NCAA College Football Pick 'Em - Week 1

Each week, I'll put together five top national games, five top Texas games and five top games from me.

Fair warning, though, that my five top games will more than likely always include Penn State (where I'm from) and Liberty (where my daughter goes to college).

With that disclaimer, here are this week's games and my picks:

NATIONAL TOP 5
(Sat.) - #5 Georgia at #8 Clemson - GEORGIA
(Sat.) - #12 LSU at #20 TCU - LSU
(Sat.) - #19 Boise State at Washington - BOISE STATE
(Mon.) - #11 Florida State at Pittsburgh - FLORIDA STATE
(Sat.) - Mississippi State at #13 Oklahoma State - OKLAHOMA STATE

TEXAS TOP 5
(Fri.) - Texas Tech at SMU - TEXAS TECH
(Sat.) - Rice at #7 Texas A&M - TEXAS A&M
(Sat.) - Idaho at North Texas - NORTH TEXAS
(Sat.) - UTSA at New Mexico - UTSA
(Sat.) - New Mexico State at #15 Texas - TEXAS

JON'S TOP 5
(Thu.) - Liberty at Kent State - KENT STATE
(Sat.) - Penn State at Syracuse - PENN STATE
(Sat.) - Houston Baptist at Sam Houston State - SHSU
(Sat.) - Northern Illinois at Iowa - NORTHERN ILLINOIS
(Sat.) - BYU at Virginia - BYU

Please put your selections -- with your name! -- in the comment section of this post (and not necessarily the Facebook comment area) or send me a regular or Facebook e-mail.

Thanks!  And I hope here goes to having a little fun this college football season!

News and Sentinel Half and Inside The Park Home Run Race Reports

Instead of having two separate race reports, I'll include both the News and Sentinel Half Marathon in Parkersburg, West Virginia from Saturday and the Inside The Park Home Run Race at Cleveland's Progressive Field from Sunday.

As soon as planning started to commence for getting Waverly to Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia to begin school and that her Mom would be driving her up (so that they could visit her family in Tennessee), it was an opportunity for me to prepare a week's vacation that turned out to include many things.

First and foremost, it was to be available for Waverly's transition at Liberty.  Mom provided Waverly with a lot of assistance with things that Moms are just stronger at and I was there to provide support, if needed.

Secondly, I would visit my grandparents in central Pennsylvania.  This was even before the Canada vacation three weeks ago allowed us a chance to slip in and see them.

Then, it was a combination of a couple of things.  I knew that a very good friend of mine, Cassie Mondragon, who is from Parkersburg, West Virginia, was going to be running the News and Sentinel Half Marathon as well as many of her family members.

I've run the race three times, from 2005-2007.  (I'll benchmark times later.)

I also had the chance to string together the opportunity to see six minor league ballparks in six states in seven (7) days.  I could have added a seventh, but Waverly wouldn't have been happy with me - at all.  This trip was really all about her!

Then, while planning on where and what I was going to do between Saturday's race and Sunday afternoon's flight out of Pittsburgh, I spied this brand-new event that included a finish on the field inside of Progressive Field in Cleveland.  "Awesome" was the only thought that I had.  The fact that it was just $20 - made it even better.

I really didn't have an idea of how the News and Sentinel Half Marathon was going to go.  I hadn't paid too close to the weather forecast and the three previous times I had run the race it was hot, humid and hilly.  And, of course, the hilly didn't change.

Before the vacation to Canada, I was getting in my fair share of workouts, but the trip derailed me a little even though Waverly and I covered a lot of ground on foot.  I logged 25 miles the following week and even less this past week.

I took plenty of gear to run all week, but I had absolutely nothing going into Saturday.  Plus the week had been intensive on Mountain Dew, Mallo cups (can only get these in Cracker Barrels in the south - think Reese's cups with marshmallow; they're made in Altoona) and ballpark food.

I left Lynchburg at about 7 a.m., took Mom to Charlottesville, Virginia for her to fly home and then I headed west to Charleston, West Virginia where I took in a West Virginia Power baseball game.  They are the Pittsburgh Pirates' affiliate in the South Atlantic League.

I was scheduled to stay Friday night in Marietta, Ohio, which would allow for me to run the race in Parkersburg and then shower after the race on the way to my activities in Akron on Saturday night.

However, once I arrived in Charleston, I was whipped.  I also noticed that there was a Fairfield Inn just blocks from the ballpark.

I reached out to Cassie to see if I could shower at her parents after the race and I cancelled my reservation in Marietta and booked a stay there.  I checked in and got parts of three hours of sleep before the game.  Very much needed.

My pre-race fuel came in the form of two hot dogs, a pretzel and a soft drink that evening, but I grabbed something on the drive that my stomach could handle.

After parking, stashing my keys in a flower bed (I hate carrying things on the run other than a water bottle) and picking up my packet, I set out to finish Cassie and her family.  (I also don't carry my phone during a race.)  I spent about 30 minutes meandering around the start and when I couldn't spot her, I figured that I would see her on the course.

And sure enough, within the first half mile, I noticed her gait from behind and kindly announced my presence.  We traded information on what our race plans were and they were pretty much the same:  take it easy and see what happens.

Best decision that I've made in a long while and the biggest surprise is that I ran pretty much the entire half marathon - much different than the start-and-stop fest four weeks earlier.

I think it had a little bit to do without oppressive heat and/or humidity, but a lot of it had to do that we were running a pace that we could easily carry on a conversation the bulk of the way.

Longtime readers of this blog (and its predecessor) will know that we had a group called the Houston Running Bloggers - about two dozen of us that had blogs like this one.

I met Cassie on a Thursday evening eight (8) years ago at the HYLA's Tie One On For Charity 5K in downtown Houston.  Three months later, as the Houston Striders - a club we both belonged to - learned that they would host the next year's RRCA National Convention, I decided to travel - with Waverly - and run the News and Sentinel Half.

Cassie didn't run that year, but Waverly stayed with her the entire time (as a 10-year-old).

We ran it together the next year, I believe, and then Cassie had a really good race the following year in 2007 when I ran it.

We caught up on many a subject and Cassie ran into former classmates that she had in high school while she ran.  It really turned out to be a pretty nice race and run for both of us.

If I had been completely time-focused, I would have been disappointed with the 2:27:07 effort, but it was all good - for a multitude of reasons.  Especially since some of my friendships from the Houston Running Bloggers (and the Houston Striders) are ones that are the best and that I've maintained - positively - the longest.

We maintained a pretty even pace the entire way, evidenced by the splits below:

Mile 1 -- 10:16.90
Mile 2 -- 11:11.58
Mile 3 -- 11:19.16
Mile 4 -- 11:17.30
Mile 5 -- 10:41.10
Mile 6 -- 11:21.72
Mile 7 -- 10:55.34
Mile 8 -- 11:03.86
Mile 9 -- 11:01.51
Mile 10 -- 11:03.13
Mile 11 -- 11:19.16
Mile 12 -- 11:29.06
Last 1.1 -- 14:07.33

Mile 11 we both faltered a little and Mile 12 includes the 12th Street hill, which is semi-steep, but it is short -- and you get it all back fairly quick.

We probably lost a minute and a half in the last 1.1 mile, but there were two perfectly good reasons:  1.) I cramped pretty bad in my right hamstring, which was surprising since I hit all but one water station and 2.) Cassie ran over and gave her son, Gabe, a kiss, who lit up with a big smile when he saw his Mom running.  Great stuff!

Looking back at my splits, I'm thinking:  "These are perfectly good marathon splits right now."

So to run 2:27:07 on nothing from the week leading into the race, it gives me hope to work towards a late October marathon perhaps.  (I have another half scheduled in Mansfield, Texas on Saturday, September 14.)

The current ledger for Parkersburg, West Virginia looks like this:

2:41:53 - 8/20/05 - News and Sentinel Half Marathon (Hot and Hilly), Parkersburg, WV - 18
2:32:29 - 8/19/06 - News and Sentinel Half Marathon (Hot and Hilly), Parkersburg, WV - 29
2:24:05 - 8/18/07 - News and Sentinel Half Marathon, Parkersburg, WV - 40
2:27:07 - 8/17/13 - News and Sentinel Half Marathon, Parkersburg, WV - 92

So when I put together the type of trip that I did for this past week, I begin to look and see what can I "fill in" before I have to fly home.  Typically, the first thing that comes the mind is the opportunity to run some place different.

And when you can throw another ballpark in the mix, all the better.

I found - for a great price of $20 - the Inside The Park Home Run Race that started outside of Progressive Field, the home of the Cleveland Indians, and finished inside on the field.  It was put on the Hermes Racing group, a very reputable race production company in the greater Cleveland area.  And, for the most part, they didn't disappoint.

It was pretty easy to find the ballpark in the downtown area (plenty of signage) after driving north from Akron, where I spent the night.  Closest place to park was $3.50 - right next to a permanent "life" parking spot:  the Erie Street Cemetery.

Packet pickup was pretty painless.  A bib (B-tag in play), pins and nice T-shirt and I had plenty of time to walk around and inside the ballpark to capture a bunch of pictures for the stadium.

Runners had the choices of doing four different distances.  I chose the "Home Run" distance which included two loops of the ballpark on the streets and sidewalks interspersed with a pair of runs up the right-field ramps, around the upper deck and down the left-field ramps.

We lined up on Eagle Ave., which is beyond - and on the outside of - the left-center field wall and in between it and a parking garage.  The only thing that the event production company needed was my area of expertise:  an announcer for people to understand where and when they needed to be.  (There was a gentleman walking up and down between two queues of runners with a small, electrified megaphone, but better could have happened too.)

Temperatures were perfect:  upper 60's.  I was a little sore from the day before, but once I started to run and found a place where I could maintain my pace consistently I locked in on a target to follow.

And follow to the best of my ability I could.

We went from the streets for the first three-tenths of a mile to the sidewalks around the ballpark and surprisingly, they weren't that punishing on the legs.  When we got to the right-field corner, we entered the ball park and started up the ramps.

There were 10 of them and they were long and not that steep.  Fairly easy to run all of them.  Once we reached the top, we ran the upper deck semi-circle from right to left field and down the ramps in that corner of the ball park.

When I came around a corner, I would swing to the outside about halfway down the ramp, look over my left shoulder to see if there was somebody coming straight down the ramp and then aim for the U-turn and then repeat all the way down.

The acquired target and her friend were in close vicinty and the end result for the other lap around the ballpark, up and down the ramps and around the top was to stay close as we all helped each other.

