Tagged By Susan

I was tagged a while back by Susan so now I have to come up with 5 random facts about me so here goes.

1. I am very focused - sometimes to the point of obsession. If there is a goal or task at hand I'm going to get it done, whatever it takes.

2. I can drive most anything - about the only thing I haven't driven is an airplane. When I was 14 my Dad let me drive his 18 wheeler truck. Boats, cars, trucks, motorcycles, heavy equipment no problem. Fire Trucks are my specialty now being qualified on 10+ trucks in our department.

3. I love electronics - computers, gadgets, and especially 2 way radios. I am a Ham Radio operator and with also being a firefighter I have at least eight various 2 way radios capable of talking anywhere in the world. If you need communications I can get it done!

4. I certified many years ago as a Radiological Monitor with the Fire Dpt. What the heck is that?? Well, I learned how to use a Geiger Counter in case there was a radiation spill. Not that I would ever do it anyway, if that happens its time to RUN! Just one of the weird classes I have had.

5. I can fix almost anything. If its broke, I can fix it. It might not be fast but it will get done if there is anyway I can do it.

I am going to tag Annette, Cheryl, Kim, and Kirsten to reveal 5 of their random facts.

CPR

Tuesday night is my "busy" night most weeks. I not only do the running clinic, but it is also our regular training night for my fire department. Since this week I couldn't run I opted to get to FD training on time. After sitting in on a quick Fire Fighters Association meeting, we were given two options for training for the night. 1) Go to station two and give the rookies some pump training on the engines or 2) stay and take a CPR class. Since my CPR card had just recently expired and I really didn't feel like crawling around on the engines and playing in the water I elected to stay and do the CPR class.

I can't even count the number of times I have been CPR certified over the years. It seems like every couple years they change the standards and this year was no different. We were doing the American Heart Association Health Care Provider course and one of our MEMS medics was giving the class. It was pretty much old school to me, after almost 15 years in the fire service, I already knew what to do, though CPR is not something that is done everyday, I have done it on real people though. Most of the people in the class haven't even did a manikin yet. It was still good to brush up on it.

One major change, now its pretty much thirty compressions and two breaths weather its one person or two person CPR. The thing now is that studies have found that compressions help circulate the oxygen that is left in the lungs so this is the most important part. I can remember when it was 5/1 and 15/2 so 30/2 is easier. They also changed hand placement. Now it is directly between the nipples. Bottom line is this, ANY CPR is better than no CPR. If you ever have to do it your not going to get in trouble for not counting right or having your hand a millimeter out of place. Also, it is against most health care providers policies to do mouth to mouth so unless its a close relative you are taking a big chance on getting something you can't get rid of. The class is pretty boring stuff and it's one of those things you never want to have to use, but everyone should know it.

Oh yeah, I also got my training certificate's for School Inspections and Basic Arson Detection last night. I took these classes back in August and October. Arson Investigation is really cool stuff to study. It's CSI for fire. I have attended many classes on Arson and they are always interesting and informative. Since we are a volunteer department we do not conduct full blown arson investigations. We try to determine a cause and if there is sufficient evidence to warrant an investigation we turn it over to the State Fire Marshall. They get paid to be in court and we don't. Heck, we don't get paid period! So support your local professional volunteers, we need it.

Sports Massage

Well today I got my first ever sports massage. Annette had been for her first the week before the marathon. She loved it and pretty much all the local runners here told me that I had to go see "Christy" after the marathon. With the shape that my legs were in for the first few days I figured that nothing short of an MRI, casts and lots of pain pills would help. Luckily things did get better through the end of last week and Annette scheduled me an appointment for today. All I can say is WOW. It was AWESOME. I did not realize that muscles had so many knots in them. I could feel the knots rolling out as she massaged my legs. She said I was still a little tense but I think that was because I wasn't sure how hard she would be massaging my sore spots. We discussed these up front and I told her where all my aches and pains were. She massaged all of them pretty hard at times but none of it was painful. Afterwards she basically said that my legs were trashed. They are very tight and the tendons in my calves are all stressed. She recommended taking it easy for a while to let things heal up with icing and finger massages to help too. No heat. Even though she is not a doctor, I felt much better after hearing what she was telling me. So, I have pretty much ordered myself to two weeks of rest and no running. Not sure if I can make it that long but I'm not going to run any until my leg feels normal again. Then I'll start back slow and easy. I'll probably go back for another massage in a couple weeks. I really didn't want to leave today, it was that good, very relaxing and it did help a lot. Massage will now be a regular part of training and racing for me.

