Durbin Classic

My left foot has been bothering me all week, but yesterday I decided to test it and test my speed.  Jess, Chuck, and I met Jonathon and Ian for the Durbin Classic 5k.  It was about 34 degrees with a slight breeze from the south which just made it feel colder.  I had noticed in the past that the winning times for the 5k were just faster than 20 minutes, so I had planned to run somewhere around 21 - 21:30 and come in the top 3 or 4.

What pre-race jitters?

I made my way to the front of the group and started right behind a group of guys and about 10 kids under the age of 15.  I figured out right away, with the race being for the benefit of the Durbin Elementary School, that these kids were going to go out hard and have fun.  And I was right.  Gotta give them credit - many of them stayed up there for the first half to 3/4 miles.

About that time, four of us guys took off.  The race had both a 5k and 10k and I had no idea who was running which race.  The overall leader took off - he must have been running just over 6 minute mile pace.  After a mile or so, I made my way up to second place after running the first mile in 6:26.  Then the breeze kicked me.

My second mile dropped to almost 6:40 and I was sucking that cold air hard.  Just after the second mile marker, someone passed me and I could tell another guy was on his way.  That was about the time I could see the school and the race finish in the distance and it set in that nobody else was going to pass me.

I kept the second place guy in my sights and then made my move in the last quarter mile.  With just a couple hundred meters to go, I passed him and strided out to the finish.  It was at that point that I found out the guy who was in overall first was running the 10k - which meant I had just won the 5k in 20:27!

Striding hard to the finish

I went back to the course and cheered everyone else along.  I saw Jess and Chuck coming down the road.  I ran with Jess the last little bit, and while trying to provide inspiration to help her to the finish line, she essentially told me off.  She told me she had nothing left in the tank.  However, what she didn't know until later was that she had ran some of that second mile at a pace faster than she has done before (thanks Chuck!) so it made sense.  When all was said and done, she had actually ran a new PR in a time of 31:54!

Jess and me after the race

Not too bad for either of us, considering we only got about 5.5 hours of sleep after staying up for the entire IU game the night before.

Left, right, repeat

Damn Ankle

This has been a pissy week for me.  Last Thursday, I woke early and nailed 2 mile repeats.  Completely kicked my butt, but felt good.  After work, I met Jess and we did a "Brew Mile".  Think about it - for $5 you get to participate in a 1 mile run / walk and then afterwards get a free beer!  A pure genius came up with this idea!  Maybe someone can come up with a 2 mile fun run and you would get TWO beers afterwards.  Or maybe....

Anyway, I didn't run Friday but Jess and I hit the gym on Saturday.  I struggled through 4 easy miles.  My left ankle felt weak and sore on the outside by the ankle joint.  I spent the afternoon icing it and relaxing.

Due to a busy week, and wanting to play it safe, I took a few days off.  Outside of getting my 10,000 daily steps (damn Fitbit...) and volleyball on Tuesday, I did nothing.  It was somewhat glorious, but I also felt very lazy and anxious.

Thursday finally rolled around, and we hit the gym.  I tested it with just over 3 easy miles.  A little sore, but maybe I was just being overly nervous and careful due to not wanting to make it worse.  Regardless, I got through it, no issues afterwards, and have been nursing it all day today.

Tomorrow, Jess and I have a 5k with many of our friends.  That will be the real test.  I plan to do some easy jogging warm up to get it ready and then see what it can do.  I am shooting for somewhere around 21 or 21:30 tomorrow so we'll see how it goes.

Oh, also over the last week I have done Pilates twice with Jess at gym - once Sunday, and once this morning.  My abs have hurt from both days!  We'll see how that factors into tomorrow's adventure.

