My Biscuits are Burning

Schedule called for a shorter run but it was such a nice nice day and I got off work at the perfect time to take off to the trails. So we headed to the trails. Was going to do my staple run - the 5.5 mile loop - but it was such a nice nice day and I got to the top of the loop at the perfect time to keep on heading up another trail. So we headed up the mountain for a few more miles to one of my favorite places in the Palouse. There's a view from an overlook that is hard to beat. On a clear day you can see three states - WA, ID, OR. My camera phone took this (less than) spectacular image.

I wanted to keep going but I have a super long run coming up this weekend and decided I shouldn't kill myself this early in the week. On the way back I took a detour on what turned out to be an absolutely killer section of the trail. It was a steep downhill that just drained any energy I had left. A serious burn. Oh well. It was worth it. I'll try to cut back my run tomorrow to make up for it. Unless it's a nice nice day. :)

So from the looks of the results from the quiz on my previous post it seems that no one really knows me. Heck, even my wife bombed it. Okay, maybe it was a bit difficult. I even went back to take it myself and got a few wrong.

Today - ~10 miles

Let's have a great week!

-Scott

River Run Dip and a Dam

What did the fish say when it swam into a wall?


"Dam."

---

My last run on the Snake River was a fight against the 102 degree heat. Today wasn't quite as hot, but it was still in the low 90's. Despite the heat I felt strong. I admit that I have a slight advantage because I run with Sadie. She's an excellent pacer, and there is probably a direct correlation to my run times and her energy level. Today she was running all over the place and I had to push myself to keep up with her - but maybe she was running so fast because the asphalt was so hot.

The path is three miles long, but today we ran past the end of the path another half-mile all the way to the Lower Granite Lock and Dam. This blog really isn't the place where I want to get discuss my thoughts on the huge controversy over the dam along the Snake River. (Much of the controversy surrounds the ability - or inability - for native salmon to swim back upriver to their spawning grounds with these big concrete walls in their way.) I would like to mention, however, that from a strictly engineering standpoint I love dams. I think they're pretty frickin' awesome. And locks are almost cooler. The photo was taken from about a half-mile away.

Sadie loves this run almost as much as she loves being on mountain trails because here she can take a plunge into the cold river anytime she wishes. No comment on the rolling in the dead fish incident... Bad Sadie!

Another great thing about this run is that I have a clear view of the sky the entire time, which means I don't need to wear my watch because I can tell how long I've been just by the position of the sun. ;)

Today: 7 miles / 59 minutes (on my sun-timer)

Oh, and it felt SO good to take a swim in the river after the run. Nice and cold. My ice bath without the ice - or bath.

I'm going to have a nice day off tomorrow. Sweet.

-Scott

P.S. I was tagged by Marcy so I had to make this little me quiz. I had no choice...

Roundabout

Sometimes I feel like I'm running in circles.

Running, running, running in circles.

I've been doing a lot of reading about ultras these past few days (thanks Robin for some great links). The one word that I keep seeing repeated over and over about running an ultra is "patience." I'm so excited about the JFK 50 right now that my patience is going to be tested to the max just waiting for the doggone thing. Yes, I said doggone.

Oh, and I still have a marathon to train for. At this point I don't think my marathon training will change much. I'll put some extra time on my feet on the weekends, probably in the form of walking with some running sprinkled in. I don't want to get so excited about the 50 that I go off the deep end with my training. Patience.

Sadie and I got up early this morning to run a big circle around town. The run felt good. And Sadie seems to be getting her energy back. She's doing well, though she still has some swelling around the area where she was operated on. It looks like it will take a while for it to completely disappear.

There were quite a few bikers on the roads this morning. Some of the were going pretty fast and I couldn't help but wonder whether they are doping or not. I guess that goes to show you the sad state that professional cycling is in right now. I've never been a die hard cycling fan, but I've been a huge Tour de France fan for the past 5 or so years. This year I'm completely turned off by it and all the doping and scandals. I'll just stick with my sparkling clean Major League Baseball. Yep, no drugs and nothing less than the most honest athletes in baseball...

