Muddy Trail Run / G'Pa Fun

I had fun with the Trail Nerds last night, (after dark). We ran about 7 miles in the rain on the muddy BuRP trails, with two crossings of the Blue River. By the end of the run, I had enough turf on me to plant alfalfa! The lightning (and main storm front) didn't come through until well after we had finished and by the time we were home.

Since D keeps showing off her beautiful grandson, I thought I'd show off my 4-y.o. G'Son. He's an active little guy that likes doing stuff with his Grandpa, including trailrunning and getting muddy. I guess "little guy" is a relative term. He just turned four, and he's 44-inches tall, already! He is very athletic and has very good balance, for his age. He's a very social kid, too. He's also a real sweetie to most folks, but especially to his grandma, mom, and my dog (and all animals).


G'Pa Ben and G'Son on the merry-go-round.


"My imaginary friend can beat up your imaginary friend."


Future skateboard (and soccer) champion.


Blast 'em all!

Good Day and Good Night

I had a REALLY decent day, yesterday.
I started the day early with a hella-workout on abs, back, and biceps, guided by my personal trainer, Igor. I only worked a half-day, (but still didn't get off until 2pm). I went home and caught up on some chores that have been neglected because of my recent injuries. I also had some "quality" play time with my big dog.

At 7 pm, I started running at SM Park with a couple of early night-run attendees, Good Ben and newbie, Josh. We got a little far away from the 8pm starting area and had to push the run hard to get back in time to run with the main group run. This particular Tuesday Night group was a fast group, so I decided to set a faster than normal pace for the 4-mile loop. I was wearing my Garmin 305, and later found that we had finished the last mile of that loop with a 7:16/mile pace, all on rocky, hilly, and curvy trails. The 3 of us early runners had also had two sub-7-minute miles, albeit those miles were on pavement. Total mileage: 8.76 miles.

The best part about the day's experience was that I felt strong, and my back and hamstring were barely bothering me. I haven't felt this strong in the past 6 weeks. I could have done another 4-mile loop, but I'm getting better at reading my body. It's better to finish strong and recover to run well the next day, than to extend myself and not be well rested. (It takes me a couple of hours to wind down for sleep, and I had finished running at about 9 pm as it was).

I can't say enough about my personal trainer, Igor Gantman. He helped me to have an "active recovery" from my 100-miler injuries. If I had just sat at home on the couch waiting to get better, it would have taken me 8 to 10 weeks to get better, I'm sure.