Duel in the Dunes ~

Race week is here blogger fans...The miles have been run, the carbs are being loaded and the trash is still being talked...


Come Saturday, yours truly and CJ will be toeing the line with 3000 of our closest friends in an attempt to break 2 hours in the half marathon.

After logging a personal best of 126 training miles in the month of January, this snail is entirely confident is his ability to finish this half-mary under 2 hours! This past Thursday I finished my last track workout. Yasso 800 x9...If Mr. Yasso is correct in his marathon speedwork preparation then I should be in great shape for going after a 1:57 1/2. Here are my most recent 800's.

3:51
3:53
3:55
3:56
3:55
3:53
3:51
3:44
3:42

After a heavy mileage month, I am really taking the time to enjoy the mini-taper on the schedule for this week. Tuesday I will do a 6 mile run with 4 miles at race pace in the middle and then a 4 miler on Thursday just to keep the legs loose...

Let's make it official and post some goals...

A. Cross the finish line before CJ.

B. Cross the finish line in less than 2 hours.

C. Average 8:45's and break 1:55.

All kidding aside, I am really looking forward to Friday's packet pick up. Hopefully I will get to meet up with CJ for a minute on Friday, a chance to talk with him a little, you know, compare the size of our...blogs...

Out of the loop...

So, I have been house/dog sitting for a friend and I have not had internet access...Surprisingly enough, I have not gone through complete withdrawal!



There is a ton of stuff for me to catch up on....Countless blogs to read, witty retorts to think of, polls to vote on, insults to sling at the shrinking CJ and a Half Marathon to run!

First things first! Jamoosh tagged me in the 10 Things post so it is only right that I grant you people a little glimpse into the inner workings of teh Snail....ala Letterman's Top 10!


#10...David Letterman...(come on, gotta pay some props for stealing his bit!)

#9...Getting a new pair of running shoes two months after having just bought a new pair.

#8...Winter in the South...(I will not post pictures for fear of hurting any feelings)

#7...That feeling about five minutes before a race starts...

#6...That feeling right after crossing the finish line...

#5...Getting a "perfect" song on the shuffle during a run.

#4...comments on my blog (seriously, those emails make me giddy like a little kid!)

#3...The second to last interval on track day.

#2...Smoking CJ at Tybee...

#1...my Sweet Boo!

11 days until Tybee, I completed my last long run of 15 miles on Sunday. I will get one more track workout this Thursday~Yasso 800's x 9! Last weeks Yasso's were awesome, my times are dropping and I ran my last rep at 3:36! Somebody might be fitting into a size 32 after I get done beating that a$$ at Tybee....I am definately in race form...

check this guy's blog out...

Patrick's Running Blog

His name is Patrick McGlade and he is running accross the US to raise money for the Arthritis Foundation. Basically he will be doing a marathon a day and relying on the kindness of others to put him up for the night. He began is trans continental run on January 1st, in Huntington Beach, California and plans to finish his run April, 16th in Tybee Island, GA. My back yard!!! SAHWEET!!!

Here is the link to the main website for the run.

Patrick's Cross Country RUN for Arthritis

Please~
1. Donate if you can.

2. If you or someone you know lives near his route try and put him up!

3. Follow his blog and show as much support as possible.

I look forward to following his blog and plan to be on hand as he plunges into the ocean... Maybe I can even run with him for a little while...

Case of the Thursdays...

First and foremost congrats to The Sean for an amazing sub 3 hour Disney Marathon, his recap is fantastic. I draw a ton of running inspiration from my fellow bloggers, I love reading his blog.

I have been on a running "high" for the last week or so. I can't stop thinking about running. I find myself watching the clock at work, waiting for that blessed hour when I can clock out get out of there and go run. The weather conditions be damned, I am running!

This past Saturday, Cubbie and I met early for a 5 miler. It was cold but I couldn't wait to get there. 28 degrees at the start, I loved it. Ran without my watch, I just was happy to be out there.

I meet Cubbie at 9am on Sunday for our weekly long run. 9 miles was on the schedule as it was a cycle down week. 24 degrees~WHO CARES!!! We are running! What a great morning to get out and enjoy the world.

Having logged two easy, slower runs over the weekend, I wanted to test out the legs a little on Tuesday. I decided to give it a go and do 6 miles at an all out pace. I was like a little kid filled with stomach butterflies as I rushed home from work to change. 52:06 minutes later, I dropped an 8:40 pace on downtown Savannah!

Cubbie joined me on my favorite 5 mile loop downtown last night, she has never run this route with me. It was fun to share this route as it has a few different elements. The first two miles takes us down a couple of busy streets, I get the feeling like I live in a big city when I run along this part of the route. Then a quick couple of turns and I spend the next mile and a half traveling underneath a canopy of Spanish Moss covered oak trees that are hundreds of years old. House after house I pass, each with its own story to tell, some dating to before the Great Fire of 1820. At this point we loop around Forsyth Park, located in the middle of downtown. My run's last mile is spent traversing the revitalized tourist mecca known as City Market and Broughton Street. Shops, restaurants, and bars. There is always a energizing feel as I finish my route down this road.

