Jeff Y's Group - CLOSED (Page 13)

If anyone needs any Rudy Project gear, you can use my 40% off discount code.

http://www.e-rudy.com   code: JYEAGER

helmets, glasses and now even triathlon apparel.

har har har....I will look into it tonight.  (the light bulbs I mean)

How the heck does the blade get that low without tearing the good grass out?  The thatching is literally matted down.

Actually it is a replacement blade tat really doesn't cut the grass but it has one spring on each end that pulls the dead grass away from the ground and tears little of the good stuff out at all.  They work really well.  I haven't used one for several years but it worked well when I used it.  I think there is a certain height you are supposed to set your mower to depending what your trying to accomplish.

Yeah and the light bulb thing?  Those work quite well too.  I was born in Kentucky and I knew that.......C'mon!  Where were you born?  The Northeast?

I got a swim in tonight but the Friday long run will have to wait.  I have to go assist with 14 poles that broke off in a storm last night in northwest Ohio.  It's going to be a long day tomorrow.  I am figuring about 16 hours and a possible stay overnight if things get too late.  the run will wait until Saturday and I will have to scale my ride down on Saturday too.

Well, the money will be good anyway.

Good luck with the work Dirk.

Ok, I'd like some advice pacing the half marathon this weekend.  If I'm hoping for an 8:30-8:35 overall pace, how would everyone suggest I go about pacing the race? 

In theory, the best way to pace any endurance event is absolutely even splits.  I say in 'theory' because some people aren't properly suited mentally for the even pacing. 

When you are even pacing an event, but that pace is near your best potential (ie. not a slow training run, but a real race), then it gets progressively harder as the race progresses even though you are moving at a consistent pace.  So your brain eventually begins telling you that you are tired and if you were measuring your pace by 'feel' you will probably slow down to maintain an even 'comfort' level.

To mentally handle even pacing, you need to be fully prepared to suffer later in the race.  You need to have a way to measure your pace that isn't based on how you subjectively feel.  If you have memorized a pace and not a feeling in the lungs for instance...then you can do it.  Or if you have a pacer, or a GPS or splits being fed to you throughout.

I was fortunate enough back in my running days to have memorized various running paces and like some musicians have 'perfect pitch', I had 'perfect pace'.  My CC coach once challenged me to run through mile 1 of a cross country race in an exact 5:25 pace.  I succeeded, right to the second. 

If you happen to have an 8:30 pace memorized then you are golden.

If your tactic were to start with 8:00 and allow for a fade to 9:00 by the end then odds are that your finish time will be slower than you are capable of.  But if you were to go out in 8:30 and aren't mentally well suited to even pace running, you might fade to 9:00 anyway...

I guess what that all adds up to is a disclaimer regarding the advice that I'm about to give you....Go out at 8:30 and do your best to maintain that.  If you find out at some point during the race that you have fallen off the pace, but feel good, then pick the pace back up very gradually.  For instance if you are 30 seconds down, take 2 miles to make that back up.

Thanks.  I've had my eye on the slinger helmet for a while.  I may pick one up next month.

Thanks Jeff.  I like the idea of even pacing, andf then I can adjust based on how I'm doing that day.

I've been running some miles on most of my runs at that pace, so I know what it feels like.   Hills and wind are the two wildcards for me.  I know hills affect everyone but I seem to have to really work hard to maintain any reasonable pace up hills.

Hills are a bit of a wildcard.  If you are capable of an 8:30 pace on the flats, you need to readjust to account for hills and target 8:40  (or perhaps your 8:30 is already adjusted for hills).

When you runs hills, you need to maintain a constant EFFORT and not a constant pace.  Race tactics will sometimes dictate different, but that's for someone racing another person and not racing the clock.  So don't 'really work hard' to maintain a pace up the hills, just let the pace fall off.   Trust me, that's what works best....

You will lose time slowing as you go up the hill, but you won't be taxed when you get to the top, so you will quickly regain your average pace at the top of the hill and then by relaxing and using gravity, you can gain back some of that lost time on the downhill while actually using less energy than your average pace.  Plus that change of pace is helpful to keep the legs loose during a long run.

A little anecdote to go with that last post.  Tuesday I went for an 8 mile run on a VERY hilly course.  My standard pace, as seen on my GPS watch while running flat sections, was 8:30.  On numerous occasions as I ran up long hills, I looked down to the watch and saw 12:xx.  

Thanks again.  Yeah, I set the 8:30 adjusted for hills.  On flats I think I could keep an 8:15 or so.  My running routes around my house are pretty hilly, so I get used to hill running but I think I work too hard going up the hills, especially based on the pace difference you show.  My pace drops some, but my effort goes WAY up.  On some of the steeper hills I'll go from 9:00 to 10:30 pace, but then I push to keep that pace.  I'll start working to maintain a constant effort, damn the pace.  I like your comments on using RPE for running pace as Dirk mentioned he's been doing.  Sometimes I think the GPS gets in the way.

For the short term - the course Sunday looks much flatter than what I'm used to running, so hopefully the pace will stay pretty consistent.

Cool....then if your 8:30 target was adjusted for hills, I want to amend my earlier pacing suggestion...settle yourself in to the 8:15 pace at the start and maintain that pace, or the equivalent effort for that pace when going up hills.  So if there are any flat miles in the race, they should come in at 8:15.  Any hilly miles should read 8:30 or slower (slower because the hilliest miles can lose time because flat miles will be building a time buffer against the 8:30 average).

Good luck and have a great race.

Good!  Enjoy.

Nice!  Make sure to take it easy....I can't wait to get on the trails either.  The mud is about shin deep right now though.  Hosing out shoes after every run isn't appealing at all. 

How much water do you guys actually take on runs in the 1:15 and up range?  I tend to not bring anything up to an hour, but I start to fade after that if I don't bring anything.  I have just carried a small fuel belt bottle with me up to this point.

I am bad - I don't bring anything with me when I run less than 2 hours. I hate carrying it and I find I don't drink it anyway.

I have a girly question: how do you blow snot rockets?? I was on a ride today and it was cold and I kept needing to wipe my nose. I decided just to try a snot rocket and it flew all over my arm. Do you shoot under your arm? Over your shoulder? Do you sit up straight first? I have never done this before and don't understand how it's supposed to work.

How does this work for instructions?  http://www.runningandrambling.com/2008/01/snot-rocket-science.html<... don't blow into the wind. 

1800' elevation gain is pretty good.  I don't get that kind of elevation change in 20 miles worth of running here.  It sounds like an awesome run.  During my long runs I see a lot of squirrels, ducks and geese and I enjoy seeing them myself.  I have yet to see much of any other wildlife because my long routes are mostly inside the city limits along our river greenway.

I am not sure what to say about this question.  I had to laugh out loud for a minute after I read it because it's not everyday that a lady asks how to blow a snot rocket.  Hahaha!

Simple though, hold the opposite nostril closed, turn your head out of the wind, take a deep breath, blow air through the runny nostril, wipe the remainder on sleeve or glove and continue riding.  Oh yeah, if riding with a partner, provide ample warning and direct snot rocket away from them.