To the seven people still subscribed to this feed in Google Reader (and anyone else reading this):

You have been missing out on Steve's blog since last summer - this feed is no longer active. (I moved from Livejournal to Blogger.)


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This is the actual blog if you're over the whole newsreader thing:
http://stevetursi.blogspot.com/

Thanks!
-steve

reminder - this journal is now empty. there's a new link, go to: www.tursi.com

You're missing content!

update your bookmark and RSS feed!!

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I volunteered at the Taftsville Aide Station - Mile 15 of the Vermont 100 mile endurance run

Hello,

I am switching from Livejournal to Blogger.
I have already copied all of my posts over there.

Some of you might have to make a quick change if you want to keep reading my blog.

There are three ways you could be reading my blog:

1.) You visit www.tursi.com
YOU'RE ALREADY SWITCHED OVER AND DON'T NEED TO DO ANYTHING

2.) You subscribe to the blog's RSS feed.
YOU NEED TO UPDATE YOUR RSS READER'S FEED WITH THE FOLLOWING URL:
http://stevetursi.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default
If you don't know how, I can help you do this, just send me a note.

3.) You visit it on Livejournal.
UPDATE YOUR BOOKMARK TO: http://stevetursi.blogspot.com/ (or just visit tursi.com)

There will be no more content on Livejournal, but I might post another message just like this one, just to make sure nobody missed it.



As far as real content, my streak is still going. 1 mile Friday, 14 miles Saturday, 1 mile Sunday, 2.5 miles today. 17 days down, 4 to go. I'll post all about that tomorrow, I hope.

-steve

On the course of the Hardrock 100 Mile Endurance Run in Southwestern Colorado. Photo taken by Blake Wood.
I have a crack-smokin'-induced dream to run the hardrock 100 some day - it has 33,000 feet (not a typo) of gain over the 100 miles.

well, i don't know if it was the 91º heat that i ran over 5 miles in yesterday, the monster hill in the 5 mile run, the fact that I had run 12 consecutive days, or the fact that i've suddenly upped my weekly mileage to something well over 30, but i was feeling like i needed a day off today. really, my body was saying, "DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT RUNNING TODAY."

that's why i planned to run only 1 mile.

i was going to make sure i ran only one mile, by looking on google satellite pictures, finding something interesting a half-mile from my house, running to it, checking it out, and running home.

once again, i didn't bother with the heart rate monitor.

so i headed out the door, noticed it was much cooler, and took off at a pretty good pace, because - i was only going to run 1 mile!

the interesting thing i was checking out was an abandoned bridge over the ramapo river - long since closed to traffic, i was interested if i could still cross it by foot, because it would serve as a convenient way of crossing the ramapo river to access the trails of ramapo state park in NJ. it's so silly - in order for a pedestrian to get from most of mahwah and all of suffern to this park, they'd have to cross the ramapo river. but the only legal way to do is is in hillburn, 3½ miles to the north of suffern, or on polo lane, a private road 3½ miles south. there is a very unsafe highway crossing in between. getting to the entrance to the south wouldn't be too bad but the busy stretch of 202 that i'd have to run on to get to it is unsafe with no shoulder and heavy traffic. but if this old, condemned bridge, a mere ½ mile away, was passable on foot, I'd have relatively safe access to the trails of ramapo state park.

large signs in front of the bridge said "no trespassing" and "unsafe", but it was obvious by the path through the high vegetation that had grown on the bridge itself that it was commonly used - and when i treaded lightly across, a commuter on a bicycle was coming back across the other direction. when i crossed, i had completed my planned trip, time to turn around - and yet found myself succumbing to the irresistible urge to explore the area that i had come upon - an abandoned railroad right-of-way, the tracks long since ripped out. I ran all the way to the aforementioned highway and back, and enjoyed almost two miles of solitary running without seeing anyone since the dude on the bicycle. no cars, either. back across the bridge and back home - my 1 mile run turned into a 5k.

this old abandoned bridge gives me a portal to explore the trails of a place that could really develop my potential as an ultrarunner. it has a tremendous amount of potential, complete with plenty of hills, pipeline right-of-ways, jeep roads, and single-track hiking trails. Physically, I'm not quite to the point where i can really take advantage of this stuff, but the running scenarios going through my noodle right now are pretty exciting.

oh, and regarding my body begging me not to run today, it feels fine now. better and more rested than before the run. funny how that works.

Log of today's run

By the way, over the next few days i'll be transitioning back from livejournal to blogger. it's just a matter of copying the 199 entries i've made here. This is the 200th post to my livejournal blog! it's also one of the last! most of you will notice little difference, but those of you who read this thing from an rss feed (god bless you), will have to update your reader with the new url. i'll post more details next week.

Elevation profile of today's run - check out that goofy little speedbump

Well, on today's run I did a lot of thinking. And right now, I'm too tired to remember any of it. But the point is that running is a great way to get some thinking done. (:

Heard an interesting concept on phedippidations today. Basically here's the idea - we've all heard (or spoken) at some point the following quote: "The spirit is willing, but the body is weak." Well, the idea proposed is that the actual truth is exactly the opposite of this. And that is why you'll hear a lot of ultra-runners say things in the context of 100-mile races like "it's more of a mental game than a physical one."

What a great point. And it really powered me through my run today, which had a goofy little hill on it. (:

I actually drove down that hill on day last week and thought, "Boy, wouldn't it be great to run a course that includes ascending that hill?" It wasn't something that I thought possible at that point in my training, but I immediately decided that I was setting that hill as a goal.

