Y.I.R.

YEAR IN REVIEW:

RUN TOTALS:

MILES: 1961.77

TIME: 326 hr 45 min

AVG. PER MILE: 9:59


Nemo: 435 miles



Little Dirt Dawg: 42 miles (baby jogger)



Dirrty Feather: 100 miles (baby jogger)



Highlights:

1. Finished 50 miler in 8 hr 39 min

2. Lowered marathon PR by 14 min to 3 hr 33 min

3. Little Dirt Dawg ran his first big race!

4. Dirrty Feather joined Team Dirt

5. Team Dirt competed in a couple of events as a family



6. The wildly successful Fun Run Series with me as crack race director and participant entered its second year.

As I take some time to sit back and look at all that has happened this year, I was more than happy with all that transpired. My running took off to new heights and I firmly believed it is because as having two small kids you have to be smart with your time and training. Please note that b.k. (before kids) i was a master putzer and could wittle the day away without doing anything. That is why runs now occur @ 4:45 am and family runs replace after school jaunts, sans the FUN RUN series!

In 2008 my goals are simple:

1. Run as much as possible with my family for both fun and @ races.

2. Help Dirrty Girl do another 1/2 marathon

3. D.D.M.C. --- Details Forthcoming :)

Full Tilt Review

For Xmas, Dirrty Girl got me the Tilt to replace my dead laptop and Treo 680. Sans the less than 1 mexapixel camera and lack of 3G, the Treo served its purpose and was used to create many a blog that all 3 of you read.

So, I have until Jan 13th to decide if I want to keep the Tilt or return it in favor of another. Maybe the new Blackjack? Feel free to weigh in.

The Tilt

My new mini laptop.....

Who would have thought

That a quiet evening could be considered going to Wally Mart? Yup, that's right, peace and tranquility along every third person wearing a Steelers jersey, the where were you in 82 hairdo and Dirrty Girl stating, " I love going here because @ am the smallest lady by like 25 lbs!" can all be had after loading up the fam and heading to C. Lake, Pa for a couple of days of family drama.

On our way over to WM, Dirrty Girl said all she wanted to do was run, run away that is! First rule of thumb I told her was that I always pack my running gear before I ever pack the rest of my clothes to ensure that if nothing else my daily dose of therapy is available.

Here is to a few days of family drama and a few good days of running to hopefully balance it out.

One Speed Mind

My once dormant Marin Hawk Hill has been resuscitated thanks to the Mechanics in Motion class at school under the tutelage of master mechanic Twinkle Toes. Transformed into a slick single speed, I was able to get out for a ride this afternoon and test a bike that brought back memories of a simpler time of riding. No thoughts about shifting into the correct gear to ride up an incline or to gain speed down a hill. Just one speed. Fun.

2nd Annual Snowman Shuffle

With the holiday break just one more day away, it was time for the weekly fun run to commence but not without some holiday spirit. To celebrate, the 2nd annual snowman shuffle was on tap and with an added bonus. Last year, participants were encouraged to dress up in holiday adornment for extra points, but this year I came up with what I thought was a good idea.

Putting my non artistic talents to work, I created t-shirts that were available to participants. Instead of asking for any reimbursement, I asked them to donate $ to a staff member who was helping with a local Coats for Kids drive.

The shirts flew out of my hands and $ was raised. Twinkle "Santa" Toes even went so boldly as to don a full Santa suit which he ran the entire 3.30 mile course in. When asked why not skip the hat or even beard and boots when it came time for the run, he said "I fully accepted the commitment and responsibility of the suit when I donned it."


Heading into the break, 11 participants have participated in 16 weekly fun runs culminating in over 300 miles this school year alone. Two participants, J-No and Chai Tea Latte have participated in all 16! And to think this all started from just trying to squeeze some extra miles in after work.

