Maple Street Loop

jogged, but only a little bit, and walked in 26:58.

Levy Loop

walked in 28:54.

Levy Loop/River Trail

The only thing I like about cold weather anymore is being around someone else who likes it. Otherwise, fuck it. I'll take this 55 degrees every time. I jogged and walked the Levy Loop in 24:35, and my bare hands did not hurt.

I tried to brag about how perfectly I timed my eight-mile run on the River Trail, but my wireless went out after I wrote, to paraphrase: I walked in, grabbed my laptop and sat just in time to see Balfour toss his first pitch to Jenkins. I might've been 47 seconds early. Jenkins scored from third, so the Phillies lead 3-2 with Tampa Bay about to bat. I ran the eight miles from the I-30 bridge, with one-minute walks to start each half mile, in 1:27:25. My splits were 11:04, 11:00, 11:09, 11:23, 11:23, 10:32, 10:36 and 10:19.

Rocco Baldelli hit a home run for Tampa Bay with one out in the top of the seventh to tie the score at 3-3.

Maple Street Loop

I jogged and walked the Maple Street Loop in 23:45 and felt when I finished, three minutes ago, like I had done nothing but stretch in the cold air for a moment. I'm hungry.

Levy Loop intervals

My hands hurt from the cold tonight, but I otherwise felt great. I jogged a 10:37 warumup mile, did two miles of 60-second fast runs and 60-second-walk intervals in 10:11 and 10:03, and jogged a mile down in 10:20, or two tours of the Levy Loop in 41:11. These felt pretty easy.

Levy Loop/Hash

This morning I walked the Levy Loop in 30:22, and this afternoon spent 55 minutes going a little over four miles with the Hash through Park Hill and Lakewood.

Today was my 100th consecutive of doing at least something ("something" defined as walking two miles). I covered 350 miles, and also walked about 110 miles on golf courses.

River Trail fiasco

I made it exactly a half mile on the River Trail, from the Big Dam Bridge parking lot, when I realized I was off my game and decided to quit. So I walked back to my locked car, pulled my house key from my shorts, said, "Fuck," put it back and jogged and walked six miles home. Tim Cooper came to get me. I bought him lunch, then he dropped me off at my car with an extra set of keys.

Maple Street Loop

I jogged for a total of 5:20 to complete the Maple Street Loop in 25:20.

Levy Loop/47th Street Loop

This was the first time since last winter that I have turned to face the sun and appreciated it. It was 51 degrees and I was underdressed for the Levy Loop, run in 19:18, with splits of 9:57 and 9:21.

This evening I walked the first minute of each half mile to cover the 47th Street Loop in 34:10, with splits of 11:23, 11:22 and 11:25.

Maple Street Loop/Ridge Road Loop

I walked and jogged, for a total of 5:35, to complete the Maple Street Loop in 25:35 this morning.

Tonight I ran the Ridge Road Loop, with the 47th Street hill first, in 40:04, with splits of 10:38, 9:32, 10:00, 9:54

Levy Loop/aborted Ridge Road Loop

I walked and jogged the Levy Loop in 24:09 this morning.

I started the Ridge Road Loop with the 47th Street hill at about 7 p.m., but stopped after three miles run in 29:33, with splits of 10:44, 9:04 and 9:45.

York Gary Chevrolet Loop/Levy Loop

Late Sunday night I ran the 2.2-mile York Gary Chevrolet Loop in Nashville in 22:45, and tonight the Levy Loop in 19:44, with splits of 10:06 and 9:38. Sunday I golfed as poorly as I have since, I'm not sure, perhaps the summer of 2006. It occurred to me about a half mile into the York Gary Loop that I last jogged it in June, 2000, with Kelly Young; she said she had never run so slowly.

River Trail

My legs felt this morning like a man's who hadn't run for seven and a half years, until yesterday when he ran 10 miles as fast as he could with a baby on his back. I thought I would feel better, otherwise I wouldn't have driven all the way to the fucking River Trail to run and walk two miles in 22:43.

A little later I carried four hard, plastic golf balls and a 7-iron to the yard of John's former house. The club felt normal in my hands and I hit four fine shots into the Crepe Myrtle. I then hit half a dozen pitch shots with a sand wedge and a real Titlest into the tree and they were fine, too. Jo chased each of those shots, which entertained a car full of women and little girls that drove by and stopped half a block away for a yard sale. Then tonight, after I returned from Pine Bluff and watched the Red Sox beat the Rays, I hit two more hard-plastic shots from John's yard and the street light into the tree. They sailed straight. Maybe my psychosis is over. I'll see tomorrow at Cypress Creek near Cabot.