Before the race, when I saw the timing mat set up in front of the third-base dugout, it led me to believe that once we entered the field - even though I had a map but didn't look at it - we would make a hard right to finish.

Ha!  When we hit the warning track, it was to the left and to run all the way around the field.  Cool running, but I sped up a little too soon before leaving the bowels of Progressive Field.

I outsprinted the two females, beating them to the finish line by three seconds.

My chip time was 36:27, which would have made it 9:07 per mile for a 4-miler.  I've got to think that the course was a little short.  I just can't believe that I made up that kind of time going down the ramps.

Regardless, it was a fun event.  Lots better than the Ramp Romp 5K at Kyle Field, where the ramps are much steeper.  (Hard headed Aggies!)

Great, fun weekend of racing!

2013 Schedule

Races Announced
1/1 - 14th annual Texas Marathon, Kingwood
1/27 - 3rd annual Galveston Marathon and Half Marahon, Galveston
2/16 - NBA FIT Run, Walk and Dribble 5K, Houston
3/9 - Exygon and Baptist Hospitals Gusher Marathon, Beaumont
3/16 - Seabrook Lucky Trail Half Marathon, Seabrook
3/17 - Seabrook Lucky Trail Marathon, Seabrook
4/6 - Muddy Trails 5K and 10K, The Woodlands
4/7 - Texas10 Huntsville, Huntsville
5/4 - CB&I Sprint Triathlon, The Woodlands (All; returning after 2010-2011)
5/11 - El Chupacabra de Houston 5K/10K, New Caney
5/25 -- Angel Run Half Marathon and 10K, Montgomery

7/4 - Baytown Bud Heat Wave 5-Miler, Baytown

Races Covered (Media)
1/13 -- Chevron Houston Marathon, Houston
3/2 -- Fidelity Investments The Woodlands Marathon, The Woodlands
5/18 -- Memorial Hermann Ironman Texas, The Woodlands

Races Volunteered
4/7 - TWRC Sunday Night 5K, The Woodlands
4/14 - Houston Kids Triathlon, Houston
5/5 - TWRC Sunday Night 5K, The Woodlands

Races Run

1/5 -- New Year's Resolution 5K, Diboll (28:45.34) - 77th Texas city or town!
1/6 -- TWRC Sunday Night 5K, The Woodlands (30:05.97) - with Willie Fowlkes
1/12 -- ABB 5K, Houston (39:16.80) - with Waverly Walk
1/13 -- Chevron Houston Marathon (4:57:56)
1/20 -- Run For The Governor's 5K, Point Blank (28:46.46) - 78th Texas city or town!
2/2 -- Rocky Raccoon 100, Huntsville State Park (DNF; Mile 32; Blisters)
3/24 -- Ocean Drive Marathon, Cape May to Sea Isle City, NJ (5:36:23) -- 31st state - marathon!
3/30 -- Chisholm Trail Half Marathon, Crawford, TX -- 79th Texas city or town!
4/6 -- Fairview Half Marathon, Fairview, TX -- 80th Texas city or town!
4/20 -- Bud Shuster Run For Your Life 5K, Holidaysburg, PA (~29:30)
4/21 -- 4th annual Beaver Stadium Run 5K, State College, PA (31:27)
4/26 -- Presence Covenant Medical Center Illinois 5K, Champaign, IL (30:58)
5/27 -- Memorial Day 5K, Huntsville, TX (31:09)
6/7 -- Dusk Dash at Duessen 5K, Houston, TX (32:17)
6/8 -- Greyhound 5K, Kosse, TX (36:25; ran with Ken Johnson) -- 81st Texas city or town!
6/22 -- Polish Pickle Run 5K, Bremond, TX (30:38)
6/29 -- Race to Read 5K, Harker Heights, TX (31:35; Course long) -- 82nd Texas city or town!
7/6 -- Freedom 5K, Nacogdoches, TX (30:17) -- 83rd Texas city or town!
7/7 -- TWRC Sunday Night 5K, The Woodlands, TX (38:33; ran with Waverly Walk)
7/12 -- 2nd annual Sealy FD 5 Alarm 5K, Sealy, TX (30:46)
7/13 -- Vern's No-Frills 5K #51, Georgetown, TX (32:08) -- 84th Texas city or town!
7/20 -- 35th annual Lunar Rendezvous Run 5K, Clear Lake, TX (31:03)
7/21 -- Presque Isle Half Marathon, Erie, PA (2:24:19)
8/3 -- Midnight Madness Down Main 5K, Salado, TX (30:37) -- 85th Texas city or town!
8/3 -- Be Healthy Lake Travis Day 5K, Lakeway, TX (32:49) -- 86th Texas city or town!
8/4 -- TWRC Sunday Night 5K, The Woodlands, TX (31:06)
8/10 -- Blues Capital of Texas 5K, Navasota, TX
8/17 -- News and Sentinel Half Marathon, Parkersburg, WV (2:27:07)
8/18 -- Inside The Park Home Run, Cleveland, OH

Races Registered
8/24 - Kickoff Run For Sight 5K, Mobile, AL
9/2 - Alaina Dixon 5-Miler, Houston, TX
9/14 -- Methodist Mansfield Run With Heart Half Marathon, Mansfield, TX

Races Scheduled - Did Not Start
4/27 - Christie Clinic Illinois Marathon - Champaign, IL (50th marathon)

Potential Races
8/25 - Run For Wellness 5K, Houston, TX
8/31 - Dove Fest 10K, Hamilton, TX
9/1 - TWRC Sunday Night 5K, The Woodlands, TX
10/12 - Poplar Forest 5K, Lynchburg, VA (with Waverly Walk)
10/27 - Cape Cod Marathon, Falmouth, MA
12/8 - B-CS Marathon, College Station, TX

Races Committed to Announce
9/7 AM - 9/11 Heroes Run 5K, Ellington Field, Houston, TX
9/7 PM - Galveston Sand Crab 5K and 10K, Galveston, TX
9/21 - Toughest 10K Kemah, Kemah, TX
9/28 - Patriot Run 5K, Houston, TX
9/29 - Texas10 Katy, Katy, TX
10/5 - Nike South Cross Country, The Woodlands, TX
10/19 - Toughest 10K Galveston, Galveston, TX
11/3 - Texas10 Waco, Waco, TX
11/9 - Pleasure Island Bridge Half Marathon, Port Arthur, TX
11/17 - La Porte By The Bay Half Marathon, La Porte, TX
11/23 - Nike Cross South Regionals, The Woodlands, TX
12/7 - Texas10 Conroe, Conroe, TX

Blues Capital of 5K (Navasota) Race Report

My summer running tour of Texas - I guess you could call it - continued this morning in the county seat of Grimes County, Navasota, for the Blues Capital of Texas 5K.

For the second consecutive year, my good friend Leanne Rosser and I made the short drive west across Highway 105 to participate in what is really a nice, simple and well-run community race.

It is produced by the Navasota Kiwanis in conjunction with the Blues Festival that is hosted each year by the city.  It is the third year for the race and it is a shame that they don't get more people to turn out than they do.

There's both a 5K and a 1-mile Fitness Challenge for some of the kids, although there seemed to be a lot of youngsters who were doing the longer race this morning.

The course is pretty flat and it is just west of downtown out 105 in August Horst Recreation Park.  It starts on the north side of 105 in a yet-to-be-developed residential and/or business park (not sure which it is completely expected to be).

Therefore, you have wide open streets to run on for the first 2.5 miles before you cross back across 105 - with law enforcement support to slow traffic as it is coming in to and leaving from town.  Once across the road, you run the top part of the letter "P" in reverse to the finish line.

Just one thing you need to know, though, about the course:  both years that we've run it it hasn't been accurate.  (Last year, it seemed a bit short.)

This year even had an upgrade:  half-mile mile markers that seemed to be accurately placed.

However, there was just one thing wrong:  whoever gave the instruction to setup the water stop on the out-and-back stretch of the course went too far, causing everyone to run approximately 3.5 miles.

Two runners' Garmins measured 3.49 and 3.52 miles.  While there weren't a lot of turns or trees to misestimate the measurement that much, the wide streets could on a winding first three quarters of a mile could have caused people to not run the tangent properly.

First .5 mile -- 4:34.08
Second .5 mile -- 4:49.31 (9:23.39)
Third .5 mile -- 8:26.66 (this is where the course was "long")
Fourth .5 mile -- 5:23.61 (23:13.66)
Fifth .5 mile -- 5:13.26 (28:26.92)
Last .6 mile -- 6:28.80 (34:55.72)

Even though it was still in the 10-minute per mile (or just under range), I actually ran more consistent than I have most all summer long, despite not running at the track on Wednesday nights like I had last summer.

One thing that is also guaranteed with this race:  it is either hot, humid or both.  Humid was a given and it got hot towards the end with the 8 a.m. on-time start.  Additionally, you receive a nice technical shirt (although Leanne was quick to point out that the ladies didn't have a women's cut top) as well as a nice drawstring bag.  Plenty of water, Gatorade, bananas and it is chip-timed by the good guys at Run Houston Timing.

We saw a friend that we both made last year in Becky Nesbit, who lives nearby and runs with - and is coached by - Finish Line Sports' Andy Stewart in Sugar Land.  She finished second overall this year after winning it all last year.

I also got the opportunity to visit with a woman from Montgomery County, Tanci Foster, who is a frequent participant of Robby Sabban's Running Alliance Sport races.  Her teenage son will be running his first half marathon in mid-November at the La Porte By The Bay Half Marathon.  I told her online on Facebook to remind me on race morning and that I would look out for him and proudly announce that great accomplishment.

Even bigger RAS supporters, Monica Montoya and Keith Cotropia, also made the long drive from the League City area.  They had just got back from running the Tacoma Narrows Half Marathon in Washington state.

The running funny from last year is that this is where Leanne borrowed $100 from me to buy a pair of shoes that she saw that she liked from the Brazos Running Company.  I think I had just come off of vacation and still had the money on me (as I usually don't carry that much on me at any one given time.)

So, of course, we stayed to make sure that neither one of our names weren't called during the drawing for door prizes.  One number got close to Leanne's #43, but no winners - or chicken dinners.

Leanne and her husband, Jim, have turned out over the last few years to be some of my very best friends.  Jim's not a runner, but he supports Leanne's pastime rather well - even signing her up for a marathon (Napa Valley next March) without even asking.