Knee Warmers

After this morning's run which was relatively slow and slippery, I set out for work with a list of errands to do before picking up Little Dirt Dawg for his big PK3 Holiday Concert which included dropping off movies (Two big thumbs up for Superbad and a big disappointment for Ocean's 13). However, as I started on these errands, I thought if I waited until the family was down, then I could run uptown, drop the movies off, take in some holiday lights, and get a few extra miles in. Is it a bad thing to map out errands to run so that you can get extra miles in? I certainly think not!

With the kids down, Dirrty Girl said since you are going to be out, why not stop @ the post office and take Twinkle Toes over some extra food for lunch tomorrow. Love it that Dirrty Girl excepts the wierdness of running and with goofy socks.

Seeing as I was going out on the town to check out some lights, I found it only fitting to don my holiday socks with fringe. Man are those things warm. By the end of my mini excursion which lasted 4.32 miles my knees were sweating!

Sweet Spot

Meterologists today called it the "Sweet Spot", referring the winter storm that brought 6+ inches of the fluffy goodness to the Metro Detroit area. With the roads untreated, it presented the perfect opportunity to don my xc skis and head out on a little trek around town. Thumbs up from motorists actually moving, and a few disgruntled words from those stuck as a I glided down the streets and got in a little cross training.

Little Dirt Dawg likewise did a little cross training himself by shoveling the sidewalk in between the copious amounts of time spent playing and sledding.

Spreading the Cheer

After being out of the office for a conference , and another in which I got to play Mr. Mom, I came in today to find that Christmas had thrown up in my office. It all started innocently enough on a collaboration with one of my students on the DC Tree and had spawned into the tackiest display of Christmas outside of a convienance store trying to get you into the spirit. Staff originally shot down the idea of putting up any decorations around the school and had cancelled the luncheon, but with the DC Tree it hadsome how ignited holidaycheer and apparently many including my boss had gotten into the idea of turning my office into a Winter Wonderland. No one would speak to any direct involvement, but the rumor was that cash was dispensed and orders given to head to the dollar store and find the tackiest xmas items available.

Now the DC tree had some company including 3 large paper christmas trees with ornaments poked through the paper that students have now started to autograph, my dry erase board adorned with garland, a string of multi colored lights around my desk,and the beloved turkey with a new hairdo.

Tacky as it might seem. I LOVE IT!!

DC Tree

It started out merely as me being to lazy to take my Diet Coke can from lunch to the staff lounge to deposit them. Soon, I had a pile that was building and then thought to myself, hmm, maybe should see how high I can build a tower before a) an angry student knocks it over or b) my boss tells me to take it down.

With the holiday luncheon recently canceled and no decorations, I stumbled across a great idea after being forwarded a pic of a xmas tree comprised entirely of beer bottles, we could fashion a tree out of the DC pile! Surely, this would ensure that the boss could not haul it into the staff lounge for cash redemption and maybe calm down students.

Thursday, I enlisted a staff member on getting a straw with a star attached to be the top of our tree. A bit while later, him and a student came back with a perfectly fashioned star adorned with glitter, and oh how the custodial loved me for that one. Later on that day, someone brought astrand of lights that we just looped around the bottom of the tree until we could figure out a design that would support the weight of the lights and called it a day.

Yesterday, the design was in full force as both staff and students became intrigued by this mountain of DC cans with lights haphazardly tossed around it. One staff told me he had a design in mind and that several other staff were also brainstorming, but it was one of my Aspy students who stepped forward and took the challenge. As we stood around the tree, I said that if we could someone design the tree to look like one of those prelit trees that all we had to do was just plug it in and leave that would be ideal. He agreed and thought that using some sand and hot glue to bond the layers together might be in order.

As I came back from lunch I was surprised to see my work in progress to be missing in action and was informed by the secretary that it was being taken care of. Not too long after that, that same student came up to the office with a grin spread across his face to show the tree he had designed for me. It was perfect! Not only does it have character, but this student who is usually so rigid in this thinking due to his disability really stretched himself on this project and it turned out to be a great life lesson that no one at the outset of this silly little idea could have predicted. Those are the days in education that make all the really difficult ones when you feel like you are not making any progress worth it.

