A Good Clip: Yankee 10 Miler (7/30/2012)

Clipper Dreadnought, at Full Tea Rig

Race:   Yankee Homecoming 10 Miler

Location: Newburyport, MA

Goal Time: 1:07:00

Actual Time: 1:08:38

In 1860, the Clipper ship Dreadnought sailed from New York to Liverpool in 9 days, 17 hours.  This was the record and has never been broken by any sailing ship.  Within 9 years, as the last great merchant clipper – the Cutty Sark – was completed, the Suez Canal was opened and the Clipper Age was coming to a close and oceans “watched the men who sailed [them] switch from sail to steam.”

But the Clipper Age (1843 – 1869) was part of the internationalization of American Capitalism.  Combined with later the railroad and the telegraph, the Clipper helped to globalize the world.  During the Clipper Age, Newburyport stood right in the middle of it.  Shipyards along the Merrimack built clippers – including the aforementioned Dreadnought – for the burgeoning China trade and the gold rushes of California and Australia. 

The beauty of the clipper was the sleek lines that made it easier to carry high value items (such as tea, silk and opium) at incredible speed.

*****

152 years after the Dreadnought I was hoping to use          the clipper speed in the annual Tuesday night tradition – Yankee Homecoming 10 Miler.  Like the square sails of a clipper I was ready to fly.

Course Sail: Miles 1-2.5

As the race started, I saw Mariah running off to the right.  Knowing the two of us run similar race paces, I decided I would catch up with her – slowly.

It took a good three quarters of a mile, but I was able to catch her and run with her.  We dropped into what Jim calls “comfortable hard” for the 10 mile race pace and chatting.  I believe it was first about Artificial Intelligence and the seeming every five years that somebody says: “Soon computers will be smarter than people.”

Top Sail (which oddly isn’t on the TOP really): Miles 2.5 – 5

So the next few miles the conversation was more dedicated to training and our upcoming marathon (in ICELAND!!!).  In doing so we kept thumping out our 6:45 – 7 minute miles. 

Top Galant (which is on top of the Top Sail): Miles 5-7.5

This is probably the hardest part of the course.  Mariah and I’s conversation turned to her talking and me making grunts of recognition.

Konigssegel: Miles 7.5 – 9.85

The course had one last hiccup (so I thought) as we ran on the overpass over I-95.  I fought up this bit ready to start really running.  Mariah started really running.  At Mile 8 she had pulled away from me.  While I picked up the last two miles she still peeled away from me.

I still felt good as I ran in the last mile and then made the last turn.  But it wasn’t the last turn!

Wreck!:  Miles 9.85 – 10

The Dreadnought wrecked just four months before the Suez Canal opened.  The crew watched as it crashed into the rocks at Cape San Diego in Tierra del Fuego. 

The last turn of the race led into the Newburyport High School parking lot.  It was a steep climb and while I passed one person two guys sprinting each other for the line split me like I was road furniture.  I still finished with a 16 Minute PR in the 10 Miler.

At the end of the race no less than THREE people commented that Mariah and I did well but could have done much better if we didn’t spend the whole race talking.

Shoutouts –

Anthony continued his fantastic summer with a 1:04

Diona and Chris Smith both took 3^rd in their age groups

Mariah “Morah” Tinger – 2^nd in her age group

The SRR Women took 2nd Overall!

SRR Men took 7^th (with no help from your truly)

20 Miles, 4 Killah Bees and Seven Gables: Black Cat 20 Relay (3/4/12)

“But oh, I am so dry! O take me to a brewery, And leave me there to die”

~ Anonymous, parody of the equally obscure “Little Jim”

Race: Black Cat 10, 20 and Relay

Location: Salem, MA

Goals: 1) win relay, 2) 2:10:00, 3) beat Kieran

Time: 2:08:26, 1^st in the Relay

Let’s assume it is a scale of 1 to 10: the light-headedness of standing up too quickly after two beers is a 1; and, wandering around at 5 am looking for the subway after 10 hours on the Reeperbahn where Bjoern had taken Andrew, Gabe and you through the various whorehouses and dive bars Hamburg has to offer on the eve of Reunification Day is more like a 12.[1] When I showed up at Bradley’s Sunday morning – after Saturday evening with the Wrights and Greco – I was probably a 5.5.

