North Little Rock High

After a half-mile walk and jog, I did 2X8X200 meters, with one-minute, 100-meter intervals between the 200s and a four-minute, 400-meter interval between the sets. This is a Kirk Elias designed interval session, prescribed for 5K racers. The idea is to run the first of each set at an estimated (or known) maximum two-mile pace, and to cut one second off each of the following. Based on my 15:21 two mile last night, I figure I might be able to run two miles, with a gun to my spine, in 14 minutes. That would mean starting these at 52.5 seconds, then 51.5 and so on until the last in 45.5.

I ran the first set in 53.0, 53.0, 50.0, 49.2, 49.8, 48.9, 47.7, and 46.5, and the second in 51.1, 50.4, 49.1, 50.4, 49.4, 48.7, 48.6, and 45.3.

Next time I will have to run them more easily, else I will quit. These really fucking hurt. Partly, I think, because of the 15:21 two mile last night.

Levy Loop tempo

I warmed up with about a half-mile jog, a couple of c. 100-yard buildups, a bunch of stretching, and then through the softest of rain ran the Levy Loop in 15:21, with splits of 7:51 and 7:30. It wasn't easy but I felt great and had plenty left. Well, some left. I jogged and walked about a half mile down. I have run the Levy Loop since the summer of 1996, and I believe this was my second fastest time. I ran it in 14:52 in May, 1997.

To amend yesterday's entry, I ran about five miles. There's no way to know for sure. Somehow I can't imagine Erin Vratil has gotten the idea into her coconut that her $360 Garmin GPS wrist watch is a more accurate gauge of distance than my $3,600 1994 Toyota Camry. After we watched the Texas Rangers' 5-4 victory over the Oakland Athletics, we ran around The Ballpark at Arlington and Cowboy Stadium in 52:01, with splits of 9:44, 9:40, 10:45, 10:26, and 11:26. We engaged a desperate sprint to break 52 minutes, but fell crushingly short. Erin's left knee hurt a little, which screwed us.

Ballpark/Cowboy Stadium

ARLINGTON, Texas — I ran five miles.

North Little Rock High

The smell of wet rubber appeals to me, takes me to my fast days, and today offered the thrill of a lost joy recovered, except I felt terrible warming up and later simply quit, unaccustomed as I am to acute anaerobic discomfort.

I walked and jogged a mile at the North Little Rock High track, as rainwater evaporated around me, in 12 minutes. My plan was to run 5X1000 meters with three-minute, 200-meter walks for intervals, with an idea to run the first in five minutes and chop 10 seconds off on each of the next four. I ran three in 4:54.1, 4:46.7, and 4:37.0. Breathing hard three minutes after the third, I decided to run the fourth easily, but went through 200 in 55 and quit. Next time I will be smarter, and braver. Still, I am somewhat pleased, happy to have made the attempt.

Hash

I mostly walked with Gary (Damn Near Redneck), jogged for maybe 10 minutes, as we covered about five miles in 1:11 on Reverend Bob's Hash run on the Ouachita Trail and around Pinnacle Mountain this afternoon.

Levy Loop

I walked the Levy Loop in 28:40 a couple of hours ago, right after Fukadome hit for me. I hope for another shirtless run late tonight.

Levy Loop

All right. My first shirtless run of the year. I ran the Levy Loop in 17:13, with splits of 8:44 and 8:29.

Aborted Park Hill Loop

Weird. I haven't run when it was warmer than 70 or so since last October. I just got in from quitting the Park Hill Loop, dialed up weather.com, and son of a bitch, it's 88. Also very windy. Today's garbage day, and there were olive-drab garbage cans blown all over the fucking place. I won't use the weather as an excuse. I just felt weak, tired. I ran and walked for three and a half miles, late with an internal dialogue that went something like, "Shit, this is no fun." "Well, go home, pussy." So I turned off the Park Hill Loop and walked about a mile back. My first three mile splits were 10:58, 10:57, and 11:20. I was out for 54 minutes.

Maple Street Loop

I walked the Maple Street Loop in 31:46.

Levy Loop/Maple Street Loop/Levy Loop

Sunday I walked the Levy Loop in something like 31:15. Yesterday I walked the Maple Street Loop in 29:25. Today I jogged and walked the Levy Loop in 26:42 and wasn't real crazy about the jogging part. Oh well. There's nothing on my fucking calendar until the Midnight 50K. I might wait until early July to start training.

Ouachita Trail 50K

It sprinkled for a total of about five minutes, until the final mile of the Ouachita Trail 50K, when a torrent fell.

Once again, I ran ridiculously negative splits. I went through 17 miles, at the turnaround, in 4:50, and finished in 7:55:15. I was at 20 miles, at the scenic overlook (which a beautiful, four-eyed, Chinese-looking chick and I used as a turnaround on training runs in late 2005 and early 2006) in 5:37:47, so ran the last 11 miles in 2:17:28. I went through the final aid station, at the base of Pinnacle Mountain's east summit trail, in something close to 7:11, so I had 49 minutes to cover the final 4.1 miles in order to break eight hours. It took me about 17 minutes to run the 1.3 miles to the end of the Ouachita Trail at the Pinnacle Mountain Visitors Center. With 2.8 miles left (fairly accurately measured with a 1994 Toyota Camry), I was at 7:28:32. I ran the all-asphalt home stretch in 26:43, and the final two miles in 10:40 and 9:32.

I am pleased, very hungry, and will, I believe, be much sorer tomorrow than I was the day after the Little Rock Marathon. My knees and feet hurt.