She had done her long run the day before - in her buildup for the Chicago Marathon - and decided to run easy back in my part of the race and still came away with a third-place age group finish.  I really appreciated that.  Not too many people have - over the years - sacrificed their race to run with me.

We had talked that it was the third race that we had run together - the other two were Angie's Half Crazy Half Marathon and the Panhandle Half Marathon in Lubbock last September when she went out to visit her son who was (and is) a student at Texas Tech University.  I was also partly responible for getting her interested in the Philadelphia Marathon where last November she ran her personal best at that distance.

A great morning all-in-all as I made the drive home to Spring where I had bags that were primarily packed to head out on vacation that included a six-state tour of minor league ballparks, including the most important part of the visit - seeing my daughter, Waverly, off at college in Lynchburg, Virginia at Liberty University.

And for those who follow along, no, it was not a new Texas city or town for me.  It was a year ago, however, as it was #74 on the road to 100!

Hope to run a bit this week in a couple of different states before next weekend's fun racing events.  Stay tuned and, as always, thanks for reading!

Be Healthy Lake Travis Day 5K Race Report

I've said many times before that when I chase states in marathons and half marathons, I take what the calendar gives me.  I don't worry too much about the course - mainly just the temperature at the time of year.

The same applies when chasing my other goal -- a race in 100 Texas cities and towns.

Of course, earlier today, at midnight, I ran the Midnight Madness Down Main 5K in Salado.

There was another 5K close - in a new city; therefore, I doubled up.

I've heard - since moving to Texas - of many people who come to the area west of Round Rock and vacation at and on Lake Travis.

Until this morning, I've never seen it before, and once I got out on Rt. 620 West, I was impressed with the natural beauty that Texas has in this area.  Wow.

And, well, yes, the hills too.

In this area, don't trust the time projection on Google Maps.  It took me longer to get to the race site with all of the stoplights on Rt. 620.

When I registered for today's Be Healthy Lake Travis Day 5K, I actually checked to make sure that Lakeway was a distinct city even though the race's venue had an Austin mailing address.

Lakeway does exist - and not too many long stretches of flat road either.

So make this Texas city or town #86 to run a race in.

After getting to the race site within 30 minutes of the start (not how I like to do things), I grabbed my camera, took a couple of pictures with my camera and talked with a Lakeway police officer who saw and commented - positively, I might add - about my Penn State running shirt.

Seems he was from Lancaster - down towards Philadelphia - and I shared about how I had been home last weekend to see my grandparents.  (Then, of course, somebody on my return trip of the out-and-back course made a comment about West Virginia, which used to play Penn State for a long, long time in many sports.)

I also saw that Lone Star Timing and Brad Davidson - who is partners in the Texas 10 Series with Nathan Beedle, Angie Henderson and Willie Fowlkes - was going to be there and we talked for a couple of minutes before the start.

Ah, this is one place - while beautiful - that Willie will scare off runners if he does a Texas10 race -- not unless he makes it double points!

This was kind of opposite of the race that I did in April in Holidaysburg, Pennsylvania near my hometown of Tyrone in that there was two declines and one big inclines going out instead of the opposite.

Therefore, the splits - as there were no mile markers (which might have been depressing anyway) -- were as follows:

Out -- 15:22.34
Back -- 17:27.18

And even though it was only 81 degrees, according to the weather through my iPhone, it felt warmer - close to 9 a.m. - as we were coming up the last major hill and incline or two that immediately followed.

I would say that this was the hardest 5K course that I've done since they held the King of Jester 5K in Austin back in 2005.  History would reveal that even though it was cool - held on February 27 - that it was actually 3.25 miles and I covered it in 35:29.

Fun stuff.  That's what it is all about, isn't it?

The heat and the hills reminded me of what I'm going to encounter in two weeks in Parkersburg, West Virginia at the News and Sentinel Half Marathon, which I will be running for the fourth time.

Not sure why other than that my friend Cassie Mondragon will be there, which is where she is from.

Time to head back to the Spring area.  Hope your Saturday - and weekend - is off to a great start!

Midnight Madness Down Main 5K (Salado) Race Report

The alarm goes off.  It is ... 10 p.m.!  What is this?

The last time I remembered being rustled out of my sleep in the dark to get up and run, I was in a van somewhere between Columbus and Katy at leg 23 during the Texas Independence Relay.

(No, Bill, not THAT year!  The next one!)

This time was consensual, I guess, as I got out the door from the Spring Hill Suites here in Round Rock to head to Salado to run a race in my 85th Texas city or town.

It would be the third annual Midnight Madness Down Main 5K that would start at midnight from the Brookshire Brothers parking lot, just off of Interstate 35.

I got there by 11 p.m. and this was a race in need of an announcer - just to get people moving in the right direction - and a little bit more of an experienced volunteer team.  (That didn't say that they weren't willing and helpful.  It is just that there were long lines for most folks who had pre-registered.)

There probably weren't more than four to five hundred, which was a great crowd actually.  Especially for a community the size of Salado.

And speaking of community, it very much appeared to be a community event, which was sponsored by the local Anytime Fitness franchise.

From my race director's point of view, the timing company, Race Day Event Services, out of Gustine, could have provided a bit more help simply in dividing their chips into three (3) groupings and employing two more volunteers with easier lists.

THAT was the major drawback in the flow of people.

The course went out of the Brookshire Brothers parking lot, out to Main Street where you took a left (heading south towards Austin) until you got to Royal where runners took another left and then retraced your steps - with the exception of a shortened dog-leg through the grocery store parking lot.

The crowd seemed to be more of a "color run" or "electric run" crowd as opposed to a group of racers.  Code word:  Move up in the queue of people.

I got around a handful of walkers and as I got on to Main street, my headlamp allowed me to keep an eye on the road that was semi-dark (with some lamplights from local business along the route).

I was feeling really good, especially on the downhill, as we crossed a creek that runs through town and on to the left-hand turn before we ran into a slight incline.  Felt like I ran pretty strong to the turn-around and then the start-and-stop seemed to return, but I didn't feel as "destroyed" as I have been recently.

I think the situation has been that I had four solid workouts since Sunday; therefore, it is still just trying to find a comfortable long-distance pace.

There was a gentleman that I noticed in the parking lot who had been at the Race to Read 5K in Harker Heights earlier this summer.

At that race, he was a couple of minutes ahead of me, but tonight we were kind of trading back and forth on the return to the finish line.  He was wheezing pretty heavily.  At one point I asked if he was OK and he said that he was recovering from pneumonia!  Yikes!

Mine - not pneumonia - was, ah, a little weight-induced perhaps.

As we turned off Main on to a side road and before we entered the parking lot, I got ahead of him and finish strong.  With the 17-second offset at the start, my watch would reveal a 29:34.15 finish.  Wow!

However, in talking with him and another woman who both had Garmins, the course might have been a little short.  He had 2.98.  She had 3.02.  Let's just call it a tenth of a mile short and if you do the conversion back to a 5K, it is a 9:51 per minute pace which figures to be 30:37.

I'll take that for midnight and 84 degrees!

There was a 3K marker that I passed in 16:53.31, which would have been a 9:03 pace.

The remaining 2K was in 12:40.84, which would be 10:12 per mile pace (if it was accurate).

My guess is that the 3K distance might have been off.  Who knows for sure.

With races in my smaller towns, you just don't know what you're going to get.  Although, it really shouldn't make any difference.  There are enough of the "right" people in running communities all over the state that can make sure a course is not only measured properly, but is put out according to those measurements.

Since I needed to get back, grab a late night bite to eat and get a little sleep for Saturday morning's 5K in Texas city or town #86, I didn't stick around for the awards.

If you're not concerned about time and want to enjoy a race with a good small-town vibe and feel with great people, put this midnight Saturday morning run on your calendar next year!

Presque Isle Half Marathon Race Report: Enough to Finish, Not Enough to Race

At some point in time, to get ready for the fall and winter marathon season, I figured that I would have to encounter the half marathon distance again.  It is a distance that I enjoy in that I can run (and race) and not completely beat myself up at.

Once I confirmed that Waverly and I would be coming to Canada and flying through Pittsburgh, I looked for Sunday races and found that the Presque Isle Half Marathon was the morning after we would fly in.

We got to Erie a little after eight, had dinner at Cheddar’s and got to bed early – given that we lost an hour coming east.  I had a really good night of sleep as the alarm went off at 5 a.m.  We were both up and out the door by 5:30 a.m. and in the next 30 minutes, including a stop to something light to eat and some Powerade, we were in Presque Isle State Park.

What was interesting about this event - produced by the Erie Runners Club - is that there were no bibs, but everyone had a timing chip and got a technical shirt as part of their $35 entry.

I had run this race back in 2007.  I had flown into Pittsburgh late on a Friday night, drove to the Altoona area to surprise almost my entire family, including Waverly, and then ran a 5K in Roaring Spring where we had the chance to meet Brian Sell and his wife.

The next morning, early, of course, I drove to Erie, ran the half and then drove back to Tyrone, where I’m from and my grandparents – to this day – still live.

In the run-up to us making the trip, my father, Will, had been communicating via e-mail with a friend who played softball with him in the 1970s for many years, Jeff McNelis.

When we got in town last night, after eating, we were both pretty tired and figured that I would call Jeff, who was going to be there to see his son, JJ, run his first half marathon ever, once we got to the Park.

There was no cell service for us.   So the task would be to try and locate him before the race.

We walked around from about 6 a.m. until right before the race started at 6:45 a.m.  Waverly and I had split up at about 6:35 a.m.

The race got started on-time, but the funny thing was the lack of too many pre-race formalities for a race of this size (would estimate that there might have been a 1,000 runners.)  The gentleman who had the microphone in his hand admonished those waiting in line for the restroom that “you bathroom people had about three minutes left”.

Where I was queued up at, the only way we could tell that the race had started was for all of the chips starting to go off from runner’s feet crossing the timing mat.

I told one guy that Mike Reilly’s job was indeed safe.

No sooner had I crossed the starting line, I heard a “Jon!” and it was Jeff who was standing next to Waverly.  Hard to miss a tall redhead that you’ve seen in pictures on Facebook!

The temperature for the race was actually pretty nice for a mid-July morning.  It was humid, but not as much as Houston is.

The slogan for the race, which I thought was great, was, “As in life, you only go around once.”  The park, that is.  I believe for their marathon in the fall that it is two loops.

We kind of did a short out-and-back and I saw Jeff, his wife, and Waverly again in about six tenths of a mile.

