No higher than 23°C all week

An upside to this Lower Mainland summer: being able to go for a comfortable mid-afternoon one-hour-and-twenty-minute run next to Coquitlam River.

A downside to this Lower Mainland summer: not having any urge whatsoever to go tubing on said river.

Two weeks ago Biscotti was driving about two blocks away from our house when she had to swerve to avoid a black bear that ran across the road and into the woods. A few days later I was home alone and out the window I saw what looked like a big dog walking along the sidewalk across the street. I quickly realized that it was much larger than any dog I'd seen around here, and no owner had yet come into view, so up from the couch and away to the window I flew like a flash. It was a bear. It was definitely a big black bear. Biscotti says that the bear she saw was smallish, probably a cub, but the one I saw was quite large - yes, bigger than a breadbox - so we had to have seen different bears.

run pizza hockey

This morning's run started out great. The weather was ideal for running and my body felt good, especially my legs, which have been a tad fatigued lately. About 15 minutes in, I started getting a bit warm. While the local temperature has been gradually increasing, it still seemed like wearing my running pants and long-sleeved shirt was the best option. No, too warm. But I could fight through that. However, at about the 30-minute mark my belly got punched. Yesterday evening at work I succumbed to my hunger and got two slices of pizza. I should've stuck with one, if any. Because at the 30-minute mark, those two slices hit me hard. Overheated and belly-punched by pizza, I couldn't continue, and for the first time in a long time I cut my run short. There are only eight more days - and three more runs - before the Sun Run happens, and I have a time-goal that I want to be under. Therefore, no more pizza before Sunday. Then, after the Sun Run, it can be a pizza-fest as I watch game three of the Canucks/Blackhawks series. Playoff hockey is just two sleeps away!

No, really, it's small

When I first started running regularly, I was slow and unconfident. Okay, I wasn't that slow, but I was unconfident. On the trails in Pacific Spirit Park, whenever I was gaining on another runner I would slow my pace. I knew that at any time my body could reach its limit and say, "it's stopping time", and I didn't want that to happen right after passing a runner. "Hey! Look at me! You so slow and me so fast! Look at me pass you with ease! Wheeeeee! Oh, my bad. After you..."

This continued after our move and as I began running the local trails. Now though, my endurance has picked up considerably, along with my confidence, and I now have no qualms about gaining on and passing other runners. Let them look at my small ass as it gets even smaller off in the distance.

Small ass?, you ask. Yes, I answer.

Having said all that, today was an exercise in perseverance. I haven't run much lately because I've been working more than usual and the weather's been lousy and in the past week I've been fighting a battle against illness (which is now at a standstill at sorethroat hill). My pace today was sooooo slow. Fortunately it was midday on a weekday and just three days before Christmas day, so the trails were nearly vacant 'cept for me and the doggies. So, yeah, I've been feeling like crap, but keeping up the regular running would do me a world of good, so make sure I keep it up, okay? Thanks.

Longest run since May 2008

10-kilometre run. With doggies. Pouring rain. Total joy. 49:49.

a fine time up the Grind

I got home about 45 minutes ago after getting up bright and early for a jaunt up the Grouse Grind. I know what you're thinking: a jaunt? Really? Dictionary.com defines jaunt as "a short journey, esp. one taken for pleasure" - surely you don't find a rainy early-Saturday hike up a mountain pleasurable. And that's where you're wrong. I find it highly pleasurable and don't do it enough. Rain or no rain, I like hiking. It would've been nice to have had the dogs trekking along with me, but, alas, they are not allowed on that trail.

After meeting my friend KB at the base of the trail just before 8 a.m., I pushed the buttons on my watch that make the numbers rise and up we went. However, KB was under the weather and that made for slow progress early on. We took a few breaks as he tried to fight through the queasiness, but just past the 1/4 mark, he decided that he better not risk anything more severe and opted to turn and return to the bottom. I was feeling pretty good, very good actually, and continued with the wet ascent. From that point on, I managed to summit without taking another break. I was feeling very, very good. So good, in fact, that I'm thinking of going for a one-hour run* with the dogs after publishing this post (which will be roughly two hours after reaching the Grind's peak).

