Playing Catch Up

The designated mileage for running with the L.A. Leggers today was six miles. No problem. I ran with the twelve minute a mile pace group and we started running a little faster than that but not much., About a mile and a half in I had to use the restroom and didn't want to try and hold it for four and a half miles. I slipped out of the running pack and into the public restroom along our course.

I knew it was going to take me a mile or more to catch up, but I was feeling good and was confident I could. Approximately a mile after my pit stop I saw a group of L.A. Leggers running ahead of me. I assumed it was my group and picked up the pace to catch them. As I got within fifty yards of the group I realized it was the fourteen minute a mile pace group. No wonder I had such an easy time catching them. Oh well, I'll just keep going. However picking up the pace to catch up to the 14s tuckered me out a bit.

As I ran down the bridge to the Santa Monica Pier and to the beach I saw my group still more than a quarter of a mile ahead. I ran down the bridge and turned on the boardwalk and tried to pick up the pace. I was passing a few stragglers from the group who were unable to keep up. That is not so unusual as the miles start to increase. I kept running.

My Garmin indicated I was over 4 miles into this run and I was still not catching them. I was surprised because I was running under an eleven minute a mile pace. I was passing more and more people from the group who could not keep up.

The turn around point to go back was at four and a half miles and I was now about four and a third miles into this. The path curves a lot at this point and so I could not see very far ahead, but I was sure I had to be very close to the group. At about 4.4 miles a finally saw the group heading towards me. I was still about two tenths of a mile back. I could either cut off a bit of running and just join them, or go all the way to the turn around point. I decided to go to the turn around point and still try to catch up.

I picked up the pace considerably and looked down at my Garmin and saw that I was running under ten minute miles. I was going more than two minutes a mile faster than the pace group was going, why wasn't I catching up more quickly? I could now clearly see the group ahead of me. I knew I was going to catch them in a minute or two. When I finally did, I assumed I was going to fall back into a much slower pace, but I didn't. The group was doing about an eleven minute a mile pace. It suddenly all made sense. The reason I had so much trouble catching up, the reason there were so many stragglers who had to drop out was that the group was running way too fast.

The head mentor for the group and his top assistant were both gone this weekend. We had a mentor who apparently didn't watch his pace even though, I later learned, he was getting a lot of complaints about the pace and requests to slow down. When we finally finished and he looked at the average pace he said something like, it is good to push the pace. It makes you stronger. That is probably true, but he is supposed to be a mentor for a group that trains people for marathons who have often never done any kind real running before. I have the feeling that some of those people who had to abandon the group because they could not keep up may abandon the Leggers. Hopefully they joined slower groups as they came by, but you never know. I think our so called mentor did the group as a whole a great disservice.

John Thum

Ironman Race Report

For my Ironman Arizona race report click here or just keep scrolling down.

My Kindle Reading List

I have had my Kindle 2 for a little over five months now. I really like it. I have done more reading in the last five months since any time in my life with the exception of college... Although, when I really think about it, this may also include college.

The following is a list of books, in no particular order, I have read on my Kindle since I got it.

Consent To Kill by Vince Flynn

A fun read. Vince Flynn writes potboiler spy novels that follow his CIA super agent Mitch Rapp. It is nice to read novels where our intelligence services are highly competent and get things done and protect our freedom. The other thing I like about the Mitch Rapp series is that Mitch is a former winner of the Ironman world championships. Not just his age group, the whole thing. Now he's a spy and people want to kill him!

Driving Like Crazy by P.J. O'Rourke

This is an updated collection of some of P.J.'s best automotive writing. It is often hilarious. If you're a fan of P.J. O'Rourke you will like this book.

The American Patriot's Almanac by William J. Bennett and John Cribb

I have not read the whole thing because it is an almanac. I read one section a day. It highlights a significant historical event that took place on that day. A fun way to go through American history.

Christ The Lord: Out Of Egypt by Anne Rice

No vampires, but a very well-written, scholarly and well-researched novel on the early days of Jesus. It starts with the family leaving Egypt and returning to Nazareth. Jesus is not fully aware of who he is, but there are hints. It is consistent with the Gospels where it can be and goes in a very logical but sometimes surprising direction where there is no reference in the Gospels.

Dog On It: A Chet and Bernie Mystery by Spencer Quinn

This was the first book I actually paid for on my Kindle. I didn't know anything about it, but read a description and decided to buy it. I have been telling anyone who will listen about it ever since. It is a mystery story that is narrated by a dog. Bernie is the detective, Chet is his faithful dog and together they make it work. If you enjoyed the dogs in the movie Up, you will enjoy this. This is amusingly told from the dog's point-of-view. Squirrel!

Checkmate by Karna Small Bodman

I heard the author on a radio talk show and thought that she was one of the most intelligent people I had ever heard call into a program. The host obviously thought so too because he started asking her about herself to find out about her background. She mentioned that she is currently a novelist and wrote political thrillers. I was intrigued enough to give her a shot. She was perhaps the best caller I have ever heard on a radio talk show, but she is not a good writer. I did manage to finish the book, but there were a few debates with myself as to weather I should. This was not well written and really just kind of lame. She has two more books out, but I do not plan on reading them. I wonder how many people, like me, bought her book after her appearance? It was a good way to sell books.

