April showers

It is said that April showers bring may flowers; hopefully so. Right now, it puts a damper on some activities.

Saturday agenda-race!

I had to use a general description because, once again, my dream has come true in regards to selection of events. This was much of what was in store:

1. race the lakes
2. Kentucky derby marathon
3. country music marathon
4. rayz awareness 5k
5. Dagny Johnson 5k
6. alpha omega track meet
7. meek & mighty super sprint tri
8. big cardio 5k

Check out how I narrowed this down to 1. Since I have done a sufficient number of distance races thus far, scratch #2 & #3. On top of that, both were out of the state, which would be financially debilitating. #1, #4 & #5 were out of my normal travel range. They tempted because #1 brought back memories. While trying to please my girlfriend (wanted to visit her friend near the panhandle), I had to have some satisfaction of racing. I enjoyed the 15k challenge (run a 10k first, changed then ran the 5k) and despite the awards screw up, I placed in all & got nice trophies. I actually planned on it again until I put it on mapquest & saw the distance (over 4 hours). I did enough travelling thus far & have other events that may require this upcoming. Plus, Jon W would probably race that (RRCA championship race) prior to picking up his award as 2009 master of the year, possibly bumping me out of contention. The last thing I want to do is go far for nothing! #4 would be my first but I rarely travel far by myself just for a 5k. It would have to have some great significance & this did not. #5 was the only 1 south of me & although in range, lack of awards=lack of interest. #6 is the middle school south region championships; aint been in that grade since wooooo!!! #7 also brought back memories. It is a part of the St. Anthony's triathlon weekend & the first tri I ever completing having actually to swim! Remarkably, except for my inaugural, I placed twice there; I AM a triathlete! However, due to lack of swim training & using the been there, done that rule, in addition to the distance to get there, I passed on the meek & mighty super sprint triathlon this year. Therefore, time to repeat, not in position or time, but rather the race (#8) itself.

The cardio 5k was followed by several events & was designed toward families. Since I have none, I left after the award ceremonies to tend to other matters. According to their schedule, the following activities took place after the 5k: big cardio class (aerobics), boot camp, kidfit class, kid zone, basketball tournament (my brother might have liked that), team obstacle course & tug-o-war. The fitness expo was a joke (nothing to write home about) but technically, was available. The course moved from tradewinds to an all new park (central broward regional) that my GPS couldn't even find. It made it interesting because it was a 3 loop course, what I call a time killer (I usually fail to break 19 under such conditions). This proved to be the case, in addition to the fact that, minus Jon, some of the best masters showed up. With only 1 title, I fell to age group but luckily, on top. However, no matter how you placed (even overall), everybody got medals. For non meat eaters, average amenities with no junk; couldn't fault them since it was health related but still. Others got chil-fil-a. Barring no conflict, I'd consider the 3rd annual.

Sunday agenda-race!

Still dreaming. Although more diverse, less events:

1. St. Anthony's triathlon
2. sheROX tri
3. trail events
4. bike Miami
5. give a life 5k
6. Daniella journey by the sea 5k

Eliminate #2 because that's for women only. #3 sparked interest. They will host a 5k walk, 10k run & half marathon; you may only choose one. So far I have never done a trail event but with so many normal ones I like, gotta keep on moving. Except for a finishers medal for the half, the lack of categories & awards were a big turn off. #1 brought back memories, good, bad & ugly. The good-I was there 3 times, & competed on both days. The bad-2 times, the team lost & my first 'real' tri, I didn't place. The ugly-the first & last time involved members that quit. The great memories were the aforementioned regarding yours truly & the last one I was in, the team placed! I 'retired' from it after the double victory (complete turn around from the first time). Bike Miami is not a race, but rather, a family ride event. #5 qualified under been there, done that rule (#6) & had more categories (top 3 master) but since it was in palm beach county, I decided to pick a closer race. So, once again, time to repeat!

Nobody can accuse me of avoiding 'big' races & be telling the truth. This one had more than yesterday & both races drew about 500 finishers. Although I was familiar with the course & it was totally flat, the extreme wind was the diminishing factor, not so much the heat. Going out (north) was with the wind & allowed me to break 6 at mile 1 but after the turn around, the head wind killed any chance of breaking 19. Despite a more concerted effort, my time & position was worse, but yet I felt fortunate due to the high quality field. I was pleased to make the dirty dozen in the process. Except for overall, all those who placed got medals. Post race was 3 1/2 stars, with massage available & raffles; I didn't win.

Monday agenda-birthday!

No, mine was 2 weeks ago but my dad. Like me, he remains in the same age category. Have a happy one, pops!

Well, no April showers this weekend and the final event of the month will be on Thursday, the ever so popular & populated corporate run in my county. See you there!

Taxing times

Taxing times are here as today marked the deadline to file. Hope you were on time with, unlike me with this blog. The darn internet took so long to boot up that I almost missed the midnight cutoff; thank God this wasn't an ironman!

