Week wrap, A streak comes to an end...

Streaks are very common in sports. You have winning streaks, losing streaks, hitting streaks, scoring streaks, etc etc. The streaks themselves have one thing in common: sooner or later they all come to an end. Friday's run would prove this fact. It started out so innocent - just a little slow-n-easy 4 miler to prepare for a Saturday long run. The run itself was just fine and it wasn't until after I got home, drank some gatorade, and looked down to untie my shoes that I realized the streak was over.

Steve steps in "it"

I was kind of upset at first (and the Helpmeet much more than me), but now that I've been thinking about it...not so much. It really is a miracle that I was able to run 500+ miles in the city of Bucharest without stepping in a big pile of dog excrement. With around 100,000+ (some estimates are at 200,000) stray dogs in this city AND peoples pet dogs too, this streak really should be published in the Guiness book or something. Oh well, it all came to an end Friday.

Do you remember those pretty fall pictures I posted earlier this week? Were you admiring the pretty colors of the trees? Well, let me tell you those pretty falling leaves have a dark side. They provide the perfect camouflage for dog poopies. Think about that the next time you drive to the country to admire the fall foliage! I know I will. The leaf cover was so good, I didn't even notice what I had stepped in. As you can expect, it wasn't pretty when I got back to the apartment and walked around a bit. My Asics shoes were quickly quarantined (after careful consideration, I decided NOT to post a pic) on the balcony and Dana went crazy lighting candles everywhere.

From poopies to pampering - Saturday's run and massage

You can tell by the subject heading that Saturday just rocked! I had a nice 10.6 mile run first thing in the morning. It was a good run on a nice cool fall day. The highlight of the day was not the run, however. Dana had scheduled an appointment with a massage therapist for both of us. So, at 3:00 Aurelia showed up and "beat up" on us for an hour each. The price for 1 hour of massage (and a good one too!) = $10 USD which includes tip!!! For that price, you can expect this to be a training staple for the rest of my time running in Romania. Yahooo!

Fall in Titan Park

My apologizes for that little "episode" that became my last post. With the exception of my 1 week in Upstate, NY, I've been out of the USA for nearly 10 full months now (that's my excuse for a little nuttiness).

Thankfully, last week's cold snap was just temporary. The temperatures rebounded into the 70's this week, which has been great.

I've had 2 nice runs in the park this week, a 7 miler and 4 miler. The colors are pretty much past peak now but still really nice to look at. The leaves are falling fast though. I took these photos on my rest day today.

The park is beginning to quiet down, but you can still find activity on the warmer days. The running has been nice with less people to dodge.

On the south side, the dredging boat is still digging away along the shoreline making a big mess. Also, the old out-of-shape "speedo men" and their equally old scantily dressed female companions have dwindled in number. You can see them on the left side of the photo on the upper bank. This is the sunniest spot in the park where they first appeared this spring. It looks like they will make their last attempts at the perfect tan here until winter arrives.

Steve: HTML Genius?

I hope you are noticing the subtle enhancements to my blog, especially in the sidebars. I'm slowly progressing in my knowledge of the HTML language for formatting blogs. I'm almost ready to step up from "completely HTML ignorant" status to "knows enough HTML to screw stuff up" status. (hint: you'll know when I've reached this next level after the blog goes down) -

Special Thanks to my bud Ashley for assisting me with my new running stats link. You rock!

Exciting stuff ahead

Ok, not really...my regular readers know I like eye-catching subject lines. What is coming up? I am putting together my first blog contest and you all get to participate. The great news is this: If you know how big my blog audience is, then you know you have a pretty good shot at winning. Stay tuned for the details.

What goes on inside Steve's head while running...

I had my first post race run on Thursday. It has been cold this week. I'm in a weird mood, so I figured I'd give you a glimpse of what goes on upstairs while I run....

Steve: "Man, it's cold today..."

Winter: "Hey Steve. Are ya a little chilly? I notice you got the long sleeve on today"

Steve: "Huh? Who are you?"

Winter: "Dude, it's me man, Winter"

Steve: "What? Wait a minute. You're a SEASON. You can't talk"

Winter: "Oh yeah, I'm talking to you now. Why do you think you're wearing that long sleeve"

Steve: "Hold on...It's only mid October. You shouldn't be here yet"

Winter: "I just wanted to stop by and let you know I'm coming. I'm gonna beat you down this year"

Steve: "Shut up. We shouldn't be having this conversation. First of all, It's only October. Second of all, I'm not a pagan. Seasons can't talk"

Winter: "You're so logical. That's another thing I hate about you. Me and my friend, the Russian wind, can't wait to see you next month. You're goin' down!"

Steve: "Ok, I'm not hearing this. La la la la la la la la la la. "

Autumn: "Don't worry Steve, we still have several weeks left together. Just think about that kickin' race we had together last week in those nice moderate temperatures I gave you. We'll be back in the high 60's next week, I promise."

Steve: "Thanks buddy. I needed that."

Steve’s Romanian Half-Marathon

What a cool experience this was! There were so many firsts. It was my first half-marathon (13.1 mile) race. Before this, my longest race was 8km (5 miles). It was my first road race in Romania as well as my first international race as well. Most of this blog entry will focus on the race experience. Dana will fill in the rest of the trip details on the family blog. This is kind of long, so if you're at Lockheed reading this (you know who you are), you should fill up with coffee first.

Getting there on the Train

I am so glad we did this instead of driving. It was great to see so much of the Romanian countryside and the Danube River area. The train went west from Bucharest until hitting the Danube River which forms part of the border with Serbia & Montenegro before it turned north towards Timisoara. From a running point of view, it was great to be able to move around regularly. We had a great pasta dinner at our hotel, the Continental before calling it a night.