I knew that a 2:19, which I did on this course on a whim six years ago, would probably be out of the question since I hadn’t covered the distance since April.

I ended up with a 2:24:19, but it was the strangest way to get that time – ever.

When you look at my splits below, you’ll think that I ran pretty steady and consistently the entire way.  Sort of.  If you call a half marathon a continuous series of 200- and 400- meter repeats with short recoveries.

As I’ve been experiencing on my 5K’s, it is like the muscle memory on my gait and pace wants to do one thing, but I don’t have the base to do what I might be capable of.

It was a little frustrating and it wasn’t until about mile 7 until things didn’t feel as if I had somebody sitting on my breathing a little bit.

At about that mile, a gentleman asked me if I wanted some of his fruit chews.  I wondered to myself, “Gee, do I look that bad?”  Yes, I was sopping and wringing wet the entire race – liked I was running after swimming in a triathlon, but I think it ticked me off a little.

I politely declined and then I started to run harder, and I felt good, but the continuous track workout continued.

And all the while, I didn’t feel totally and completely spent physically.  Such an odd feeling.

I’m really baffled.

Nonetheless, here are my splits:

Mile 1 – 10:15.66
Mile 2 – 10:29.25 (20:44.91)
Mile 3 – 10:52.25 (31:37.16)
Mile 4 – 11:00.75 (42:37.91)
Mile 5 – 10:58.87 (53:36.78)
Mile 6 – 11:06.82 (64:43.60)
Mile 7 – 10:59.32 (75:42.92)
Mile 8 – 10:52.27 (86:35.19)
Mile 9 –11:37.84 (98:13.01)
Mile 10 – 11:11.69 (109:24.70)
Mile 11 – 11:06.99 (120:31.69)
Mile 12 – 10:50.60 (131:22.29)
Mile 13 – 11:38.12 (143:00.41)
Last .1 – 1:19.12 (144:19.53)

After I finished I found Waverly and Jeff and we went over and met his wife, his son – who finished his first half marathon in 2:02, and his wife as well as his grandson.

We talked for about 10-15 minutes.

Jeff hadn’t changed in all of those years.  His son seemed to run well and enjoyed the experience.  It turned out we ran the same race back in April at the Beaver Stadium Run 5K.

It is the great thing about running:   you typically – regardless of ability and/or experience – can find common ground quickly.

Next half marathon for me could be even more of a challenge:  the News and Sentinel Half Marathon in Parkersburg, West Virginia in four weeks.  It is hillier and it will be hot.

I guess I have some work to do.

35th annual Lunar Rendezvous Run 5K Race Report

Waverly will tell you from traveling with me that I'm the master of vacation planning.  And part of that was scheduling a flight today that wasn't at the crack of dawn so I could squeeze in a race this morning here in town.

I knew that the last time I put a bib on for the Lunar Rendezvous Run that the first winner of the Houston Marathon, Dan Green, was putting on one too!

What I didn't realize is that it had been five years -- 2008!  I didn't have a great time that day - and today still isn't where I want things to be, but I figure everything will come together in the fall and winter.

And running six miles yesterday afternoon probably didn't help either.

Hosted at the Space Center Houston parking lot and run on the grounds of NASA in Clear Lake, the Lunar Rendezvous Run is put on by race director Jay Lee and supported by his staff at On The Run and the Bay Area Running Club.

The majority of races on the southeast part of town are put on by Jay, Robby Sabban or a combination of resources and parties.  The original Seabrook Lucky Trails Marathon race director Bob Linza was among the regulars helping out.

Sure, I run too many races.  It is the people, though, that I get a chance to see and interact with that make the investment in time and resources so worthwhile.

After being helped with my packet by Cheryl Jantkowski and Lori Alvarez, I visited with Robby and Bob for awhile.  Also talked to today's eventual winner Ryan Smith of Sugar Land.  (Glad to know that he plans on coming up and running the 2014 Fidelity Investments The Woodlands Marathon with us.)

As 7 a.m. approached, HARRA president Joe Carey asked to man the microphone to help getting people to their proper locations (packet and chip pickup) in time so as to not delay the start of the race.  I think it was a successful effort as Jay got the race started a couple of minutes early actually.

Runners on the far southeast side of Houston are certainly a pliable bunch!

As I was running to the start line, I told Pauline Nicodemus, "Darn.  Robby remembered to put the 3-mile flag out."

I've been trying to keep from trying to put down an 8:55 - 9:05 first mile, but it didn't seem like 9:29.30 was slow enough.

I grabbed some water at the aid station and then went in to a two-mile version of doing lots of 200-meter repeats with short breaks in between.  Again, my legs want to run low 9's and the rest of my system isn't supporting that effort.

Mile 2 was 10:10.53 and mile 3 was even worse -- 10:29.99.  I guess I picked it up a little in the last tenth of mile in 53.32 for a total time of 31:03.14.

Have had lots better and lots worse, but I'll keep going out there and try to get it back in the 28's and 29's where I'm capable at any day -- and, looking back, have been in the summertime even.

I got ahead of June Harris in mile one and had the rememberance of her catching and passing me down the homestretch of last year's Outrigger's by the Bay 5K, but she would pass me around that water stop.

Jim Alvarez was running with someone and they were looking to get under 30 and I told them to stay focused on June and she'd get them under that time.

One BARCer who I've heard by name was saying that she was using me to pace off of - well, that's a mistake!  After we both had finished (she ahead of me), I found out it was Anna Stegemann-Wilson.  (Thought she only did the long stuff, like fellow BARCer Annabel Dixon.)

Saw or talked to the usual suspects Ben Harvie, John Moyer and had a great conversation before the race with Chris Peden, who handles all of Robby's tax work with Running Alliance Sport.

Missed Veronica Hoge at the Baytown Bud Heatwave, but she was there before jetting off to New York and then Stockholm.  Vera Balic was back racing and, today, I couldn't keep up with her father, Boris.  Another day.  Another race.

Want to run a not fancy, but well-executed, fast and flat course?  Lunar and Outrigger's are two that you should put on your summer calendar if you're in the greater Houston area.

Vern's No-Frills 5K #51 Race Report

Where do I start?  When I saw that I would be able to do the 5 Alarm 5K in Sealy last night, I also spied the opportunity to do Vern’s No Frills 5K in Georgetown.  This would give me a race in Texas city or town #84, but more importantly an opportunity to run a race established by one of the early Run The Woodlands 5K regulars Bill Schroeder of Georgetown.  (And a good friend from when we were fellow members of the Houston Striders.)

He and his wife Mindy have taken their own running experiences (from their days in Cincinnati) as well as others such as Don Drewniak and Roger Boak, added some nice touches of their own and put together a classic low-cost race/running/walking starter for families in northern Travis and Williamson counties.

The Vern’s No Frills 5K was started about five years ago.  The course is a sweet, winding double out-and-back that is on concrete trails in Georgetown’s Berry Springs Park and finishes on the crushed granite surface that is similar to Memorial Park in Houston.  The race is on the third Saturday morning at 8:00 a.m. of every month.  (This week was different as Bill heads to the National Senior Games Association next weekend in Cleveland, Ohio.)

The price on this race is just right:  $1.  You get your own bib that you keep for life!

The bottom line, though, is that it is a labor of love for Bill.  We had a chance to visit after I finished on a warm central Texas morning and he said that today is one of 25 races that he puts on each year.  (These include 12 Vern’s No Frills 5K and a half-dozen Georgetown Running Club events.)

For me, it was 10 years to the weekend from when I did my very first Run The Woodlands 5K – July 2003.

I went off course (yes, I crossed Crownridge) and was wearing a baseball cap and a cotton T-shirt.  I’ll always remember getting advice from Tom Pinney about the change of attire.  Everyone has to start somewhere, of course.  And today, like at many Run The Woodlands in the past, there were many folks for who a 5K run was a challenge and an accomplishment.

Me?  I was running on little fuel.  I left Sealy right after the race and made it to the hotel in Round Rock at 1 a.m.  It took the cleaning lady, I believe, 20 minutes to get me checked in and there were three people behind me!  I pity them.  So, it was a short night.  I got about three hours of sleep and probably another 45 minutes after I got to the Park where the race was being held at.

(When trying to save a buck, please do not stay at the Extended Stay America in Round Rock near McNeil Road.  Major, major mistake.)

Over the years, Vern’s No-Frills 5K has raced $7,000 through its $1 entry fees to give back to the Williamson County Parks and Recreation Department to use in the park that they hold the race.

Bill certified the course and sold sponsorships to have granite half mile markers (a la the HARRA markers in Memorial Park).  They looked really nice.

As I stated earlier, Bill took some of the hallmarks of the original Run The Woodlands 5K and incorporated them in this race.  One of those is something only the most hard core of us – me and Bill Dwyer probably – would recognize and that is that Saturday’s race was “Vern’s No-Frills 5K #51”.  Don Drewniak, the creator of Run The Woodlands, numbered each race, which is also what his original club – the Central Mass Striders – did on their weekly free 5K.

At this month’s race, the Ashlyn’s Angels organization was in attendance and Bill afforded three of their participants, better known as the captains of their racing chairs, to start early and miss much of the congestion.

After Bill thanked his sponsors and those others who supported the event, educating those that might have been there for the very first time, he had everybody raise their right hand and repeated, “I promise.  To be careful.”  Vintage Roger Boak on the Tour de Bayou free cross country races put on by HARRA.  I loved it.

Funny story on what might have been one of my only Tour de Bayou races.  I was just starting to run and I carried a lot more weight than what I do now.  It was an event that started near the Jackson Hill bridge, I think, and at the bottom of the Bayou.  It was two loops.  To start, you had to run up the hill and then do the loops.  Well, after the first loop, realizing that it was too much for me being new, I went back over the bridge and left after loop #1.

Saturday’s race was hot and humid.  Classic Texas conditions, of course.

It is on a winding concrete path heading west out and under Interstate 35 and back to the entry area where there was another half mile or so that had a similar turnaround at its terminus.

You passed the three-mile marker and then made a left on to the crushed granite trail where Bill and his timer would capture your lifetime bib number and tell you your time.

My run wasn’t too hot and this was a day that I probably shouldn’t have clicked my watch at the half mile markers as it clearly showed my demise.  And I had even dialed it back.