Sunday Workout

I got in my first real workout since the marathon. No, I did not run. I was able to make it to my upstairs workout room and did about 45 minutes of upper body and abs then I tackled the exercise bike just to see if the leg would do it. Yes, I could pedal with no pain at all. Only time I would feel anything was when I would twist my lower leg a little. I rode the bike for 20 minutes easy. I could do plank on the floor which surprised me but I only held it for just a few seconds. I can do side leg lifts which work the IT band with no pain. So I'm thinking it's not an IT band issue at least. It has to be a calf muscle strain or tear. If it's not 100% better tomorrow I will be making an appointment with a Sports Medicine Doctor to find out for sure.

Walking is much better, Saturday I could actually put my pants on without holding on to anything. This will be the first week since I started running in August '06 that I won't log any running miles at all. Kinda sucks because last year I was able to get a couple miles in even when I had IT Band problems but thats ok, I just ran a marathon and I have no regrets at all. I would do it again tomorrow even with the same outcome.

Rehabbing an injury is just another part of training so I'm not going to bitch and whine about being injured. If your going to be an athlete thats just part of the game. Now I have a new training plan to work on and that is to get back to where I can run again.

Injury update

Today my walking strides are a little longer and it doesn't feel like my leg is going to come out from under me so I guess it's a little better but not much. I tried to get a Dr's appointment today but guess what? They are all closed! I guess no one better get sick or injured during a holiday week. Today was the first day I have been out of the house since coming home from work on Wednesday night so that was nice. I even got to use our whirlpool tub which seemed to help loosen the calf up some. I'm really not that concerned with running at this point, I just want to walk half way normal again. Being stuck in the house has allowed me some time to organize some of our race photos so I guess it's not all bad. Tomorrow I have to figure out a way to at least do an upper body workout or something.

A bunch of the Cruiser's are running the Great Duck Race tomorrow in Stuttgart. It's a small 10K race that Annette ran last year. It's a flat and fast course and most of them are just running it as a training run for the Memphis 1/2 Marathon on December 1st. Wish I could be there! Good luck guys!!

Post Marathon Wednesday

I guess its time to declare an official injury. Ever since the marathon my right leg has been giving me problems. It started during the marathon and I ran with it. At times I could barely walk but I could run once I got started. It hasn't changed much since Monday. I can walk, but only very very slowly. If I put weight on it its ok at times, and then sometimes if I twist it a little I have a pretty bad pain. Sometimes it just feels like its in the top outside of my right calf. Other times it feels like it radiates all the way up to my hip. The calf itself is still very tight. At times I can put all my weight on the leg and it feels fine, other times if I'm walking it just hits like a brick and I almost fall from the pain. It feels a lot like my IT band felt last year when it was hurt but I don't think the IT goes down below the knee. So, I'm thinking it has to be either a calf strain or calf tear. Maybe even a tendon. Worst scenario would be a stress fracture I suppose. I really don't have a clue and it is very frustrating not really knowing. I can't seem to find anyone or any info on a similar injury yet. With the holiday it's pretty much futile to try to see a doctor. I do have an appointment Monday for a massage if I can walk then. So here I am 3 days after running 26.2 miles, not even able to walk to the bathroom. What I really hate the worst is the fact that all the nay sayers to running can say, I told you so.

By the way, I really did have a good marathon and would do it again tomorrow even if I knew I would be hurt. It was that awesome.

Tulsa Route 66 Race Report

Ok race fans, here is my attempt at a race report. Actually I could write a lot more but hopefully this sums most of it up and I apologize in advance if it's too long.

Tulsa Route 66 Marathon – 11/18/07

Pre-race:
Annette, Kelly and I all drove down together early on Friday morning. After getting checked in to our rooms, we tied to find a place to eat. We were staying at a Hampton Inn in Sand Springs. We drove around for a while and couldn’t find anything but fast food. We wanted something good! We found a Western Sizlin and stopped there but about that time a whole football team arrived so we just left. We didn’t want to wait in line. From there we just went on down to the Expo.

Let me tell you, the roads around Tulsa are some of the worst I have seen when under construction. The exit to our hotel was blocked off and the exit to the Expo was blocked off with construction. No detour signs or anything. The downtown area looks like a war zone with road construction everywhere. Somehow I lucked out and found the Convention Center.

The Expo itself was ok. Not real big but there were several running stores there with some good deals. We got our race packets, bought a few things and headed back to the hotel to wait on the others that were coming in that evening. After some of the others arrived we all wanted food very badly. Since there was nothing good really close by, we opted for the Western Sizlin we had been at earlier. It was still a good meal.

