starting back up.

I try to start getting back into a small groove of training. I've yet to do a run since the marathon, but I did get on the TT bike the other day. Felt good, did a few longer intervals, which was just me going faster for 3 miles at a time. I have 3 weeks to get ready for a duathlon in Arizona. I'll need to run sub 6 min/miles, and ride 21miles in around 50minutes.

The big news of the week is my best buddy, Mark is having a baby. Uncoiencidentally, he's getting married too, this Wednesday. I hope he doesn't have to sell his boat.

I'll get to see Jason this next weekend, via the internet and a camera system hooked up to it. But it will be good to at least see him by a live feed.

The marathon

The week leading up to the Houston marathon was not what I had planned. Instead of getting in runs, I did 3 spin classes and zero running. I called it a really hard taper. Every night I would go out to my lake and see if I could shoot anything that moves, with my bow and arrow. I'd put out some marshmellows, and they'd be gone the next day. So I knew their was activity, I'd just have to see it.
So with my lights I'd see a raccoon, an opposum, some deer, a red fox, and something in the water. A nutria rat. Several nights I've seen it, and so I moved to a different spot JUST to kill it. I think most of my energy went to killing that huge rat than getting prepared for a marathon.
SO I am out, trying to not wake the neighbors, so I have to use a bow and arrow, a two handed mechanism. Well, unfortunatly I needed to hold a light too.
Magan was volunteered to hold the light. The night we saw it, I didn't shoot. It was too far and not a good shot. I didn't feel like losing an arrow for no reason except a 10 percent chance of hitting it.
The next day I get permission to use a gun from Vicki, my neighbor.
But, I'm off to Houston in this timeline of the week, and going to Justins to spend the night.
Before I get there, I do some errands, and pick up my packet for the marathon. I'm running under the name 'wink;)'.
Wak up at 5 and eat/get ready to hit the marathon.

Justin ran with me the whole way. I had unfortunatly lost the ability to wear any shoes since doing primal quest, because a huge blister would grow if I did. SO I was stuck with using the Nike Free's. By mile 6 I was feeling the Free's and not doing anything for a solid week, plus some from the week before(2 total weeks with one run).

The calves were the first to go, feeling tight and like I needed a stretch. But no stopping while running. Mile 10 had some slight fatigue in my quads. Nothing bad though, almost half way done!

We saw Wooch and Jill on the course, and the thousands of cheerers, and passing everyone....it was very motivational! At mile 13.1, we were half way. I was feeling tired, but not really. My quads and calves were toasted, and blisters on my feet(in normal places) started to appear.

Mile 16, we see Justin's girlfriend, Allison and give a quick hug, and we have motivation for some more miles.

Around mile 20, we see Shaun and Patti. YEAH!. They rode next to us for a bit and time really flew in that section. The legs were really feeling tired, but I was still able to run. My longest I've ever ran straight was 18.5, so I was crushing my personal record with every step.

From mile 23, it got tough. We picked up the pace and my legs hurt. After running an 8:30 pace for 23 miles, and picking it up to a 7 min/mile pace WHILE my legs were fatigueing to the point of no return. The calves started to really flare up with lively pain. Could this be what not training properly will do to you? Will my calves rip themselves off of the bone?

I would tell Justin, that I wanted to get home and kill something after doing something for so long. I was getting ready for tonight.

Mile 24, I hear some Rocky music and pick it up to a 6:30 pace. We're cruising past lots and lots of runners.

Mile 25 and I'm hurting bad now. Not just my legs, but I'm starting to breathe heavy too. But I hear another Rocky song and hit that last mile with a good stride. Feeling stronger.......almost done now! Dun dun dun, dun dun dun dun, dun dun dun, dun dun dun dun......FLY!!!!!!!

Mile 26, we cross the line, under 3:40. Good enough for 635th in the race.

I head home, pick up my new tandem from BIKE LANE, and get ready to hunt.

I'm out, I took the bow and arrow, and my 30.06 with Varmit bullets and a couple of lights. We wait and within 5 minutes I see a raccon 30+ yards at the end of the lake. I take the bow and make a hard to see shot. The red lens cap on the spotlight took a lot of the visability away. I shot just under him, and lost my arrow tip in a stump.
5 minutes after that, we(Magan and I) hear the nutria swimming to our right. We switch positions, and spotlight it. It's around 60 yards away, swimming back and forth....all I can see is it's head.
Then it comes up on a shallow peice of land in the water. BOOOM! I take the shot.

One nutria rat dead.

Unfortuantly the 30.06 woke all the neighbors, and make a tremendous ECHOOOO!

