3.20.2010

Thursday, March 18th

12 miles, easy
65 degrees, sunset

Met with Dylan and ran towards The Mall to meet Dickson. We ran together around Capitol Hill and back, where Dylan and I split off and added on along the canal. It was a GORGEOUS evening in DC.

Wednesday, March 17th - St. Patrick's Day

8 miles, easy
45 degrees, sunrise

About feeling OK last night... not so much this morning. I slogged through 8 miles around Gtown and The Mall, and back up 14th St. But it was great to get the run out of the way early, and celebrate Ireland's national holiday with the GRC crew at Union Jack's.

Tuesday, March 16th

10 miles, hard
60 degrees, sunset

Met with Dirk and Wiggy for a track workout at BCC. We all ran 1600, 3200, 1600 pretty agressively. I felt surprisingly strong after successive race and long-run days.

Splits: 4:59; 10:19; 4:56

3.15.2010

Monday, March 15th - The Ides of March

14 miles, easy
50 degrees, wet

I hadn't planned to do a long run today, but somehow my run with Dan turned into one. I felt pretty good, thankfully.

Sunday, March 14th - Shamrock 5K


10 miles, hard
50 degrees, wet

Finally racing season is here! For my first act, I decided last year I wanted to run the Shamrock 5K in Baltimore. Similar to the parade race I help my dad with in Binghamton, this race leads the St. Patrick's Parade, and raises money to host the parade. That's where the similarities end.

The course is known for being a fast, downhill point-to-point. I decided I had nothing to lose, and went out hard with the leaders for the first half mile down Charles St. Klim and two others put a big gap on me over the next half mile, but I wasn't really holding back. I allegedly clocked 4:42 through the first mile, but there is debate about the accuracy of that particular mile-marker. In the second mile I felt like I was running in no-mans-land with a huge gap to the lead pack, and I couldn't hear anyone behind me. I didn't feel as if I slowed down at all, but my second mile split was 5:15 (refer to the inaccurate first mile marker). At the turnaround I could see Ben Ingram (Falls Road) and Pat O'HUGE just steps behind, so I knew I would need a strong final mile to hold them off. Once I rounded the harbor onto Pratt Street I knew I needed to kick, but the difference between my kick pace and my race pace was pretty insignificant; I had been going (relatively) all-out.

I made the last turn and crossed the finish line in 15:32, a new road-5K PR and my fastest 5K in three years.

We ran a long cool down along the harbor and I checked out my construction project, then took advantage of the post-race party at Power Plant Live, and went out in Fed Hill with Jake and Ella. Great start to the spring racing season!

RACE RESULTS:

1 David Berdan M 28 Parkville MD 14:29 4:40
2 Jake Klim M 29 North Bethesda MD 14:48 4:46
3 Izzy Mehmedovic M 25 Columbia MD 15:06 4:52
4 Patrick Murphy M 25 Washington DC 15:32 5:00
5 Benjamin Ingram M 32 Baltimore MD 15:41 5:04
6 Patrick Hughes M 23 Washington DC 15:52 5:07

3.13.2010

Saturday, March 13th (72 mi/week)

10.5 miles, easy
55 degrees, rainy

Ran with several guys from the Georgetown store around the Mall, and added on along the CCT and canal. Definitely training through tomorrow's 5K.

Friday, March 12th

11.5 miles, easy
50 degrees, rainy

Parked at FDR on my way to work and ran up to meet Dan, then over to Georgetown to meet Dylan, then out-and-back along the canal.

Thursday, March 11th

8 miles, easy
60 degrees, dark

Met with Dylan after work and ran two laps of TR island while discussing grotesque injuries.

Wednesday, March 10th

9.5 miles, hard
60 degrees, dark

Met with the largest GRC group ever for a mid-week workout (!) and put together a very encouraging effort. I arrived late so I warmed up quickly while the other guys started their workouts. 2000m (6:21 - 5:10/mi pace); 1600m (5:05); 1200m (3:45 - 5:00/mi pace); 800m (2:26); 800m (2:19); plus three 200s.

Tuesday, March 9th

12.5 miles, easy
50 degrees, dark

Ran on my own after work up Wisconsin to Bethesda, and back down Connecticut. Listened to a great episode of This American Life to pass the time.

Monday, March 8th

12 miles, easy
45 degrees, sunny

Met with Dan before work and enjoyed the first sunlit morning run of the year. We took advantage of the daylight and ran through RCP and AG Parks.

3.07.2010

Sunday, March 7th

9 miles, hard
58 degrees, sunset

With the sun quickly setting and DC over an hour away, I decided to stop and do my run at Patapsco State Park outside Baltimore. The trail from the road to the paved trail was very muddy, but once I was on the paved trail I was able to hammer out a good 4 mile tempo run.

Saturday, March 6th

9 miles, easy
40 degrees, sunny

Met with Pat Matolka in Otsinengo Park for the usual 9 mile out-and-back. Then over to the 43rd annual St. Patrick's Parade in Binghamton. It's a great day for the Irish.

Friday, March 5th

6 miles, easy
45 degrees, sunrise

Met with HUGE for a morning run - the first one in over a month. I forgot how much is sucks to get up and run in the morning, but I was glad to get it out of the way. I still felt tired/sore from the run less than 12 hours earlier.

3.04.2010

Thursday, March 4th

9.8 miles, easy
40 degrees, dark

Met with O'Huge and ran the Capitol Hill Loop. Good run, but I felt a little fatigued from the workout yesterday. I'm also ahead of pace on mileage for the week, so I should back off a touch the next few days.

Wednesday, March 3rd

11.5 miles, hard
40 degrees, dark

Met with a large group of GRCers at the AU track for a workout. I ran mile repeats with Dylan and Mike as Wiggy was running a 5 mile tempo. Our first three miles were controlled and steady - 5:23 for every one. I ran the last mile alone and closed in 4:59. This was a very encouraging workout. Headed over to 4Ps for dinner and drinks after, and rocked at bar trivia.

Tuesday, March 2nd

9 miles, easy-moderate
40 degrees, dark

Met with Dan Z for another run around Hains Point and the Mall. We started easy and picked it up gradually as we went.

3.01.2010

Monday, March 1st

10 miles, easy
40 degrees, dark

Met with O'HUGE after work and ran up Connecticut Ave to Military Rd., and back down Wisconsin Ave. Definitely going into Olympics Withdrawal. Thank God March is here and Syracuse is ranked No. 1!

Sunday, February 28th

15 miles, moderate
40 degrees, sunny

Met with Dylan and JARRIN at The Line, and ran into Towpath on the usual Winter Zoo Loop. JARRIN and I picked it up on the out-and-back to E-W Highway and even though I doubt I wasn't going as swiftly as two weeks ago, my breathing was much more under control this time. Progress.

Headed over to JARRIN'S to watch an epic USA-Canada gold-medal hockey game that went into overtime. Great to see JARRIN'S new diggs too.

Saturday, February 27th (60 miles/week)

10 miles, hard
40 degrees, sunny and windy

Met with Charlie, Mike, Max, and Klim at the Chevy Chase store, and ran an out-and-back along Western Ave and Massachusetts Ave. On the way back, Charlie, Mike and I ran a workout uphill and into the wind: 10 min/6 min/3 min. I felt relatively strong, but I'm eager to get onto a track to gauge my fitness next week.