Running with Donna

Time: 2:18:40
Distance: 13.1miles
Pace 10:33





I am fortunate enough to live 1.5 miles from the start of this race. But wanting to conserve every ounce of energy, I woke Terri and had her drop me off as close as possible. We didn't even get out of the neighborhood because the traffic was so bad. Ok, I've only a half mile walk to met our company team from the drop off. I'm last one there due to the walk distance even though I live the closest. Great.

First picture taken at 7:00...we walk about 100yd.... another team pic to be taken.



Another 100yds , another team picture. Clearly we were bought out by the Mutsubishi Corporation during the night and company policies are being applied.



Out the Runners Village we go for the big line up, We all split our separate ways at the exit. They attempted to coordinate start position with flag colors. Good luck with that.


What a great race day. A little cool, overcast. Perfect running weather. Race is well organized


No more than a 15 min wait with Patrick Ellis, a marketing guru of FLDIC, but I can't find my training buddy Chris. He was just here.

Oh Well. Patrick is ready to run. He establsh his desire to run 9:30's and I'm a little overwhelmed. I state I'll hang as long as I can but that is not my race strategy. All the while I'm thinking, dude you have not done any long runs, you are SO going to bonk. My evil plan to snare the FLDIC running title is within reach. If only I can outduel Chris.

Mile 1....10.32 running with Patrick up and over the bridge on JTB. What a beautiful site. This race has about a 3 to 1 women to man ratio also a beautiful site. Helicopter buzzing by taking lots of pics I'm sure

Mile 2...9.52 and still with Patrick...see pic.. Enjoyed once again all the deparate women dropin' trouse and letting it fly. Confirms my belief that we are still one outhouse from reverting to our simple cavepeople nature.




















Mile 3..10.11 and Patrick pulls away with a wave at the water station. I hang as long as I can in his wake but know better than to push to hard.





Mile 4....9.07..lots of funny signs and plenty of people now to cheer us on, made for my best mile




Mile 5...9.48..Funniest thing I saw was a life size Bunny costume with the woman wearing it holding a sign for "Saving Second Base". I laugh out loud so hard, the woman next to me was chuckling too.





Miles 6..9.59.. a mile on the beach, saw a hot pace bunny with a shirt stating " in your wildest dreams". Weak in mental disipline, but full of desire, I attempted to keep up. No luck but a 6th good mile.





Mile 7... 11.32..Left the beach here. I look down and I've started my period. I took the time to explain to our company running team organizer the need to get soft material shirts for the runners as bleeding nipples is less than attactive for a team logo shirt. See small dots in pic. Wrong material in the shirts was picked by the marketing department. Maybe Tampex bought us in the night and this was a strange marketing twist. That did not change my situation. The shirt had to come off. But I couldn't throw out a company shirt. Heaven forbid my boss see my discarded shirt and do a shirt count on Monday. So I tucked it into the back and carried on. Side note, My Wife hates me running without a shirt. But when dignity, collides with comfort, I'm afraid I've passed the age of caring. Now I really am beginning to understand my mom and dad. White socks and black shoes. Hmmm. I wonder how comfortable that must be. All this took it's price out on my pace.


Mile 8....10.35...All I can think about was a potty cause I gotta go. Great this never happens to me. Why this race? I don't want to stop because I want to catch Patrick when he bonks and I don't want a surpise visit from Chris who must be behind me or worse Aaron Burns the taunting youngster from the Gate Run last year.



Mile 9....12.20..Alot of walking now...trying to focus on getting back to JTB..Picked up a GU pack from a volunteer


Mile 10....10.26.. Wow I must have been Bonking...GU pack is kickin in and I'm moving again. I took some electrolite caps with me but only packed a banana for energy..Bad idea..


Mile 11...11.05; Mile 12..12.14.... This bridge sucks..So many around me are walk /running now.


Except for this one lady that is kicking our ass with some speed walking.



Mile 13...10.08; Bye bye speed walker you will NOT be finishing before me; down the hill I go with a big stride...many are falling to the Sasquach this day.






Final stretch...DAMN, I didn' t pace myself. I am not walking over that line. I gathered myself and finished proud. Took one of the best finish photos of a fat man ever taken. I sucked it in and stuck my chest out for all I was worth.











