Nothing like a good morning run to clean out the cobwebs and get a fresh start. I haven't been doing much since Capt'n Karl's run. I've gone on a long runs each of the past weekends, but my heart hasn't been in it. Either I was feeling sick or tired or sick and tired. You know the drill.

Well, I finally feel back in the groove. Got on the trail at 4:30 and ran around until 8. Guess I needed a good purging of the soul. And this heat and humidity is the perfect remedy for that.

Not much coming up on the running front until the Lake Bryan run in Sept. So I'll just have to hunker down and keep up some semblance of conditioning until then.

What a great morning of running. My last long run before the 12-hour race on 7/8/06. I was so pumped to get out there I woke up an hour early and got out on the trail at 4 am. Yes, you read that right. I pulled out my headlamp which I hadn't used since the 50 mile race and it just fit like a glove. It is always surreal running with that LED gently shining the way.

I didn't see a single soul for the first 8 miles, just pure bliss. Then, everyone started coming out for their weekend runs. I always enjoy seeing other people out on the trails. It's just nice to know that there are other kindred souls out there.

To top off a perfect run, it started raining about mile 16 and there was a nice steady rain that really did the trick in cooling me off. Heck, I was already drenched with sweat so what's the difference. I finished off the last 4 miles and hopped back in the car to get on with my day.

All in all, it was a really rejuvenating experience. One of those that you wish could go on forever, but you know that you need to end before things turn sour.

Helped out around the house this afternoon, moving bookshelves around and vacuuming. Going to reward ourselves by watching some acrobat dancers lunge off the Intel building shell that they're going to demolish soon to put up a new Federal courthouse.

Tomorrow, we're making plans to head out and do some toobing. (That's floating down a river on some floatation device for you non-Texans.) 

This summer I've been taking a guitar class at Austin Community College. I have always wanted to learn an instrument of some type, so I'm pretty pumped to do this.

About 3 years ago, I bought a guitar at a local pawn shop with the intention of learning how to play it. I signed up for a course, but it was a little too fast paced for me. The only thing I go out of it was that I learned about 7 christmas carols, plucking one note at a time. I was just a one trick pony for quite awhile.

Well I finally got around to getting my butt in gear and I've been going to this class for 4 weeks and really doing the practice exercises for about 15-20 minutes a day. I've really enjoyed taking some time for myself each day. We've learned lots of cool blues tunes and rock riffs along with just starting to master the chords and strumming patterns. It is so much nicer than Christmas carols.

So we'll see where this leads. I'm just taking it slow and trying to enjoy the ride.

Well, it's summertime here in Texas and that means lots of 5 am wake up calls on the weekend to get in some miles before the sun rises and we get to baking in that hot Texas sun.

I've been in kind of a funk since my 50 mile finish at Rocky Raccoon back in February. I attribute it to achieving my goal and not setting a new goal. Well I've weathered that storm and am glad that Brad Quinn is organizing this new race up at Inks Lake State Park in Burnet, TX on the night of July 8, 2006. I'm training for the 12 hour run that starts at 7 pm and goes until 7 am.

I've had some nice training run in the heat of the late afternoon - a 27.5 miler at Town Lake in Austin last weekend and I'm planning more of the same this weekend. The race isn't all that far way in fact. I gotta remember to take a week off prior to it.

There's something very meditative to a long run like that. I really get into a zone and it's difficult to explain it to someone who has never experienced it.

My mid-week cardio training has been going well. I'm renewing my reputation as a running fiend during the lunch hour. Even the contractors who have been remodeling our offices are starting to recognize me and say "Hi".

I typically do a 5K loop around the neighborhood near my office. I try to do it Monday - Thursday and take Friday off before a Sat. morning long run. Some days I run hard and the others I'll take it easy. Oh, and I also walk to and from work which is a little over 2 miles each way. I think I've really benefited from the overall general exercise.

For the 50 mile training, I did lots of back-to-back long runs, but for this I haven't felt the need for it. I'm not really looking to accomplish anything for this 12 hour run. I really just want to get back in the swing of things and get my head on straight.

My tentative plan for running over the next 6 months is:

7/8/06 - 12 hour charity run, Inks Lake State Park, Burnet, TX

9/17/06 - Lake Bryan, TX 35K trail run

10/16/06 - Columbus, OH marathon (my uncle lives there and I haven't visited him for awhile)

Dec. 2006 - Sunmart 50K in Huntsville, TX. (I'd like to finish this race once in my life. Two years ago I broke my foot about 3 weeks prior to the race and last year I DNF'ed for the 50 mile, by not making the cutoff.)

Late Feb. 2007. Houston Ultra Weekend at Bear Creek Park. I'd like to attempt my first 100 miler there since they've got a 48 hour race window and I may need every minute of it ;) I don't think I could make the 30 hour cutoff at most of the races right now, so for my first I think I can do it with the extra buffer they have.

Keep you all posted as things progress.