Pre-race Orientation – ok, where is it?

After a good breakfast, Maria and I headed outside to locate the start and finish for the race. It was about 8:30 and according to the information I had with me, the Marathon was scheduled to start at 10:00 and the Half-Marathon at 10:30. After about 10 min, we found what I thought was the starting area and there was nobody in sight. I also didn’t see any evidence of a race course set up in the road either (more on this later). I then figured we’d have better luck at the finish area and I was right about that. We found the finish line where a guy was unloading some stuff. I said “Buna Diminaţa” (Good morning in Romanian) and he said “huh?”. I thought "Great", that went well - now what?. I then said “Romanian?”. He replied “No!, Hungarian”. So I said “Servus!” (Pronounced “SIR-VOOSE” meaning “Hello” in Hungarian). He smiled and we continued in English. Ok, so how in the world did I know “hello” in Hungarian? Hungarians are Romania’s largest minority group and one of my coworkers here used that greeting once, and I learned it. I know you’re impressed.

The Hungarian guy gave me two important pieces of information. He showed me where to pick up the race packet and he informed me that both the Marathon and Semi-Marathon were scheduled to start at 10:00. By the time I got my race packet, it was already 9:00, so Maria and I hustled back to the hotel so I could get changed.

Warm-ups – Steve rubs elbows with one of the greats

So I got dressed and we all headed back to the finish area. It was about 9:30 and a small crowd was gathering. It was neat to be in an international setting. One guy, an Italian, came over to “chat” with us. We were able to make minimal small talk, but it was tough. I only knew a few Italian words and he (being an older guy) had minimal English skills. There was also a wide variety of long distance attire as well. Some people ran either the half or full marathon in Chuck Taylor all-star type shoes. Take a look. Talk about minimal footwear for a marathon! One guy had long pants on too!

It was then that we noticed several people taking pictures. After watching for a few minutes, we realized that a bunch of people were getting pictures with the same woman. It was Gabby Szabo! Gabby Szabo is perhaps Romania’s greatest distance runner. Among her many accomplishments:

1996 Olympics: Silver medal, 1500 meters
2000 Olympics: Gold medal, 5000 meters

She also has gold medals at several World (indoor and outdoor) Championships and had previously held world records for 2000, 3000, and 5000 meter indoor distance races.

I have to admit, I was a little intimidated so I asked another friendly Romanian girl to approach her and ask for a photo. Not only did Gabby oblige our photo-op, but we had a nice conversation also. After I told her I was American, she mentioned that she had spent a lot of time in the US for training while she was being sponsored by Nike. I figure now that we’re friends, she’ll put in a good word for me at Nike (I’m expecting a call any day now).

The start (on Romanian time, of course!).

With about 10 minutes to go, I was ready. I had eaten a bag of sports beans (thanks Granny!) and was sipping small amounts of water to wash them down. I conducted my warm-ups with the help of Maria. We chased pidgeon's at the same time, so I guess you can say we killed two birds with one stone (haw haw haw).

At about 9:50, we noticed the race director feverishly working his cell phone. I knew there was some sort of problem, but I could not fully understand the guy when he announced the delay with a bullhorn in Romanian. I was optimistically hoping they were having a little trouble closing off the roads for the race (boy was I wrong about that). After about a 40 minute delay, he made another announcement and I followed the crowd to the starting line. A bunch more announcements followed (all in Romanian) thanking such and such sponsors and then Gabby Szabo started the race.

At the sound of the gun, everybody took off. I mean really took off! I couldn’t believe how fast everyone started this race. Maybe this wasn’t really a half-marathon? Maybe they were running to catch a bus? I tell ya, I don’t think 7-10 year old boys on a 1 mile fun run would go any faster. For about 200-300 meters everyone ran out with the leaders, except me, thank the Lord. For once in a race, I used my head and stuck with my plan.

I cruised toward the first turn comfortably alone and in last place.

First 5k (3.1 miles)

Even while cruising at a slow pace, I started passing people long before I reached the 5k point. That was the good news, since passing people is fun. Coming from the back of the pack, nobody would pass me during this whole race. The bad news was that I realized they were not going to close the roads as I optimistically hoped. (Yet another good reason which proves optimism is a waste of time). They had volunteers at most intersections, but apparently they were only there to tell you where to go if you survived crossing the busy Timisoara traffic. It was insane! Shortly after the 5k point, I got a nice lift seeing Dana and Maria cheering me on.

Halfway point.

I felt good after the first 5k, but I resisted the urge to pick up the pace. I caught up to an older British guy and we chatted a bit while we ran together (and dodged 18 wheelers, open manholes and other fun things like that) for the next 3 miles or so. The middle part of the course was located in a major road construction zone. It looked totally awful, but the traffic was real light which allowed us to relax for the only time in the race. In the vicinity of the 10k (or halfway point) the Brit hit the water station and I used that as an excuse to drop him and start racing. I was feeling invincible and really started to push the pace. I had passed quite a few people by this point and the remaining runners were really spaced out – I only saw and passed 4-5 more people during the second half of the race. A few were doing the full marathon and were understandably going slower.

Incidentally, I only hit one water station during the race (somewhere near 15k). The water I grabbed was carbonated (yuck, how do you drink carbonated water during a race and actually keep it down?). Needless to say, I just dumped it on myself and did not stop for any other stations.

