2015 Rodeo Run 10K Recap

It was a cold morning and I felt a little underdressed in a singlet and arm warmers, but I was planning to give the best race effort I could give on this day. I arrived at the start line just a few minutes before the start gun. I studied my splits from last year to see how I could improve them. I decided my race strategy would be to stay under a 7:30 minute/mile to save enough for a strong second half. The strategy worked out perfectly:

Split Pace
1 - 6:44
2 - 7:28
3 - 7:10
4 - 7:20
5 - 7:12
6 - 7:11
7 - 6:29

Finish: 00:45:20

Despite having breathing problems due to congestion and forgetting to take the single energy gel that I carried, I beat my former PR by over two minutes!

2015 R&B Half Marathon Recap

It felt like I had to work harder than I did in the race just two weeks ago, but I ended up within a minute of that finish time. I stayed with a fellow RHC runner for more than half the race and it was thanks to him that I stayed on my target pace. It's amazing to feel like this is the "new normal" for my half marathon times. I took a look back at all of my race journal entries and it reminded me of how far I've come. It's hard to believe that I've been running for a decade now, but I feel as strong as ever.

2015 Fort Bend Kia Half Marathon Recap

It had been less than 24 hours since getting back from our trip to San Francisco. I hadn't run much in the last two weeks and the lingering soreness in my right calf reminded me that I was still recovering from the Houston marathon. I was determined to take what the day gave me and despite the slightly warmer weather and I walked away with a new half marathon PR.

It's a small enough race where I didn't have to deal with much congestion at the start. I was at race pace immediately, posting sub-8 splits for the first 4 miles. I had a few miles in the middle in the low 8s before picking back up for a strong negative split. I felt strong throughout and wanted to leave enough in the tank to push hard to the finish. With 2 miles left to go, I decided it was time to drop the hammer and go for it. I finished 7th in my age group with a time of 1:43:59, almost 3 minutes faster than my previous best a couple of years ago.

It's not all about the time, but it sure is nice to celebrate a little milestone. It's like having icing on an already delicious cake.

2015 Chevron Houston Marathon Recap

This could have been the year. At least that's how I felt all season. I felt good about my training. I had done the miles. I had done the speed work. All that was left was to stay healthy and rested. Even taper week went well. I made sure I got plenty of sleep. I did everything I could do to set myself up for a good race. I know this is starting to sound like I had a miserable race, but it was far from that.

Here's what didn't go so well for me:

- Race Strategy. This was more of a mixed bag than a total negative, but until it totally works I'll have to continue tweaking this. The plan was to hit the first mile split with a 9:30, then speed up until I was within my target range of 8:45-8:55. I was nailing my target splits for the first 15 miles or so, but then I started noticing my splits slipping after that. I would work my way back into range, but the legs started feeling progressively heavier as I went on.

- Leg Cramps. I'm not sure if the salt capsules really helped me this year. I was right on schedule every hour, but I still ended up with cramps at the end. I'm not sure if the salt delayed the cramps or not, but I did feel confident enough to continue running as the threat of the cramps loomed heavy in my muscles. I began to feel the start of the cramps after mile 20. I didn't go into full on muscle lock until after I gassed the last mile and sprinted through the finish line. The research on muscle cramps have been so conflicting of late. I can't attribute all of it to nutrition. Maybe I just need more mileage in my training.

And here's everything that went well for me:

+ Nutrition Reference. This was the first time I made notes on where to expect the fluid stations and when to take my energy gels and salt capsules. I found it extremely useful to take the guess work out of the nutrition mid-race.

+ NO chafing! I managed to discover the perfect amount of Aquaphor to apply on my feet and other "sensitive" areas.

+ NO blisters! I guess this goes with the one above, but my feet really felt great all day. The combination of shoes (Saucony Hurricane) + socks (Balega) + lube (Aquaphor) was perfect.

+ NO injuries! No major issues with my joints. I was very concerned with my hips (mostly my right) which have been bothering me this season.

+ NO quitting! I was very happy with the effort I gave. I kept pushing when my legs were at the verge of cramping. I was determined to push and finish with everything I had and I regret nothing.


Another successful race in the books and with so much more to look forward to.

2014 Quick Race Recap

2014 Brazos Bend 50 Miler (12:04:22) - This race was full of rough patches. The last ten felt like a brutal death march in the dark, but at least I wasn't alone.

2014 Texas Trails Endurance Run 50K (06:55:59) - In full pursuit of the mythical hoodie, I had a great time running the Huntsville trails with a running friend.

2014 HMSA 25K (02:20:58) - I approached this race with the same strategy. I wanted to really dial in the marathon pace. It was also a back to back run after the club's 16 miler.

2014 Alaina Dixon 5 Miler (00:42:27) - This was a fun club sponsored race for a very good cause. I tried to run this close to my marathon pace instead of giving a race effort.

2014 Cap'n Karl's Colorado Bend 30K (04:51:58) - This was a super fun night trail race north of Austin in the middle of the summer. It was a beautiful and challenging trail and I would totally do it again.

2014 Freedom 5K (00:21:09) - This may have been the surprise running highlight of the year. Not only did I achieve a new 5K PR, but I won my age group prize (presented by Bart Yasso himself!). All this while on vacation in the Portland area. I ran in all the wrong gear and ate all the wrong things, but I was flying out there.

2014 Brazos Bend 50K (05:49:47) - Course PR and distance PR thanks to a flat course. That heat though...

2014 Texas Independence Relay (26:44:26) - Another stellar year with the best relay team around.

2014 ROC Race - This was a fun obstacle race with a lot of soap and not much running.

2014 Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Half Marathon (01:49:33) - I don't remember much.

2014 Rodeo Run 10K (00:47:35) - This was my second time running this fun 10K. I bested last year's PR by a whopping 24 seconds!