Today: 9.5 miles

Keep Running! (even if it's in circles...)

Call Me Crazy (seriously)

For the past couple months my dad and I have been casually discussing what would be the first ultra marathon that we run together. The last couple weeks it has gotten a bit serious. We were thinking we would wait for something in the spring when I would for sure be ready for one. Well, we both don't want to wait until spring, so we've been on the lookout for something before then, something either near me or near him (he lives in Washington DC). We found one and sent in our race applications today for the:

JFK 50 Mile Run, November 17, 2007.

This looks like a great one for a first one. I think it's the largest ultra in the United States. One of the oldest, too. Sounds like it is a wonderfully organized event. Lot's of aid stations. Relatively easy course (for a 50 miler). Lot's of support. I feel good about it. It will be just over a month after the Portland Marathon so I don't have any illusions that I'll be in great ultra-running shape, or even good ultra-running shape, but I do think I'll be in shape enough to finish it. And that's the goal. Finish it. Call me crazy. Seriously.

I doubt I'm the first person to ever sign up for an ultra without having even completed a regular marathon. But I've been so inspired by some of the runners out there in blog land and how they've tested themselves and pushed themselves in whatever they're running - especially those crazy nuts running the ultras. So much so that I just can't wait to do the same. So there it is. (Boy am I going to feel silly if I totally bonk at Portland...)

Back to the now - Sadie and I hit some trails up on Moscow Mt. this evening. I felt good and Sadie felt tired. She didn't chase as many squirrels as usual. Don't know the exact distance but I'm guessing around 7 miles. Did my regular ~5.5 mile Headwaters Loop plus some.

Today - 7 miles

JFK 50...ah man, I'm feeling the pressure already.

-Scott

New Sadie, New Shoes, and a New Respect for Electric Pencil Sharpeners

Sadie is home and doing great. The vet wanted to keep her overnight yesterday because when she went in to cut out the abscess she found out it wasn't exactly an abscess. To make a long story a bit shorter - the lump was not filled with pus like an abscess is. I won't get into the details of what it was filled with, so I'll just say it was more of a tissue inflammation thingamabob. So the doc gave Sadie some anti-inflammatory meds instead of anti-bacterial and that seemed to do the trick. Doc says she'll be ok.

"Hey doc, Sadie is training for a marathon - so how long until you think she can get back into her training?"

"Well, I don't see any reason why she would have to wait at all."

"Really doc?!?"

"Yep. She may be a bit tired but she isn't sick and exercising won't do any harm."

"Yippee, doc!!" (attempted high-five, but doc wasn't hip to my celebration routine)

The next couple hours was kind of a blur. Vet, car, drive, home, running shoes, belly rubs, leash, water, run, sun, sun, road, sun, bark, pant, pant, sun, run, water, sun, home, water. The blur wasn't so much as I was running so fast as it was that I had some sweat in my eyes and couldn't see real well. Sadie did great on the run. She was definitely more tired than usual but she was so happy to be out there instead of stuck in a kennel at the vet.

And I have a new pair of road shoes which always makes for a nice motivation.

And the electric pencil sharpener at work was awesome today. Major props.

So, with Sadie back in action I think this is going to be a great week of running. I felt good today after the 18 miles on Sunday. I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. (or is that a train?....)

Today: 7 miles

Keep running!

-Scott

Interstate Runner

Funny, but I was pretty nervous about today's long run. My last long run, two weeks ago, was the hilly 15 miler that left my knee hurting so much I had to walk the last 2 miles - so basically I had only run 13. Today, the training plan called for 18 miles. I treated the last two days as though today was a race day. I wanted to come out and show these 18 miles who's boss. I wanted to put that 15 mile disappointment behind me. But, in the back of my mind there were those little itsy bitsy teeny weeny thoughts floating around telling me that maybe I'm just not a long distance runner. Maybe 15 miles (really 13) is as far as my body can run. Maybe all those people telling me I'm crazy for trying this marathon thing are right. Heck, I'm pretty good at putt-putt golf, so why not pursue that further instead?

