Harvest Hammer-Final Training

I am beginning to taper now for the race on Saturday and will take a complete rest day today and maybe do some low impact exercise tomorrow.

The last two days, I went out and did some low mileage running and biking, but at high intensity. On Tuesday I had a personal best (PB) of 6:45 on a mile run. Then yesterday I bettered that PB and turned in a 6:23 minute time. I switched yesterday from my regular running shoes to a light-weight shoe called racing flats. They do make a difference.

We are having some beautiful weather for this time of year. Better enjoy it while we can.

Harvest Hammer Training

My grandson, Evan, keeping up with grandpa on the trail.

The Harvest Hammer duathlon is nine days away and is held in Morrison, IL. It consists of a 5K run and a 20 mile bike ride.

On Tuesday I went out for a 10 mile time trial ride on a hilly coarse and averaged 21.5 mph, slightly higher than my speed on the QC Triathlon coarse back in June. I noticed afterwards when I put my aero-bars on my bike that I didn't get them adjusted at the same angle that I use. So I made a minor adjustment for my next ride. One of these days, if I continue to do these events I may need to get a tri-bike. Most people I have talked to indicate that it will increase your speed over a regular road bike.

Yesterday I went back to Wild Cat Den with family members, Lydia, Evan, Lori

and while they hiked the trails I ran the route of last Saturday's race and added some additional trails. I ended up with 4 miles of running, which is the longest run I have done at one time.

Our son-in-law, Casey, received a stem cell-bone marrow transplant on Monday of this week for his leukemia. His sister was the donor and he now has 6 to 8 weeks in the hospital as they chart his progress. There are a lot of friends and family lifting Casey up in prayer. Thank You!

Sept. 6-7: Savanna Bike Ride

With much enthusiasm and a decent weather forecast we left the Farm & Fleet parking lot in Muscatine at 8am on Saturday heading for the bike path in Moline. I decided at the last minute to run my very first 5K run at Wildcat Den State Park and the race started at 8am. My wife, Patti, dropped me off for the race and went ahead to meet the group. She returned just before I crossed the finish line and helped me limp over to the registration table to turn in my ID info. It would be Monday morning before I would find out that I placed 1st in my age group.

We reached the eastern parking lot at the Ben Butterworth Parkway in Moline just a couple of minutes past 9am and the group was ready to go minus the Olson’s who had a flat tire on their car a mile back. The delay was minimal and we started on our 60 mile journey heading north into a slight headwind. Our group did a great job of staying together with a comfortable pace of 13-14 mph. Mark & Julie would leave Moline about 2 hours after we left as Julie competed in a triathlon at Scott County Park and she took 1st in her age group. Congratulation Julie!

Over the next 3 hours we passed through East Moline, Hampton, Rapid City, Port Byron, Cordova and finally Albany. Anytime I am on a bike up in this area, I make a point to stop at Julie’s Restaurant. You get more food for the money than any other place I know and the staff was very hospitable to our group. Originally we had planned on stopping in Fulton for lunch, but we couldn’t wait. The Nepple’s had taken out ahead of our group and did stop at Cousin’s Sub shop for lunch in Fulton.

In Fulton we took the trail that goes around the eastern edge of town and on the return trip the next day we will take the western trail that goes by the big windmill. Dan had a broken spoke on his bike in Albany and had taken a ride with one of our sag drivers to the town of Thomson for repairs at Arnold’s Bike Shop. He met us along the route in a nature preserve area that has a sandy/pea gravel trail. This trail has some soft spots and we had to be extra careful maneuvering the 2 miles through this area. In Thompson we took a short break at a Casey’s General Store.

North of Thomson we had to get on Hwy 84 for a short section before re-joining the trail for the last 5 miles into Savanna. The wooden bridge over the railroad tracks was the steepest climb of our trip. About half of the group elected to stay at the Super-8 and the rest headed north for a 3 mile ride to Palisades State Park, where we were camping for the night. The campground was pretty quiet as there weren’t a lot of campers. However, one little detail I forgot to tell the camping group ahead of time was the hourly train that passes by all night long. It kept Patti and me up till after midnight, then either the trains quit or I fell into a deep sleep.

That evening our group gathered at Domenics & Maria’s Restaurant for some home made pasta. I think everyone had a great meal that night. Some of our group made the rounds of a few bars before calling it a night.

