Walking schoolbus

Today while walking over to the swimming pool for a workout, I saw something that I have been meaning to see, a walking school bus. There was a parent leading a crowd of six kids and a parent taking up the anchor position. They were walking along the sidewalk heading away from a nearby school. Some of my ideas on the concepts are expressed in a comment that I posted on Jason's blog a little while back.

My legs are recovering quickly from the weekend. Last night, I went for a 14 km/8.6 mile run along the Rideau River and my legs felt strong and fast. I still think they need a couple of more days of rest before I can give them there first cycling workout of the year.

NCM half-marathon

2007 National Capital Half-marathon

Short version

1:34:13 377/7671 1935 KCalories
I like the new course and the earlier start time (0830 vs 1030). Really pleased with the race.
Bummers - yoghurt for 10,000 participants and no spoons

Long version

On Sunday May 27, I ran my second half-marathon of the year in Ottawa. I had run the PF Chang half-marathon in January under cold but under record-setting conditions. My goal for this race was to use some of the tips I learned earlier this year. The first tip was to really rest the day before the race and get plenty of sleep, a couple of days before. Also, Clif Gels when consumed at the right point in the race can help you boost your energy stores. Also, eat very well a couple of hours before race (three vs four bowls of Vector cereal). Finally, if you want to finish with a fast time you have to run fast and maintain your pace.

On Saturday, I checked out the course and noted the location of the finishing chute and walked the final 1,000 meters of the race. The final 1km has a couple of curves which make it difficult to know when you are getting close to the finish. Taking my own advice I had a leisurely day on Saturday. In the evening, I watched the 10km race and started to get excited about my own race (start )(first female start )(first male start ) (masses starting ) (first male finish ) (first female finish ) (masses finishing ).

I was up at 0600 on Sunday morning to start the fuel operation. Over the course of an hour, I ate four bowls of Vector cereal. It is through trial-and-error that I discovered that Vector cereal gives me enough fuel to run a half-marathon. I sipped on a strong cup of Starbucks Earl Grey tea as at this time of the morning I was still sleepy. After drinking a couple of bottles of water and voiding it was time to head over to race site. The conditions were overcast 12C/53F and threatening rain. I got to the race site early and checked my bag and headed over to the start line area. This year they were using the corral system to assign folks to various part of the start line based on their expected finishing time. I was in the second corral (1:31-1:45). I started with five other guys that I train with at the Running Room on Wednesday night. This was reassuring. I was surprised how few friends I had seen on Saturday only to find that most were doing the half-marathon. At 0830, the starter's gun went off and we were on our way. We headed west to run by Parliament Hill and then across the Ottawa River over to Gatineau, Quebec. We did a six mile loop that featured some of the more interesting parts of the city. I was really pleased that I had run the race course two weeks ago as I knew where to expect the hills. I felt strong at this point as I was able to maintain the pace that I had started the race at. We next climbed from the water's edge onto the Alexandra bridge and ran across the Ottawa River once again. You can look at the course as being a six mile loop in Quebec and six mile loop in Ontario. The Ontario loop is very familiar to me as I run along two both sides of the Rideau canal a couple of times a week. It is sort of permanently etched in my mind. The first three miles on the Ontario side went quickly and I eat a Clif Gel with caffeine at the turnaround point. The weather conditions at this point started to deteriorate as it we went from a spitting to a light rain. The rain was just enough to cool one down and not get went feet. The final three miles were a little challenging as I was getting tired and a little dehydrated. The gel boosted my energy level and also knock me out of my groove. I started to pick up the pace and again and was more eager to run by folks ahead. With one mile to go, I opened up with a sprint and went by a boatload of folks. I caught up with one of the guys I run with and surged by. To my surprise, my finish time was very close to the time I had run in Phoenix earlier this year. I spent the next little while drinking multiple glasses of water, gatorade, and a new Powerbar recovery drink. I grab a couple of sliced apples and bananas which were already turning brown from exposure. I was puzzled when I saw trays and trays of yoghurt but very folks eating it. Someone had forgot to buy spoons for 20,000 particpants. At this point, I was starting to get cold so I grabbed my bag and layered on the clothing and headed over to the university for a hot shower. I was really pleased with the race, my time and how I finished. I am looking forward to reducing my training and getting back to other stuff. There are two more half-marathons on the horizon this year. I race the Baltimore half-marathon in October and may be the Philadephia in November.

