Ramon Scott

January 9, 2010

First let me say brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

This event sure lived up to it’s name! When we gathered at the starting line at 8 am, the temperature was about 15 degrees with winds out of the north from 10 to 15 mph.  I wore some running tights, a long sleeved compression top, and another thin top layer. Plus wool socks, running gloves with ski glove liners also, a head band, a thin running hat and an old fleece neck gaiter. I have to say this was about perfect.

The run started out going north through downtown Columbus, then back south on the Phenix City Riverwalk and then into Columbus again and along the Riverwalk toward Fort Benning. At about the 9 mile mark we turned back around on the Riverwalk and went straight back in to downtown.

I started out at a pretty reasonable pace (probably 7:45) running solo. After about  ½ mile I realized the headwind was pretty detrimental  and picked up my pace to get behind a largish group running together. That group stuck roughly together at probably a 7:30 pace for the next 3 miles. At that point I got behind to Army guys running side by side that were doing about a 7:20 pace. I was working pretty hard to stay there – legs were fine but breathing hard. I stuck with them and was feeling good at the 9 mile mark where we turned back into the wind.

Then of all things, they picked up their pace to about 7:10 – I stuck for about ½ mile but really was feeling like blowing up. I dropped off, hit my first water station and walked about 10 second while sipping to recover and then headed off again – probably at a 7:40 pace.

The last two mile were brutal – head wind picked up and we were totally exposed on the Riverwalk – really felt like my face was freezing. Thank goodness for the neck gaiter. I’d second guessed wearing it a little – but it really helped to cover my face and breathe some warmer air.

Ended up finishing in 1:37:47 (7:28 average) and got a Masters division win! Given the windy day and my 6 extra pounds from holiday food – I was very pleased. Good way to start off 2010.

The event itself was put on by the Columbus Road Runners track club (http://www.columbusroadrunners.com) and was very well run. Registration was good. They had excellent pre-race communications via email and Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Red-Nose-Marathon-and-Half-Marathon-Columbus-Georgia/181340854195). Packet pickup was fast and efficient. The course was well staffed with volunteers and plenty of aid stations. Post race food was a plentiful variety of carbs, fruits and a few sweets.

Looking forward to doing it again next year!

This was a fun event. I went into it with no tapering or recovery from training. The intention was it’d be a training event for the longer Ironman 70.3 I’m doing in September.

But I felt pretty good.

Starting off on the swim, the group I was with got a little off course and veered further left than we should have. After the first turn though I got back on track and drafted a guy in. This was the first time I swam with a singlet on, and I have to say it made me feel quicker. Not sure why.

T1 was fast with no glitches. Hit the bike and reeled in lots of folks over the course of the relatively flat 13 miles. Unfortunately only a couple were in my age group. Only a single person passed me. I stayed about four bike lengths back from him after his pass (at about 10 mile mark) and retook him at the last minute.

T2 was also super quick. I love the new Zoot shoes. Hit the run feeling very comfortable with my new shorter stride and faster turn over. A single person past me on the run course, and once again I overtook a lot of people – but only two in my age group.

I ended up 4th out of 36 in my age group.
Total: 1:08:57.
Swim: 9:58
T1: 55 seconds
Bike: 35:40 (22.9 mph avg.)
T2: 41seconds
Run 21:44 (7:01 avg)

First, Second and Third in my age group were all within 1 minute.
http://results.active.com/pages/displayNonGru.jsp?orgID=216352&rsID=82511

For short-course triathlons, speedy transitions are pretty critical. One of the ways to shave some seconds is to eliminate time spent putting on socks.

On the bike, that hasn’t been issue for me. The Sidi Genius shoes I use have always been good for me sans socks, but running shoes have been a different matter. Earlier this year I tried wearing some racing flats (Saucony) without socks. It was only a two-mile run, but I ended up with some sad raw spots on my feet. I did indeed have some quick transitions though which helped for an age-group 3rd place.

This weekend, while visiting Pensacola Beach I stopped by a local store – Running Wild – that was having a good sale on last year’s Zoot shoes.