Well, today when I set out to run, I wasn't planning on running the hill. Instead, there is a smaller loop including a shorter hill that I was going to run. Upon walking out the door, I immediately felt the blast of 91º heat.. after being in air conditioning all day long, I was a little surprised to see how hot it was, especially after the severe rainfall we had this morning. Humidity, however, wasn't too bad - just under 50%.

I headed out onto Orange Ave towards the New Jersey state line and was feeling pretty crummy. Combination of the heat and constant training, I guessed - I had run 4 miles yesterday, 3 miles each of the two days prior, and 12 miles on the day prior to those. Perhaps it was all catching up to me? The idea that today would be somewhat easy despite the relatively small hill I was planning to ascend was nice. So I just chugged along at a nice slow pace.

Of course, when I was about to make the left turn to ascend the smaller hill, something inside of me kept nagging me to do the big hill. And, of course, I succumbed. I went straight when I probably should have turned left. And I was heading towards the hill.

The thing about this hill is not that it's particularly big (we are talking about new jersey, after all), nor is it particularly long (about a mile) - but it's steep. Probably about 15%. My car's gas mileage going up that hill drops below 5MPG, according to my meter. It's a nasty place to run.

So when I turned and started up it, the mantra "the body is willing but the spirit is weak" came to my mind. And the idea that I might have a weak spirit if I don't RUN up this entire thing was motivating me to keep going. And so I ascended, and ascended. Believe it or not, it went by rather quickly, but with a lot of effort. A false summit was a bit of a downer, but that mantra was ringing through my head constantly and I wasn't about to let it win.

When I finally made it to the top, I pumped my fists in the air and my mantra changed to something like "the body is willing and the spirit is strong!" - and that thing stuck in my head for about the next two miles.

About mile 4, the heat, fatigue, constant running without a rest day, or some combination thereof, hit me pretty hard and I kind of crashed. I didn't stop running, but I really got a taste of some of the things I personally go through during a good effort at a longer race - but without the race setting. It is a hard thing to describe, but it does include a sense of despair, of imminent failure, and of self-doubt. It is induced by exhaustion, and is not a very pleasant feeling. I felt it right at mile 4 of today's run, and it lasted a few minutes as I ran through it, ironically passing the emergency room of a hospital. I felt it again, more intensely, at mile 5, a few hundred feet from home. I finished the run, drank about a half-gallon of water, and laid down.

The crash had me a little worried about my 50k, but when I put it in perspective, I really am pretty psyched. I've run an average of 5½ miles a day over the last five days, with a minimum mileage of almost 3. The temps were wicked hot, and I had just run a hill that I thought was impossible for me just one week ago. Crazy that I'd think I'm doing badly, but I guess it's just my mind's natural tendency to look for something negative among all the positive results I've been enjoying.

At any rate, 12 days down, 9 to go. Log of today's run.

I used to be fat. I still am, but I used to be, too! (with apologies to mitch hedberg)


Well, with today's 4-miler, I am officially more than half-way done with my quest to run 21 consecutive days.
I still have some sort of infection bothering me - it may be the result of some sort of dental thing. The inside of my mouth, rear on the left side feels a little swollen and tender (maybe I bit it?) and, interestingly, the thyroid gland on that side is swollen, but not the right. The whole thing is making me feel generally crummy, but not sick. It doesn't appear to affect my running, only my motivation to do so, as the last few days have been a project to get out of the house. Today I had an excuse, my son was going to a friend's place to play with his kids, so I decided to jog over there while my wife drove him. It was hot, humid, and the run wasn't particularly great - and the road I was running on was very busy without much of a shoulder. I kind of slogged through it - but I was strong when I did it.

Yesterday my "generally crummy" feeling was much worse, and getting out the door simply sucked. It was dark, so I wore my reflective vest and carried a flashlight - and that only served to decrease the motivation. My wife, worried about my condition, suggested I take a day and restart the 21-day challenge (fat chance). Since the sole reason I was out there was to keep the streak alive, I didn't bother with the heart rate monitor. I brought the GPS watch just to make sure I ran 1 mile (which is my personal minimum for the streak), and went out. Predictably, the first few hundred yards sucked.

But it's funny, and this happened on sunday, too: no matter how crummy feel before and during the first few minutes of a run, i always feel good by mile 1. I ended up running just under 3 miles on both yesterday and sunday, even though both runs were planned to be just a mile.

running every day, just to keep a streak alive, has had an amazing result - besides the theoretical beginning of a theoretical habit. i've noticed an amazing endurance and (dare i say it?) speed gain in just 11 consecutive days of running. With a couple of exceptions, I've planned to keep the workouts easy to promote recovery from consecutive hammerin', but most of the easy workouts have turned out harder than planned because i'd decide to go an extra mile, or i'd see a hill and say "screw it, i'm going for it." the hard workouts have been amazing, too - I felt so good after the trail-run up bear mountain that I did a 3½ mile easy jog afterwards. I felt so good after 9 miles of a 12-mile long run that I did the last 3 miles 90 seconds/mile faster than the first 9, and finished strong. I keep exceeding my own expectations.. and my confidence is building as a result.

Frankly, given the streak of great runs I've had, I was a little disappointed that today's run only went good. Pretty funny.

