10 days from Hyannis Year 5 - the beard is in full effect.

I love Hyannis.  Not convincing enough?

I LOVE HYANNIS.  A little better?

2008 - 4:42:35

I mean, that should be the reason I keep coming back year after year.  It shouldn't have nothing to do with the challenge factor of a New England marathon in winter, or the propensity of endurance runners to always take masochism to the next level.  Right?  Anyway.  Here it is, for the fifth time.  It's hard to believe I've already run 11 marathons, 4 of them in the same place.  Hyannis was my first - perhaps that's the biggest reason to run it year after year - and always helps me set myself straight for the rest of the running year.

I've made the odd little tradition of growing a beard for February just for the race at the end of the month.  I suppose it's largely symbolic to the ruggedness and chaos of the winter...because it is far from tame.  At least it doesn't last long after the marathon.  I'm not sure how acceptable looking like a lost band member of ZZ Top would be in the workplace.

2009 - 3:32:03

My weight has stayed down between 185-190 in the months of January and February.  Considering that these are my hibernation months and my metabolism naturally slows down in the winter, holding steady at this weight is a huge sign of progress for me.  Perhaps there's hope for me to to hit 170 again - that hasn't been done since 2008 and that was when I had less muscle mass.  It's exciting and I hope it will really reflect in my spring and summer running.

My running times - including the easy runs - have stayed amazing fast as well.  I've only run one race since the new year (4.5 miler) but it was far faster than any of the previous years (29:12 compared to 31:31 in '11 and 30:03 in '09).  Unfortunately I have not been able to run the other February races that prep me for Hyannis so I don't have much to go on in terms of speed preparation.

2010 - 3:45:34

My weekly mileage has been consistent this year, too, which has always been a struggle.  I have logged at least 35 miles every week so far, only going below 40 twice since the new year began.  I even logged 50+ last week during my final long run.  That will only help me improve my Hyannis time.

Pretty much the only thing left to do is to slowly start tapering and keep my diet and exercise in balance as I head into the final stretch leading to Hyannis 2012.  Weather is the only thing out of my control at this point, but as many of us know, weather could be the huge factor for a Cape Cod February.

2011 - 3:27:04

Breaking Through - Irish Road Rover 5K Results

Total Time:  21:12 (6 minutes, 51 seconds per mile)
Overall Finish:  65th (out of 715)
Age Group Finish (30-39):  16th (out of 111)
Mile Splits (approximate):  7:30, 6:45, 6:17, :33

This was probably the best weather I could have asked for in early march - sunny, no wind, temps in the upper 40s and rising.  It made the race itself feel more leisurely and, after running a Marathon the week before, much easier to get through.  5 kilometers?  Sheeyeah, bring it.

One thing that I always forget, however, is how narrow Fore Street is in Portland when you're trying to cram 750 running people through it.  As usual I placed myself conservatively at the middle of the pack to make sure I gradually get to my ideal pace.  What ended up happening was me getting caught behind people for most of the first mile.  As I scaled the steep hill leading to the eastern promenade, I was already over 7 minutes.  I knew I was going slow because I was just beginning to lengthen my stride as I leap-frogged the runners as they slowed down on the climb.

Mile markers were absent again this year - or at least I couldn't see them - and made timing the mile splits and tracking my pace difficult.  Once I got to the top I just kept myself steady at about what I figured was a 6:40-6:50 pace.  I came back down the hill about 14-15 minutes into the run and held myself back a little bit.  Once the course angled to India street, then to Middle street, I took off and ran at a increasingly reckless pace to the finish.  If I had to make a guess, I'd say I ran the last half mile of the race under a 6-minute per mile pace, which felt really good.

Though I figured I could have done at least a minute better if I had not positioned myself so far back at the start, I can take some positives from this.  First, 21:12 is my best time for this course (23:00 in 2008, 21:29 in 2009).  Fighting people and that steep hill always knocks me off from running my best 5K time but it's evident that I'm getting stronger with each year.  The other positive is that I did not get passed once in this race - I was passing everyone from the start line to the finish.  I was not concerned about overall finish but there is a little bit of satisfaction when I keep passing clumps of people throughout the entire race.

Next stop:  Kerrymen Pub (5K) in Saco.  Sunday, May 14.

An Epic Finale

Today's Run: 5km through Bangor
Time Finished: 20 minutes, 19 seconds (6 minutes, 33 seconds per mile)
Type of run: Road Race
Miles this week: 39.73


Running in my home turf can be fun...if the weather is bearable.