I got up very early to beat the heat. And Sadie was NOT happy to be left behind. I started off slow, and then slowed down. I went out on a 9/1 plan. Run 9 minutes - walk 1 minute. I wasn't concerned with my time; I just wanted to finish this thing running and not walking with a gimp knee. And, as opposed to the very hilly 15 miler two weeks ago, I chose a relatively flat route. Now, there really isn't anything flat in Pullman. There is normal hilly and stretchy hilly (where the hills are just stretched out so they're not as steep.) Today was stretchy hilly.

I was feeling very strong the first hour and had to hold back knowing that I still had a long way to go. The run took me over into Moscow, Idaho and then back. It's always cool to say you ran from one state to the other. Sounds impressive. I kept the 9/1 plan and it was helping a lot. I felt strong all the way through - so strong that I decided to run the last 4 miles with no walk break. That worked for about 3.5 miles and then I was completely out of gas and walked the last little bit that goes up the big hill to my house. I mapped the run on MapMyRun.com when I got home to get the exact distance (and also elevation - click diagram to see) and it was 18.5 miles. Since I brought my watch for the 9/1 plan I was also able to time the entire run. I think I may start doing this on my long runs as I'm getting closer to Portland so I can have a realistic idea of what kind of marathon time to expect. So, the stats:

18.5 miles
2 hr 57 min (including the last .5 mile walk)
~9:34 min/mile pace

A successful day. I'm pretty excited about the entire run.

And I'm pretty excited that tomorrow is a rest day...

Sadie's check-up is tomorrow. I'll keep everyone updated.

Until then, keep running!

Scott

The Vet... (update at bottom)

Well, Sadie is off to the Vet today. There is a lump between her neck and jawbone. Her neck swelled up maybe a week ago and we suspected it was just a bee sting or bug bite because the swelling went down the next day. And the days after that the swelling had been going down rather consistently but it was becoming much firmer. Wednesday night and yesterday we noticed it was getting bigger and couldn't be classified as "swelling" anymore as much as it could be called a "lump." So we'll cross our fingers that it's nothing serious. Jeanie says I can't start serious worrying until the vet visit. Too late. I did a few google searches (is there a dog WebMD??) but only saw lots of words like "tumor" and "surgery" and "Rover."

Well, I didn't run yesterday and didn't take her this morning on my short run. I don't plan to take her on my runs this weekend (and beyond) until I get the go-ahead from the vet.

Today: 3.5 miles

Here's to hoping Sadie can keep running - soon!

Scott

***UPDATE******UPDATE***

We just returned from the vet and Sadie has an abscess that is likely the result of a bug bite gone bad, probably a spider bite. Her body was fighting the infection and was initially winning (that's why the swelling went way down) but eventually lost and the abscess resulted. She's on antibiotics for the weekend and we're taking her back in on Monday and the vet will decide if this is something that will require surgery to get rid of, or not. Sadie's also running a slight fever. Poor puppy. So it's wait and see until Monday. She's not going to be happy being left at home this weekend. I'll have to put my running shoes on in hiding.

Twighlight (Zone) 7 Miler

There's an old MC Escher lithograph that I kept thinking about on this evening's run. It's called Ascending and Descending (shown at right - click to enlarge). At the top of the building two groups of robed figures are walking in a circle in opposite directions on a staircase. The impossible illusion is that one of the groups looks like it is walking down the entire way - and the other group is continually walking up. Some days your legs feel great and everything on the run seems downhill. My 7 mile loop today definitely was the latter - a loop that was uphill the entire way.

I've run this route before and I like it because it has a challenging hill for the first 3 miles, which means that at some point I have to go back down to get back to my starting point. Except today felt like I was going up the entire way.

You know, I never believed my grandfather when he told us when we were all little munchkins how he had to walk 2 miles to school everyday when he was a kid and that it was uphill both ways. "Ha ha, Grandpa. That's impossible. Ha ha ha. You can't trick us Grandpa." Well, I'm here to testify that it is, in fact, possible.

