“Are we there yet?” was something I’m pretty sure every kid would ask mom and dad when travelling in the car on some boring trip somewhere. And when I run, I sometimes get to a spot on my running route in which I ask myself that very question. Sometimes it’s because I’m cold. Sometimes it’s due to being tired or sore. And sometimes it’s because I’ve run this same route for 20-plus years now, and the routine can make you wish that the two or three miles you have left to go would just be over. I would definitely spend one of my three genie wishes on ending some of the runs I have been on. Certain marathons come to mind.
But today wasn’t one of those days. The weather was upper 40s, mostly sunny, and calm. I was dressed appropriately for a change, and I was putting in some long, slow time on my feet. And it was feeling great. I am currently enjoying some pain-free running, which wasn’t the case in the past couple of years. I was running twelve miles today, using my typical run/walk pace plan (2 minutes each), which has been great at helping me build miles, while not tearing my muscles up with the harder straight run efforts. I will run eight miles or less straight with no walk breaks, but with several months ahead of me before my backyard ultra in September, I figured I shouldn’t push too hard at this point.
But the question of “are we there yet” can also be one of anticipation. When I had reached that point on my route today, where I sometimes ask myself how much more of this to go, I had a different thought. I was feeling great and thought I could get home, top off my bottle with more Tailwind, and possibly head out on the route for another twelve miles. I wondered how well prepared I am at this current stage, and how much longer until we get to that backyarder in September? I’m feeling ready!
“Am I there yet?” Not quite, but I am getting closer.
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ODDS AND ENDS
- I switched to wearing Hoka shoes back in 2017, after I got tired of what ASICS was doing with their shoes. I’ve tried various Hoka offerings, starting with the Clifton, but kept seeking out more cushioning, something Hoka is well known for. I have fallen in love with the king of cushioned shoes, the Hoka Skyward X. These shoes have tons of cushioning for my sore knees, and are carbon-plated to add extra spring and bounce to my footstrike. They also tend to last me a long time. I typically need to change shoes every 300 miles or so, but I can get 600 or more out of these before I even sense that they are getting worn out. I hope Hoka never stops making this shoe, but it has an issue: It’s illegal to race in them. They are on a banned list of shoes prohibited from most sanctioned road races, and that includes Ironman competitions. The racing ruling bodies that govern shoes have declared that a 40mm stack height is the maximum allowed, and the Skyward X, the monster truck of running shoes, exceeds that 40mm. Fortunately, the Hoka Cielo X, a road racing shoe that I have run the Chicago Marathon and last year’s Ironman Rockford 70.3, is legal and still provides a great ride for me.
- THERE WERE SKELETAL REMAINS FOUND ON MY RUNNING ROUTE! I was coming back from a weekday run, heading past an old farmer’s field about a mile from my house, when I noticed a couple of county deputies and a guy in the field. Turns out, the guy was doing a land survey and found a human skull! It didn’t take more than a couple of days before the coroner identified the person. He had been missing since last June. Not sure yet how he got there or what caused his demise, but it was a little unsettling to know that a dead guy had been lying in the field I run past on almost every run.
- I’ve been doing my Saturday (and sometimes, Sunday) long rides with the local cycling group when they pop up, and I’ve been really enjoying the rides. The wind direction often dictates which way we ride, and all of the rides have been out to the west to have a tailwind coming back. I joined my first “Tap Ride,” which is a fun Wednesday evening ride on the crushed limestone Wauponsee Glacial Trail out to a small farming town called Symerton. The group will stop there for a refreshment before heading back in the dark, with our lights illuminating the trail. Riding at night was not something I’ve done much of, so it was a nice change for me.
- Temps next week will be in the 70s, so I will start working on getting my pool ready for some lap swimming in preparation for the 70.3 in Rockford, Illinois, in June. Last year, the three-year-old pool heater sprang a leak and stopped working just before the season ended. So I need to get that figured out and fixed. Pools are great, but sometimes I wonder if I should fill it with dirt and move on.
- I have my first race coming up in May, a unique 5K time trial race in which you run a 5K every hour for 6 hours. The fastest cumulative time wins. I won’t win, but earlier this week, I ran an 8-mile training run, which started out very strongly for me, so I decided to see how fast I could cover 10K and recover with the last two miles. It went very well, and I think I might be able to cover a few of the 5Ks in around 26 minutes or so. Not sure if I can average that for all of the 5Ks, but I’m willing to be a Gunner at this stage.
That’s all for now. Back to training and getting ready for the season.
an amazing run 