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Things sure have changed at Argo Road
For our Sunday long run, Sydney and I visited Argo Road. A stretch of road in Grain Valley/Blue Springs, Missouri from 7 highway to South Dillingham Road, another anonymous through street on the east side of the area. Argo Road runs through the William Landahl Park Reserve and has some cool locations, such as the county sheriff’s shooting range, an outdoor archery range (supposedly one of the best,) and a mountain bike park with trails varying in difficulty. We were there, however, for the hills. Argo Road is (about) 5 miles of steep, rolling hills.
Along with a detour down Owen’s School Road, Argo is the home of “K.C.’S TOUGHEST ROAD RACE!” Which is a bit hyperbolic, but wild claims are fun and harmless. Twice a year, a certain type of runner gathers to run 13.1(ish) miles, unofficially. The only prizes are for first place male and female. Official time is at the start finish on a stopwatch or wristwatch. The entry fee was recently bumped to $xx, cash. No refunds. Finishers get a shirt. Maybe some food, if there’s any left. Maybe a soda or beer. The weather is supposed to be bad. The whole thing is supposed to be bad. I feel like the Argo 13.1 is a great example of “type 2” fun.
Sydney and I have, in the past, done some practice runs on Argo. The road isn’t too far from the house, and it’s fun to reminisce about the good times on race day. Plus, you know, bombing downhill. There are no sidewalks, just open ditches. The hills are steep and blind. The neighbors are…more friendly than hostile. People just don’t expect runners out there. The whole ordeal is exciting!
This particular visit, though, wasn’t to practice for Argo 13.1 summer edition. It wasn’t ajog down (and up and down and up and up and up and down) memory lane. We are getting ready for the Heartland spirit of the prairie 50k and 50 miler. We both know what we are in for, and knowledge is power. But you can’t know hills if you don’t run hills. Argo is the closest thing I can think of to big rolling terrain of the flint hills. There aren’t big, chunky rocks. I have no idea how to practice that. At least we will be in good shape for running the hills.
I was a bit disappointed in the addition of 2 brand new, clean, and well stocked portable toilets at Argo Rd. Vanity wants me to believe i am the reason for them. Last time we were there, i had to mosey up and say hello to some bushes. There are trail cameras everywhere! And a guy was doing trail maintenance. Heh. Realistically, it’s probably because it’s spring, and they want people to come enjoy the amenities and be comfortable. Antithema to the Argo Road race.
They’ve also done a lot of trimming and clearing along the sides of the road. The feeling of danger is reduced considerably! From having nowhere to go off a car comes barreling over the hill at you, to now you’ll get a little dirty. Maybe scraped up. Maybe tetanus or hepatitis… it’s just not the same thrill. Well, shucks. Nothing lasts forever, I suppose. The only constant is change. You can’t fight progress. I’ll just enjoy the new level of comfort and hope they don’t decide to flatten the danged hills. Pics to follow.
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Spring? Or “Fool’s Spring?”
It seems like spring has sprung. The temperature when I woke up this morning, at 5:00, was 62⁰. Sorry, I mean 62⁰!!! That’s in Fahrenheit, btw. There would be A LOT more exclamation marks for 62⁰c. Lol.
When our friend Michelle ran 100 miles last weekend, I’m not sure if the temperature ever got above 60. I was lucky enough to pace her for 7 miles between colony and welda. Michelle finished in 23 hours and 40 minutes. For those keeping score, that’s one more sub-24 hour finish than me. But I have AT LEAST 6 more toenails than her. Lol.
Sydney was running the marathon at prairie spirit trail while Michelle was running her hundred. It was daunting to Sydney, for sure. She had done no specific training for this race. Entering was an afterthought, brought on by peer pressure. The best kind of peer pressure. Positive. Encouraging. Not, like, “try smoking.” LOL.
Sydney did great! She was a champion and showed a lot of grit. The marathon distance is no joke! Attempting that kind of run “cold” can be dangerous, actually. She is in great shape, though. Sydney and I have both been working the “75-hard” program since January. I just finished on 3/16. She will finish on 3/29.
Through the 75 hard program, I lost 22 pounds and dropped my body fat percentage from 20% to 13%. I tell everyone I lost 30 pounds and put on 20 pounds of muscle. Lol.
There are at lot of fun adventures coming up! Mainly, though, I’m just hoping it doesn’t freeze anymore!
Lol.
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Ten Junk Miles
Ten Junk Miles is a “runner’s podcast.” The idea being not everyone has friends to run with. This show is for listening while you run. Neat!
There are at least three types of shows from Ten Junk Miles. The Gang Show is a group conversation about different topics. Long Run is a longer one on one conversation between Scott Kummer and a guest. Usually, an author or some sort of running/athletic professional. And then there’s the topic of this post, Meet the Nation. A brief interview with a listener. The idea is that when fans of the show meet on the trail, they’ve already got some idea about each other.
