Virtual Running Buddies June 2012

[VictoriaL]

TaDa! A new month!!!

I'll paste Cheryl's post from earlier today:

hi everyone!
haven't been posting much- may and sept are my busy busy months and now after writing report cards- i am brain dead. been thinking about all of you and reading the posts and even fri hoping no one got bad weather!

been running- upping the miles for nov marathon and running a few 5ks- getting faster which feels good today i ran my fastest 5k- 27:47 so i'm enjoying a spicy pear drinkie!

will be a bit more active after next monday


Okay, looking forward to hearing from Cheryl more regularly.
That "spicy pear drinky" sounds terribly interesting!


Today I went out for my first run in a month. I have to get back at it. I know there's a ton of work to do, but my "frustration eating" has begun to catch up with me and, with vacation in 40 days, I just have to get out and be active.

And not the kind of active that includes paint, grout, power tools, etc...

So, to ease myself back in (and I am so grateful that this week's temps won't be topping 90 degrees like they were last week), I went out for 2 miles.

So far, no pain (although that may manifest itself tomorrow) and I'm not too tired, so maybe I'll do another 2 miles twice more this week then increase next week.

And I'm hoping that regular runs will improve my mind-set a bit, too... It seems to have today, but as I also took a few hours, cleaned the paint out of my hair and the grout from under my fingernails, then went to a lovely birthday party and ate shortcake with real whipped cream, that may have very well improved my mood, too.

[Leslie Ferguson]

Thanks for forwarding the thread to June. It was a wicked end of the week - 3.5" of rain Friday evening; 2 vehicles getting stuck at church (people renting our Parish House); rutting up the yard at church. Overwhelming desire to nap this afternoon so no run to make up for not getting one yesterday.

I'm hoping this coming week is better than last. I hope you keep feeling better Vicci and get back into the swing of things.

I hope you make it to Monday Cheryl and getting done with the school year.

See you later,
Les

[hrk]

Les-Sorry to hear about the weather damage, we just had crazy rain here, but nothing more.

Cheryl- Good luck with the end of school. My boys are done tomorrow.

Vicci- Glad to hear you got out for a run and away from some of the stress of the house. I hope you are able to continue to run.

Well as I said my boys are done for the summer as of tomorrow, so we are taking the rest of the week to head up to Long Island and see some family. I go back to the doctor a week from tomorrow and I am hoping he lets me out of the boot at least part time as it is really getting old. But our pool opened so I am hoping to get in and do some swimming in the coming weeks as well.
Have a great week.
Heather

[Leslie Ferguson]

Good seeing you Heather and I hope you have a safe trip to Long Island and that you get a good report from your doctor. I know how unnerving it can be to be laid up. Luckily the damage wasn't too bad and the church fared well.

I took a run yesterday after work (at work). It was hot and muggy but I picked up ~7.4 miles. A little farther than I anticipated but I needed to find a good (read safe) place to turn around. Nice and sweaty by the time it was all finished. It's supposed to rain most of the day which isn't too bad but it changes the plan for the afternoon - riding. We'll see.

Happy trails,
Les

[Leslie Ferguson]

Well, ominously quiet... I know I'm part of that group too. It was a pretty decent week following the downpour last week. I'm keeping busy at work, especially trying to get ~3 weeks ahead so I can go for Continuing Ed the week of the 18th (Cheryl and Heather - I'll be in your area) then 2 weeks away vacationing. I've got to get all the paperwork until July 8 in the bag. I had a good morning - we ordained 5 Episcopal Deacons - always a grand time.

I had a productive time with workouts this week too. I picked up 2 rides: one of 11.5 miles and the other of 8 miles. This morning was another early run - starting at 6 am and did ~12 miles including 4 one-mile repeats.

I'm trying to stay awake for a while before making an appearance at the Volunteer Fire Department Fish fry.

Happy trails,
Les

[VictoriaL]

Hey, everyone out there in Ominously Quiet VRB-Land!

