Celebrating Running (Week 23)
Vol.4 No.34
Summer has official arrived here in The South. Mother Nature has turned on the heat and added humidity to humble all runners for the next 100 days. I found myself back in the pool to offset natures oppressive conditions for 2,500yds total this week.
Running totals this week were 43.33 miles. Those miles were spread out between solo runs and a couple of two-a-days and in the final race of the spring where I accidentally set a new 10K PR. I had no intentions of setting a new PR, it just sort of happened.
I hope each of you were able to log a mile or more on Global Running day and even better if you were able to celebrate with a local run club or a friend.
Monday: 6.2.2025 (JD 153): Run & Plunge
As I was driving to the meetup at 4:50am for our Early Risers 5am run I was thinking how extraordinary these runners are. They show up nearly every Monday, on time and put in the work. They have consistently displayed discipline, tenacity and a promptness that can’t be ignored. I felt it appropriate to let them know that should they ever need a personal reference for a future job, I’d be happy to testify to their discipline, dedication and personal tenacity.
Then it dawned on me. Everyone in the group is successful in their own right.
I realize that it’s not a coincidence that those whom I run with every Monday morning at 5:05am are successful in their lives and careers. Many of the intangible and qualitative traits that lead to success in running translate very well to achieving success in business and life.
Maybe it was the humidity, maybe it was just a Monday, but the main group was falling behind on an otherwise easy pace of 9’00”. We’ve done this same run at an 8’30” and the group stuck together. Whatever the case, Maureen kept me informed about how far ahead we’d gone and we slowed our pace to bring everyone together.
Summer Swimming
The weather continued to improve and a window of opportunity opened for me to get in my summer swimming during my lunch break. I’m not a fast swimmer. Compared to nearly everyone I know who swims and those in the lanes next to me, I’m the slowest swimmer I know. Good thing my goal isn’t time based, but distance based. My goal is to swim 3,000yds a week at a minimum, split up into 3 days at 1,000yds each.
Run: 5.02 miles | Avg Pace: 9’06” | Avg HR: 127 | Best Mile : 8’43” | 60°F at 96%
Swim: 1,000yds | Avg Pace: 2’23” | Avg HR: 85 | Best Length: 1’41” | Water Temp: 79F
Tuesday: 6.3.2025 (JD 154): Two-a-Day.
Humans are creatures of habit.
You’re going to develop habits. It’s inevitable. Everyone does.
“Every habit and capability is confirmed and grows in its corresponding actions, walking by walking, and running by running . . . therefore, if you want to do something, make a habit of it.” - Epictetus
This philosophy coincides with Aristotle’s
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
You and I have habits in our lives, those habits are derived from the repeated, replicated decisions we make daily. Our habits and the consequences of those habits are 100% in our own control.
On Tuesday’s I choose to run 4-miles with a goal of meeting or exceeding the Airborne Standard of 4-miles in 36-minutes or less. This Tuesday was no different.
This is possibly the LAST morning run in the 50’s until we get to October. I decided a two-a-day run was worth it to maximize this great morning weather that’s been gifted to us. The run felt great! Nothing too taxing on the body and my mind was able to relax and reflect, especially after running past the local lake and seeing all the steam rising up in the early morning.
My second run of the day was with Clayton Area Runners at our weekly Tuesday run. It was incredible to knock out two runs within 12-hours and experiencing a 32deg temperature change!
Run 1: 4.03 miles | Avg Pace: 8’15” | Avg HR: 132 | Best Mile : 7’56” | 51°F at 97%
Run 2: 3.10 miles | Avg Pace: 9’07” | Avg HR: 137 | Best Mile : 8’19” | 83°F at 40%
Wednesday: 6.4.2025 (JD 155): Global Running Day
Global Running Day is a celebration of the sport and culture of Running, celebrated around the globe and is an open invite to all people to experience the benefits of running.
My home Run Club organized a running event featuring an out-and-back 5K route followed by an on-site social with shared fruits, drinks and more. We had a great turnout of around 50 runners with plenty of drinks and snacks to share.
I love the sport and culture of the running community. My goal is that my passion for running is reflected and shared throughout this publication.
3.13 miles | Avg Pace: 8’24” | Avg HR: 135 | Best Mile : 8’04” | 80°F at 58%
Thursday: 6.5.2025 (JD 156): No Rain for the Committed.
A rain-heavy weather pattern has settled into our region and brought torrential downpours throughout the day on Thursday. Even up until 30 minutes before the start the rain was falling with ferocity and I saw many runners choosing to opt for the treadmill over running in the rain.
I wasn’t one of them. I had chosen to run outside no matter what. I don’t mind getting wet, especially in the summer and the rain is warm. I accepted the fact early in the day that this would be wet and soggy run, so when 6pm rolled around and it was time to go run, the rain didn’t deter me.
