Prairie Fire Wichita Marathon Report

My 20th marathon is in the books.  Sunday I ran the Wichita Prairie Fire Marathon.  I'm pleased to say this turned out to be one of my good performances despite not setting any personal records.  

Before I talk about the race, let me first mention the PF Expo the day before.  I was scheduled to work the last couple hours of the expo in the RunWichita running club's booth.  Before that however, I got to meetup with running bloggers Jim (50 after 40) and Michael (Slowly Tri-ing) who were in town from Missouri to tackle the full and half marathons respectively.  I had met Jim before at the Austin marathon in 2011, but this was my first time getting to meet his wife.  Michael was a bit under the weatherly, but we had a great conversion for probably 20 to 30 minutes about all things running.

Blogger Meet up with Jim and Michael at the Prairie Fire Expo. 

As we were saying our goodbyes, the PF race director walk by and asked me if I'd do an interview for the local news.  I spent about 10 minutes in front of the camera, and thankfully he did lots of nice editing so that when it appeared on the ten o'clock news, I sounded halfway intelligent.

Screen shot of my 2 minutes of (local) fame.  Don't try and press 'play' it's only a picture.

Now, on to the race.

My mindset heading in was to shoot for a 3:30 (8:00 pace) if everything was perfect.  If not, I felt setting a new PR was still in the cards, I just needed to maintain an 8:10 average pace, which my long runs told me was possible.  With the injuries I've had this year, my mileage base was low.  I have literally done one 16 mile, one 17 mile, one 18 mile, and one 20 mile run all year, so I wasn't sure how I would handle the last 10k of the marathon.  With that in mind, my 'C' goal was to average about an 8:20 pace, or finish sub 3:40.

My pace wasn't all I was thinking about.  I had a marathon fail last year when I focused too much on pace when there were early warning signs pointing to it being too fast, I mostly ignored them and I paid the price.  Since then I've dedicated myself to paying attention to my heart rate and not allowing it to go over certain levels.

This time around, my marathon would be based off of my heart rate.  For the first half dozen miles, I planned on a HR around 165 bpm.  For miles 7 - 12, I was prepared for my HR to gradually increase up into the low 170s, and make sure it stayed under 175.  For miles 13 - 20, I was hoping to keep HR between 175 and 180.  If I hit 181 before mile 20, it would be time to slow down.  If those heart rates sound high to you, it might help to know that my max heart rate is over 200, and my lactate threshold heart rate was tested to be 183 over the Summer.  By mile 20, it should be pretty obvious how my race is shaping up, and I can go back to running by feel for the last 10k.

Here is my Wichita Prairie Fire Marathon 2012 race breakdown, courtesy of Garmin:

Split	Time	Distance	Elevation Gain	Elevation Loss	Avg Pace	Avg HR	Max HR
1	08:18.2	1.00	39	0	8:18	159	168
2	08:12.5	1.00	0	47	8:12	165	170
3	08:20.1	1.00	14	14	8:20	165	173
4	08:17.9	1.00	50	0	8:18	172	177
5	08:13.8	1.00	6	9	8:14	171	176
6	08:14.6	1.00	17	0	8:15	170	177
7	08:20.2	1.00	0	16	8:20	170	176
8	08:07.5	1.00	0	38	8:07	170	177
9	08:29.4	1.00	49	0	8:29	171	175
10	08:12.8	1.00	16	22	8:13	174	180
11	08:16.7	1.00	52	63	8:17	174	178
12	08:14.5	1.00	55	44	8:14	171	176
13	08:13.2	1.00	54	104	8:13	173	179
14	08:15.3	1.00	33	6	8:15	178	183
15	08:11.2	1.00	0	52	8:11	177	181
16	08:26.3	1.00	46	36	8:26	178	180
17	08:22.0	1.00	16	0	8:22	177	181
18	08:35.0	1.00	14	16	8:35	177	180
19	08:40.5	1.00	43	39	8:40	179	182
20	08:32.9	1.00	74	55	8:33	178	181
21	08:35.8	1.00	0	43	8:36	180	184
22	08:24.1	1.00	39	32	8:24	181	185
23	08:27.8	1.00	69	27	8:28	183	186
24	08:37.7	1.00	32	41	8:38	183	186
25	08:56.3	1.00	33	47	8:56	183	186
26	08:26.0	1.00	25	0	8:26	185	190
27	01:44.7	0.22	0	30	7:55	193	197
Summary	3:39:46.6	26.22	777	782	8:23	175	197

If you take the time to go over my splits above, you'll notice that I ran a pretty controlled race with my heart rates slowly increasing, and my paces staying fairly consistent as the wind or inclines would allow.