Light accumulation may...

Result in some slick spots. So was the message that greeted me on my computer this morning as I consulted the weather before beginning the delicate and arduous task of layering for my morning ramble.

With a light coating awaiting me, out went the plans for a 5 mile tempo run and a newly remixed shuffle playlist and in was 1 border collie ready to blaze a fresh trail through untouched white powder.

Two things I am always guaranteed when snow accumulates:

1. At some point during a run I will have to stop and unpack the snow that has accumulated inside the paws of my dog rendering him to skipping along
2. No matter how much extra precaution I take (slowing down, wearing my highly reflective running jacket) due to the weather, drivers are still notoriously stupid and slide through intersection or roll through stops and then offer you the fakest wave as an excuse as if to say " I really did mean to stop"

As I sit here writing this during work, a staff member asked me if I ran in this weather this morning and doesn't it make your lungs freeze?

Secretly I just chuckled knowing that winter running is one of the prettiest times of the year.....as long as you are prepared.

Dripping Rock Trail

With the kids safely deposited @ gparents for approx 30 hrs, Dirrty Girl and I headed down to Cbus to hangout with Missile and Lightning.

Located just outside Cbus, the Dripping Rock Trail is a 2.5 mile wide open loop part of the Highbanks Metropark (free entry!) system. You are either going up or down and Lightning and I make quick work of 2 loops as we discussed marathon training plans for either Flying Pig or Cleveland next year. If Lightning gets it in gear, and trains for either, hopefully I can join him in his pursuit of marathon glory and it can be a stop on an idea I have been toying with for 08.

Details to follow......

The Big Bright Light Show

The Big, Bright Light Show is a dazzling holiday light display that attracts over one million visitors to Downtown Rochester. During this event, the buildings of Downtown Rochester are covered in holiday lights every six inches, equaling over 500,000 points of light.

Last year, we headed down during the holidays, and besides being a very cool display of lights that little dirt dawg enjoyed, we also dined and bought a toy box for little dirt dawg that made the whole experience feel a little more like the holidays than fighting for a parking spot at the mall. This year, Grandpa Headbutt also joined in on the trip and commented, " I don't know how they get all those lights to stay lit. I can't even get three strands of lights to stay on."

Holiday Energy

As you rush about this holiday season from here to there
Looking to spread that little holiday cheer
Take faith in knowing
GU has come out with a little something to keep you going....

A yummy treat washed down with a little H2O
Will help keep you running all day and saying HO, HO, HO.

Turkey Trot

Dirrty Girl had this wonderful idea a few weeks ago that we should institute a new family tradition and run the Turkey Trot 5K in Downtown Detroit with the kids before catching some of the parade and then making the requisite family stops for caloric consumption of ginormous proportions. I was all gung ho of course, and only wondered what the weather might bring. Nervously, after the Gobble Dash @ work yesterday, I headed down to pick up our race #'s, make Little Dirt Dawg's, and kept changing the radio and looking at the weather channel at a system that was supposed to bring snow and a driving wind.



While the rest of the family slept, I did a short recon run this morning to see what the weather was like and to advise on the proper gear needed to complete the Turkey Trot. It did not look promising as snow showers and a pretty stiff notherly wind threatened to derail a tradition not yet started. Dirrty Girl and I bundled Dirrty Feather and Little Dirt Dawg in their warmest gear, crossed our fingers and headed down to the D.



Luckily, just before the race began, the snow showers stopped and it was almost pleasant, if you called 34 degrees with a northely wind pleasant. Little Dirt Dawg was in full Thanksgiving mode as he yelled, "Gobble Gobble" to fellow racers and Team Dirt ran the whole way together with a final sprint leading to Dirrty Girl and Little Dirt Dawg rolling across the finish a mere 1 second ahead of me and Dirrty Feather. Our respective times of 33:27 and 33:28 were of no concern as we were all thankful to start a new tradition that everyone enjoyed.


Of course the tradition was not complete without a stop @ the DSO to watch some of the parade!

