Alarm Fail

You'd think after 41 years on this planet, I'd be smart enough to be able to set an alarm clock properly. You'd be wrong. Er, at least you'd be wrong last night. I managed to set mine for 540am instead of 440am, making it a bit difficult to be at my training group's long run by 6. I really wanted to make this one because a) I need to get my miles up before Disney, and b) I wanted to use my discount coupon at Fleet Feet to pick up some new running sunglasses. The cheap pair of Tivolis I bought at a marathon expo last winter have broken twice on me, so instead of getting a third lens for them, I'm going to spend the extra money and get a higher quality pair. Anyone have any suggestions or recommendations?

Need Some Motivation?

Need any motivation to run, jog, bike, swim, or whatever it is you do? Look no further than this collection of thoughts. Some of them are truly inspiring.

Weight In Vain

Lazy Weekend

It's been a nice and lazy weekend so far. We managed to dodge the rain during our group run yesterday morning, but given all the rain Alex brought us last week, the humidity was still raging. Nothing like getting back to the car and having to wring out my shirt before heading home. I've taken to changing into a dry t-shirt to keep my seatbelt from getting all nasty on the drive home.


Yesterday's other only real activity was dinner at Kiran's, a gourmet Indian restaurant out by the Galleria. We decided to try it because we got a Groupon deal ($50 for $25). The food was good and so was the service, but overall it didn't "wow" us. It was if the chef held back on traditional Indian spiciness and flavor in order to appear more modern and cutting edge. We're going to give it another shot sometime and try some more usual dishes instead of the tasting menu. Stay tuned.

In other thrilling and exciting news, my iPhone 4G is on its way here. It left China on Thursday, made it to Memphis early this morning, and is "in transit to Houston" according to FedEx. I hope to have it on Tuesday so I can try out the upgraded camera and video capabilities at Mark's Inside Sports auditions that night.

Columbus Ex JWW Course

Here's a copy of my Ex JWW course from my assignment last weekend in Columbus. I figured I'd throw it up here for a few reasons. One, I can't use it again so why keep it hidden away, and two, it was a really fun course with a Q rate of 67%.

There weren't very many places where handlers really ran into trouble. Most of the NQs stemmed from dropped bars at #11 when a front cross was late, run-outs at #6 as the handler pushed toward #7 and didn't pul the dog in, and missed weave poles if the dog didn't collect in time to make the entry. There were several big dogs who ran past #20 to spoil a perfect run, which happened when the handler had to move out around the wing of #19 and didn't think to move back in or push the dog back in. The little dogs didn't have this problem since they were generally even with or behind their handler, whereas most of the big dogs were slightly or greatly ahead of their handler. Still, I'll take a 67% Q rate any time I can get it. It's a lot more fun to watch teams really pushing and having fun and success than watching NQ after NQ after NQ.

Heights Fun Run

A nice 5k to start the training season. It was a bit more humid than anyone really wanted, but that's summer in Houston for you. It's only going to get worse for the next few months. The course isn't the most interesting one in the world, basically a down and back on Heights Blvd., but it's pretty with lots of old trees providing much needed shade.


One neat thing they had was a digital photobooth as part of the post-race activities. I'm glad I was early in line because I imagine their props were pretty gross by the end of the morning.

Lazy Saturday Run

After a month off, I finally went out running again. I did an easy 3 miles around the lake in the center of the subdivision. I'm not sure my GPS is working right because it has me at a 9:18 pace. I sure felt a lot slower than that. Heather's mom is here visiting for a week, and there are half a dozen Mexican restaurants we want to take her to. Guess I picked the right week to start training again.

Rodeo Run

Yesterday was the Rodeo Run 10k. I haven't run at all since Harlow arrived, so I was a bit concerned about how I'd do. I knew I didn't want to just run it easy, but I also figured that busting out 8:30 miles probably wasn't going to happen. In the end, the crowd was so big and the course so congested that i couldn't have run 8:30s all the way even if I wanted to. Doesn't anyone teach beginning runners to line up somewhat near where their pace sign is? Or instruct them on how it's polite to move to the side of the course before you stop to walk? I have nothing against people who follow the run/walk philosophy (not really sure it's as critical for a 10k as for a marathon, but still, no problem with people using it), but for the love of god, please get out of the way before you stop. Stopping five minutes into a 13,000-person 10k right in the middle of the road is just asking to be run into, so don't blame the people behind you when it happens. When your watch beeps, take an extra few seconds to move to the right, and then slow down. You'll save everyone, yourself included, a lot of hassle.

Anyway, now that my bitching is done, it's time to talk about my race. I didn't want to waste too much energy weaving in and out of the crowd, so my first few miles were pretty slow. Once we hit the first overpass between mile 2 and 3, people started slowing down and spreading out, and that's where I started to pick it up. I held that pace until we hit the overpasses coming back, and at that point, I figured it was time to start moving. I could feel myself getting tired because I hadn't run recently, but I powered on anyway. I kept thinking about Mary, Ange, and Steve pushing through their races this winter, and while I'm nowhere near their caliber, it was enough motivation to keep me moving and not slowing down. In the end, I ran 55:39, not a great time, but the negative splits are enough to give me some satisfaction. Now it's time to get out there in the mornings again and get ready for the Seabrook Lucky Trail Half in two weeks.