I was recently interviewed for Meet The Nation. I think it went really well. Scott Kummer is a fantastic interviewer and host. He made me feel very comfortable even though I was very nervous.
I have messed up nearly every public speaking opportunity I’ve ever had. The first two or even three, I think, can be excused. After that, i should know the key to speaking well is preparation. The more I prepare, the less of an idiot i appear to be. I guess it’s like running? If I want to run a fast race, I should train, huh?
So I prepared. I know what questions Scott asks. They’re about the same for every Meet the Nation. I really thought about my answers and (most importantly) wrote them down.
I thought it might be fun to share these notes here. Kind of a companion to the episode. This is absolutely NOT word- for-word. I add some things i wish i had said, do some things i should not have said. I don’t try to remember any of Scotty’s comments. You can listen to Ten Junk Miles on every podcast platform. I use Spotify. I recommend listening to the podcast and leaving a review.
So after a short intro, Scott plays the recording of him calling. I answered, but i wanted to wear my headphones for comfort. I flubbed the first minute, which was actually a nice ice breaker for me.
How did you start running? What’s the 2 minute, short answer? I tell people I started running after chasing down a purse snatcher from buzzard beach. He got away and I was so angry I started running 5 miles a day. Then I started hashing (because of a girl) abs that lead to racing, which leads to marathons, and on into ultra marathons.
How did you hear about Ten Junk Miles? A friend of mine and hasher named Aaron Nathan did a Meet the Nation episode. He “name-dropped” me to be interviewed. So i started listening.
Do you have a favorite episode? Gang show 235, Andrew Robot-Dinosaur. I like all the gang shows, but especially now that I’m a patreon. I like to listen for my name.
Scott did not ask if I had a favorite race distance, but i was ready if he had. My answer would have been the 5k and the 24-hour.
Something about you nobody would guess? I’m junior high i was involved in church youth group. Our thing was a clown ministry. We would perform a musical and go on your every summer. I was a clown for Jesus. Scotty thought that was great. He wanted pictures and a video. I think all that stuff is lost to the ages. Unfortunately?
Anybody that hasn’t been interviewed that should? The race directors for the trailhawks race, Cactus roulette. Todd Chandler and Barrett Kroll (i sure hope I’m spelling those names correctly). Justin Smith from Outlaw Racing and Run Trails, Eat Bacon YouTube channel.
If you were stranded on a desert island, you could have 1 book, 1 album, and 1 movie. What do you bring? Now, this is the question of the interview. It’s the one everybody knows and thinks about. I thought about this question forever! There’s just so many of everything, how do you choose? For the book, I chose The Three Musketeers by Dumas. But I could have just as easily chosen The Sun Also Rises, or The Stand, or Watchmen. I haven’t heard anyone choose a graphic novel yet. Or one of the Clive Cussler novels, or a Jack Reacher novel. Or anything by Cormack McCarthy. But you get to choose one. That’s the game. I think i did okay. The movie i chose was The Naked Gun. I changed my mind at the end. For a long time, I thought it would be Pulp Fiction. It’s cool. It’s fun. But how many times could I watch it before I’m just…gawhd! Over it. Something I’ve noticed about these answers is that people tend to “keep it clean.” I haven’t heard any racy, sexy movies yet. I mean, I’m alone. It’s an island. What’s up? 9 1/2 weeks? Risky Business? Breathless? Maybe even a little more…erotica? I get it, though. Nobody wants to be a hairy palmed pervert. For the album, I went with Back in Black by AC/DC. This should not have been a controversial answer. This album, in particular, is a staple of classic rock. THE example of radio music of the 1980s in the midwest. Did i want to try and show off? Of course! I thought about Fugazi. Or The Damned. Or 2 Live Crew. Or Tupac. Maybe Elvis, or Kenny Rodgers. Kenny Loggins. Prince. I mean, Purple Rain is probably a perfect album. But for an island, alone. 1 album. Album. Because it’s Scott’s show, and he’s a vinyl guy.
That was about the whole interview. Some of it is a blur. Luckily, it was recorded and should be available. I was nervous. I kept talking over Scott and rambling on annoyingly. That is my personality, though. I guess the true self shines through. I hope everybody listens and loves it!
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Desert Island (TJM)
One of my favorite podcasts, named “Ten Junk Miles,” has a type of episode called “Meet the Nation,” where the host, Scott Kummer, does a short, soft interview of a listener.
I’m on the list! Hooray! I’m nervous, of course. TJM is a very popular podcast among the running community. If i were to embarrass myself, i would be mortified! I might never race again.
J/k!
Can’t faze me! I’m far too vain to give anything up because of an embarrassing situation.