GPS logs: Today's Run Yesterday's Run

-steve

Yosemite Falls - I'm the ugly one

Today's run was simply fan-tabulous. I was a little concerned going into it because the effects of yesterday's 12-mile LSD were really being felt in my legs. As a result, I procrastinated. I started it only because I wanted to keep the streak going, otherwise I would have blown it off. I figured I'd only run a mile, maybe a mile and a half. So I ran away from Alex and Joey, who were at a playground, and at first it was really slow. My legs were tight. Then, a short hill really got the best of me, it felt like mt. everest. It was when I turned left onto a flat bicycle path when I started to feel a little better, and by the time I had circled around back to alex and joey (which was 1 mile, my original planned course), I decided to go up that hill again. It felt like an anthill the second time, and I turned right this time onto the bike path, not knowing exactly where it was going to lead me, because I was feeling very good. Ended up going all the way down into downtown ramsey before turning around and heading back towards the playground. Finished very strong, three times my original intended length. And at a pretty good pace (for me), too - sub-11 minute miles.

--

Yesterday I linked a great article written by the guy in charge of the boston marathon, about running with music. Based on his observations, about 90% of the people who were on his running path the day he was watching were listing to some sort of MP3 player or other music-listening device. His results are consistent with another informal survey that I did during yesterday's 12-miler - almost everyone had some sort of music device, from the cheap radio-headphones-combo-with-a-dorky-antenna-sticking-out from the early-90s, to the ipod.

The problem with these things is that they're not liked by law-enforcement people, because people who are vulnerable to crime become more vulnerable. They're not particularly liked by emergency medical types as well, because being less aware of surroundings sometimes leads to unfortunate encounters with cars, bicycles, and wildlife. But both groups understand that most people understand the risk and take it anyway. I am one of those people.

The issue arises with a governing organization of runners - USA Track & Field. They've recently added a rule that events sanctioned by the USATF must ban headphones. Most major running events (including marathons) and a lot of minor ones are sanctioned by the USATF, and are therefore obligated to follow their rules. The official rule states that headphones and portable music players are considered aid, but Dave McGillivray in the article provides a little insight to another reason - insurance. You see, one of the benefits race directors receive when they get their event USATF-sanctioned is USATF insurance, which, as you can imagine, is quite important. Apparently, the underwriters of the insurance are requiring it.

Ok. I hate this rule with a violent passion, though I hated this rule a lot more before McGillivray's article clarified the reason (headphones might be considered aid, but who cares?) But, since rules are rules, since I want to run in USATF-sanctioned events, I've got to go along with them.

I used to be a part of the 90%-that-wears-headphones crowd, but now I'm not. It was great, it added a bit of intensity to my speed workouts, and it got me caught up in podcasts/sermons on the longer workouts. I feel, now that I run without one, that sometimes my workouts aren't as intense as they used to be. Yesterday's LSD got really long and even a little boring. But - and this is a big but - I'm still adjusting to the idea of not running with an ipod. You see, there was a lot missing from my workouts, and my longer runs were a lot more boring, when I first tried running without the music. But, as with anything, the more running I did without it, the more I got used to it's absence. And it's not bad now, really. Running without music can be boring, but it does give me a little time to think and be alone with myself. That's pretty cool, and sometimes I'm glad I've learned to do it that way. Other times, I'd rather have the iPod. But I definitely don't need it anymore.

Which may be the bottom line here- as much as I like running with an iPod, I don't want to be dependent on that iPod so I could run. It potentially adds another excuse to NOT run, and I don't need any more excuses. I need reasons to go out.

Of course, there are INCREDIBLE podcasts out there, designed for listening to while running! Phedippidations, which I've mentioned here, is an example. Podrunner, which plays music at x beats per minute so you can pick one according to the type of workout you intend to do, is another. I listen to these wishing that I was running.. but I really have no choice but to avoid relying on these.

Now, once I'm completely weened off the idea of running with music (which I pretty much am already), I might add it back in to my workouts on a limited basis.. maybe to listen to during speedwork, or maybe to listen to for the last hour of a 3-hour long run. The idea is to gain the benefit of having this device, without developing the dependency on it. We'll see.

9 consecutive days down, 12 to go. Log of today's run.

"fkna.."

My 12-mile LSD today could not possibly have gone any better. Seeing as it was about 8 miles longer than any distance I've continuously run since the 2006 LV marathon, I was a little skeptical going into it. Turns out that I felt so good after 9 miles that I took the last lap about 90 seconds/mile faster than the first three.

This was my test - if it went horribly wrong, I would not sign up for a 50k next month. If it was hard but ok, I would sign up.

It wasn't even hard.. so... anyone going to be in Hartford CT for a little ultramarathon on Sept 22?

Yesterday's run was trails in Campgaw mountain state park. Worried about today's LSD, I kept it really easy by jogging 1.75 miles nice and slow. Was working from home so I did it during lunch during the hottest part of a heatwave day. Tried to avoid hills as much as possible but trail running is trail running. I was done in 22 minutes. It was my seventh consecutive day running.

Thursday's was another easy run. I meant to take it very easy because of the heat, but since it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, I added another mile. The interesting thing about it was that I was really craving food&water during the last half-mile. I probably allowed myself to get dehydrated. I admit that I binged a little that night after the run, but hey, 6 consecutive days of running. I deserved it.

And as of right now, I'm 8 days down, 13 to go.

GPS logs:
Today's 12-miler Friday's trail run Thursday's

Since it's saturday, my weekly total, including today's run, is 25.58 miles.

