Post Series
A mini write-up of the races I've run:
Since the end of the series I basically took July off running easy, mending old wounds. Then the withdrawals began.
First it was the Blessing of the Fleet 10 miler in Narragansett, Rhode Island on July 29th.
I tricked Marianne Withington into running this with me. We both had nothing better to do. We set out at 3pm for a 6pm race and get there with minutes to spare. Packing 3000 people in Narragansett is insane. Something has got to give here. This quant little village is turned into party central complete with total gridlock traffic. Be forewarned if you attempt this next year. The temps were hovering in the upper nineties at the start with too many naive runners. Over the next 90 minutes it was total pandemonium due to the fact that the emergency vehicles couldn't not get to the stricken runners that littered the course. The finish looked like the scene of some horrific accident bodies strewn everywhere and frantic emergency responders clearly in a state of alarm. Not for the weak.
Second was the Yankee Homecoming 10 miler in Newburyport, MA on July 31st.
Another small town gone wild. 2000 runners at race time meant more sweating bodies than what is good for you. For race however, the weather was more forgiving with temps hovering around 85! This rolling loop of a course crushed me at nine with a pleasant one mile walk to the finish. I managed to keep Gail Martin in sight through five and slowly faded.
Third was the John & Jessie Kelley Road Race - 11.6 miles in New London Connecticut on August 4th.
This is one classy road race not to be missed. Where else can you walk up and shake hands with two Boston marathon winners in one day. Johny (the younger) Kelley and Amby Burfoot, too much. This killer of a course coupled with murderous sun with temps in the upper nineties...brutal.
34th Annual Marshfield Road Runners 20K Marshfield, MA, August 26, 2007
This race has to be one of THE most difficult 20K races...period.
Read last years write-up. This year was no different except for the temperature was turned waay up! The start of the races temps hovered around 85 and climbing.
The course does have limited shade but the exposed parts are atrocious.
CRR's Dave martin was gimpy and I chose to run with him (or at least I should have).
With a rousing rendition of the Stars Bangled Banner by the Race Organizer MRR's Marianne Withington the race took off amid the din of CRR's Jim DuPont's siren.
Dave and I set a leisurely 9 minute pace and settled in for the crushing pain the course WILL deliver later on. We were 45 for five and I could just see Marianne Withington about a minute ahead. This really bothered me for some reason. I mean the woman can really blaze and here she is loafing along.
I mention to Dave I should move up there and put my foot in her ass.
Dave simply says "Don't do it, you'll be sorry".
You know me I pick up the pace and by seven I'm along side her. It's blistering hot and I'm too eager to put this one away.
The hill up to mile eight I have Marianne begging me to slow down.
Well this is where true competition revealed itself something that was glorious to behold.
Here we were. Soaked with sweat, completely miserable, I was anyway, and who blazes by? SRR's Barbara Grandberg. I mean this woman blew by us and put a fair distance between us.
As she does this Marianne utters "there goes third place".
"Wah?" I say. "And your going to let this happen?"
"I should get her shouldn't I" Marianne says, suddenly the fire was lit.
And Marianne left me for dead on the side of the road and gave chase. By the water stop at nine they were even, then the gloves came off. Here were two true competitors locked in battle stride for stride through mile ten.
All I could do is maintain a pace were I could at least keep them in sight.
Finally Marianne prevailed and set a bruising pace that Barbara couldn't answer.
Me? I was toast. At eleven Dave saunters by and I try to keep pace but fall off to die a horrible death.
It was Roger from the Marshfield Road Runners standing by the side of the road who sees me staggering back and forth across the width of the road who hands me a softball size chunk of ice.
"I figure you could use this" he says. I gladly take the chunk and hold it to my sizzling brain and it works it's magic, I feel rejuvenated and quickly pick up the pace for the last 1.6 miles of this horror show.
74th Around Cape Ann 25K Road Race
Gloucester, MA, September 3, 2007
This annual jaunt is the only way to see the sights of Rockport. CRR's Dave Malliaros always signs up for this bruiser in June he likes it so much. CSU's Duke Hutchinson shows up (doesn't run it) just to be part of the action. If you're a fall marathoner or a masochist, this is the race to run on Labor Day. I really don't know which one of those I fall under. So here I am riding up with Dave in the early hours of this cool cloudless day. We're not fooled though, we know by the end it'll be in the upper eighties and we be toast crossing the finish line. I guess that's part of the charm of this race. CRR's Team Martin wisely get a room in a nearby Marriott for their use as a triage center post race. NMC's Jeff Gould is an automatic entrant as he's run this the past 19 years. The guy was weaned on this course. Talk about tough. GFTC's Ted Ridout is here as if he is simply on his way to pick up bread and milk on his way home. It's great to see WCRC's Team Eckert here with an "on the mend" mister here to support the missus' trip around the block. MVS's Dave Tyler is here. Maine's Phil Pierce had to scrape the ice off his car to get here. CRR's head honcho's Susan and Tom Yellope are drawn here for the days fun too. The day belongs to SRR's Barbara Grandberg who just keeps getting better. She beat the USATF's Guidelines for her division.
And what kind of fun are we talking about? We're talking 15.5342 miles of high rolling hills. More like a demanding half marathons distance to serve up the final 2.4 miles of agony through the rough and tumble streets of Gloucester to the finish.