This all brings us to tonight's trackwork! Yasso's 800 x 7! I really felt focused and was not let down by the effort.
3:48
3:52
3:55
3:56
3:52
3:50
3:41

Amazing workout. I made it through that last 800 by reminding myself that this was the last 800 for an entire week!

As I reflect back on some of the great runs I have had in the last week, I can't help but get excited about this base work and what it will mean as I move forward into the 2010 race calendar. Good things to come. Not to get ahead of myself, I must remember, it all starts...
...one foot in front of the other, one step at a time.

Trackwork Thursday

Mind over matter people!

I sent the Crackhead a text message "informing" him how cold it was going to be at the track tonight. Don't you people listen to The Weather Channel? This is an "Artic Blast"...

His response:

Just think. The competition won't have the dedication u have so u will crush them on race day.

Looks like I will be doing my track workout afterall~6 sub 4 minute Yasso's on tap....update with stats to follow.
GS


***Update***

I got to the track and we did a leisurely warm up jogging around the complex. Moving onto some drills; high knees, kick butts, strides, and cross overs.

Light stretching and then onto the fun. Yasso 800's with 400 recovery. My schedule called for 6 this week with my goal pace being a 3:55 pace.

3:53
3:55
3:55
3:56
3:53
3:43

Smokes! I seriously don't know how I hit that last 800! I looked at the watch at the 400 mark on that last rep and it read 2:01. I dug deep and found a 1:42 400 on the back end of that workout. After thinking about it for a while I noticed that on that last 800, especially the last 400, I was really focused. I know that on some of the pervious 800's I was thinking about my day at work, what I was going to have for dinner...just sort of going through the motions. On that last 400 I was really just focusing 100% of my attention on running. "Relax and Move" (Thanks Sean) While doing this I was able to run hard focusing on the effort, know it wouldn't last forever. I feel like I have not fully tapped into my potential yet. Exciting things to come!

I am really starting to like speedwork!

Zen in 2010

Happy New Year!!!

I promised myself I wasn't going to fall prey to the "recap" blog. "We will not regret the past, nor wish to shut the door on it"...

Day by day I read great recap blogs. My "non-recap" recap blog began forming inside my head during my runs over the last week...lol. I thought about all 11 of the races I ran last year. There were some highs and some lows. Feb. '09 I ran the Tybee 5 mile race in 53:10. This past Tuesday I ran 5 miles in 43:32. Holy Toledo, I have taking 10 minuted off of my 5 mile time this year!

I began in earnest training for my first marathon last year. I have had barstool dreams of running a marathon most of my adult life. I even started training for one back in 2004 with Team In Training, only to drop out halfway through the program. I was determined to run this marathon and running the Equinox Marathon absolutely was one of the greatest experiences in my entire life.

Much like the stock market in the beginning of the year, my PR's plummeted. Race after race I continued to drop my PR with the final one coming last night as I ran a 51:35 10K at a race held on the golf course at the resort I work.

Let's look forward for a minute to the year ahead. I have a full race schedule planned and will attempt to cover almost every race distance available from the 1 mile to 50K.

Tybee Half Marathon 2/6/10 This will be my first race at this distance~Instant PR!I will be shooting for a sub 2 hour performance. Also, I will get to meet CJ...should be fun

I am looking at two different marathons in NC on the 21st of March. Either the Tobacco Road or Wrightsville Beach.

I plan on using that marathon as my final training run for the Sweetwater, wait for it,....50K U L T R A on April 3rd.

By this time, I will know if I got a lottery slot into the NYC Marathon. Otherwise I will add another Autumn marathon to my schedule.

Looking at the shorter distances, I plan on running the Savannah Mile, with a goal of 6:45 or less. I ran it in '09 with a mile time of 7:19.

There are a handful of 5 and 10K's I will add to the schedule just to round it out. This gives me a lot to look forward to in the upcoming year.

My number one goal for 2010 is to stay healthy and continue to improve my overall fitness. I lost 25 pounds during 2009 and would like to lose another 20 in the next year. As I continue to lose weight, my times will continue to drop. I would like to break 4 hours in the full, 49 minutes in the 10k and dare I say it, 22:59 5k...

Although this blog is titled Georgia Snail; it is not all about me.

In 2010 I will give back and work towards being less selfish. I would like to volunteer at a couple of races and move forward with my goal of organizing a race to benifit the local Autism Foundation. I am going to try to help my fellow man whenever my HP allows me.

I want to finish this post with a great thank you to all of my fellow bloggers. Your comments and constant encouragement has made a huge impact in my life and on my running. Every blog that I follow continues to serve me with great motivation.

2010 is going to be a great year. One foot in front of the other; one step at a time!