Final race preparations...

Today, I went to the race expo and picked up my race package, bib numbers and some Clif Gels. I bumped into my coach, Phil, and checked whether I could do a swim workout this afternoon. Phil said a swim workout and a hot tub session would loosen things up a bit. I've missed a couple of swimming workouts recently which has caused my back to tighten up. After 20 minutes in the hot tub my back loosened up. The race starts at 0830 on Sunday morning so I'll have to be up early to have a couple of bowls of Vector cereal and allow for it to be completely digested. I am excited and eager to get the race over and to see how well I perform. The training over the past couple of months has been a lot of fun.

Three days to go...

It is three days before my half-marathon on Sunday. Today, I did a tuneup sort of workout which took the form of a 5 km (3.1 mile) warmup followed by 5 km at race pace. We had one of our warmest days of the year with the temperature reaching 78F. I am looking forward to the race as it will be like graduation day for the training. All my training over the last couple of months has been focused on this race. Once the race is over, I'll pump up the tires on the mountain- and road bike and start cycling.

In two weeks, I'll be running in a 12 hour running relay. It is a fund raiser for cancer research and every year I get drafted on the team as I am one of the faster runners at the office. Our team will be competing against 78 other teams to see which team can do the most number of laps of a track over a 12 hour period. My shift will involve running around the track for about an hour.

Long weekend...

My long weekend in Montreal, Quebec is quickly coming to a close and it is time to get back to normal stuff. Over the weekend, I located ten geocaches and moved my tally up to 704 finds. It felt good to finally surprass 700 finds. The Body World exhibit was really good and I'll check it out again next time I'm in Montreal. The exhibit runs until early September, so I'll see if it is better the second time around. It was interesting learning about our bodies and its various components. At the same time, it was like being at a funeral as most folks spoke with hushed tones and moved around very somberly. The exhibit allowed me to review some of the material that I am learning in my podcast-Nutrition Science class being taught by a U. Cal Berkeley professor.

When I'm in Montreal I usually stay at McGill as it is convenient and affordable. One thing that suprised me is that I am getting better at taking the STM, the subway. After getting into town, I implicity knew which of the three lines to take, which direction to go and where to get off.

I picked up a new book by C. J. Box, "Free Fire." It is mystery about a series of murders that were committed in Yellowstone National Park and because it is a federal park, for jurisdiction reasons the criminal can't be brought to justice. (IBSN 0399154272)

Montreal and Body World

This weekend I am heading to Montreal, Quebec for a long weekend of geocaching, exploring and R&R. We get Monday off as a holiday for something called Victoria Day, so I thought it was time to head east and see what is new in the city. One of the things that I am looking forward to is the Body World exhibit at the science museum. I missed the exhibit when it was at the science center in Toronto. I think Jason saw the exhibit when it was in Philadelphia. It was just opening when I was in Phoenix, AZ. After missing the exhibit so many times and being intrigued by the web site it will be one of the highlights of the weekend. In keeping with tradition, I will run up Mont Royal on Sunday morning.

Cortisol

I was hoping to report on my last hard workout before the half-marathon race. The plan was to do 6x1km intervals on 30 seconds rest. It is one of the toughest and hardest workout that I do during the racing season. But my cortisol got in the way. I still made it down to the Running Room and was happy instead to run a fast, hard and intense 7 miles/11km run. Things over the past couple of days at the office caused my cortisol level to go up, which is not conducive to running fast. The hard workout I think burned off any cortisol that was still left in my system.

On another note, I got my university marks back and I got an A+ in my calculus course. It is a relief to get the course behind me and thankful that I didn't have to learn integration-by-parts in the end.

Race simulation...

In about two weeks, I'll run my second half-marathon race of the year. The race in Ottawa will be a little different this year as they completely redesigned the course. Last weekend, I ran the course for the first time and used the training run to get a feel for the course. There is only one grade/hill which will come while I am still fresh and strong. It was an interesting run as it was sponsored by a local running club, so I jogged the course with a cardiologist and a stock broker.