So, that's the news.
--------
I am feeling very confident in my running these days. I've never felt so strong on the hills, and I also don't think my endurance was ever this high, even at the peak of last year's marathon training. I don't know why. I mean, I know I've lost a lot of weight, but I'm still 285lbs. As far as training, I went months without any running at all, and even up until this last week, I've not been consistent with my training. I kind of feel like I don't deserve the endurance and strength that I do have. But since I have it, I'm going to use and develop it. I've also decided that I'm going to take advantage of my ability to recover quickly, and do long LSDs every weekend until I can taper for the 50k next month. I've spent a lot of time listening to coaches and reading literature, and it keeps occurring to me that anything published like that is written conservatively such that people who are particularly susceptible to injury can avoid it. I have decided that I'll be more aggressive with my training than most coaches recommend, because I am not susceptible to injury.

For example, nearly everything I've read says "don't add more than 10% per week to your LSD or weekly distances." That is one piece of advice that I'm not going to follow, because my schedule is not going to allow it. My LSD next week will probably be 15 miles or more, and that represents a 25% increase over this week's LSD.

Now, a lot of you (probably all 3 of you) are thinking that I'm stupid and taking unnecessary risks. You're probably right. But last year I tried it your way. I followed a published training schedule. When I experienced chest pain that I knew was due to windpipe irritation, I followed well-intentioned (and sound) advice went to a cardiologist (which caused a 3-week delay in my training, because that was the soonest appointment I could get.) The first thing the cardiologist, who knew why I was there, said when she met me is, "Steve, you're 30 years old. what the hell are you doing in my office?" She was saying a lot in those two sentences. But more significantly, I just got bored with it. Right now, for the first time, I'm really excited about my training because I'm seeing such dramatic improvements.

You're probably still thinking "Steve, you shouldn't add so much to a training schedule so quickly." To which I respond, "I shouldn't be running a 50-mile or even a 50-k ultramarathon either! Nobody should be running those!" You see, my aggressive goals warrant an aggressive training schedule.

Well, I know I still haven't convinced you, but that's ok because you are following a training schedule that works for you. I am doing one that works for me. You probably shouldn't be doing what I am doing, but your life, your interests, your goals, your values, your tolerance for risk, and your drive is not the same as mine. It's not better or worse, more or less. It's just different. And whatever you do, exercise-related or not, is a reflection of that. In my case, the bottom line is I'm slow to get injured, quick to recover, and young - and it won't always be this way. So I'm going to take advantage of it. I am more likely to get injured than if I followed the more conservative training plants, but that's the risk I'm willing to take.

ok, enough of that.

Read a very interesting article this week about running with iPods. It was written by Dave McGillivray, who is the race director of the Boston Marathon. I'll post some thoughts about this controversial issue in my next post. This one is already too long.


Until tomorrow,
-steve

I am a ring bearer. I bear rings.


The host of "Phedippidations - Thoughts, Opinions, Observations, and Rambling Diatribes Composed During Distance Long Runs", repeatedly refers his podcast and himself as "goofy." Today, he proved just how goofy he is by making my silly blog his "featured blog of the week." I mean, what was he thinking??

Seriously.. SteveRunner, thanks for the recognition. I know you don't think you deserve it, but I really look up to you, and it means a lot to me that you'd even read my blog, much less feature it on your podcast. Who knows, as a result of this, I might increase my number of concerned readers to 3! wow!

Everyone who doesn't know about Phedippidations ought to go to SteveRunner.com and give it a listen. It certainly is better than anything on TV these days, which, I know, is not saying much. But give it a try, maybe you'll like it too.

-steve

the third-best "ah-beets" in new haven probably is at modern apizza, very good and without the lines.

I just visited the web site of the North Face's Endurance 50k Challenge and came across some very, very good news. The time limits seem to have been extended, or maybe I'm just dumb and miscalculated it the first time I saw it. Either way, I don't have a 7-hour limit, but a 9-hour. That is fantastic news and I may just go ahead and sign up for it now, because I'm pretty sure that I can finish in nine hours. My marathon in Las Vegas last year was about 6:45, but I really didn't train in the two months prior to it - I knew that had the marathon occurred about a month and a half earlier, I probably could have pulled a sub-6-hour finish time. I'll be at least at that level of endurance by September 22. Still, I am about 40lbs lighter than I was in December 06 (325lbs then, 285 now), and hopefully will be almost 70lbs lighter come 50k date. Bottom line, I was taking a lot of time wondering if I could pull off a 7-hour finish.

But 9 hours? no problem. That's averaging a 17:24 pace. Even if I had to walk the last 20 miles of it (I probably won't), I could still pull a 9-hour finish. It'll be a test of my mental toughness, but that's why I want to do ultras in the first place. How am I going to do this? I've really got to go long on my long runs, and make them weekly instead of every other week. Spend a lot of time focusing on recovery and injury prevention. Attempt to lose as much weight as possible (which counters the whole recovery thing. nobody said it would be easy.) And maybe, just maybe - do a marathon two weeks prior to the event. DOH. let me check an online marathon calendar and see what's going on........ newark, delaware. looks like a fun race and the price is right, but too far. nothing going on 3 weeks prior either. oh well.

as a final test, before i register, i am going to attempt to "yo-yo" the 6-mile saddle river county park bike path in NJ. it is an asphalt paved road with lots of runners and a couple of short hills, at least one of them steep. my confidence is really high right now, because i've never been this strong a runner, especially on hills - but i also haven't done a whole lot of long runs. so how I finish and recover from a 12 mile run this weekend will be the test I need to see if I am capable of training for this thing. I'll do my best to take it low and slow, slow and low, and assess myself the next day (I know that immediately at the end of it, i'll say NO WAY I CAN DO THAT 2 1/2 MORE TIMES, so I'll wait till the next day to assess myself.)