Our Thursday runs are usually the most attended event of the week, yet with the day-long rain storm and the ground still being wet, I figured I’d be one of maybe 10 people who showed up.
I couldn’t have been more wrong. We had 20 total runners show up with many opting for the 5-mile distance. It was 20 committed and dedicated runners, fully accepting the reality that rain would fall from the sky.
To our surprise, we never felt even a single rain drop! It was a completely dry run, except for the puddles scattered down the trail. This was a dry and comfortable run with overcast clouds protecting us from the harmful UV rays.
5.0 miles | Avg Pace: 9’30” | Avg HR: 134 | Best Mile : 8’49” | 73°F at 98%
Friday: 6.6.2025 (JD 157): Run & Swim
Friday’s are my opportunity to get in a solo run or put in a good 10K with Tommy. This morning I was running late to the YMCA and I started the run after the sun was already on the horizon.
Walking outside brought an abrupt reality that we were sitting in a tropical trough, brought into the mid-Atlantic off the coast of Florida. It was warm, humid and felt tropical. It triggered some excitement because in less than two weeks we’ll be on a family vacation to the Western Caribbean onboard the MSC World America.
This morning really felt like summer has arrived. The humidity was thick, sticking to the skin and preventing any heat loss through evaporation. The natural processes of staying cool were inhibited and there was only one way to get through this run and that was to keep going.
Step after step, I kept pushing and mile after mile ticked off. I was glad it was over. My clothes were soaked through and even my shoes were a few pounds heavier from water weight. Jumping into the pool for a morning swim was the only thing I could think about.
Because I was running late getting to the YMCA and with the increased heat, my pace was slower than expected and that shortened my time in the pool. I still got in 500yds and after such a grueling run, the pool was just right.
Cross training is feeling great and I think swimming will supplement my running capacity nicely.
Run: 6.01 miles | Avg Pace: 9’12” | Avg HR: 127 | Best Mile : 8’49” | 70°F at 100%
Swim: 500yds | Avg Pace: 2’48” | Avg HR: 92 | Best Length: 2’03” | Water Temp: 79F
Saturday: 6.7.2025 (JD 158): Run the Quay: Double Down Race 10K & 5K
Summer running is tough, trying to race in the summer is outright ridiculous in The South. That’s why the Run the Quay 5K/10K/15K is basically the last run of the spring before summer sets in. Last year I only ran the 10K and when 90% of the club moved on to complete the 5K for the full 15K double-down, I had serious FOMO. I made a personal goal to complete the 15K the following year.
This year I signed up for the 15K challenge, which consists of completing the 10K in 80minutes or less followed by racing the 5K. The 10K started at 7am with the 5K starting at 8:30am. I had full confidence I would be able to complete both without issue.
My home run club had over 40 runners show up for this race, most of which were completing the 15K challenge as well. It was great to see so many friends and fellow runners at the start and throughout the course during the race.
The 10K
I had no intention of going all-out and racing this course. There were multiple factors at play that brought me to this decision. It was too hot to race, too humid to haul ass and too many hills to hit a PR. My intention was to enjoy the route, push a comfortable pace up the hills and stay near an 8-min mile.
The starting chute was full of friends, it was good to look around and see plenty of familiar faces before the start of the 10K. One of those friends was Renae, a runner I’ve logged a few hundred miles with over the last couple of years. After a short discussion about the race, we settled on an agreed pace around 8-ish and that she’d do her best to keep me in sight.
At the start we had a cohort of runners all within 20ft of each other consisting of Ronie, Sarah, Renae, Mandy, Andrew and myself. This was Ronie’s first ever 10K race and his excitement was contagious. He was eager to get going and let his feet go down the fast, downhill start. We all knocked out the first mile around 7’38”, a pace well beyond Ronie’s goal of 9’00” and slightly faster than the agreed upon 8’00”.
Just after the first mile Ronie made the smart decision to back off a little and fall into his pace plan. We bid him farewell with the common “Have a good race!”.
Andrew was well ahead of us and I suspected I wouldn’t see him again until after the finish. This left Renae, Sarah, Mandy and myself articulating between running in pairs or solo for the next mile and a half.
Around the 2.5 mile mark I realized I was running solo. I think this was due to the heat and humidity but the prime factor was the hills. In the last three months I’ve accepted the fact that I enjoy running hills and this course had no less than two dozen of them. So at each hill, I’d run past as many people as I could and never got passed up a hill during both the 10K and 5K.
It was around mile 3.5 that I made a mental decision to slow down until someone caught up to me. I knew it would be one of three people, Mandy, Sarah or Renae and once one of them caught up I’d stick with whoever it was until the finish line.
