Monday, May 31, 2004
3:28:26 overall (7:57 pace). Fifteenth overall. We were 19th last year, at 3:32:42(8:07 pace). The race got faster, and we got faster.
Wednesday, May 26, 2004
It really doesn't fit in with what we are doing, but I must admit to being intrigued by the Amherst Triple Crown: St. Gregory's Great Race 5K, Friday June 18; Loughran's 5K, Monday July 12; Village Glen Moonlight Run 5K, Wednesday August 18. I have only done the Moonlight once or twice, but I liked it a great deal, and I have always meant to try the Loughran's run.
Tuesday, May 25, 2004
On Bob Dylan's birthday no less! And he used to be such pleasant company. Get that man a pack of Rothmans and a big glass of Highland Park.
Tapering. Four miles, moderate pace yesterday; I thought I'd cross-train today, starting with a mile warm-up on the treadmill. Once I got going, though, it felt good, so I dialed it up to 8:12 pace, then dropped five seconds every half mile over 5k, for a nifty reverse interval workout that left my legs still feeling fresh due to the low impact of the treadmill. Maybe I'll cross-train tomorrow-- I want to stay low impact.
Monday, May 24, 2004
My brother pointed me to this Nick Hornby piece about why rock'n'roll remains necessary: "[W]ho doesn't need exhilaration and a sense of invincibility, even if it's only now and again?"
I read the form and I see KRAC doing a 3:23 or better if it stays cool.
As long as we are discussing matters gustatory, I made the barbecued ribs with molasses bourbon sauce yesterday. Recipe calls for beef ribs, which I will do next time, but spareribs worked fine. I love my grill, which does many things well, but low temperatures are tricky. I raised the grilling surface from the heat source with some bricks, and wrapped some soaked wood chips in foil. Once they were smoking, I turned the heat as low as I could, and put the marinated ribs on. Every half hour or so I'd turn them, releasing some heat, so that for the most part I kept it somewhere between 250 and 300.
For reasons that now escape me, I made a double batch of the sauce: that's a pint of bourbon, folks. My kitchen smelled like Derby Day. I tweaked the recipe a bit-- I didn't have light molasses, so I substituted honey for the sugar; and I chopped up a couple of dried chilli peppers and added that to the sauce for a little lift.
It worked out well. The secret to any sort of barbecue really is slow, low heat, and I'm not really set up to do that, but within the limits of the available technology it was fine: ribs were done in two and a half hours, then I dredged them in the sauce, and finished them in the oven to allow the sauce to caramelize. I'll certainly make it again: in the meanwhile, anybody want some sauce?
For reasons that now escape me, I made a double batch of the sauce: that's a pint of bourbon, folks. My kitchen smelled like Derby Day. I tweaked the recipe a bit-- I didn't have light molasses, so I substituted honey for the sugar; and I chopped up a couple of dried chilli peppers and added that to the sauce for a little lift.
It worked out well. The secret to any sort of barbecue really is slow, low heat, and I'm not really set up to do that, but within the limits of the available technology it was fine: ribs were done in two and a half hours, then I dredged them in the sauce, and finished them in the oven to allow the sauce to caramelize. I'll certainly make it again: in the meanwhile, anybody want some sauce?
Interesting Mets stat I heard yesterday:
Former Mets (now good) who threw no hitters after leaving the Mets:
Nolan Ryan
Tom Seaver
Hideo Nomo
Mike Scott
David Cone
Dwight Gooden
Also, you may know that in "Pirates of the Caribbean" Johnny Depp modeled his Jack Sparrow character on Keith Richards. I just heard that Keith will play Jack Sparrow's father in the sequel.
Former Mets (now good) who threw no hitters after leaving the Mets:
Nolan Ryan
Tom Seaver
Hideo Nomo
Mike Scott
David Cone
Dwight Gooden
Also, you may know that in "Pirates of the Caribbean" Johnny Depp modeled his Jack Sparrow character on Keith Richards. I just heard that Keith will play Jack Sparrow's father in the sequel.
