"Bomb Cyclone" Freezes out Weekend Races!

Before last week I had never heard the term "bomb cyclone" - and suspect it was newly minted to describe the seemingly never ending deep freeze that's settled in - and won't leave!  As I write that (Monday morning), the temperature has just inched above 20 degrees.  It's been a long time since the thermometer has gotten that high.

Last week the brutal cold led to the cancellation of most local road races.  The NYRR kicked it off on Thursday night with the cancellation the Kleinerman 10K (Saturday).  The next day the Boston Buildup 10K (Sunday) was postponed until next weekend.  The same day (Friday) the MHRRC announced its cancellation of the "Recover from the Holidays" FA 50K (Saturday).  And, to complete the picture, on Saturday NYCRUNS cancelled the Hot Cocoa 5 Miler (Sunday).  Intended or not, the bomb cyclone wiped out 4 races this chilly weekend!

As for just plain running mileage - I managed to log a solid 50 miles for the first week of 2018 - in those ridiculously frigid conditions.  I hate to admit it, but by yesterday a run in 7 degrees was old news.  It was almost "easy" relative to the previous string single digit runs - because the wind had died down enough that the "real feel" was actually 7 degrees, instead of the sub-zero wind chills of all the previous miles!

In any event, I'm so over winter right now!  Hopefully the days of double digit temperature aren't too far off - haha!

one snowstorm knocks out two weekend races :(

saturday's snowstorm - the first of the season - turned the manhattan half marathon into a fun run and resulted in a postponement of the boston build-up 15k until next weekend.    given that we had more than 30 inches of snow by this point last winter, i've got no complaints about the weather - especially when we had only a few inches of snow when it was all said and done  (and we got a qualifying credit for the manhattan half).

but from a mileage perspective, it was tough to make up the 13 miles on saturday.  i only managed nine - broken into two 4.5 mile runs.  the first was during the storm itself, and running through 2-3 inches of freshly fallen snow was fun.  the second 4.5, after the snow had stopped, wasn't much fun because now there was 4+ inches on the ground and forward motion across it was work!  add to it shoveling snow - twice - and i got some solid cross training in yesterday :D

this morning i got in 6.5 miles - on the same route, but with the snow cleared.  that was a totally different experience.  it was just as cold (maybe colder), but the effort was noticeable easier.  i'll head back out for a second run later this afternoon for another 6.5 - which should give me 22 training miles for the weekend - instead of the 22.4 race miles.  while it wasn't what i'd planned - it's all good :D

then it's time to sit back an watch the giants play san francisco :O

back to winter running tights, winter has arrived :O

yesterday, to again mark an irreverent milestone, i reluctantly put on my running tights for a training run.  for me it's the psychological threshold that admits another winter has finally arrived.  it was a personal record because i can't remember having ever postponed that day of reckoning until january - or even the official start of winter for that matter.  last year i caved in to the cold weather on december 14 - and that was a week longer than the year before.  so to have stuck it out for an extra 3 weeks this time around, well past the official start of winter on december 22, is definitely a morale booster :D

even so, with the two day cold spell about to break - i may still get a little more mileage out of my running shorts over the next few days :O

2011 westport summer series, 8.44 miles: race photos and results

it's been a while since i've been to burying hill beach - years, actually.  the westort summer series 8.44 miler starts and finishes there, with a few decent climbs tossed in the mostly loop course.  aside from some lingering humidity, we had some decent weather. 

i didn't have a time goal in mind.  instead i wanted to get in as many 7:30/7:35 miles as i could.  that plan worked well for the first 5-6 miles, but i slowed down enough over the final 2.5 miles to bring my average up to 7:40 for the full distance.  i finished with a 1:04:40 - which i'll take, under the circumstances :D

here are the race results.

another bout with snow... it's becoming an unpleasant habit :(

another snowstorm, another snowday... and more unplanned cross training with my snow shovel! these are the days (apologies to natalie merchant) :O

the news that nyc set a record for january snowfall (30+ inches - so far) with this most recent snowfall is hardly surprising. since the december blizzard it seems like we've been on the receiving end of snow storm at least once a week. have i mentioned that winter is my least favorite season?!

all this before february - which is typically our snowiest (dig that word) month. plenty more dates with the snow shovel still loom on the calendar. is snow exhaustion a recognized ailment? at this point i'm completely used to the drill (delayed school openings, metronorth switching over to a saturday schedule midweek, digging out the cars - with no visible road to drive on).

my problem is a bit more practical - with all this snow and the continued deep freeze - there's no place left to put the new stuff!! i found myself in the strange position of adding the new snow to the all too familiar piles of still unmelted old snow - creating heroic looking dirty white mountains in the process. i've reached the point where, without any appreciable melting in the near future, i'm going to have to shovel the shoveled snow to a new location to make room for the soon to arrive next wave - argh!!

apologies for the rant. i've succumbed to snow exhaustion (and january isn't even done yet)!