It would be Renae who finally caught up to me and once she did we kept the pace stead and challenging for the remaining 2+ miles of the race. This was not an easy race! The temperatures kept rising and the humidity was an ever present pressure that placed increased stress on effort and pace. Add into that a continuous roller coaster of hills and the race is not an easy one.
Hill after hill, turn after turn, Renae and I kept running and pushing towards that final uphill finish line. With just 0.9 miles left we caught up to Andrew who appeared to be in the hurt locker. After a few words of encouragement, he picked up the pace and pushed through the pain.
For the last mile I paced Renae and we kept a steady pace up the hills. At nearly every turn, we’d make the corner and then be staring straight at the next hill. At this moment I’d hear Renae mutter something indistinct, but I assumed it wasn’t a burst of excitement for yet another hill.
At last we made the final turn, a 90-degree turn that had us facing down one last hill, so steep we couldn’t see the finish line at the top. The effort ramped up and once we saw the finish line arch, we never slowed down again. With just 100m left in the race, another woman approached quickly from behind, obviously trying to hunt us down and get one last kill before the finish line.
Renae wasn’t having it. She started a final sprint to the finish and left this come-from-behind scavenger well behind! I kept my pace and stayed behind, letting Renae get a great finish line photo burying the woman behind her.
“I want to be like her when I run!” - Spectator at the finish line.
The 10K was a fun race that yielded great results.
I accidentally set a new 10K PR at 49:58 - I’ll take it. I placed 19th in my Age Group, 78th amongst all men and in the top 100 (86th) overall.
Renae placed 4th in her Age Group, 8th place amongst all women and in the top 100 (81st) Overall.
Mandy placed 1st in her Age Group, 23rd amongst all women and 130th overall.
Sarah placed 9th in her Age Group, 21st amongst all women and 128th overall.
Ronie completed his first 10K race in 57:57! A great performance for his first race on a challenging course and day.
Andrew finished in 51:40 and while not hitting his goal, he improved over last year and finished with an overall pace of 8’19”!
10K: 6.3 miles | Avg Pace: 8’03” | Avg HR: 143 | Best Mile : 7’31” | 71°F at 87%
The 5K
The 5K race started 90minutes after the start of the 10K. With an 8:30am start, the temperatures increased and after a hard pressed 10K, nobody was going to go out racing the 5K. This would be an easy, laid back run to complete the 15K challenge.
I ran the 5K solo the entire way and took it very easy. I was pleased to see that my “easy” pace was well below the 9 min/mile threshold. After running a 10K, the 5K seemed like such a short distance! After completing the first 1.55 miles it felt ridiculous that I was already halfway done.
The 5K was similar to the 10K with multiple hills and an uphill finish.
The 5K is distance is always fun and interesting to run because you see so many people out there who have set the 5K as a goal distance and often times this is their first race! The amount of effort, intestinal fortitude and tenacity on display is always encouraging and inspiring.
5K: 3.16 miles | Avg Pace: 8’49” | Avg HR: 139 | Best Mile : 8’32” | 74°F at 82%
Sunday: 6.8.2025 (JD 159): Easy Recovery
An “Easy” Run isn’t about pace, it’s about feel.
After yesterday’s 15K challenge with the 3H’s, today’s run was going to be very “easy” at a conversational pace with a low heart rate. I put out an open invite to the club for an easy 5-miles at approximately a 10’30” pace. It was great to see Adam, Renae and Matthew show up.
As we were getting ready for our pre-run picture another one of our CAR Runners came hauling ass down the trail! I recognized her immediately, but in true form I couldn’t recall her name. As I write this, I still can’t recall her name! It’s a real problem in my life.
Then, a pair of cyclists came down the hill and through the tunnel going pretty damn fast. Then, the first rider hit the sand across the pavement from the prior nights washout and nearly crashed. He pulled off a miraculous save and kept going. Just behind him the second rider hit the same sandy patch and went down hard. The bike twisted and turned and threw the rider onto his ass and then whipped his head back onto the pavement and cracked the back of his head directly onto the trail.
The helmet saved his life.
From the impact I saw, had he not been wearing a helmet we would have had to call an ambulance for sure.
After all that excitement, the group stepped out for a 5-mile run at a 10’30” pace and we did pretty good. The heat and humidity continued to climb during our late morning run and it’s impacts on Adam were debilitating. At the 2.5 mile turn around we slowed the pace to ensure Adam was good to go. At the 4-mile mark, Adam picked up a walk/jog iteration while Renae and I finished up our 5 miles and Matthew was on his way back from a 6 mile run.
After our 5-miler was complete, we turned back to go get Adam and finish up as a group.
We’re not done until we’re all done.
Overall I completed 5.58 miles this morning with a low, low heart rate and plenty of water.
5.01 miles | Avg Pace: 11’05” | Avg HR: 110 | Best Lap: 10’28” | 83°F at 72%