Bringing it home

Ok, things were really looking good until around mile 11 (I’m just guessing). I guess I hit a mini-wall because I started breathing heavy and I could feel my heart-rate jump. I could see the huge Metropolitan Church at this point so I told myself to keep the feet moving. I decreased my strides, but still tried to keep my feet moving as fast as possible. A few minutes of these baby steps and things started to feel better. I had just a little energy left for the final ¼ mile or so. The final sprint was interesting as there where dozens of pedestrians wandering around the square about 100 yards from the finish. I was happy I came in without running down any toddlers. None of these people had any idea there was a race going on. My time was 1:47:00. You can see my stealth finish here. No really, I did do it. Don’t you just love that delay on some digital cameras; I know Dana does…heh heh heh.

Ok, here’s the numbers on my finish: My Time: 1:47:00 Place: 26 out of 43 men, 30 of 56 overall, 5th in the 30-39 age group, 1st American (ok, I made those last two categories up)

1st place guy: 1:09:49 (smokin’), 1st place lady: 1:20:52 (also impressive)

Wrap-up

Right after the finish, a girl came up to me with a medal and a diploma, stamped of course (if you read our blogs you know how much they like ink stamps here). For some reason, I think she thought I was tired. I have no idea why. My new friend Gabby Szabo was also there and she autographed my diploma. By the time I was coherent, Dana had hold of my goodie bag.

Check it out – Candy and Wine. (Hey, we are in Europe).

Changes in the Hood, Part II

Here's a few extra pics. Check out this Before (February) and After (October) from our street. Our apartment building is the big building in the background. Those little white posts make a big difference! Also notice that the junkie garages on the right hand side were replace with a gated playground (and a parking lot behind the playground).












My runs to Parcul Titan and Parcul National have been affected around the edge of the park where more parking is being added. From left to right, you can see the transformation from a pedestrian city (large sidewalks) to a motorized one (smaller sidewalks and much needed parking space).

BEFORE

Sure this looks really nice while running, until you see a car driving on it to avoid traffic. There are no cars here now because they are about to tear it up. See the next photo.



DURING

Here they are tearing up the large sidewalk. The lack of any kinds of safety barriers, warning tape, etc. while heavy machinery is running is pretty much standard here. Of course, I'm used to looking down at my feet to check the pavement while running here - this is just another reason to do so!


AFTER

On this side of the park, they are already finished. You now have a smaller sidewalk (with a nice high curb) to help reduce the temptation to drive on it. You also have the much needed parking spaces.



Of course there's still a lot to do. Many of the positive changes bring on negatives in other areas. For example, on the back side of our apartment building is this street. Try to use those sidewalks! Uh, what sidewalks?

With the increasing amount of money coming in from the European Union (Romania joins next year), the USA and others, there will be more changes for sure.

Changes in Steve's Romanian "hood"

This week so far has featured a couple of slow-n-easy runs in Parcul Titan to prepare for Sunday's half marathon. I did an easy 5K run on Monday and an easy 10K run yesterday (Oh my goodness, I think the evil metric system is taking root - make that a little over 3 miles Mon and 6 miles Wed; better?). While resting for my race this week, I figured it was time for a few photos.

Construction has been going on all over Bucharest since I arrived in January. It especially picked up after wintertime for obvious reasons and hasn't slowed down yet. Some of these changes are happening right outside our building.

Right outside our building, where my runs typically start and finish, they are adding these little white posts (above left). Further down the street, you can see the finished area (above right photo). These posts stop people from parking (and sometimes driving) on the sidewalks. A few weeks ago, you would have to walk/run in the road in this area because of the parked cars. Fortunately, they did create a parking lot nearby or this would have been a real nightmare as people scrambled for available parking space. Bucharest is far from being a run-friendly town, but these little changes are helping.

Lately, I haven't been running my 2 mile loop around Lacul Titan. I'm doing nearly all my running in a smaller corner of the park that was freshly paved in Spring. The above pics show why. I don't know what's going on, but they have the entire southern shore of Lacul Titan torn up. I think that boat thing is some kind of dredging machine. There are piles of sand all around the shore which I assume came from the bottom of the lake. I hoping they will have a nice paved and/or gravel walkway when they are done, but with winter approaching, it may be a while. I may do some trail running here soon on the dirt, but not this close to my race - I'd hate twist an ankle now!

As you can see, fall is in full swing in Parcul Titan. The colors are a bit dull due to the dry summer, but Maria and I found a pretty nice spot for a pic on Tuesday. We're pretty much hitting the high 60's for midday temperatures now which is perfect for running and walking around the park. You should these Romanians bundle up though - You would think was below freezing...I'll try to get some more fall pics soon...

Bad weather = Good running!

I like running in bad weather. I don't like when I think about it the night before. I don't like it immediately when I wake up, look outside, assess the conditions and get dressed. I don't really like it when I ride the elevator down and step outside. I still don't like it when I take those first few steps and get moving. Yet at some point during that first mile, I really enjoy being out there. The cool rainy morning I ran in today was a perfect example. My first thought as I headed toward Parcul National was its the whole "challenge" thing that gets me going....naaa that's not it. When I arrived at Parcul National I realized what it was. There was nobody running at the track when I got there...Nobody - that's it! There's something very appealing to me about running alone. Now don't get me wrong, I like people - most of the time. I love team sports too. I play team sports and follow team sports with a passion. I also enjoy running with my buddies back home. But ahhhhh, running alone. Just you, nature, the elements, and of course God - there's something very appealing about that. Perhaps living in a crowded city like Bucharest for over 9 months has lead me to appreciate these times alone.

Today's run - Don't drink the water?