if that goes well, i might try to trail-run mount marcy, the highest point in new york, in three weekends. that, at this point, is a vaguely-conceived idea though - so don't count on that. but it is possible.

ok, enough of that.
here's another excellent study from amby burfoot's peak performance blog:

To Lose Weight, Get On Scales Every Day: There Are No Psychological Problems
Several studies have shown that daily weigh-ins help people lose weight. But there have also been arguments that such a strict routine could lead to psychological problems. A Brown University team studied this issue, and came up with no evidence of psychological harm. Rather they found that daily weighing helped weight-loss efforts, reduced bingeing episodes, and decreased depression scores. Source: Journal Of Consulting And Clinical Psychology. More

Barry Bonds' dog

Three bad pieces of news in three days.
1.) A guest at our wedding, who admittedly we haven't kept in touch with since she broke up with her boyfriend, died in her sleep a couple of days ago. She was 35 years old and 8 months pregnant. They found her the next morning. Alex is particularly disturbed about this.
2.) A good friend of mine is going in for emergency surgery today (actually he should be out of it by now). He's been fighting cancer since 2003, and it's been a very long and hard battle for him. He's still strong, and maybe it's just me, but today's news hit me hard. a tumor in his spine caused a disc to collapse, so that's what his surgery is for. What is making it hard for me is the fact that if he knew about a lump in his spine, he hadn't mentioned it - it has been lung cancer which has spread to his liver (i think.) he's about my age.
3.) The church we've been attending for about a month and a half has a member who was very seriously injured in a rugby accident. Internal bleeding, kidney and other organ failure. He was not expected to make it through Monday, but he's surprised everybody and is responding to treatment (praise god.) However, he is still in critical condition. His ten-year old boy is apparently extremely upset and hasn't been eating. He also has a 4-year old, who's probably too young to understand the magnitude of the situation. I've never met this person, but being a former rugby player, and this being relatively small church, this, too is hitting me hard.

I think today's run is going to be easy. I'm going to put on my brand-new trail running shoes and run a short out-and-back, flat course at harriman. And while I normally consider statements like what i'm about to say to be hopelessly cheesy even if authentic, I will try to appreciate the fact that I can go out and do a run in a beautiful place on a beautiful day...

going out now.
---

ok i'm back..
i'm surprised. i remember this trail being flat.. and in fact i gained ~260 feet in about 9/10ths of a mile. not super-steep, but making a supposed "recovery-run" fun. took it nice and easy, practiced running on rocks and roots, tried out my new trail runners, had some fun, and enjoyed the scenery and, believe it or not, solitude - proving that there is such a thing in harriman state park, even on the pine meadow lake trail - but if you want to be alone, you have to take it on a weekday.

i'm calling this a trail recovery fun run, and calling yesterday's run a fartlek/hill run.. because that is kind of what it was.

5 days down, 16 to go. motionbased log

run 100 feet, 5280 times - the last 100 feet of the vermont 100 mile endurance run.


you know, it's bizarre.. after yesterday's post, i was wondering if there was anything else i could be saying that i haven't said already.

yet, today's run had me think of so many things worthy of saying that i don't think i can remember it all. (:

this evening when i ran, it was warmer than the last two days' runs - 84º or so - but the humidity was only about 45%..

it is definitely more comfortable than the 78º and 85% humidity of sunday and monday.

is that the reason today's run went so unbelievably well?
well, it could be..
it could also be that I didn't push myself too hard on both S & M, when I ran a mere 4 miles over both days combined.
or it could be the fact that I ran in the oppressive conditions on both of those days caused an increase in mental toughness such that the discomfort of today's run wasn't even noticeable.
or it could be that i'm a much stronger runner because i trail-ran bear mountain, then jogged another 3½ miles on saturday- it wouldn't be the first time i've noticed a dramatic increase in performance after such an intense workout.
or it could be that i treated myself to too much of Rino's Pizza in New Paltz, on my way home from work, an hour before my run. Rino's is quite possibly the best pizza in the Hudson Valley, and good pizza always makes me happy. and a happy steve is a good runner steve.

suffice it to say, whatever the cause, today's run was incredible.

it wasn't particularly long - 3.5 miles. but longer than I planned.
I've run something similar (but easier) to this course once before, about a year ago. i remember that it had some respectable hills on it. it was unusually hard on me, for a 3-miler. i was accustomed to running on a flat surface.
today, i planned on running the identical course that i found so hard last year. it's an inter-state course that starts at my home in suffern (new york), crosses over into mahwah (new jersey), and stays there for a while before returning home. the first half is on a busy street, but the way back is quiet, tree-lined residential streets. both halves have hills, but nothing too serious.

it started out just like any other run. i didn't know how well it was going to go. it took forever for my GPS to get a satellite lock. when it finally clicked and as i started, my mind went through the typical bail-out scenarios and what-ifs it always goes through at the beginning of a run. then, to my surprise, i found myself running at a 9-minute-per-mile pace at the second block. and as good as it felt, i knew that i better hold back if i wanted to survive the run. so I settled into my typical 11 minute pace, which made me happy. it literally put a smile on my face. and, at about the half-mile mark, while starting an uphill, i noticed the smile.

