I almost didn't know what to do with myself Friday night. Almost every week for the last two months I've been gearing up for a weekend race. It felt like Track or Cross Country season in school. Don't get me wrong, I love racing. But I was looking forward to on an easy long run Saturday morning. My group was going to make the 9.5 mile loop around Waterfall Glen. No race. Just a leisurely run.
Of course, that doesn't mean it was a breeze. I was in fast company with some of my friends from my alma mater, Streamwood High School. Rick Staback, who is one of my regular partners is running really well these days. Saturday capped off an 85 mile week for him. I might get to 85 miles in three weeks. And Rob Chenoweth, a few classes behind me in school, is a formidable runner on the CARA circuit. He ran 1:17 a couple weeks ago at the North Shore half, while still coming back from injury. Robbie has been running times for the last decade that I never came close to even as a Collegiate runner. Our 4th was my regular training parter, Tom Smithburg, who has been racing quite a bit as well lately. Thanks to Tom for taking the picture. In case you couldn't tell, I'm the one in the middle, surrounded by the two fit guys. Fortunately, they took it easy on me.
I wrote in this space a while back that my strategy for the spring was to 'race myself into shape'. I didn't do any real speed work during the week, and never really bumped up my mileage other than weekend races or long runs. It was kind of an experiment. And now that I'm done with the races I had targeted, I can reflect on the results. If nothing else, it gave me something to write about nearly every week in this space!
For the most part, I believe the strategy worked pretty well. I surprised myself early on by running better than I would have guessed at the Cary half in March. That led me to set my sights a little higher for some of the other races. Those were a mixed bag, with some highlights, and some dissapointing efforts. The bottom line is that it generally worked out well. Racing hard all the time can beat you up, but it can also get you in pretty good shape. And by skipping the hard runs during the week and just racing on weekends, I did get in good enough shape to run at least one fast 5 miler, a solid 10 miler, and a half marathon I was happy with. Along the way, I also had a slow 5k, a below average 5 miler, and one crawling 6 mile leg in the Ragnar relay as well as a half marathon I was just happy to finish.
But enough about my spring racing season. Just like that, it's over. And just as I started to look forward to taking it easy for a while, I realized I have more races planned almost immediately!
So I might as well start looking ahead to the upcoming schedule. The next race is Monday, July 4th. The Elmhurst Running Club sponsors the 4 on the 4th, which draws some really good runners from the Chicago area. http://www.4on4th.com/4on4th/index.html .
And a week later, is an exciting race, a great fundraiser for ALS, and a unique opportunity to run a 5k at U.S. Cellular Field. http://www.run4als.org/ There are also several other races I'm looking forward to this summer and fall, including the Rock-n-Roll half in August, The Elvis is Alive 5k, and a couple other half marathons later in the fall.
One race I just decided to do, at the behest of my wife, looks especially interesting. It's a half marathon in the Lake Geneva area in October. Just the time of year is enough reason for me to go up to Wisconsin to take in the fall colors, drink some apple cider, and visit some of my favorite spots in the area where we got married. But when you add a half marathon to the mix, I'm sold.
Lake Geneva is a beautiful (although hilly) place to run. This race is based at the Abbey resort in Fontana, and a lot of folks will be making a weekend of it. But here's the catch: For many it will be a girls weekend. That's because this is primarily a women's race. Guys are invited, but we will be outnumbered.
I'm sure there will be a few husbands running, like myself, with their wives. And for the smart single guys, this could present a pretty great opportunity to meet some healthy women who share an interest in running. But for women looking to get away a fun weekend, this is probably the perfect opportunity. My wife tells me there are all sorts of spa, champagne, and pampering kinds of things planned that I know nothing about. Like I said, I'm just tagging along for the fun. If you're interested, here's the link. http://www.zoomarun.com/greatlakes/
There are plenty of other races coming up as well. I'm sure I'll be running in plenty of them, and documenting them in this space. Heck, I've gotta have something to write about!
See you on the roads......