Anyway, before I get too philosophical for this goofy blog, my run today was excellent and a perfect ending to the week. I hit 13.45 miles with a time of 2 hrs 10 min. I ran to Parcul National for a few laps around a very wet track and then heading to my favorite spot in Parcul Titan to crank out .95 mile laps on the good quality pavement there. It was pretty wet and a light rain fell from time to time, but overall I felt great. My nutrition seemed to work well too. I had two banana nut muffins and coffee about 1/2 hour before going out and I took a pack of sports beans with me. I took the beans two-at-a-time between miles 5-7 and used the drinking fountains at the park for water. The sports beans require some water to go with them. The reason is that a straight mixture of sugar and electrolytes can give you some uh....issues of the gastronomic variety that you don't want during a run. That left me to take my chances with the Parcul Titan water fountains. Just so you know, it's now nighttime and I feel fine. Whew!

I had a nice burst of energy from mile 9 thru mile 12. I'm not sure if it was the mythical "runners high" or a sports beans sugar rush.

It's Taper Time!

So I guess I'm ready to go for the Half-Marathon. I'm confident now that I've actually run the distance and I actually ran for over 2 hrs without tiring significantly. I expect to finish the race in less than 2 hrs but it's nice to know I have aerobic capability to spare. This week will be all easy running, probably every other day until the weekend.

Travel plans are set, get on board!

We're taking a train to Timişoara on Saturday. The race is Sunday and we will take the night train (with sleeper car) back Sunday night after spending the day sightseeing the city. The train is 8 hrs each way, but the drive would not save much time. Romania does not have an interstate system and you have to slow down for every small town along the way.

When "cars" like these can be found on "highways", it's a safe bet it will be slow going:

Also, they radar aggressively in these small towns and if you read our family blog, you know how hard it would be for me to pay any tickets at these towns. Dana and Maria are both looking forward to the train trip. I'm looking forward to not having to drive back with tired legs also.

Cool Beans!

Well everyone, this is my last real week of training before my big half-marathon goal race (see link on right). Got back from Venice on Sunday and, after a nap, was able to run using reserve pasta energy that I acquired in Italy over the course of several good meals.

Monday's speed test

Monday would be my last hard speed type workout. I decided to run a 10k (6.2 miles) as close to my race-goal as possible. I cranked this out in 51:26. It was a good time for me, but as usual, I ran the first 5k too fast. Some things never change! A good effort, but I will have to be real careful on Oct 15 to avoid a painful finish.

Titan Park under construction

The only noteworthy news is more construction in Titan Park, my running home-base. On the south side, they are dredging the lake close to the shore piling mud all around the edge. On the north side of park, they are tearing up the extra large sidewalks to create more parkside parking spots. No doubt the city leaders realize that as more people buy cars, more parking will be needed. Construction of all types is going on all over the city, and most people tell me the $$ for this is coming from the European Union. Romania and Bulgaria will be admitted to the EU next year, albeit with several significant restrictions.

Trans-atlantic Jelly Bellies

Dana, the coolest helpmeet ever, has been reading my RunnersWorld magazines. This is not a normal thing - but in Bucharest with English language books in short supply, it has become necessary. A couple of months ago she read an ad for these "sport beans" made by Jelly Belly for runners. Jelly beans are a nice portable source of energy that you can take during long runs. Marathoners have been using plain jelly beans for many years, but this is the first sport-specific kind to be marketed.

Unbeknownst to me, the coolest helpmeet ever conspired with "The Granny"(my mother-in-law) to hook me up with said beans. The coolest helpmeet ever notified The Granny that these beans are readily available at Walgreens. Unfortunately, The Granny forgot to get them on her next trip to Walgreens. However, The Granny is now a professional on-line shopper and so, she reasoned: "Why make another trip to Walgreens when I can easily order online?" So the internet guru Granny searched the net, found a sports beans vendor and ordered "one package" of beans. When a big ole box came in the mail a few days later, the Granny realized she didn't exactly verify how much 1 package of sports beans contained - oh yeah, she got a whole case!

Although she didn't send the whole case, the Romanian mail system came through and I am fueled and ready for my half-marathon - and then some.

(Additional 10-15 packages of beans not shown)

Steve runs in Venice (well, close anyway)

This past weekend was spent in Venice, Italy. I did not actually run on the island, but ran in the mainland district of Mestre (part of greater Venice) where we stayed. Allow me to explain.

While running on the Island of Venice is technically possible, it would not be fun. First, all of the major streets are composed of a very soft surface called H2O (or water for you non-science people), duh! The walkways that people do use in the city are not very straight, they are not very wide, and there are stairs everywhere to get up and over the canals. And last, but not least, the place is packed with tourists which limits all manner of movement. So, call me a wuss if you must, but I think I picked a better option on terra-firma (mainland).

Parco San Giuliano

Anyway, I did have a good 7.5 mile run on Thursday morning at this park that was a little over 1 mile from the hotel. Mestre is a very run-friendly and bike-friendly town. The major arteries in town have walkways with both a pedestrian lane and bike lane shielded from traffic. The locals appear to use the bike paths a lot for everyday transportation. With gas prices as they are in Europe, I don't blame them!

I found the park on Google Earth before we left, but the images showed it was under construction. I knew that the images were old and the park was finished, but I still wasn't sure how to get there. The map showed a couple of very busy streets (looked like a freeway) in front of the entrance which I was worried about crossing.

So, at 6:30 am I headed out on San Marco street, following the bike path towards the park. After about 1 mile I was pleasantly surprised to see a huge pedestrian suspension bridge going over the freeway and right into the park. The bridge appeared to be double of the size of a similar bridge near my home in Greenville, SC. Sweet! At this hour on a Thursday, the park was practically deserted and I had the flat 1.5 mile loop course all to myself. There were drinking fountains about every .5 mile or so, which was also cool. I had a nice run of about 7 1/2 miles - and I can now add Italy to the list of countries I've ran in this year.