Run-ning

So after getting killed by Justin on the 18.5 mile run, I got out on the bike for the first time in a month.
It was a new setup for the TT bike, and I had the powertap on it. Went and did a 25 mile ride after work, only to find it took me 1:08 to do. I averaged 21mph and 200 watts. I can't wait until I actually get to go hard and see what I can do! All that running just made me MEAN!
Just for a reference, this course that I used to ride(the same one I just rode) was completely smooth. Now it has chip and seal on half of it. I used to ride it hard, and my best time was 1:06, for the 40k. This time I was out testing the powertap, taking it easy at first, then keeping it under a leash once warmed up.
I have around 100 new songs on my itunes. Thanks to Magan. And some generous gift cards for Christmas!
I got some new camo from the Sportsmansguide.com, waterproof baby! I'm really wanting to go turkey hunting one of these days.
Marley and Me, the movie about the dog, is very sad at the end. It was kinda good though, Magan and I went to see it the other night.
Last night, I taught a bunch of basics at Karate. Work hard, fight hard. Well, some of the guys wanted to grapple. Hmmmm, I haven't done that in a year or so. And I haven't even done any stand up fighting in a couple of months. So we do some grappling. Eventually I start grappling with Spicer, Chris Spicer, who is a pro at that MMA thing, 200 pounds of fighter. He was stronger and more technical than I was. But I lived long enough-5minutes.
Check out their website:http://deathrowmma.com/

Well I gotta go, Mom's birthday is today, and we're taking her out!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5W58LoiSEQ&NR=1

I was crying after seeing this. The third guy is doing ballarina stuff. The guy on the far right looks like a monkey. The 6th from the right looks....slow.

It's the new year

2008 was good. 2009 will only be beter.
I was sick, kinda, going into christmas. So I didn't run or ride any. I haven't ridden since the cross races, and I've done a 15 miler the week before Christmas while running. I was hoping I could get the legs used to some long pounding miles before I trudged into a marathon on Janurary 18th.
So being sick and not training a month before something a hard as a marathon, and never having done one, I began to wonder. No worries, the sickness would be gone in a day or two and I'll be good to go!
On the 26th Magan and I left for Goldthwait, to visit her family and go hunting. I took every advantage I could to get out and kill something. I had no choice....the sickness lingered, and I wasn't going to do a run only to have 3 more days added onto the sickness.
The first day I sat on a hill, no blind, just me with the wind to my face. Deer came out, but I waited and shot a raccoon.
The next day I went back, same spot, passed on some deer and shot a doe, which is in fact a female deer. Shot through the heart! Loading her was more difficult after tracking her, by myself, carrying her down a mountain by myself, and putting her on the 4 wheeler by myself. We ended up using that doe for bait for some bobcats down by the river.
The next morning I woke to go in a stand with the big deer. Magan's cousin, Mark, who owned the land, needed to manage the population. So I was to shoot not a big deer, but a certain one he didn't want. We saw 15 bucks, most of which would've been 12+ points had they not broke off all their antlers in fighting. These pretty semi-tropheys were lucky I couldn't shoot. The deer that I was supposed to shoot never showed, and lucky for him...I was jones'n to kill again.
That night, we drove to Fredricksburg to go to the Rock Box. It's a funny show, and we saw the christmas version.
here's the doehemian rhapsody, about Texas Hillcountry deer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-rc3QPR_OI&feature=related
Jason would love it there! It's beter live.
Then on Monday, I was out again. I was in a makeshift blind in the fenced off exotic animal area. I was after a blackbuck. He was the only one left, and Mark didn't want him there anymore. I was more than happy to be out again, but I've yet to see him, and was wondering if he was still alive! We drove around, looking at areas he could be at, and saw nothing. Then we flushed him out. I saw him, and was super ready, adrenaline pumping. I was looking for a shot like a whitetail deer, but never got the opportunity. This thing was fast, and could disappear in a heartbeat. Mark told me I'd have to shoot him african style....on the run.
I'd stalk up to where he 'could' be, and eventually flush him out....he'd run, through trees, and I'd shoot my singleshot toward him. Never getting him.
Hours went by, me stalking, not trying to spook the zebra and addax, and occasionally taking a bad shot.
I came back, after lunch, to try again. I located him after an hour, and began the stalk. This time, I thought about what I was doing wrong, and corrected. I led the deer, and took a calmer shot.
I ended up shooting right behind the ribs....which is a bad shot, but I also didn't want to hit the front, as it would be a great mount. It took some good hours, and lots of energy, but this deer/antalope is sure pretty, and worth it.
Guess what, I felt beter after killing that deer.
I finally return home....not sick anymore, and get a good 9 mile run in. It feels ok. But it feels like it takes a long time....my mind isn't used to it anymore.
New Years was fun, the normal gang came over to the house....played dominos, and I played some Lego Indiana Jones on the Wii.
On New Year day...I went for an easy jog....around 6 miles. I kept going and exploring and ended up doing a 14 mile run, with some walks every 25 minutes for 1 minute, it took just over 2 hours. I'm thinking I can do the Houston Marathon in 3:30 or less. If I was training beter, and longer, I would go for under 3 hours....but starting a month and half before something that long is just too much to ask your body to do.
I was planning on doing the cross races this weekend, and missing the E2(torture test) since I haven't ridden any. But after being sick, I might miss both, and just try to get some runs.

Now I need to go plan for this weekend....and see if I need to sign up for Leadville.