Thursday agenda-1040k

A rare weeknight occurred but is in occasion in theme as it is tax deadline day. I am not fond of racing at night but by the same token, rarely turn down a race. It was a bit taxing because it is typically hot & humid around 6:30. This year, cloud cover alleviated some of that but unfortunately, the wind became a factor. Both a 5k & 10k is held & usually the better runners elect the latter; not this year. To both my surprise & dismay, top athletes took the shorter distance. Elite triathlete Elliot Mason won as expected,edging out elite runner Bryan Sharkey. I never heard of the 3rd overall guy but Todd will earn a name for himself if he continues to run in the 16's like that. Teammates Jon W (4th) & Spencer W (5th) represented runner's depot well. Since no master title was offered, I got bumped to 2nd in my age group. Amenities was 3 1/2 stars, very good. Raffle offered if you paid. Custom generic (no categories mentioned) medals were given to overall 3 & top 3 in age groups. This was my 1st victory as a 44 year old!

Friday was the calm between the storm (races).

Saturday agenda-race

Marked as earth day, several events were scheduled (a record number), my dream! The nightmare is that I have to pick one & hope that I made the best decision. Just look at what I had to choose from:
1. Aids walk Miami (not a race)- a good cause race
2. climb Miami- fun but will never take precedence over a run
3. sickle cell 5k- another good cause race
4. run to remember 5k
5. earth day 5k (broward)
6. earth day 5k & 12k (Clermont)
7. bike MS- day 1 (to the keys)- a ride for a good cause
8. swim Miami
9. seven mile bridge

Trivia: Guess what Jon & I had in common this day? (answer at conclusion)

I was able to easily cut the number in half. #8 is dedicated for swimmers, #7 is dedicated for cyclists, #1 is not a race & #2 is not designed for runners. #9 requires a tedious process to enter, pretty much requiring connections & in my opinion, is really overrated; there were plenty of races to choose from & better chances for success for me while those who like that event are occupied. #3 was cancelled without advance notice, which forced me to scramble to a race close enough to register at the last minute & run. Yes, I arrived at the site & deciphered the hard way that the race was not on based on my 19 years of experience. There are certain element that are always present, that when not seen, prove that, ' Houston, we have a problem'! Obviously, #6 was out & since I didn't research #4 (I didn't know where it was or when it starts), the last option was #5. Praise the Lord, I made it in time; all those challenges finally paid off.

Although the course was a 2 loop twisty one & the presence of wind was evident, I managed to pull off both a good time & position. I worked hard to advance from 6th to 3rd past a great runner, only to be humiliated with a trophy smaller than one for the master winner I beat! I chose honor over (trophy) size. Besides, I couldn't risk being dumped to age group if there were no master title like the cpa race. This was my best race position as a 44 year old. The age groupers got medals. This had the worst post race ever, 1 star. I almost gave it none but the fact that food & drink was available, even though for sale, is better than no refreshments at all.

Sunday agenda-race

Still a sufficient number of events to do but much easier to decide:

1. bike MS- day 2 (from the keys)- a ride for a good cause
2. FAU triathlon
3. let my people run 5k

The first one was already in progress, plus not even a race, so scratch that; later, I heard the ride back was cancelled due to inclement weather. Since I don't swim & did not get a swimmer for a relay, this event I shall not race. However, I have many friends doing it, compelling me to visit for support, after I take care of yours truly.

This race supports the title of this blog as it was a low quantity, high quality race. Just as the previous day, the top 6 were masters, but unlike that day, I was not in that number; a 17 yr broke the chain. Although cool & less windy, I struggled to get through the race. I think some of motivation left when I noticed all the top slots were filled; all those masters broke 18. With only 1 master title, I got bumped to 2nd despite a top 10 performance! Luckily, I didn't lose out all that much since everyone got medals. Post race was good, at least 3 stars. No raffle but had massage available. Jon W won over Luiz S despite the longer run previously.

Afterwards, I kept my promise & congratulated all those who expected to see at the wellness triathlon. However, prior to that, a did a 5k penalty training run among my fellow triathletes. Good job Inga, Joy, Shannon & Nick!

Monday agenda-Boston marathon

Happy patriot's day. Unfortunately, I shall be just a spectator like most but good luck to all those participating. I can proudly say, 'been there, done that' but by the same token, I want to do it again. Extra special wishes to Renee & Spencer.

Answer: we both were 3rd overall in our respective races; he did the 7 miler.

44

It's my birthday! I am now a senior in the 40-44 age category. I thank the Lord for my birthday gift-a long awaited (2 year drought) overall win! However, God is good all the time; the fact that I can compete with a high percentage of success is a testament to that.

Win, lose & draw!