I was not able to get to the park with a camera, so you'll have to settle for a few stock internet photos showing the park and the bridge construction (which is now complete). The last photo on the right shows the back end of the course near the lagoon. You can see the bridge to the Venice island group in the background.

Be sure to click the family blog link for some cool photos of the Venice islands. Ciao!

All "boys" like a challenge

I wasn't going to blog this week, but a comment from my fellow ultimate frisbee warrior Brian has me fired up. (and a little homesick for seeing him send a 175g disc my way too) My blog audience may actually require two hands to count now. Whoo whoo, and that doesn't include the coolest helpmeet ever, who is a given. I'll give my week recap in reverse order, for a more dramatic effect.

Wednesdays Speed workout

After that dumb "all out" 5k debacle I tried a month ago, I've stayed away from these speed sessions for fear of being stupid and running them too fast for my capability. However, today I successfully completed 3 x 1 mile repeats at Parcul National. After a 1.2 mile jog to the park, I hit 7:00 minute miles for all three, taking 2 minute jogs in between to recover. I was pretty happy to have the energy to jog the 1.2 miles back home and therefore complete the entire workout without stopping to walk. These workouts give me some confidence that I can survive the half-marathon even if I start out to fast.

Unfortunately, the workout was spoiled by having to take an ICE COLD shower back at home. We had no hot water from Monday night until Thursday afternoon.

Monday's 5 miler - "the kid" goes down

After taking a full day to recover from Saturdays Jutton-record breaking long run, I was ready Monday for a moderate 5 mile. I tried to run most of this at my Half-Marathon goal race pace and see how I felt after 5 miles. I felt pretty good for this one, but I was starting to get tired towards the end.

After about 4.5 miles, I must have looked like easy prey to a middle-school-age roller blader. I was coming in to the home stretch on my final lap and he skated right up beside me. He give me that challenging look that is found in all boys of every nationality. The look says "Let's see what you got old man!". I gave him a quick smile and said in Romanian "HAI!" (come on!) . I picked up the pace and cruised ahead. He quickly caught up, smiling all the way - this cocky little guy. So I got up on my toes and went in to sprint mode. It took more effort for him to catch up this time, but he pulled even again. I was getting a little worried, but I knew I had 2 gears left to show him. I picked it up again, sprinting at about 80% now and surged ahead by several yards. This was too much for "the kid". He started to speed up, but then wiped out, landing flat on his back. Somehow, he was still smiling. At my age, smiling would be last thing I'd do if I wiped out at that speed!

I smiled too. I had at least one gear left that I didn't show him. All boys like a challenge - even me.

Fall arrives in Bucharest

At some point during our cruise last week, the weather in Bucharest moved from summer to fall. Upon coming back this week, we found that daytime highs were down to about 75 and overnight lows have hovered in the low 50's. It feels really good after the 90's and 100's we saw in the last half of August. Leaves are changing quickly and many are actually falling, perhaps due to the fairly dry conditions we had this summer.

Mon, Wed, Fri - Low energy running

Unfortunately, I was unable to take full advantage of the perfect running conditions this week. I did get 15 miles in, but I had little energy all week and have been constantly hacking up phlegm during running. The phlegm problem is a double whammy which has affected my sleep too. I don't know if I caught a little bug during our travels or if this is a variation of the seasonal allergy issues I have in the states. Perhaps they have ragweed or its European equivalent here.

Monday's run was the worst, with 2 slow laps of Titan Lake. The only good thing is the cooler weather taking care of the speedo problem. I changed venues for Wednesday and ran at the track at National Park. Running at the track is not as boring as in the states. There is usually a soccer match going on in the main field or on the other adjoining areas and it gives you something to look at. It's also nice to see other runners and avoid being the object of laughing teenagers. After finally getting a decent nights sleep on Thursday, I finished the work week with a short "preparation" run in the smooth section of Titan Park on Friday. My plan was to go long on Saturday morning, so I wanted to be ready and loose.

Long Run Saturday

With only 1 month to go before my first half-marathon, the long run is the most important part of my training. It's even more important for me since I've never ran a race longer than 5 miles and, until 3 weeks ago, I had never run longer than 8 miles. Today, my goal was to break the 10 mile barrier and my previous best of 9.9 miles. My plan was to run to Parcul National and do a few laps on the track to try to get a good rythym going. From there, I would run to the smooth section of Titan park. I mapped out a "figure 8" course on the new pavement which is about 1 mile (.95 to be exact and anal). I knew fatigue would be a factor, especially due to my sluggishness this week, but I was determined to finish as long as there was no pain.

I woke up a little later than normal this morning and was a little slow getting ready. This was a good thing, since I actually slept ok and I needed it. I finished planning my route from park to park on Google over coffee and 3 bananna nut muffins that were baked on Friday by the coolest helpmeet ever. At 7:30, I headed out and took it slow to get loose and also to make sure those muffins settled down. The temperature was in the mid 50's and rising slowly during the run - perfect. I completed the 1.2 miles to the track and settled in to a comfortable pace there for 8 laps (2 mi). I felt pretty good and even started thinking about going for 12 miles as I left the track to Parcul Titan. There were plently of dogs in Parcul Titan today, but most of them were pets. Some barked and a couple gave short chases, but they listened to their owners pretty good and I didn't have to make any distracting safety moves.