2nd Annual Gobble Dash

The 2nd annual Gobble Dash as part of the Fun Run Series threatened to turn into a Gobble Splash as falling temperatures and more importantly a steady rain descended on the course.

Cleared by his physician to return to the series with any future incidences of blood letting to be followed by a Cat Scan, Einstein returned to the Fun Run Series with the edict :
" Any idiot can run/walk when it is nice and sunny."

The W.I.P. 's huddled around like girls at a sleepover and did the "if you go i will go, but you know it kind of wet and rain” banter.Dirt Dawg chuckled at the peer pressure being applied and even threw in the incentive of buying the first round of cowboy pops to fuel the fire.

As it turns out, only Chai Tea Latte and J-No were the only ones from the W.I.P.'s who answered the call and were rewarded with a hearty pint of Blue Moon.





Gobble Dash 2
November 21, 2007
3.25 miles
Unofficial Results

Dirt Dawg - 30 min
Einstein - 34 min
Chai Tea Latte - 45 min
J-NO - 45 min

You know how I know...

I am a runner? Instead of sitting down to watch a battle for the Big Ten Championship btwn U of M vs OSU from start to finish and ingest copius amounts of cowboy pops and cheesy poofs, I headed out for a nice 5 miler as it was the only time I had today. I admit at least watching the game was a nice incentive as I made it back before the end of the first quarter.

Runners Fear Me...

I am a wimp

. Let's just put it out there. Sure, I can run for miles on end and endure hours of sustained discomfort, but ask me to drop and give you twenty, and I am more likely to ask you if you would like that in small bills.

Like most runners, I have avoided any strength training like you do any sick family member before a marathon and could think of a million reasons as to why it is not good for you. I don't want to bulk up, it might slow me down, that's less time I have to run, and so on.

However, earlier this summer as I was going out for a late night run, I noticed this barbaric torture device sitting out on the curb. Suddenly, a crazy and some might call stupid thought, entered my head. The little voice inside said, "Go get your van and bogart this crude and archaic device, put it in your man cave and when the weather turns dark early, lift those plates and become a wimp no more." Stupidly, I did just that, and there it sat all summer long, used more as a place to lay my running gear than to pump myself up.

Sadly, this morning, instead of a tempo run, or hill repeats, or intervals, it was replaced by words that just hurt to say them: Squats, Pushups, Bench Press, Arm Curls, Shoulder Presses, Upright Rows and so on. Oddly, I felt a different rush when I had completed this circuit of torture, but I am going with the idea that if I actually followed a plan all summer long and it produced a 50 miler and new PR in the marathon, that surely this will improve my running somehow, right?

From 8 to a 10K to 5.22

While Dirrty Girl and Little Dirt Dawg headed off to church, I decided to take Dirrty Feather out to my church, the road.

The plan was to head to Kensington Metro Park for an 8 mile loop and then maybe stop for a quick bagel and coffee. After loading up Dirrty Feather and her necessary gear, we headed out. Forecast called for some spotty showers but it was clear until we got 1 exit away and then the rain started. Rats!!

A quick glance showed that if I turned the car around and did about 80, I could possibly get to a local 10K that was being run about 25 miles away. Seeing as how Dirrty Feather was napping, I didn't see any reason not to give it a whirl.

We made great time but trying to get to the race parking and register was impossible as the parking and registration were at the epicenter of the course that was shut off.

Dejected, I turned the car around and headed home, and after approximately 80 miles of driving we still hadn't run a mile. Dirrty Feather had gotten a great nap so after a quick snack we rambled around town for about 5.22 miles. Maybe we should have just done that all along.

Why the FR is important..

Every Thursday, a merry cast of characters with colorful names such as Chai Tea Latte, Dr. Hagopian, J-No, Abstract, Prancer, Twinkle Toes, and myself amble and ramble along a 3.25 mile course outside of our school in the name of fitness and comraderie.

