Tag Archives: Dare 5K

Splints Happen

Posted on August 20, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I tried writing about the DARE 5K today, but I did not finish that post. I had originally thought I wouldn’t bother writing it anyways. My original intention had been to run after work and write a regular running commentary.

Well, I had a problem with that. I think I’ve got a shin splint. My friend at work who used to coach high school athletics advised me not to run on it, which is what I was thinking was part of what you do for a shin splint. The other thing I thought to do was to wear these rubbery things they gave me when I was in the army and had shin splints, kind of like really tight leg warmers but not nearly as styling.

So I did not run today and I’m kind of depressed about it. I managed to keep the rubbery things on till after work, which is more than I recall doing in the army (they are NOT comfortable). After dinner I went for a nice, gentle walk with my husband and my dog, so I will attempt a pedestrian post rather than resort to a Tired Tuesday.

It was a bright and sunny day, but we started out around 5:30, so I thought there would be plenty of shade. I wore my crazy old lady hat but did not put on shorts. Tabby wanted to cross the street and walk down the opposite side from where we usually walk, so right away we had a different perspective. Sometimes these little changes can raise the spirits.

We walked down to Church Street then over to our favorite Historic Four Corners at Church and Main. We walked back up Main, crossed German then continued up Main to Weber and over to the nice path over what used to be a hydraulic canal (although I always thought it was a drainage ditch). I have mentioned this path before. It is a favorite place of mine to walk or run.

It was quite warm in the sun, so we were sticking to the shady side of the street. The first two legs of the path were not particularly shady, but we enjoyed the scenery. Back in a residential area, we looked at other people’s houses and rated their porches for sitability (my computer seems to think sitability is not a word, but it is exactly what I mean). One thing I love is sitting on a porch or deck. I feel fortunate that my house has one of each.

By the time we finished our walk I was feeling a little too warm, but I didn’t mind. I could still feel fall in the air, and I love fall. It’ll soon be my favorite temperature to run in after work. I sure hope my shin splint is better by then.

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Confessions of a Bad Blogger

Posted on August 19, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I blew through a red light this morning. It was a really boneheaded thing to do. I was looking ahead at the next light, thinking how I would be hitting that one red, and I completely forgot about the one I was approaching. I saw that it was red as I reached it. I could perhaps have slammed on my breaks at that point, making an unpleasant squealing noise with my tires and causing my bags to tumble off the seat. I did not react quickly enough. I just breezed through, much to the disgust, I am sure, of the motorists waiting sedately and legally to proceed in the opposite direction.

My question now is: Is this worthy of a blog post? And if I deem it unworthy, is that merely because of my reluctance to broadcast that I am an even worse driver than I am a blogger (after all, I have never done anything illegal in my blog)? Next I begin to wonder if this is half-baked philosophy more fit for Lame Post Friday or is it a legitimate Monday Middle-aged Musing?

Welcome to my life.

I bet my readers are now divided into two distinct groups. One group is saying, “Hey! I thought she was going to write about the DARE 5K!” The other group is saying, “Well, at least she isn’t still writing about that DARE 5K.” Still another group has by now stopped reading. We need not concern ourselves with that group.

Full disclosure: My husband Steven suggested that headline for an entirely different post. I did not use it then, but I thought it was too good to waste.

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Can’t Write After That Run

Posted on August 17, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I know, I should have had Saturday Running Commentary today. After all, I’ve been blathering on and on about the DARE 5K and it was run, wait for it, this morning. I was even thinking as I ran what a great post it was going to make. Well, it isn’t going to make one today.

I have a party to go to. Oh don’t start in with the, “What’s more important, a party or your writing?” What’s important right now is that I don’t have time to take a nap. I tried, oh I tried not to run too fast too soon. I tried not to push myself too hard and give myself an VCD attack. In fact, it wasn’t that bad of an attack. When I stopped running I was making some fairly horrible noises breathing, but nobody got too worried about it and I stopped fairly quickly. So there.

But I’m TIRED. I got up early, and I was tense about the race. I had butterflies in my stomach and in my chest. I was NERVOUS! What was that all about? I do this race for FUN. And it was fun. A lot of fun. But now I’m tired. I have a headache. And I have a lot to get done before I drive three hours or so to a party. Which I hope will also be fun.

