2013 - Year in Review

2013 is in the books.  Here's a look back:

First the numbers:

- I ran a total of 2,899mi = 55.8mpw average for the year.  This puts me well behind 2012, 11, and 10 where I ran over 3,200 miles in those years and enjoyed a lot of pr's.  2012 was my highest with 3,361miles.  This year's total is very close to 2009, 08, and 07 where I ran 2,890, 2,889 and 2,904 miles in those years.

- My highest mileage month of the year was August with 349 miles = 78.8mpw average.  This is typical for me.  (August is always my highest month)

- My lowest month was April with 152mi = 35.5mpw average.  I got a sinus infection that kicked my butt for 8 days.  I layed around for my entire April vacation and after I finally got healthy, my back was tight and stiff and was a real problem.  This was a huge setback for 2013 and was a major reason for my slower times this spring and summer.  I went into the summer in poor shape and couldn't build my mileage up like I usually do.  I had to DNS Tarc 50K as a result of the sinus infection.

- I raced 27 times.  I won 11 of those races.  My shortest race I won was an 800m and the longest race I won was a 10mi trail race.

- I set 0 p.r.'s this year.  I also did not set any personal bests for races that I had raced before.  This was my first year in a while with no pr's or pb's, it was a little disappointing, but I've been racing a long time and I'm not getting any younger.  I know I still have a few more fast years in me and refuse to admit that I might be slowing down. 

I had some highs and lows this year.  I'll start with the lows:

- Setting no pr's or pb's.  (as mentioned above)

- KSC Alumni race - I didn't finish in the top 5 for the alumni for the first time. (I was 7th) The new alumni keep getting faster and I'll have to work hard to get back into the top 5 next year.

- I have some arthritis that leaves me pretty stiff on some days.  It's something I'm able to manage pretty well, but some days are tougher than others.  I can't complain, there are people with worse problems.

- Wednesday workouts have been a little inconsistent.  We have a small core of guys that try to make it happen, but it's just not what it used to be.  I need to just keep making it a priority to show up and hopefully others will follow suit.

Here are the highs:

- Setting the world record in the 4x800 for 35+ was really a cool experience.  I take the record with a grain of salt.  Obviously, elite 800 runners that are 35 could absolutely crush this time.  The thing is they haven't done that, so I'm happy to have my name in the record books.

- It was cool winning the Run with the Beavers 10mi trail race and having Jonny come in 2nd.  That was our first time going 1-2 in a race and the icing on the cake was Glenn sealing the win for team Hamboj by running a strong race. 

- Winning Lil Rhody for the 7th time was pretty special.  It was a strong field and I had my doubts, but in the end I got the job done.  I'm hoping to win a few more.

- Probably my best race of the year was the New Bedford Half Marathon.  I ran 1:11:10 which was not a p.r., but it was a really great result for me.  I was thinking I'd probably run in the mid 1:12's.  I ran tough and was very happy with the outcome.

- I had a great snowshoe season at the beginning of the year, winning 3 snowshoe races.  It was a great year for snow and Jen and I had a lot of fun at the races.

I have some running goals for 2014:

- Stay healthy

- Do yoga more consistently after my runs.  I used to be so good about doing this after every run.  I've really gotten out of this habit this year, time to get back into it.

- Lift 2 x week.

- Weekly hill sprints

- Weekly speed workouts at Daniel's pace.  Don't train in No Man's Land!

- Run more trail races.  I'd like to try some new ones I've never done before.

- P.r. at the Pisgah 50K.

- Run doubles year round.

- Run over 3,400miles.

- Race some outdoor track events.

I think if I can stick to these goals, I will definitely set some new pr's in the new year.  Most importantly, I want to continue to enjoy every run I do and appreciate the people that I race and run with.  Happy New Year everyone!

Sunday, December 29th, 2013 - End of the Run Log Year

18mi*/2:13 on the Saxton's River trails with Ferenc, Justin M. and Brent.  The trail had a decent amount of snow and ice which made a tough run even tougher.  I was annoyingly tired on all the climbs, possibly from yesterday's double run.  Fun conversations and a great time spent in the woods. 

Total for the week:  53mi - Lifted once and did a long run, but other than that, this week was pretty lack luster.  Christmas festivities interfered, but no big deal. 

Total for the (short) month - 221mi = 53.3mpw average

Total for 2013 - 2,899mi = 55.8mpw average

My paper run log ends today, so this is where I end my yearly and monthly totals.  The New Running Year starts tomorrow and with it new possibilities and goals.  I'll do a year in review soon.

Saturday, December 28th

Am:  9mi/64min in Pisgah with Thomas and Griffin.  We went out and checked out the tracks I saw yesterday.  They were black bear tracks.  I took pictures, but I'm too lazy to post them here.  Thomas took a nasty digger on an ice patch.

Pm:  5mi/45min up Pitcher Mtn with Glenn and Jonny from my parent's house in Stoddard.  Slow run with full bellies.  We ate a huge meal and then immediately went for a run.  No barfing from anyone, but it was uncomfortable.  Great views on top of Pitcher.

Friday, December 27th

10mi/69min in Pisgah solo.  Good run.  There was 2" of fresh snow that covered up some of the ice on the trail which made for some tricky spots.  I saw some good sized tracks out in the woods.  Lifted weights.

Thursday, December 26th

0mi.  Jen and I woke up and left Corning, NY at 3:30 in the morning.  With the intent that I'd get home around 9:30 and take a nap and then get some kind of running or lifting in.  We hit quite a snowstorm which slowed the commute down, and we didn't get into Chesterfield, NH until 10:45am.

All the animals I ate over the holiday and the lack of fiber (did I eat any plants while I was there?) came back to haunt me in the afternoon.  Instead of running, I spent the afternoon and evening with horrible stomach pains.  Where's the Pepto?  Where's the Tums?  Where's the prune juice?  The ghost of Christmas dinner past came back to wreak havoc with my G.I. system.  I think I'm becoming a vegetarian for the new year.  

Wednesday, December 25th

5mi/32min on the roads of Corning, NY solo.  Ugghhh.  My stomach is bloated and painful from all the animals I consumed last night.  I woke up with a meat hangover, feeling quite crappy.  The run was good and the weather was quite cold, 12 degrees.  I would have liked to have gone longer, but the Christmas festivities only allowed a short run. 

At night, I over indulged once again eating a delicious medium rare steak, washed down with a whole Cornish Game Hen. 

Tuesday, December 24th

6mi/53min in McCarthy State Forest - Addison, NY.  I ran with Jen and Griffin nice and easy.  This was a cool little place that we seemed to have to ourselves.  The ground was swampy and wet in spots due to the thaw from the 65 degree they had on Sunday.  When we had a mile left, we encountered a bus with 7 people doing trail maintenance.  We said hello and they seemed friendly enough, but we realized the bus said Dept of Corrections State of NY on the side.  Jen and I were both a little freaked out when we realized that this was some sort of chain gang out doing trail work.  We picked up the pace a bit and kind of laughed about it once we were safely in our car.  Nothing like the thought of a good Christmas Eve massacre in the middle of nowhere, NY to get your blood pumping! 

At night I ate about 10lbs of meet in the form of Roast Beef, Swedish meatballs, shrimp cocktail, bacon wrapped dates, crab blaylock, clam dip, and bacon cheese dip.