An 8 Miler During the "SNOW-POCALYPSE" of 2010

It's currently snowing like a mother here in Minnesota. I've already shoveled the sidewalk and the steps twice today, and I'll be heading back out shortly. We've gotten 12.4 inches so far, and there is another 5+ inches on the way in the next 8 hours. Yuck. See my last Friday Funny to see how I feel about this.

Before it got TOO bad, I headed out for an 8 mile run this morning. I was going to run easy, and just put in some time. I strapped on the YakTrax for the first time this winter:

"YakTrax Pro" - with the strap over the foot

Here are some photos from my run:

Looking down the street with about 5 inches of new snow


The sidewalk with 5-8 inches


Snow developing under my hat a mile into my run


The River Road Trail was plowed! Awesome!


Blowing snow


More blowing snow - about 2 blocks of visibility


Getting a little frosty on the Franklin Bridge

My first mile was T.R.U.D.G.I.N.G. through unshoveled side-streets. That first mile was a LEG-BURNER! I felt like I was really working (like 6:30 / mile pace), but it was actually around 9:15. That's what all that snow will do to a runner!

I showed this photo of the Mississippi freezing up from during my run last weekend:

Well, here's TODAY'S version of that photo above:

Welcome to MN. This is what December looks like.

Running across the bridge was the worst conditions of the day. All of the snow from the street was plowed up onto the sidewalk. I had to run through about a 1/4 mile of 18 inches of snow!

Around mile 6


Getting snowier


Around mile 7 - ICY!!!


There USED to be footprints from when I headed out, but they had completely filled in over 45:00
(yes, this is an actual photo of the sidewalk)


Back in the porch


Snowy shoes and YakTrax

Alright, I can feel my fingers again, so that must mean it's time to go out and shovel. Again. ;)

Happy weekend everyone! Stop back Mon / Tues for a great stocking-stuffer giveaway!! Great for you or a "sporty" loved one!

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Friday Funny 138: Cold Weather

Another one from Fake Science, holding true for me right now:

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Friday Funny 137: Beer

And here's a hangover explained:

(From Fake Science)

Happy weekend! Go... have a drink. ;)

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Some Quick News

Jerry MacNeil from Minnesota Tri News recently announced this:

"Because of his fresh and differing perspectives, Steve has since been officially invited to become a member of the 2011 MMA Selection Committee..."

I'm THRILLED to be asked to be on the committee! Jerry either liked my picks or my rationale for my picks for the 2010 MMAs (Minnesota Multisport Awards). I was 6 for 12 overall. The "easier"-to-pick categories of Triathlete, Duathlete, Rookie of the Year, etc is where I got the most right. But the harder categories are the ones like "Performance of the Year." That's not as easy to pick...

This will be a bit of work for me at the end of the tri season next year. I do NOT have a good memory, so I'll have to be looking up all kinds of results from over the last year. Jerry, on the other hand, seems to have a memory like a steel trap! If you've ever been to a race where he's announcing, not only can he pull out stats from the previous years' races, but he can start listing off stats of different individuals who are racing! It's crazy! He's got a better chance at listing all of my race times from the past 2 years than I do! REALLY!!

Looking through my photos, I think this is the only image of Jerry and I - he was announcing at the Cannon Falls Duathlon this last spring (where I was called up for 2nd in my AG), and that's him behind me:

Anyway, I know little of what my roll will be next year. All I know is what Jerry noted in his post where he mentioned I'll be helping out in 2011: "The selection process is democratic and it's frightfully rare when all Committee members are in total agreement on who should be nominated; and ultimately who should win. Majority rules." Sounds good to me.

And I'm pretty sure this is a HIGH paying gig!! That's sweet! I hear it pays rainbows and unicorn farts (which, by the way, are also rainbows).

... so I guess I'm NOT in it for the money...

I think there are a TON of Minnesotans who would be good at this job because I know a lot of people just like me: not fast enough to be considered for any of these awards, but "into" the sport enough to know a lot of what's happening across the state. I hope I can do a good job!

Anyway, thanks Jerry! I look forward to working with you in 2011!