The next morning we met at 8am for breakfast at Aunt Mannie’s Kitchen. We were essentially the only patrons they had, but they were ill-prepared for this large of group. About two-thirds of our group took the buffet and the rest of us ordered off the menu. The last of our group finally received their food around 9am. Not a good start to our day. We all agreed that this place will not be on our list for next year’s ride.

The weather forecast the night before had mentioned showers after midnight and into the morning. We were fortunate that the weather forecasters were wrong again. We had beautiful weather on both of our days with daytime highs in the low 70’s. Today we would have a slight headwind and crosswind all day long.

On our trip back we stopped for a short break in Fulton to see the large windmill along the Mississippi River. After a few pictures we passed through Albany and on into Cordova for lunch at the Farmer’s Table. None of us had eaten here before, but by and large it was an ok stop. There weren’t many patrons there when we arrived and we got decent service and the food was ok.

We arrived back at our vehicles a little before 3:30 and ended up with close to 123 miles for those that had also biked to the campground in Savanna. The scenery along this route is just gorgeous as it follows the Mississippi River most of the way. Our average speed for the whole route was 13.5 mph. This pace allowed us to enjoy the scenery and carry on conversation with our friends. We had 17 riders and 8 non-riders join us for this first ride. Look for this route to be an annual event.

A special thanks to our sag drivers: Joyce, Bill, & Becky.

Sept. 6-Wildcat Den 5K Run

With some trepidation I decided to go ahead and run my first 5K run. The venue was at Wildcat Den State Park and the 5K (3.1 mile) run consisted of about 1/3 pavement and 2/3 trails. The trails were vertically challenging to say the least. The race started at 8am and before I decided to do this race, I had already volunteered to be the leader of a bike ride over this week-end and about 20 riders were supposed to meet me at 8am in Muscatine that morning. I sent my faithful wife, Patti, to meet the group after she dropped me off.

There were 87 runners for this race and I believe this was the second year they had offered this particular race. I did not recognize any fellow cyclists at the race, so believe that all participants were true runners. The odd thing about this race is that once I completed the run this would be the longest distance I have ever ran at one time. Since I began my running career back in mid-July the longest distance I have ever ran was 2.5 miles. Most of my training runs consisted of 1-2 mile runs.

The race starter fired his pistol and we began a 1/4 mile descent down the pavement adjacent to the covered picnic area on the top level. Running at speed downhill is harder than it looks and is very hard on your legs and especially your quads. At the bottom we turned south on the pavement and went to the end of the pavement and turned back west on a trail through the woods. This trail had a slight ascent and eventually crossed the paved road we had initially come down. Once we entered the western area of the park, the terrain became very hilly and one descent was so steep you almost had to walk it to avoid slipping. The opposite side was much the same and I was unable to run all the way up the steep grade. The first 2 miles seemed to go pretty fast, but the 3rd mile was like slow motion. I could coax my legs into moving faster, but only for a short time as my cardio-vascular system was unable to replenish my oxygen to my muscles fast enough. I didn't have anyone pass me during the first 2 mile stretch, but during the last mile I had 7 runners go by me (all much younger than me).

I finished 21st out of the group and 1st in my age group (8 runners) with a time of 24:55 (Race Results). Once you pull up this web-site, schroll down to the appropriate race and click on results.

That's not me about to pass out, I am in the blue going through the finish area.

Wildcat Den State Park 5K Run Preview

This Saturday there is a 5K (3.1 miles) run at the State Park 2 miles from my home. I have been toying with the idea of running this race. This race is like a cross-country race, since it follows paths and trails in the park. I went down today and ran a 1.5 mile route over some of the trails. It is a very hilly course and difficult. My running at home is mostly on a trail that I keep mowed back in my wooded acreage. This trail is also hilly and resembles what I would encounter at the State Park.

This race doesn't include any biking and therefore all the participants are true runners. I checked the results on-line for last year's race and think I could run a pace that could place me 2nd or 3rd in my age group. The only wrinkle is that our bike club has a ride this week-end that starts very close to the same time as this race and I am the organizer or leader of this ride. So I will have to see if I can coordinate this into the schedule without causing any problems for the riders joining me on the bike ride.