I felt good until I completed mile 7, and that's where self-doubt started to creep in. I was thinking "Holy cow, I've been running for 67 minutes and I still have 30 minutes left!" I could easily remember the days last year when 30 minutes would be a long run for me. I was also hacking up a little phlegm at what seemed like every half mile or so. For the next two miles I was talking to myself in Romanian, saying "Hai!" (Come on!), which I thought was kind of odd. It was weird, but it worked and I ran several of those later miles with negative splits (means I was getting faster each time - for my non-running audience). I was pretty stoked when I finished mile 9, but I was getting tired. I was also rubbing at least one blister on my left foot. I had met my goal, so I turned for home, passing the 10 mile mark on the way back and finishing with 10.6. I'm pretty satifisfied with the run and just finished celebrating with some mici at our favorite family hangout in Parcul Titan.

Steve's portable track

I just thought I'd report my runs from my personal running and training ship which also doubles as the Royal Caribbean "Voyager of the Seas" cruise ship. Believe it or not, there are actually a few wackos who like to work out while on vacation and I'm one of them.

The track on the "Voyager class" ships is impressive for a ship. It only takes 5 laps around to equal a mile. There are 2 lanes with a decent running surface. The only thing I didn't like about the track are the 2 sharp turns on the aft side - but since its on a cruise ship, I probably shouldn't be so picky.

I managed to log just over 10 miles on 3 short runs. The first run was done last Saturday at sea approaching the French Riviera. The winds were rough. On one side it was great as the wind propelled you down the lane, but on the other side - brutally tough upwind running! Because of that, I did the next 2 runs while the ship was anchored at Naples, Italy and the island Mallorca, Spain.

The first 2 pics show the view shortly after my Naples run. On one side, you can see the currently sleeping Mt. Vesuvius (peak on the right in photo). The other photo shows the other view of the city of Naples. Normally when I ran early, very few people were on the track (imagine that!).

The last 3 pics show the island of Mallorca. This is a beautiful island. It has nice beaches and mountains that are close to 5000 ft. Much of the high country is preserved and features beautiful trails for hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding. Like Barcelona, this places is paradise for triathletes!

The run in Mallorca was done early, before sunrise. Dana took this nice shot while Maria and I were running. She joined me for about 1.5 miles of the 4 mile run this morning. Later in the day, the family did a 3.5 hour hike in the mountains. We covered about 5-6 miles with over 1000 ft of elevation gain on the way up and then a decent of around 1200 ft close to sea level. That's where we shot these last 2 pictures.

Back to Barcelona!

If you remember, the last time we visited this excellent running location back in March, I (for some still unknown reason) did not bring my running stuff. Well, I did not make that mistake this time. We arrived on Wednesday night and I decided to waste no time and knock out a long-ish run Thursday morning. With the cruise beginning on Saturday, I thought it would be good to get a good 1hr plus run. The cruise ship has a good size track (for a ship!), but at 5 laps per mile, I figured it would get boring for a long run.

Morning runs on the beach (Thursday and Saturday)

This nearly 7 mile run begins on the famous street named “Las Ramblas” which is one of the main tourist centers here in Barcelona. Las Ramblas is a .75 mile street with a wide pedestrian walkway down the middle. It is filled with artists and other stores and restaurants. I was long done with the run when I took this pic of Dana and Maria, so the street was relatively quiet when I started. The side streets contain tons of hotels, restaurants and shops. Las Ramblas is situated less than a mile from the ’92 Olympic stadium to the west and the Olympic village near the beach to the east. Some major $$ went in to this area for the Olympics, and it shows.

From the Ramblas, I headed towards the beach located in front of the neighborhood called Barcelonetta. Barcelonetta was a slum that was totally “made over” around the time of the Olympics. The second pic shows the run along the marina, looking east towards the hill where the Olympic stadium is located. My run would be nearly flat, but there is plenty of hill training potential close by.

The 3^rd pic shows the beach, approaching the Olympic Village. Notice all the room!!!!! This beach is excellent for running or cycling. You can run along the boardwalk at beach level (right of photo), or run on the upper level (left of photo). You can spend time looking out into the Med or you can look inland toward the city and its eclectic blend of architecture (who knew I was capable of using the word eclectic in a sentence? Impressive eh?) . Unlike Bucharest, every surface I ran on (from stone to asphalt to gravel to boards) was smooth! There was also actual order to all the traffic making it easy to cross any streets. It’s amazing was a little less anarchy will do.

I liked this run so much, I did it twice. After the kayak cross training session with the family on Friday, I ran again on Saturday. It was a little cloudy on Saturday and that’s when I took most of these pics, so I apologize.

Post run fueling, Barcelona style

My post run snack of choice was fresh fruit followed by these neat little sandwiches called bocadillos. They are basically a half-long baguette with meet and cheese inside. I guess you also can do it the hard way too. “If you can catch a chicken Rocky, you can catch greased lighting!” (excuse the in-exact movie quote)

Anyone have an axe?

Word of warning

Maybe it’s my conservative nature, but I’d though I’d let you know about these European beaches. On most of these beaches, going topless is pretty common. And the more private the beach, the less clothes you will find, ON ANYONE!!! The kayak cross training trip was full evidence of that!

Just focus on the running Steve – focus!

Steve is "ALL IN" for his Romanian half-marathon

Well, there’s no turning back now. I have sent in my registration form and paid my 300,000 lei (about 11 bucks). As expected, registering for a race in Romania is complicated, like everything else here.

Taking no chances

After my recent lengthy episodes paying the speeding ticket and going to the dentist (you can read about them HERE), I decided not to fool around this time. I enlisted the help of my coworker, Daniela, for the whole duration.


Step 1: The first thing I had to due was get a registration form. I was stunned at how easy this part was. They actually have a really good website for this race and printing the form was no problem.