I’d heard Zoot shoes were great for triathlons and made sockless runs possible. For 50% off – who could go wrong? I purchased a pair of size 12 racers. I normally wear a 13, but without socks and wanting a snug fit these fit the bill. They fit very closely, but felt comfortable. The Racer model is Zoot’s neutral light-weight shoe for 5k to half marathon.  They have a pretty low profile and minimal cushioning compared to my regular training shoes (Mizuno Wave Riders). Overall they felt quite a bit like the Asics DS Trainers I use for longer races.

I did my first run in them today (without socks) at lunch. I intended to just do 3 or miles in case they were uncomfortable, but after getting started things felt so good I ended up doing 6. The shoes turned over quickly and cushioning was tolerable for a light shoe. They don’t feel quite as light as my racking flats, but they’re not much heavier. No raw spots or blisters, although at the very end the pads of my toes felt a little scratchy – the shoe liner is a little abrasive. Nothing serious though. Probably a few more runs in them will get the toes accommodated. I may try them for a longer run to see about feasibility for use in an Ironman 70.3 event in September.

Definitely going to use them next weekend for another short course race though.

June 21, 2009
.25 SWIM| 9M BIKE | 2M  RUN

Results: Age Group Men’s 40-44 Third Place (out of 79 people).
Swim (30th place):   8:40
T1: 1:37
Bike:  (6th place)  22:02  averaged 24.5mph
T2:  1:28
Run: (3rd place) 14:16  7:08 average
Total:  48:01

Wow. I couldn’t believe the turnout for this year’s event. Organizers at packet pickup said they had about 1,200 registered. It’s good to see the event being embraced.

The weather has been hot this year with highs in the upper 90’s and lows in the mid 70’s. It didn’t take long after the 8 am start for things to start warming up. Fortunately, Callaway Gardens has an abundance of trees and shade on both the bike and a good portion of the run course.

The swim had 10 waves, I was in the second wave (silver caps) for men 35-44. The younger men went first. My father did the event this year also and was in the following wave (men 45 and up). I warmed up for 10 minutes prior to the swim and took and aggressive (for me) position as we lined up to start in chest deep water. When the gun went off, I started hard and my left foot immediately cramped up – weird. Couldn’t straighten the foot out which made for an awkward couple of minutes until the cramp eased. I guess I need more stretching. It was a mosh pit of swimmers for two-thirds of my swim. No ugly incidents, but it was rare I wasn’t pressing against someone’s side or maneuvering around feet.

I exited the swim amongst a large number of silver caps, crossed the beach and went up a short hill into the transition area at a pretty fast jog. The first transition went pretty smoothly. I went sockless figuring the distances were short and came through at 1:37 for T1 – that included the run from the beach and a good distance out to the bike start.

Out on the bike course things were congested with the tail end of the first wave. I was riding my Kestrel road bike (no aero bars) because the course features a lot of twists, turns and small climbs (fun). Lots of first time triathletes in attendance. I worked my way up to a guy on a Trek time trial bike who was cutting through traffic pretty well. I stayed about 5 bike lengths off his rear end for 2 miles or so until his pace dropped off. After that I was pushing hard and working my way through the crowds a bit more. After about 6 miles, things thinned some as I got past the slower folks from wave 1. Finished the bike with the 6th best time in my age group and a 24.5 mph average.

I came smoothly into the second transition by getting out of my shoes at the end of the bike and riding on top of them to the dismount. I discovered that this technique works well, but because my size 13 shoes are left clipped to the pedals, they bounce off the road unless I lift the front tire while running into the transition. I hit T2 pretty well with a 1:28 time. No socks again for the run. This resulted in my feet pushing the liner up toward the front of the shoe. I ignored it, but next time maybe I’ll try some talcum powder and loosening up the laces some.

I got out to the run with a quick stride.  The first part of the run circled Robin Lake where the swim was held. The legs felt good, and I ended up pushing the first mile faster than I probably should have. Don’t have an official time – but I’d guess around a 6:50 pace. The second mile was harder since I got a little anaerobic. Ended the run with a 7:08 per mile average, which was the 3rd best in my age group.

Full results are available at: http://results.active.com/pages/displayNonGru.jsp?pubID=3&rsID=80160

May 17, 2009
Distances: 5k run / 30k bike / 5k run

Hurray for my first age-group placing in a duathlon or triathlon! I got a second-place in the men’s 40-44. I missed first place by 28 seconds. My total time was 141:20. They had no chip timing, so the splits were kind of estimates based on my watch, but I had a fast (by my standards) first 5k of about 20:46 followed by a 20 mph+ bike ride and around a 23 minute second 5k.