.5 mile – 4:48.06
1 mile – 4:55.59 (9:43.65)
1.5 mile – 5:07.41 (14:51.06)
2 mile – 5:23.64 (20:14.70 … Ugh! 10:07 a mile and I knew that the course was not off!)
2.5 mile – 5:20.80 (25:35.50)
3 mile – 5:26.89 (31:02.39)
Last .1 – 1:06.29 (32:08.68)

At least the last mile and a half was steady!  ;-)

I was 77th out of 161 – ha! – in the top half for the second straight day in a row.  I’ll have to pick up the pace Saturday at the Lunar Rendezvous Run to do it for the third straight 5K.

Results, with name, age and city, are online typically by noon at noexcusesrunning.com.  (Just like Don used to do with RTW at runningintheusa.com.)

I also catch - and remember - very quirky things (my great love for facts, figures and statistics and what I think makes me a good race announcer) including the gentleman that had a ragged Woolmarket Duathlon singlet.  When I started to add this entry, I thought that it was from an event that I thought I remembered in San Angelo; however, this is a three-race duathlon series in Gulfport, Mississippi much like the Webster Bicycle Duathlon Series that Kevin and Jana Landry put on for years in La Marque.

If your schedule ever works out, this is a great, classic “grass roots running” event to take part in.

Here’s some material from Bill that speaks a little bit more to some of the tenets of the event:

+  The No Frills 5k was started in Apr 2009 and was renamed in tribute to Vern Cantwell, a dear friend who had a fatal heart attack while cycling with friends. He was the race’s first starter and a runner’s best cheerleader.

+  Vern’s No Frills 5K is usually held every third Saturday of the month. The event is free to students K-12 and $1 for adults. The race was started to encourage adults and especially children to get out and participate in a fun, casual, and professionally organized event. Over 7,500 runners and walkers have finished a Vern’s No Frills 5K event. Even only charging a very nominal amount the race has raised over $7,000 that goes directly back to Berry Springs Park & Preserve. The money has been used for a log splitter, wildflower seeds, stone half mile markers, certification of the trail, and updating the interpretive signs.

+  Bill Schroeder started the No Frills 5k to provide a low/no cost 5K event to encourage people to run or walk. The event appeals to not only competitive runners, but also first time participants. People pushing strollers and walking their dogs also come out to enjoy the casual, fun, and professionally organized event. Because the course is basically flat and only has 3 turns, many people run/walk their best times. Since the course is certified, people are ensured that they are running/walking an accurate course and because it is held monthly, they can come back and see how their fitness is improving.  (Much like Run The Woodlands 5K. – Jon)  Also, another side benefit to Berry Springs Park & Preserve is that once people come out to Vern’s No Frills 5k, they end up coming out to camp, picnic, play, and walk at other times because the park is such a hidden gem.

+  Every April on the anniversary of the race, the Georgetown Running Club and the Georgetown Taco Cabana contribute breakfast tacos as a little “frill” to all participants.

+  Bill Schroeder as the founder of Vern’s No Frills 5k and now President, Georgetown Running Club (GRC) continues to put on the event. GRC has always been a title sponsor and provides all insurance coverage (this keeps the cost of the event to a minimum) and almost all of the volunteers come from the club. Not only does GRC put on Vern’s No Frills 5K, but when the park was flooded in Sep 2010 and the race was cancelled for that month, the GRC turned out with 40 volunteers and helped to clean-up, repair fencing, and help to get the park back open sooner than later. GRC was also instrumental in getting the 5K trail certified so it is accurate and also purchasing and installing half mile markers for the trail. All of this was done without using any park funds or tax dollars. Other sponsors include No Excuses Running, REI, Luke’s Locker, Road ID, Luna Chix, and Taco Cabana.

+  Course records are 15:52 for the men and 19:10 for the women.  Most participants?  268 in July 2012.  The race has only been cancelled twice -- once due to the entire park being flooded and during a very long thunderstorm.

5 Alarm 5K Race Report - Sealy

Ah, yes, the adventurous soul.

I had a multitude of possibilities for this weekend as Waverly has been gone to youth church camp and will be getting back Saturday afternoon.  I had thought about running a race on Sunday, but she’s only going to be singing on stage at church possibly two more Sundays (as we’ll be on vacation for at least one and maybe two).  And this Sunday is the first of those two.

I just realized this week that the Toughest 10K in Texas, which is held annually in Lampasas, is Saturday, but I’ve committed to run the Vern’s No Frills 5K in Georgetown.

The race is fashioned after the original $1 race – Run The Woodlands. 

Former Kingwood resident Bill Schroeder was one of the many regulars of RTW and he started this Georgetown race approximately five years ago.

But to get to Georgetown on Saturday morning, the road went through Sealy.

As I think I explained in an earlier post, because I work so many events in the late spring, my running suffers and it takes me during the summer time to put it back together for the next fall.

Therefore, I run a lot of races.  I enjoy the atmosphere, the people and the many interesting things that I see and can (and cannot!) apply to races that I assist with.

Last year, as part of the Sealy Community Foundation’s Sealybration, they held the first annual 5 Alarm 5K, which started at 10 p.m.

Yes, very dark streets.  Sure, there were street lights, but if you didn’t know the street and its surface and cracks you could have taken a pretty good tumble.  (I brought my head lamp this time and wore it the entire way.)

I think I ran fairly well last year.  (Just checked.  Maybe not.  30:11.  But I recall feeling good as I ran in a new type of show, Asics Cumulus.)

The work week was a little long and slow and I didn’t get in the gym until Thursday night where I ran 6 miles on the treadmill from 10 to 11 p.m.

I then added another six (6) on the treadmill this afternoon from 3:25 to 4:25 p.m.  Yes, 12 miles in the 24 hours preceding the 5K.  Sure, not the brightest idea when “racing”, which is a relative term for me.

They had approximately 175 signed up this year with 159 finishers – an increase from last year’s 119.

I placed myself at the back and took 20 seconds to cross the start line.  Gary Mulvihill from Run Wild Timing in Houston was doing the timing and we were using the B tag with the microwave readers.

The course is certified and it is as flat as can be – as flat as the Beneeezy Purple Monkey 5K and 10K in Alvin, which is held in late August.

Mile 1 came and went in 9:20.13.  I passed a lot of people, but it was one of the steadiest miles that I’ve run in quite some time.  I was pleased that I dialed it back a little.

I was a little disappointed in the time of mile 2, but was satisfied with the effort.  I’ve been in a situation recently where my legs will try to run an 8:55 to 9:10 mile, but the rest of my body wouldn’t agree.

This mile was as steady as the first, but the time came through as 10:05.70 to put me at 19:25.83 – which is a 9:42 pace.

Mile 3 registered as 10:25.88, which was at 29:51.71.  Lots of starts and stops, but again:  solid effort.

The last tenth of a mile was 59.84 for a total time of 30:51.55, but Gary got me at 30:46.  Which should I choose to record?  You decide.  The gun time, interestingly, was equal – 31:12.

I guess I shouldn't complain with the time after running 12 miles, even though the course in Nacogdoches last Saturday was a little bit more difficult and I ran 30:17.  Even though it was warm (80 degrees perhaps), the humidity wasn't bad.

You can tell the “quality” of the field, however, when I finished 71^st overall out of 159.

For the record, this is a solid little event - that raises money for the Sealy Fire Department to honor two firefighters who lost their lives in 2000 and 2004 -- which might benefit from an earlier start (like 8:30 p.m. even) as Gary suggested to them.  Then again, if have the right light, it isn't too bad to run that late at night.

Then I gathered my keys from Gary's gear and it was back on the road again to drive to Round Rock, via Highway 71 through Columbus to Highway 183 and then to Interstate 35.

Georgetown in a few hours will be Texas city or town #84.  Can’t wait!

Baytown Bud Heatwave Event Report

Its been a week since I got the opportunity to help produce the 24th annual Baytown Bud Heatwave with Robby Sabban and the Running Alliance Sport team, but really the first chance that I've had to really unwind and share the day.

I truly enjoy event production.  It's hard work, but it provides a completely different sense of accomplishment than even what running a good time does.  Very hard to explain.

It is about putting together many moving pieces to satisfy a large number of people who spend their discretionary income on something that they could walk outside of their place of residence and do.

Yet, that wasn't even the best part of the day.

The best, of course, was the time that I got to spend with my daughter, Waverly.  I know it sounds like a broken record, but it really, really is the case.

Dad set up her with the opportunity to sing twice and she didn't disappoint.  I had her start off the pre-race ceremonies with "God Bless America" in an effort to have everybody join in with her.  They didn't take the lead.

And then she did an excellent job with the National Anthem.

As always, I was -- and continue to be -- proud.  It will be the last time for awhile that she'll have the opportunity to sing the Anthem at a race as she heads off to Liberty University next month.

After getting a reprieve from Robby to leave the scene a little early, Waverly and I headed to Galveston with friends of ours to spend some time at their friend's beach house in Jamaica Beach.

I don't take the time to just "get away" and "do nothing" for awhile.  I did,  I needed it and I enjoyed it.

Waverly had the chance to meet some other young boys and girls around her age, jumped right in, went to the beach with them for awhile, rode a jet ski with a young man who is going to be a junior this year at Texas A&M and even did a little paddleboarding in the canal.

I got the chance to spend a good bit of time talking with a friend that was in visiting from Virginia and learned a lot more about them then I had previously known.  Was very glad that I made the decision to go.  :-)

As far as the race was concerned, I'd say we had a pretty good day.

I think the only snafu that we ran into was something that is always a challenge -- and that's getting shirts right.  Unless you can work with somebody that can print what you need a day or two before, you either guarantee 'x' number of people the right size -- and cut everybody else off -- or you try to order enough.

We went into race day with 678 names in the database for the timer, who was new for this race.  (Fastlane Services, who did a really nice job.)

And almost another 50 registered on the morning of the race, taking us to 726.

We had 669 official timed finishers, which is almost double the 352 timed finishers that we had two years ago -- the first year the race came back after a 10-plus year absence.

It is great to work with a team of individuals that simply knows what to do -- and do it well.

The Running Alliance Sport team is much like the Win Win Events team, which produces the new Texas 10 Series.  A group of professionals that have a good time putting on a quality event.

My job as a race announcer is to get everyone to the starting line on-time and keeping them informed (without getting into an overkill mode where people want to say to you, "Shut up!").

And then at the finish, it is to announce people's names as they approach and cross the finish line and then handle the awards ceremony.

We had a slight issue when our masters winners were in the top three and the timer's software couldn't parse those out of the overall and move the next fastest runner up out of the age groups.