I never saw Patrick again. He ran a 2:02 and stands alone in a proud first place. Chris, I did see. He crossed 2 mins behind me and based upon our finish line conversation I knew with his start that we were close in our finish times. But I didn't know how close. Official time was Mark by 13 seconds. Talk about mirroring your training partner. It was a good race for where I am today fitnesswise. also 15 mins better than last year. I have hope for the Gate Run time now.












































Signing off
Shiek Shealy

Winter Beach Run 09

Winter Beach Run 09


It had been a while since I had felt the thrill of an actual race.
My buddy Michael offer to pick me up and I was more than thrilled to accept.

The company in arriving at one of these things makes it all worth the effort.

Mike and I discuss goals as usual and as usual he is operating at a very different plane than I.

The race is an interium race or a training run for my ultimate goal of the Donna Hicken 13.1 in one more week.

Goal is to finish. No matter what ....to finish.

Perhaps Mike missed this in the pre game show analysis, I thought Terry Bradshaw really capsulized it very nicely with a few of his comment, or he didn't actually hear the commentary I was giving in the car. But when he said something about a warm up run, I could not have been more shocked than if he asked if we could run naked.

Warm up run.....yes that is called the beginning of the race, Mile 1..the run is Miles 2-8, the cool down is 9 & 10.

But being charitable but cautious I headed down the beach and walked with him a bit to get away form the crowd. Ultimately he did his run and I headed back to the start line thinking this could be mileage I might need later.

Well after the warmup Mike found me among all the Lillipusians and a little pre game "go get em" was exchanged. It was comforting to know he was there, it builds some inner strength to not go it alone.

Now for the Race...Mind set is to do as many sub 10s as I could and still do some walking in between the miles.
Even with 2 walks in the first three miles I posted sub 10s. Mile 4 was a logistical disaster; 12 pace. A Gel pac, and a walk then a water station and my mile time was lost. Mile 5 was back in the 10 range. Crossed the 5mile finish and set my mind to the task ahead.


Finish I must, Mile 6 was strong still in the 10:50 range. Saw Mike at 6.8 going the other way. He was running indifferently and I knew his goal was probably out of his reach. He offered a supportive wave and a gel, but he didn’t have that look in his eye. I check my watch and did the math. The numbers were not right. No Joy.

My body pulled me back from wherever my mind was. The 7 mile mark was just ahead and there was my focus. I passed a few and fewer passed me. My herd was thinly spread and made up of novices, old bull, some grinders and one 260 lbs clyesdale. The strong runners were 5 to 10 minutes ahead and gone from my thought was the self pity of once being one of them. I must finish.

The turn was just ahead and after 5 miles of running into the wind, the thought of it being at my back was a mental gel pack. As I made this turn, I screamed for the first mate to hoost up the mail sail and let’s get her back to port quick. After about a half mile, I realized the wind doesn’t really blow 260 pounds one way or the other.

Ok then let’s play some other mental games. Miles 7 & 8 had been in the 10:50 range. Get to the water station. Walk 15 seconds every half mile.

It all seemed to work. I caught several people and finished strong. I had a half mile duel with a cute bunny where she held off my first two attempts to pass by throttling up, but the third was too much as I just extended my stride and kept the effort the same. Quickly she fell away.

My finishing Miles were nine at 10:44 and ten at 10:33. Finish strong is like hitting a great golf shot, it just make you want to come back.

But a funny thing happening on the way to the finish line, I was reeling in this old bull with about 300 yds to go. I thought one more would be a great finish. At about 100yds, I pulled alongside. I could not have shocked him more had I yelled BOO. And he gave it a kick, and what a KICK. He looked like a young calf on a brisk spring morning. Now I had plenty in the tank to pass with as I had been saving for the bunny thinking we were about to race to the finish. I just couldn’t do it. It gave me such a thrill to watch him move like that. (See grin below). The finish line photographer caught it all and gave me a smile and mouthed a “thanks”. I’m sure he liked the shot too.

I hope one day to still have that kind of spirit. Here's to the calf in us all.

Long Live the BULL




Time: 1:46:45
Distance: 10 miles
Pace: 10:40
Men: 202 out of 215
Total: 295 out of 343
Goal: achieved