This school year though, we have been facing an enormous challenge as we have been dealing with students and families whose behaviors and experiences are nothing like you could imagine. Forced to do more with less as the economy has tightened, agencies have cut back on services and trying to help our students before they fall between the cracks or decide to take the wrong path is difficult.

Needless to say that stress and tension on the faces of our staff is easy to see. That being said, I have found particular salvation in the weekly Fun Run, newsletters and conversation with staff about running/walking, nicknames and clothing options as the colder weather descends on us.

Today was a perfect example of how at the end of the day, I was particularly stressed and worked up about a number of issues and incidents but told my boss that I was going for my fun run and would return with a clear head and finish up when I got back. It really was what I needed. A chance to get some fresh air, clear my head, and engage fellow staff in banter that at least for the moment took my mind of off work.

Upon returning to school to finish up, one staff who has been unable to participate due to scheduling conflicts stated, " You know, you started a good thing. People look forward to it." And so do I.

Run In The Park Final Results

Without chip timing, the official results posted today on RunMichigan.Com for the Woodhaven Run In The Park 4 Miler were even better than Dirrty Girl and I had reported.

Dirrty Girl: 39:51 (4th in the female 35-39 age division and 106th out of 126 participants)

Dirt Dawg: 27:09 (3rd in the male 30-34 age division and 21st out of 126 participants)

Woodhaven Run In The Park 4 Miler

Prior to leaving the house today for the Woodhaven Run in the Park 4 miler, I tried to divert the debacle that ensued at our last race, when without a race #, Little Dirt Dawg was upset and was wondering why he did not have a #. So I made him his own race bib # with a 1 on it, but he said, "No, dad, this is my third race, it should have a 3." Dirrty Girl and I just looked at one another and said, "He's right." and quickly made a race bib with a 3 on it.


Minus a slight detour thanks to a construction filled I-75 and me not paying attention, we arrived with barely enough time to get the troops into their respective chariots and discuss racing strategy. Pushing Little Dirt Dawg, Dirrty Girl was aiming for a finishing time of 44 minutes or 11 min/mile pace. I was aiming for a 30 min/7:30 mile pace with Dirrty Feather.



The temp hovered around 35 degrees, and we made sure the troops were layered and hunkered down before the gun went off. A wide open, flat course gave Dirrty Girl the opportunity to smash the time she had originally thought of as she used the mantra of " I can catch that skinny girl in front of me" and rambled on to a 39:52 finish and average of 9:58 per mile!!!


Dirrty Feather and I sped through the course in a time of 27:22, an average of 6:50 per mile. Good thing, because she had consumed her zweiback toast and her hands (no gloves) were cold!!


Besides the cool sweatshirts and lunchbox door prize we received, a ribbon to remind of us another family run Dirrty Feather proudly displayed on the way back home.

Happy All Hallows Eve

What would you rather do...Run or Work?

I have a long list of outdoor chores that need to be completed, but while the air is still not to crisp and it is not dark before 5 pm, I would rather run. Distance matters little right now as the season is over, but what really matters is that I get to spend quality time with the family as we ramble through our town.

Today was perfect. 58 degrees, a slight breeze, and a chance to unwind after a rough day @ work. Complete with zweiback toast for dirrty feather and some oj for little dirt dawg a few miles was all I and Dirrty Girl needed to recharge our batteries for the rest of the evening. A far better alternative then becoming a zombie in front of the boob tube to relax and a lesson I hope the little ones will remember.

Fall Fun Frolick

The email had gone out earlier in the week to our friends Missile and Lightning who were coming up to visit that the Fall Fun Frolick would be a premier running event that we would all be participating in this weekend. Lightning thought that this was an "actual" race that had both a 5k run/walk and 5 mile ramble, but Missile knowing better said that this was surely a Dirt Dawg creation.

A damp morning with sprinkles threatened to cancel the Fall Fun Frolick as participants Missile and Dirrty Girl volunteered to go get bagels instead. Lightning said as race director, that I had the final say....do you think I would say no?