I still find new uses for my Ipod. I downloaded a term's worth of lectures (24) to my Ipod for a course in nutrition science. It is a really interesting course and I hope to apply some of the concepts to my training. The course is being given by one of the experts in nutrition science at University of California at Berkeley. I am still amazed by the contents of the Istore/Itunes.

Canoeing and water

No matter where I am, water is usually nearby. When I was growing up my parents would take for walks along the Welland Canal. During the summer, we would swim in Lakes Ontario and Erie. Later on, I would row and sail on Lake Ontario. I have good memories of sailing on Lake Ontario. Fast forward, a couple of years, as I currently live close to the Ottawa River. In the warm weather, I swim and row in the Ottawa and Rideau Rivers. It seems that I'm always close to water.

Every year my father and I and occasionally, one of his fellow scientists will go canoeing and portaging in Algonquin Park. This year the dynamics will be a little different. My father has a scientist visiting from Bulgaria and Ohio this year. This presents a bit of a problems as you can only safely fit three people in a canoe. We had two options, one which I was more comfortable with than the other. We could take a solo canoe and a large 17 footer. I would be in the solo canoe and my father would pilot the larger one. The other option is two take two 15 footers. I would pilot one and father would pilot the other. Piloting a canoe can be a lot of fun but tricky at times when you want to travel in a straight line for an extended distance. The secret is to have a good "J" stroke. Even though the trip is a couple of months away I want to impress my father with my canoemanship. The local outfitter runs remedial canoeing course on the Ottawa River near where I live. Today, I signed up for one of there upcoming courses. At this time of year, the Ottawa River is still quite frigid. So, I don't think they will be teaching us capsizing skills. With these soon to be acquired canoeing skills I hope that the trip will be a success and that I can take some of my friends on future canoeing trips into Algonquin Park.

Google Analytics

One thing that most bloggers are curious about is many people read their blog and possibly a little about the viewers. There are a variety of tools that a blogger can use to find out information. Some websites are free and others charge for this service. Jason talked about a data source that provided information about visitors to his site in this entry. I have been using Google Analytics for a little while and learning very gradually the capabilties of the software. I also use it to keep track of visits to my brother's website. Google Analytics recently came out recently with a beta version of the software which is more powerful and richer than the earlier versions. I stumbled on the new beta version by mistake but look forward to exploring its capabilities.

Sore!

There are some advantages to blogging after a interval workout rather than before. After the workout I can report on how it went, how I feel and what my times were. Last night, it was 5x1km intervals on 30 seconds rest. (3.45/4.00/3.54/4.08/3.58) Every second intervals is slower because we have run the hill. By Ottawa standards, it was a warm night 75F/24C and the first one we have had this year. I was drenched with sweat before the workout. How do I feel? I feel a little dazed but my powerbar and chocolate milk are keeping my upright before I head over to Subway for a meal. I was pleased with the workout as my dismal workout on Monday helped me run well tonight. The swimming workouts that I'm doing for cross-training as strengthening my core and upper body. One more week of intervals and then it will be time to rest before the half-marathon race.

I fit!

It has been windy the last couple of days and I decided to wait for the wind to die down before following the instructions on my new tent, “Assemble your tent at home before doing so during a storm in the wilderness.” Late yesterday, the wind had died down so I headed over to a nearby field to assemble my tent for the first time. I connected the poles together until they formed a lattice and then inserted then into the corner slots. I next clipped the hooks onto the poles and the tent was up. It uses the same ideas as Jason’s tent so I used some tricks I learned from the Shenandoah trip. The fly has some Velcro fasteners that attach it to the poles. I opened up the vent at the top to get some air circulating in the inside. The final step was to attach the footprint to the tent. I did the next operation with a bit of apprehension, that is, to get into the tent. Why the apprehension? I’m a little over six feet tall and finding things to fit my long frame is always a challenge. I laid down in the tent and saw that I could position myself in three configuration, left diagonal, straight-down and right diagonal. The left diagonal position didn’t work as my head brushed against the door. The straight-down position was a little better. The right diagonal position was the best as it gave me a couple of inches of space near my feet as well as near my head. It was a big relief when I discovered that the tent would fit my long legs. The tent ships with a set of six guy ropes which I think are used to hold open the vestibule and other parts of the tent. I’m going to have to get Jason’s advice as where to attach the other ropes as the REI tents share similar designs. My next task is to get a lightweight sleeping bag that I can use over the summer months. I think that the “down” sleeping bag I use in the fall/winter is too warm for summer hiking.