Orange Street Loop/First Tee

Though my legs were a bit dead, it was difficult to run as slowly as I wanted to this morning. I ran the Orange Street Loop, with a one minute walk to start each half mile, in 33:05, with splits of 11:05, 10:54 and 11:07. My goal was an 11:15 pace, and I hoped for lively legs. I believe I will put off my long run scheduled for tomorrow until Monday, or perhaps Tuesday (Sunday I play in a golf tournament and believe I will be in Nashville on Monday).

I played the First Tee par-three course somewhat like I did two and a half years ago, right after I hadn't played for seven years. I scored an 11-over 65 for 18 holes with numerous shanks. I ran into Harry King as I was walking off and he talked me into playing the big course with him. I was running out of time, so I played through No. 6, and think I went, from the back tees, double, double, double, triple, bogey, triple. It was embarrassing.

Ridge Road Loop

It was 56 degrees for my run of the Ridge Road Loop this morning, or 20 degrees cooler than for last night's. I ran it in 40:30, with splits of 10:10, 10:43, 10:16 and 9:21. For most of my long runs, in fact for all of my runs over three miles for the last three months, I have used the Jeff Galloway-Mike Huckabee technique of walking the first minute of each mile. Otherwise I have noted the difference. Sometimes I forego the walk at the start of the final mile, but not today. This morning's run was, for one coming so soon after an effort of any significance, perhaps my best of this current streak.

Park Hill Loop

I walked the first minute of each half mile to cover the Park Hill Loop in 54:31, with splits of 10:58, 11:01, 10:29, 11:22 and 10:41, through a steady drizzle that turned to a downpour the last mile.

T Highway/T Highway/Ridge Road Loop

I walked the first minute of each half mile to cover the Ridge Road Loop, begun up the 47th Street hill, in 43:14, with splits of 11:36, 10:18, 10:35 and 10:45 this evening. My plan was to go at an average of 11:26 a mile (a 4:59:46 marathon pace), hoping that it would feel easy. It was easy.

On Sunday, after eating steak, baked potato, salad and a big plate of escargot, I ran for 12 minutes out and up T Highway hill, then about 11 minutes back to my dad's farm house, 15 miles west of Van Buren, Mo. I covered a little over two miles. On Monday, dad and I walked 2.5 miles from his house, halfway up the T Highway hill, then to the end of the blacktop and back to his house in 55 minutes.

Levy Loop

After watching the Race for the Cure 5K this morning and a football game in Arkadelphia this afternoon and evening, I walked the first minute of each half mile to cover the Levy Loop in 21:52, with splits of 10:58 and 10:54.

First Tee/Levy Loop

I ran the Levy Loop, almost immediately after my return from a football game in Conway, in 16:52, with splits of 8:42 and 8:10. As much as I hate to know it, that was about as fast as I could go. I might've had 30 seconds in me, maybe. I know for sure I ran the last half mile as fast as I could, after looking at my watch and realizing that's what it would take to break 17 minutes. Don't ask why breaking 17 minutes meant anything to me. It doesn't now, but it did for that half mile.

I played poorly at First Tee with Steve the dentist. I scored a 46. I can play well and score a 46, but didn't today. Not counting a few pitches and long putts that saved my score, I hit a total of, let me think, four good shots, and two of those were recovery mid-iron pitches around trees. The other two were my drive and 3-wood to 50 yards on No. 2, the first par-5. I had 1 par, 6 bogies, and 2 doubles, and used 17 putts.

Here's the best example of my nine: On No. 6, a wide-open, down-and-up, 350-yard par-4 with a slight dog leg right, I hit a pop-fly drive just short and right of a bunker to the right, maybe 180 yards. I had to aim my 7-wood left of the green to avoid over-hanging limbs, but pushed it. Leaves turned it right and it landed in the front bunker. My sand wedge was pretty good, but it rolled three feet into the fringe, 30 feet from the hole. I hit a shitty chip eight feet past and made the putt to save bogey.

47th Street Loop/Ridge Road Loop

I ran the first two minutes of each five to cover the 47th Street Loop in 35:42, with splits of 11:59, 12:09, and 11:34.

After a warmup of two holes at Fort Roots, Nos. 5 and 9 (I hit 5 with driver, 52-degree wedge, and 9 with driver, 7-wood, 56-degree wedge, but didn't bother to putt on the dark side of dusk), I ran the first four minutes of each five to cover the Ridge Road Loop in 45:34, with splits of 11:22, 11:22, 11:11 and 11:39, the latter being the slowest since it was the only with three one-minute walks instead of two. The idea was to go close to 11:26 a mile, or a five-hour marathon pace, and have it be a snap, and it was easy.

Hindman Park Golf Course/Gimblett Loop

I played Hindman Park this morning in 97, with nines of 51 and 46. I had 1 par, 11 bogies, 4 doubles, and 2 triples (on the first two holes), and used 31 putts. Near the green on No. 4, I noticed my 8-iron was missing. Fuck. Replacing a Nickent 3DX Pro iron would be nearly impossible. The guy at Rebsamen said, "What? I don't know; can't say that I've seen it. You can look if you want." Son of a bitch, there it was.