Step 2: The instructions on the form were a little confusing. We were not sure if I (foreigner) had to pay a higher fee. So, Daniela called the race director in the city of Timisoara. He was really nice and told Daniela it was no problem and would be charged the same fee as the Romanians. He was excited about the race kept on talking to Daniela. He told her that the great Romanian female distance runner, 2000 Olympic gold medalist Gabriela Szabo would start the race. Gabi, as she is called, has her own website HERE where you historical buffs can read about here accomplishments.

Step 3: Bancpost. After filling out the registration form, the next step was to pay the registration fee. That had to be done a specific bank, named Bancpost. The fee would be deposited to an account number that was provided on the instructions. So, I “borrowed” Daniela from work today and headed out. We found the nearest Bancpost and took care of this without problem. Of course, we obtained a stamped receipt of payment (you will get a stamped receipt for anything you do that is remotely considered official in Romania)

Step 4: Posta Romania. With the fee paid, the only other thing to do was mail the original receipt with the original registration form to the Marathon club in Timisoara. Just in case, we made copies at the post office for 3000 lei (11 cents). Daniela also suggested using the Romanian version of a certified letter. That way, I will be notified when the mail is delivered. Boy, I’m glad she came with me since I had no idea how to do that.

Steve's "Inspired" long run

Rain Delay

Saturday morning has been my "long run" time for half-marathon training. My plan today was to go for 9 miles at least. This would be a personal record for me as far as distance goes. My two longest runs were 8.2 miles (from Nov 2005) and the 8.1 miler I did last week. Bucharest has a very dry climate compared to my home in Simpsonville, SC. Average monthly rainfall is usually half of what the upstate South Carolina region usually receives, so it is a rare thing when rain -n- thunder interrupts my running routine. Well, this morning I awoke to a nasty storm outside. With the lightning and thunder, I decided to wait this one out. So instead, we all went to the Selgros (Romanian Sam's club) store for our weekly grocery run and the obligatory stop at the Fornetti stand (conveniently located inside Selgros) for some apple pastries. There's nothing like apple pastry carbohydrate loading to put you in the running mood.

Steve's training "partner" goes down

After we got back and unloaded the groceries, the rain had stopped, the sun was out, and the Bucharest quick-dry was already in full swing. I continually find it amazing, having never lived in a dry climate, how quickly the rain water evaporates here. So I got dressed, grabbed my fancy running watch and headed out door. I walked to the usual starting spot where I power up the watch and acquire the satellites which track my distance and speed. It was there that tragedy struck! I hit the power button on the watch and....nothing. I tried everything to revive my watch, but nothing worked. I went back inside, got on the internet, and searched high and low in cyberspace - nothing worked. Most of the people who had written about this problem had sent there watch back for service. (Yeah, like that's going to work with the Romanian mail system). The only way my watch will work is when it’s connected to a power source. You can see my friend now, attached to his “life support” cable, unable to function on his own. Running with a geeked-up watch is one thing, but running with a 10 lb laptop attached is a little much - even for me.

“Steve use the force…uh..I mean use your inner GPS”

I was as low as you can get. I thought about not running at all. How can it be any fun without my little “buddy”? I won’t have him there anymore weighing down my left arm, chirping & beeping with every mile complete and showing my real-time speed. Who would announce to the Romanian’s that an American running geek was approaching? And more importantly, how would I know how fast I was going and when I would reach 9 miles? Suddenly, I thought back to this article that I read this past week. This guy rambled on about how modern runners are too addicted and dependent on technology. He says we should intentionally leave the technology at home and go running naturally once and a while. As you can imagine, when I read the article, I though he was STUPID with a capital “S”. But what can I say, today I thought about it differently.

Ok, now cue the theme song for “Chariots of Fire”

So, with a hug of consolation from the coolest Helpmeet ever, I trudged out the door with my old $30 Timex and a small, but growing bit of determination. I started running to the smoothly paved section of the park and began my laps. I knew each lap was around ¾ of a mile, but I wasn’t sure exactly. From there, I just clicked my watch at each lap so I would at least know whether one lap was quicker or slower than the last one. In my head while running, I figured 11 laps plus the trip home should get me over 9 miles for sure – I would not know the exact distance until I measured the route when I got back on the computer. I was also hoping to run close to 9:00 minutes per mile, but I would just have to do that by “feel”.

Maybe I was inspired by seeing my “sick” friend (a device of few words). Maybe I was inspired by the article. Maybe I was inspired by the Helpmeet’s hug. Who knows? All I know is that halfway through the run I felt great. I even had the energy to leap over a stray soccer ball fired my way and smile at the kid who shot it. So what was the final total? After 1:29 hrs of running, I completed 9.9 miles at an average pace of 9:04 minutes per mile! So, I guess my inner GPS isn't so bad after all!

Speed run at Parcul National

For yesterday's run, I decided to take a break from Parcul Titan and the typical summer sights like this:
"If ya got it, flaunt it baby!"

So I went to Parcul National for a "speed" workout on the deteriorating all weather track near the stadium. I have been running really slow in the last 2 months for two reasons. The first reason is my running form change. The second reason is to build up my total mileage each week to prepare for the half marathon in October. Although the slow running is good for me, this long distance running thing has never come naturally for me. It's a recent thing that I've been trying to get better at doing. Anyway, I've been itching to run fast for quite some time now. With the heat finally breaking Tuesday (Temps reached 100 F over the weekend), I figured today was the day.

Steve's dumb speed workout is planned

Anyway, I decided to do a warm-up run to the track and then run a 5K (3.1 miles) as fast as I could. I would pretend this was a 5k race and start off with an easy 7:15-7:30 mile and then put the peddle down for the final 2.1 and "Bring It!". I would then do a nice cool-down run back home. Lest you confuse me with Dana, my super-organized Helpmeet, I basically planned this whole thing while I was getting my running clothes on.