On Saturday morning we met with Brenda, Vickie, Paulette, Kim, and Kelly to do a short run in remembrance of Ryan Shay who died during the Olympic Marathon Trials in New York. I only ran 2 miles, Annette, Kim, Brenda and Kelly did 3 miles. Vic and Paulette just did a walk. It was sunny and very warm, even though it was 45 degrees.

Saturday Morning Run - Kelly, Kim, Paulette, Annette, Vicki, Kim

Later that morning we went to the expo again so the others could get their race packets. Several other Cruisers were driving up Saturday morning and they were going to meet us there. We did the whole expo thing again, but we were getting hungry again. We decided to eat a snack there and wait on the others then go eat. Well, things took longer so we decided to find the race course and drive it. Somehow I found it. I guess I was lucky again. We didn’t drive it all but got a general idea of most of it. We didn’t however anticipate the hills that we would run in the race. That was probably a good thing though. After that we headed back to the hotel to wait on the others. The plan was to go to dinner early so our food would have time to settle.

We ended up going to Spaghetti Warehouse in the downtown area. Somehow I got picked to be the lead vehicle and by some stroke of luck I drove right to the place. I think there was a total of 15 of us there for dinner. It was awesome! Carb loading Saturday Night

After getting back to the hotel everyone went to their rooms to get everything ready for the race. We were all getting very anxious and excited at this point. I actually slept really well that night which was a big surprise.

Race Day:
We were all up early Sunday morning to hit the continental breakfast before leaving at 6:45am. Everyone arrived at the race site together around 7:15am. I think there were 15 in our group with 3 carloads of people. The weather was perfect, about 45 degrees at start time. I think it was cooler than that actually. As the race went on it probably got into the upper 60’s to low 70's and there was a little fog along the river early.

The group - Front row: Rock, Annette, Bob, Lisa, Jane(blue), Cindy(green), Andrea, Susan, Brenda
Back row: Rick, Me, Kim, Kelly, Vicki, Paulette

Lining up at the start

The race has begun!

After the start, we went 300 yards and then had an uphill to a bridge that crossed the Ark. River. By mile one I was ready to dump my throw away shirt. Jane and I ran together for probably 23+ miles which really helped me conquer this beast. There were several cool bands playing during the first 3 miles and then one every now and then afterwards which added some fun. We had our pace down, our nutrition down and were just behind the 4:45 pace group for about 4-5 miles. We tried to slow it down a little with our pie in the sky goal being anything under 5.

At about mile 7 I started having issues with my right leg just below my knee on the outside. Still not sure what it is. But I felt it all week thinking it was just pre-marathon pains. We were doing the run/walk program and took our quick walk breaks pretty religiously every mile. We were probably 1-1:30 ahead of pace at this point then at mile 8 I had to stop for just a few and try to stretch my leg so we lost some time here. It didn't help any that there was probably only 8 miles or so that wasn't concrete in the whole race! By mile 9 I was thinking there is no way I can do 26.2 with this leg acting up. For a split second I thought of DNF then I thought no way. I’ll finish if I have to walk or drag my leg in. It was very hard to get moving after the water stops. I probably looked like a lame horse or something but I was determined to finish. The 5:00 pace group passed us around 8 or so and I knew we couldn't hang with them. That was kind of a downer. At that point it was just about finishing. Once I got running I was ok which was weird. Walking hurt worse, running was not bad. A few times we even ran extra hard to make up time. I think we took a bathroom break around 10 which always loses time but we kept moving forward. After 13.1 I took 3 Motrin to help the leg and a mile or so later it actually felt better but it was too late to make up the time.

It was pretty humid, and we did sweat a lot. Lucky for us we packed our own stuff because the water stops seemed too far apart and I only saw a couple that had gels. They were spaced about 2-2.5 miles apart but we ran past a lot of them.

Somewhere around 14 we went through the town of Jenks. It was really cool as it had little shops along the road and they were all playing Christmas music. It was deserted though except for the runners so it was some what surreal.

Jenk's looked like a ghost town.

By mile 15 I had actually figured out how to start running again after walking. If I bent my knees and squatted down with my hips a little it was easier to start and much faster. Usually it’s a struggle for me when I get more miles down. Today it was a struggle from 7 on. Having someone to run with made all the difference in the world and without Jane I would have struggled much more. I think we helped each other a lot, if nothing else we always knew when it was gel time and when it was electrolyte time. We did a gel every hour and electrolytes every 30 minutes or so. Every mile we got a drink from our bottles. I’d have to say nutritionally we did it right. We never hit the wall.