Fortunately for the start of the race, I was already down to a 4 on the meter.

*****

For the Black Cat 20 Mile Relay, I put together a team of SRR’s B-Class runners – myself, British Tom, Bradley and Anthony. While we aren’t going to light the world on fire – or win the Penn Relays – we expected our average 6:30 mile pace would have a real good chance of winning.

Unfortunately, I was a little less sure once I got to the Start line for leg one. I was a bit confused from my carbing up the night before with boilermakers. But also the race started odd. Kieran mentioned that there was no National Anthem; I noticed that nobody came up and spent a few minutes on a bull horn thanking everyone. Instead, some guy ran to the start line and said: “GO!”

Off all of us went, charging toward Marblehead. I had no idea how many people were running the relay, how many were running the 10 mile race, nor how many were running the 20 mile race. All I knew was I wanted to stay near the front in case there were relay runners in the lead. By about ¾ of a mile, I realized the total stupidity of such a plan. I looked at my watch and I was en route to a 5:45 mile. Whoa, I better slow down.

Fortunately for me – and for those who might be in radius of my vomit – I had sobered up by a little more than a mile into the race. I slowly started to gain on others who had started out too fast as well. By the time I got to Marblehead, I was probably in 12^th overall. However, Marblehead greets you with the only hill on the course. Those who were running my speed but doing 10 or 20 miles had no problem with the hill. Those running 4.5 miles around me (well, I guess just me) had to slow considerably.

Despite this slowing for the hill, I was well under the 6:30s we’d planned for this race, well ahead of any other relay team and ahead of Kieran. At 5k, in fact, I had easily run my second fastest 5k – in the neighborhood of 19:15. While the last mile was slower, I still pulled into the exchange point at 27:25 (~6:12s) and did the reverse hand off with British Tom. (This is where instead of giving him a baton, Tommy handed me my sweatshirt and his jacket.)

As Tom ran off back toward Salem and Anthony at the Leg 2/3 exchange point, I wandered into the Deveroux Beach Parking Lot – in case I need to vomit in peace.

*****

I now had nothing to do for about an hour. I could a) jog back to the Starting Line or b) wait around and then jog back with Anthony. I chose b).

Bradley jogged from the start line after parking the car. He showed up about 10 – 15 minutes before the leaders of the 20 Miler, and about 25 before Anthony arrived. Throughout the wait, other relay teams were impressed that he had jogged from the Start Line (because that made 10 miles while everyone else in the race was running at least that?)

By the time Anthony arrived at the exchange point, Kieran had already come through. And he was enough ahead that I knew Bradley would never catch him. Bradley knew it too and didn’t.

Bradley brought it in to finish 2:08:26 – (6:25/ mile pace). 15 minutes ahead of second place Salem Fire Department and 1 minute behind Kieran – bastard.

Now a weekend off of racing before I have to try to hold off Alex White in the Grand Prix standings.

Tino Pai!

Jesse…

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[1] Photo Hamburg 2007 FatJesse, Andrew, Gabe, Bjoern taking vodka with packets of kool-aid like stuff in cement mixer type shots. Thank God there was Astra to wash it down with. (Photo taken by Ananeshka)

The Run, The Plunge and the Glasses: Hangover Classic 10K and Ocean Plunge (1/1/12)

Robert, me and St. Anthony plunging into the Atlantic

Race: Hangover Classic 10K
Location: Salisbury, MA
Goal Time: 40:00
Real Time : 39:29 (6th in my age group)

Many years ago I had a conversation with a dude. He told me that he had seen God while he was throwing up peyote and off on some drug induced vision quest. Normally I take random people talking about random drugs at random parties with a little more than a grain of salt. This guy I treated with the same grain of salt.

That was until mile 5 and a quarter of New Year's Day's Hangover Classic in Salisbury. As I turned the hairpin at 5.25 I heard SRRers who had run the 5k cheering me on. Unfortunately, I also felt like I needed to vomit! I was forced to come to a complete stop and dry heave - TWICE. While I did not see God directly, St Anthony of Padua (or maybe Jersey) interceded for him and like Gabriel to Muhammad said: "our Lord knows you best; He will have mercy on you if He pleases."