Du State Du Silver Medalist

Today was race day and it was up at 5am and off to the races at 5:30. Patti and I arrived at Loud Thunder Forest Preserve around 6:15 and we were one of the early birds. It was a good thing, as it gave me plenty of time to get my stuff set-up at the transition area and get a good location at the front of the bike racks. I went out and rode my bike about 5 miles to get warmed up.

The race started at 8am. There were around 120 individual athletes and another 50 or 60 that were doing this as teams. The temps and humidity were ideal this morning. The race consists of a 2.0 mile run, then you go into the transition area and change shoes if needed, put on a helmet and get your bike and run out to the road area and get on your bike and go 15.0 miles. Then it is back into the transition area to switch from riding gear back to running gear and back out on the track for another 2.0 mile run. The goal on transitions is to do them quickly so not to add to your total time. My goal was to do them in 30 to 40 seconds and I think I did pretty well at keeping it near that area.

The first leg of running went well and I didn't give it all I had-so to keep some energy for the second leg. My biking leg was my worst leg of all and I am disappointed in my time. And I call myself a cyclist. I am waiting for the Corn Belt Running Club to put the split times on their web-site, but based upon my cycling computer, I think I ended up with around 20 mph, which would be 45 minutes for this leg. My goal was to be closer to what I did at the QC Triathlon back in June, where my time was 42:14 with a speed of 21.3. By the time I brought my bike into transition and switched my shoes, I was feeling the effect of running/biking for nearly an hour at a heart rate near my maximum. Running that last 2 miles was difficult and I thought on more than one occasion about walking. But I kept going and made it to the finish line.

Overall I ended up with a time of 1:14:35, which was good enough for 2nd place in my age division (55-59) out of 7 entries. This put me 51st out of 174 entries (33rd if you take out the team competitors)(Du State Du Results) . In looking back at the numbers, if I could have biked as well as I did at the QC Triathlon I would have taken first. Something to think about for next time. The most interesting aspect of this race was my ability to run. I have to go back to my track & field days in high school back in 1967 and 1968. I was a sprinter with my speciality being the hurdles. On occasion I would do the 100 yard dash. I despised running long distances and once ran the mile for my coach when someone else didn't show up. I hated it. Fast forward 40 years: I never included jogging as part of my exercise routine, since I wasn't enthused about running.

So after competing in June at the QC Triathlon, one day I was talking to my friend and team-runner, Mark and he asked me if I had ever considered running. I don't remember giving him an answer, but that thought stayed with me and everytime the question came into my mind-my only answer was I didn't have a good reason for not giving it a try. So 4 weeks ago, I began jogging 1 and 2 mile runs. My longest run was 2.5 miles and to tell you the truth I think that is the longest distance I have ever ran in one day until race day-today. My legs have been used to cycling and I found out very quickly that I had muscles I never knew were there and after every short run I had muscle and joint soreness. So my preparation wasn't that great and I really should have started training 2 or 3 months ago. But once I sent in my registration fee, I decided to go through with it. After extrapolating some of my 2 mile runs at home, I felt I could place 3rd or 4th based upon 2007's results for this race. So I was pleasantly surprised when I placed 2nd. I received a lot of encouragement from my fellow Muscatine participants and as it turned out, we were well represented and had 13 participants that placed 1st, 2nd or 3rd. I feel good about my results and may try another race in September: the Morrison Harvest Hammer. As I typed this blog posting I was watching the Olympics and heard an NBC reporter interviewing Dara Torres, the 41 year old swimmer that is piling on medals at middle-age. As the interview ended she left the viewers with this statement: "don't put an age limit on your dreams". I couldn't say it better myself.

Du State Du Training

This last week I have been doing more running than biking. When I do bike I am only putting in about 10 miles a day. Running is not near as much fun as biking and I have a hard time spending more than 15 minutes running, which usually means about 2 miles. This week I am taking it easier and tapering for my race on Sunday.

The Du State Du is a duathlon and it starts at 8am Sunday at the Loud Thunder Park near Illinois City. Last week I went over and rode the bike course (15 miles) and it is very hilly. The running course is flat and shouldn't be to difficult.

Earlier this week I ran on an asphalt road near my home and did 2 miles in 14 minutes 23 seconds. If I can maintain this pace for both running legs and do ok on my biking leg I may be able to place 3rd or 4th in my age group, based upon last year's results.

Dew Drop Inn

Last night was Wedneday-Dinner Ride for our bike club and we went to a new location-The Dew Drop Inn located in Durant, Iowa.