I am progressing on my list of things to get done. However, I am leaving the most onerous chore for last. I have to figure out what to wear. You know, I have gained weight and it seems to be settling in my belly. When I was getting changed to go to a wine tasting last night (ooh, that would have made a good post for today), the first outfit I tried made me look like I had a baby bump. A baby bump! At my age! How dreadfully unbecoming.

So this post about Why I Can’t POSSIBLY Write a Post Today is getting progressively longer, because I am putting off that dreadful moment when I start trying on clothes, looking at myself in the mirror and crying. Good thing I’ve been re-hydrating ever since the run.

Hope to see you all on Wrist to Forehead Sunday.

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Hard Core Dithering

Posted on August 16, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I knew I was going to run on Thursday. It was a foregone conclusion. I thought I would do a hard core run up the hill to Herkimer County Community College (HCCC) then do a short run or a long walk on Friday. My only worry was that it would rain. I could always jog in place on the mini-tramp, but there is nothing hard core about that.

As the end of my work day approached, I began to second-guess myself. As many of you know, that is pretty much what I do. Perhaps hard core was not the way to go. Perhaps I should be taking it easy even two days before the race. Then again, I would have a full day to recover. Maybe something in between hard core and taking it easy was the way to go. Yes, I am a hard core ditherer.

“Hey, who here runs?” I asked my co-worker who, I believe, knows everybody in the plant. He gave me a couple of names, but there was nobody I could seek out in the next hour. I explained my dilemma.

“So I don’t know if I should work out hard core or soft core or medium core,” I finished.

“Medium,” he advised. He further advised me to not merely walk my dog on Friday but to power walk, leaving the dog home if she does not like to power walk, which in fact she does not. He used to be a high school athletic coach, so his advice was no doubt good.

I confess I don’t know why I’m getting so exercised (so to speak) about a mere 5K. It’s not as if I think I’m going to win. While I pride myself on not walking, I do not hesitate to waste breath making silly jokes for the amusement of other runners, spectators and myself (at least somebody’s going to be amused). I run because I ENJOY running. There is no reason I should put myself under such stress.

The rain cleared up and it became quite the lovely afternoon. The sun shone, a breeze blew, it was unseasonably cool. A perfect afternoon for a run. My husband was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt, my most favorite outfit to see him in.

I got ready to run, still dithering. Just before I went out the door, I looked in my running journal (I have a journal for everything) (I don’t really, but wouldn’t it be cool if I did?). The other two times I ran the DARE 5K I spent the week before running way shorter times than I am running now. I was going up the hill to HCCC, but my longest run was 33 minutes, not 47.

Well! It turns out I’m in GREAT shape for the DARE 5K, no matter which core I decided to run on Thursday! In fact, it turned out being between medium and hard. Perhaps I will write about it tomorrow. Today is Lame Post Friday, so I felt free to write about dithering.

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Did Hemingway Have These Problems?

Posted on August 15, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I ended yesterday’s post fearing I was stuck again. I thought it would be temporary, but alas, the malady continues. I was unable to write a blog post or work on my novel at work. I worked on a letter to my sister, but it did not help me segue over to other writing. I thought, that’s OK. I’m going running after work. I’ll write about that.

I ran. While I ran, I thought of some good stuff to put in a blog post about it. Before the run I dithered about how far and how hard to run, also some good stuff to put in a blog post. It would no doubt be a good, long blog post.

I don’t feel up to sitting here and typing in a good, long blog post. I don’t feel like typing in a lot. I don’t feel like thinking of anything good. I’m a BAD BLOGGER.

In my defense, I did not do a Middle-aged Musings Monday, a Tired Tuesday or a Wuss-out Wednesday. In my detriment, I have been indulging in All DARE 5K All The Time, which some people might find tiresome. Additionally, my Wednesday post was a short little riff about not being able to write, arguably a lame post (although I got 10 Likes on it).

What I guess I’m saying is, this is Non-Sequitur Thursday. I am feeling quite non-sequential. And maybe a little unconsequential, but let’s leave my poor self-esteem out of this. All I want to do today is hit “Publish” for at least 200 words.

Hope to see you all on Lame Post Friday.

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Early Morning Accomplishment

Posted on August 13, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

Steven had an early shift on Monday, so I seized the opportunity for an early run. I was, of course, less enamored of the idea when it was time to actually get out of bed at 3:30 in the morning, but one must put up with these things.