Sunday, May 23, 2004
News from the training table:
Saturday afternoon we went to Grover's on Transit Road to try out their hamburgers, because we'd heard they make the best in town. Grover's is your basic roadhouse tavern. Judy had the bacon bleu burger and I had the bacon cheddar burger. They were astonishingly huge, and I can't say I've ever had better. With a shared basket of fries and a later stop at Anderson's for an ice cream cone, I had no urge to eat for the rest of the day. Margot had an order of chicken wings and said they were pretty good. Grover's also pours a nice Guinness, so I'd recommend the place for a future KRAC confab. We could draw Bill a map to the northern suburbs.
Saturday afternoon we went to Grover's on Transit Road to try out their hamburgers, because we'd heard they make the best in town. Grover's is your basic roadhouse tavern. Judy had the bacon bleu burger and I had the bacon cheddar burger. They were astonishingly huge, and I can't say I've ever had better. With a shared basket of fries and a later stop at Anderson's for an ice cream cone, I had no urge to eat for the rest of the day. Margot had an order of chicken wings and said they were pretty good. Grover's also pours a nice Guinness, so I'd recommend the place for a future KRAC confab. We could draw Bill a map to the northern suburbs.
Wednesday, May 19, 2004
My base in the past has always been about 5k. I have a couple of loops that I run downtown, and all of them have two flavors: About 5k, or Extended (roughly 4 miles). The core of several of these has been the Inner Harbor, to which an extra mile or so can be tacked on by either taking the path through the condos, or going past the Largest Inland Naval Park in the Whole World. The whole shot is my base this year. On days when I'm crunched for time, I'll do a four miler, but I am essentially running fives instead of threes this Spring.
It feels like it makes a difference. In Slate the other day Meghan O'Rourke quoted a remark someone had made about Smarty Jones in Sports Illustrated: "He was running hard—and he was likin' it." That's kind of where I am right now.
It feels like it makes a difference. In Slate the other day Meghan O'Rourke quoted a remark someone had made about Smarty Jones in Sports Illustrated: "He was running hard—and he was likin' it." That's kind of where I am right now.
Tuesday, May 18, 2004
I recently learned that there is a woman who works in my office who was, about ten years ago when she was in her mid-forties, a Buffalo News Runner of the Year and a steady winner in her age group. She had to give it up because of bad knees and is now a high school track coach. She is from Scotland, so it's fun to talk to her.
I asked her for some training tips, especially on speed work. When I told her that I usually do 5Ks in about 24:00 and that my last 10K was about 51:00, she said that was way too slow and that I should be able to do much better. She is going to put something together for me, but her basic advice is that you have to run faster, more often, in order to build your endurance and speed.
I asked her for some training tips, especially on speed work. When I told her that I usually do 5Ks in about 24:00 and that my last 10K was about 51:00, she said that was way too slow and that I should be able to do much better. She is going to put something together for me, but her basic advice is that you have to run faster, more often, in order to build your endurance and speed.
There are a couple of races that it would be fun to go to and run-- civic events, like the Boilermaker. One is the Bay to Breakers.
Monday, May 17, 2004
Boilermaker last year.
Boilermaker, three, maybe four years ago.
Tom, you didn't say what the rest interval was, so I jagged a lap after each 3/4. With a mile warm-up, that made for a nice four mile run. It's interesting to get on the track-- I rode my bike up to Buff State, where it was a little cool, but where the towers of Ascension and the Richardson Towers are both visible. Nice track, although Buff State could work on keeping it up a little. Really, was there ever an institution so dogged in its determination to take all assets and settle for being so mediocre?
My traditional speed workout has been 880's at race pace with a two lap recovery; I like the 3/4's better. My target was 6:00 3/4's. Like Tom, I discovered that there's more speed there than we know about. 5:24; 5:30; and 5:38 is what I found on the track; I should have run one more, just to slot that 6:00 (8:00 minute mile pace)tempo in, but I didn't do it. Twenty years ago those would have been decent miles for me; I must have lost a lap somewhere along the way.
When I was a schoolboy, I loved track work, but I think now that it may have been because it was sociable for me then. We ran a lot of miles-- six was our base distance, and we did a couple of eights a week. I was never alone, but I wasn't necessarily with the people who were my friends; on speed days, I could catch up with them on the rest laps. I always loved Cross-Country best, because the extra distance and the hills favored me, a little. On the track, I was, ostensibly, a miler, even though that distance as romantic as it is, was completely wrong for the runner I was then, and always will be.