In other news: I'm very very tired. More on that as details emerge.

Today: 7 miles

Hope everyone is having a wonderful week.

Scott

Hill(billy)

I think I may like this running thing. Yee-haw.

Today was my first hill specific run. My training schedule has "suggested" hills before (4-5 hill repeats 150-200 yards long at 5K pace) but I've always just gone on a regular run because I'm on hills anyway. But today I found a hill and did the repeats at a 5K pace. Since I've never run a 5K before I'm not sure what my 5K pace is, so I just tried to run fast. The hill is maybe 150 yards long and is part of a loop around one of the parks in town. I took the pups and went slow around the loop and then hard up the hill. The loop is probably 1/3 mile long, but I'm not sure. I did 5 loops and a cool-down jog on another path connecting to the park.

My legs felt good and I wanted to run more. I think this is why I've never done these hill repeats before because it's kind of a short workout. I'll see if it pays off on my long run this weekend.

Today: approx. 2 miles

I took a few photos also:

Standing at the top of the hill.
The loop goes around this park.

Shasta (left) and Sadie (right) getting
some quality water time after the run.

On the cool-down path. Yes, the
sprinkler is watering the pond...

Keep running!

Scott

My "Day After" Run

I was pretty sore and tired today - but still had my runner's high from yesterday's race. Had to be at work at 7:30am (on a Sunday!!) and by the time the workday was ending I was seriously thinking about just skipping my run because, well, because it would be the easy thing to do. And it's still pretty hot. And we had a house warming bbq to go to. But I sucked it up and squeezed in a run before we went and was of course glad that I did.

So Sadie and I headed out for a nice and easy 5 mile run on a relatively flat route. My legs felt fine after they loosened up around mile 1. This route is where I usually go on my easy days or my recovery runs. It's an out and back that alternates between asphalt and gravel, with a bit of dirt trail stuck in the middle. The photo is of a little "bridge" that makes me extremely nervous every time I run over it because it bends more than you want a bridge you're on to bend. Below it is about a five foot drop off where Sadie can climb down and take a dip and drink.

Yesterday's trail race was very exciting to me. It confirmed that I definitely prefer the trails to the road. I can't wait until I get into real shape so I can attempt a trail ultra. I hope I don't get my hopes up too high when I haven't even run a normal marathon yet. :) But hey, this time last year I wouldn't have even imagined that I'd be able to go on runs of 15 miles or do 11 mile trail races on mountains. So I'm confident that if I continue to train that by this time next year I will be able to run at least 3,000 miles across the USA. :) Okay, I admit, I think I'm still a bit delirious from yesterday....

Today: 5 miles

Rest day tomorrow - which means yard work. :(


Scott

Brundage Mountain Festival Run - Race Report

If I had to use one word to describe today's race it would be: hippopotamus. Not that hippopotamus actually relates to anything about the race...I'm just kind of delirious right now, and maybe a little dehydrated, and maybe just a little schizophrenic (but that has nothing to do with my running).

The Brundage Mountain Festival Run in McCall, Idaho. Turns out that the festival is mainly for mountain bikers and the trail run is something that's relatively new. There were hundreds of bikers and only a few dozen runners. The race is run at Brundage Mountain ski resort. Runners began at 9am and bikers began around noon, so no sharing of the trails was needed. And they let dogs run! So Sadie went along with me.

I had never run this course before and the course map at check-in had much to be desired. So I had no idea what to expect. The only two things I did know about the course was that the water station (the only one) was at the top of the mountain and that from the top is was a spectacular 4.5 mile downhill single-track to the finish line. Oh, and I also knew that the course was between 10.5 and 11.5 miles long. No one, not even the race director, was really sure of the exact length. I thought that was kind of funny. Online it says it's a 10.5 mile race on the main page, but past year results call it 11.5 miles. So I'll call it 11 for blogging purposes just to split the difference.

