Pete McArdle XC 15K in VCP

Garmin Connect -
Activity Details for
Pete McArdle 15K in VCP-brrr

It was a muddy, cold and hilly adventure run this morning but so much fun! I ran with some regular running buddies which made the race do-able. It was a gross day but I give my new Asics Gel-Trabuco gore-tex trail shoes an A++ for keeping my feet warm and mostly dry for the entire 9.3 miles!! wow, very impressive considering the slop out there on the course. Now if only I'd thought to wear my EMS waterproof jacket...duh. Oh well, tons of fun and we ended the morning (afternoon?) with some delicious pancakes at The Garden Cafe. Yummmm. So sleepy now.... finally got the huge knot out of my hair from the rainy run (seriously, it was unreal) and now a quick blow-dry followed by a nap. I'm exhausted and full... what a wonderful combination.

:)

Stay warm and dry...

The best winter/wet/mud shoes EVAR...

and this is why... that little hyphenated word in yellow..

In the end though, the socks say it all.... love my smartwools.

And the drying continues... everything is still soaked!

Joe K 10K

So let me start by saying the long sleeve tees from the Joe Kleinerman 10K are great! I always love it when they have a non-white tee to spice up my collection and the logo is cool and its not a huge picture of his face like it has been before... very cool. I don't understand why NYRR doesn't order enough size SMALL though...seeing as how running is a sport of many many fit people... anyway, I digress.

So sunday morning was a crisp and sunny 33 degree gallop around the park. I know a lot of people train in CP and talk about the hills there, but I mostly train in Fort Tryon Park, Inwood Hill Park, Riverside Park, Riverdale and VCP where the hills are rolling and could kick the butt of Harlem Hill or Cat Hill anyday :) I'm going to say it... central park hills are wimpy :) Yeah, they sneak up on you when you think you're nearing the home stretch on the east side around 72nd st when you're feeling good, but they're not game changers. That said, I had what I consider a great race. I forced myself to keep it easy and do the first mile at an 8:05 pace which felt easy but I knew I needed to hold back. I tried to pull in the reins for the first 3 miles and then let myself go, and it seems to have worked! According to Garmin I clocked a 47:59 for 6.23miles.... but sadly according to NYRR it was 48:01. Hmmmmm. Oh well. I got there that morning and re-assessed my original goals of under 46/47:00 and realized that was perhaps a bit lofty since I haven't really been training that hard and it was damn cold. I set myself the goal of under or around 48:00 and I'm very happy with my results.

Here is the NYRR spread:

Finish time: 48:01

Pace: 7:44

Overall Place: 1049

Gender Place: 219

Age Place: 60

AG: 63.1%

AG Gender place: 331

Not bad!

Garmy says my laps were:

8:05

7:53

7:34

7:45

7:42

7:19

1:38(for the .2)

I do wish my 4th and 5th miles had been a bit faster. Live and learn. It was my first race with the garmin.. boy do I love that thing.

Well, time to make a few updates to the blogroll... check back for more updates soon.

Next week- NYRR Holiday 4miler in Prospect Park, but I'll be running with one of my kids on my Young Runners team who is in 3rd grade. She's a rockstar.

Change of pace...

pun intended. So a lack of feedback means total freedom to write about what I'd like to talk about. In this case, I think I'd like to lean more towards running and perhaps toss in some neighborhood stuff if I stumble across it. Maybe its just because its winter and I feel like our hood is bustling in the spring/summer/fall but sort of goes into hibernation for the winter...pr maybe its just me who hibernates. Anyway, I'll see how this goes.

I finally feel like I've slipped back into a routine since the return from the wedding/honeymoon. I took a good long break while in Belize and rested the legs. Coming back was a little tough, but it felt good to get back out and leave some sweat on the streets. Last week was a pretty good running week despite the holiday thrown in with a monday swim (2200yds) and about 10 miles of running over 2 days.

So far this week I've managed a 5.01mi (41:00, elevation gained 1,307ft)on Tuesday night, 1.6 mi swim on Wed evening, hilly 3.24 mi (28:00, elevation gained 1,157ft) on Thursday (regular group run was cancelled, bummer) and 5.90mi (52:42, elevation gained 1,720ft) today before the rain poured down.

I did some lunges post-run on Thursday evening after a looong break from those evil little numbers and wow, I'm still a little sore. The cold and rain and potential for ice have me a little nervous about the race tomorrow.. Joe Kleinerman 10K in Central Park, aka Marathon Qualifier #8. I've been thinking about a 10K PR all year and during my last shot at it (on my own, no race) I think I hit around 47:00-ish. It was a while ago, but I remember starting out too fast and hurting somewhere along the west side heading south. I gained a lot of speed this year that I didn't even know I had in me and hit a ton of new PR's. A 10K PR would be the icing on the cake after a great year.

Well, it's off to bed for a good night sleep before and early and CHILLY morning. I had set aside my favorite running shorts for tomorrow, that was back on Thursday when it was 57 degrees outside. I think I'll need to reconsider my wardrobe. It looks to be the first tights run of the season. Brr.