Left, right, repeat

Welcome to 2016's Goals

Happy New Years! It's difficult to believe that 2016 is already here. My wife and I were talking tonight how quickly the last month has gone, but in reality, the entire year has been a blur. 2015 was simply a great year. From a family standpoint, we made so many memories throughout the year that we all will remember. From a running perspective, it was also a fantastic year. I ran three half marathons in one month, ran a few 5k's (one with all of my family and others helping my wife to her PR), and finished another marathon. Benjamin Franklin said "If you fail to plan then plan to fail". Or at least I think it was Franklin. Maybe he said "Don't always believe what you read on the internet". Regardless of who said it, the statement is true. So with that mind, I have come up with some goals for my running: 1) The year's Indy Mini (#indymini) will be my fastest one yet. Not fastest half marathon, but fastest Indy Mini. I think due to the crowd, and the excitement, it just takes longer to dodge people compared to smaller half marathons that I have done. So, my goal for the Indy Mini is to be under 1:36:42. 2) Help my wife get under 30 minutes for a 5k. She has cut close to 2 minutes off each of her last two races and if she does that again, she has this goal. I think with her training using hills and speed, that this goal will be crossed off early in the year and an even faster goal made for the second part of the year. 3) Run another family 5k. No PR here - well maybe Ella and Jess can go after a PR for Ella, but Annabell and I will just want to finish. 4) A Boston Marathon qualifying time in December for me. I am looking at the St Jude's marathon in Memphis. If my calculations are correct, that would be a time frame for the 2018 marathon at which time I would be 40 years old. The qualifying time for a 40 year old is 3:15:00. I think on the right course with the proper training, I should be able to do that. I had the training down for West Palm a couple years ago - just got to keep the focus in October and early November! That's it - for now. We'll revisit the goals in a couple months to see how they are coming along. Until then, it's just left, right, repeat!

Is Winter Over Yet?

Winter makes me lazy.  It gets dark so early, and is cold, and windy, and is discouraging.  I blame my laziness on winter.  I realized I have not blogged in almost a month.  Laziness (aka winter) is the only reason I can think of that's caused the delay. 

That being said, December has been a great month.  We had the girls for a majority of the time and it's been awesome having them around so much without work or other interferences.  We have done "good deeds" with them including writing holiday cards to wounded soldiers and volunteering at the local food pantry. Jess and I were also able to get away for a weekend at Oakwood Resort in Syracuse, Indiana.  It's this little resort on a lake that's about 2.5 hours away.  You would think a place like that wouldn't be much fun in the dead of winter, but we love this place because it is so quiet and peaceful. It's a great escape from all the hassles of life where you can simply rest and recharge.  This month, we also had our annual family Christmas party at our house.  This day, where my parents and my in-laws come over, is one of my favorite days of the year.  And it always amazes me how it takes over a month to plan for this day (and the holidays in general) yet the time when they are here goes by so quickly. 

However, not all of December has been lazy.  Jess and I ran our first Christmas 5k on Christmas day.  It benefited the Indiana School for the Deaf and is truly the only 5k ran on Christmas Day in Indiana.  Jess set a new PR busting almost 2 full minutes off her previous best!  It has really opened her eyes as to what she may be able to accomplish with a legitimate focus on training.  Tonight she impressed me again by doing some speed and hills on her treadmill workout.  It's also made me get a little more focused on my goals.  I realized that it appears I will end the year with about 750 miles of running.  Next year, my goal is at least 1,000 miles.  In theory it doesn't seem that difficult - just about 5 miles more per week than what I did this year.  But that's the goal - it's on the internet now so there is no going back. 

Here's to a successful 2016!

New Beaver Twilight 5k

Yesterday marked a big event - the first time all members of the Robinson clan received medals for completing a race.  We did the New Beaver Twilight 5k in Noblesville with Ella and Jess running the whole thing while I pushed Annabell in the running stroller awhile, and then letting her run when she felt like it.  We all finished around 42 minutes (PR's for both girls) and we all got finisher trophies.  I think the girls enjoyed running their first competitive 5k, although I feel they may have liked the post-race pizza and cookies even more.  Can't say I blame them though ... cookies are the best part of the race!

Couldn't have been prouder of my three pretty ladies!