Sites along the way in Raleigh, NC

Went riding today through some nice neighborhoods. Of course there is always that one house that makes you stop and stare (this house was not in the nice neighborhood).

The signs of a good sherpa/wingman:

Sherpa: "Do you want to pack some riding gloves for the trip?"

Me: "Nah.  It's going to be warm. I won't need them."

Fast forward 48 hours:

Me: "oh man, it's so cold. I'm stupid. I should have packed my gloves."

Sherpa: "You mean these? I packed them for you just in case."

Our trip in Raleigh was not complete without a trip to an NHL game. The Carolina Hurricanes were hosting the NY Islanders. Anyone that knows me knows my two favorite teams are the Rangers and anyone playing the Islanders. Needless to say it was a great game. It was the worst defeat in Islanders history. They lost 9-0. The fans were going nuts, chanting "We want 10. We want 10."

The one goal I have is to see a game in every NHL city. So far I have knocked 9 cities off the list. Only 21 more to go...........

From there we headed to the Outer Banks for a few days. We stayed in the Kill Devil Hills area. The temps were great for riding. But before we went riding, we walked over to the Wright Brothers field. I was totally thinking it would be just a plain airstrip/open field, but turns out it was a nice museum and pavillion.  The pic below is the takeoff point for each of the 1st four flights. The smaller stones in the background are the different landing points.

And this is my Wingman trying to re-create the flight ;-)

Our ride in the Outer Banks was great. It's flat as a pancake and not too much traffic right now. Since it is still the offseason, the traffic wasn't too bad. We stayed off the main strip so I could get a little lazy and drop my head every once in a while. And since I had to do an all out 30 min TT for Jen, this was the place to do it. I put the hammer down and let 'er rip!! 

Oh, and beware of flying cows ;-)

Sadly, we had to come home to not so warm weather and rain. And I have a research exam on Wednesday when I get back to school. I will be spending Easter sunday studying (not like I celebrate Easter anyway). I will go running in the morning and then spend the rest of the day down in the basement :-(

Trail running

On Wednesday's I get out at 10:30a and usually head to work, but this week I have an exam in Clinical Medicine and Pharmacology (covers ALS, stroke, Guillian Barre, HIV/AIDS, Parkinson's and Charcot Marie Tooth Disease) so I needed the extra study time. But I did take an hour out to go trail running with a cousin. 

We went to Rocky Point and went out on one of the trails. I think we ran for ~1:15 but I lost track of time. It was ~3 miles out and back so we covered 6 miles. She did most of the talking as I was not capable of that. Most of my answers were "yep" or "absolutely" or "uh huh". Kept it short and sweet. I needed every bit of oxygen that I could take in. The course was far from hilly, but it was not flat. It was in great shape too. Except one or two patches of mud. 

It was cold when we first went out, but by 15 minutes in, I was roasting. Of course I paid for it later when I got home. I had the heat blasting in the car to hold off the shivering. I did not have a change of shirt at her house so I had to drive home sweaty. And as soon as I got home I was shivering. But it's nothing that a hot shower can't cure ;-)

Trail running is harder than running on the roads, but it is so much more fun. You can actually hear your feet coming down on the pine needles and the wind blowing through the trees. There are no cars to bother you or to look out for. Worst thing is some deer passing through, and that is no problem for me. Every time I get out on the trail, I know I am becoming a stronger runner and it will make be better on the roads. Before you know it, May 9th will be upon us my trail race will be here.

How many 90 year olds can you take in a fight?

I guess I'm not that good.......

Swimming again

Well, after a few month layoff, I was back in the pool today. I swam with the Stony Brook Seawolves Masters Swim club. For some reason, they start at 5:45a. I guess they are trying to keep their group a secret or something. My alarm went off at 4:30a this morning and thank goodness I packed my bag the night before because I cannot function at that ungodly hour.