Well he didn't really say that. What St. Anthony of Jersey said was: "Take this water; you need it more than I do."

I took the bottle of water, took a big swig and was ready to continue the race.

*****

The Winners' Circle Running Club's Hangover Classic was the second leg of the SRR Winter Grand Prix. Because of this yellow and black bees appeared to be buzzing about the starting line jumping from delicious nectar filled flower to delicious nectar filled flower.

Two weeks ago, the plan had been for Jim, Jason and I to go for 40 minutes together. Two weeks can be a long time.

At the gun I spent my time fighting to catch Officer McGinty. The usual people jogging 9 minute miles but lining up at the start forced me to bound around and through people. I finally caught Dan, ran his pace for a minute or two and then pushed on.

My next jump was to Jim and then forward to Jason. Neither of them felt as good as they had earlier in the month.

By the 1.5 mark and the 5k/10k break I was by myself. I did get to yell to St. Anthony of Jersey as he continued to his steaming toward adult PR in the 5k.

I had latched on to Stephen around mile 3 on the back portion of this generally out and back course. I knew I was doing surprisingly well when every person I knew that we passed coming the other way said something along the lines of: "Holy crap! Go Jesse." This started to scare me. Are the wheels going to come off this run?

The wheels came off three quarters of the way through the 5th mile. I told Stephen I was done (at least for now) and that he should go kick ass. From 4.75 until 5.2, it was a real fight for me. Fortunately two things happened that probably would not have if I was NOT in a running club.

1. At the hairpin right on the beach is when the dry heave / St. Anthony intercession happened.
2. Three people passed me in the last mile. The first two were somewhat disappointing. The third however was Matt Noyes.

The water intercession saved me until the passing happened. When Matt passed me, however, I was rejuvenated. At least I could hang onto somebody for a minute. Not only did I hang onto him, with a quarter mile left I was able to shift into fifth gear and pass him. Of course, with a tenth of a mile left Matt shifted into a sixth gear I didn't have and blew me away.

I finished at 39:29 and sixth in my age group - 34th male (which earned me a pint glass for being in the top 40 men!)

And, unfairly if you ask me, my chip time was faster than Matt's so I officially beat him. Anyone who actually saw the last 1/10th of a mile would realize that if we started even he would have merely sprinted in 6th gear earlier. If this keeps Matt from winning something in the SRR Grand Prix - I will file an official protest with the powers that be.
*****

I finished and Robert was all about doing the plunge. I gave my watch to Chris and we went to the beach. To Robert's chagrin, I spent time taking off my socks and shoes. But this allowed Anthony (St. Anthony of Jersey, that is) and SoRad to catch up with us. With Bradley the four of us just ran in.

This is one of those: "Don't think, just GO" times. The more one thinks about diving into the Northern Atlantic Ocean on January 1st, the dumber it sounds. In fact even as I write it sounds ludicrous!

Fortunately (I guess?), I had no such time to think how unreasonable of an idea this was. When the ocean got about knee high, i determined I had reached event horizon. I was now - in for a penny, in for a pound. (of course penny/pound logic often makes you lose a lot of money at the poker table.) Robert, St Anthony, Bradley and SoRad all dove into the ocean with me.

In case you thought since it has been unseasonably warm out thus the ocean might be warm, let me dispel any such hypotheses immediately.

But I did it and got another glass - making it a DOUBLE GLASSWARE RACE!

*****

Flying Otters update:
Joe O'Leary - 7th overall in 10k
Anthony White - 16th overall in 5k
Jennifer Rapaport - 93rd overall in 10k

*****

Other SRRers:

PRs were numerous and I apologize if I forgot. Aaron Beer had a BEAST MODE 3 minute PR. Erin Morin had a PR but doesn't want to recognize it due to possible short course (by 0.1 miles or so). Bradley, Korynn, Kimi and SoRad all had great PRs.

I don't know if it was a PR for Bill Hees but he definitely dominated with a 21:19 on the 5k.