With an official starting time of 9:15 am set, participants scrambled to get ready, when Missile almost derailed the entire frolick by forgetting?? her running shoes. Luckily, Dirrty Girl and Missile wear the same size and was able to provide a spare pair.

The run began with much vigor and conversation, before Dirrty Girl, Missile, and Dirrty Feather headed home to complete the 5K Run/Walk and Lightning and I ambled off to finish a 5+ miler.

Post run rewards included bagels and coffee. A good time with good friends.

The North Face ROCKS!!!

I received a letter today from The North Face regarding the Anurva 50 BOA I sent back due to fabric failure:

REFUND - We have determined to replace your The North Face product under the terms of our warranty. Unfortunately, an exact replacement is not available at this time. We are sending a refund check for the value of your product.
--- The North Face Warranty Department


How awesome is that? Some sweet new trail shoes will soon be mine!

Detroit Free Press Marathon

My original plan for this race was to treat it as a fun run. Take the camera, snap some pics and enjoy a run through the D as I finished when I finished. Twinkle Toes in his first marathon had boldly made a prediction of taking a crack at 3:40 and we made the pact that if I caught up to him in the latter stages that we would run to the finish together. I really didn't think that I had it in me to run quite that fast, although a 3:40 would be a PR and my knee was actually feeling pretty good.

The first 10 miles of the race finds you running through the city to Mexicantown and then over the Ambassador Bridge into Canada, before heading back into the U.S. via the tunnel, where of course my Garmin lost its signal.


(Going up the Ambassador Bridge)

(View from across the pond in Canada)


(Old Tiger Stadium)

Passing the half in 1:45, I was more than elated, and of course I start running numbers through my head. If i don't fall off too badly, then I might have a new PR and Twinkle Toes who was running strong was just beginning to have some trouble with a lingering IT band.




Soon enough, Twinkle Toes and I parted ways. Up ahead, I ran into and with a guy named John who was completing his 96th marathon and was going to run next year's Boston as his 100th!!!! I listened as he dispatched nuggets of wisdom that I hope will have me running for a long, long time.

A small part of me felt bad for leaving Twinkle Toes behind, but the thought of a new PR pretty much quickly erased that. Figured I could tell him I was sorry on the way home. He said he would have been pissed at me if i didn't take a stab at a PR. I just didn't establish a new PR, I dropped 11 minutes off my PR that I set earlier this spring and that is a 14 min overall improvement from the beginning of the year. Not a bad way to end the season.



DIRT DAWG / TWINKLE TOES

3 hr 33 min 09 sec / 3hr 46 min 43 sec

Race #

#1800 for the 30th Free Press Marathon. In addition to the regular timing chip, the race is also asking for us runners to put that thin plastic strip you see on the race bin on our shoes. They said it is a disposable timing chip that if successful will replace the other chip. Shouldn't we be getting paid to participate in this trial?

Anyway, in what has now become a tradition, Twinkle Toes (sporting a green bib = virgin marathoner) and I rambled down to the D to get our race numbers and secure goodies for our loved ones (today is sweetest day, and forget the flowers or card, this year Dirrty Girl got some new running swag, at a discount no less!!) and of course Twinkle Toes got a ticket (I got one last year) after putting money into a broken meter. Somethings never change in the D.

Like Steve McQueen.....

Like Steve McQueen
All we need's a fast machine
And we're gonna ride it, all right...

Sheryl Crow


Team Dirt is complete now with the addition of the Baby Jogger Q Series to the roster. Look for pilots Dirrty Girl/and myself along with co-pilots Little Dirt Dawg and Dirrty Feather tearing up area road races this fall.

Circle of Life

With every death (Nike Air Moto IV 6/25/07 - 10/11/07; 324 miles)

There is life (Brooks Radius 10/14/07 - ??),


It's the circle of life....Chazz Reinhold.

Go on. Go on, have a bite.

When the crisp air arrives and the leaves begin to fall, it's time for a trip to the apple orchard! All week we had been telling little dirt dawg that we would go this weekend to get our pumpkins, apples, donuts and cider. A perfect fall morning seemed to beckon everyone and their brother out to the apple orchard.

