James Street, we meet again...

Today's starting point. No cow costumes or elite runners this morning

Yesterday's run (Central Park). 4.5 miles
Today's run (street): 6.35 miles

I've had a lot of energy this week to channel toward running and I'm happy with the results. Yesterday I ran with a friend in Central Park, covering the lower and upper loops plus one circuit around the reservoir. The weather was optimal, high 40's, no humidity and no direct sunlight.  We felt the cold as we headed up to the park -- I always say, "You should dress for your third mile, not you first." Soon we were into the run and I was surprised at how effortless it felt to attack that first hill, given that we were moving at an 8:45 pace over the first mile. Unlike recent excursions on these paths, the focus was fully on speed and it took little time to reach the steps leading to the trail around the reservoir. We were quickly passed by a woman who must have been pacing in the 6-7 minute range. So much for feeling fast. It didn't matter in the least, we continued our way back after covering 4.5 miles and averaging just a tick over 9 minutes a mile.

This morning I met BJS (Brian) in Northport where we reran the Great Cow Harbor 10K course. Neither of us were happy with our performance on race day and I figured the cooler temperatures would result in an improvement in my time. I didn't get dramatic improvement I wanted but I did do slightly better today than I did on race day. We began on Laurel Ave., close to the starting line of the race. I felt far better than in September when I raced this course and when we hit Scudder I was concerned about going out too hard before the rough stuff both on Woodbine and James St. Once you pass by Main Street you need to prepare for about a mile of misery as Woodbine is hilly through its length and James Street is a monster. Getting up Widow Hill wasn't pleasant and I think my saving grace was knowing I'd scaled it successfully a couple of times before. By the time we reached the top we were hurting but we also knew we had almost two miles of recovery road ahead before the lengthy Waterside Ave. incline.

In retrospect it may have been better to charge down hills whenever possible to save precious seconds but I'd chosen to conserve and Brian was gracious enough to stay at my pace. I suspect he was willing to push the speed more on downhills but we stayed together. We ran on sidewalks as much as we could and that was tricky in spots due to the surface unevenness and angle. Except for some moments on James Street I never felt overtaxed and when we reached "Pumpernickel Hill" I was pleased to know it was the last hill to breech. We didn't fly all the way down Main Street but we steadily picked up speed as we came closer to our finish.  Brian put some distance ahead of me in the last quarter mile and we finished after running a little over an hour. A careful mapping of our run revealed that we actually covered 6.35 miles, so technically I ran the Cow Harbor length in 59:18. Not great by any measure but on the better side of an hour.

As we walked from our finishing spot back to the waterfront area we passed Woodbine and I asked Brian if he wanted to run James Street again. He was ready to do it but I was only joking. Once was more than enough, thank you. I think Brian is going to do the run again tomorrow with Bailey, his Lab. I wonder what she'll think of Widow Hill.

Cow Harbor, take 2

Today's run (street): 2.75 miles

It's almost November but the experience of September's 10K in Northport still haunts a few of us. Few local races set expectations and cultivate strategic planning like the Great Cow Harbor race. Despite predictions of a cool and dry morning, race day at Cow Harbor was sunny, hot and very humid. You can control a lot of variables when you run but you cannot change the weather. This weekend should be far cooler and drier than it was on September 25th and BJS and I are planning a Cow Harbor do-over on Saturday. No packed crowds, costumes, cow bells and water stations. No coverage on News 12. Just us and the course. Bring it, James Street hill! Waterside Ave., you don't scare me! I really hope I can beat my race time.

This morning's run felt very different than Tuesday's. Yesterday I ran with the Resistance Runners that are quite a bit heavier than the Kinvaras that I wore today. It's comparable to putting a weighted donut on your bat when you're in the on-deck circle and going to the plate without it. Yesterday's run was all about getting by despite the shoes and today it was only about running. It was a far more comfortable run today and with the temperature in the high 40's I barely broke a sweat for the first ten minutes. I tried to incorporate some strides within my overall pace and felt good in terms of form and energy. It didn't translate into a fast run though. Far from it -- a mid 9 minute pace. In the end I felt really good and that feeling has followed me all morning. I'm planning another Central Park mid day run on Friday with my banker friend. That's always a nice way to bring home the work week. Today was great but I'm going to need more speed this Saturday.

Goody (bag) to go for the Marcie Mazzola 5K

Today's workout: Rest day, again

Well I'm down to just hours before the Marcie Mazzola Foundation 5K race on Sunday and I'm ready to run. The idea of taking two rest days prior to a race is sound but I miss running, especially on a sunny spring day like today. This morning Team Emerging Runner headed to Northport, NY to pick up the race t-shirt and gift bag. Like last year, the Cow Harbor Running and Fitness store hands out the bags the day before. Although I could have just picked it up tomorrow when I get my race number we decided to go today, primarily because it was an excuse to visit this pretty town on the water. In addition, Cow Harbor Running is a very nice running store and I LIKE running stores!

When we arrived, Nancy Mazzola, who runs the Foundation and manages the race, was there chatting with Lauren, one of the store owners.  We talked with them about the race, the expected turnout, the big hill, and why the length of the race has changed. The new route avoids some traffic control difficulties and the 5K length may attract more runners than a 4 mile race. We stayed for a while looking at shoes and gear. The store sells Etonic, Pearl Izumi, Newton and Zoot shoes. They have a much broader line of the PI's than I've seen elsewhere and I've always been interested in trying their stability models but you don't see them much in stores. Perhaps I'll try them out the next time I need to replace my road shoes. Of course it would take a lot to move me away from Brooks!

I'm ready as I'm going to be for tomorrow. People can still sign up tomorrow at the race location. It's a great event for a good cause.  

16 hours and 50 minutes and counting...

From the Emerging Runner Laboratories

This morning I went to a running store in Northport, NY (Cow Harbor Running + Fitness) that is providing the T-shirts and goody bags for tomorrow's race. The store is small but they have some very nice stuff and I bought a pair of Pearl Izumi Infinity shorts while I was there. I was disappointed to find that the store wasn't distributing the runner's bib numbers or tracking chips so I'll be lining up for that tomorrow morning. My countdown clock is down to just hours at this point.

On a different subject, I've recently heard from a few companies that are looking for ways to publicize their events or products. While this blog is not commercially focused I am not opposed to recommending or highlighting things that may be of interest to readers. I don't accept payment for any of this but if I ever move in that direction it will be in the form of an ad and I will be very clear about that relationship.

One of the two items I am mentioning today is about a movie called "Beyond the Epic Run" about a couple from Switzerland who sold all their belongings to literally run around the world. The trailer for the film is above this post. Runner's World Loop readers can see it here. Running isn't the subject of too many movies so why not check it out?

The second item to mention is a company called MixMyGranola that built a business around custom blended granola. It's a clever idea. You go to the site, choose a base, choose your other ingredients and a couple of days later you'll receive a pound of mix. I've gone so far as to choose, order and receive my mix. I will soon publish a full review from the Emerging Runner test kitchens.

In the meantime I have some stretching and resting to do before my 8:30 AM start time tomorrow. I followed the race course by car today and there are some impressive hills over the first mile and a half. Well, as my son pointed out, what goes up must come down.

See you at the finish line!