Sun, Jan 21-Sat, Jan 27

Sun Jan 21: AM. A 90 min out-and-back run on the Monona Lake loop route, the second half with MSRC.  It was partly sunny and 0°.  PM. A 45 min run on the Mendota Lakeshore Path.  It was partly cloudy and 15°.

Mon Jan 22: AM. A 65 min run on streets in Maple Bluff along Lake Mendota.  It was dark and 23°.  PM. A 30 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark and 32°.

Tues Jan 23: AM. A 65 min run on the Capital City Trail and SW Path.  Very slippery.  It was drizzling and 31°.  PM. A 40 min run on the Capital City Trail and on the SW Path.  It was dark and 33°.

Wed Jan 24: AM. A 100 min run around Lake Monona.   It was dark, foggy and 32°.

Thurs Jan 25: AM. A 78 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark, foggy, and lightly misting.  Temp of 33°.  PM. A 30 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark, raining, and in the mid 30s.

Fri Jan 26: AM. A 78 min run on the Badger State Trail.  It was lightly raining and 34°.  PM. In Marshfield, A 50 min run on residential streets and on the bike path.  It was foggy and 36°.

Sat Jan 27: AM. A 60 min run on the bike path, on residential streets, and in the Donnelly Business Park.  First 40 mins with the old man.  It was foggy and 33°.

This was another decent week of mileage.  Like the past few weeks, I wasn’t able to do anything too fast, on account of the slippery road conditions.  I am looking forward to the mild weather that’s in the forecast for the next several days.

Just a little bit

All of the roads and trails are shit.  Madison really needs to start putting down some salt. Either that, or Mother Nature had better warm up enough to thaw this mess.  Running isn’t as much fun when the primary goal is to try to stay upright.

While slipping and sliding on icy, sludge-covered streets around Lake Monona this morning, I managed to think up just a little bit of poetry…

Just a little bit:

Just a little bit more

Just a little bit longer

Just a little bit sore

Just a little bit stronger

Just a little bit of pain

Just a little bit to suffer

Just a little bit to gain

Just a little bit tougher

Just a little bit of muscle

Just a little bit more fit

Just a little bit to hustle

Just a little bit of grit

Just a little bit dead

Just a little bit defeated

Just a little bit of red

Just a little bit depleted

Just a little bit of a hill

Just a little bit to climb

Just a little bit of a thrill

Just a little bit of time

Just a little bit, let’s go!

Just a little bit left to run

Just a little bit, don’t slow!

Just a little bit and I’m done

Sun, Jan 14-Sat, Jan 20

Sun Jan 14: AM. An 85 min run on the Mendota Lakeshore Path and on Lake Mendota Dr.  It was sunny and -8° (windchill of -25°).

Mon Jan 15: AM. A 45 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  It was dark and -7°.  PM. A 45 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  It was dark and -2°.

Tues Jan 16: AM. A 65 min run on the Mendota Lakeshore Path and on streets around the University.  It was dark and -9°. 

Wed Jan 17: AM. A 50ish min pastry club run on residential streets and on the Capital City Trail.  It was sunny and 0°.  PM. A 78 min run on the Mendota Lakeshore Path and on streets in the Shorewood Hills neighborhood.  Did a few brief striders in spots where the pavement was dry and clear of snow and ice.  It was mostly sunny and 13°.

Thurs Jan 18: AM. A 60 min run on Observatory Dr, on other streets around the UW, and on the Mendota Lakeshore Path.  It was dark and 2°.

Fri Jan 19: AM. A 45 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  It was dark and 6°.  PM. A 33 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark and 4°.  

Sat Jan 20: AM. A 30 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was sunny and 0°.  PM. Ran the Subzero 4 mile in 22:37.  Most of the course was covered with slippery hard-packed snow and ice which made it difficult to run much faster than 5:40 pace.  It was sunny and 13°.

When the temperature outside drops below zero, so does my motivation to run.  Waking up is harder when it’s so cold.  Getting ready for a run always takes a couple extra minutes because I have to put on more layers.  Once I get out the door and start running though, I always warm up.  Running generates body heat.  After a run, I feel better.  It is a good feeling, the feeling of having accomplished something.  Also, knowing that I have a marathon to race in five months gives me motivation- something to aim for in the dead of winter.  I want to run my best race on June 22, and to do that, I know I must get up and train on these cold, dark days.

On another cold dark note, the Packers season came to an end last night.  They woulda-coulda-shoulda taken down No. 1 seeded San Francisco.  In the final minutes, when it mattered the most, San Francisco came through and Green Bay did not.  Oh well, that’s the way the football bounces.  They really gave it a whirl though.  Never would I have imagined that back in September, before the season started, the Pack would make it to the Divisional round of the Playoffs and be playing SB-caliber level football.  This was supposed to be a rebuilding year.  There is definitely a lot to be excited about for the future of this young Packers team.  Optimism is in the air in Green Bay.

