November Totals

11/1 – 11/30 = 92.9 miles average pace 9:35

Friday, November 30, 2007

Tomorrow I need to run long and the weather for Sunday doesn’t look to great so I decided to stick with the easy mile and call it a night.

Thursday, November 29, 2007

Cold out but still needed to get some time on the feet so I ran 1 mile nothing exciting to note.

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

After my commission meeting I wanted to do a little more than 1 mile but got a little lazy once I started only ended up with 1.19 miles but it was still worth going out and doing.

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

We decided that we were going to the YMCA today. I haven’t been to the gym in nearly 2 months so I was dreading getting on that tread mill!! I got there before my wife and started my run. Got 2 miles completed in 19:04 with a few intervals in the process. Did weights for about 30 minutes and then called it quits for the day.

Monday, November 26, 2007

Got up early this morning and did our mile right away…which is always good since I never know what the day holds for me. I still hate morning runs but they are a fact of life! 1 mile in 9:06.

Sunday, November 25, 2007

Since we are still ‘in training’ for Goofy it made sense that we run on Sunday. Andy suggested it and I suggested the location – Armstrong.

We were to meet at 6:45…I was 5 minutes late and Andy wasn’t there so I waited for another 10 minutes and headed out at 7am. I was about a mile out when I saw Andy coming.

In order to run Armstrong and get the miles in that meant doing laps…in this case 4 of them. The hills are not very tough but after doing a few it starts to wear on you. Andy had caught up with my by 2.5 miles so it was great to have company.

We put in the laps and with the stiff westerly wind made it back to the cars at Johnson Park. It was a tough run but managed to get it done. I ran 10.69 miles and did it at a 10:18 pace…not the best but not too bad either!!

11/18 – 11/24 Totals

11/18 – 11/24 total miles = 27.33 miles average pace 9:21

Saturday, November 24, 2007

Decided to get a few extra miles before meeting the group…Disney is getting close very fast!! Figured I could get 5-6 miles in before meeting everyone but my digestive system had something else to say. At about 3 miles I needed to stop and use the restroom…thankfully Pick-N-Save was open and had a bathroom.

After using the bathroom I had to try to catch up on time and make it to the group. I got there only a little late but everyone was still there. I kept a great pace but struggled toward the end. I’m getting back into the hang of running to run and walking when I need to walk. My pace was 9:40 for 11 miles which I do say is GREAT!!!

Friday, November 23, 2007

I had the day off of work but decided to wait until my wife came home before I went running. We ran 1 mile in 9:02.

Thursday, November, 22, 2007

Well today was race day. My wife and I had been watching the weather reports all week and we didn’t like the looks for the day. When we got up the snow had fallen but there wasn’t that much on the ground…only about an inch stuck to the grass. Then temp was about 30 degrees but the wind was blowing strong from the NNW.

We got down to Kenosha and picked up our registration packet then went back to the car and sat there for 10 min to stay warm. Once we headed back to the starting line we realized that the wind was picking up and that the snow had started to fly again.

The race started a few minutes late but the vocalist singing the National Anthem did a fantastic job. We headed out at a good pace…around 9:12 and did a great job sticking to that pace for most of the race. All of the way out to the turn around the wind was into our face. It was hard going but my wife was a trooper. We kept the pace nice and easy.

Before the turnaround I remembered to take off my gloves before I started to overheat. As we approached to turnaround we saw all of our other runners go by. We made the turn for home and as we headed back saw our final two running group partners.

The turn home was as bad as I thought it would be…no wind and I started to overheat a bit. We kept moving and tried to keep the pace steady I saw Andy up ahead and thought that I could catch him in the last mile so I told my wife once we hit 5 miles she would be on her own but once we got there the person calling out the time said “45:40” My wife’s goal for this race was sub 58 and I had no doubt that she was going to hit that but at this point there was the potential for a sub 56!! I decided to stick with her and do what I could to push her.

We mad the final turn west and before I could ask her to step up the pace a bit she gets hit with a side stitch!! She worked trough it like a trooper and I kept the pace up beat. I tried to keep her mind off of the pain and told here to focus on catching th woman ahead of us.

By the time we hit 6 miles the stitch went away and she was able to run fast we completed the 10k (6.2 miles) in 56:47!! I am so proud of my wife for accomplishing her goal!!

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Well things were just crappy all day. I thought about brining my running gear and going to the Y but decided not to…this means that I had to face the elements.

The wind was blowing strong…up to 30+ mph!!! The rain was light but with the wind it hurt!

Managed to put 1 mile in at a 8:33 pace.

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Should have gotten up…
Wife should have told me what the weather was going to be…
Winter sucks…

Excuse after excuse, I’ve got’em. I never heard what the weather was going to be like today so when I didn’t wake up with me wife this morning I thought ‘oh well, I’ll just run tonight.’ Well as you all know the day was crappy. It was cold and windy with a misty rain all day and most of the night. When I got home from work I changed and went running…not after complaining and complaining…but I went.