Made it to the pool and introduced myself to the woman in charge. She explained how they setup the lanes and I quickly found what lane I belonged in..... the slow one!! I looked for the slowest lane doing the shortest workout. Turns out the shortest workout was 2,900 yds. I knew this would be a painful way to start the week. I hopped in and began the warmup. Not too bad, so far so good. Once the workout started, it was all downhill. Right for for swimming I don't have many speeds. My philosophy is to start slow and taper off until my conditioning comes back.

I wound up cutting the workout a little short due to fatigue (2,300 yds). I can almost feel my arms again. 

Winter Wonderland

Today was the 21st annual HoHoHo Holiday 5k in Bethpage. I've done this race a couple of times, but ever in the snow. Yesterday, we were blanketed with snow and today we had some cold winds. Just staying warm was going to be a challenge. The winds gave the illusion of 16 degree temps. I wore my new Nike running tights, a long sleeve black shirt and my cycling jacket. I made the mistake of wearing my regular running shoes. I really needed my running trail shoes. I had no traction and on the 2nd loop of the course, it was a challenge to not slide a little.

I waited inside the building so I could keep my feet warm as long as possible. Once I went out, I huddled inside a large group so the wind would not affect me. The gun went off and so did my warmth. My plan was just to stay comfortable and upright. I didn't care about my times because of the weather. The course consisted of two short loops adding up to 5k. Little did I know that the race started with the wind at my back. Once I came around to the back side of the loop, I was smacked in the face with just how cold it was outside. I wore a hat, but my face was freezing. It was hard to run faster because of the conditions, but I couldn't wait to get off this road.

Once I made the turn it was like a heat wave. Woo hoo, I'm warm again. The 2nd loop went just as uneventful as the 1st. I cruised in to the finish and went straight to the car, changed my jackets and headed into the gym to the Russian food line. It's amazing how long the line is when the food is free. I waited patiently for my free bagel and banana and passed on the donuts. Then I headed into the main gym to wait for the raffle. Every year they have an ass kicking top prize and I am convinced it is my destiny to win. The prize this year was a 26in LCD TV. I walked past it before the raffle muttering "You will be mine, oh yes, you will be mine." But it was not to be. I was passed over............again. Next year. There is always next year.

2009 Racing Season

Well, the year is coming to an end and of course I am already thinking about racing in 2009. This was a rough year because of school and recovering from some nagging running injuries. I would love to do another Ironman race, but the time is just not right. Once I finish school I will do another. But for 2009, this is a rough idea of what I am thinking:

• Greenbelt Trail 25k - May
• Montauk Sprint Triathlon - July
• NYC Triathlon (relay) - July
• TOBAY Triathlon - August
• Steelhead Half Ironman (maybe) - August
• Army 10 Miler - October
• Some late fall Half Marathon

We'll see as this year comes to a close how things shake out. I am eager to get running more consistently again. Plus I think I want to add early morning swimming to my schedule in the spring. I have to wait for my school schedule though.

I was fortunate enough to meet a local triathlete yesterday after the Ridley race. I knew of him, but never met him. We met after the race and talked about different races. He was super nice. He is very competitive in his age group (M50-54). He can usually qualify for Kona each year, but passed on it this year. I guess it can be expensive to do. He said he was doing the NYC Marathon next month. I'm sure he will do well. 

  

Looking for my Tony........

Tony Siragusa

Well, not exactly. Back in 2002, the very first road race I ever did was the Ridley 5k in Riverhead. I had been running for about a month prior to that race. I decided to enter it as a way to motivate me to run. The wingman could not run with me that day, so he came down to cheer me on. I was nervous about coming in last so I scanned the crowd for someone I thought I could beat. Then, my eyes found my target. There was a big (fat) high school kid with a football sweatshirt on. I had to beat him. If not, I was going to end my running career right there. So wingman told me "You can beat Tony over there." The real Tony is a former football player for the Baltimore Ravens. Well, no one has to guess that I beat the kid, my Tony.