I started at the back of the pack with the other two runners with dogs. I was expecting the race to just start climbing up to the top of the mountain but NO, that would be too easy I found out. We started going down right off the gun and the top of the mountain, where I know I must be at some point, was getting farther and farther away. :( After a mile or so I realized that this was going to be a lot tougher race then I expected. There were no mile markers and I didn't have a great idea how far I'd been or where the course was going, so I had a lot of difficulty pacing myself and mentally preparing for the next 20 minutes, the next 40 minutes, etc. There was way more elevation gain on this course than what I'm used to running on Moscow Mt. Not as much as some of the runs I did in Colorado and New Mexico in May, but that was a long time ago in the running world. My legs were heavy early on and I wanted to blame that on my almost complete lack of sleep last night at the campground (serious wind storm and VERY loud tent neighbors) but my dad told me that most people don't sleep well before big races so I wasn't allowed to use it as an excuse. So, unfortunately, I'm not going to use that as an excuse. :)

Before the race I was joking with Jeanie that I hoped Sadie wouldn't slow me down (she always runs circles around me) but with the distance and heat I had to stop four or five times to fill up her water bowl for her. I carried 42oz in my fuel belt and also my hand held. The belt was enough for Sadie for the entire race and the hand held was enough for me with the re-fill at the top.

And it took me a while to get to the top. Basically from where we started heading back up after the downhill start it was a continual climb to the top. There were very very few downhill dips or flats to give the legs a mini-break. I walked maybe the last 15 minutes to the top. Very tired legs. It was kind of a wake-up call to me. I've been feeling so strong on the trails I run at home that I was expecting to be strong on the climbs today. But now I realize that my climbs at home are wimpy. There is a whole new world of trail running out there. So it was a good experience and showed me some things I need to work on.

The last section of downhill was much better. My legs were still pretty shot but I definitely got a second wind. And so did Sadie. We cruised by a few people and even passed a couple cold water creeks that both of us dipped in. The cool thing about running with Sadie is that it kept reminding me that even though this was a race I could still enjoy it and have some fun. Because Sadie doesn't like it when I'm too serious. :)

I crossed the finish line in 1:58:00 (they didn't give seconds). So, under 2hrs...not bad I guess. The top male finished at around 1:25:00 and the top female around 1:38:00. Out of the 30 or so runners I probably finished right smack dab in the middle. And I did get some bling-bling!! For my second race in a row I finished 3rd in my age group! (never mind there were only four in my age group...) I received a medal that I'll wear proudly to work all next week. and to bed. Oh, Sadie got 1st place in the dog division, but they didn't have a medal for her...

So there you have it. It was a tough race for me. Probably the overall toughest run I've done since I've started running. It was a great experience and I just love trail running.

Enjoy the photos:

Brundage Mountain, ID

Lacing up for the big race
(my head really isn't that big...the lighting was kind of weird)

And they're off! Pulling up the rear are Scott 'n' Sadie.

Going up, up, up...

Finish line, and still no Scott.

Why oh why am I not home watching
cartoons on a Saturday morning?

Walk of Fame.
Sadie is the lone audience member
to witness my medal ceremony.
(Yes, it was my ceremony.)


Yeah, I've always looked good
with green ribbons around my neck.

Keep running!

Scott

Re-run...run

I think I figured out why yesterday's run was so darn blah. It was because Sadie didn't go with me. Turns out she basically pulls me the entire run when she's on the leash, so yesterday was the first time I actually ran on my own with no assistance. See, I bought a couple new pairs of running shoes a few months back... ...and it turns out that those little wheels on the bottom have been helping me more than I've thought. Today I went on the exact same 6 mile route that I did yesterday, only this time Sadie came with me. (She's feeling better.) She pulls me up the hills and down the hill, well, that's been my strong point lately. This new shoes have been great. I found that they work best on those slick grocery store floors. Yep, my grocery shopping time has been cut in half. They don't work as well on the trail, though.

And of course to mess with the progress I'm making on the roads the running gods have a trail race on tap for me this weekend. Go figure. It should be a fun weekend no matter what. Well, half fun. I have to be back to work on Sunday. :(

Today: 6 miles (very hot, but cloud cover was a nice reprieve)

Off to Brundage Mountain and McCall, Idaho!