Speaking of wind.  That was the main enemy of this race.  The official wind data reports showed 12.3 mph average wind speeds with sustained winds at 23 mph, and maximum gusts of 31 mph.  That coupled with 58º starting temps, and finishing temps in the mid 60s with sunny skies.  It seemed no matter which direction we ran there was a headwind.  Of course there were some tailwinds to help out including most of the last two or three miles, but the damage was already done.

My official chip time was 3:39:46.  I missed my first two goals, but scored on my third.  When all the above factors are combined with finishing only 5 minutes over my PR, I felt really good about this race.  I'm honestly not sure what I could have done differently that would have given me a faster time.   This might have been my smartest marathon to date.  Compared to the rest of the field, only 13.4% of the runners finished ahead of me whereas last year that percentage was 0.5% higher.

Marathon Pics:

Rate My Ensemble:  Ladies, Fashion Police (and queer eyes for straight guys), do I get extra points
for successfully coordinating different brands of blue shorts and shirt while having an exact color
match?  Or do I look like a box of pastel chalk threw up all over me? 

High five for my 8 year old who's now inspired to run a half marathon.  Is my hair on fire?

Crossing the finish line in 3:39:46 chip time.

Finisher shirt.  Check.  Finisher medal.  Check.  Time to find the beer garden.

It's really hard to smile looking into the sun.  My wife and kids come out to support me at all my marathons.
Note: Wife behind camera.  She's a great race photographer.

My 4 year old daughter had a long morning.  She fell asleep on the car ride home.  But that doesn't stop us
from taking her picture when she pouts.

Update:  If you would like to read more about the race itself and less about me, visit my next post where I review the Prairie Fire Marathon.

My Quarterly Report, Not That I Can Be Described In 3 Months

This has been one of my worst years as a runner. I wasn't able to run the first two months of the year (hip flexor), then I spent another month on the disabled list around August (shin).  In between, I've been trying to get back to a semblance of the runner I was last year.  I think those circumstances (subconsciously) led my posts to be more "public service announcement" in nature (ie. Coaching, Stress Reactions, Food).  Well, lucky you, now you get to read about some of my running exploits which have little to no bearing on your well being.

Periosteal Reaction

A couple posts ago I mentioned my right shin suffered a stress reaction (periosteal reaction).  The doctor told me to stop running for two weeks.  The update on that is, 2 weeks turned into a month.  It was probably prolonged because I kept cross training, but I tried to be careful and now the injury appears to be in my rear view mirror.  If the reaction had turned into a fracture, I would have been sidelined a minimum of 8 weeks.

Five minute mile on the AlterG.

While rehabbing my shin, I employed my coach's AlterG treadmill two to three times per week.  I set my body weight for 70% and I was able to run pain free.  I even did a couple 20 mile long runs on the AlterG.  To try and make up for my lighter weight, I set it for faster speeds than normal and got my heart rate into the Lactate Threshold zone.  I probably paid for half of my coach's mortgage payment that month.

I bring joy to some when
they see me coming.

I bring joy to others when
they see me going.

I've got plenty of dri-fit shirts to run in, but a lot of them are a solid color with no logos or "flair".  I like to express myself a little when I'm out running, and plain shirts just aren't cutting it. I decided awhile ago that I wanted a shirt for my blog, and so it was just a matter of time before I got around to designing a Limited Edition, 2 Slow 4 Boston shirt, and finding a company to make it.  I spent a lot of time trying to get the graphics right for the printer, and I'm pretty happy with the results.

Can I say I ordered shirts in
 three different colors if those
 colors are Black, White, and Grey?
The answer is not black and white.

Club logo used with
permission from me :-)

Last month I was elected President of the local running club sporting about 300 members. Most runners in the area use our club's website for the race calender and race results.  I think when it came time for presidential nominees to step forward, everyone else on the council took two steps back, leaving me unchallenged (and unsuspecting).  I'm tempted to embed a "Hail To The Chief" mp3 in my blog for your listening enjoyment, but I'll spare you, for now. This will probably be one of those jobs with all the responsibilities and none of the power or appreciation to go along with it.