Heather, I can well understand how the "boot is getting old". I had mine on January-March and it bothered me a lot then, can't imagine what it would have been like in the hot and humid summer months. Nice that you have a pool to use for some non-impact exercise, and I hope that the doctor gives you a good report. And I hope that you and your family had a great time visiting your family!

Les, you've been nice and active during the early summer "muggies". DH keeps pestering me to get our bikes out, and it may happen this week (although early in the morning...). And a vacation??? Les takes vacations???? How nice to have that to look forward to!
Did you make it to that fish fry? mmmmmmmmmmmmmm!

We went to the lake house for several days and returned earlier this afternoon. We are having water-supply issues again, and have to return in the next week or so to try and resolve. Again. Also it was DH's birthday so we had a small gathering to celebrate. And...

I can report a run! 2.6 miles in the humid heat around the lake, but I was so happy to be out that I didn't mind. I'm having second thoughts about running on my trails at the farm-- deer ticks are apparently rampant in this area because of the mild winter. Now that I'm thinking about it, we bike on paved trails (rails-to-trails) and maybe I could have DH go out twice a week, I'd ride once with him and run once on the trails while he rides. It's be safer, tick -wise, than running in my fields and woods.

Nat, if you're out there, I just realized that I "owe" you a message. Soon, I promise!

[Leslie Ferguson]

Les, you've been nice and active during the early summer "muggies". DH keeps pestering me to get our bikes out, and it may happen this week (although early in the morning...). And a vacation??? Les takes vacations???? How nice to have that to look forward to!
Did you make it to that fish fry? mmmmmmmmmmmmmm!

Yep, a vacation. The first extended vacation I've had in a while. Although I'll be doing a little "work" when I baptize my first godson - my first baptism and my first godson. I got to the fish fry but, of course, didn't eat fried fish (batter fried) or hush puppies. Still nice to have a little time with the folks in Chuckatuck.

We went to the lake house for several days and returned earlier this afternoon. We are having water-supply issues again, and have to return in the next week or so to try and resolve. Again. Also it was DH's birthday so we had a small gathering to celebrate. And...

I can report a run! 2.6 miles in the humid heat around the lake, but I was so happy to be out that I didn't mind. I'm having second thoughts about running on my trails at the farm-- deer ticks are apparently rampant in this area because of the mild winter. Now that I'm thinking about it, we bike on paved trails (rails-to-trails) and maybe I could have DH go out twice a week, I'd ride once with him and run once on the trails while he rides. It's be safer, tick -wise, than running in my fields and woods.

Nat, if you're out there, I just realized that I "owe" you a message. Soon, I promise!

Great run. I hope you don't have as many problems with your ticks as we do at church. The weather this winter has really whacked things there.

Time to wrap up the day - hope all are well and happy trails!
Les

[Leslie Ferguson]

Back-to-back (and fly by)... weird weather day today. Rain, thunderstorms, sun and (need I say) humidity. Still picked up a meh run in the drizzle and humidity. Still ran the just under 4 mile loop in just under 33 minutes.

Time for bed - see you tomorrow... happy trails,
Les

[VictoriaL]

Les, a "meh" run is better than none...

Your vacation sounds wonderful, and you so deserve it after being "on call" for so many months. What a great experience, to baptize your godson. Very cool.

We've been moving rocks, digging and laying patio stones, painting, planting, etc. I'm so exhausted in the evenings that I can barely move so I'm counting it as exercise. Today was an "easy" day, so at 8pm I am still relatively mobile and my brain isn't focused on aches and pains-- yay!

Hello to the VRB-ers and lurkers-- check in sometime!

[Leslie Ferguson]

...off the line a bit...
10 mile bike ride with a strong crosswind. Running in the morning so need to hit the rack.

More tomorrow.
Les

[hrk]

Good morning all, where has everyone disappeared to?
Les- Have a wonderful vacation and enjoy your godsons baptism.

