Update 6/1/09
Inspiration for all posts See The Peak Performance Monkey
First run in Sedona. First run of LD Era II-second year. Bernice and I have rented a condo located off HW 89 A in west Sedona. Our home for the summer, and the launch point for most of my training runs, is nestled into a condo complex called Nepenthe. Nepenthe historically refers to an elixir or a place where one can escape negative thoughts, feelings or experiences. I’m hoping Nepenthe will work on me too. Make me quickly forget stressful workouts so that I can remain positive about my training.
Today’s run is a three miler on the paved road and cement walkways of the two streets that border Nepenthe, Shelby and Sunset. These two streets run parallel for about 0.6 mile and then Shelby wraps around a brief commercial area and becomes Sunset after a steep, arduous (from my point of view) climb. Considering the strategic placement and the challenging incline, I will henceforward refer to this stretch as the Shelby Shuffle. Today, I approached the Shuffle initially from Sunset which meant that I had to run down hill in the dark (I’ve decided to start my runs between 4 and 4:30 am). After completing the downhill run I curve around to head up Shelby toward HW 89 A. This is a gradual uphill with sufficient length to allow for some good pace work.
My turn-around point is HW 89 A. I tap the traffic light pole for luck and head back down Shelby to the Shelby Shuffle. From this direction the Shuffle runs uphill and shows its true colors: steep at the beginning, steeper in the middle, and even steeper as one approaches the top. As I chugged up the Shuffle today I was beset by Ragnar Relay (last February) flashbacks. My first Ragnar Relay leg had started in Prescott (6,000 ft. elevation) and nearly three miles of my 3.6 mile leg were uphill in similar fashion to this Sedona climb. The Prescott climb was longer; I don’t know how many times I thought ‘surely the hill will crest around the next corner’. Of course it never did. The Shelby Shuffle was steeper, but thankfully much shorter.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
The Peak-Performance Monkey
The ship has sailed, but we launch today. The ship officially embarked on Sunday, June 1, 2009. That day marked my first official training day for perhaps the most important race in my life. But the designated chronicle of this voyage, this blog, is just now getting out of dry dock. So today’s blog entry must serve as the christening of the flag ship, blog name garrygoingforward, which will reach its destination on January 17, 2010.
For quick reference I have included the heading from my training program. I would have laid the whole logo on you, but to date I haven’t gotten permission to mention names either of my coaches or my club, so you will just have to believe that I didn’t make this up myself. Add my goal race time of one hour and fifty eight minutes, and you have the entire mission statement.
2009 TRAINING FORMAT – Half - Marathon Build-up
ATHLETE: GARRY COX AGE: 66 Advanced Runner
PRIMARY GOAL RACE: PF Chang’s RNR-AZ HALF - MARATHON – January 17, 2010
So who doesn’t have a big race scheduled in the upcoming year? Who doesn’t have a training plan? Who hasn’t done some research and come up with the running wisdom of the ages? Good questions, all. But let me ask one more. Who among you has failed to come through in the big race? And by “come through” I mean run the race you believe you are capable of when it really counts.
As a long distance runner and age group sprinter, I have had my moments. In 1992 I was voted the third best distance runner for my age group (50-54) in the greater Metropolitan Detroit area. In my subsequent ten plus years of Maters Track and Field, I won so many gold medals I started giving them to my students for outstanding work in the classroom.
As a sprinter I have been rated in the top five nationally on several occasions. I should point out that these were in-season ratings. When the smoked cleared at the end of the competition year, I was always eclipsed by superior performances. Likewise, none of my gold medals came from any world or national championships, although I have competed in both.
Now, I can live without being the LD stud or the age-group superstar I once dreamed about becoming. But what sticks in my craw is the fact that not once in all the big races I’ve competed in, did I bring my “A” game. And though it’s unlikely I will ever win a national championship, there have been years that, had I run my best, I could have made the ultimate number three or four guy pretty nervous. So I’m not bitter, I just have a huge monkey I want to get off my back; the monkey of never peaking at the right time. So this is my voyage, my quest if you will. I have dedicated myself this year to achieving my goal performance in the race that counts the most, the PF Chang Half Marathon.
I humbly invite you to join my quest. I welcome your advice, your stories, your goals and your successes. And as they say on TNT, characters welcome.
For quick reference I have included the heading from my training program. I would have laid the whole logo on you, but to date I haven’t gotten permission to mention names either of my coaches or my club, so you will just have to believe that I didn’t make this up myself. Add my goal race time of one hour and fifty eight minutes, and you have the entire mission statement.
2009 TRAINING FORMAT – Half - Marathon Build-up
ATHLETE: GARRY COX AGE: 66 Advanced Runner
PRIMARY GOAL RACE: PF Chang’s RNR-AZ HALF - MARATHON – January 17, 2010
So who doesn’t have a big race scheduled in the upcoming year? Who doesn’t have a training plan? Who hasn’t done some research and come up with the running wisdom of the ages? Good questions, all. But let me ask one more. Who among you has failed to come through in the big race? And by “come through” I mean run the race you believe you are capable of when it really counts.
As a long distance runner and age group sprinter, I have had my moments. In 1992 I was voted the third best distance runner for my age group (50-54) in the greater Metropolitan Detroit area. In my subsequent ten plus years of Maters Track and Field, I won so many gold medals I started giving them to my students for outstanding work in the classroom.
As a sprinter I have been rated in the top five nationally on several occasions. I should point out that these were in-season ratings. When the smoked cleared at the end of the competition year, I was always eclipsed by superior performances. Likewise, none of my gold medals came from any world or national championships, although I have competed in both.
Now, I can live without being the LD stud or the age-group superstar I once dreamed about becoming. But what sticks in my craw is the fact that not once in all the big races I’ve competed in, did I bring my “A” game. And though it’s unlikely I will ever win a national championship, there have been years that, had I run my best, I could have made the ultimate number three or four guy pretty nervous. So I’m not bitter, I just have a huge monkey I want to get off my back; the monkey of never peaking at the right time. So this is my voyage, my quest if you will. I have dedicated myself this year to achieving my goal performance in the race that counts the most, the PF Chang Half Marathon.
I humbly invite you to join my quest. I welcome your advice, your stories, your goals and your successes. And as they say on TNT, characters welcome.
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