My first marathon since last December, the Wichita Prairie Fire marathon, is now less than 2 weeks away. While dealing with my shin, I was only able to run 53 non-AlterG miles in the month of August. Come September, I felt out of shape. But then I ran a 55 mile week pain free followed by a 58 mile week, including my first non-AlterG-aided 20 mile long run of the year. My latest long run was 18 miles with a pace that equaled my marathon PR. I'm still not in as good of (marathon) shape as last year, but now I have some confidence and potential for a good race.


Surprisingly, I haven't talked about or promoted the Running Blog Database at all since I created it earlier in the year. Now it's time to mention it again. Most of my readers might not even notice it's tab sitting innocuously in 2nd place on my home page, or the big blue logo on my sidebar. Over the Summer I redid the RBD color scheme, and tried to make the layout a little more appealing. Every week another blogger or two adds their blog to the RBD.  It now contains about 749 blogs. Last month the Database page had over 150 views with a lot of those coming from other blogs who displayed the logo in their sidebar and linked to it. Thanks to all my blogging buddies who are helping to send traffic this way. Please check out the RBD if you haven't visited in awhile, make sure your blog is in there and up-to-date, and please consider linking to it on your sidebar if you're looking to add some "flair" (Office Space style) while promoting other Running Blogs to the general community.

Potato Chips: My Health Food

Potato Chips.  Call them what you want:  Junk food, snack food, gut busters, or grease in a bag.  I don't think I've ever heard them promoted as a healthy choice.  As a runner, my goal is to eat as healthy as possible while shooting for a low percentage of body fat.  In the mean time, work, family, and running often leave little time for proper nutrition.  So I need to make some compromises, or at least find convenient ways to eat well.  I have other goals as a runner too, but having Kara Goucher as my personal trainer, is beyond the scope of this article.

Before I elaborate on how Potato Chips can actually be healthy, let me first offer the disclaimer that I am not a dietitian, and as with any food, all things need to be consumed in moderation (Even water can kill you by way of hyponatremia).  In other words, don't flame on me too much if you find holes/fat in my assertion. I also might leave out a few details since I'm going to avoid writing a complete dissertation on the subject.

Now, on to my supporting arguments.  As most of you know, people, and especially runners need to consume about 60-70% of their calories in the form of carbohydrates, preferably complex carbohydrates.   So what foods qualify?  You can take your pick from rice, pasta, beans, fruits, and vegetables.  One of the veggies packed with complex carbs is the potato, and that of course is the main ingredient in potato chips.

Is it considered cheating if Mr. Potato Head
eats another potato besides Mrs. Potato Head?

I admit, just because potato chips are made from potatoes doesn't make them healthy since you could add all sorts of crap to a potato to make it full of fat.  Take a baked potato for instance, which is thought to be a healthy choice.  I see a lot of people loading theirs up with sour cream or butter, not to mention other savory but unhealthy toppings.  In the case of most potato chips, the manufacturers add lots of fatty oil by virtue of deep frying.  The fat you really want to stay away from is the trans saturated fat.  I found a potato chip that avoids the deep fryer and therefore most of the fat that would go along with it.


A few years back, I was browsing the nutrition labels at the supermarket as I do on occasion when I came across Baked Lays potato chips.  To my surprise, I had trouble figuring out how I could go wrong if I included them as part of my diet.  Ever since, I've kept a bag or two at work to snack on or to supplement my lunch.  Let's take a look at the back of a bag of Baked Lays chips.

Baked Lays Potato Chip Bag

My picture isn't the greatest, but here's some of the highlights.  There are 120 calories per 1 ounce serving, and only 20 of those come from fat, no trans fat.  Sodium is a modest 135mg, while sugars are limited to 2g.  Having only 2g of protein isn't anything to get excited about, but it's better than nothing.  (It mentions there are about 15 chips per ounce)

I never eat directly from the bag.  I make a habit of measuring out 1 to 2 servings so that I don't lose track of how many chips I've eaten.  This keeps me from over indulging.

Another thing to read are the ingredients.  One rule of thumb I tend to go by is the fewer the ingredients, the healthier or more natural a product.  There are only 7 ingredients in Baked Lays, and just the fact that I can pronounce them all, and that they are all 2 syllables or less (besides the potatoes) tells me that it doesn't have unwanted chemicals or artificial additives.  Actually they tell you as much on the bag (see to

Baked Lays Potato Chip bag

the left).