Win, lose & draw! That's what I'll deem the turn of events of this weekend. Of note, there were a smorgasberg of events to do, my dream (win)! Sadly, I could only pick 1 per day (lose) & draw through the selections to make the best decision.

Saturday agenda-win!

Initially, I wanted to do a double header but this would not be because #1, kids in distress race (race 2) was moved to a different date and the first race was delayed over a half hour. The races I had to pass on were:
1. bull run 10k
2. rooney 5k
3. pines 5k

Lots of amenities, including tickets to a boxing event on same night designed to raise funds toward Haiti, in which I took my dad because he's always been a fan of that, plus told me he had never watched live in person. I, too, had not, plus have never been inside the bank atlantic center (except the bathroom) for any event.

Sunday agenda-lose

Oops, I gave away the outcome before the synopsis but I had to in order to keep with the theme of this blog entry. I chose to be a part of the sold out Nautica triathlon, which also is my first tri relay of the year. Much like MIT of last year, the team failed to place, also making for the 1st multisport team loss of the year; uggh! I passed on the following running events to do this one:
1. pal 5k
2. green turtle gallop 10k
3. pill box pines 5k

Amazingly, I don't regret this decision because I posted the fastest run split of all the Olympic relays & my fastest 10k of the year! However, it means nothing if the team doesn't place except that I did my job. Fortunately, there were finisher medals so I still got some hardware. It was a windy day but the clouds helped to keep it cool out, allowing for the good performance. I would have been faster had it not been for the narrow, twisty broadwalk paths, race & tourist foot traffic, the wind & the sand stretch at the finish but I had to deal with it.

Draw=although a loss can offset a victory, in this case, no because the loss was not a individual one. I did my part well despite an insurmountable deficit. I was happy I was able to those events. Congrats to all participants.

Easter '10

Happy Easter, everybody! Yesterday was good Friday. I had to come to terms with that because putting Jesus up on a cross to die seems far from good but with that action, he bore our sins. Tomorrow commemorates his resurrection, in essence, born again. An Easter bunny that lays eggs is still beyond me but thru thorough analysis, I interpret digging up eggs as similar to the rise of our Lord & saviour. However, I am not a minister; go to church for the proper interpretation.

Friday agenda-5k

A prelude to the main event was held on good Friday, 6:30 at night. I passed on it for the following reasons:
1. time factor-I would have to drive from Coral Gables to Pembroke Pines through rush hour traffic leaving at an undetermined hour; the chances were not in my favor.
2. cheezy medal-last time, generic with sticker-no info other than name who sponsors the run
3. categories-usually, no overall or master
4. price-too much for too little, plus the gas to get there

Last time I did it was for the purpose of a series. FYI- I was the 1st & last to win the overall title.

Saturday agenda-race

Only thing worse than a one race weekend is none at all, so I'll deal with it. I had to choose between two of my favorites: run like a bunny 5k & the egg hunt duathlon. I chose the latter because of the following:

1. my first multisport event of the year
2. part of a series (FFW)
3. memories (the last time I raced here was with my eternal partner Jolie as part of a relay)


The new format presented challenges that were not in my favor. For starters, the elite division I raced under for years was eliminated. No overall or master titles were given. The rest had to do with me; I had been sick for a couple of weeks, compelling me to curtail training. This did come to play on the final leg but luckily didn't affect my age group position. Other than wind, the weather was comfortable, not cold, not hot, particularly at the start. I ran the first leg conservatively in order to conserve strength for the remainder of the event. This was a wise decision as I had one of my best rides despite the multiple loop course (2x outer & inner) in which us speedsters have to dodge the slower athletes while complying with USAT rules. It was due to that that I did not make my goal of 21 or better average, but fortunately, I fell short by only a split second. I was rusty in transition so I have some work to do there. The final run is normally my strength but the lack of conditioning due to illness affected my performance negatively. The top female caught up to me & we paced each other until the near end, where my patented master kick propelled me to victory; no woman beat me. We both made the top ten, & I am not talking percent. If you remove the top 3, I was the overall master, but since no prestigious titles were offered, I was 2nd in my age group. This will be my current standing in the series as well since this was the first race. I hope to retain or improve this as the series plays out. I was happy that most the sponsors were retained, make for great post race refreshments & giveaways. Noticeably missing for me was the 'got milk' cow & booth, as well as the boca burgers for us vegetarians.

Sunday agenda-Easter!

No local races but I was informed of 2 up in the panhandle. Considering all circumstances, I opted for training. Since the du tackled 2 disciplines, I decided to rest from running & change up in regards to cycling. I pulled out my recumbent & rode a little over 16 miles within an hour then did something rare-rest! This will be short lived as there many races upcoming for this month; no rest for the weary.

Honorable mention

* George wins age group both Fri (5k) & today
* Gene competes at run like a bunny but came up short;sorry
* Teammate Spencer got 2nd overall at the Fri 5k
* Teammate Allan N place in tri