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A MUCH Better Week of Workouts

A week ago, I posted this image of my training the week of Thanksgiving:

Yep. 42:00 of strength and core work all week. Solid. ;)

I remarked how I felt like I was a little burnt out. After a few weeks of not wanting to do ANYTHING, I started to get some desire back. (No, not THAT desire - I always have THAT desire.) So I started back up, and last week was MUCH better:

• Mon, Nov 29:
- 6.84 mile run and stretching in the AM.
- Upper body strength workout at the Y in the PM.

• Tues, Nov 30:
- 30:00 with Coach Troy on the trainer (that's the little "SP" on the calendar).
- Some core work.

• Wed, Dec 1:
- 2200 yard swim with Julia.
- Upper body strength workout at the Y.

• Thurs, Dec 2:
- 4 x 1500 intervals at the Metrodome.

I posted about this workout here, where I showed a few photos of my lovely Pharmie and Matt M doing laps:

• Fri, Dec 3:
- 2400 yard swim with Julia in the AM. (How did I NOT get a photo with Julia this week?!)
- Over an hour with Coach Troy on the trainer in the PM.

Brother-in-law Matt (different from Matt M above) came over to hit the trainer with Pharmie and I. Here's a photo when we were cooling down. (I barely got back to my bike in time after setting the self timer, hence my awkward still-getting-on-the-bike photo:)

The sweat under Matt's bike at the end of an hour+

• Sat, Dec 4:
- 85 minutes of snow blowing and snow shoveling.
- Solid core workout at the Y.

• Sun, Dec 5:
- 9 mile run.

I'm trying to keep my long runs up so I'll be able to start working my way up for the Winter Carnival Half Marathon shortly. So I headed out for a snow-covered 9 miler Sunday night. It was my coldest run of the season: it was 12 degrees with around a 0 - 4 degree windchill. I resisted the urge to break out the YakTrax yet - I told myself I wasn't going to be running hard enough to need them. Here are some photos I took along the way:

Front yard with 5-7 inches of new snow


Nicely plowed River Road


Crossing the frozen Mississippi


More of the Mississippi


A more melted trail on the other side of the river

I had over a mile to run on the more cleared trail before turning around. I told myself I'd start picking up the pace, and then run hard at the turn around on the less-snowy trail for about 1.3 miles. My mile splits from the start of the run were 7:08, 7:25, and 7:12. Then I started upping the pace (6:45). I ran hard for a mile (6:16), and kept up the pace for part of the next mile (7:07). I had forgotten how much the cold, dry air and all of the layers really slow you down. When I saw 6:16 for that "fast" mile, it felt like sub 6 for sure. I snapped a photo as soon as I eased up after the hard miles:

Proof to those of you in WARM areas that you CAN sweat
when it's 12 degrees! ;) (My face is "glistening.")

I eased up a bit for a final 3 miles.

As the sun is setting along River Road


Some kids sledding at the Town and Country Club

I got home and rewarded myself for a solid week under my belt.

According the the time stamp on these photo files, it only took 4 minutes and 36 seconds to go from that image above to this image below:

And Pharmie only got 2 of those rolls.... ;)

So I know this wasn't an AMAZING week of training, but for early December when I'm not training for anything specific, it's fantastic. If I can keep this up, I'll be GOLDEN come springtime. Happy winter everyone!

p.s. If you missed my last post from Minnesota Tri Night, check it out. I posted the results of the awards banquet along with 2 slideshows of images on my Examiner page. Click here for the results and photos during the awards, and click here to see photos from before and after the presentation. Thanks everyone!

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Minnesota Tri Night 2010

Or, "Oh Jeez! I don't recognize you IN eyeglasses and OUT of Spandex!"

Saturday night was "Minnesota Tri Night 2010." (There's STILL no "flashiest shorts" category, so I wasn't nominated for anything.) But I went to have a good time, hang out with some "sporty" friends, and support those I knew. Click here to see the full write-up and photos on my Examiner page.

Minnesota running legend Dick Beardsley was the featured speaker. Here he is early in the evening with local TV personality Diana Pierce:

(If you've got 20 minutes, check out these links: To hear part of a similar talk Beardsley gave 2 years ago about his amazing run at Boston in 1982, click here. And to see the ACTUAL footage that Dick was talking about, click here. Great stuff.)