For comparison, a bag of regular Lays potato chips, which are fried, contain 70 more fat calories per 1 ounce serving, and 35 more mg of sodium than their baked brothers.

I don't mean to promote Frito-Lay specifically, and they aren't giving me any incentive to.  Likewise, I'm sure there are plenty of other comparable baked potato chips out there.  I'm just trying to pass on some wisdom from personal experience.










So in summary:

• All things in moderation
• People/runners need lots of complex carbs.
• Potato chips = complex carbs
• Baking potato chips instead of frying them saves you from a lot of extra fat.
• I could be full of used canola oil, but I don't think so.
• This article is a feeble attempt of a non-cook to keep up with all the running blogs out there who post pictures of all their gourmet runner meals.

Next time you're in the grocery store or Subway and you walk by the Baked Lays potato chips, think of me.

Run Disney World

First let me say I didn't mean to take the whole Summer off from Blogging. It just kinda happened. (I got that excuse from Kristen Stewart) Ahem.  I would like to give a shout out to On the Right Track for being the only blogger to get in touch with me during that time to ask where I've been.  Glad that someone kinda missed me.  I guess my main excuse is I've dedicated a lot more time lately to my kids and other family activities starting with a one week trip to Disney World in June, which will be the topic of the day.  Despite following the kid's schedule while we were there, I still got in some runs around the resort area while everyone else slept in.

I'd like to know of anyone who was able to stick with their normal daily training schedule while on family vacation at Disney, cause for me, I had to dig down deep to do a fraction of my usual mileage.  The day after arriving in Florida, we spent 13 hours walking around the Magic Kingdom.  Needless to say, a 10 miler the next morning was not in my cards (try 2.3 miles).  We stayed at the Disney All-Star Movies resort. From reading online, I knew they had a jogging path set aside. I envisioned running along a scenic trail, through trees with views of the Disney Parks and moderate to cool morning temps. Instead what I got was a sidewalk running along the access road with a few trees and a lot of humidity.  Despite that letdown, it was great to have a change in scenery.

Let's get right to the pics.  What you probably notice first in the pic to the left is that my head is bigger than the traffic signs. I promise that is just an illusion, but after you get past that hopefully you can make out the names of all the Disney Parks which I put a lot of forethought into capturing in the picture.  And if you were there with me in person, you might smell a sausage egg biscuit from McDonalds on my breath since there is a McDees off to the right of this photo.  It was a nice deviation from resort food, even if I stopped to eat it mid run.  Also notice the bus in the background.  We rode the buses everywhere.  Disney has their own fleet of them.  I heard they have over 350 buses.  Whatever the case, I counted the buses once while running, and one out of every seven vehicles to drive by was a Disney bus.

Darth Vader came with the meal.  It was my duty to take a bite out of
the dark side of the force.

As I predicted, I ate like crap on this trip.  Lots of pop.  Desert with every meal.  Fried food.  Over-sized portions.  The ironic thing is, when I weighed myself after coming back home, I was only a pound or two heavier.  I guess that's testament that being on your feet all day and keeping up with little kids can really burn the calories.

The highly reflective sign to the resort we stayed at.

Back to the running...  I was scheduled for 38 taper miles that week, but consider myself going the extra mile to manage just 21 miles including an 8-miler.  The sidewalk running along the All-Star hotels was about a mile long.  By crossing a busy intersection, I was able to continue on another sidewalk for another mile before it stopped, and I had to turn around.

Patience pays off finding Disney dri-fit shirts after a week on the prowl.

I was one picky souvenir shopper.  I knew before stepping one foot in the many gift shops that I wanted a Disney dri-fit running shirt.  Day after day, park after park, shop after shop, I looked but left empty handed.  None of the employees had even seen them around Disney.  However, the day we left for home we visited Downtown Disney, and in the Team Disney store, there was a small selection of Disney dri-fit shirts. I got the "In Training" shirt shown here.


As most everyone knows, Disney has a marathon.  One day I shall return to complete it because those finisher medals are simply kick-ass.


I will leave you with a few more stills from our trip.

This is not a picture of my daughter having fun.
This is a picture of her getting her picture taken
in front of Cinderella's Castle whether she
 likes it or not.

I've got my own idea for a welcome sign.  "Let the Money Disappear!"