For you history buffs, you may remember that another Dew Drop Inn was featured in the family show-The Waltons. In the 4th season, son Jason goes to work as a piano player at the local bar in town much to his mother and grandmother's dismay.

Patti and I rode our tandem on the ride last night. The club left Harper's Bike Shop at 6pm in Muscatine and since we live close to Durant, we parked there and started riding toward Muscatine and turned around at the half-way point. Some of the riders caught us about 5 miles out of Durant. It was a good night for riding as the humidity that has been a problem the last week tapered off and the temps were mild.

The Dew Drop Inn really wasn't prepared for our 20+ riders as they had one waitress and 1 cook, but surprisingly they put out the food at a reasonable pace. The food wasn't anything special, but hungry bikers usually aren't choosy.

Dog Days Of August

Today is one of those hot sticky days that always tends to remind me of my great-aunt Peggy. She was quite the pessimist and back in the 60's I can remember that August was her favorite time of the year as it gave here a stage to talk about how bad these "dog days of summer" were.

Today was such a day. The morning news warned of a heat emergency that was impending upon our community. I was scheduled to run with other club members this evening at 6pm to practice for an upcoming duathlon race. When I heard the forecast this morning I changed my plans and went out for a morning run around 10am. It was already closing in on 80 degrees and the humidity must have not been much lower.

I tried to stay inside most of the day and at 4pm I checked "weather.com" for Muscatine and it was 99 and the heat index was 128. We are truly in the "dog days" of summer.

Post RAGBRAI

Well I have been very remiss in updating my site over the last couple of weeks. I rode on RAGBRAI-July 19-26. While I was away, we had a huge storm come through the Muscatine area and we lost dozens of trees on our property. Four of these trees were in our yard and I spent this past week-end cleaning them up with help from family and friends. Thankfully, we had no damage to our house and no one was hurt.

I finally was able to do a short 10 mile ride today. This was the first time on the bike since RAGBRAI ended 5 days ago. Earlier in the week I was on a business trip down south of St. Louis. I also ran a little this morning. The weather is not very conducive to exercising outside as we are having high temps and high humidity. The heat index is running 100+ this week.

Our son-in-law is back in the hospital after finishing his 3rd chemo treatment. We will make a much needed trip to Iowa City today to visit.

Running Improvements

Back on July 13th I did that 2.5 mile run on our gravel road out in front of our house. I averaged an 8 minute mile on this run. Yesterday I went out and ran on a path we keep mowed back in our woods. This course is fairly hilly and the path is not very smooth. I measured it on my mountain bike and one lap is exactly 0.5 miles. So yesterday I went out and did 2 laps. I ran a 7.5 minute mile.

So I am improving and I wasn't as sore today. If I do the Du-State-Du I will need to get my times down in the 6.5 to 7 minute mile rate to be competitive.

Run/Bike/Run

I have been giving some thought to participating in the Du-State-Du, which is held at Loud Thunder State Park in Rock Island. My friend, Mark has invited me the last two years to do the biking leg and he would do the running part. My schedule the last two years hasn't allowed me to participate.

This event is a duathlon, which includes a 2.0 mile run, followed by a 15.0 mile bike ride and then finishing with a 2.0 mile run.

After returning from Colorado I began running behind my house on a path I keep mowed in our woods. This path is roughly 0.4 miles long and I have been doing two loops. This didn't seem to cause any difficulties, so yesterday I took out on the gravel road in front of our house and did 2.5 miles. My time for this run was 21 minutes, which translates into an 8.5 minute mile. If I want to be competitive in a duathlon I need to get down below 7 minutes.

I found this to be extremely difficult and I have some sore muscles and ligaments today. I haven't did any running since high school (40 years ago). Back then I was a sprinter and did the 100 and 220 yard dashes and the 120 and 180 yard hurdles. I tried to think back and can't remember ever running this length (2.5) of a run before. My cardio-vascular system is accustomed to exercising at a high heart rate. The difficult thing is that you use different muscles when running vs. biking. My feet are a little sore today, but I used an old pair of tennnis shoes that weren't designed for running. Today I went to a running store in town and purchased a pair of shoes designed specifically for running.

I plan to do some more running this week and possibly some running during RAGBRAI and will evaluate how I am progressing and decide whether to enter the DU State Du race and do the whole thing or to enter with my friend and enter the team section and just do the biking leg.