I sat at a table with lots of friendly, familiar faces. Swimming buddy Julia was across the table (she was nominated for "Most Improved" and "Master of the Year"). She teased me about not "eating my greens." I only assumed she meant my Andes Mint and some of Kerry's green M&Ms. So that's what I ate:

Green things are delicious, as long as their not naturally occurring
(like lettuce - gross)

Here are a few more photos from the night:

Dick Beardsley giving his talk


"Team Minnesota" - that's Julia 2nd from the left! Congrats Julia!
(She's with some BIG local names: Sarah Mercer, Julia, Julie Hull,
arch enemy Jenny Wilcox, and Cathy Yndestad.)


Cathy Yndestad's MMA for "Athlete of the Decade!" Congrats CY!

After the presentation, I snapped a photo of Chad and Chandra Millner who were sitting next to me (Chad was up for Duathlete of the Year):

And then Chandra snapped an awkward amazing photo of Chad and I:

I can't speak for Chad, but I wasn't even drinking! ;)

Anyway, Click here to see lots of photos from the night along with the list of winners. Congrats to all the nominees! And a BIG THANKS to OptumHealth, Steve Gunther, the Tri Night Committee, and MinnesotaTriNews for putting on such a great event!

UPDATE: I just put up another slideshow of images from before and after the awards presentation. Click here to see those images. Thanks!

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First Time Running at the Metrodome This Winter

Yep, it's that time of the year. If I still want to do any speed work, I have to head indoors. (I love running outside during the winter, but trying to run sub-6:00 miles on this frozen tundra is like asking Tyson to "tap" you on the chin. Not pretty.)

Pharmie and I headed over to Minneapolis after picking up a Christmas tree on Thursday. It was SO fun to bump into "internet buddies" and other familiar faces!! We got to chat with Omar, Jen, Matt M, Steve Q, Brian, and Sandra! (Oh jeez, I hope I'm not missing anyone!....)

Matt M ran 2 laps with me as I warmed up for my intervals. He had done a harder run in the morning and was now just going to run easy for a bit. He spent the rest of the time running with my lovely Pharmie:

Pharmie and Matt

The Dome is just over 600 meters per lap. My plan was to do 2.5 lap intervals (my favorite Dome workout). So I did 4 x 1502 meters every 7:00. At the end of my first interval, Steve Q caught up with me, and we did part of 2 intervals together. Here were my times:

[1 lap, 1 lap, 1/2 lap = total]

2:08, 2:07, 1:02 = 5:18
2:02, 2:05, 1:02 = 5:10
2:05, 2:06, 1:00 = 5:11
2:02, 2:04, 1:00 = 5:07

Average of 5:11.50 / interval (1502 meters)
(That's 5:33 / mile pace)

Quick Side Note: I felt "good" during the intervals. I was kinda comfortable, but I was working too. So I was surprised my times were that good. I realized (during the last interval) that as I was running them, I WAS hurting. But as Coach Jen worked with me for those 8 weeks leading up to the TC 10 Mile, she taught me how to deal with that kind of pain. Now, sometimes I feel like I'm not working as hard. In reality, I AM working hard, but I've just been taught to work through it a little better. It's never too late to keep saying "THANKS COACH JEN!!" ;)

Anyway, as I was wrapping up my last few intervals, I saw that Steve Q had joined Matt and Pharmie, and now they were all catching up during their run. I ran a cooldown with them, and grabbed a shot of those 3:

Steve Q, Pharmie, Matt M, and someone making a pass

Thanks for keeping my wife company, Matt M and Steve Q! See you around the Dome again soon!

After that, Pharmie and I ran to Cub Foods to pick up some groceries. This is NOT a good place to be standing after intervals while starving:

All I can focus on are the Mini Charleston Chews and the Reese's Pieces

Click here for the Dome running schedule for this winter. I bet you'll see Pharmie or I there at LEAST once a week throughout the winter! Happy training!

