67alecto - Warrior Dash!

[Kishi]

Yeah. I'm not sure, but I think every time you have a transaction on Craigslist and you don't die, it's like an extra life or something.

[cacodaemonia]

Bonus points were awarded for not getting beaten, robbed, or killed during the exchange!

LOL, so true. XD

I know you're not terribly concerned about being slower when you don't have someone pacing you, but do you have an Android phone or iPhone? I have an app called Cardio Trainer on my Android and I have it set to notify me every .1 mile. Each time it also tells me my pace, so it's good for making sure you don't go too slow or too fast.

[67alecto]

LOL, so true. XD

I know you're not terribly concerned about being slower when you don't have someone pacing you, but do you have an Android phone or iPhone? I have an app called Cardio Trainer on my Android and I have it set to notify me every .1 mile. Each time it also tells me my pace, so it's good for making sure you don't go too slow or too fast.

I still don't have a smart phone. I had AT&T forever (Cingular before), and I was tired of a $90 bill for two phone lines and 1mb of data each month. So I switched to Virgin Mobile since they had 300 minutes of talk time plus unlimited data, text, and web for $25 ($26.90 w/ taxes) per month and no contract.

At the time, the smart phone that was available was some flavor of Blackberry, and I opted instead for the LG Rumor Touch. My brother in law designs UI for AT&T phones, and he advised me my phone falls into the "Quick Messaging Device" category. About 3 months after I got this phone, Virgin added a Droid, but I'm not in any hurry to switch.

[67alecto]

Switched things up today and did some HIIT lawn mowing. The way to do this is know that you have to mow the lawn today and realizing that you only have enough gas to fill it slightly less than half full, with the knowledge that it typically takes a hair under a full tank to get it all mowed.

So, an extremely fast paced lawn mowing was done.

It was so dry and hot this summer, that this is literally the 4th time I've mowed since mid-June. We had the lawn seeded a month ago, and between the rain we finally started getting and the watering I've been doing (twice a day for two weeks, then every day for two weeks, and now ever other day), it was getting very shaggy.

[Robzilla1983]

Switched things up today and did some HIIT lawn mowing. The way to do this is know that you have to mow the lawn today and realizing that you only have enough gas to fill it slightly less than half full, with the knowledge that it typically takes a hair under a full tank to get it all mowed.

So, an extremely fast paced lawn mowing was done.

It was so dry and hot this summer, that this is literally the 4th time I've mowed since mid-June. We had the lawn seeded a month ago, and between the rain we finally started getting and the watering I've been doing (twice a day for two weeks, then every day for two weeks, and now ever other day), it was getting very shaggy.

Lol at hiit lawn mowing. That cracked me up

[cacodaemonia]

Lol at hiit lawn mowing. That cracked me up

Haha, same here! Power mowing. XD

[67alecto]

Internet was dead yesterday, so I couldn't get on to log my run. Did the full 2.05 mile stretch of the greenway trail (previously I had a turnback point at the .75 and .88 mile sections. Ran the whole thing, without stopping. Run being a generous description, as it took me 27:01. In my defense, the hills on this stretch are freaking insane.

I plan to do a 5k tomorrow night in the neighborhood.

[67alecto]

5k-ish completed. It was actually 3.13 miles. 33:52.

First mile: 9:15

Second mile: 10:50

Last 1.13 miles: 13:47 (12:12 mile pace...ack)

First, the excuses:

This is my standard 5k course that I've been walking/jogging since about 2 months in to starting to lose weight back in 2009. As the 2nd mile is nearly done, the circuit takes a left turn and goes up a pretty steep hill. It levels off as it turns another corner, but then begins a long, steady incline. About 1/3rd of the way up this long stretch is the 2-mile mark. In all, it's about .3 miles, and my legs never recovered.

I never stopped jogging, but I just could not seem to pick up the pace again.

Now, the first good thing. My 2-mile time was 36 seconds faster than last time.

Another good thing. The last time I ran this I did it in 36:12 right before I ran in my first official 5k race.

So overall, an improvement of 2:20 since this past spring (and with 0 running between May 14th and August 30th).

[Kishi]

Well, that is officially a level-up it sounds like. At least, that's how I'm reading it.

[smurray]

I know you have to be pumped right now. The guys I work with were ready to get rid of me the last week before my dash. You will have no problem conquering that course and earning your victory. Good luck and have fun.

[67alecto]

Current forecast for the Warrior Dash is partly cloudy and a high of 70. They had some significant rain the other day in St. Louis, and the forecast calls for rain through mid-week.

[67alecto]

Decided it was time to delve into the Warrior Dash experience by reading all of the accounts and reviews people have posted.

what I've taken away

It will be just about impossible to run the course because of the bottlenecks at the obstacles and the general crowding on the trails due to the "fun" atmosphere.

My legs are going to get torn up during the crawling and mud.

My clothes will be a lost cause (which means I'll go with the Iron Maiden Killers shirt).

Parking will be a nightmare (luckily, I have a jeep).

Mud will be everywhere.

I need to bring a couple of gallons of water to rinse off since the official wash station will be a brief encounter with a fire hose.

[Kishi]

That... is not an inaccurate way of approaching the matter.

[nightlight]

bring a couple of towels to put in the drivers seat for your drive home, too. maybe a couple of layers in case you get cold?