1 mile in 8:36.

Monday, November 19, 2007

With the body still a little sore from the running this weekend I was reluctant to get up but I did. I wasn’t sure how to dress because the temp said 47 degrees but it looked cold outside. I was glad I dressed warm since the wind was whipping making me very cold!

We put in our mile at about a 9:22 pace.

Sunday, November 18, 2007

Disney is fast approaching and it was decided that we really need to do back to back runs. So we decided that this week we would meet on Sunday and pound out another good distance run (about half of the previous days run.) So in stead of spending my Sunday morning doing what I love to do…sleeping in…I was up at 6 am and out the door by 6:15 to meet the group at Panera. With all of our Goofy gang there we set out to do a minimum of 6 miles. The wind was much worse than it was on Saturday meaning that it was rather cold out but we persevered! I ran with Andy the entire time and we kept a great pace…unfortunately the girls kept an even better pace and finished well ahead of us. At the end of the day I had 6.16 miles in at a 9:26 pace…I really can’t complain.

11/11 – 11/17 Totals

11/11 – 11/17 total miles = 19.79 miles average pace 9:38

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Got up early so I could put in a few extra miles in preparation for Goofy. Ran with Kristen who kept me moving! Once we were back with the rest of the group I decided to run with Jeff to catch up on things. Jeff hasn’t run with the group for a while so his pace was a little erratic. No problem…I can cope. Managed to put in 10.99 miles and kept a decent pace for the 5.25 miles but lagged a little on the last few. Winter is definitely coming because I can feel the chill in the air and boy was that wind blowing off the lake!!!

Friday, November 16, 2007

We ran this evening and only did a single mile…we tried to take it easy but still managed to put in a 9:19 pace.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Didn’t want to get up this morning but by the time I got home tonight it was already 8:30!! I had to get my mile in so I got ready…didn’t put on enough layers…and got out there for my run. Decided to just do the mile since it was cold and late and as I started going the cold got to me so I moved faster and faster. Soon I was forcing myself to slow down because I didn’t think my lungs were going to continue taking in the cold air. Finished my mile run in 7:56!!

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

With my wife going to here trainer this evening I knew I wouldn’t have to get up and run in the morning…thank god!! So after work (and shopping…had to get a few new work shirts) I got ready and headed out for my run.

I has gotten colder so I dressed for the weather but didn’t realize just how warm my running cap was until I was a mile in. By this point I was sweating even while my hands were still cold. I took off the cap and felt much better.

Ended my run with 2.77 miles and a pace of 9:08. I really need to keep things moving so that Disney will be a cinch!!

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Still having a difficult time trying to get up in the morning but I got up anyway and with my wife by my side we started running at 6:40. Once I was outside and the cold wind hit me I woke up quite a bit. My legs were feeling good…at the beginning and I decided that I would do 2 miles. The wife wasn’t so sure about it but she knew that she really needed to do the mileage. She decided at the last minute that if I was doing the 2 she was doing the 2.

By the time we hit 1.25 my legs started to lock up. My calves felt like pieces of timber but we were still moving at a decent clip. We pushed through the difficulties and managed to put down a good time. 2 miles at a 8:56 pace isn’t all that bad!

Monday, November 12, 2007

Got up early this morning…didn’t sleep well and I’m not sure why. Finally got out of bed at 6:25 and we were running by 6:40. We just did the mile with the last stretch right into the westerly wind.

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Well after sleeping in till 9:30 I wasn’t really in the mood to go for a run this morning. We waited until this evening and went for a mile run. Weather was great…50 degrees and with a light wind out of the west.

11/4 – 11/10 Totals

11/4 – 11/10 total miles = 20.37 miles average pace 9:21

Saturday, November 10, 2007

We met the running group at Parkside at 7 am today. A rather small group but we were not surprised since this is the cross country course. Set out on a rather brisk pace with Ken. I was able to maintain my pace with him for the first 5k but had to take a breather at that point…just moving too fast. I resumed my run and tried to catch up to him but by the time we got to the large hill I just let him go. I continued to move and hoped that I’d catch him at some point and every now and then I would see a chance but could never capitalize on it.

I managed to complete the 10k (6.2 miles) in 58:30 which is about a 9:26 pace.

Take 2

After spending 19 hours on an airplane and then another hour and a half in a car I needed to get in another mile run to make up for the lost day 4 weeks ago. My wife and I ran the neighborhood route completing 1 mile in just under 9 minutes.

Friday, November 9, 2007

Well I thought that yesterday was going to be my final day in Australia but it looks like I’m here for another morning run. You see my flight yesterday afternoon was canceled due to mechanical difficulty and they put me up in a hotel just down the road.