Cape Ann 25K race breakdown by the mile:
1) 10:40 with a minute pee stop and 25 seconds to get to the start line.
2) 9:30
3) 9:06
4) 8:50
5) 9:17
6) 9:16
7) 8:55
8) 9:13
9) 10:03 (1 minute walk uphill)
10) 9:32
11) 9:00 (big downhill)
12) 10:06 (table flat???)
13) 11:30 (table flat??) 2:04 for the half marathon distance.
14) 11:57 (uphill!)
15) 11:47 (up uphill!!)
15.7) 5:41(up up uphill!!! @##%^&)
I would say that this race will approximate the
Run to the Rock
half marathon, so I guess I'm looking at a 1:58 for this Saturday 9/8/07.
Run to the Rock 1/2 Marathon RAT WORTHY
Plymouth, MA, September 8, 2007
Well how did I do? I know it's the question you have all been thinking.
I finished.
The temperature hovered at a solid 90 degrees at this 10AM start.
Race Splits by Mile:
1) 8:01
2) 8:24
3) 8:38
4) 8:22
5) 9:00 for 42 minutes. Felt fine, cruising strong over this big rolling hills course.
6) 9:38
7) 9:32
8) 9:30
9) 9:42
10) 10:28 for 91 minutes. Felt a little overheated, not bad though. looking to complete in my predicted time of 1:58
11) 11:08 A wicked sucker punch of a hill up to the Hospital crushed mine and many other runners hopes of finishing this with a good time
12) 10:58 Nothing left but suffer, shuffle to the finish line under the blazing hot sun.
13.1) 12:00 for 2:05:25 completely out of it. I firmly believed you could have fried an egg on my head.
I crossed the finish line and immediately left the vicinity looking for cool water in the hopes of cooling off my battered knees. I staggered over to the Marina, and literally fell into Plymouth harbor, brand new shoes, sunglasses and all to do a dead mans float face down. In front of an outdoors restaurant full of concerned diners a lone voice called out to ask if I was OK. I simply raised one arm above the water with a thumbs up and received a rousing round of applause by all.
True Story.
Lobster Dash 5-Miler RAT WORTHY
Ogunquit, ME, September 15, 2007
A welcome relief.
with Photo's by Dale Granger-Eckert
The day of this remarkable race stated with temps in the low 60’s , fog and drizzle along the Atlantic Ocean here in Ogunquit, Maine. By contrast, last weekend’s Plymouth Race To The Rock half marathon was in blazing hot sun under a cloudless sky and temps in the 90’s.
The tourist season after Labor Day didn’t seem to slow down here. The hotels were still booked up and the traffic jamming the streets were testament to this.
Accommodation’s were at the Yard Arm Village Inn.
We make our way to the beach and in the beach front parking lot find CMS’s Peter and Nancy Orni, L Street’s Nancy MacDonald and Jim Schneider already there standing the drizzle. Pete and Nancy tell me they are very familiar with the area when I profess my ignorance. Jims in his work boots and Nancy is still in her pajama’s shivering under an umbrella. CRR’s Gail and Dave Martin are here at MVS’s race director Charlie Farrington’s invitation.
You all were too.
MVS really pulled out all the stops for this one: $20 bucks gets you a tasteful Lobster Dash Logo CoolMax T-shirt, a tasty Lobster Roll to all pre-registered runners and a cute medal upon completion of the course.
The course: the date and time of this race every year changes due to the rhythm of the tide.
Last year this race coincided with the RAT SERIES Norwood 4 miler, Charlie missed the Norwood race and lost 7 BIG RAT PIOINTS which cost him a probable top five series finish…Now I see his dedication.
The race is run at low tide where the sand is firm. It is a simple 2.5 mile out and back along Maine’s scenic shoreline. Natural understated beauty.
Race day however you were hard pressed to see anything in a monochromatic vision of fog rolling in along the breaking surf under wispy rain soaked clouds.
The waterfront registration is under a damp canvas gazebo and we pick up our number with a big tag attached saying LOSBTER ROLL. Gotta like that.
The temp is in the 60’s the drizzle is abating, so I dress in a singlet and shorts. No hat, I did a warm up with a hat thinking the bill of the hat would keep the rain out of my eyes. An 8:30 start we all line up on the beach 240 of us.
The beach at low tide is at least 200 yards wide with soft sand street side transitioning to hard packed sand nearer the water.
I look around and see a couple of barefoot runners, so my plan is to follow them thinking they’ll know the best place to run.
With a brief announcement fellow RAT Charlie Farrington simply say’s “ready, set, go!”
The race by mile:
7:27
8:01
8:10
8:02
7:53 for 39:33
For the past month I’ve plodded along big distance races in simmering heat at a 9:30 – 10:00 minute pace. This days race environment and pace rejuvenated me and gave me back the sense of actually “running” a race.
I started “running” 17 years ago and I ran an eight-minute mile then and here I am still turning in the same time.
I’m very happy.
THE FRED BROWN RELAY AROUND LAKE WINNIPESAUKE 9/22/07 FOR THE MARSHFIELD MIXED NUTS TEAM
Mini update: The Mixed Nuts 50+ team WON the Division over four other teams!!
Bonus Race: A late inning addition---The Niantic Half Marathon - 9/30/07 We're staying at Mohegan Sun
THEN OCTOBER 7, FOR THE BOBBY BELL 5-ER