Levy Loop

I alternated four-minute walks with one-minute jogs to cover the Levy Loop in 26:06; a 6:44:33 50K pace. My over-under for tomorrow is 7:33:06.

Orange Street Loop

I alternated four-minute walks with two-minute jogs to complete the Orange Street Loop in 38:32, with splits of 12:44, 12:54, and 12:54. Those felt really fucking easy, but I might start even more slowly Saturday; maybe with a four-to-one ratio. I want to get to 20 miles and feel great, just goddamn great.

Levy Loop

I walked and jogged the Levy Loop in 24:28, with splits of 12:24 and 12:04.

OVERHEARD

"You don't know me, but I do everything I say I'll do."

"Bullshit. Nobody does that."

— drug addicts in Tom Jenning's driveway

Orange Street Loop

I alternated four-minute walks with two-minute jogs to cover the Orange Street Loop in 37:39, with splits of 12:36, 12:28, and 12:36.

Ouachita Trail

This did not encourage. I ran about 12 miles from Maumelle Park to the Ouachita Trail, over Pinnacle Mountain, and back in 2:54:21. I ran and walked the first 2.8 miles in 33:47, the very muddy circa six miles on the trail in 1:48:48, and the 2.8 miles back in 31:47. The weather was nice, about 55 degrees, but very windy. I hope it does not rain this week. The paint job on my new shoes was destroyed, and I am hungrier than two motherfuckers.

Maple Street Loop

Sometimes my legs remain lifeless so long that I become skeptical of the reality; intrigued by the persistence, certainly, but almost incredulous. It has struck me as odd that I sometimes run through it, grit my teeth, pound out of few miles and I'm fine. Tonight I jogged the Maple Street Loop in 19:50, and felt better with each step. I don't know how that will translate, but need a long run no later than Tuesday to have enough confidence to start the Ouachita Trail 50K.

While jogging so slowly and with such slight effort, I pondered something Jim Nance said at least half a dozen times during CBS's broadcast of the Masters: "If [whomever] wants to win the Masters, he can't hit shots like that." "You have to make those putts if you want to win the Masters." No, Jim, a guy can want to win the Masters and hit 5,000 shots into Rae's Creek. Fuck, I want to win the Masters.

Central Avenue

HOT SPRINGS — I walked and jogged for 35 minutes, out and back from Oaklawn Park on Central Avenue, to cover about three miles this morning. Afterward, at exactly 11 a.m. Central, as I stood in the buffet line of the barn kitchen, a Mexican woman dumped a pan of fried chicken into the tray directly in front of me. When I bit into the thigh, it spat hot fat across my plate. It was perfect.

OVERHEARD
"It smells like horse shit down here, doesn't it?"

"It's a paddock. What did you fucking expect?"

— two circa 70-year-old men at Oaklawn Park, five minutes after the Arkansas Derby

Levy Loop

I walked the Levy Loop in 28:23.

Levy Loop/Orange Street Loop

I jogged, for a total of nine minutes, and walked the Levy Loop in 26:09 this morning.

Starting at about 8:30 p.m. Central, I jogged the Orange Street Loop in 30:37, with splits of 10:26, 10:06, and 10:04.

35th Street Loop

I walked for one minute each mile (on the steepest inclines) and otherwise jogged the 35th Street Loop in 39:55, with splits of 10:09, 9:59, 9:59, and 9:48. It's 65 degrees, sunny and windless. My pulse was at 145 when I finished.

Levy Loop/Gimblett Loop

I started each half mile with a three-minute walk to cover the Levy Loop in 22:32, with splits of 11:13 and 11:19.

This evening, again with three-minute walks to start each half mile, I ran the Gimblett Loop in 57:05, with splits of 11:32, 11:45, 11:11, 11:16, and 11:22.

Maple Street Loop

I walked for six minutes a mile and jogged the Maple Street Loop in 23:00, with splits of 11:29 and 11:30, and finished a little disappointed by my pace judgement.

Maple Street Loop/Hash

I walked for a total of 14 minutes to cover the Maple Street Loop in 24:56, with splits of 12:41 and 12:15, all through mist as soft and sweet as a good golf swing.

Behind the mist came hard rain, followed by a blast of cold. It was 40 degrees by the time I finished Petra's Hash run in Burns Park. I was out for 35 minutes, ran most of the way, probably covered three miles.

Levy Loop

I walked two minutes each half mile to cover the Levy Loop in 22:20, with splits of 11:23 and 10:57.

Orange Street Loop

This was remarkably easy. I ran the Orange Street Loop in 27:33, with splits of 9:45, 9:03, and 8:45. It is a perfect evening for running; 60 degrees, no wind, hints of barbecue, Mexican and fried foods along the course, pleasant voices, smiles, laughter; a glimpse of lawn chairs and beaded bottles.

Park Hill Loop

I jogged and walked the Park Hill Loop in 59:44, with splits of 12:13, 12:29. 11:28, 12:24, and 11:09.

Levy Loop

I jogged for eight minutes and otherwise walked the Levy Loop in 24:51.

Sunset Street/Old Centerpoint Road

NASHVILLE, Ark. — On Monday night, I walked 32 minutes through the neighborhoods around my mother's house.

Tuesday night I ran four miles out and back from mom's on Old Centerpoint Road in 41:45, with splits of 11:04, 10:39, 10:02, and 9:59. It was very easy, and the first time my legs have felt lively since I ran the sub-44 Park Hill Loop last Thursday. Maybe it was the donuts, and all the fried food I ate Monday night and Tuesday.