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Friday Funny 136: "8-bit Steve"

A former student of mine recently showed me a current assignment that she's working on. (I teach mainly college freshman, and now this student is a senior.) This student is working on a simple "flash game design" project. When she told me that she used me in her project, I was a little scared. ;)

She started with this photo of me and Carrie Tollefson from the Minneapolis Duathlon:

Then she cropped in on me:

And finally, she "drew over" me in Photoshop to create this "8-bit" portrait:

The slightly messed up hair and the glasses make this work.
But my gums kinda scare me....

This former student of mine is the main character in the game that she's creating, and her character runs into people around school: another classmate, the president of the college, and me. Here's the screen when she first encounters me:

Yep. That's about right.

(p.s. Speaking of art school, there's a great holiday art sale at the College of Visual Arts this weekend in St. Paul. I'll be there off-and-on all weekend. CLICK HERE to check out my photo blog for more info.)

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Friday Funny 135: Funny Cause It's True

The Oatmeal just put up some "funny cause it's true" comics that show minor differences. These are the 3 pairs that I felt were EXTRA true:

That last one is my Y in a nutshell...

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Unrelated Topics: The Best MN Multisport Athletes and a Local Art Sale

First: Minnesota Tri Night is this weekend! I have my ticket and I'll be there with bells on. No, I won't actually wear bells, but I MIGHT wear my "tutti frutti" shorts:

Really.

Last night, I sat down and considered all the nominees in the 12 categories for the Minnesota Multisport Awards (MMAs). I know a lot of people in that list. Among them are my swimming buddy Julia....

(With "the gang" at Square Lake - Julia's in the pink cap)

.... Katherine Schlaefer, who rode into T2 with Matt and I at the Waseca Sprint Tri this past summer....

(Katherine, Matt, and me in the distance)

.... and someone I've been joking with for the past 6 months: my arch nemesis racing buddy Jenny Wilcox:

Jenny and I after the "throw-down" at the MosquitoMan Duathlon

Anyway, I waded through all the nominees from categories like "Most Improved," "Duathlete of the Year," "Triathlete of the Year," etc, etc, and came up with my predictions. CLICK HERE to read my educated guesses. I'll be back with photos and the results of the MMAs next week, and I'll let you know how all of my friends did and how close my predictions were.


Second: Local art college "Holiday Sale" this weekend! I teach at the College of Visual Arts in St. Paul, and they're having their yearly "Holiday Sale" on Saturday and Sunday (with a preview party on Friday night). I'll be there for part of the evening on Friday, and I'll probably swing in over the weekend at some point. I have a number of loose prints and framed prints in the sale. Here's a photo from 2 day ago that shows a lot of artwork being sorted, labeled, and hung:

Holiday Art Sale Preview:
Friday, December 3, 5 – 8 p.m.
$25 at the door
$20 advance purchase
[Go to CVA's website to purchase.]

Holiday Art Sale:
Saturday, December 4, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. FREE!
Sunday, December 5, 12 – 4 p.m. FREE!

The gallery is located in the Cathedral Hill neighborhood of St. Paul. Click here to get directions to the gallery using Google Maps.

I have more info on my photo blog if you'd like to check it out. Swing by and purchase some art! Maybe see you there!

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My Brother-in-Law is a Sweaty Monster

You all remember my brother-in-law Matt, right? We've done a number of duathlons as a relay named "Team Happy Pants." Here we are all sweaty and nasty after the Oakdale Du this past spring:

(Side note: I'm happy to report we're already signed up for the Oakdale Du in 2011!)

Matt has a bike in our basement. He does trainer rides quite frequently with Pharmie (his sister and my wife). Here's the 3 of us on our trainers last winter:

OK, fast forward to this week. On Monday night, Pharmie and Matt had a "trainer date." When I got home from class, they were working hard in the basement. Last night (Tuesday), I figured I should hit the trainer for a bit. So I moved Matt's bike a little to make room for mine. What did I find when I moved his "riser block" out of the way? This:

It had been 24 hours, and there was still a pool of Matt's body sweat under his block! It was practically suctioned to the floor by all the sweat that was under it.

Gross.

(Oh, and it's "double gross" if you happen to notice the dried remnants of the cat barf on the right side of that picture. Kermit tends to overeat and then puke it all up on our bike mat. Yep. Double gross.)

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