"whoah, i'm running uphill and enjoying it!"

it was still early in the run, and i didn't know how i was going to feel at the 1-mile mark, but at that point i decided that i was going to do everything possible to enjoy this run. so i kept smiling. i smiled as i crossed a busy intersection. i smiled as i crossed paths with another runner. i smiled as i powered my way up a hill. and before i knew it, i was turning off the busy street, under the railroad tracks, then back north, towards home, up a hill, still smiling, at a better than 10-minute pace. i saw some children playing, and i smiled some more - but my pace combined with the hill, which was cresting, made me feel a little discomfort, for the first time this run. so, as i started a flat portion, i slowed down the pace and i immediately felt fine again. then the best part of the run came.

the course takes a left turn and ascends a slight incline before flattening out on a right turn. i remember this part of the course being really difficult when i ran it last year. what i didn't remember, until i was there, was just how steep the road gets if you *don't* turn right.

there was no question in my mind. as soon as i saw that steep hill, i knew i was going to conquer it. when i came to the intersection where i could have turned right to a flat relief, i noted my distance so i would know how long the hill was. then i ran up the hill. no question, i was working out. this was a tough hill, and my heart rate was skyrocketing. but i am a strong hill runner, that's my affirmation. it showed as i crested this .14 mile block that probably gains over 100 feet in elevation. I'm going to call it FireHill, because the Mahwah Fire Department is actually at the top of it.

FireHill ends in a "T"-style intersection, and I was to make the right turn that I planned to make a block ago, sans-FireHill. when it came into view, i saw another jogger coming into the intersection from the left. he probably had the same build as me, maybe not quite as fat but not as tall either. the road, when going from left to right, also goes uphill, though not nearly as steep. lo and behold, he was running at my typical 11-minute per mile pace. let's call him MahwahDude.

i was strong when i crested the hill and turned right into the not-nearly-as-steep-but-still-a-hill hill. MahwahDude crossed the intersection before I did, and as I turned right, he was about 30 feet in front of me. Long-time readers of this blog will remember BlueShirt, a guy, who upon reflection was remarkably similar to MahwahDude. I was behind him on a training run for a long time, and though he didn't know it at the time, I decided to make him my competitor. My race tactic at the time, demoralize him on an uphill, and hope he doesn't catch me on the flats. let my heart stay in front of him. It worked with BlueShirt, but MahwahDude didn't just climb FireHill. My only hope was to stay with him, 30 feet, until the hill we were both on (after turning right off FireHill) crested, then smoke him when it goes downhill. It proved to work - my heart rate was still high, but not above 95%, when we were nearing the crest of the hill, so I picked up my pace a little. I quickly passed MahwahDude and allowed myself to fly down the hill on the other side, which is very steep. My GPS tells me that I briefly was running faster than a 6-minute pace. I never saw MahwahDude again.

I never stopped smiling.

My run then crossed Rt.202 and into a quiet neighborhood where I would cross the state line back into New York. I backed off my pace as a cool-down, and just took it easy on the road where I did some Yasso 800s two weeks ago. Entering downtown Suffern Proper, I found myself running up yet another hill, still with a big fat smile on my face and a LOT of fuel left in the tank. So I picked up the pace and finished, once again, going uphill, at a sub-10 minute pace.

4 days down, 17 to go. and what may be the best workout of my life.



I actually have a lot more to write. but this blog post is already too long.. so it'll have to wait until the next time. For those of you who took the time to read what I just wrote, thanks. But I honestly don't think anyone (all two of you) got this far. That's ok though, because I wrote it for me. I want to have something to come back to ten years down the line and see where my mind was at. It should be fun.
in upcoming episodes of pizzapizza, steve's blog: popcorn and trail runners. and whatever else I couldn't fit in this post.

have a great day.

-steve

after running up bear mountain!
i'm on the left. i'm 285lbs. joey is in the middle. he's 39 lbs. alexandria is on the right. she weighs more than 10lbs, and less than 1000lbs.


From Amby Burfoot's excellent "Peak Performance" blog:

Four Best Diet Practices To Help You Lose Weight
After reviewing more than a decade of dietary research relating to obesity, a team of University of California researchers came up with the four nutrition practices that are most likely to promote weight gain. They are: 1) increased dietary fat intake; 2) increased consumption of sweetened beverages; 3) eating out at restaurants; and 4) and skipping breakfast. Presumably, the opposite approaches would lead to weight loss. The UCal scientists found little support for the following practices, often mentioned as obesity causes: 1) protein intake; 2) consumption of simple sugars and fruit juice; 3) food variety; 4) portion size; 5) snacking; and 6) meal frequency. Source: California Agriculture. More PDF

I'm in the light blue shirt. Alex and Joe are in front of the table on the right. The rest of 'em are my skiing friends, except for the weird looking guy on the far left. He was a recumbent bike dude that we befriended and had a couple of beers with.

Well, I said I would run on Friday. I did not. I said I would eat right on Friday. I sort of did not (but it was better than any other day last week.)

On Saturday, however.. I ran twice. And went on all-liquids.
The first run was a 1.5 mile run in 30 minutes - that involved about 1200 feet of gain. An ascent of Bear Mountain, from the east, on the Appalachian Trail. For a hike, it's pretty steep. For me on a trail run, it's stupid steep.

Then, after relaxing for almost two hours, I left alex and joey at a playground at Bear Mountain State Park and jogged 3½ easy miles, the highlight of which was a crossing of the Bear Mountain Bridge, briefly into Westchester County, back into Orange County, and maybe into Rockland County too at the very end.. I was excited to be running, and even though the runs weren't very long in the context of my goals, they were long enough and easy enough to encourage me in my goals.

