Obsessed Runner Blog

2012-06-20 - Careful ouit there

Diggin' the heat! As you know, I love extremes, truly the spice of life, give me a humid 95 degree or 10 below zero 3 mile run and I'll trade them for any blah, blah, 50 degree 10 mile run! A short run in extreme conditions is such great bang for the buck, an efficient use of time that leaves us not only wasted, but fulfilled, raising our self esteem and that darn feeling of smug satisfaction we get over the rest of the world that stays inside re-breathing stale heated or cooled air.

All that said ... running in the heat is the most dangerous condition you will face as a runner. Heat kills, take a run in the heat seriously. Run short, run in shade, and run hydrated by more than just water and ideally, finish where you can jump in a lake or stand under a cold hose. Stop and walk if you feel strange.

Run smart,

Randy Step, and obsessed runner who is watching the weather channel and planning for today's run!

2012-04-25 - Down Home

Yo run gang,

 

I enjoy the hype and excitement of the premier events, they give credibility to our sport and allow us to line up with the world's best, a bit behind them maybe but there is something magical about knowing we are toeing the same starting line and racing the same course, cool stuff.


 

That said, rounding it out by entering the small, down home, grass roots events seems ... Good for the soul. Train alone, train with a partner and balance your year's event calendar with variety, diversification keeps us motivated, excited and gives us back more than the sum of its parts.

A couple great down home event choices coming up fast are:
  • This Saturday, the Live Like Andi, 5k, 10k, and 10 Mile run/walk in Novi. A flat, fast road course and a great cause. Check out livelikeandi.org/run-2012.html.

  • This Sunday, the Road Ends 5 Mile Trail Race in Pinckney Recreation Area is a rugged single track run/hike in South East Michigan wilderness. Enter at trailmarathon.com or at Running Fit Ann Arbor- West (5700 Jackson Rd, Ann Arbor) on Friday from 3-7 pm. There is no race day registration.

  • Next Wednesday evening, May 2nd, The Fit 5K (7:05 PM) and Kids race and One Mile (6:30 PM) takes place from Running Fit Novi. A mid week, evening, old school road race/walk that has been going on for over 20 years. Don't train, don't be nervous, just come enjoy a casual evening run or walk raising funds for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Enter at runfit5k.com or at the store after 4 PM Wednesday May 2nd.

  • May 19, in South Lyon, The Book'n Trilogy, 10K run, 5K run/walk and Kids Storytime Challenge, to benefit the library. Enter at ssldl.info/bookntrilogy/

Run, run, run, run, run, walk,

Randy Step, an admitted obsessed runner who is looking forward to lining up at a starting line with you!

PS: Another Awesome Volunteer Opportunity! The Trail Races - April 27, 28 

Join us at the Start/Finish area, in the woods or in the store for pre-registration on the 26th.
Volunteer Registration and the details here - Volunteer now!

1987 Ultimate Runner Contest

I was recently having a one up conversation with some obsessed runners. Stuff like, Ive ran forty something marathons, Ive ran the Ironman in Kona twice, Ive ran the Western States 100 mile you get the picture. I was kind of feeling like, yeah, I hang around with obsessed runners that have done such amazing feats, it would be hard to impress them and a thought came to me a long forgotten event, (I really did forget about this). I got everyones attention and said, I once ran 35:16 for 10k, a mile in 5:05 and a marathon in 3:14. I got a lot of So what looks. Not bad times but no great shakes, until I said, I did that all on the same day.

Just as the Ironman Triathlon came from a one up conversation in a bar by 3 athletes discussing what was a greater achievement, the 2.4 mile Waikiki rough water swim, the around Owahoo 112 mile bike race or the Honolulu Marathon, when the idea to do them all back to back came up and the triathlon was born!

A few years later in a bar in Jackson, Michigan (Im not sure of this story but its close), the question of which of the Olympic glory running events got the most media hype. The conversation was followed by the idea to run them all back to back on the same day to see what kind of media hype that would bring and The Ultimate Runner contest was born Unfortunately it died a short time later and never caught on. But there I was on the starting line in 1987, hoping I would be a part of history (I ran the 4th and 5th Ironman in Kona and wished Id been there for the first). So that morning I ran 10km, then headed to the track to run the 100 meters, 400 meters, then the mile, all before heading back out on the road to run the marathon. Another thought, I guess this was my first ultra! 33.45 miles! Another thought, I averaged under 7 minute pace!

I was 31 and in my running prime. I was actually voted Michigan runner of the year in 1987 but not for this silliness. My Ultimate Runner times follow.

10km 35:16
400 m 65.5
100 m 14.7 (Quite embarrassing, I almost fell on my face out of the blocks!)
Mile 5:04
Marathon 3:14:39, it was a long day

Go ahead, one up me, I love this stuff!

Randy Step, still obsessed, after all these years

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