Memorial Day by Vince Flynn

Mitch Rapp saves Washington and New York from a nuclear attack by Muslim terrorists! He's one bad mother--

Shut your mouth!

But, I'm talkin' 'bout Rapp!

Born To Run by Christopher McDougall

I loved this book. I wrote a post about it that you can read here.

Executive Power by Vince Flynn

Hey, it's a Mitch Rapp thriller. He's manly and kills bad guys. What more do you want? The only down side is that his wife is starting to annoy me. He loves her, but she annoys me.

The Persian Night: Iran Under The Khomeinist Revolution by Amir Taheri

Read this book! It is especially relevant after the recent elections and protests in Iran.

Grave Sight by Charlain Harris

This is the same author who writes the Sookie Stackhouse stories on which HBO's True Blood is based. No vampires here, just a likable, but strange woman who feels vibes from dead people. She locates bodies and solves mysteries and kind of creeps people out. She and her eccentric brother are characters I liked spending time with. I will probably read the other books in the series eventually, but I didn't feel like jumping into them right away.

Separation of Power by Vince Flynn

Ironman Triathlete, super-spy and all around manly dude, Mitch Rapp is back killing bad guys, busting corrupt politicians and uncovering evil plots. Written before 9/11 and the Iraq war, you even have Saddam Hussein trying to acquire nuclear weapons.

Practical Demonkeeping by Christopher Moore

This was one of those "Amazon recommends for you" books and I decided I would give it a try. This is book that thinks it is a lot more hip and droll than I do. I imagine that the author thought he was being outrageously funny at every turn. I occasionally thought the book was mildly amusing. The plot is overly complicated and ultimately doesn't take you very far. I know Christopher Moore has his fans, I'm just not one of them.

The Third Option by Vince Flynn

Mitch Rapp kills more bad guys and saves the world and sometimes gets all mad about stuff. I like it.

Small Steps by Louis Sachar

This is a sequel of sorts to Holes, a truly wonderful book and movie. It follows X-Ray, a minor character in Holes, a couple of years after his time in the juvenile detention camp. It is okay young adult fare, but doesn't have the magic of Holes. The plot of Holes was somewhat improbable, but worked in the world that was created by the author, the plot of Small Steps is just improbable. However, the characters are likable enough that I cared what happened to them in this fairly short read.

Lawn Boy by Gary Paulson

This was offered as a free download on the Kindle and since the price was right, I went for it. It is a short novel that is written for pre-teens. I imagine that I would really have enjoyed it as a pre-teen. It is about a boy who inheirets a riding lawn mower and becomes a lawn mowing tycoon. Eventually bad guys are involved and they get their comeuppance. At least I read it. Most of the things that I download for free from Kindle I don't get past the first chapter.

The Forgotten Man by Amity Shlaes

A detailed and very well-written history of the Great Depression. It certainly makes one question the wisdom of the New Deal.

The Babysitter's Code by Laura Lippman

This short story was also a free download on Kindle. It was worth every cent I paid for it. If it has been ten pages longer I don't think I would have bothered to finish it.

John Thum

Another Ironman In 2011?

At this time last year I was obsessing over competing in my first Ironman triathlon and training very hard six days a week. The weekends where very long days of training, usually eight to ten hours. The only break on the weekends was to go to church. On weekdays I got up early for at least an hour-long morning training session and then did a couple hours after work. This year, not so much. I have had a lot more time to do other things, but I have also put on about twenty pounds. I kind of miss having a great big goal. I am leaning more and more to doing Ironman Arizona again in 2011. As of today, the plan is to volunteer at this year's race and then sign up for next years. We are also trying to buy a house and other things, so I reserve the right to change my mind, but I definitely need more focus in my workouts.

John Thum

On The Horns Of A Dilemma

I was quite excited that the L.A. Marathon is being moved back to March and that the new route would take us from Dodger Stadium to the Pacific Ocean in Santa Monica. However, I realized last week that the L.A. Marathon for 2010 is on March 21 and the Oceanside Half-Ironman triathlon, which I have already signed up for, is on March 27. It will be tough to run a marathon on a Sunday and come back the next Saturday for a Half Ironman. I guess we'll have to see.

John Thum

Running Barefoot...Sort Of.

Inspired by reading Born To Run, I have been doing more and more barefoot running. It has been mostly on the grass, about a mile to a mile an a half. I wanted to be less limited than running on the grass and so I took Barefoot Ted's advice and purchased some Vibram Fivefingers.

They are great. You really get the feel of running barefoot, but do not have to worry about glass and sharp rocks and other debris in the street. I can feel these things if I run over them, but there is no chance that they will cut my feet. Running barefoot really is a much better way to run. I am faster and less tired for the equivalent distances. Now when I say I'm faster, it means I improve from laughably slow to merely ridiculously slow, but still, I'm faster!

They are also an attention getter. I'm not sure this is always a good thing. After I bought my new Vibram Fivefingers, I walked out of the store wearing them and was immediately asked about them as I was getting into my car. Later in the week I walked into a gathering at a friend's house and the conversation immediately turned to my feet.

The longest I have run so far in them is three miles. I am building up to longer distances. When I ran four miles this weekend with the L.A. Leggers, I used conventional shoes. I'm going to take the mileage up slowly, but I expect I should be doing reasonably long runs, 10k and longer, in a month or two.

John Thum