I felt good on the first 5k although it was pretty muggy. The bike leg went well, but starting off the second 5k, my right hamstring felt pretty tight, and I felt that I couldn’t run full out without risking it totally locking up. I’m attributing that too limited early season bike training.

Been hitting the bike harder for the last month .

Official results are online at: http://results.active.com/pages/displayNonGru.jsp?pubID=3&rsID=78478

I’m tardy posting this, but didn’t want to lose track of it. Did the 2009 Midtown Classic 5k (Columbus, GA.) the weekend after the Celebrity Classic 10k. Felt relatively fresh and went out pretty much on pace for the first mile (6:50). Second mile went okay also. Third miles has a decent hill back up toward the finish. Took it pretty easy and had gas in the tank at the top. Ended up an age group 2nd place at 21:42.81.

http://www.columbusroadrunners.com/Joomla/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=185&Itemid=35

Did my first event of the season yesterday – the Celebrity Classic  10k in Columbus, Ga. Things went pretty well but didn’t quite meet my expectations. Did 44:19, which is a 7:07 average.  Felt good for the first 3 miles but didn’t quite have the wind to sustain my pace. Good for an age group 3^rd place. Probably good have gone harder for last mile, but kept things reasonable with eye toward a 5k next weekend.

Also, didn’t do well last year recording event results so I want to take a couple of minutes to capture them here:

2009 Race Results

·         Auburn Half Marathon, Auburn, Al. 1:45:08. Horrible weather. Raining and 38 degrees. Brrrr.

·         Seaside Half Marathon, Seaside, Fl. 1:39:29. Average of 7:35. Great conditions on this.

·         RiverRoad Elementary 5k, Columbus, Ga. 21:09. Overall Masters winner. This was a way hilly run being held for the first time. Pretty low attendance.

·         Celebrity Classic 10k, Columbus, Ga. 44:00. Age group 2^nd place. Felt pretty good.

·         Midtown Classic 5k, Columbus, Ga. 22:06. Age group 2^nd place. This was the weekend after the Celebrity Classic , and I didn’t do too good a job of recovering.

·         Marine Corps Marathon, Washington, DC. 3:47:42. This was my second marathon. Knocked about 17 minutes off last years time. That was an 8:41 pace. Was below 8:30 pace for the first 20+ miles.

·         Callaway Gardens Triathlon, Pine Mountain, Ga. 2:00:38. Did this with no bike or swim training – just treated as fun event with marathon coming up.
Swim:  17:37
Transition 1: 1:59
Bike: 1:00:08
Bike Average: 18.6
Transition 2: 1:37
Run: 39:19
Run Average 7:52

This is a follow-up to my original post for a quick solution for a adding a web part to the home page that allows for searching for people using first, last or a combination of names. Wildcards are supported on either.

This version has been tweaked to add a select box that also lets a user choose a department to view or search within. You’ll have to hard-code your departments in. A fancier version might use an AJAX call to read from a list or something similar.

To use this, just add a content editor web part to the moss home page and paste the code below into the source view. The form will submit to the default people search results page.

I’m blown away with WordPress in terms of how well it functions, how organized and intuitive the code base is and how easy it is to customize and augment its look n’ feel and capabilities.

The first things I’ve done is installed a cool photo gallery plugin. This is the NextGEN Gallery available at http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/nextgen-gallery/. Wonderful stuff. Very cool end-user presentation and well thoughout administration console on the backend.

I also have loaded my first new theme. It’s amazing how many themes are out there for WordPress. Kind of overwhelming. The new theme is called Xplosive and it’s available at http://www.blogohblog.com/wordpress-theme-xplosive/.

Synopsis: This story revolves around a third-string, washed up NFL quarter back who ends up in Italy playing in the Italian National Football Team.

My 2 Cents: I found the book entertaining, but not as deep a read as some other Grisham novels. Learning about how one of my favorite sports co-exists in the land of soccer was fascinating. Also, the detailed descriptions of the Italian cuisine always left me hungry. Overall, I’d recommend it for Grisham fans or those wanting to know something about Italian football, cuisine or architecture.