Winter Nuts

Before going for a run in the morning, I usually turn on the TV and go to the Weather Channel to find out what the temperature is outside. The colder it is, the more layers of clothing I put on to keep warm.  This morning, the temperature was -9°. Brrrr.  On days like today, when it is really cold out, I am always sure to wear a ski-mask to protect my face.  The ski-mask that I wear covers up everything on my face except for my eyes, so I can see where I’m running.  Sometimes, on really super frigid days, like today, my eyes will freeze shut when I blink.  When that happens, I have to take my hand out of my mitten, lick a finger, and wipe my eye to melt it back open.  Then I can see again.  After bundling up in several layers, I headed out the door looking eerily similar to Ralphie’s kid brother, Randy, from A Christmas Story.

The first five or so minutes of running, when it is super cold out, are usually the worst.  But then it gets better.  After a mile or two, I warm up and pretty soon, I start feeling quite comfortable.  

While running today, I passed three people who were not wearing anything on their hands.  No mittens!  No gloves!  Nothing!  Just bare hands.  These people consisted of a man walking his dog, a woman texting on her cellphone, and another fellow runner.  My own hands were a little cold and I was wearing my warmest mittens.  The guy who was walking his dog didn’t even have a hat on his head.  

I see these people all the time.  People who don’t wear mittens or gloves in the winter when it is freezing cold.  They just boggle my mind.  I’m not sure who is more crazy- these people who don’t wear gloves in the cold, or the runners who wear tights and sweatshirts in the 80+ degree temps of the summer.  For all I know, they’re the same people.

I ran down State Street and saw a couple homeless people wrapped up in sleeping bags.  They were just lying there, sleeping on the hard cold ground.  The heater in my house gave out a couple nights ago and the temperature dropped down to 48°.  I was up most of the night in bed shivering because I was so cold.  I can’t even imagine what it must be like to try to sleep when it’s 15 below.  A lot of the homeless people in Wisconsin must freeze to death in the winter.      

Another thing that really makes me scratch my head are all the drivers in Wisconsin who drive with their windows down in the winter. Yes, this is a common occurrence.  It’ll be well below freezing and I’ll see people zipping down the highway with their windows down.  Just last week, I was driving through a blizzard and some guy passed me, window down and the snow was blowing right into his car.  

There was a book I once read by Kurt Vonnegut called Breakfast of Champions.  One of the characters in the book, Dwayne Hoover, had the idea in his head that he was the only human being on the planet.  Everybody else on earth were programmed robots.  

Seeing all these crazy nuts who don’t wear gloves and who drive with the window down in the wintertime really supports Dwayne Hoover’s thesis.  I mean really, how could a sane human being, in his right mind, choose to freeze like this?

Sun, Jan 7-Sat, Jan 13

Sun Jan 7: AM. A 78 min run with Movin’ Shoes Running Club (MSRC) over residential and city streets + various bike paths.  The legs were a little tired.  It was cloudy and around 30°.  

Mon Jan 8: AM. A 60 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark and 26°.  PM. A 30 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark and 32°.

Tues Jan 9: AM. A 45 min run on the Capital City Trail and on residential streets.  It was snowing and 32°.  PM. A 45 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  It was snowing, windy, and 33°.

Wed Jan 10: AM. A 2 hour 30 min run over slippery+slushy residential streets, on snowy trails in the Mendota Lakeshore Nature Preserve, and on the University Ave bike path.  It was cloudy and 30°.

Thurs Jan 11: AM. A 65 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  It was dark and 26°.  PM. A 45 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  It was dark and 28°.

Fri Jan 12: AM. A 60 min run on snowy streets in Maple Bluff.  It was snowing and 26°.  PM. A 30 min run on the Capital City Trail.  Didn’t get out till after 9.  It was snowing and 30°.

Sat Jan 13: AM. A 100 min run around Lake Monona.  Most of the roads and trails were covered in snow, some spots were quite deep.  It was cloudy early, then it cleared up and the sun came out.  The temp was around 20° with NW winds at 15+ mph.  PM. A 48 min run on the Mendota Lakeshore Path.  It was mostly cloudy and 19°.

Didn’t do anything too speedy this week.  I increased the mileage to ~100, though most of it was quite slow.  It snowed a bunch on Tuesday and Friday so all the roads and trails were very slippery.  With all the snow and the super cold temps in the upcoming forecast, it’ll probably be a while before I can get in any trackwork.  

Creative Juice

Getting high on LSD.  That’s Long Slow Distance- not the psychotic stuff.

I get a lot of thoughts when I run.  It is while I am running, that my creative juices flow most freely.  Typically, the longer I run, the more the juices flow.  Today, I ran for two and a half hours.  By the time I was about 75 minutes in, the juices were really starting to flow.  I was also starting to get quite thirsty at this stage of the run, so I drank a glass of my own creative juice.  Ahhh, it hit the spot.  It tasted so good that I went and poured myself a couple more glasses.  