New tent...

Today, I got a notice in the mail to say that my new REI tent (http://www.rei.com/product/731428) was at the post office for me to pickup. Last week, I was trying to think about the first thing I would do with my tent. There is a grassy patch near where I live so, I'm going to setup the tent and see how it all goes together as well as to try out the footprint. The tent comes at a great time as I have a couple of trips in the future where it will come in handy.

REI has a 20% off sale for the next week which is sweet! One thing that would have been handy on the Shenandoah hiking trip is a camelback to slide into the top of my backpack. There are a couple of configurations that I'm looking at, (http://www.rei.com/product/733683) and (http://www.rei.com/product/749987).

Final set of intervals...

Tonight, I do my final set of 1,000 meter intervals. We'll do four intervals on 30 seconds rest. Next week, we will do five and the week after we will do six. The 30 second rest will make for a tough and painful workout as the body will not have a chance to recover between the intervals.

I'll do my second half-marathon of the year at the end of the month and it will act as a good benchmark to see how my training has progressed over the winter/spring months.

Shenandoah Hiking trip - Part 3 of 3

The following is a travel log of my hiking trip in the Shenandoah National Park, in Virginia.

Part 3 of 3

Day 5 - Monday April 23 2007

Once again the day started off with the warm sun shining through the tent. I was up early and decided to air out all my gear that was starting to get a little damp from its constant use. It would be a day spent drying things out, relaxing and doing a bit of exploring. After a meal of Tang and oatmeal we hiked up to the rocks to the middle of the upper falls. We had some fun getting wet and dunking our body and clothing in the falls. This picture is of Jason and Emily hiking down the falls back to camp. We broke camp late morning and continued our trek east until reaching the lower falls at which point we started to ascend in a northerly direction. Our lunch stop was at one of the falls along the trail. It was cool eating lunch in the shadow of a mist and breeze coming off the falls. Our stamina would be tested during the next part of the hike as it would be all uphill to Appalachian trail. We sought some relief at a mountain fed spring. It was a relief when we reached the softly undulating Appalachian trail. We would hike the Appalachian Trail back to Jason car and it was a pleasure to hike along. We took this group picture along the Appalachian Trail. Once back at the car we loaded our gear into Jason's car and drove to Emily's car. Once at Blackrock gap we took some final pictures of Jason and Chris. Our next stop would be Outback Steakhouse for a filling meal after a couple of days out in the hinterland. The crab cakes and shrimp was a great way to start off the meal. Our main course was a thick and juicy steak.

Day 6 - Tuesday April 24 2007

I started the day off early and once again had a hot breakfast in the hotel. While eating breakfast I booked the hotel shuttle to drop me off in the Inner Harbor. I left the hotel wearing long pants but quickly zipped into shorts as it was going to be another hot day. As I was nearing the World Trade Center I spotted something that I had wanted to see and that is, an R2D2 USPS mail box. I stopped in at Borders to see if they had any Shenandoah hiking books but they were all out of stock. It was great to survey the construction in the Inner Harbor and take note of some new condos being built along the waterfront. I slowly walked along the waterfront stopping an sporting goods store with hopes of getting some Timbuk2 gear and may be a Patagonia top but ended up getting a travel t-shirt and underwear. While shopping my folks called and I was able to relay what a great trip I had and to catch up on news at home. My next stop would be Canton, where I stopped in at Safeway to load up on some last minute groceries. It was then back to the hotel to load up the large backpack for the last time. Jason and Adam met me at noon and we went for lunch at Rosina's Gourmet. It is sort of a tradition to go for lunch at Rosina's. After lunch, Jason dropped me off at the airport and I started my journey south to Atlanta, Georgia before heading north a little while later up to Ottawa. It was a really great long weekend. I hope that we can make hiking in the Shenandoah National Park an annual tradition.