It seemed like from 14 on the miles were longer than a mile but we knew they were not. Around mile 18 there was a band playing some head banger music and they were singing something like “you’re not going to make it”. It was weird….we needed some good rock and roll and did not want to hear that crap! I think at 19 we had some Belly Dancers on the corner. They were just standing there so I told them to start dancing, we needed some motivation!

I thought I was seeing things, belly dancers on the course

Mile 20 was a nice sight to see, I told Jane that it would be like walking on the moon after this, going places where we have never been, but then the race director tricked us. We turned into a nice little area with bars lining the streets and there was a big Star Bucks. The first one we saw in Tulsa in fact! At the end of that street we made a left and then it was all HILLS! These were not little hills either. The race director told us on Friday that it was only gently rolling hills. Wrong!! These were close to Greystone hills. The bad thing was it was like this up until half a mile from the finish. There was not very many nice down hills either. Needless to say, not very many people were running up these. I ran up a couple which felt good on my calves but after 21 miles, I really didn’t want to get a muscle cramp at the end and with the bad leg I was pushing the edge anyway. We plodded on, and I think at about mile 23 Jane went on ahead of me a little ways. I tried to get her to earlier but she wouldn’t.

This is usually the start of "The Wall" but it was the home stretch for us

There was a couple decent short down hills around 25 that I took advantage of. At one point I thought I might finish under 5:25 then I’d see another hill so I had to re-adjust. Then it was 5:30, and then it was 5:35 which I did beat. All the hills at the end were just WRONG!!

Kim, Kelly and Annette running me in to the finish

Just before 26 after I turned the corner I saw Annette and some of the girls running towards me. That was a sight for sore eyes! They ran me in till just before the finish chute where I did a short sprint to finish it off. The rest of the group was all there cheering me also as I rounded the corner. It was awesome!! Final chip time, 5:32:45.

Me running to the finish line

I actually still had some gas in the tank at the end but the leg just didn’t work good, mainly walking. Walking afterwards was probably harder than running those hills. I moved very slowly, but it’s just the calf or whatever is wrong. My hips were really starting to hurt on those hills too. Afterwards I got my medal which is AWESOME and my finisher’s shirt which is a long sleeve tech shirt. I did get one piece of Pizza but all the food was gone.

Tech shirt and medal

The super cool "My First Marathon" medal. You can't buy this, you have to earn it!

The best part of this whole experience was the support of all the Cruisers. Just knowing that they were all waiting at the finish helped to keep me motivated. I was not going to DNF and let them down! Annette finished her 1/2 Marathon in 2:18:15 and set a new PR. Jane's final marathon time was 5:30:07 and was her first marathon.

Annette finishing her 1/2 Marathon

Will I do another?? Heck Yeah! Even though there were many times I was thinking why in the world were we doing this, it was still a lot of fun. One other thing about this race was the marathoners that were running with us at times were so nice. We carried on conversations with so many people and they really liked our Cruiser singlets. We met and ran with one guy that ran a marathon in Mountain Home on Saturday and then Tulsa Sunday. He said he has run 79 marathons so far since 1999. He doesn’t run them for speed, but for the accomplishment.

I can say this was one heck of an accomplishment and yes, it was hard. I could have had a much better time if it hadn’t been for the injury but like everyone says, you just never know what the day will bring till it happens. I was lucky to finish.

Post race - I can barely walk this morning. My hurt leg does not want to cooperate at all. Sleeping was hard last night, I think everything from my hips down was hurting. But this is what the marathon is about. Conquering and overcoming whatever it throws at you. Guess it’s on to recovery now.

Here were my mat time splits:

10K – 1:09:57 – 11:17 pace
15K – 1:52:22 – 12:05 pace
Half split (13.1m) – 2:35:52 – 11:54 pace
27K – 3:27:06 – 12:25 pace
33K – 4:17:28 – 12:34 pace
Final - 26.2 miles – 5:32:45 – 12:45 pace
Avg. Heart rate – 162
4142 Calories

Special thanks first to my wife Annette for being there for me and taking part in almost all of my training runs and taking care of me post race. Jane, for being a great running partner and putting up with me for 23+ miles along with several training runs. Vickie, for her experience, advice and inspiration throughout my journey. Brenda for always having the right training routes along with inspiration, advice and caring. Coach Dennis for his encouraging words that always kept me thinking “I can do this.” And of course, all of the Cabot Cruisers which are too many to name. Their support, experience, wisdom and inspiration always kept me thinking that there is no way I can fail.