Today after church, I did 1¼ junk miles while joe and alex were at another playground, this time in Teaneck, New Jersey. I'll be honest with you, it was kind of hard - after the super-intense bear mountain ascent yesterday plus the two-a-day style jog afterwards, my legs were feeling a little beat up. Also, the temp was 79º and humidity was pretty close to 100%, and a mid-day summer thunderstorm was on its way. Still, my heart rate was still about 59 when relaxed (if I can't get it under 65 then that to me is a sign that I'm overtraining). Before finishing up the first lap, I spied J&A running towards the car. Turns out that they heard thunder approaching, at which point I too decided that I didn't want to run a second lap.

I bought a flashlight and a reflective running vest. I look forward to nighttime runs after returning from work. Courtney, who is going to do an ironman-length triathlon next month, suggested that the way you make a habit out of running is by not missing a day for three weeks. I'm going to try that. She also is suggesting that I do an ironman with her. Short answer is probably never, but I'll post more about that some other time.

i was thinking about my post from wednesday.

even though there are no comments, i regret writing that if i were to run, i wouldn't settle for mediocrity.
the implication is that someone who merely completes a marathon.. is mediocre.

i didn't mean to imply that, so i would like to change that word.

problem is, i can't think of a good word to describe what i was (and am) thinking.. so here's the thought.
one tenth of one percent of the world's living population has completed a marathon.
one in a thousand. that's a pretty exclusive club... but for many people, it's not exclusive enough.

Many people who run multiple marathons strive to complete one in under four hours - which might put them in the top 25% of marathon runners. that would upgrade these people to one in four thousand. (yes i am pulling that number out of my ass, but the principal.) many who run marathons want to complete in under 3 hours. that might put them in the top 5%, only one in every 20,000 of the people in this planet can claim.
completing under 2 1/2 hours, puts people in the top 1%.. 1:80,000.

you see, one of the reasons why some people run marathons is to get into the most exclusive club possible.

to be sure, everyone who runs a marathon, no matter how slow, is a marathoner. not too many people can say that. but i think that part of the motivation that makes people run a marathon in the first place, is, among other things, to gain the right to say, "I am a marathoner," an earned title - akin to saying "I graduated college" or "I am a vegetarian." These are titles you earn by effort and discipline.

so there's a marathon "club" composed of runners who put in the effort required to cross the finish line at a 26.2 mile footrace. and even the club is open to everybody, about one in one thousand of our peers are members of it. no matter how slowly you completed the marathon, if you are in the club, your effort is not mediocre.

so the word i'm trying to find is a word that describes me to try to be in the most exclusive club possible. maybe the correct word is "psychopathic." but the bottom line is, one in a thousand isn't exclusive enough.

and since i doubt that no matter how much weight i lose, and no matter how much i train, that i have the ability to run a 2:30 marathon and get myself into the super-exclusive "sub 2:30 marathoner club", i have decided to pursue an equally exclusive club of the ultramarathon. One thing I noticed in Vermont is that there are so few people who run 100-mile ultramarathons that everybody almost knows everybody. It is a very tight-knit, friendly and supportive group. But put that aside. This is hard to explain, especially as an outsider observing this group, but in the course of running a 100-mile ultramarathon, these extraordinary individuals seemed to have learned something very profound about themselves - a knowledge that could only be learned by pushing their physical and mental endurance to the absolute limits - and among them, there was a mutual understanding of each other's journey. I could, of course, be talking out of my ass.. but that's how it occurred to me.

That said, I don't have a goal to complete a 100-mile ultramarathon (although I do admit I am curious to know that I *can* do one.) But I do want to earn the right to say, "I did this, and I'm one in a hundred thousand who'd even try."

I think I am going to register for a 50k ultramarathon in Hartford on September 21st. 31 miles. I won't be properly prepared for it by then, but I will be prepared to run 20 miles.. I'll just take it easy and it won't be too bad. Whatever I go through can't be worse than the 100-mile people experience.

-steve

July 19, 2007

Transportation Security Administration
Claims Management Office
US Department of Homeland Security
Arlington, VA 22202

Steven Tursi
#2P
35 Park Ave
Suffern NY 10901

Re: TSA Control No.: xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Dear Claimant:

We have reviewed your claim for lost or damaged property. Based on this review, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) offers to resolve your claim by paying you $130.04. The resolution amount is one half of the amount you claimed (less any depreciation) because TSA concluded, based on the facts of your claim, that it was not possible to determine whether TSA or the airline was responsible for your loss. We are offering this as our share of responsibility.

You may accept our offer as our final administrative action on your claim. To do so, please check off the first box located on the enclosed attachment, indicating that you accept the resolution amount,. This will also waive your right to seek any additional payment on your claim from the TSA and its employees or any other part of the United States Government. If we do not hear from you within 90 days, we will presume that you have rejected our offer and treat your claim as denied. To receive payment or reject this offer, please fill out the attached form and return it to the TSA via mail or FAX.

You can check the status of your claim online at www.tsa.gov. Should you have any questions, please address them to the TSA Contact Center.

Yours sincerely,

Nicholas A. Panuzio
Director, Claims Management Office
Transportation Security Administration


-------------------------

I should be running right now. I don't know why I'm not.
I'm losing control of my discipline.. every day, a little bit more.
I wish I could get addicted to running like people I read about.
Tomorrow I *will* eat right. I *will* run.