Here's a brief summary of today's Grind time:

45:00 - KB turns around a little past the 1/4 mark.
53:00 - I pass the 2/4 mark.
1:07:00 - I pass the 3/4 mark.
1:18:00 - I summit.

I am pretty sure that the cost of the gondola ride down was $5 the last time I was there, and so was surprised to learn that the cost today was $10. If it wasn't for the rain I would've kept my money and hiked back down, but since I didn't want to risk a slip on wet wood, onto the gondola ten bucks lighter I went. On drier days it'll be hike up, hike down, fo' sho'.

Of note, I was back in the car at 9:55 a.m. and at 10:30 a.m. I was turning the car off in our driveway - pretty quick, eh? Especially considering I didn't have the carpool lane option on the highway. And now, I runnnn. C'mere doggies..

[* The run - one of my best in a long time - was actually completed in a time of 47:12. Today has been a very good day. Now to get stuff done at home with playoff baseball and regular-season hockey (including the Canucks' first game of the season!) playing on the television in the background.]

Tomorrow's to-do list

6:00 a.m.: One-hour run with the dogs
8:00 a.m.: Several hours of tennis with AM
1:30 p.m.: Eight hours of work

--------------------
The day after tomorrow revised-to-actual-time list:

6:30 a.m. - 7:25 a.m.: Run with (off-leash!) dogs
8:15 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.: Tennis with AM
1:30 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.: Work

Plus I got my hair trimmed between tennis and work.

Running four years to spell

I've continued to run regularly, and have kept to my promise of not blogging about it, but today I break my promise. But, hey, a now-and-then running update is good, right? It lets you know I'm still keeping it going without cramming that fact down your throat, or eye sockets as it were. Today was marvelous. Today was effin' brill. Warm without being too hot, the sun shining, the river's water glistening (would you believe I have yet to go tubing this year?!), and hardly anybody else on the trails. Plus, there were NO bugs!

Enough of that. Last week, Biscotti and I celebrated our four-year anniversary in part by attending a performance of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. It's being put on by The Arts Club Theatre Company, is showing at Granville Island Stage, and is a lot of fun. A LOT of fun. There were many, many highlights, such as the sundry "definitions" of words, and several clever riffs of the spelling theme. I loved the whole show, and here's a particular bit that stuck with me:

If you took the W from answer, the H from ghost, the extra A from aardvark, and the T from listen, you could keep saying "what" and no one would ever know what you're saying, 'cause the whole word would be silent.

One more thing: "Life is Pandemonium" was phenomenal.

From runs to runs

I was sick a couple of weeks ago. Very very sick. Yesterday I went for my first run since, and am surprised at how well it went. I was anticipating having to either run much slower than usual or end the run much earlier than usual, but I was right on my usual 50-minute-ish pace and felt fine afterwards. While I tend to go for my runs in the mornings or early afternoons, yesterday I went at around 6 p.m. which is the latest I've ever gone for a run. Today is a beautiful day and I'm probably playing tennis with my dad later. I'm tempted to go for a run right now. I think I will.

By the way, I am still thrilled that I am able to run with the doggies on forested trails and next to a river without having to drive anywhere.

Running like a swimmer

I've moreorless kept up my increased running routine of late. The past few outings, though, there have been many, many bugs hanging out at face level in the middle of the path. A sure sign that summer's here. After having one too many of said bugs ending up in my mouth, I decided to adopt a swimming technique. Specifically, the breathing component of the front crawl. I would turn my head to the left to inhale, and then face forward to exhale. It worked like a charm, but it was annoying as puck and took my body and mind off of running's forward-progress mentality.

More running

I've been running more lately. Running more and doing more post-run exercies/stretching than I used to. My regular running routine, when at its most regular, would be every second day. Recently, though, I wondered why I didn't run every day. After all, if the dude from a post in mid-January can run a marathon a day for five straight days, then take two days off, then run a marathon for five straight days, and keep up that routine for a full year, then surely I can run for approximately an hour every day.

Well, I'm not quite there yet. I did run two days in a row, but then took a day off and simply walked the dogs. Then I ran two days in a row, and today would be le troisième jour, mais I'm feeling like it's going to be another walking day. I'm sure that I'll be doing three days in a row soon enough, then four, then five, then six, and so on. But hey, even my body needs to be conditioned.