a post-christmas blizzard visits :O

thankfully, the snow arrived the day after christmas! where it came from is something of a mystery for me because i don't remember hearing anything about a huge snow storm on the weekend horizon. given the heads up, i got in an easy 10 miler on sunday morning and the snow flurries arrived just after i got back home. if the snow fall was as predicted, that would be my last run for a day or so.

as forecast, by mid-afternoon it was falling fast - and accumulating. the most interesting news of the day (aside from the typical weather related items that accompany these events) was the rescheduling of the philadelphia eagles game from sunday night to tuesday. that prompted an angry newspaper reporter's outburst that called us a "nation of wimps!" now, that's an attention getter! i'm not in the business of defending the nfl. but i think it had more to do with fan safety (as in getting to and from the stadium during a blizzard) than on-field concerns about the players! anyway, once the giants continued their embarrassing slide into oblivion with another humiliating loss sunday afternoon, my football season was put to bed :(

getting back to the real business - snow: i woke up early monday morning (after a night of listening to the wind howl outside like a non-stop locomotive) to confront a foot and a half of snow that blanketed my front porch and driveway. i spent the better part of an hour digging out of that mess - and still hadn't touched our cars (not that we had any intention of driving anywhere that morning)! so i took a shoveling break and went back inside to warm up. in what turned into a marathon session on t.v. - the travel channel had anthony bourdain's "no reservation" queued up for the entire day!

after a couple of episodes of "no reservations" i went back outside and completed the job. not only did i knock off the cars, but i managed to tunnel my way to the backyard and shovel the deck as well. that second session of shoveling was enough cross training for the day. while i toyed with the idea of putting on my trail shoes and making an effort to log a few slushy miles (especially when the sun made an appearance in the early afternoon) - i was too caught up in bourdain's newest travelogue to drag myself back outside. so with a fridge full of leftovers - and some unfinished bottles of wine, i happily joined that erstwhile nation of wimps in front of the t.v., warm and totally sheltered from the howling wind outside :O

today, back in the office, after a somewhat icy drive to the station (where metronorth is running on a saturday schedule - hey, don't they know it's tuesday!) it's back to the grind. and i'm actually looking forward to putting on those trail shoes for a few slush-filled miles when i get home!

the return of tights - or, confronting an early winter :(

i finally put on tights to go running yesterday - argh. it's not that i have a problem wearing running tights when it's cold out - but, psychologically, putting them on for the first time at the start of a new winter season is tantamount to capitulating to the arrival of COLD - argh again! every day still in shorts is a moral victory. mentally, once the tights are on, going back to shorts before spring is on the horizon is a tough call.

so yesterday's 8.5 miles was nothing special in the way of training - but a bittersweet milestone that winter has arrived very early this year. on the other hand, while i don't remember it as an especially cold winter, i did switch over to tights around thanksgiving last year! pushing it back to mid-december, by comparison, is a big improvement this time around.

on the topic of winter running, i also wore mittens over my gloves yesterday. in extreme cold weather (especially in windy conditions) i always use a base glove together with a mitten. the double pair keeps my hands comfortably warm (the one downside is having to deal w/the ipod). given the line layer of snow that covered the post road, i also wore an old pair of trail shoes to improve my footing.

yes, cold weather running has finally arrived - brrr :(

wash-out of a race weekend :(

this weekend was a racing disappoint since i didn't run the roxbury marathon yesterday, nor did i line up for the pete mcardle xc 15k in van cortlandt park this morning. cold weather (my car was frosted over when i woke up saturday) and the long drive (1.5 hours there, longer on the way home) turned me off to the prospect of that road trip. i figured i'd make up for it w/the 15k in van cortlandt park this morning.

instead, i woke up to torrential rain and some heavy winds. i actually ran the pete mcardle 15k in those conditions - in 2008. so i wasn't up for repeating that mud fest. i ran 15.5 miles on saturday, another 8.5 miles today. the 24 miles was 11 fewer miles than 35.5 miles i would have logged with the marathon/15k combination. argh!

oh well, not going to dwell on it. hopefully this will be a more productive running week/weekend - albeit significantly colder... brrr....

other weather-related news: the giants had their game against minnesota postponed because (a) they were unable to fly into minnesota because of a snowstorm and (b), the metrodome's dome collapsed under the weigh of snow! the game was rescheduled for tomorrow night - in detroit!

tree knocked out our power... but otherwise, just another rainy day :D

yesterday, just after 5:30 the wind knocked over our neighbor's tree and it, in turn, knocked out power to our little block! that was on top of a day of seemingly endless rain and wind... that stretched well into the night. this is a picture i took this morning, when things finally quieted down. there were downed trees all over the neighborhood - and most houses were without power.

i originally thought it might take only a day or two to get the power restored. but i went out for a run this morning (after bagging the trip to rock hill for the celebrate life half marathon) and the landscape was truly bleak. there downed trees and power lines all over! be that as it may, no one was hurt, so things aren't that bad.

hope everyone else survived this intense wind storm!

a midweek snowstorm and a snowman :D

i managed a decent 8 mile run yesterday (1:02:52) in anticipation of today's little snowstorm. for about a foot of snow - i think we got about 12 inches here, but it's still snowing so that may increase a bit - seems like the entire tri-state area came to a standstill! i didn't even try to make into the office this morning.