Trying to beat the rush or just on autopilot after next to no sleep with Dirrty Feather sprouting new choppers, we hit an early road block when one of Michigan's finest pulled me over and said, "Son, do you know you were doing 73 in a 55?" "Eh..no sir." Looking inside the vehicle the ocifer then goes into some diatribe about how if your a Michigan fan, those Ohio State Troopers are pretty unfair so they in turn like to return the favor and if you are going north that there are signs indicating you to slow down in mulitple spots. After his rant, which left me confused as to whether or not I was going to get a ticket, he let me off with a warning...WHEW!

Finally arriving at our destination, a quick ingestion of pure sugar from donuts and cider, left little dirt dawg and dirrty feather ready to pick our pumpkin and fill the bushel of bags with an assortment of both eating and cooking apples (is there a difference?)

"Dad, the Red Delicious is a cultivar of apple. It is the most widely grown apple in the world, red with darker red streaks, and five "points" on the bottom.. " (wikipedia)

"Look, it is red and shiny, I should eat it!"

Friday Night Lights

No pep rally, no cross town rival, no shutting down the town to watch the game of the week, just a solitary dawg out for a run. But not just any run....THE PHEDIPPIDATIONS WORLD WIDE HALF MARATHON CHALLENGE.

With a full fall weekend with the kids planned, I had no choice but to don my reflective vest and headlamp and head out to get my 13.1 miles in. A single beam of light was my guide as I ambled across a few towns and saw a bustle of activity and ghoulishly decorated houses.

I might just have to run at night a bit more often. :)

Results:
# of Starters: 1
# of Finishers:1
Starting time: 7:28 PM
Temp: 51 degrees
Distance: 13.1 miles
Time: 2 hr 12 min 07 sec
Avg per mile: 10:05

Scaling Back

Perhaps foolishly before my 50 miler, I had envisioned running the Detroit Free Press Marathon and even maybe take a crack at my PR set earlier this year of 3:44. I thought that 5 weeks would certainly be enough time to recover and be ready to "race" a mere 26.2 miler.

Funny, how things change. After the pure joy and elation of finishing the 50 miler, I was left with an aching right knee and a body that was telling me to "go slow". I really couldn't comprehend right away how physiologically taxing that race was. By mixing a heavy dose of walking and running and taking some time to reflect on what I actually accomplished left me with a new game plan for next week's marathon.

I am going to treat this as a "fun run" through the cities of Detroit and Windsor. I might run 2 miles and then walk a mile, run a mile and then walk a mile, or whatever I feel like at the time. When I finish, I finish. So if you see the Dirt Dawg along the route feel free to say hello and maybe run or walk a spell as I tour the city in style.

Red October Run

Today found Team Dirrty on the road to it's first family running event, the Red October Run. With only one baby jogger, Dirrty Girl and Little Dirt Dawg decided to run the 5k while Dirrty Feather and I were going to do the 5k walk. Pre-race activities included getting little dirt dawg a number #2 to pin on his race t, carbo load him up with a bagel, and Dirrty Girl make the comment after seeing a race walker, "You know, you should try and win the walk." To which I responded, "have you seen the stroller i am pushing your daughter in?"

With temps hovering in the high 70's and a thick air, a run or walk at a PB was highly unlikely but that did stop me from strapping on the Garmin 305 and when the gun went off, so did Team Dirrty. Soon enough, Dirrty Girl and Little Dirt Dawg were out of sight, but I focused on hunting down anyone with a yellow bib and pass them convincingly as Dirrty Feather squealed.

RESULTS:

Dirrty Girl and Little Dirt Dawg - 5K - 34:22

Dirt Dawg and Dirrty Feather - 5k walk - 36:22 (3rd overall)

A nice little saturday morning as we basked in post race refreshments and I had to pick up a medal for my 3rd place!!