It was a lovely temperature for a run. I later found out Monday promised to be the hottest day of the week with a high of 85. I congratulated myself on getting my run out of the way before the heat of the day.

I bypassed the hill to Herkimer County Community College (HCCC). For anyone just tuning in, that is the killer hill featured on the DARE 5K this Saturday, for which I am registered (I believe I have mentioned it a few times, but you never know who missed it). I intend to run the hill one or two more times before Saturday, but I prefer to do it during daylight hours. Yes, I ran it before dawn last Saturday, but that day the sky was lightening even as I reached the top of the hill. Monday’s run was a full hour earlier, plus I had a whole day of work to get through.

I ran up the hill by Valley Health instead. I like to run by Valley Health on these early early runs. I find it comforting to think of the people on the night shift going about their business. At least there are lights on.

The hill turned out to require a bit of effort from me. In fact, the run started out to be not much fun at all. My legs were complaining. I had not run two days in a row in a few weeks and this was my third day in a row. I told myself that after feeling wonderful on Saturday’s and Sunday’s runs I was due to feel a little miserable. Miserable is an exaggeration anyways. In fact, I felt like I pretty much expect to feel on a Monday.

Things got better as I continued to run. My legs settled into it and stopped complaining. My breathing was fine. In short, I could rock this. If only I could see a few lights on so I would not feel so alone, I thought, my life would be perfect. I know, another exaggeration but since this one’s on the positive side, let’s let it slide.

I saw a few lights on, but I had to debate with myself: was it on because somebody was up or had it been left on all night for bathroom navigation purposes? Sometimes you just can’t tell. At one point I smelled skunk. Yikes! Well, a skunk was unlikely to bother me if I left him alone, right? I kept an eye out to avoid startling the stinker if I did encounter him.

As usual my legs were pretty happy with me on my cool-down walk. Tabby was happy with me too, because I let her stop and sniff plenty. I needed the pauses to drink water. I felt pretty happy with the run too. There’s nothing like accomplishing something first thing on a Monday.

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I Don’t DARE Back Out Now

Posted on August 12, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

Sunday was the last day to register for the DARE 5K and pay $20. After Monday, Aug. 11, the fee goes up to $25. At least, perhaps I could have registered on the 11th for $20, but who likes to take a chance on these things? (Oh, you probably do.)

Of course the best way for me to register is to fill out the form the Herkimer Police Department nicely mailed me, write a check, put Tabby on the leash and walk over to the police station. That way Tabby gets a walk, I get some exercise, I can write a blog post about it, and it is altogether a pleasant experience.

I was afraid it would be a little too sunny and hot for our walk but it wasn’t too bad around 9 o’clock, which is when we went. I wore my crazy old lady hat and prescription sunglasses. I noticed once again how nice everything looks in the sunshine. It’s like nature’s cosmetic. Then again, a lot of houses in Herkimer look nice all on their own. I noted with approval well-kept lawns, flowers still in bloom and nicely decorated porches. I am particularly envious of comfy-lookng porch furniture. I have not done enough porch- and deck-sitting myself this year. I’d better start taking advantage of the opportunities left to me.

We walked down Church Street to our favorite Historic Four Corners. We did not pause to admire the buildings but crossed Main Street and continued down to Green and the municipal building. I told the officer at the window I wanted to register for the DARE 5K, and he called to Steve Elwood, the officer in charge of the event. When Officer Elwood opened the door to talk to me, Tabby started to walk right in. She’s so sociable. He petted Tabby and asked if she was running.

“She doesn’t like to run with me,” I told him. “But after I run I walk around the block for a cool-down, and she joins me on that.”

I also asked him a question pertaining to the police for my novel. He gave me some good information. We chatted a little more about the race, then Tabby and I took our leave. We walked back home a different way, which Tabby seemed to enjoy. We stuck to the shadier side of the street, because it was starting to heat up.

So now I’m registered for the DARE 5K, and it is less than a week away. Will I be able to write a blog post about anything else between now and then? Ah, a little suspense will add interest to my week.

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I Got My Mojo Back

Posted on August 10, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

Well, it is either Wrist to Forehead Sunday or another edition of All DARE 5K All The Time. I say DARE. For one reason, I ran today and it went pretty well. As I type this, my wrist is inclined to be on my forehead or at least my head in my hands, but I prefer not to dwell on my ills.