Some days you run because you know that it will make tomorrow's run better, and that's how this felt. At the end of the day today, I felt like I'd learned something about how fast I can go, and how much faster I actually run when someone makes me.
Other things to like about track work: easy to take water; easy to stretch, easy to test what works and what doesn't. The surface of the Buff State track is state of the art, so it is easy on the legs, but they should get someone out there with a broom-- I'm pretty sure that wasn't a dead animal, but I shouldn't have to kick whatever it was out of lane one at the top turn, and keep seeing it thereafter.
My traditional speed workout has been 880's at race pace with a two lap recovery; I like the 3/4's better. My target was 6:00 3/4's. Like Tom, I discovered that there's more speed there than we know about. 5:24; 5:30; and 5:38 is what I found on the track; I should have run one more, just to slot that 6:00 (8:00 minute mile pace)tempo in, but I didn't do it. Twenty years ago those would have been decent miles for me; I must have lost a lap somewhere along the way.
When I was a schoolboy, I loved track work, but I think now that it may have been because it was sociable for me then. We ran a lot of miles-- six was our base distance, and we did a couple of eights a week. I was never alone, but I wasn't necessarily with the people who were my friends; on speed days, I could catch up with them on the rest laps. I always loved Cross-Country best, because the extra distance and the hills favored me, a little. On the track, I was, ostensibly, a miler, even though that distance as romantic as it is, was completely wrong for the runner I was then, and always will be.
Some days you run because you know that it will make tomorrow's run better, and that's how this felt. At the end of the day today, I felt like I'd learned something about how fast I can go, and how much faster I actually run when someone makes me.
Other things to like about track work: easy to take water; easy to stretch, easy to test what works and what doesn't. The surface of the Buff State track is state of the art, so it is easy on the legs, but they should get someone out there with a broom-- I'm pretty sure that wasn't a dead animal, but I shouldn't have to kick whatever it was out of lane one at the top turn, and keep seeing it thereafter.
Was that an insult? I can't tell.
Here is my Preakness report:
Friday afternoon we drove from Buffalo to just south of Albany en route to my nephew's high school graduation party in Rockland County. We stayed at a place just outside the city limits. We went to dinner at the venerable Jack's Oyster House in downtown Albany. I had six raw bluepoints as my appetizer; they were big and buttery. I ordered a glass of 12 year old Macallan, neat, and they brought me a martini glass filled to the brim, at least six ounces. Margot said, don't drink it you'll get too drunk. I figured that when the bill came I'd see a charge of about $18 for the whisky. It was $8.99. Wow.
It was clear to me that Smarty Jones would win easily and pay nothing. Therefore, the key to making money here was to get the right horses into an exacta or trifecta. I had also decided that Lion Heart, who finished a fading second in the Derby, couldn't stand up to Smarty Jones and wouldn't be a factor on a faster track.
Saturday morning I went for a one hour run into the city. I ran up Delaware Avenue toward downtown. I'm pretty sure I ran by the street where Jim and I slept in Jim's car back in 1987, before we could afford a day at the track and a hotel room. When I came to Lark Street, there on the corner was the Lionheart Pub. This was an omen that could not be ignored.
After reading the form, I decided to box a $2 exacta of Smarty Jones, Borrego and Rock Hard Ten, who I think was named after either an old Aerosmith song or the letter that Dave got published in Penthouse Forum back in the seventies. To play the Lion Heart hunch, I also boxed a $2 exacta of Smarty Jones, Lion Heart and Imperialism (the top three Derby finishers). However, I had no confidence in this play. Total bets:$24.
As it turns out, the 3-5 Smarty Jones smoked the field and Rock Hard Ten ran second. The exacta paid $24.60 (OTB: $23). So I was right but lost $1.
Smarty Jones will win the Belmont unless there's some super horse out there who we haven't heard of yet, which I doubt.