Those who know me well know that my typical problem in races is that I start off way too fast. In 5K races, I usually run a great 1st mile and then spend the rest of the race trying to avoid death. But now, things would be different. I have my fancy-schmancy GPS watch that tells me how fast I'm going, so I figured that wouldn't be a problem here. As usual, I was quite wrong...

Training Smart: A Cure For Racing Stupidity?

Ok. I ran easy from the apartment to the track, set up my fancy schmancy watch, hit START! I took off like a maniac, and after the first lap my watch notified me that I was running a 6:30 mile pace! My immediately thought: "Boy, that's way too fast - I need to slow down!". Of course, I didn't really listen to that thought - or my watch - and kept going too fast anyway. After finishing the 1st mile in 6:45 (way, WAY too fast), my legs were screaming at me ....I had to slow down big time. So, for the next lap I basically jogged at a 9:00 minute clip and tried to catch my breath. I was frustrated and mad and was about to quit until...I actually started to recover - and recover quickly! By the end of that slow lap, I had picked up a second wind and took off. I ended up finishing the 5K with a respectable 21:52 and staggered home for my cool down.

So where did the burst of energy come from when I was struggling after that first mile? Was I just embarrassed because of the little kids running faster nearby? Was I looking forward to homemade meatballs from my cool Helpmeet? No, not quite. It seems that those longer, easier runs I'm doing are really helping me with my endurance. This whole smart training thing might actually work - who knew?

"Challenges Ahead"

The ramp-up in weekly miles toward my half marathon goal continues. After this morning's 8-miler, I'm sitting at over 19 miles for the week, which is easily my highest weekly total for the year. Tomorrow's recovery run should put me over the 20 mile mark, which is pretty cool.

Really, there was nothing blog-worthy on my runs this week. This morning I was able to give the time to a guy during my run, so thanks to Nathan who gave me the running watch instructional comment on a previous post!

Running Nutrition - Not!

WARNING: This nutrition sequence should only be considered by a professional (professional what?).

One thing is for sure, when you run 8 miles in one shot, you get HUNGRY. I have been eating all day. Since I'm pretty anal with most everything else I do, I've throttled back in the nutrition area. The way I figure it, a half-marathon is not that big of a deal. It's not like I'm scaling Everest or doing an Ironman like my bud Ashley. I'm going to survive regardless of how I eat - and besides, I'm in Romania and you pretty much have to go with the flow sometimes.

Check out today's cornucopia of "fueling":

Pre-Run: Cup of coffee and 2 banana-nut muffins (baked by the coolest Helpmeet ever)
Post Run (Breakfast): .5 liter Gatorade , medium bowl of cornflakes with soy milk.
Snack #1: 100 g Fornetti (apple pastries) and orange juice while shopping with helpmeet.
Snack #1a: .5 liter of Cappy (orange drink) while riding subway to gymnastics competition
Snack #2: 1 serving of McDonald's chicken nuggets and some fries (I'm serious, it was on the way to international gymnastics competition we went to watch) washed down with coke.
Lunch: 2 mici sausages with bread and mustard (couldn't resist this local delicacy after leaving gymanstics competition) washed down with more coke
Snack #3: 1 scoop of chocolate ice cream with cone after lunch. (still in process of leaving the gymnastics competition area)
Snack #4: 1 large order french fries (Helpmeet and daughter wanted a McFlurry after seeing me eat ice cream)
Supper: Meatloaf and Mac-n-cheese leftovers (both made by said Helpmeet) washed down with pomegranate juice
Snack #5: TBD (its 7:00 pm right now and I'm still thinking)

Note: I did drink some water too, so Ashley and Nathan- please don't totally flame me.

Now for the rough stuff?

So what "challenges" do I have? On August 30th we fly to Barcelona. After a couple of days in Barcelona we depart on a 7-day cruise of the Western Mediterranean and get back to Bucharest on Saturday night, Sept 9. Then, about 3 weeks later on Oct 4-8, we will be in Venice, Italy. My half-marathon is on Oct 15, the following week.

Yes, I know - life is tough. Somehow I must be able to train through these distractions - at least at a minimal level anyway. At any rate, it will help inject some new life into the blog, if nothing else!

Plodding along in Parcul Titan

It was another tame week of running in Bucharest. I managed to get in two 4 mile runs on Mon and Thurs in between Dana and Maria's return (Yahoooo!). The heat dropped down due to some cool fronts that came through and there was some rain also. Some areas in the Romanian countryside received some nasty weather in the past two weeks with heavy rain, wind and even a tornado.

Steve's goal is creeping up...

It finally hit me on Friday that my first half-marathon is only 2 months away. Although running a half-marathon (13.1 miles) is not nearly as difficult as a full (26.2) marathon, it really helps to get some longer runs done to prepare you body for these distances. From what I've read, if you don't get those longs runs done, you may be able to finish a half-marathon, but you'll be miserable doing it. I want to enjoy the sights and sounds of my first HM in a European city and not feel like death during the whole thing.

Long run Saturday

So on Saturday morning, I got a up at 6:00 am for a nice long morning run in Parcul Titan. Overnight temperatures in Bucharest are usually nice and cool, even in the middle of summer. It may reach 90+ degrees during the day, but it will usually drop into the low 60's overnight, which is nice. I'd gladly trade Romanian summer for the Carolina summer (winter is another story!). It was a very peaceful (and dog-free - whoo whooo!) 7.2 miles in the park. I've been running really slow lately due to my recent form change. I guess I'm just paranoid of injury after reading so many stress fracture stories on the internet.

So how slow am I running? This pic should give you an idea: