Fun! Training Log Week of 12-7 to 12-13

With another set of construction gigs on deck, and a Nor'Easter bearing down on New England this week, I'm looking at a tough running schedule...but no problem!  I'll get some miles later in the week.

Monday, 12-8 - 2.5 Miles (Trail) - Short run at Lantern Hill.  Waiting for Soph's Basketball practice to wrap up, I squeezed in a short Lantern Hill run on a chilly afternoon.  Had the place all to myself, no other takers...

Tuesday, 12-9 - 0 Miles.

Wednesday, 12-10 - 0 Miles.  However, I did get roped into signing up for the 7 Sisters Trail Race in Mass. in May, a good n' tough 12-miler.  Nothing like a couple of beers to lighten the wallet!  And Don made a compelling argument with his "Join this washed-up runner..." comments :)

Thursday, 12-11 - 10 Miles (Dirt track/trail/road) - 3 Run Thursday.  Run #1 - 6.5 Miles (Road/Trail) - Met Paul and his broken thumb (Li'l Rhody mishap) in Mystic, and took him on a partial tour of the DPNC trails, where he regained some trail confidence, and I finally got to try out my new (and totally badass) trail shoes, the Salomon Speedcross 3's, my first time straying from New Balance in about 4-5 years:

My new shoes kick ass.  Don't tell the wife I had them on the kitchen counter!

Great chilly run with Paul, and he jokingly (I think) said he better not see that I did another run today.  Well...

Run #2 (Sorry Paul!) - 1.3 Miles (Trail) - Dog Trail Jog with Henry.  Took Henry out for some trail action, and he led the entire run, only going off trail once to poop (Just like Muddy!).  Great trail time with the boy.

Run #3 (Sorry again, Paul!) - 2.1 Miles (Dirt Track) - Wheeler time-killer.  I showed up just a bit early to pick Soph up from B-Ball practice, so I did some laps around Wheeler's shitty dirt and gravel track, and threw in a few fast-ish 200's (40, 38, 39) which would have been a lot better on a real track!  I also increased my stride length slightly for the second 200, which gave me a faster time with what felt like less effort, and is something to think about for sure...

Friday, 12-12 - 4 Miles (Road) - Mystic Cruise. - Had some errands to run, and snagged 4 miles in Mystic, cruising around.  Cold.  Took a half-assed potshot at two segments, and got my 2nd best effort at both.  Afterward, I swung by Kelley's Pace to spend a birthday gift certificate (thanks, family!) and met the new owner, Jeff Anderson, who is a very cool dude (and working with HMF on the potential Mystic 1/2 Marathon!).  I was looking for a new pair of road shoes, as I just got the trail shoes (see above post).  He analyzed my gait and I'm a neutral runner, and recommended a few pairs to try.  I settled on the Brooks Ghost 7:

More shoe porn...

Can't wait to try them out!!!  Tomorrow?

Saturday, 12-13 - 4.6 Miles (Trail) - Lantern Hill + Dog Jog. - Had to make a run to the transfer station, so I hit Lantern Hill and did a double run to the top and back.  Chilly and breezy, but a pretty nice day.  When I got home I took Henry on a dog jog across the street, so he could get some trail time as well.  Time to relax, as we're going to Foxwoods to see Jim Gaffigan tonight :)

Sunday, 12-14 - 4.2 Miles (Trail/Road) - Foxwoods trails and roads.  Just a cruisy run around the lower Lantern Hill trails, and over to the trails at the museum, where I picked up another piece of the original Pequot Trail (pre-Foxwoods) until I realized I wasn't on trail anymore.  Some shuffling around near the remnants of an old fort wall and I got back on track.  Still have to look around back there...