Vicci- I always consider the work I do in the garden as exercise as it usually makes me more sore than my daily exercise.
How is your garden coming? We just harvested three heads of broccoli and we have tons of tomatoes, and peppers going.

Well summer officially began last week for my boys with their first week of camp, so it has been late nights and later mornings for them.
We had a very nice laid back few days visiting my DH's family on Long Island. We hit a local farmers market which had some local honey that was wonderful and delicious strawberries so we came home with extras.
Saw the doctor last Wednesday and it looks like I am about 90% healed. I am out of the boot and allowed to be walking, but only for daily living. I am still not allowed to do any type of impact exercise for another 4 weeks. And I have to say getting used to walking again without the boot is taking some work, I think some of my muscles are really getting a work out.
So it will be mid July before I can try and run and then it will be very limited. So slowly but surely.
Happy week.
Heather

[Leslie Ferguson]

Hey Heather - I'm glad that things are going well and that you had a good visit on Long Island. I'm sorry that you are still out of the game for at least 4 weeks more. Patience is a virtue and there is a pause for a reason. I'm actually in your area (more or less) across the rivers in Alexandria doing continuing education - too bad things are as packed as they are right now but it would be neat to try to swing a get together with you and Cheryl.

I am looking forward to the coming weeks. Heading a little farther north for vacation and baptism. Then on my way back to home I have another visit IRL with a VRB. Sooner or later I'll get hooked up with all of you.

I had a nice run on Saturday - 13 miles with some hill repeats thrown in. Didn't do much yesterday but pulled off a run on the hills of Alexandria. Interestingly, my per mile pace was almost 30 seconds faster than when I run my normal runs in Portsmouth. Go figure.

Time to slide in for some sleep - another busy day tomorrow.

Happy trails,
Les

[hrk]

Les- How long are you in the area for? Do you have any free time that you know of?
Heather

[Leslie Ferguson]

Heather - I'm here until Friday. Let me look at the schedule and we might be able to set up a get together. I'll PM with my findings after the upcoming session.
Les

[Natasha]

Hi everyone,

Looks like the thread is picking up! Yay!

Vicci, congrats on the run, and belated happy birthday to your DH!

Heather, thanks for the update. Glad you had such a good time on Long Island. Sounds like you're remaining positive, thinking of the good exercise you're getting walking in the boot, after talking about how your upper body was benefitting from the crutches Hang in there and I'm positive the next few weeks will go quickly.

Les, 13 miles - very nice. Hope Alexandria is enjoyable.

Hope Cheryl has emerged from the end-of-school-year insanity so she can start thinking about the MARATHON!

Here, let's see ... busy with Mr. J and managing to fit in more runs which is great. My longest recent run was 15k, which I'm happy with. The speed has been improving gradually to. Mr. J is over 5 months now and is exploring everything. Lots of smiles and laughs too. Just sweet.

And I'm getting ready for our out-of-town (and country) guests arriving soon! Looking forward to the baptism and everything else.

Take care, all,
Natasha

[SusanMac]

Hi VRBers. Long time, no post! I dunno, I've been busy & just no longer in the habit of checking the CL BB as regularly as in the past.

Great to read & catch up with everyone, tho!

Vicci - busy on the house, as usual

Les - so excited for your first baptism!!

Heather - bummer about your foot, but looks like the end is near!

Nat - can't believe it's been 5 months already! So glad you are back in the swing with running...and not surprised

My big news to report is that I did my first Ragnar overnight relay race a few weeks ago. It is hands down one of the funnest races I've ever done! This one was Madison to Chicago, 200 miles. We had a team of 12 women, most of whom were new to me, plus 2 van drivers. The whole thing is a combination race & college road trip! I did 3 official legs of 5 miles each, plus paced our final runner for about 3 miles. I also did my first night run, which was way cooler than I had expected. I loved it and want to do more of it!

