Irony...

With its faltering economy, the U.S. is no longer the land of opportunity it once was for Mexican immigrants. ~ Bruce Finley

Well, that is one campaign promise the leadership of the last 8 years seems to have kept.

~stubert.

Fast. Furious. - Weekly summary...

Yo tengo un pato pedorro. ~ Pete Sabin

What a week. Way WAY too busy with work. Made me grumpy as hell but eager to get my runs in. Spent most of the week indoors but laid down some fast laps and felt pretty solid about it all by week's end.

• Sunday 11/9: Horrendous half, 13 miles, 1:53. This was not the workout I had in mind as I just pretty much suffered through most of it. Felt friggin GREAT on the downhill then things got windy, cold and ugly fast. I find it virtually impossible to run slow enough up hills at altitude to keep my heartrate down. By the end, I couldn't keep it under control on the downhills. Plus I got nipple chafe. How lame is that as the proverbial cherry on top of a miserable run?
• Monday 11/10: Recovery swim, 30 minutes. Good to get in the pool to wash away yesterday's tears.
• Tuesday 11/11: Wash Park runstravaganza, 7+ miles, 00:57. Now THAT's what I'm talking about. Was down in Denver for meetings so decided to head to Wash Park for some laps. Was feeling pretty solid so I decided to step it up and lay down some good times. I have come to the conclusion, however, that I am an ugly runner. Who's that lump plodding down the road over there? Oh THAT? That's stubert.
• Wednesday 11/12: Indoor half, 13.3ish, 1:44. Ok, I felt the need to really put the hammer down and had a 12-miler scheduled so I figured why not turn that into a half marathon and see if I can get my target pace for the full dialed in? So that is what I did. Painful? A bit... but I felt okay afterwards and am now feeling pretty confident about adjusting my raceday target to something below 3:30 since I won't be at altitude. I'll keep you posted on that.
  
• Friday 11/14: LT 9-miler with some barefoot then swim, 9 miles, 1:09. Hit the track again because work kept me busy until after dark. Spun the first three miles at a steady 8-minute pace then turned on the heat for 5. Tried to keep a 7-minute pace for these but was redlined after 2.5 and had to back off for a little bit then crank it back up. Ended up finishing the first 8 in 1:00, which for me, is awesome. Then I did 1/4 mile slowish jog then 3/4 mile barefoot. All in all, a great training session. I then swam for a bit to cool down.
• Saturday 11/15: Day two on the planks at the Basin, 1:30. Pete, Edy and I headed up early and made turns until it got crowded -- which didn't take long. The snow was decent and a morning of turns is better than a morning spent sitting in front of the computer.

Total mileage for the week: 42.5
Total time for the week: 8:15ish (including swims and skiing and whatnot)

All in all, a bad start with a solid finish. Starting to feel fast and definitely more able to manage the heartrate at higher speeds. Good stuff.

~stubert.

Holy moly finally a weekly update...

Stay on target. ~ Gold Five

Aw crap. Did I just quote Star Wars?!?!

Ok... the last couple of weeks were just nuts so I am finally getting around to a weekly summary. It is spotty, at best, so bear with me a little.

Anyway, needless to say, I have been pretty stressed. Working the campaign, several client projects, and trying to get back in the groove of training. "Busy" doesn't begin to describe... So here is a feeble attempt to reenact the last couple of weeks -- for your reading pleasure:

• Sunday 10/26: Obama rally in Denver.
  
• Monday 10/27: South Beaver run, 8 miles, 1:08. Felt like hammered crap. Couldn't keep my heartrate down to save my life. Post race, I have really been struggling. I am going to lose the nail on my right index toe and my left index toe appears to have a bit of tissue damage that I am going to have to treat with rest and ice. It'll get better and there is nothing wrong with a little rest.
• Tuesday 10/28: Swim, 00:30. Just getting my low-impact on.
• Wednesday 10/29: SKI DAY #1, 1:30. Toe was killing me but Pete and I had a great time at the Basin. More swimming, 00:42.
• Friday 10/31: Halloween swim, 00:42. Not eaten by any zombie sharks.
• Saturday 11/1: Swim, 00:45. I am getting better at this but am not a huge fan.
  
• Sunday 11/2: Ran on the track, 2 miles then swam for about 30 minutes.
  
• Monday 11/3: Lifted weights and swam a bit, 00:45. Cold and windy up here so I went to the gym for a bit.
  
• Tuesday 11/4: Election day recovery run, 6 miles on the track, 00:48. Felt ok, not great. I was working the election for most of the day then did my run, swam a little, then worked some more and listened for the results. Needless to say, by the end of the day I was exhausted but thrilled to death to have a new President. Rach made phone calls to people all across the country to GOTV. I can't wait until January 20th.
  
• Wednesday 11/5: Aero run on the track with strides and barefoot, 9.5 miles, 1:12. Finally a great post-race run. Took awhile but I felt awesome and kept a solid 8-minute pace throughout. Did strides at every mile and then did 1/2 mile of barefoot. I think this is the fastest 9 miles I have run and running barefoot was actually kinda cool. Swam for a bit afterwards.
  
• Thursday 11/6: Sat in front of the computer. Ugh.
  
• Friday 11/7: Aero run with strides and a couple fast miles, 9+ miles, 1:10. Ran at the track, late in the evening because work took up the rest of my day. I felt great, actually, and was able to keep the HR down even at an 8-minute pace. Started doing strides at every mile then tossed in sub 7 miles at mile 7 and 9. Feeling really solid. Swam for about 15 afterwards to cool down.
  
• Saturday 11/8: Recovery run in the woods, 5 miles, 00:47. Didn't feel so red hot today but given the last couple of efforts, I am okay with that. First time outdoors for awhile and it was nice to get back out to nature.

All in all, I am feeling more and more recovered and am getting back in the swing of things. With the marathon in about 4 weeks, I am feeling fairly confident. I am not really looking forward to the aftermath but am hoping that my second foray onto the tarmac will be a little less painful. Very enthusiastic about laying down solid 8-minute miles without killing myself. Skiing is going to be a real distraction and work has been slaying me of late but I think I can manage to stay focused and do well at Vegas.

The Community Center has been a really awesome resource. Psyched I gave it a whirl. I anticipate spending some time there over the winter staying in good running shape.

~stubert.

44...

This is our moment. This is our time - to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth - that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes We Can. ~ Barack Obama

It goes without saying that today, I am one happy camper. But now the real work begins. We have taken the first step of what will be a long journey. It feels good to be on our way.

Americans stood up yesterday and spoke -- rather loudly in fact. They said "no more" to the politics of fear and hate. A wonderful sentiment that I hope carries on to future elections.

There is still a lot to do and this type of change tends to happen in spurts. I am proud to have been a part of history last night. And proud to have Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States.

Let this inspire others to greatness, encourage all of us to be everything we can be, and mark the moment when we can get back on track and foster compassion for our planet and all its inhabitants.

~stubert.

Election erection...

Can't blog. Geeking out on vote results.

~stubert.