I almost did not run today. I apologize in advance if this gives you an unfortunate mental image, but my sports bras have rubbed the skin on my left side raw. I know, I need some new sports bras. In the meantime I have been putting lots of Medicated Power (generic Goldbaum’s) on my skin before I run. After yesterday’s long run, I had some major sore spots. I thought taking a day to heal might be a good thing.

After two cups of coffee and pondering my shower plans, I thought, oh, a short, easy run would not be bad. I could give myself a preview of running NOT up the hill to Herkimer County Community College (HCCC), which will be my reward for completing the DARE 5K. So I ran.

It was eight in the morning when I finally set out. Not too warm yet. My ideal running temperature is upper 40s/lower 50s, but I can rock 61 degrees, which is what my thermostat told me the outside temperature was. This would be fine. I might even experience some of those endorphins or whatever it was yesterday that made me feel so good.

It felt pretty fine to start running. I had put a large band-aid (purchased for just such a purpose) over the sore area with lots of powder. I tried to run without too much arm movement. This would work. Maybe I could even run up to HCCC. Maybe the back way.

As I ran, however, I began to ponder my time constraints. I needed to be back home before Steven left for work at 8:50. For one reason, I couldn’t count on him remembering to leave the door unlocked. And I had to figure in my 10 to 12 minuted cool-down walk. This could be tricky. Then I remembered it was to be a short, easy run. Twenty minutes would be OK, 30 minutes tops.

I turned into Brookfield Park, which I used to refer to as the Unknown Park. That begins with a nice little hill. Nothing to worry about. The path is kind of worn out pavement/gravel with lots of rocks. I like to run on uneven surfaces. It adds interest to my run.

With my time constraints in mind, I only ran to the end of the park then back out the way I came and back home. As I ran back down German Street, I felt the same surge of happiness I had felt towards the end of yesterday’s run. “I LOVE running!” I thought. “Running is the BEST exercise EVER!” Oh, it is so nice to have my mojo back. I know there will still be runs when all I can do is persevere, but I so enjoy the runs that go well.

I ended up running 22 minutes. 22 is my favorite number, so that was nice. When Tabby graciously walked my cool-down walk with me, we met a neighbor and his little dog. I’ve seen the dog only from a distance. Tabby quickly made friends. Other dogs usually love Tabby.

Later on, Tabby and I took a walk to the Herkimer Police Department so I could register for the run. When I got home I started to feel ill with that lightheaded, sinusy crap that’s been bothering me for the last week and more. Oh well, I ran, I felt pretty good, and now it’s Wrist to Forehead Sunday. I tell you, never a dull moment for Mohawk Valley Girl.

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What Do Those Crickets Know?

Posted on August 10, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I’m afraid the blog will be veering into All DARE 5K All The Time as I begin to obsess over the event in a most unbecoming fashion. The good thing is that I don’t just obsess, I also run. And I do like to write about my runs.

Steven had to get up at four this morning. I had one cup of coffee with him then got on the road about a quarter till five. I put on my reflective vest and LED light, because it was still completely dark. I remembered there were streetlights up the hill to Herkimer County Community College (HCCC), so I planned on running up that hill yet again. There was no traffic to speak of and the temperature was just right. This was going to be great.

The road to HCCC is still in the village of Herkimer, but it feels like it’s leading right out of town. The houses grow sparser and there is no sidewalk. Still, there are streetlights. That makes it civilization. There are some wooded areas. I suppose people who live in the real wilderness are laughing at me: “That’s not a wooded area, those are just some trees!” Well, I know deer live in the trees. How do I know what else lives in them? What could live in them? Badgers? I’m not even sure what a badger is. I probably would not meet a badger. I probably would have heard if there was anything real dangerous. Wouldn’t I?

Those streetlights did not throw as much light as the streetlights in the village proper do. What was that shadow up there in the distance? Probably just an overhanging branch. Or, you know, just a shadow. Was that an ELEPHANT? No, just a minivan. Now I was being silly. I heard a bunch of crickets in the woods, I mean bunch of trees next to me. Yeah, I guess the elephant joke was pretty bad, I told myself (you know, how when a stand-up comedian lays an egg, all you hear is crickets? That’s what I was going for just there).