I ran

I went for a run yesterday and have no urge to document the time here. What's the point? I thought at first it would keep me motivated to run, and might come in handy if I wanted to see my improvements or my... declines? Deteriorations? But no, I just want to run. I want to get fit. More time being active and less time documenting it.

My book blog will be seeing more action, catch me there. More action there will mean less action on my error blog, where I was spending way too much time.

I spent a fortnight in Malaysia recently and had a great time. Betty & Lone had a beautiful wedding and were extremely generous and I miss them a lot.

Marathon Quest 250

Even after taking into account my lack of posts lately, I'm surprised I haven't posted about this yet. Especially considering it is running related. Martin Parnell of Alberta is running 250 marathons in 2010. He'll do a marathon a day for five consecutive days, and then take two days off, and repeat that 50 times. (Well, the 50th time will end with more than two days off, I'm sure.)

From the Marathon Quest 250 homepage:

Martin Parnell will attempt to run 250 marathons in 2010. His goal is to raise $250,000 for Right To Play.

Right To Play is an humanitarian organization that uses sport and play programs to improve health, develop life skills, and foster peace with children and communities in some of the most disadvantaged areas of the world.

Right To Play also works in Canadian communities to inspire children and support their right to grow and learn through physical activity. More than 4,500 schools in Canada use the Right To Play program.

To raise $250,000, Martin will run all 250 marathons between January 1st and December 31st 2010. He'll cover a distance of 10,550km or 6550miles, which is approximately the same distance as a run from Cochrane to Boston then west through the US to Vancouver and back to Cochrane.

Visit the site to see a video introduction, and then keep checking back to follow his progress. I encourage you to consider making a donation to Right To Play through his site. Today Parnell did his 13th marathon of the year; in -7C weather his time was 5 hours, 56 minutes, 33 seconds. Ha - that's nothing compared to my run of 49 minutes, 59 seconds in 12C weather.

Today's run time

I went for a run today, but today's post title is only Today's run time, not the usual Today's run route and time. Why? Because my runs are usually going to be the same route, and I'm tired of copying and pasting the route from previous posts. So from now on I'm only going to post the route if it's significantly different from the usual. Plus, I'm going to be posting more non-running stuff and can just post a one-liner run-time at the end of the posts. Today I felt like crap - felt as though each leg weighed 300lbs. But I fought through it and felt great at the end. Yay me.

Today's run time: 50 minutes, 5 seconds

Today's run route and time

Today's run route
From our front door, run south on the Trans Canada Trail in Coquitlam River Park, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to our front door.

Today's run time
50 minutes 57 seconds

A wet run is great fun. The dogs didn't notice any of the many herons.

Today's run route and time

Today's run route
From our front door, run south on the Trans Canada Trail in Coquitlam River Park, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to our front door.

Today's run time
52 minutes 48 seconds

Today's run route and time

Today's run route
From our front door, run south on the Trans Canada Trail in Coquitlam River Park, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to our front door.

Today's run time
51 minutes 4 seconds

Today's run route and time

Today's run route
From our front door, run south on the Trans Canada Trail in Coquitlam River Park, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to our front door.

Today's run time
51 minutes 17 seconds

Today's run route and time

Today's run route
From our front door, run south on the Trans Canada Trail in Coquitlam River Park, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to our front door.

Today's run time
51 minutes

I'm making a promise to myself to do more non-running-related posts, beginning very, very soon. If you're reading this, please hold me to it.

Today's run route and time

Today's run route
In Coquitlam River Park, start near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave, south on the Trans Canada Trail, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to starting point.
Today's run time
51 minutes 39 seconds

Today's run route and time

Today's run route
In Coquitlam River Park, start near Gabriola Dr and Cortes Ave, south on the Trans Canada Trail, left to cross the pedestrian bridge near Patricia Ave, left to go north along the Trans Canada Trail / Coquitlam River, turn around at David Ave, retrace route in reverse to starting point.
Today's run time
51 minutes 25 seconds

I felt like crap today. I happened to look at my watch just as the one-minute mark passed, and thought, 'okay - I just have to run that distance fifty more times'. The next fifty minutes and twenty-five seconds were brutal; my legs felt like they weighed two tons each and were attempting to move me in the opposite direction.