Scott

Things to Do in Pullman When You're Dead

blah...

That's what I felt like today. Simply and completely blah. Maybe it was the heat (mid 90's) or the lingering fatigue from Sunday's big run or a combination of the two. Or maybe it was that this was my first run without Sadie. Poor puppy was not feeling well and I didn't want to take her out in the heat. But I'm guessing the real reason for today's blahness was my body's way of telling me it was much happier as a couch potato. "Seriously, what's with all this running?" it kept asking me each step I took. Midway through the run I realized I didn't have a good answer. Not today, at least.

blah...

The run was a 6 mile loop that I hadn't done in a few weeks. It starts off with about a mile and a half climb followed by about 2 miles of rolling hills before it settles into relatively gradual flatness. If on yesterday's run I was "crisp," then today's run I was "toast" by the 3rd mile. After that, the only motivation to keep running was to get home faster so I didn't have to run anymore.

blah...

With that said, it turned out being one of those runs where you are ultimately glad you went on. You know, those days when you absolutely don't want to get out on the road and you make yourself do it anyway and when you get home there is almost enough satisfaction in that to overcome how terrible your body feels. Almost.

double blah...

I am happy to report that there has been absolutely no pain in my right knee these past three days. I'm hoping for a good run tomorrow and then it's off to McCall, ID for a weekend of camping and trail running. But that's if I don't decide to quit running and revisit my inner couch potato before then. :)

Today: 6 miles

Hope everyone keeps running despite my (anti-keep running?) post today.

blah blah blah

Scott

(Am I doing a decent job of being a sourpuss today or can you see right through me to my unflinching and irresistible charm?)

Easy Does It

Today was a scheduled 6 mile run. All day I told myself I was going to take the day off just to be on the safe side in response to the knee pain I had at the end of Sunday's run. After work I told myself I would just go for a short walk with the dogs. On the drive to the path I told myself I would walk for at least 2 miles. On the path I figured I might as well just run it because the knee felt fine and why do all this driving around just to go on a walk. So I ended up running a crisp 2.5 miles. That's a logical sequence, right?

Thanks for all the advice about the knee pain. It felt fine today, but I guess I really wasn't expecting it to have any pain in such a short distance anyway. I'm taking some ibuprofen and icing it and will probably take it easy all this week. I have my trail race on Saturday and I want to be sure that I'm at 100% for it. Cross my fingers that the knee won't be an issue...

My conclusion about the knee pain on Sunday is that I was just pushing it too hard on the uphills on a distance I'd never run before, especially when I was feeling so strong approaching mile 12. This is a lesson to learn from. I don't want to not run hills on my long runs, mostly because the flat routes around here are either boring or not dog-friendly, and I just really have come to like running hills. So I don't think I'll shy away from the hills completely on my long runs, but I will definitely (attempt to) pace myself better on the ups.

Today: 2.5 miles

It's getting hot again this week. I'll try to keep running though. :)

Scott


FOR FUN
The bumper sticker I received in the mail today from my father-in-law:


I showed Sadie and she immediately started licking her...well, you get the idea.

Setback??

Pain in my knee - oh no.

The temperature is a bit more reasonable this weekend. Highs in the mid 80's. No reason for old men (even cute old men) to chastise me for this running activity that I've got myself addicted to.

Saturday was my short run. I took Sadie on a back route to meet Jeanie and Shasta at the doggy play park. Pullman is a bit dog unfriendly when it comes to the city parks. We've had a couple people complain in the past about having the dogs off leash (while playing fetch or Frisbee!) in the city's leash twilight zone. The dog catcher was even called on us once. I called city hall and asked where there was a park we could take the dogs to exercise because my border collie had trouble catching a Frisbee while attached to me via leash. The nice lady on the phone told me we had to go outside the city limits. Just to exercise the dogs?!? Whatever... We found a fenced in, seldom used rugby field on the university's campus and called all our friends with dogs and we kind of take over the park once a week with a big dog party. Sometimes up to 8 or 10 dogs. So far so good... When the students come back for the fall semester we will probably have to find another park though because this is the park that the marching band practices on.