Fast forward to 2008, and I still look for my Tony at the races. Today was my 7th running of the Ridley race. I've only run once in the last two weeks, so I set a very conservative goal for the race. I had a time goal in mind and did not figure to beat it.

Wingman and I get to the race site and we will be meeting his cousin and his cousin's friend there. Little did this friend know, but as soon as I saw him, he was to become my Tony. We got the pleasantries out of the way and made our way to the starting line. Today was so cold in the morning. I worried that it was so cold I would be under dressed. I wore a black long sleeve running shirt and my running shorts. I agonized over wearing tights. Turns out I was dressed properly. No matter what the temps are, once you get running, it will feel ~20 degrees warmer.

The gun went off and Tony took off down the road. I lost sight of him quickly. I just figured I'd better settle down and find my rhythm. I made my way down main street in the crowd. I passed people and people passed me. By the time I got to the 1st mile marker, I was quite warm and thankful I wore my shorts and did not change. Still I did not see Tony yet. I knew we were coming to our first turnaround on the course and that I would get a good idea of how far behind I was. First person I saw was Wingman's cousin. Then as I made my way down to the cul de sac area, I saw my Tony. He looked like he was lumbering along. I could smell the blood in the water. I knew I could catch him. I paced myself well and knew that by Riverside Drive, I would get him.

So I now look back to see where Wingman was. I could see he wasn't too far behind me and was looking good so far. I looked ahead and focused my efforts. Reel in the big one.

"We're gonna need a bigger boat"

At this point I feel like I am running on automatic pilot. My legs are working independent of my brain. I can't explain how this happens, but it's a nice disconnect. I am quickly coming up on my Tony. There is some strategy to be worked out. As I pass him, what do I do if he keeps up with me? Or, what if he sticks right behind me? I need to save a little something for the finish. I am not quite capable of dropping someone mid race. So as I pass, I know there is one last turnaround coming so I can see his response. Well I luck out. I pass him and make my way down the road to the turn around. He had no response. Mentally I relax a little. I see my Wingman one more time and give him the high-sign.

I make it to the 1/2 mile to go sign and some guy in a full cotton sweatsuit passes me. I think "oh no you didn't." I stayed behind him a little as I planned my move. When I got about 1/4 mile form the finish I put out a small burst of speed and passed/dropped him. As I made my way to the final turn I could see a woman pass from my left and I thought again "oh NO she did NOT just pass me." Needless to say at this point I broke out into a full sprint and blew right by her and beat her by 3 seconds.

Overall, I did very well surprisingly. I finished 1:30 faster than I thought I would. I was stunned. I felt comfortable the whole race and had a great finish.

Idiots aka "John"

Well, my last post blasted our elected officials McCain, NoBama and Tim Bishop. Some joker must be getting alerts to anytime Bishop's name is mentioned on the internet because he left a comment about checking out his candidate and gave a URL. My problem with that is this guy "John" has his profile blocked and I don't want to advertise for candidates unless I post something about them. I don't care if people post agreeing or disagreeing with me. Just don't hijack my blog with your comments and steer people away. I'm not out to help others endorse their candidate.

Shame on you "John".

This is how I feel.........

Yep, this sums it up right now. Starting at the end of next week I have 4 exams in 6 days. The material is not that difficult yet, but I just want to make it through unscathed. At least the jewish holidays will break up the time between the 3rd and 4th exam. Since it is a state university, we get the days off. Phew, two days of sleeping in, well sort of. 

Now that I am getting into a routine of school and how to manage my time, I can settle into a regular workout routine again. School is tough. Today I got to class for 9:30a and it ran until 12p. Then I get a 1 hour break and my next class begins at 1p and runs to 3p. Then I get a 30 minute break and the last class runs from 3:30p-5:30p. Seriously, I feel like I sit all day long. During the breaks (even the 10 minute break during class) I go out into the hallway to follow the "wellness walk" mapped out in the hall. I need to get the legs moving and blood flowing again. 

Tomorrow should be a good day as I get a 3 hour break and plan on doing a long run at that time.