I've got to kick this lax attitude in the ass.

listened to 4 episodes of phedippidations at 140% speed driving to work and back home today.
steverunner would be concerned.

somebody at my new job asked me to send him a little blurb about myself as an introduction to him. i can't quote my response verbatim, but it went something like this:

"I am impulsive and a risk taker. I often get in over my head or do something dangerously stupid just for the thrill of it. I will most likely die of hypothermia, exposure, or head/neck trauma about 12,000 on a mountain somewhere. because they won't find my body for 79 years from the date of death, it is not a good idea to rely on me for anything."

it is in that context, that i reflect on the following conversation i had with an ultrarunner who DNF'd (medical reasons, no fault of his own, completed 61 miles anyway) at the vermont 100:

me: "I can't ever see myself running 100 miles. I would love to pace somebody through the last 30 miles of an ultra, do a 50k, or maybe even a 50-miler. but 100? no way."

him: "It's a disease. you start out with the marathon, then it's such a small jump to the 50k. then you think you can do a little more.. so you do a 50 miler. then a 100k. 100 miles then becomes no big deal."

wow, livejournal just informed me that it's been two weeks since my last post here..

well, i've been driving. a lot.
started a new job on monday. it's in albany. i live in suffern. 120 miles. each way. yeah, thank god for telecommuting.

but, for obvious reasons, at least for this week, i won't be telecommuting much.

now that i've driven to work three times, i can say that it takes me about 100 minutes. i've been taking the time to catch up on some podcasts - played at 140% speed, because i'm pretty far behind.

spent the weekend in vermont. volunteered at the vermont 100-mile endurance run. i'll post more about that later - but suffice it to say, it has renewed my deep and profound respect for ultramarathon runners.


in the next installment, thoughts about my own running.. and how 200 minutes in a car each day are going to affect it.


so until next time,

-steve

Larry Gassen is a photographer who was invited to shoot photographs of people who had just completed the Western States Endurance 100-mile endurance Run.



It is the most famous 100-mile race in the country, and perhaps the world.



The course features 18,000 feet of elevation gain, and 23,000 feet of elevation loss.



There is a 30-hour time limit. The course record is just over 15½ hours.



View the entire gallery here.

hello,

something occurred to me about a conversation i had the other day - i'm insane.

allow me to introduce you to courtney. courtney is a 25 (or so) year old, very intelligent, very ambitious, kind, generous, and fun-to-be-around skier friend of mine who has dealt with weight issues of her own in the past and has set a goal for herself to complete an ironman triathlon. an ironman tri, if you don't know, consists of a 2.4 mile swim, followed by 112 miles on a bicycle, and then a standard 26.2 mile marathon. all in one day.

she is at least as insane as i am, probably more. a lot more.

so i thought you'd like to see how insanity manifests itself when two crazy people get to talking. red text is our conversation. green text is comments about our conversation.


11:25 AM Courtney: So i was thinking on my flight (layover in chitown)...
why don't you do a triathlon?
next year?
specifically, you should do an ironman
it would be a great culmination of your weight loss efforts :)

at this point, if i was sane, my response would be "why would i do that? i ran a marathon last fall, and that was crazy enough!" but i am not sane, so therefore i instead said this:

11:26 AM me: actually, what i was thinking about doing
was an ultramarathon
maybe a 50-miler with lots of elevation

now, if c was normal, her natural response to that would be "um, steve - an ultra? dude it's great that you're under 300 lbs, but you're still almost 300 lbs - you probably shouldn't even be running anything more than a 10k. the marathon was very hard on you. a 50 miler? on a forest trail? with lots of mountains? come on, man - be realistic." But she didn't say that, she said this:

Courtney: that would be cool too

but, of course, everything the sane person would said about the 50 miler, she could have said about the ironman had i said i was interested in that. instead, she persists:

do you swim?
you'd have the bike and the run downpat
me: not really
a swimmer
i've tried, i look like a walrus
and swim like a cat

ok, so i'm not completely insane.

11:27 AM Courtney: hmm
:)
well an ultra would be cool too
let me know if you find a good one, i would do it with you if you wanted a buddy

you see, here's the deal - NOBODY should be doing an ultra. it's not fun, it's not glamorous - it's not even healthy - but she, of course, is naturally interested.

me: ok
the idea of an ironman intrigues me, i will admit
but i guess ultras intrigue me more

yeah, because "intrigue" is a great reason to run so far that your body's natural response is to literally shut down.

11:34 AM me: anyway, yes i'll definitley let you know when i decide to do an ultra.
i may do a flat one.. there's one in newport rhode island every year that's obviously flat
or I may do a gnarly mountain one..
Courtney: gnarly mountain one would be awesome.... maybe that one in VT?
me: we'll see how my fitness is this time next year

yeah, my fitness. that would be an important prerequisite to running 50 miles. one thing i do have on courtney - every now and then i get a glimpse of realism.

11:37 AM Courtney: cool :) i will keep my eyes out for a nice ultra as well :) i know for a fact that you could do an ironman though with the discipline that you've done with the marathons... you might love it
chew on it for a while :)

realism, as you see, is easily replaced by optimism. a little cajoling doesn't hurt either. (:

me: have a good flight
Courtney: later



so here's a good test of your own sanity. if you agreed with the green more than the red, then congratulations! you can officially consider yourself normal and able to ridicule crazy people. if, however, you found yourself liking the red, then i have some bad news - you're going to often find yourself the object of ridicule by the normal people - often insidiously behind your back. but then again, you will also have experiences and memories that they'll never have. you'll learn more about yourself than they'll ever know, and you'll meet some pretty cool people to boot.

and that makes it worth it.

have a nice weekend,

-steve