So Sadie and I ran to the park as a pre-Frisbee warm-up. My legs were super heavy and weak. Probably still feeling it from the triple digit 6 miler on Thursday. But I also think my diet is still way out of whack from my wisdom teeth surgery last week, which added to my overall feeling of fatigue. With four big holes in the back of my mouth that have to be rinsed out after I eat anything I think that I've been not eating as many times throughout the day (my granola bar and fruit snack attacks) for convenience. So yesterday after the run I made sure I ate as normally as I could.

Today was my long run for the week and I felt much better...at first. It was a scheduled 15 miler (my longest ever) and I choose to veer away from the flat Chipman Trail where I did my last long run and head to the hilly wheat fields where it's simply more relaxing, scenic, and solitary. The route covered paved roads, gravel roads, and some dirt roads. The only thing I was missing was a dip in the river. I felt very strong for the first 12 miles. Very strong. I was attacking the hills and felt like I was keeping a nice steady pace.

Mile 12 to 13 was a bit of a struggle. This section had a few hills that I could only walk up. At around mile 13 I started feeling a pain in my knee. The same pain I had about 3 months back when I decided to take 2 weeks off to rest it. I slowed my pace considerably, hoping that would help. But it didn't. I walked a bit and then tried to run maybe a 1/4 mile, but the knee was not feeling good. If I absolutely had to I could have run through it (like if I was being chased by a killer sloth) but I didn't see any point in trying to push through it. So the last 2 miles were mostly a brisk walk. It's funny because a couple times I tried to jog at the same pace I was walking and the pain returned. But walking it felt fine. I'm not sure what that means. I have no pain sitting here right now, but I'm sure if I went out and tried to run it would flare up.

This is frustrating because I'm a little nervous this may be something that may not go away as quickly as I'd like. Rest day tomorrow and then I'll see how the knee is feeling on Tuesday.

I've been following my training schedule almost on cue in terms of miles per week. Last week because of my surgery I ran about 5 miles less than called for. So I don't think I'm over training. Maybe it's just a little thing that won't be there on my next run... We'll see.

Oh, and I ran out of water. I'm carrying 42 oz. with my fuel belt but it wasn't enough for me and Sadie. Pretty soon I'll start running with milk jugs full of water.

Saturday - 3.5 miles
Sunday - 15 miles

PHOTO 1 - a taste of wheat and hills
PHOTO 2 - Sadie thinks I'm scared of that hill...

Keep running!

Scott

Say Hello to Summer

"Hello summer."

---

Hope everyone had a fun and safe holiday. We had a great time visiting friends and eating way too much.

A heat wave is sweeping across the Northwest. Yesterday morning we went on a 4th of July family jog/hike. Jeanie and the pups came along. It was a nice and easy 3.5 mile trip. At 9.am the temperature was about as hot as it's been all year. By early afternoon it was in the 90's. Very hot for Pullman. We spent the afternoon and evening down in the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley for BBQ and fireworks on the river. BBQ - thumbs up. Fireworks - thumbs down.

Since I had today off as well, I thought I'd take a little drive to try a new run at Boyer Park on the Snake River. This is where we often go when we "go to the river," but I had never ran on the bike path before. Another reason I wanted to go here today was because temperatures were forecast to hit 100 degrees and the Snake is always so nice and cold. Too cold unless it's at least in the 90's. And the location isn't so close that I would make the drive often with gas prices where they are. But hey, I had the day off and it's summer, right?

Just as I started my run an old man carrying a fishing pole and tackle box looked at me and Sadie and literally stopped walking to tell me as I ran by, "Son, it's too hot today for that activity." And he didn't say it as a comment or friendly advice. He really seemed to have expected me to stop running. Like it was an order or something. I smiled, but not too big because I wanted to conserve as much energy as I could because it really was too hot to be doing this kind of activity.