I underestimated how much energy it takes to follow a teammate & provide support along the way. I underestimated that you should train for the total amount of miles you need to run, not just your individual legs. And I underestimated how difficult it would be to sleep, even when you're completely exhausted. It was an absolute blast with nonstop laughing, navigating, cheering, planning & running. Highly recommended if you guys ever get the chance.

[VictoriaL]

Heather, light's at the end of the tunnel! Four weeks will pass by quickly, especially now that you are now able to get around more easily. Are you doing strengthening exercises? I remember bursting into tears in the doctor's office when he asked me to stand on my toes and the formerly-broken ankle would just not do it.
Your garden is a bit further along than mine is. My broccoli is just forming heads now. The weather hasn't been too bad, and I bought 2 bales of straw from a neighbor to mulch with, so I don't have to water quite as often. I've planted about 18 tomatoes (some heirloom-- can't wait for those), a dozen peppers (a few mini-sweet pepper plants that looked too cute on the tag to pass by), beets, kale, Italian beans, and a varied assortment of squash (summer and winter).
Oh, and isn't broccoli fresh from the garden awesome???

Sounds like you're enjoying your conference, Les. I've found that when I run somewhere new, I have better time than on my "usual" route, so that may explain your better time in Alexandria.

Nat, are you using the jogging stroller? Nice to accomplish a 15k, too.

Welcome back to Susan, and here's hoping that you remember to check in more often. I'm always in awe of what you do, and that Ragnar overnight relay sounds amazing. At what time did your night run take place? The whole things sounds like a lot of fun!

We visited my family for a few days this past weekend. Mom and I went on a long fast-walk (way too many hills in that area), then my nieces, ages 13 and 16, talked me into an evening of dancing using their wiii (two i's? three???). It was a blast, and even though they're a fraction of my age and into gymnastics and cheerleading, I still managed not to embarrass myself too badly. The next morning, however... *ow*. But I did get in a 2.88 mile run this morning before we packed up to return to the farm.

We leave on vacation in 24 days and I hope to get in lots of running on the oceanside roads, so I have to keep a schedule of at least 2, and preferably 3, runs each week until then. Fingers crossed!!

[Leslie Ferguson]

Greetings Susan - that's great news about the overnight race. I'd love to do one at some point in time in the near future. I'm glad you're doing well.

I know about the improvement in speed on a new course but considering there are no 4%+ hills in Norfolk I was surprised to do as well as I did yesterday with the hills around here. There are a bunch of 3, 4, and 5% hills on the route I ran - yes down hill too but that isn't all that helpful.

No run today but hope to swing something tomorrow if it isn't too hot - otherwise I'll take a ride.

Happy trails,
Les

[Leslie Ferguson]

Back-to-back ride by... it's near if not at 100 here so I took a pass on the run but picked up an hour's ride this afternoon. Would have done something after we broke this evening but we're going to see Shakespeare this evening so I had to oblige that.

Talk soon and stay cool,
Les

[Natasha]

Yay, more activity!

Vicci, way to go on keeping up with your nieces! They must have been in awe of their cool aunt

Susan, nice to hear from you. The relay sounds fabulous. I'd love to do one of those someday too.

Les, glad you are fitting in runs while in the DC area. Hope you and Heather (and Cheryl?) are able to meet up. Which Shakespeare play did you see?

Had a few good workouts these past few days... run, P90X, and a couple of spins. Lately I've been finding my spins more challenging than the runs. My muscle memory is developed for cycling but not *quite* as much as it is for running - I've been running several years longer. I need to get back into cycling. I'm enjoying it, though, in an "Oh, man, this is tough" kind of way (yes, I know I'm crazy ). But it makes for an efficient workout! Speaking of cycling, it's almost time for the Tour de France!

Tomorrow I'm planning to run with one of my old IRL running buddies. She's a fair bit older than me but way fast (and a prolific marathoner). Wish me luck

Hi to everyone else, and happy trails!