Therefore we had a couple of revisions to finalize before I made my way over to handle the awards.

I think our post-race plan worked well to ensure that we got winners up on stage as quickly as possible and moving so those that wanted to leave could do so.

At the shorter Running Alliance Sport events, we recognize the most experienced runners first -- ladies first also, too.  (At La Porte and Seabrook, those runners tend to be out on the course longer and therefore, we go from youngest to the oldest.)

I felt like we presented and highlighted the RRCA state championship award winners particularly well.

One of our sponsors, Michelle Bitterly with Awards & Engraving in Baytown, who sponsored our awards, commented after it was over that it seemed to have flowed much more smoothly than it had the previous two years.  I simply chalked it up to good planning and execution all around.

This year, we had moved locations on the grounds of Wismer Distributing and the acoustics were much, much better and Anita with Other Brother did a really good job in having the sound nice and "hot" for me.  I was really pleased with how I sounded.  (Yes, it matters to me.  While I like to fly under the radar, even with that, I still take pride in how I come off.)

Yet there was one situation on the day that I probably didn't come off well with one person.

And if that person reads this (which I doubt that they check out anything of mine on Facebook or even know that this blog exists) - or someone close to them does, I apologize.

I hate feeling like I'm being mean, but I was guilty of being a little burned up that the individual couldn't acknowledge an e-mail sent to them in late May.

It was a near repeat of a situation that took place two years earlier -- to the day -- in conjunction with that event.

It was more that I shut down all opportunities of communicating with the individual when I had taken the opportunity to do so in the limited times that I had come in contact with them previously.

It wasn't my finest moment of the day, but I'm human too.

As a result of working with the new timer, I was asked two days after the event how much I charged to do what I do.  I submitted a price for them to carry to an event producer that they are working with for early September.  All good stuff.

Nice that people are able to see what you're capable of doing -- even the first time they see you work.  That's very, very flattering.

The big challenge now is to work towards our goals of 2,000 for each of the three Texas Bridge Series races -- one each in September, October and November.  We're tracking way ahead right now on all three, but there's still a lot of work to get done.

Our first price increase is coming at the end of July.  Three races -- two 10K's and a half marathon -- with four medals for $130 is a pretty good deal.

And I've seen the mockups of the medals ... they're really, really nice!

If you're a bling person, you want to run these races!

Texas Endurance Sports Hour Update

As I mentioned in late April, I am aiming to start a weekly Internet radio program, geared towards running and triathlons, called the “Texas Endurance Sports Hour”.

The original plan was to host it on a Sunday afternoon at an area running or triathlon specialty store around the greater Houston area – and to start it in May.

I wanted to leverage Memorial Hermann Ironman Texas to get the program started and had discussed with Fleet Feet Sports store manager Mick Long to be able to do the first three programs from there.

However, I didn’t want interruptions in the summer time for two reasons – 1.) I wanted to be completely available to Waverly even though she was going to be gone two weeks to Africa and this week to youth church camp and 2.) I would be taking two weeks of vacation, including at least three Sundays.

My good friend Dan Morgan with LCSCN.com will produce the program and it will air over the Texas Sports Radio Network.  It looks as if now that it will air on Tuesday evenings live from Katch 22 Houston restaurant in the Heights and will follow the Lone Star Christian Sports Network’s “Chalk Talk Live”.

I’m looking for a few sponsors for the months of September, October and November.

It doesn’t take a ton of money to do this; however, I do need to make sure that I cover Dan’s time and then, if the listenership goes to where I think it can, get ad monies to be able to invest in my own broadcast equipment.

And then the plan is to take the program on the road and do special programming.

If you have a running or triathlon-related business, produce races or have some other entity that would benefit from being associated with me and such a program, please let me know.

I hope that this is something that everyone in the running and multisports community would be interested in having.

Upcoming Races - July

Just firmed up five more events for the next two weeks:

Sunday, July 7 -- The Woodlands Running Club Sunday Night 5K (The Woodlands, TX) - Free
Friday, July 12 -- 2nd annual Sealy Fire Department 5 Alarm 5K (Sealy, TX)
Saturday, July 13 -- Vern's No Frills 5K (Georgetown, TX) - $1
Saturday, July 20 -- 35th annual Lunar Rendezvous Run 5K (Clear Lake, TX)
Sunday, July 21 -- Presque Isle Half Marathon (Erie, PA)

Georgetown will be a new Texas city.  Sealy will not.  Ran this race last year.  Have also run the Presque Isle Half Marathon before.

May squeeze two more in here.  If so, they would be on Sunday, July 14 and Saturday, July 27 (in New York).

Freedom 5K (Nacogdoches) Race Report

Another brick in the road to racing in 100 different Texas cities and towns was set today with a finish at the 2nd annual Freedom 5K in Nacogdoches.

The race gave me an opportunity to see a good friend of mine, Edwin Quarles, of Lufkin, who is the athletic director at Pineywoods Community Academy – a college preparatory charter school.

It was also the second time this year that I’ve run a race in his neighborhood after running the New Year’s Resolution 5K on my birthday in Diboll.

This event was the second one that I’ve run which was produced by TTR Timing Services – a small outfit that includes Nacogdoches’ Gerardo Moreno, 28, who just finished the Western States 100 Endurance Run in 25:51:42 a couple of weeks ago.

Since these guys are coaches, or at least Gerardo is, I’m gathering that the course was accurate.

And if I doubted it, there’s absolutely no way that I could remember what streets we turned on in Nacogdoches to go back and try and map it.

And if it was accurate, then my time – 30:17.71 – was OK.  (The gun time was 30:26, but it took me eight seconds to cross the start line.)

The race started and finished at Thomas J. Rusk Elementary School, but on the grounds was also what is known as the Old University Building.  A description on the Stephen F. Austin State University included the following:  “Located in the middle of Washington Square and now surrounded by the elementary school, the Old University Building was designed by John Cato and built in 1859. Called a university not because the original school offered higher education but because it offered study in a range of subjects, the building has served many roles in its lifetime. Besides a school, it has been used by Confederate troops, Union troops, the Catholic Church, the Masonic Order, and was a temporary home for Stephen F. Austin State University. It now operates as a museum.”

It wasn’t particularly a hilly course, but the first half mile I’d say included a nice decline for the 80 finishers.  Some of it was made up close to the finish as part of that last half mile was retraced.

Nor was it especially hot and humid.  The temperature, according to weatherunderground.com, was between 73 and 75 degrees.

I ended up being 49th of 80 runners while Edwin was 15th overall in a time of 22:50 -- not bad for coming off an ankle injury that had slowed his training the last week.

All in all, a nice little event that was supportive of all types of runners and walkers.  A couple of intersections there were even police officers to slow a very, very light traffic morning near the center of Nacogdoches.

The only negative was that there were no mile markers

The winners – Adam Saloom and the former Megan Jenkins, a pair of former track and cross country stars at SFA – each went home with a previously unannounced prize of $100, which also included breaking the course records.

And it was the fourth Saturday in five that I had driven to run a race two hours or more from my house in Spring.  Good stuff!

Always Somebody to See: Race to Read 5K Event Report

Anymore I almost expect it.

That is, regardless of where I'm running a race, I'll see somebody I know.

Really, it isn't the most far-fetched thing.

The very first marathon I did was the 2004 Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., and in the middle of a sea of 20,000 people waiting for the start was Ray Alexander and Hans Jaeger from Tomball and Conroe, respectively, of the Seven Hills Running Club.

Two summers later, I'm standing in a field of grass in Sequim, Washington - getting ready to do the North Olympic Discovery Half Marathon -- and all of a sudden I hear, "Jon Walk, what are you doing here?"

It was my very good friend, Becky Spaulding, who I met two years before while doing HARRA's Power In Motion program at Memorial Park.

I kind of wondered doing this morning's 5K in Harker Heights -- the Race to Read 5K from the Harker Heights Community Park -- who I was going to see that I knew.

However, I really didn't give it a serious thought.  Fleeting, for sure.

Nonetheless, I saw Calvert's Dennis Alston who has been at the last two 5K's that I've done -- the Kosse Greyhound 5K and the Polish Pickle Run 5K in Bremond last Saturday.

Dennis asked where Ken Johnson from the Seven Hills Running Club was.  It was just a tad bit far for Ken to run a 5K.

Me?  I got more out of it than just to run a 5K.  I came over on Friday and watched the New Orleans Zephyrs do battle with the Round Rock Express in Pacific Coast League (PCL) action.  I figured since I'm going to be seeing a bunch of ballparks this summer that I might as well get my game watching endurance up.

When you buy a single ticket, you can pretty much get a really good seat and that was certainly the case Friday night.  Right at the end of the visitor's dugout on the first base side and on the third row.  Great place to watch a game from and take pictures.

When I got to the hotel, I did the final 4-1-1 on this morning's race.  One good thing is that it was a 7 a.m. start.  Perfect with the heat this weekend.

But on their paper registration form, it said that they weren't going to take any more entries after 6 a.m.  Seemed kind of strange for a small race, but lo and behold I was in the parking lot -- first -- at 5:50 a.m.

And there was a kind, friendly volunteer to take my money and entry.

An outfit out of Belton, Pro-Fit Event Services, was doing the timing (and they did a really good job), but they used the IPICO timing device that affixes to the back of the bib (which didn't have holes to run the pins through).

However, everything worked out OK.  The bib never came off.

On-time start, which is always good, and a very well-marked course although it didn't have mile markers.

Lots of inclines and just one short quick hill (which was in the first mile), but it was enough that you didn't feel that you had enough declines to make up for what you lost on the inclines.

My time was where I wanted it to be as I move more closely to my normal workout pattern and my new effort to cut sodas - diet and the leaded variety -- out of my diet.

However, Dennis said that the course was long -- 3.17 miles.  If so, that would put my time close to what it was last Saturday in Bremond, including the inclines.

I can live with that.

A race in Texas city or town #82 is in the books.  My next new town looks for sure to be Nacogdoches on Saturday, July 6 when I go run the Freedom 5K and check in on my good friend Edwin Quarles.

Already looking forward to it -- and announcing the Fourth of July's 24th annual Baytown Bud Heat Wave.

Always good to get behind the microphone.

Thanks for reading!

Bremond's Polish Pickle 5K Event Report

Some people are driven to drink.  Me?  I’m driven to write, at times.  Besides, I get no stronger than a Mountain Dew.