I am having some anxiety about one part of the interview: the desert island.
You’re on a desert island. Stranded. You can have one album, one book, and one movie. I have a lot of options. Too many, actually. At first, I really wanted to impress Scott. This is, of course, a mistake. I can not impress this guy. And why would I waste this opportunity trying? So, I started thinking about obscure answers. And then I came to my senses. I really put myself on an island. I thought, “Do i want to listen to ‘waiting room’ again?” I do not. Or “Marquee Moon” or “Use Your Illusion volume 1 or 2.” Not on a desert island.
Some of my coworkers and I were discussing this topic, and they brought up taking the longest of everything. “War and Peace,” “Gandhi,” like that. I disagree. I feel like simple, entertaining movies will be the best bet. I mean, “Gettysburg” is a great film and 4 and a half hours long, but can you really watch it and enjoy it more than “Glory”? More than “Predator 2”?
Also, I love my coworkers, but no way any of them read “War and Peace”. But longer isn’t better, or more entertaining. “The Old Man and the Sea” is less than 200 pages, for goodness sake!
I feel like i might have my answers ready. I feel ready- ish. I’m determined to have fun with it, anyway.
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Another Year
My autopay went through. I’m officially #wwrhd for at least one more year. Hooray! It’s a good thing. I haven’t been blogging much, true. There’s a gap. I don’t mind it, and I don’t think any readers of my blog would really mind it either.
The autopay (it kept autocorrecting as autopsy 😂) came out on Thanksgiving. Kismet? Karma? Who can say? But I will put down a bit about what I’m thankful for.
This year, near the end of 2024, I am thankful for quite a few things…
I’m thankful for good friends. Great friends, really, considering how standoffish I can be. And also my personality, lol.
I’m thankful for my family. My mom, my brothers, they’re always there, no matter what.
Of course, I’m most thankful for Sydney, my sweetheart, my h.b.i.c. She’s the one for me. And I’m for her. We pretzel. 5eva.
So be thankful, and count your blessings!
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5000 meters
So, after 17 weeks, I completed the Garmin Connect 5k training plan. My “A” race, the Gobbler Grind 5k 10k & Half marathon put on by the runners edge race company, went really well. I felt great and performed beyond what the training plan predicted.
The garmin Connect phone app works with the garmin smart watch. Workouts are sent to the watch, and supposedly, they use feedback from workouts to customize the training. I didn’t notice anything like that. I enjoyed having a workout right there on the watch.
After the slam, while helping Sydney train for her 100-mile race, I decided to try a fast 5k. You know, just to train for something. My personal best time for that distance, according to athlinks, is a little over 18 minutes. Forget that! I was hoping (secretly) to get somewhere in the 20th minute. The training plan only went down to 22 minutes. That’s pretty close and very fast. So that’s where I set the training goal.
17 weeks is a long training block. For comparison, most intermediate to advanced marathon training plans are 12-16 weeks. So I’m training for a little longer than a long marathon training plan to run about an eighth of the distance. But I’m a slow old guy, so it makes sense.
On November 9th, I ran the Veteran’s Day 5k in Parkville in 22:39 seconds. That was fast enough to win the men’s master’s division. I almost ended the training there. I was encouraged by Sydney and the training plan to finish with the goal race. I felt like i should at least try for my secret target time. And two weeks is plenty of time to cram some good training in.
Throughout training, I had been skipping some key workouts. Hill repeats, spring intervals, tempo runs… all the workouts designed to improve overall speed. I really didn’t deserve the good results. I was really hitting the strength training. I was doing really well with the nutrition. Maybe if I had made up those workouts, I would have hit the 20-minute mark.
Gobbler Grind is a very popular race. The route winds through corporate woods business park and the surrounding neighborhoods. The runners edge doesn’t offer very many races throughout the year, but what they do offer is usually very well run. This event was great, overall, but there were some issues.
The start/finish area was in a different spot than usual. That isn’t a big deal. Unfortunately, because of the placement, fast 5k finishers were crossing the route of the half marathon. Seemed pretty dangerous, yet hilarious as long as nobody got hurt.
There were the usual race sponsors at the finish line festival. A massage place, supplement superstore, fleet feet shoe store. There was also a food tent, offering great breakfast food for sale. I’ve got no problem with people selling food, but i didn’t know about it until I got there. I would have brought some money. Lucky for me, Sydney is okay with being a sugar momma sometimes and hooked me up with some breakfast tacos. They were delicious and totally worth the cost.
We tried looking up my results after I finished so I could avoid standing in line at the results table. With a big race like this, even my p.r. isn’t enough for any awards. I don’t mind. It’s neat to win, but I’m racing the clock. Anyways, the results weren’t showing online, so I stood in line. Just to see. Sydney had a feeling I probably won something. I did. I finished in 21:20, which won 2nd in my age group! I was a little off from my secret goal of 20:xx. I was way ahead of the training goal of 22:xx. I had a lot of fun training and running. So I feel like a winner.