but i did try running in between bouts of shoveling snow. i only managed 2 miles on the post road and that took way more effort than i imagined (18:43). it was more to get out of the house and escape that snowed in feeling than to log training miles. but the most fun and productive escape from the being snowed in was katie's snowman :D

we haven't had too much snow this winter, as opposed to the seemingly endless stretch of below average temperatures. so despite the repeated shoveling, it wasn't bad. now it remains to be seen how long the snow lingers!

first snowstorm of the season, just ahead of the winter solstice and in time for christmas!

woke up this morning to a blanket of 6+ inches of snow. considering the 10+ inches that fell on the city - and twice that on long island and new jersey - we just got a dusting! still, it took a decent chunk of time to shovel - and another chunk to dig out our cars. so not going to feel too guilty about the huge breakfast i'm about to make in a few minutes.

on the down side, not going to make the holiday 5k in fairfield this morning. too much of a hassle to make the drive in these conditions. very glad that emmy, rob, and i made it up to norfolk for the 10 miler yesterday. we lucked out and didn't catch sight of any snow until the first few flakes found us as when we were practically home!

since most of my running routes are still covered in snow, have to figure out the best way to get in some mileage today. going to lace up my trail shoes and slog through snow later today. but the question is for how many miles? will worry about that after some breakfast :D

an early arctic blast arrives just in time for the weekend

i just can't believe each day this week was colder than the previous one! on the bright side, even though i broke out the running tights monday, last year i wore them by thanksgiving. that was a very early start to a long, cold winter last year. despite the arctic conditions that seem to have settled in this week - january weather in december - the brutal cold will be temporary. in fact, i don't mind the cold - but the wind makes for nasty running conditions.

after work today, i bundled up and went out for an easy 4 miler. the congestion from my head cold is gone, thankfully. the plan is to head up to roxbury tomorrow morning for the marathon. there is a half marathon option, so if i'm not up to the mental challenge of a 4 hour battle with more arctic conditions, i may just drop down to the half marathon distance. will make that decision on the drive up there.

other news: today is katie's first track meet! it's across the bridge, in rockland county. she's running 55 and 300 meters (and probably a team relay as well). i can't wait to hear how it went!

another month kicks off with a snowstorm!!

is it just me, or did january kick off with a snowstorm? not to be left out, february followed suit and did the same. with spring a couple of weeks away - now march joins the club and roars in with something close to a nor'easter!

i just finished digging out of the first wave of snow (6+ wet inches). as my fingers slowly defrost, a second wave is forecast for later this morning - argh! on the plus side, not only does katie have a school day, but my afternoon class was cancelled! still, i have to head into the office later and get some work done this afternoon.

then, tonight i'm really looking forward to the new york city premiere of "beyond the epic run." if weather doesn't keep them in connecticut, emmy and rob will be there too. in fact, nyc area runners should try to attend (it's free, just rsvp in advance).

here is the new york city info from the movie blog:

"Next up is New York[!] The New York screening is 7:30 p.m. Monday, March 2, 2009 at Anthology Film Archives. Doors open at 7 p.m.

All screenings are free and open to the public! Help us spread the word by telling your friends and family. For questions [...] e-mail annie@jenningspr.net."

arctic weather training blues :(

this weather has started to take it's toll on me. day after day of these arctic conditions has made it seem like i'm in jail, stuck in an icebox, actually. right now it's snowing outside and i'm trying to drag myself out for a run. the boston build-up 15k scheduled for this morning was postponed until next weekend. so i have to make up at least 9 miles just to log what i would have done if the race had taken place.

this is the 3rd race postponed, or switched to a fun run, in the last month. our first snowstorm of the season led to the ted corbitt 15k getting switched to a fun run. the very next day, the christmas t(h)ree miler was postponed - the first of two and, ultimately, on the third try, it too was switched to a fun run on new year's day. on the bright side of postponements, i ran the norfolk pub 10 miler (albeit in icebox conditions) for the first time because of bad weather on it's original date!

those bright spots are few and far between. while my january mileage thru yesterday, 125.5, is significantly above december's 100.3 for the same period - it is substantially below last january's 164.3 miles at this time. moreover, at this time last year i had already run one 50k to kick off the year. more fun, however, this week last year i ran my miles in paris (in the rain, but still in the city of lights) - no such luck this time around!

speaking of miles, the other downer is the drop in my daily mileage from a targeted 6-8 per day to a string of less than ideal 4-6 milers. while not totally the weather's fault, a good chunk of the blame is my lack of determination to get in those "extra" couple of miles when the wind chill drops the effective temperature into the single digits. a small silver lining: despite the whining, i've dragged myself outside, regardless of the weather, for a run each the last 26 straight days.

it'll be 27 straight when i stop this current whining, post this entry, bundle up, and drag myself outside this morning (but first comes the snow shovelling)...

thanks for tolerating rant/whine about the winter blues :D

postcript: managed to squeeze in 15 miles over the course of 3 runs.