Woke up this morning to more rain but decided that I had to get the run in just to be on the safe side. Ran a nice mile around the nearby park in 9 minutes.

Thursday, November 08, 2007

My last day in Australia and I wake up to the sound of rain pounding on my hotel window…not a good sign. I waited about 15 minutes in hopes that the rain would lighten up a bit but there was not a hint of that occurring.

I go down the stairs of the hotel and out the back door and start my GPS…I have to stand in the rain until it catches a signal then I can start running. I run 1 mile at an 8:21 pace and by the time I am done I am drenched!!! Since I am wet I decide I might as well stretch out here in the rain. I finish my stretching and head on in to get cleaned up for the day.

By the time I head to work the rain is down to a sprinkle…damn, just my luck.

Wednesday, November 07, 2007

After going out with our auditees last night and getting back to the hotel around 11pm I thought that getting up this morning was not going to happen but I was up and ready to run by 5:55.

I stepped outside and noticed that it had rained again and it was cold…okay not like home cold but cold enough that I should have put my long sleeve shirt on.

Started running and felt pretty good. Had a nice easy pace going so I put down , pace was 10:08.

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

Up this morning at 5:45. The Indian food last night didn’t have much effect on my system, thank god! Decided that I wanted to run more than 1 mile but didn’t know where to run, so I just started running. I ended up running 1.64 miles at an 8:56 pace. Would have liked to go more but just wasn’t feeling it 100% this morning

Monday, November 05, 2007

Got up with the alarm today and got ready to run. I was still feeling a bit drained from yesterday’s run so I decided that a mile is more than enough. Once again the sky is cloudy and it is a tad on the chilly side but once I start running the chill went away.

Ran my 1 mile in 8:46.

Sunday, November 04, 2007

What a difference a day makes!

When I woke up this morning it was just pouring and I assumed it was going to be a repeat of yesterday. Well I decided that I didn’t want to run in the rain so I took my time and had breakfast. By the time I was done 8:45 the sun was already coming out and it looked like it was going to be a great day!

At about 4pm I got a call from one of the auditors and we made plans to head to dinner at 7pm…PERFECT! Just enough time for me to get in a run before dinner and still clean up.

With the sun staring to head for the horizon and the weather being rather nice (65 degrees and a moderate to stiff 15mph wind) I thought I might get a few extra miles in. I felt really good and had to keep checking my pace so I didn’t go too fast.

I managed to put in 5.70 miles and did so at a 9:27 pace.

10/28 – 11/3 Totals

10/28 – 11/3 total miles = 18.6 miles

Saturday, November 3, 2007

It is my last weekend in Australia and I have been working hard the last 3 weeks so I decided to sleep in a bit and go running at a more reasonable hour. Well 7:30 is better than 6 am!!

It started to rain last night and the prediction is for rain most of the day so I head out knowing full well that I will get wet and there is little I can do about it.

My route was to take me away from the hotel and into a very heavy industrial area before crossing the river. When I say heavy industrial I mean HEAVY industrial…I’m talking oil refinery and metal scrapping!!! The place stunk to high heaven!! When I got to the area that was supposed to have the bridge I noticed that there appeared to be some work at the top of the steps. Once I got to the foot of the steps I see that the pedestrian bridge is out…well there goes that route. There isn’t another bridge to cross the river in miles.

So I head back the way I came and decided to see how lost I can get…just joking I have a great sense of direction and it was easy to find a new route back to the hotel.

I had noticed that about every 15 minutes or so that the rain would pick up and by the time I had hit 4 miles it was a steady downpour. I ended up just calling it a day with 7 miles, it wasn’t as many as I was hoping and it was definitely slower than I expected (10:23 pace) but it’s done.

Friday, November 02, 2007

It was hard to get up this morning since my room was very dark. It appeared to have rained last night and there were still quite a few clouds so the bleak atmosphere nearly made me crawl back into bed but I figured that it might rain more so I better get going while I have the chance.

Decided to mix my directions up a bit…getting tired of the same hills every day…so a new route but the same sights. Managed to put in 1.55 miles and maintained a nice even pace of 9:10.

Glad I ran this morning…it is 10:30 am right now and there is one heck of a storm going over!!! Sometimes getting up is worth it…I really didn’t just say that did I?

Thursday, November 01, 2007

Wow its November already.

I can remember not that long ago looking at my wife and saying that I had to change my running habit. I decided at that point (June 30th) that I would run a minimum of 1 mile every day. I mean there really is no excuse for not doing this…its all of 15-20 minutes of my day?!?!

Well even being here in Australia has not stopped the streak. This morning I woke up and decided that I was only going to do 1 mile; so that is what I did. 1 mile in 8:12.