[cacodaemonia]

Might not be a bad idea to bring some rubbing alcohol and bandaids for the inevitable boo-boos, as well.

[67alecto]

That... is not an inaccurate way of approaching the matter.

That's just what I've taken away from ready approximately 2 dozen accounts. That, and that 2 people died at the one in Kansas City 2 months ago (heat stroke), and another person was paralyzed (and might have died) after diving headfirst into the mudpit at the one in Michigan on the same day.

My goal is to run the whole thing as long as the terrain allows it. My co-workers did their "Hellrun" in just over an hour, and I want to crush that time.

[67alecto]

Winding down as Warrior Dash is less than a week away. I'm going to run some hills again Wednesday, and will take Thursday and Friday off.

Ran 2.04 miles tonight with my son. He found it very novel that we were running at night.

.86 mile run in 8:42 (10:07 mile split) to my son's school, where I then "played" on the playground equipment. I hoisted myself on top of the 3 different chest-high bars, climbed over the 7' vertical cargo net (made of chains) and down the other side, did inverted rows on the ladder, hung from the monkey bars, did some partial pullups and negatives on the bars and rings, dips on the benches, and walked the balance beam several times.

Then, we had the remaining 1.18 miles which we did in 12:03. That works out to a 10:13 mile split, which I am particularly happy with considering almost half of it consists of a very long, steep, and winding hill. I was keeping ahead of my son as we approached the hill, and as we started up it, he took the lead. I caught up to him and passed him as he started walking about 3/4ths of the way up. He sprinted to catch up as we came on to the homestretch. He was even with me for awhile, then pulled ahead. I caught up to him, and just as I got to his heels, he found another gear and pulled away again.

I was happy with my kick, and his was great. He is nearly done with his Cross Country club, and will have a race the week after Warrior Dash.

[Kishi]

Nice runs, both of you! Also, aren't playgrounds the best thing when nobody is playing on them?

[WolfpackAtl]

good luck on the warrior dash. i would suggest not wearing cotton as its a pain as soon as it gets wet. dri fit and quick drying shorts are the best so you arent trudging along in soaking wet clothes the whole time. bring a change of clothes as well if you plan on staying after and drinking and hanging out. also bring another pair of shoes and socks to change into along with a towel.

you should be able to run the whole course if you get near the front of the pack you wont be slowed down at all. i ran the VA WD and was near the back of the heat when i started so it was slow going for a little bit but ended up passing a lot of people within the first half mile. the course was very muddy.

good luck. you will enjoy it

[67alecto]

good luck on the warrior dash. i would suggest not wearing cotton as its a pain as soon as it gets wet. dri fit and quick drying shorts are the best so you arent trudging along in soaking wet clothes the whole time. bring a change of clothes as well if you plan on staying after and drinking and hanging out. also bring another pair of shoes and socks to change into along with a towel.

you should be able to run the whole course if you get near the front of the pack you wont be slowed down at all. i ran the VA WD and was near the back of the heat when i started so it was slow going for a little bit but ended up passing a lot of people within the first half mile. the course was very muddy.

I'm going to bite the bullet and wear a cotten T-shirt - Iron Maiden Killers. It's old, and it's too big, so I don't care if I have to throw it away. They just totally updated the Missouri Warrior Dash map with almost completely different obstacles. No water/mud until the end (rain is moving out of the area after tomorrow), so the time I spend running in a heavy, wet, muddy shirt will be short. Forecast is 20% chance of rain and 70 on Thursday, and then sunny and 72 for Friday and Saturday. Perfect.

Shorts will be be the dri-star material, and I'll also have dri-star compression shorts on underneath. Saucony trail running shoes (which I've actually come to really like, so I'll make an effort to clean them afterwards), and cushioned running socks.

I'll have a full change of clothes, a couple of gallons of water for rinsing off, multiple towels, and trashbags.

I'm not fast enough to stay ahead of the pack. With someone pacing me, I can maintain a 9-minute mile, otherwise, I tend to zone out and run around 9:40-10:30 as the miles tick by.

[cacodaemonia]

Glad to hear you should be dry most of the way! And nice job on the run with your son. It's really cool that you guys do fitness activities together!

[67alecto]

Winding down as Warrior Dash is less than a week away. I'm going to run some hills again Wednesday, and will take Thursday and Friday off.

Ran 2.04 miles tonight with my son.

.86 mile run in 8:42 (10:07 mile split) to my son's school, where I then "played" on the playground equipment.

Then, we had the remaining 1.18 miles which we did in 12:03. That works out to a 10:13 mile split, which I am particularly happy with considering almost half of it consists of a very long, steep, and winding hill.

Last run before Warrior Dash.

Did a slightly shorter, but more hilly path the school - .76 miles in 7:31 (9:53/mile split).

Spent 3 minutes at the playground - inverted rows, climbing ladders, dips, and balance beam.

Then did the same trek back as last time - up the big, winding hill and 1.18 miles. Did it 11:51 this time (10:03/mile split) which was 12 seconds faster than last time.

[catspaw]

You're gonna do great.

[bigm141414]

Excellent job man. You'll dash in fine warrior fashion! Can't wait to hear your results

[Kishi]

You're ready. You're so ready. You're more ready than I was, anyway. Now it's time to kill this.