Michael: Everything New

My dog is the best. 

She’s loyal, tough and pretty; 

Much more so than I. 

Monday, June 24, 2019

 Unlike my last race where I used nothing new, on Saturday at the Tough Topanga I used more new clothes and gear than I had planned for. Either way it worked out and I was once again blessed to have a pretty solid performance though again I just fell a pinch shy of my time goal.

 A week before the race my Amazfit decided it was going to update its GPS and there was no way I was going to stop it. This seems to be one of those annoying glitches that occurs randomly amongst the millions of these little inexpensive fitness trackers. Online the advice to stop it was to let the battery run down and hope that when it was re-charged the problem would be solved. The problem with that is one of the main selling points of the Amazfit was it’s long battery life. So with the race less than a week away I decided not to take any chances and bought an inexpensive Cassio with a stop watch function.  

 The Amazfit did reboot itself a day before the race, but I went with the Cassio anyways not trusting the Amazfit not to crash again.  

 As to the race itself; my goal was 45 minutes and I finished in 46:22. All things considered a decent but slightly disappointing showing. However, it does bode well for my future goals of doing a 5k under 20 minutes on the 4th and doing a track mile under 5:30 on the 19th of July. And although the second half of the Topanga 10k was pretty much a downhill jaunt; where I was able to meet both of the above time objectives, it was after a fairly fatiguing first 5k. So I’m going to be optimistic and use those markers as indicators that I’m prepped and ready. We’ll soon see if I’m justified in those goals or whether I’ll just miss again.   

Michael: Quasi Broken Pledge

The purple thistle

looks like the Billy Idol

Of the plant world. 

Monday, June 17, 2019

After getting shocked with a large tax bill in April I made a pledge not to buy new shoes until after that bill was paid. And although I haven’t broken the letter of that resolution, I do feel like I’ve broken it in spirit. 

 I’ve bought two new pair of shoes since making this pledge. This pair, some track spikes, I don’t really feel should count for a number of reasons. Spikes aren’t really shoes. They’re more like braces; a specialty item required for a specific purpose. And besides, they’ll last forever and if I’m going to run a few more sub 6 minute miles, I’m willing to make that deal with the devil without feeling too guilty about it.  

 The other pair of shoes I just got at REI on sale are the Arcteryx Norvan SLs. They’re kind of like the spikes in that they’ll only be used for a specific purpose; namely short trail races, but they could be more widely used if I weren’t such a tenderfoot. As is, I’m not sure they’ll have enough cushioning. But they’re so light, and although light trail shoes have never lived up to my expectations previously, I do find myself getting suckered in to trying them again every few years.  

 My justification for that purchase was that the good people at the IRS haven’t yet taken any money out of my account and I figure my pledge doesn’t take affect until that occurs. I know this is all a rationalization for getting what I want now while I can, but I do feel everybody’s entitled to a little fine print in contracts of their own making. 

Michael: Spikes

 I Feel like a yawn;

 Long, wide and never ending. 

Tuesday, June 11, 2019

 This is another one of those, ‘back in the day’, I’m now firmly entrenched in old manhood realizations. 

 I was suppose to run a mile on Memorial Day. I did not. But I have not given up on the goal of running a 5:30 mile this year. Fortunately, there are a few all-comers meets not to far away next month on the track which will give me that opportunity.  

 Also, since it’s on the track I’ll be able to run in spikes which I have not done in 43 years. Wow! That’s a damned long time ago.  

 In high school I wore white Puma that had grey felt logos on the sides. I colored one of those stripes with our school colors of green and gold. I wish I still had those and although they may not fit, I’m sure I didn’t throw them out so they may still turn up some day and I’m hoping like Cinderella slippers I’ll put them on and run beautifully again.  

 So what would be the next best thing? On sale at Running Warehouse were a pair of Brooks spikes with a white and gold color way; reminiscent enough of my old spikes to have me daydreaming of my old glory days.  

 And, again, Wow! I thought my old spikes were light. What’s been going on all these years I’ve been away from the track? Every time I hold these things I shake my head in disbelief. I mean they look like spikes, but they feel like if I dropped them they’d float gently to the ground or if a slight breeze came by they’d swirl away like a leaf and I’d have to go chasing after them to get them back.  

 I know they’re not going to work any magic and make me as fast as I ran in my old spikes, but at least I can close my eyes and hopefully feel fast again. I’ve just got to find a track and get out there a few times before the meet next month so I don’t trip out of the gate and fall like a jockey being thrown from his horse.