for 3,421.5 miles.

C. C. Pyle's Amazing Foot Race is a good book and very interesting. The book tells many interesting stories about the event as well as personal stories of many of the individuals involved. If you like reading history, particularly reading about historical sporting events you should enjoy this book.

"I ran to be free; I ran to avoid pain; I ran to feel pain; I ran out of love and hate and anger and joy." ~ Dagny Scott Barrios

Running log (past week)

Sunday: 2.82 miles (8:49)

Monday: no running

Tuesday: 2.5 miles (8:42)

Wednesday: no running

Thursday: no running

Friday: no running

Saturday: 6.5 miles (9:52).

Week Total: 11.82 miles.

The relay marathon people contacted me. They think they have eight runners and can form two teams. It's still not definite, they're just verifying whether people are still interested. I should know for certain on Sunday.

Thanks ScreaminAsian. May you live long and run faster.

"If you fall, I'll be there." ~ Hard Ground

I've not heard from the marathon relay people. It suppose it's possible that they meant next Sunday, but I suspect they are simply having difficulty contacting some of the runners who expressed interest. The race is less than two weeks away. It would nice to know if I'll be running, and which leg.