Starting about 10:45 p.m., I ran the Gimblett Loop in 47:18, with splits of 9:37. 10:36, 9:29, 9:27 and 8:09; five miles at 9:28 a mile, on a pretty hard course, and without killing myself. And after walking Hindman this morning. This was a pretty good fitness day.

Orange Street Loop

run for four of each five minutes in 34:24, with splits of 11:39, 11:27 and 11:17.

Rebsamen Golf Course/Wal-Mart

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Maple Street Loop

walked in 30:14.

Arkansas 324

WILLIAMS JUNCTION, Ark. — Arkansas Traveller 100-Mile Race director Chrissy Ferguson to an entrant at the Power Line aid station, 49 miles into the race: "If you can get up in the morning and look at yourself in the mirror and say, 'I'm not a pussy,' then go ahead and drop out. Otherwise, at least get up and make it to the next aid station."

Fueled by a pumpkin milkshake purchased at The Shack in Jessieville, I ran for 15 minutes out and then 14 minutes back to the finish line near Lake Sylvia on Arkansas 324 and guess I covered about three miles. I felt great.

I got sentimental when I walked in The Shack and saw an 8X11" orange placard on which someone had written with a black Magic Marker, "Pumpkin milkshakes are back." The shake was delicious. I wish I would've had a man to share it with.

"Pussy," I believe, will be "[wimp]" in Monday's newspaper.

First Tee/Maple Street Loop

Within 10 minutes of arriving home from First Tee, I walked and ran, for a total of 5:54, the Maple Street Loop in 24:54.

I had planned to go to the river and run five or six miles, but after I played 18 holes (two balls over nine holes) of the First Tee par-3 course, I ran into Steve the dentist, Randall Hunhoff's buddy, and played the regular course with him. I sucked on the par-3s, or relative to last week and the week before. I scored a 10-over 64. The scorecard is still in my trunk, but I had one birdie and two doubles, and used 37 putts.

Then I had a 44 on the long course from the middle tees. I was at three-over after six (I hit No. 4 with a driver, 5-iron, the first time I have hit that green in regulation. My drive was a perfect draw that went down the hill and out of sight, I guess about 270 yards). Then I finished with a bogey and two doubles.

Levy Loop/Park Hill Loop

I walked, and ran the final two minutes of each five, to cover the Levy Loop in 24:36 this afternoon.

Tonight, after watching Sheridan wipe the field with the Little Fair War Eagles, and then outscore them 44-14, I ran the Park Hill Loop in 50:02, with splits of 10:05, 10:59, 10:10, 10:57 and 7:52. I was, am, a little disappointed to not break 50 minutes, but didn't consider it until I saw my four-mile split of 42:09 (it was actually 42:09.98). I felt fine. It was easy. That was the idea, but I literally thought, "You know, I could break 50 with a 7:50." I ran down the last mile of this loop in something like 8:20 a few weeks ago, so figured it was possible. I screwed up by not looking at my watch beyond about 45 minutes. For some reason I thought I was flying. I was surprised when I saw the time. No telling how much I had up my sleeve, which I guess is evident by the incongruity of those splits. It was 53 degrees when I finished. I felt great, and still do.

Burns Park/Maple Street Loop

At least I had a good line as I returned to Pulaski County from my 84. I played with two 60-something Union Pacific retirees named Mike and Marvin, and en route to a 97, endured a joke told by Marvin, a Nebraska native whose son lives in Chicago and sells security systems to prisons across the U.S. and has season tickets to Nebraska Cornhuskers football games, and whose daughter is the manager of a Holiday Inn in Oklahoma City. It was a bad joke. I think my dad might have told it to him. It involved an old man approached by a sexy young woman. She said, "Your zipper is down." He said, "Oh yeah? Did you see my Mustang?" She said, "No. I saw your Mini Cooper with two flat tires." It was pretty easy for me to deadpan: "I don't think that's funny, Marvin. It's too close to home." They also laughed when I said, "Hey, I got a golf dvd coming out next week. It's called How to Fuck Up a Perfectly Good Drive."

I ran a new loop tonight, called the Maple Street Loop. It's two miles long, and includes sections of the 47th Street and Levy Loops. It avoids the Levy slums and thus the street-corner hoodlums. That was my idea. I ran by two of them anyway. They had wandered to the edge of the Better Homes section and were walking on a sidewalk, smoking. "Fuck," I thought. They looked about 16. As I passed them, their voices bubbled friendliness: "Hey, man." "Was goin' on, ol' school?" It occurred to me there's a chance I've been running by those kids since they were babies. I jogged for the first two minutes of each five to finish the loop in 26:35.