Writing is how I work out life’s problems and issues.  Sometimes, though, what comes out isn’t what people may be accustomed in hearing from me.  I think a lot of people may believe that because some of the leadership roles that I play in various communities – and how well I handle and perform them -- that I don’t have any struggles.  Yet I do.

Running.  It’s very much a part of my life yet it isn’t my whole life, if that makes sense.  For those who I see that it appears to be, I tend to shy more away from them (but I readily admit that I have no knowledge of what’s going on in their world and if they may be using the sport and/or activity to battle against the things they’re dealing with). 

And sometimes it can be a challenge when they won’t let you into their world, even while they seek entry into yours.

Yet I was reminded this morning from a friend in the athletic community (and their Facebook feed of the Bible app), “Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions.” ~ Proverbs 18:2.

I would love to understand; however, I also choose to give people their space and not to push the envelope either.

That being said, I can see how people may think running is the end-all, be-all for me from the number of events that I’m either involved in or appear at.  However, it is just an activity that simply occupies my time – short of some other things that I might wish would take me away from it more.

And while there are people and situations who have and do push me away from it all, at times, a race like the Polish Pickle 5K – and the people that were at it – is what keeps me pressing on.

From a running perspective, I struggle in the early-to-late spring because of the work that I’m doing with a lot of events (The Woodlands, Gusher, Seabrook and so on).  I don’t get a requisite five to six 60- to 90-minute workouts in per week and I lose a lot.  I use a lot of summertime 5Ks and 10Ks to help me reposition myself for the fall with the Chevron Houston Marathon always being a focus of trying to run as well as I can.

Yesterday, though, was one that reminded me of how much my daughter and I are respected and generally well-liked by many.  Most can say both, but everybody else can claim one quality or the other.  Well, for Waverly, they always like and respect her – even if she’s only 18.  (But, as her father, I win there too, in a sense.)

I was asked, if not once, a dozen times where Waverly was.  That, of course, made me smile and proud at the same time.  (She was recovering from her trip to Kenya and Tanzania.)

I’ve said many times:  I’m not the type that is the life of the party.  Never have been.  Never will be.  But there are those that know that if you’re truly a friend or somebody that I might like to have as a friend, I’ll do something – or make a solid effort - that honors and respects that.

The last time that I ran the Polish Pickle 5K was a perfect example of that.  It had been six years since I had last run the race and, quite honestly, that’s been a little too long.  (The community and race director Ken Yanowski do a great job and yesterday was a record-setting day for the race.)  When I did, Waverly and I made the drive as a stop on the way to Lubbock to watch our good friend, Kimberly Mac Namee (then Hager), compete in the Ironman 70.3 at Buffalo Springs Lake the following day.

We surprised Kim because she was the type of individual that didn’t want to take attention away from the athletes that she coached – then as part of Team Strive.

Two weeks before, I had made a nearly identical drive to Kosse to run the Greyhound 5K.  It was a race in my 81^st Texas city or town. 

I always joke that for those of us that aren’t as fast as the others, we have to have different goals.  Seriously, though, it is about having a good time and experiencing life in a unique way.

I’m sure if more people knew, they’d ask:  “You mean you drove two hours to run a 5K and then, once you got there, you didn’t race it?”

Indeed.  Once I could tell that I wasn’t “in it”, so to speak, I decided to run the entire race with Ken Johnson of the Seven Hills Running Club.  I hadn’t done this with Ken since a Run The Woodlands 5K or a TWRC Sunday Night 5K – and I enjoyed it and was glad that I did.

Ken was in Bremond on Saturday, as was a great group of members from the Seven Hills Running Club that I have started to reconnect with.

I believe that it was his 18^th consecutive time to run the Polish Pickle 5K. 

Over the years, I’ve learned that training groups, clubs, etc. can seem to be cliquish – and maybe I’m the only one that ever feels that way (and it is more me - which could very well be).  That I really dislike, though, and it inevitably drives me away. 

I enjoy investing time and energy in people who don’t seem to allow themselves to fall into that space – or let the group they belong to consume who they are as an individual.

There were a number of folks that I had the opportunity to meet during the Memorial Day 5K that Ken hosted from his house in the Timberwilde subdivision of Huntsville.

One of those was Laura Green, who paced off of me at the Memorial Day 5K to beat me by four seconds.

When I saw her and her husband, Glenn, I told her, “Hey, no drafting off me today!”

The beating – from her - was 14 seconds this Saturday, even though I was ahead until the turnaround.

Steve Bickford, who came down and ran all of the Texas Bridge Series races last year and is the club vice president, is always a pleasure to visit with and talk to.

And during the race, president Darren Grant, who gassed me out to a 9:0-something first mile at the Memorial Day 5K while chatting for four or five minutes, came up in the last mile and ran a little with me – as he had with many other club members.

Today was a 9:18 and Darren was nowhere to be found! 

I later learned that he started at the very end and used it as a way to keep himself from going out too fast.  Probably something I need to do the rest of the summer, but I think I have challenges with weaving around walkers and strollers.  We’ll see.  I’ll take it under advisement.

A good group from Houston – as there always is – made the trek north and took home their fair share of pickles!  The Polish Pickle 5K, for years, has been a road trip race for the Tornados Running Club and that was partly the case this Saturday.

Yet, a Terlinguan and BARCer is one that I’ve seen and connected with at races most of the time that I’ve been running – Ben Harvie.  He actually remembered being at the Polish Pickle Run when Waverly and I were last year (and oddly enough on Saturday I remembered coming up behind him in Austin – on the way back to our vehicles – after more than one race.)

Ben easily took home the top prize in the 65-69 division while Joe Oveido (35-39), Tuan Nguyen (50-54), Penn State alum Ed Fry (55-59) and Miguel Lopez (60-64) all won their age groups.  Catherine Kruppa, who spoke for us at The Woodlands Marathon Expo, won the women’s overall while John Yoder took the men’s masters title.

After the race, Catherine said, “Hello”, while I was talking a little bit with Ed and I told her that I needed for her to take off her sunglasses for me to recognize her!

Joining John in the winner’s circle – by grabbing the men’s veterans title - was Georgetown (or near-Austin) native Bill Schroeder, who I haven’t seen in quite some time.  Bill was a Houston Striders member at the same time I was and he and his wife, Mindy, were at the race.  They both also worked the aid station at the far end of the Texas Marathon course in Kingwood on New Year’s Day.  (I last ran it in 2009, but have “worked it” every year since.)

Likewise, there was a good group from The Woodlands, as there always seems to be.

Representing The Woodlands Running Club was Russell Meyer, Carlos Ortegon, Ann Leoni, Randy Bradley, Kristin Collins, Kathleen Eaton, Jennifer Perkins and Suz White.

Actually, I don’t think I have really met Suz formally, but she knew who I was.  I was greeted with the fact that I was “the voice”.  I said, “No, that’s really a 16-year-old from Cypress!”

Flattering?  Sure.

Russell won the Clydesdale division, beating the race director Ken Yanowski (and long-time division winner), but the biggest winner was Randy Bradley who won the $500 raffle!  Wow!  Ann was second in her age group while Kristin was third in hers.

Winning their age group in a personal best time was the daughter of a very good friend of mine, Holden Choi.  Allison, 18, a recent graduate of College Park High School, easily took her division in 20:27.  She’s been working with Bill Dwyer’s runners in an effort to position herself for a tryout for the University of North Texas cross country team.

Others who placed in their age group, included JC Guzman and Jose Torres of the Seven Hills Running Club.  JC won his 40-44 division in 19:39 while Jose was second in the 20-24 age group in 19:41.  Jose was the winner of the inaugural Texas10 Huntsville.

Ken was third in the 70-74 age group while it was good to see Jerry Flanagan at yet another 5K since having hip replacement surgery.

Also making the drive north – as I saw them at the Chisholm Trail Half Marathon in Crawford back in April – was Monica Montoya and Keith Cotropia.  It wasn’t until the last year or so that I actually knew who Keith was, even though I’ve been seeing his name in the results for years.  Monica came from behind and passed me after we turned on to Main Street.

Since a really good mid-April Saturday effort in Pennsylvania (in the cold weather), my 5K times haven’t been something to write about, but yesterday’s time was actually the best it has been since then.

And a special shout-out to Run Houston Timing's Jack McClintic for letting me stash my keys and my camera at his table while the race was going on.

Much work to do there, of course, and with me personally.

Original, Unedited (and Edited) Richard Tramm Story

Spring, Texas’ Richard Tramm doesn’t have the 147,103 followers on Twitter that two-time Ironman champion Chris McCormack has.

But the 50 or so that were following on Friday, November 9 quietly witnessed Tramm draw a line in the virtual sand.

“Ironman Texas 2013 goes off in 190 days and I plan to be there and ready to go on race day,” tweeted the happily married father of two grown daughters.

Not much of a reach from the Ironman athlete who reduced his time the most – by almost three hours (from 16:35:49 to 13:41:06) -- of the 243 who completed the first two Memorial Hermann Ironman Texas.

Quite another thing being just two weeks removed from a four-day ICU stay – the result of being hit from behind on a training ride by a vehicle’s side mirror.

The half Iron distance race that was two weeks away – with hopes of a fifth straight PR -- was dashed by at least five broken ribs (with many more bruised), a clavicle with four breaks which required surgery and a broken scapula.

Any self-pity, though, was left in the ditch where Tramm was found broken and battered, said his training partner, Karen Felicidario.

“I knew that the Oilman race was out, and I feared that perhaps all racing could be,” said Felicidario, the 100-mile trail finisher who will be attempting her first Ironman on Saturday.  “But as I visited Richard in the hospital, I could not help but notice the positive and encouraging outlook he has for his fellow teammates and others he was now imparting on himself.”

One which was cultivated from a journey which saw Tramm beginning to transform himself near the end of 2006 after a failed promise to get healthier after turning 40 the preceding Christmas.

“I had my annual checkup with my doctor,” he said.  “I kind of got that standard talk, ‘You’re over weight …’  He considered me pre-diabetic and went through some of the things I could expect if I developed diabetes as a result.”

Although Tramm recalls that he’s not certain, for quite some time, where his weight was, the number 290 wasn’t just the name of the highway to Austin.

“It helped me realize that it wasn’t the direction I wanted if I wanted to be around to see my daughters and one day their children grow up,” he added.

Yet over the next two years, he diligently progressed from the local 5Ks and 10Ks and beyond the half marathon culminating in the 30K in December 2008 where he ran the last 10K of the race with Heather Herrick.