After having drank all this creative juice, all kinds of creative thoughts started running through my mind.  My head was all dark and clouded up before, but now the clouds had lifted.  Not just the clouds in my head, but also the clouds in the outside world.  The gloomy grayness had given way to sunny, blue skies.  Things were looking brighter.  I was thinking more clearly.  My brain and my body had been refueled.  I felt like I could go on running forever.  I’m telling you, this creative juice is powerful stuff.  

While running along there on the trail, I looked down, and saw that my shoes were no longer touching the ground.  I was flying.  Really flying.  My feet were wings, hovering over the earth’s surface.  Mile after mile, I kept running and I kept getting higher and higher.

I ran past a flock of Canadian geese, flying in chevron flight.  I waved and shouted out, “Hey goosey goosey!”  All the geese honked and waved back at me.

I passed Dorothy and her dog, Toto.  “I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore!” I called out to her.  She winked at me.  Toto wagged his tail and let out a friendly “woof!”

Before long, I was running past stars and meteors and planets and galaxies.  I saw a green alien with three eyes.  “Hullo der!” I said to him.  He looked back at me with his three eyes and said, “Weeooohhooo Eeoouuu!”  What a nice little alien.    

After a couple hours of running, I felt the urge to pee.  I had been running over some strange and unfamiliar planet, at the time the urge hit.  “Where’s the nearest restroom?”  I asked Mr. Martian.  He pointed with his long, skinny green finger and replied, “Zeeuoof yoop ooumba luu jubioo.”  “Thanks!”  I found the loo and pissed for at least a minute and a half.  Suddenly, I felt drained of energy.  My legs turned into heavy, dead logs and my mind went blank.  It was as if I had pissed out all of my creative juice.  In the distance, I could see dark clouds rolling in.  I’d better start heading home.  Oh well, It had been a good run.

Sun Dec 31, 2023-Sat, Jan 6, 2024

Sunday, December 31: AM. Ran two loops around Lake Wingra in 90 mins, then ran 10,000m on a slippery, snow-dusted Edgewood track in 39:35.  Running total ~30k in ~2 hours 10 mins.  It was snowing and 28° fahrenheit.  

Mon Jan 1: AM. A 60 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark and 27°.  PM. A 35 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark and 26°.

Tues Jan 2: AM. A 60 min run on residential streets in Maple Bluff and along Lake Mendota.  It was dark and 23°.  PM. A 30 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark and 30°.

Wed Jan 3: AM. A 60ish min easy run with the pastry club over city and residential streets.  It was cloudy and 32°.  PM. On the track - Did 10x200m, ran a loop around Lake Wingra in 45 mins, then did another 10x200m.  It was cloudy and 33°.

Thurs Jan 4: AM. A 45 min run on residential streets along Lake Monona and on the Capital City Trail.  The sun was rising over mostly clear skies with a temp of 21°.  PM. In Middleton, A 30 min run on the South Fork Trail.  It was dark and 28°.

Fri Jan 5: AM. A 45 min run on the Capital City Trail and around Monona Bay.  It was dark and 18°.  PM. A 33 min run on the Capital City Trail.  It was dark and 31°.

Sat Jan 6: AM. A 40 min run on the Capital City Trail and on the Southwest Path.  It was snowing and 30°.  PM. Ran the Subzero 5k in 16:48.  It was cloudy and 33°.

I was a sick and injured elf on the shelf for a good chunk of December.  Early in the month I tore a muscle in my left lateral quadriceps.  After taking a week and a half off, I came down with the coronavirus disease.  This kept me on the shelf for several more days.  I am finally feeling good again and have been able to start working on getting my mileage back up there.

The Edgewood track is located on the Lake Wingra loop.  This is nice and convenient for when I feel like doing faster stuff on the track while running loops around the lake.  

On Wednesday mornings, I sometimes meet up with a group called the Pastry Club.  We run for about an hour, at a very leisure pace, then finish at a coffee shop and eat pastries.  

For the track session on Wednesday afternoon, I had planned on doing 400s and 800s, but half the track was covered in patches of snow and ice, so I was limited to doing 200s.  I’m not complaining tho; Whenever I can get in any kind of trackwork in January, I’ll consider myself fortunate.  

I had planned on running the 5k as more of a workout, going out fairly easy, then picking it up after the midway point turnaround.  I ended up doing the opposite.  A group of other runners sucked me into going out too fast and I slowed down in the second half.  1 mile in ~5:12, 2 miles in ~10:40.  Eek!  I still managed a PR and ran faster than I thought I would.  

My main aim right now is Grandma’s Marathon.  I am going to use all my training and other races this winter and spring as building blocks to set me up for running my best marathon on June 22, 2024.

Run To Daylight!

I recently finished reading a book called, “Run to Daylight!,” by Vince Lombardi of the World Champion Green Bay Packers.  It was an inspiring read, covering one week in the Green Bay Packers 1962 season.  The book went into detail about all the rigorous training and dedication that goes into preparing for a football game.  

I have decided to start a running blog, which I will use to write about my own training.  I also plan on writing essays, short stories, and a little poetry from time to time.  I stole the name of this blog from the title of Vince’s book.  I hope he doesn’t mind.