Ramsey Run - 10K

36:22
7th overall out of 168
Pace/Mile: 5:51
Age Grade: 79.9%
Age Group Place: 1st of 38
Date: 9/13/2008
Splits (5:36, 11:30, 17:30, 23:25, 29:33, 35:15)
Comments: My pace was all over the place from 5:36 to 6:08 per mile, however I felt good and was pleased with my time. The Don Bosco HS XC team showed up again this year and ruined any hopes of me winning this year like in 2004 when nobody showed up. (http://www.compuscore.com/cs2004/sept/ramsey1.htm) Maybe I will have to duck the competition and run the 5K next year instead, if I am still in shape. I was pleased with my age grade of 79.9%, which is my highest since college, still short of my goal of 80.0% as a master.

Glen Rock Arboretum 5 Mile Run

29:16
2nd overall out of 151
Pace/Mile: 5:51.2
Age Grade: 78.3%
Date: 9/1/2008
Splits (5:57, 11:40, Missed, 23:16) I did not pay close attention to the splits so these may not be accurate.
Comments: The first place guy started to pull away from me slightly before 4 miles. I was just not able to go with him; it was more about me not being able to maintain the pace then him actually picking up the pace. Oh well 2nd place again.

NJ Striders 3000M Track

10:08.9
2nd overall
Date: July 10, 2008
Location: Mahwah High School, NJ
I have not raced much on the track since college, however it is definitely a change from the roads. I did race the NJ Striders track meet two weeks ago, that time running the mile in 5:06.5 for 4th out of 6. The race went out a little slower than I was hoping for (800m in 2:47, 1600m in 5:32), however since there was a fair amount of wind on the backstretch of the track I did not want to lead if I did not have to. There was a pack of 5 of us until about 800 to go when the leader picked up the pace; I went with him however just not as fast. He won by about 5 seconds. Before the race I was hoping to run under 10:00, however was still satisfied with the result since I did not really suffer until the last 800.

Glen Rock 9/11 Tribute 5K

17:32.8
3rd overall out of 283
Pace/Mile: 5:40
Age Grade: 78.93%
Date: July 4, 2008
Weather: Sunny 72 degrees (it felt warmer and humid)
Splits (5:29, 11:29) I believe these are wrong, however the course is certified so I believe the overall time is accurate.

Hawthorne Run Against Domestic Violence 5K

17:23.2
3rd overall out of 180
Pace/Mile: 5:36
Age Grade: 79.66%
Date: June 22, 2008
Weather: Sunny 75 degrees
Splits (5:32, 11:15)

Racing the Antelope by Bernd Heinrich

A little while ago I finished reading the book Racing the Antelope by Bernd Heinrich, so I figured that I would write a review. This book is very different from all the other running books I have read since it mainly compares the performance of humans to animals and insects. I would certainly not recommend this as one of the first running books to read. However, if you have already read quite a few other running books and are looking for something completely different this book might be for you. I must admit that I skimmed over some of the animal/insect chapters to move on to the more practical human application and the authors own training for ultramarathons. However there where certainly some interesting statics like the Antelope has been reported to cover 7 miles in 10 minutes and has a VO2 max of 300. My main criticism of the book is that there are too many chapters about animals/insects and not enough about his running. The author does discuss his training for his American Record attempt at the 100K distance and the race itself. All in all I would recommend the book, however, fortunately I was able to check the book out of the library because even though the book was interesting, I don't know if it would be good enough for most runners to purchase. Anyway my favorite quote the book mentions is... "Now if you are going to win the battle, you have to do one thing. You have to make the mind run the body. Never let the body tell the mind what to do. The body will always give up."
George S. Patton, 1912 Olympian.

Ridgewood Run 5K - Money for Nothing

Many of the awards I have won are from sub par performances for me. Unfortunately the reverse is also true, I have very little to show for my PR's and my best races as far as awards go. For example when I was in High School and College I ran the Ridgewood Run many times over the years (a Memorial Day tradition for me) and always came home empty handed. Even when I ran my 5K Road PR of 15:52 I was still only 7th in my age group. Well this year I run the 5K figuring most of the better guys in my age group (and masters) will be running the 10K. Well I figured correctly and ended up 2nd in my age group (getting an age group award) and placing 5th master (getting $35 prize money), with my slowest 5K time in the last 2 years and worst performance time wise (even figuring age grading) ever at Ridgewood. I am definitely not complaining, just kind of funny how these things work out sometimes.
Here is my history for the Ridgewood 5K:
Date.............Time.....Place...Age Place......Age
5/26/2008......18:00......26.......2.................42
5/27/1996......16:45......33.......6.................30
5/29/1995......16:54......25.......8.................29
5/25/1987......15:52......16.......7.................21
5/27/1985......16:23.5....23.......?.................19
5/28/1984......16:30......14.......4.................18
5/30/1983......16:53......18.......?.................17
5/31/1982......17:06.3....42.......8................16