Here is my Preakness report:
Friday afternoon we drove from Buffalo to just south of Albany en route to my nephew's high school graduation party in Rockland County. We stayed at a place just outside the city limits. We went to dinner at the venerable Jack's Oyster House in downtown Albany. I had six raw bluepoints as my appetizer; they were big and buttery. I ordered a glass of 12 year old Macallan, neat, and they brought me a martini glass filled to the brim, at least six ounces. Margot said, don't drink it you'll get too drunk. I figured that when the bill came I'd see a charge of about $18 for the whisky. It was $8.99. Wow.
It was clear to me that Smarty Jones would win easily and pay nothing. Therefore, the key to making money here was to get the right horses into an exacta or trifecta. I had also decided that Lion Heart, who finished a fading second in the Derby, couldn't stand up to Smarty Jones and wouldn't be a factor on a faster track.
Saturday morning I went for a one hour run into the city. I ran up Delaware Avenue toward downtown. I'm pretty sure I ran by the street where Jim and I slept in Jim's car back in 1987, before we could afford a day at the track and a hotel room. When I came to Lark Street, there on the corner was the Lionheart Pub. This was an omen that could not be ignored.
After reading the form, I decided to box a $2 exacta of Smarty Jones, Borrego and Rock Hard Ten, who I think was named after either an old Aerosmith song or the letter that Dave got published in Penthouse Forum back in the seventies. To play the Lion Heart hunch, I also boxed a $2 exacta of Smarty Jones, Lion Heart and Imperialism (the top three Derby finishers). However, I had no confidence in this play. Total bets:$24.
As it turns out, the 3-5 Smarty Jones smoked the field and Rock Hard Ten ran second. The exacta paid $24.60 (OTB: $23). So I was right but lost $1.
Smarty Jones will win the Belmont unless there's some super horse out there who we haven't heard of yet, which I doubt.
Thursday, May 13, 2004
Ladies-- or, in too many cases, lady, I suppose it is a fine thing that your self image is such that you believe there is room on the sidewalk for both of us, but sometimes self-esteem must give way to reality. I am reality, running right towards you, and you must be able to see that there isn't room for all of us. I can see what kind of headway you are making-- it is not going to delay your ultimate arrival at the fried food stand if you give me a little room.
Just this morning while running with Dave, I thought that as KRAC captain and slowest runner, I should give a hearty shout out for all club members' excellent efforts this spring training season. I am penciling in a major improvement over last year's Buffalo Marathon relay time; I expect Bill's time alone will improve by at least seven minutes. Jim is lean, mean and hungry, Dave is his usual quiet assassin self, and I'm training hard (pay no attention to that bag of Sea Salt and Black Pepper Kettle Chips [Boy are they good!]) and seeing steadily dropping numbers at the Ridge.
So, BE TOUGH, and if you're with another KRACer, MAKE HIM BE TOUGH!
So, BE TOUGH, and if you're with another KRACer, MAKE HIM BE TOUGH!
Wednesday, May 12, 2004
Buck Eighty-Eight. I haven't been on a scale in a few months, but I felt lucky today. Under 190 is like breaking through the Mendoza Line for me, and it's been a while since I've done it: like a third string left hand hitting catcher on a hot streak, I've just become more valuable to the team.
Monday, May 10, 2004
First speed workout of the year:
The idea for this workout is to do 3/4 mile repeats at your 10K race pace. Having committed to run my 10K leg at an 8:10 pace, my repeats should be 6:075. Ideally you run a one mile warm-up and then do up to eight repeats once you get rolling.
Yesterday, I did only three repeats so as not to overdo it on the first day. The first was 6:06, and I felt good so I pushed it a little and did a 6:00 followed by a 5:55.
The idea for this workout is to do 3/4 mile repeats at your 10K race pace. Having committed to run my 10K leg at an 8:10 pace, my repeats should be 6:075. Ideally you run a one mile warm-up and then do up to eight repeats once you get rolling.
Yesterday, I did only three repeats so as not to overdo it on the first day. The first was 6:06, and I felt good so I pushed it a little and did a 6:00 followed by a 5:55.
Friday, May 07, 2004
Notes from a pop music junkie:
Yesterday I heard two different songs on the radio that got me thinking: "Wild Thing" by the Troggs and "Karn Evil 9" by ELP. "Wild Thing" is great, so simple but so cool, and the flute solo really puts it over the top. While in high school (circa 1972-76), everybody loved ELP, and "Karn Evil 9" rocked, they were the best musicians, etc. But now it sounds dated and silly.