The path (the Snake River Trail) is very flat and stretches for about 3 - 3.5 miles. Mapmyrun.com says it's 3 miles. But all the park websites say it's 3.5 miles. So I'll just call my out and back 6 miles to be on the conservative side. HOT HOT HOT - but since it runs along the river Sadie was able to jump in to take a quick soak anytime she wanted to - which was often. As hot as it was the run was quite enjoyable. As you can see from the photos the landscape is pretty spectacular. And it's definitely one of those times where a camera phone can't even come close to capturing the feel of the scenery.

After the run Sadie and I jumped into the river for a swim. (Have I mentioned how hot it was today?) The water was the perfect remedy for the heat. The kind of cold where you would dare someone to jump in. Of course, this is coming from a Texan who is used to swimming in rivers with temperatures near boiling. :)

All and all a good summer day.

Photo 1: Looking southeast
Photo 2: Looking northwest
Photo 3: Snake River from the road above
Photo 4: 102 degrees!!!!! (isn't that guy kinda sexy?)

Off day tomorrow. It is supposed to cool down a bit this weekend. I hope so.

Keep running!

Scott

Heavy Legs, Light Head... and Macaroni & Cheese!

I'm off my pain meds and I feel a lot better. I ate macaroni and cheese last night and it was so exciting to have something other than liquid. (I can't overemphasize how excited I was.) Jaw is still sore so may not be eating corn on the cob for the 4th bbq tomorrow. Burger in a Blender sounds good, though. :)

Since I was feeling so proud of myself to be off the meds and eating mac and cheese I decided I must feel plenty wonderful enough to go for a run this morning. So I went to my Headwaters Trail loop. I thought it would be a good day to bring Shasta also, since I knew I wouldn't be breaking any speed records. I felt really good considering I've been drugged up for the good part of the last week. My legs were a bit heavy and I got a little light-headed at the start but felt fine after I walked a bit. The heat wave has finally reached the Northwest and poor Shasta and Sadie were soaking up all the sun with their black coats, even at 9am. Temps are forecast to hit 100 on Thursday!

I had my first funniest home videos quality fall toward the end of my run. My legs were feeling heavy and I caught a root on a downhill. I thought I could right myself before eating dirt but - no. Big thud on my right shoulder and a five second barrel roll down the trail. Sadie and Shasta were just annoyed that they had to stop. Where's the love?

Notably bad movies I watched while drugged up:

The Libertine
Mongolian Ping Pong
As Good As It Gets
Seraphim Falls

I would like to note that I watched As Good As It Gets a few years ago and enjoyed it, so don't take these reviews to heart because the medication made it awfully hard for me to see and think straight.

I'm excited to be back on schedule. I have a trail race next weekend and I can't wait.

Keep running!

Scott

The Age Without Widsom (oh, I mean Wisdom)

I've been watching a lot of movies the past few days. Some really good ones, I hear. Four and a half stars even for some of them. One or two Academy Awards winners. A lot of actors I really like. Most of the time I am open minded about movies. If they're horrible I'll often say I like them for art's sake, even. But these last couple days I have been the most bitter and cynical movie critic ever. I wasn't happy with any of the movies. They did nothing for me!!! And I want movies to do something for me!!! I found myself wishing I was getting my wisdom teeth pulled instead of having to sit and watch them. Eh, maybe that's just the drugs....

So my teeth were pulled on Thursday and the giant holes finally stopped bleeding by Saturday morning. Other than that everything's been just jolly. (dry heave) Actually, everything has been going better than I pessimistically anticipated. Still a lot of pain in my jaw, though. And because it hurts too much to smile I crafted a nice piece of facial art to act as my interim-smile. All I do is flash it when I'm happy!

I have a photo of most of the pieces that used to be my four wisdom teeth. I guess one of them was at such an awkward angle that they basically had to cut it into a bunch of small pieces that weren't worth putting in my little to-go bag. :( Oh how I miss being smart.

I think I'll be okay to get back into my running shoes by the middle of the week. Hopefully Tuesday.

Scott