Daddy Day Care

My normal work day consists of working with behaviorally disordered/emotionally impaired adolescents only to come home and hang with the family. Today was different. Due to a day care situation and prior agreement with Dirrty Girl, today was my day to take off and care for the chitlins. So the day goes a little something like this.

6 a.m. - wake up and put on an a ginormous pot of jet fuel to wake up

6:30 am - dirrty feather and little dirt dawg wake up and dirrty girl leaves for work

6:31 - 7:45 am - feed and clothes children, shuttle little dirt dawg to school

8:15 - 9:00 am - fold clothes, check work email, finish fun run newsletter, put air in baby jogger while dirrty feather power naps

9:15 am - 10:45 am - ralk (run and walk) 7.34 miles with dirrty feather. lesson learned today...you can not run and feed baby a bottle...it is impossible...do not try!!

10:46 - 11:05 - put dirrty feather down for power nap, shit, shower, and shave (legs!!), shuttle back to school to pick up little dirt dawg

11:06 - 11:15 am - hang out with all the other mom's in a sweat box waiting for their kids

11:16 am - 12:00 am - off to McD's for some grub and try not to engage some strange dude who says "you know, we told my sister when she was young, that she was conceived by the milk man, but your kids look just like you"

12:01 - 1:00 pm - give dirrty feather some lunch, little dirt dawg plays some Candy Land Castle, fold another load of laundry, and put little dirt dawg down for nap.


1:00 - 1:38 pm - dirrty feather says " No sleep til Brooklyn" before succumbing to sleep

2:50 pm - wake up both kids to rush to dr. appt to recheck ear infection that dirrty feather had

3:15 - 4:45 pm - sit on floor in waiting room feeding a bottle to dirrty feather as a pack of wild children (5) run around while mother states "if you don't behave the dr. is going to give you another shot." Little dirt dawg offers up his chair when we finally get one to a mom and the mom states that it is pretty nice of a 3 1/2 yr old to think like that.

6-7 pm: watch little dirt dawg at soccer practice and try and keep dirrty feather from getting into everyone else gear.

7-9:30 pm: Give baths, walk 2 miles on treadmill, finish this blog and go to bed!!

Man, I'm glad I am going to work tomorrow....it will be a piece of cake...

What will they do??

Below is the letter I sent with my shoes back to North Face. In all reality, I am thinking I paid about $9.00 to have them sent to Cali.

The North Face Inc.
Customer Service
2013 Farallon Dr.
San Leandro, CA
94577

To Whom It May Concern:

I purchased these Anurva 50 Boa Trail Shoes on May 4, 2007 from Moosejaw as I began my training preparation for the North Country Trail 50 miler held on September 15, 2007. Straight out of the box I loved the plush cushioning and innovative lacing system and wrote glowingly of them on my blog: www.dirtdawgramblingdiatribe.blogspot.com.

However, after a long run of 20 miles and just 250 miles overall on the shoes, I developed a blister due to a defect in the right heel. I have since stopped running in them because of that defect.

I have purchased numerous North Face products in the past and have been satisfied with their performance. As for the Anurva 50 Boa Trail Shoes, I am disappointed in the fact that I not only paid over $115 for these shoes, but that they did not even last as long as my Nike Air Pegasus which I ran my 50 miler in. With the defect they are not even comfortable enough to be relegated to lawn duty. Take them back and do with them as you wish, and the next time I am looking for performance gear, I will look with a cautious eye at North Face gear.

3 minutes of fame....

That goofy, little podcast Phedippidations that I have been a listener to for over a year and has gotten me through some long runs in this week's episode"Episode 116: Where Are We Going", reads my North Country Trail Report that I submitted and even adds a little dramatic flair to it. Pretty cool.

Out with the old...

My Polar RS200SD has been neatly packaged and shipped to a better home in Texas. Although I extolled the virtues of having a heart rate monitor and foot pod, I never got comfortable with the number of times I had to try and calibrate the FP to try and get an accurate distance.



In its place, I have just received the Garmin 305 Forerunner.
Never thought I would be one of the geeky gadget guys.