My "DEVO Live" CD arrived the other day. For those who might like that sort of thing, it's GREAT. You can actually feel how nuts these guys were. Especially if you play it REALLY LOUD. Excellent versions of "Gates of Steel", "Blockhead","Uncontrollable Urge" and "Gut Feeling" ("Something 'bout the way you taste, makes me want to clear my throat, There's a message in your movements, really gets my goat"). But the best is the magnum opus, "Smart Patrol/Mr. DNA", in which they shreik:
Smart Patrol
Nowhere to go
Suburban robots who monitor reality
Common stock
They work around the clock
They shove the poles in the holes
Shove it!
That's beautiful, man.
Yesterday I heard two different songs on the radio that got me thinking: "Wild Thing" by the Troggs and "Karn Evil 9" by ELP. "Wild Thing" is great, so simple but so cool, and the flute solo really puts it over the top. While in high school (circa 1972-76), everybody loved ELP, and "Karn Evil 9" rocked, they were the best musicians, etc. But now it sounds dated and silly.
My "DEVO Live" CD arrived the other day. For those who might like that sort of thing, it's GREAT. You can actually feel how nuts these guys were. Especially if you play it REALLY LOUD. Excellent versions of "Gates of Steel", "Blockhead","Uncontrollable Urge" and "Gut Feeling" ("Something 'bout the way you taste, makes me want to clear my throat, There's a message in your movements, really gets my goat"). But the best is the magnum opus, "Smart Patrol/Mr. DNA", in which they shreik:
Smart Patrol
Nowhere to go
Suburban robots who monitor reality
Common stock
They work around the clock
They shove the poles in the holes
Shove it!
That's beautiful, man.
Thursday, May 06, 2004
Monday, May 03, 2004
A German friend was telling me once how to drive from one city to another. Looking at the map, I estimated that it was about a three hour drive. "Well," he said, if you are going to get there in that time, you will have to drive as fast as you can, whenever you can." What he meant was that, although there are stretches of the Autobahn where the only limits on speed are the limits imposed by your car, your body, and the laws of physics, there are substantial stretches where there are regular speed limits. Germans being Germans, they are serious about rules, and they take their speed limits quite seriously. So if you are going to make time, you have to go as fast as you can, whenever you can, because when you can't, you can't.
This is a pretty good rule for a lot of things, not just travel. It was too cold yesterday for me to want to go run outside, but I'll be out of town Wednesday and Friday, which will knock those days off my schedule, so I knew I had to do something. What I ended up doing was riding my bike to my office, working a while, then going to the gym for some tempo work on the treadmill, a little upper body work with the iron, and a twenty minute swim. With the bike ride back, it turned out to be a pretty good day on my training calendar, and I felt like I'd gone as far as I could as fast as I could on a day when I might otherwise not have done much at all.
This is a pretty good rule for a lot of things, not just travel. It was too cold yesterday for me to want to go run outside, but I'll be out of town Wednesday and Friday, which will knock those days off my schedule, so I knew I had to do something. What I ended up doing was riding my bike to my office, working a while, then going to the gym for some tempo work on the treadmill, a little upper body work with the iron, and a twenty minute swim. With the bike ride back, it turned out to be a pretty good day on my training calendar, and I felt like I'd gone as far as I could as fast as I could on a day when I might otherwise not have done much at all.
Sunday, May 02, 2004
Minister Eric?
Did I mention I liked Smarty Jones in the Derby? I had him in a three-horse, $2 exacta box with Lion Heart and Tapit. It paid $65.20 (track) and $61 (OTB). I also boxed him in a trifecta with a couple of longshots, but no go there. So I had a $61 return on $24 in bets. We'll parlay the $37 in the Preakness.
I'm certain I clinched the win when I bought a hot dog from a stand set up in front of Dick's Sporting Goods to raise money for the Little League. You might also credit the Guinness I drank at Pizza Plant while going over the Racing Form.
I'm certain I clinched the win when I bought a hot dog from a stand set up in front of Dick's Sporting Goods to raise money for the Little League. You might also credit the Guinness I drank at Pizza Plant while going over the Racing Form.