Feedback pleeease!

Sunrise view looking east over the heights including the domes of Yeshiva University

I'm so lucky to have this view every morning!

So I'm wondering a few things about my audience... what would you like to hear more about... Things going on in the neighborhood? Running related news? My own running adventures? Places to visit in the neighborhood (restaurants, etc).

Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email or a tweet @RunAmyRun and let me know what you think of the blog and what you'd like to read about. :)

THANKS!

Tweet Cloud

Just something silly I did this weekend.... everyone else was doing it :) A cloud of my most frequently tweeted words for the last 3 months. The only reason Pisces is so big is because of the once inescapable twittascope.

Its time for a recommendation....

I held off on this for a while, mostly because right after I got it we went away on our honeymoon and I didn't have time to post about it, but now that it's time for the "shopping season" I think the timing is right. My hubby and I went all out on wedding presents for each other, but not in the traditional sense. I think people usually give each other fancy watches and necklaces or other flashy jewlery... but I got a different type of jewelry- a Garmin Forerunner 405. If you don't know what it is, its a GPS running watch that tracks your speed,elevation and distance while running (or biking or walking or whatever forward moving activity you do).

Let me start with my initial reaction after using it the first time- This thing is AWESOME! :) It really is pretty amazing. You put it on, go outside and within a minute or so you're linked to the satellites above and it lets you know how fast you're going, how far you've gone and of course how long you've been running. Thats really lots of fun, but it gets even cooler when you get home! It wirelessly connects to my computer when I bring it within a metre and sends all of its nifty info right to the computer! It then uploads all of that info to my Garmin connect site so I don't have to write it into my running log book. It tracks calories, elevation gained and lost (which is quite amazing in this neighborhood!) and your pace at any given moment during the run. Whew. I thought it would be overwhelming, but its really improved my training. It was great to have during a recent race I did in Central Park where I wanted to take it easy and just get in a good run around an 8:00 pace. Of course I made a friend during the race and went a little faster than I'd planned, but it was just so cool to know exactly where I was at any given moment.

It has a ton of features that I haven't even explored yet too, such as its "Take me back to my starting point" feature for out and back runs which will be really helpful when running when traveling. It lets me know each mile split as I finish each mile and can be set to let you know splits of any distance you choose. It has a feature called "Virtual Buddy" where you can set it up to race a little person on the screen, perhaps to help you pace yourself or for speedwork. You can even put in a course online and send it to the watch which will in turn direct you along that course while you're running. Wow. It's pretty spectacular.

So if you are looking for the most amazing gift for someone who runs or bikes or hikes or is all around active, this is definitely going to blow them away. Garmin has a variety of styles of the Forerunner including some older models that use a little footpod attachment to your shoe to track you. The 405 has the footpod for use on a treadmill, ick.

Here's a little taste of the info it gathered on a recent run with the Inwood Hill Running Club...or whatever we're called :) Riverdale Group Run Be sure to check out the "Player" on the right hand side, its really cool.

Oh and if you're interested in one, my hubby got mine at Holabirdsports.com ($50 cheaper than anywhere else!!)

Subway Elevator Art Installation

I noticed a postcard sized advertisement today at the Hilltop Pharmacy tucked in among the stuff at the pharmacy counter and realized it was an advertisement for an art show going on right nearby!

It seems that the "Artists Unite" organization is collaborating with NYC public transit to bring us the story of the subway elevator posters that can be seen in our very own 184th St A train elevators. Here is the info I found on the Artists Unite website about the installation. I hope to check it out this week and have more info for you....

Artists Unite

MTA Subway Elevator Poster Project

El Proyecto de los Posters de los Trenes Subterraneos

GOING UP!

Hacia Arriba!

An Installation: By Rosa Naparstek

Documents & Photos

November 29-December 6, 2009

Hebrew Tabernacle: 551 Fort Washington Ave @ 185th St.

(Entrance on Fort Washington Ave. Please Ring Bell. For More Info: 212-568-8304)

The Art In Your Subway Elevator And The Story Of How It Got There

La Historia del Arte del Ascensor de Tren y Como Llego Ahi.

This is the story of the Artists Unite-MTA Poster Project, an eight year collective effort to bring art into our subway elevators.

The original display of pictures and posters in the elevators at the 181st and 190th Street

A-train stations played a vital role in bringing our neighborhood together.

When they were removed in 2001, it was a profound loss to the community.

Residents of Washington Heights worked hard to express their dismay to the MTA

and collected more than 3,000 signatures in a few days advocating to maintain a

community presence in the elevators.

Installation: Photos and Documents,November 29-December 6, 2009

Opening Reception:Sunday, Nov.29, 2-6 PM

Installation Hours:Mon & Wed:Nov.30, Dec.2 9AM-6:30PMSat:Dec.5, 7-9PM Sun: Dec. 6, 10-1PM

And Creative Venues:

Outdoor Projection Slide Show: Exhibit of Poster Contest Entries

Saturday, Nov 28, 7-9 PM

(Fort Washington Ave &184th St. Nr. Subway Entrance.)