Sporting the shirt of a triathlon Tramm had hoped to do one day, the Austin native sprouted the triathlon seed that Tammie Manchester, a fellow runner and triathlete from The Woodlands, had planted earlier that summer.

“I was running the weekly long run with The Woodlands Running Club and every now and then I would hear a story from someone,” Tramm said.  “Until then, I didn’t even know the concept of competitive triathlon even existed.

“I knew that Tammie had done it.  She was the first person that gave me any serious encouragement.”

In a year’s time, that support would buoy him from the community CB&I sprint triathlon, which starts in the same waters as Saturday’s Ironman Texas, through two half Ironman finishes (Ironman 70.3 Austin and Ironman 70.3 Texas).

With Galveston’s much flatter bike course and just over five months to prepare, Tramm believed that he had more than a six-minute improvement (from 7:58:38 to 7:52:07) in the tank.

“I knew that I could do better, but I didn’t quite know how to get there,” he said.

An Ironman was a logical thought progression and with one in Tramm’s back yard to be announced any day soon, he began contacting a number of groups and coaches.

He settled on The Woodlands’ Michelle LeBlanc, the founder of OutRival Racing, the official coach of Memorial Hermann Ironman Texas.

“I just felt like she was the right match,” he said.  “We talked for about an hour and I felt like she was the person that could get me to where I could realize my greatest personal potential.”

Tramm’s numbers on his initial athlete questionnaire might not have foretold that potential, LeBlanc acknowledged, but he quickly began to realize it.

“As an athlete, I learned long ago that sport isn’t about winning or losing,” she said.  “It’s about giving your best effort and being content with where that puts you in relation to others.  Richard was an example to me to transcend that belief into my coaching.”

Improvement is about making the right adjustments – for both the athlete and the coach.

“I enjoy working with athletes who give their best regardless of their times and finishing places,” she added.  “And Richard has turned out to be one of my most improved and one of the hardest, most disciplined (triathletes) that I’ve worked with.”

Tramm’s enthusiasm for triathlon has not only guided him through two Ironman finishes and a recovery from injury that has been nothing short of remarkable, but he started last year’s Ironman Texas at 175 pounds – just less than 40 percent of his weight when he started late in 2006.

“I was a little dubious as good as an athlete as Michelle was and is, but I’ve not regretted that decision to this day,” he said.  “If I had not gotten with her, I don’t think I would have gotten the improvement out of my training that I have now.”

And it was that fitness gained that he was fearful he would lose, leading him to closely confide in the orthopedic surgeon at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands during his second day in the hospital.

“He wasn’t sure that it was going to be possible,” Tramm said.  “He said if I recover well, and do what it takes to heal, recover and restore body, there’s no reason that it isn’t a possibility.  That became my driving motivation.”

Although cleared to begin full training in mid-February – a month later than in his previous two Ironman Texas, the 47-year-old finished Ironman 70.3 Texas in Galveston in early April in 6:13:04 – short of his pre-injury PR, but another brick in his long road of perseverance and tenacity.

“For the first time in a long time, I’m not coming into a race with any pre-conceived notions of what my pace will be or what my time goals are,” Tramm explained saying that his training has included more base work and less intensity with a goal to complete the distance.

“Because of my recovery, I’m not sure how my body is going to respond.  I’m going to follow a very basic race plan, according to my heart rate, and a solid nutrition plan.”

And when the gun goes off Saturday morning at Northshore Park, he says he’s “100% committed to completing that course on that day and at this point, it doesn’t matter what I’ve been through.  It will be to go – and finish.”

CB&I Event and Post-Event Report

I've been deficient in blogging recently, but had a little time after taking Waverly to church early for choir practice (and before I make it there for the 10:30 a.m. service).  Her Mom had to go get her from work yesterday because she didn't feel comfortable enough to drive home.

Therefore, I have some time to attempt to properly articulate much that occurred yesterday, Saturday, May 4.

More than a month ago, I reached out to Angel Nicks and Kelly Deitrich with the Parks and Recreation Department of The Woodlands Township to see if they needed me to finish line announce - as I have in the past - both the Muddy Trails 5K and 10K in early April and the 10th anniversary CB&I TRI sprint triathlon, which was yesterday.

Last year, I had announced Muddy Trails, but when I received the participant list for CB&I to begin preparation there were a few individuals in the field that I didn't feel as if I could have announced their finish as enthusiastically as everyone else.

Therefore, I walked away from something that I loved doing, plus being in the company of many people who I enjoy.

I didn't feel like I could be a hypocrite - and be Mr. Cheerful - when they were party to a vile and false accusation that one person in the community had leveled against me.

A lot of water under the bridge since then, though, and a lot of personal growth (especially when I would have to unexpectedly face it on Saturday.)

I had worked with the timer, Cadence Sports, at Muddy Trails and was working with them two weeks before to figure out a way to give the Montgomery County groups as much love as possible.

Leading up to the race, I e-mailed all of the groups to get a list of their club or training group's participants so I could get that inputted into the timer's database, but only one responded with their entire roster (OutRival Racing) and another with their first-timers (Finish Strong).

As with any other time, I did my best to give all of the groups as much love as possible - even when they didn't wear their club's racing kit.

Angel had e-mailed me on Thursday to indicate that their normal pre-race and swim-start announcer was only going to be able to stay until 9:30 a.m. and asked if I would be able to vacate the finish line and handle the awards ceremony.  I told Angel that I would do whatever was needed.

I was up at 3:30 a.m., out the door at about 4:05 a.m., got breakfast on the way and was parked and walked over to the race site by approximately 4:45 a.m.

Immediately, the effect of the Boston Marathon bombings were evident as there were at least four police dogs that had been engaged by various agencies.  When I race announce, I usually am all over the grounds in my way to network with people - picking up bits of information that I may use - and to actually relax.  I don't know that I ever get nervous.  I'm just more concerned about doing my job as well as possible.

A little after five, and after visiting a little with Kelly, Finish Strong Coaching's Dana Lyons (who was managing transition) and super volunteer and runner Barry Blanton, who's the face of the Montgomery County Light the Night Walk, I walked toward the finish line, which hadn't even been erected by the team from Luke's Locker.

As I did, with a camera bag over my left shoulder, one of four officers - two, of which were those with dogs - asked me where I was headed.  I told him that I was the race announcer (I had a sponsor badge on) and he said, "Ok", but I soon realized what it might have looked like.  Wow.  How things have changed in such a short time.

Hugh Frazier, who announces the USA Fit Marathon in Sugar Land, had been engaged to spell me at the finish line.  He had arrived during the 5 a.m. hour and as the 6 a.m. mark approached, I reazlied that we weren't hearing any pre-race announcements plus I didn't see Steve Curry from Skygod Productions yet.

As I'm still writing this report on Tuesday, I realized earlier this afternoon that I didn't read her e-mail completely and that Michael Garfield wasn't going to make it at all -- and it would be all on me!

We figured it out on race morning nonetheless.  And thanks to Hugh having the waves printed - as well as some sponsor information, we were able to navigate through two 15-minute delays, the race director and USAT official briefings and an incredible invocation (Pastor Frankie Mazzapica of Celebration Church of the Woodlands) and National Anthem (by The Woodlands High School sophomore Andrea Zhobar).

After making it through about eight of the swim waves, Hugh took over the last four to five while I vacated to the finish line (which is what I love the most at this event).

Steve was just getting everything setup as the first elite runners hit the run course.

His sound was awesome this year as my best friend Bill Dwyer said that he could hear me - not clearly - on the run course in East Shore (in The Woodlands).

Again, at a certain point, I vacated the finish line (where Hugh took over) and made my way to the awards area to handle these.  I worked with Angel and Cadence to make sure that everything was in order.

Triny Aguirre won overall female, but her time didn't read.  I was able to validate one of the individuals in front of her, but that they were in a different age group.  Once that was determined, as well as confirming that Geri Henry had finished (she was the only 65-69 female), we were ready to go.

I really don't think anything of getting in front of a crowd and speaking -- and being relevant.

I introduced Bruce Tough, the Chairman of the Board of the Board of the Directors of The Woodlands Township and he presented the fine folks from CB&I with an impressive crystal piece of work for their 10-year sponsorship of the event.  The only mistake that I made was that I meant to introduce those athletes who had competed every year early in the ceremony to gave them maximum face time in front of all of those waiting for the awards.  (I apologized to them later - when I remembered.)

It went well.  I was pleased with the effort.

I usually make a note about who I saw during an event and talked to.  Ha!  I had great conversations and interactions with many, many people.  Some that stood out included Karen Ponette-Maldonado, Richard Tramm, Scott Farrand, Chris White and Greg Colvin.

About the comment earlier having to deal with something from last year?

At about 6 a.m., when I went over to transition to try to get in touch with Dana to make an announcement or two about transition, I turned to my left - no more than 11 a.m. on the clock, so to speak - and the person that claimed to have filed a police report on me the Monday after Thanksgiving 2011 with the MCSO was standing within five (5) feet of me.

What was claimed to have been filed was absolutely untrue and I was never, ever contacted by anyone over it.  Later in the morning (coming from the finish line to the award stage -and- coming from the restroom - in front of a row of sponsor tents - back to the stage), I - and completely inadvertently - would pass within the same distance of that person twice.

Honestly, I went about my business as if they didn't exist.  Tough to say that about somebody who you once considered a friend.

Speaking of friends, however, Bill told me that Volte was having a double secret surprise social at Goose's Acre that evening for J.C. Morrell (and his wife's) baby show and Juliee Sparks' birthday.

I stopped in to visit Mick Long and Rick Cook at Fleet Feet Sports in Shenandoah (to let Mick know that I wasn't going to debut my Internet radio show - the Texas Endurance Sports Hour - as planned last Sunday) and then made it home to get a couple of hours sleep.

I was hoping Waverly could have gone with me, but she had come home from work sick.  It was her next to last day of work (at her part-time job at a dress shop).

Even though CB&I was pretty spectacular, I think the evening was just as good - in many, many ways.

I had shared with a couple of what it felt like to have to back out of something because you didn't know if people were talking about you in the background - and one half of the duo explained that they understood from some personal experiences they had lived through.

A lot of times, especially in the last two months, I have shied away from a lot of formal and informal group functions because a lot of times I don't feel like I fit in (and I worked a lot of races, too, during that time as well).

Otherwise, I talked with a few in the group a little longer than I have in the past - and maybe some additional opportunities will present themselves in the future.

As they say, only time will tell, right?