Category Archives: export-health

2007 IKEA Half Marathon

Yesterday morning I ran the IKEA Half Marathon. It was very humid, which was less than ideal, but between the light drizzle and the temperature being about 20° cooler than last year, the conditions were pretty good. Things got off to a bad start for me, though, because the organizers banned iPods this year. That really pissed me off. Consequently, I may boycott this and any other race that bans iPods.

Anyhow, I’d hoped to finish under 2 hours, but I’m not disappointed with my 2:03:07 (9:24 pace). I wonder how the use of an iPod would have affected my time. Also, I had to pee at about 4.5 miles, which cost me at least a minute. Damn you, enlarged prostate!.

2007 Gatorade Steelers 5K

On September 1, I ran the Gatorade Steelers 5K. I finished in a reasonable 25:27 (8:12 pace). I want to break 25:00, so I guess I’ll have to do it at Run Shadyside.

The race started at least 15 minutes late because we had to listen to umpteen introductions of honored guests (yawn) and wait for late-comers to register. The course was incredibly boring. If I thought looping around a parking lot was exciting I’d watch NASCAR. The biggest disappointment, though was that the mayor beat me with a time of 24:34. He’s running the Great Race, and I will not let him beat me again.

It’s on, Mayor Opie, and you’re going down.

2007 Run Around the Square 5K

On August 25, I ran the Run Around the Square 5K. Since I’d run about 9 miles the day before (in preparation for the IKEA Half Marathon), I treated the race as a tempo run. I finished in 27:59 (9:01 pace), which isn’t great (and is actually kinda slow for a tempo run), but at least I beat the mayor, who finished in 29:18. 😉

2007 Brentwood Firecracker 5K

On July 4th, I volunteered for and ran in my first Brentwood Firecracker 5K. It was very well organized, especially considering how large it was (~1300 runners). Registration went smoothly, the race started on time, there was plenty of food (and beer!), and the door prizes were well worth sticking around for. Kudos to race director (and West Penn Track Club secretary Janice Boyko).

I finished 36/74 in my class and 462/1319 overall with a time of 25:24 (8:11 pace). I have high hopes of finishing this year’s Run Shadyside in under 25:00. I have plenty of time to train and the Shadyside course is a lot flatter (and therefore easier) than this was.

2007 Us Too Fathers’ Day 10K

Well, this year’s Us Too Fathers’ Day 10K wasn’t entirely as bad as last year’s (which, BTW, seems worse in hindsight than it did at the time). It wasn’t great, either.

Pros:

  • It was a lot cooler than last year.
  • The walkers started at different time and didn’t collide with the runners.
  • I finished 4:12 faster than last year.

Cons:

  • There were only 2.5 water stations. That .5 is for a stop where bottled water was handed out. Who the hell wants/needs bottled water during a 10K?!
  • The 5K and 10K runners started at the same time. Consequently, the starting line and the first mile of the course were ridiculously crowded. The course is just too narrow to accommodate both races.

I finished 14/23 in my class and 178/321 overall with a time of 54:17 (8:44 pace). My good buddy Kevin crossed at the same time as me, which is pretty impressive since this was his first 10K ever. Also, congratulations are deserved by fellow West Penn Track Club members Larry Van Dyke and Carl Hubel, who finished fifth and eighth, respectively.