So I continued up the hill, thinking of all the funny lines I could but only hearing crickets. I got pretty amused over thinking how not funny I was being. I wish I could remember some of the jokes, but no doubt some wise-ass reader would have commented with, “Crickets,” or the overused, “Don’t quit your day job.”

After I got to the top of the hill I just turned around and ran back down the way I came. I don’t think college is in session yet and I didn’t care to run around a dark, deserted college campus at five in the morning. I didn’t think there were streetlights on the back way down from campus and that is a more heavily wooded area.

When I made it to the bottom of the hill I felt pretty good, which was fortunate because I was not quite halfway to my goal time of at least 45 minutes. I forgot to mention that halfway up the hill I had made myself a promise: after the DARE 5K I would not run up a hill for at least a week. I amended that to add “unless I felt like it.” The vision of a long run on all or mostly level ground seemed very appealing.

So I finished my run on lovely, mostly level ground. The sun had been coming up since I was at the top of the hill. I watched the gradually lightening sky with gratitude. Dawn and dusk are my favorite times of day. I love to be outdoors and watch it get dark or light. Oh, running is the best thing in the world!

I was feeling WONDERFUL! I LOVE running! I asked myself, could this be those endorphins I hear so much about? Or was it just that frisson of accomplishment? Or the anticipation of fulfilling that promise to myself next week? Perhaps just joy of a Saturday morning when I do not have to go to work. Oh, who cares why, just enjoy the feeling!

I made it 47 minutes. I’m not worrying about increasing my time by a strict 10 percent these days. If I’m running over 40 minutes I know I’m in great shape for a 5k. I’m just happy my run time is up to where it is now. And I don’t even care if the crickets are not amused by my jokes.

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Couldn’t Call a Cab

Posted on August 8, 2014 by mohawkvalleygirl

I purposely did not write a blog post while at work today, because I KNEW I would go running and could write a running commentary. I would NOT try to talk myself out of it, I would NOT wimp out, I would accept NO excuses.

When it started pouring rain at lunchtime, I was not worried. It would be sure to stop, and it did. The sun came out. There. When I talked to Steven shortly before I left work, he told me it was POURING in Herkimer.

“It might stop before I get home,” I said, not thinking it would. “Or I can run on the mini-tramp.” Not really wanting to. “It isn’t even raining here.” I work in Ilion, which is five minutes away. It was raining by the time I left, pouring by the time I got to my vehicle. I was laughing. Bad weather has that effect on me.

I drove home into blue skies. It was a miracle! Or another example of if-you-don’t-like-the-weather-wait-five-minutes Mohawk Valley. I changed into running clothes and got going.

The rain had cooled things off. This would be great. I thought I heard a rumble of thunder as I left the house. Maybe I should break out the mini-tramp? No, no, I wanted to run up the hill to Herkimer County Community College (HCCC). The DARE 5K is next weekend. I would be prepared IF I ran today. And a few more days between now and August 16.

I looked at the sky and started running. Those were not thunder clouds and there weren’t very many of them anyways. Maybe it hadn’t been thunder anyways.

I turned toward HCCC and found a place to cross German Street. Then I saw my friend Pudge the pug with his person on the other side of the street. If only I had waited to cross, I could have petted Pudge! His person waved to me and I waved back.

I could see dark clouds off in the distance. I was headed vaguely in their direction but doubted I would be running that far. When I headed up to HCCC I would be going right away from them. So there.

The run up the hill was not too bad. I won’t be good at it by next Saturday, but I’ll make it up. I even continued uphill on the walkway to the buildings before turning towards the way back down. The sky was blue with a few pure white clouds. The sun was warm but not too hot. My legs were pumping along with no complaints. My breathing was fine. This was great.

After I went back down the hill I ran to another hill I had run up on another run. Not a huge hill, but it was an effort. It’s good to make an effort. At the bottom of that hill, my legs started complaining. They were tired of running. They were ready for the sitting with my feet up portion of the evening. I ignored them. What else was I going to do? I had to get home. Maybe I’ll start running with my cell phone so I can call for a cab.

After my cool-down walk, on which Tabby graciously joined me, I felt pretty good about myself. I didn’t hear any more thunder till much later. Now I’m on to the sitting with my feet up portion of my evening.

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