[Leslie Ferguson]

Yep I'm fitting in fairly well but also know that I really don't want to live here - way too much traffic. I miss billed the play, it was put on by the Shakespeare Theatre Company but the play was The Servant of Two Masters by Carlo Goldoni. If you ever have the chance to see the play do it - it was a RIOT!

Good luck with your IRL running buddy, I'm sure she'll be kind to you. I know what you mean but I'm actually the opposite direction; my cycling is a little iffy right now. I have some issues when I start topping 22-23 mph on hills. A little anxious (that didn't happen until about 30 mph before) but I think after last year's spill I may be a little more cautious than I used to be.

Beddie bye time.
Les

[VictoriaL]

Les, you rock! Cycling when the daily temp was near 100?!?! I've been sitting in front of a fan. Oh, and be cautious.

Good luck with today's run, Nat! I am sure that you'll keep up.

Yoga this morning, and some weights, but those can be done in front of a fan. I should start to use the EB in the basement, though. Maybe later today? We shall see how much the heat drags me down (we reached 101.7 yesterday).

[VictoriaL]

A back-to-back for me.

8 miles to nowhere on the EB, and I feel justified in eating some shortcake with local strawberries that my Dad bought for us before we left the other day. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[VictoriaL]

Back-to-back-to-back?!?!?!?

Yoga and weights this morning before spending some hours outside (yay, its only going to be in the low 80's!!!), with hopes of a run either later or definitely tomorrow.

What's everyone else up to this weekend?

[Leslie Ferguson]

Sorry to leave you hanging. The past couple days were pretty nasty and today was clobbered with a 9+ hour drive. It is nice to be somewhere where the high is only 75 after back-to-back days of 100. I think there will be at least one run in the offing tomorrow or a bike ride with one of the VRB IRL. Can't say more but it's going to be a great week ahead.

Have a good weekend.
Les

[Leslie Ferguson]

Well - there's a run in the bag from outside my local viewing area. I had a nice day with Nat and her DH. While Nat and LW were out shopping I took a 6.75 mile run. Not a bad clip and the weather was pretty decent on the way out... but the sun broke through on the return trip and the wind was at my back so... not so nice.

Good to play with Mr. J today and to reconnect IRL. Hope everyone is staying cool - it is gorgeous up here.

Happy trails,
Les

[Leslie Ferguson]

Back-to-back-to-back... Ran with Nat today and had a blast. 4.5 miles loping around town. Nice to get away. Then came back for Butter Chicken and Birrani Rice. YUM! Nice to hang with friends who can cook.

Happy trails from up our way and Nat says hi!

Les

[Natasha]

Hi all,

Quick check-in here as I surf while the kidlet sleeps on me Can't have a back-to-back-to-back-to-back!

Yes, got in a very nice run last night and we are planning to run again tomorrow, this time with a few of my IRL running buddies. Enjoying the great company of Les & LW!

Vicci, shortcake sounds fantastic. Great way to enjoy some in-season strawberries. I made the strawberry-rhubarb pie Scudgal posted twice in quick succession - it was that good. Got to use up the remaining rhubarb, come to think of it. Maybe tonight.

Heather, how's the pool running?

Cheryl, all done school now?

Take care, all,
Nat

[Leslie Ferguson]

More fun in the world of Nat & Les... After weathering 30+ degree weather midday we went for a 54 minute run with a couple of Nat's friends. We saw some parts of town that I had never seen before and thankfully the humidity went down a little and the run wasn't too bad. A bit of a brisker pace all along but nothing too terribly bothersome. That backs up the 13.5+ mile bike ride yesterday on my own - Nat was hanging with Mr. J after dinner. Tomorrow... who knows what's in store.

How goes the rest of the gang?
Les

[Natasha]

Enjoyed last night's run very much. Hoping we can do a longer trail run tomorrow before it gets too hot

It's almost the weekend and we have lots of activities planned... looking forward to it and to spending more time with DH whom it seems like I've barely seen all week due to work!

Hi to everyone else and if nobody posts here soon maybe we'll next see each other on the July thread