Happy Thanksgiving!
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Just Another Thursday
Thursdays are busy. On Thursdays, we run with “The Ducks,” a group of (mostly) women that run 4 miles and drink coffee. They’re a good group and it’s a lot of fun. Except for the past several weeks, I’ve been on this 5k training plan. The plan has me doing a big speed workout on Thursdays. Now, I could run twice. I’ve got the time, and the stamina. Usually, though, I just bag the workout and run with the girls. I call it amateur privilege. Running isn’t my job. It’s not like it’s something I have to do. The little victory at the Veterans day 5k over the weekend had me inspired. So today i did the door work. Fast run intervals. I did less than great. I was down about it until I got to the coffee place. I ordered through the app so my coffee was ready when I got there. Syd was surprised because I ordered a sweet peppermint style drink instead of my usual hot dark black coffee. What can I say? I wanted a treat today. I deserve a sweet every now and then.
Syd surprised me by cleaning and decorating the house last night. The place looks amazing! On top of that, I have the day to do pretty much whatever. I walked the dog, crocheted a turkey coaster, baked some fish sticks, and watched a movie for No Shave November (Joe Dirt. It’s not as funny as it should be, but there are parts.) Did a strength workout and still had plenty of time before work. So I decided to blog a little bit, and here we are.
What i could have done: laundry, put away more of the things from when I moved in, washed my car, called my mother, watched 2 movies for No Shave November, ran a second time, hooked up and used my Playstation, shopped for Christmas, shopped for birthdays, planned the menu for Thanksgiving, read a book, registered for races, written thank you notes to pacers and crew.
Oh, well. I can’t do it all. And resting is important!
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Developing Toughness
Today is day 7 of No Shave November. My face…itches. except it’s not really an itch, but rather a desire. A desire to scrape the stubble off. There is discomfort, to be sure. Sometimes, I try to distract myself. Other times, I lean in. The feeling comes and goes. Former smokers probably understand. Ultrarunners get it. The fact that nothing lasts forever. That discomfort passes. You adapt.
Sometimes, when i bathe, I get in the shower before I turn the water on. That initial blast of cold water isn’t even that cold. It’s the fortitude it takes to turn that water on knowing full well what’s coming. Uncomfortably cold water is going to hit me full on, and there’s nowhere to hide. The thing is, once the water warms up it’s almost too hot. I’ve gotten used to the cold water. Sometimes the cold water feels really good. I guess I’m just a weirdo. I also park on the end where nobody can park next to me, so… grain of salt.
It’s difficult to find the mustache movies i want to watch on streaming. I guess they’re just too valuable. Yesterday, I watched the misfits with Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe. Honestly, I only watched about 40 minutes of it. I had to work, and I’m glad I did. Seeing a tired old has been trying to “make it” with the model of classic beauty was a struggle to be sure.
I thought surely Flash Gordon would be streaming somewhere. But no. I guess I’ll miss a day (at least!) of mustache films. Boo!
I guess I’ll take this disappointment and use it to push through a tough training day. Like all disappointments and discouragement. Like coach Bennett says: this is about running. This is not about running.
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Election Day 2024
It’s election day!
I to the really love an election day. I’m not anybody. I’m just a regular joe lunchbox, toiling away week after week, chasing that paper. every so often, however, like he- man says, “I HAVE THE POWER!!!”
So I dig it even if it’s a little bit of a hassle. At the moment, I’m living in Kansas. I’m still registered in Missouri, though. So I voted in Missouri. I showed up early, so there wasn’t much of a line, and it was much shorter when I finished. There were some refreshments offered. Everyone was very nice. Occasionally, there would be “first-time voter!” shouted across the room, and everyone would clap. It was very exciting. I took two “I voted” stickers for an Instagram post. It’s a mod to ask old joke about voting in Missouri. I’m missouri we vote early and often. Wink.
Later I took my girlfriend Sydney’s son Noah to vote in Kansas. It was a little different vibe. As we walked in a pool worker asked if I had voted. I told her yes, but I’m Missouri. Now I’m going to cast my Kansas vote. We had a nice chuckle.
I don’t talk about who i voted for or how i voted. That’s private. I won’t ask, either. I don’t nag about people not voting. For a long time, I wouldn’t vote. I thought it didn’t matter. I’m still not sure, but I like the stickers.
I couldn’t watch Shaft or kill Bill vol.2 on streaming. So i watched blacula and office space. Haven’t decided about tomorrow yet. Maybe born on the 4th of July, in celebration of Veterans Day.
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W.W.R.H.D. 