The sharp chill of the air made the wet, just-under-40-degree weather a lot harder to bear. It was only after the race was done that I felt reasonably warm enough to resist the wind and rain. It was because of the weather that I imagine many who wished to run didn' show up - I expeted at least 100, and I think there were barely 80 finishers.


The race starts by wrapping around the block where the old Freese's department store was in Pickering Square. Main Street becomes the course for about a quarter mile before ascending up a steep State Street hill. This is pretty much the taskmaster that puts people in line - anyone overconfident and unaware of the course will get humbled fast. The run continues down State Street until Eastern Maine Medical Center, then makes a sharp right turn onto Hancock Street, contunuing the right angle until the road meets the railroad tracks against the waterfront. It's mostly straight and steadily downhill right through to mile 2 and under the Bank of America building. Mile 3 weaves through parking lots, garages, and overpasses of all sorts until the Sea Dog Tavern, then the scenery opens up so there's a clear view of the river. A couple of right turns puts the runners on Summer Street and up a hill that takes out a lot of reserve energy, but once that hill is finished, it's all downhill to the parking garage and the finish line.


There were no mile markers but there were kilometer markers, which changed the timing strategy a bit - the new goal was to get as close to 4 minutes per kilometer as possible. My first kilometer was 4:15 in large part to that hill, but my next one put me at 8 minutes even, back on track. The third kilometer was steady at 4 minutes and the fourth one had me at about 3:50. This made my last kilometer a fairly disappointing 4:30, begging the question if the 5K is actually a little longer than 5 kilometers. In spite of whatever distance it turned out to be, it was still a good run - 20:19 - my best in the three years I've run it.


It was good to run with my mentor/coach in a race again, even if he slowly distanced himself from me throughout the race. He gave me some tips and advice for running over the next 6-7 weeks along with some preparations for the Marathon in late February.


This is my last 5K until the Irish Road Rover in Portland in early march. Though right now my sights are set for 3 important races before that, I can't wait until I get to the St. Patrick's time of the year. That's when the running really gets fun.

Portland Thanksgiving Day 4-miler Results

Overall Time: 26:27
Overall Pace: 6:37
Overall finish: 123rd (111th among men, 15th among ages 30-34)
Mile splits: 6:37, 6:43, 6:55, 6:12

Mile One: The first mile is not only a great gauge for how you'll feel in the rest of the race, it's also a test of discipline. Many runners will go out too fast, and with the first 1/2 mile plus being downhill, that makes it even more difficult to keep a conservative pace. After shrugging myself from the knot of runners on Franklin street, I was able to get into a comfortable stride that I could use for the duration of the race. The hill began once I turned off commercial street but as the case for all my runs this week, my legs felt great and I had an abundance of energy.

Mile Two: About half-way up the series of streets, I crossed mile 1 with a very respectable time. My energy was still great even after scaling the hill and returning to congress street. I used the down up to and through mile 3 to coast and keep my reserves until I could push for everything I got at the end.

Mile Three: It was about this time that I started to feel a little fatigue in my legs. It didn't bog me down too much, but the uphill felt a lot more difficult this time. As I approached mile four, I did worry a bit about if I was going to wear down before I got to the final stretch. It's been an all-too-familiar theme with my 5K's this year.

Mile four: About half way up Free St, I suddenly had that second wind kick in. I passed a pocket of 10-15 runners while surging with adrenaline, and I could feel that tiredness wash away under the excitement of being able to pull off a good time. I had more power than I thought, and I wasn't going to waste it. Getting to the top and turning at Congress street once again was a great feeling. From that point I slowly picked up speed until I was barreling through the final two turns at One City Center.

Post-race: Even as good as I did, I felt that I did not put all my energy and effort on the line - I felt like I had run a race, but it felt like I still had a little more to expend before I had that "on empty" feeling that overtakes me with I slow down. So in a way, I ran this one fairly conservatively, but it was a great barometer for how my speed was in the short races to this point. The 6:12 pace on the last mile was an incredible accomplishment for me - not only have I had difficulty reaching that pace in any road race this year, I also managed to achieve this on the final mile, meaning that I kept enough in the tank to burn off at the end.


This is probably the final race before the Epic Finale 5K in Bangor at the end of December. The Freeport 5K in early December comes up too close to my dance show to try and risk it. I feel good about where I am, though. At least I can take that to the turkey feast with me today...

...along with the Boston cream pie I just made and assembled. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.