HOW COLD WAS IT...?

It was so cold . . .UN weapons inspectors suddenly decided that chemical weapons might be hidden in Hawaii! (Rimshot)

It was so cold...roosters were rushing into Kentucky Fried Chicken and begging to use the pressure cooker! (Rimshot)

It was so cold . . .a flasher rushed up to poor Mrs. Flannigan - and described himself! (Rimshot)

It was so cold...we had lunch down at the "Greasy Spoon" - just for the heartburn! (Rimshot)

It was so cold...people were ice fishing ON Lake Galena Sunday morning when I went out for my 8 mile run.

Now, I will tell you the truth, I don't remember Lake Galena being THAT frozen before on my weekend runs. And, I was a little nervous for them as I was running by. I was thinking, 'how would I contact help if they fell through?'. Then, I saw them drill a hole through the ice. And drill. And drill. It took awhile before they hit non-frozen water. Yes, it has been that cold. But, you probably knew that already.

My Sunday morning run, yesterday, was a test for me in different ways. First, a test of my motivation. It was 18 degrees (F) when I started my run. And, in truth, Lake Galena probably wasn't the best place to run that day. The winds were whipping up on various parts of the course so it felt a lot colder. There weren't too many runners (or anyone else) out there. So, I had to convince myself not to pack it in and go back to my nice warm car.

Secondly, a test of my endurance. I have done more cross-training lately to try to perserve some endurance. But, as you know, cross-training helps but does not take the place of running. So, as I was running, it was hard to figure out whether I was getting fatigued from my lack of endurance or just breathing in iced air. Probably a little bit of both. Not sure what others think but...can you feel just as tired from the extreme cold as you do from the extreme heat? Not sure.

And, thirdly, it was a test of my left Achilles. It has been feeling good. And, I have a tendency to baby injuries as not to re-injure myself. I wasn't feeling too bad except the last mile. And, then my ankle was feeling sore. After my run, I knew why. My legs were very tight. The wind took its toll as I hardly was able to bend. I went home to massage and coddle my ankle. Took anti-inflammatories. And, it's fine today. So, that's a good sign.

So, the next few months should be interesting as I try to regain my endurance. Here in Bucks County, PA we've been lucky as we have avoided most of the snow this season. But, they are calling for 4-7 inches Tuesday night into Wednesday. (There goes my Wednesday running group for this week.) Back to the treadmill. And, I am going to rely more and more on cross training until spring to continue to heal. In the meantime, does anyone know what kind of fish you can get from Lake Galena that you would want to spend your day out there?

(Notes: If you were in stitches over my 'How cold was it? jokes (And, who doesn't love a 'how cold was it? joke?) here is the link from the material I borrowed. http://www.athropolis.com/jokes3.htm

One of my 'random thoughts' I had last week, was a question I have that has been bugging me for years. I grew up Roman Catholic and attended Catholic schools for 12 years. I am intrigued by other religions. IMy belief in religion is that no one religion is right but none of them are wrong. The basic principle is the same: love one another as you love yourself. But, I digress from my question. My question is: How do Protestant faiths choose their saints? For instance, in Catholicism, there are procedures before someone is declared a saint. I know there are saints in Protestant faiths as I drive past the St. James Lutheran church In Chalfont on my way to Lake Galena. So, are Protestant saints just the apostles? Do they have new saints? If so, how? I have asked and try to google looking for this answer but can never find information on this. If you know, please post a comment. I'm very curious.
Also, for those who believe in prayer, if I can ask you to please pray for my father's recovery. Thanks.)

Running around the lake

My new year goals 'officially' kicked off this week as I was still under the weather last week. I did manage to start setting up my 'program' by reading 'Runner's World Guide to Cross-Training' by Matt Fitzgerald. As stated previously, I want to strength train and stretch more and this book gives me some guidance. I was going to go up to the Delaware River on Sunday but decided to go to the lake for a few reasons. 1) Having 'sat out' last week, I didn't know how much I would be able to do comfortably. 2) The lake is closer to my house and I had to get home on time to get on-line to purchase Phillies spring training tickets (I did. Phils-Twins on March 15. 20 rows behind home plate).

I did six on Sunday though I had trouble breathing in the beginning. It was one of those days that you can't get comfortable. I started towards the dam which is the windy part of the course. I was freezing and thought I should have dressed warmer. After about three miles and deeper in the woods, I was very warm and thought I shouldn't have worn so much clothing. I think everyone out there felt the same way. After the run, I took the time to stretch more than I've had previously. Monday, I followed some of the exercises in the book on strength training. And, tonight, I will be playing racquetball for other cross-training.

Around here, I have two favorite areas for my long runs--either going up to the Delaware River and run on the paths on either the New Jersey or Pennsylvania side (or both to do a loop) or go up to Lake Galena. Today, I want to talk about and give a little history of Lake Galena.

(The picture at the very top is 'our' starting/finishing point when running around the lake. The water fountain is very important landmark as, when you see it, 'you're almost there!' The picture right above is the lake from the nature center area. )

Lake Galena is part of Peace Valley Park in New Britain Township, Pennsylvania. There is an approximately six mile path (the inner loop) for walking, bicycles and running that goes around the lake. Part of the path uses Creek Road on the south side of the lake. There is an approximately 8 mile run (the outer loop) which encompasses the path but also takes you outside of the park and in the neighborhood. There are various races through the year held here, as it is a natural 10k course, but, I'm most involved with the 'Friends of the Dove' 10k held each September.

On the east side of the lake, you run through part of the Peace Valley Nature Center. The nature center offers 14 miles of nature trails in the woods and meadows. More than 250 species of birds have been sighted in this area and the park is designated as an Important Birding Area (IBA) by the PA Audubon Society. The Solar Building, Sunflower shop and Bird Seed Sale Barn are open from 9a to 5p Tuesday through Sunday. For more information, go to peacevalleynaturecenter.org.

The lake itself is a man-made lake constructed in the 1970's. The area was a mining area from the 1860's to the 1930's. The lake covers the largest mine pit that was made during that time. The area was mined for various minerals not just one. Besides uranium, gold, silver and copper, it was especially noted to have a substantial amount of zinc and lead ore (also known as 'galena').

There is evidence that the Lenni Lenape tribe, who lived in these parts, fashioned implements from lead in the local creek beds. It is known that the lead ore found in the area was smelted to make musket balls for George Washington's army when they were camped at Valley Forge in 1777/78. And, cannonballs were made for the Union army during the United States Civil War from the ore mined here.

You would think running around the lake would be flat. For the most part it is, but, around the nature center, three miles into the run from either direction, is a fairly steep hill that goes for about 3/4 mile.

So, if you are out this way on a Sunday morning, chances are you will not be alone as it is one of the most popular areas to run in central Bucks county.

(Below is the picture of the dam, which I've mentioned quite a few times on this blog. It is on the west side of the lake. Note: The pictures were taken with my new mini-camera I bought which easily fits in my pocket for my run. Tell me what you think.)

Should I start to marathon train now?

June is the decision month of when (or if) I'm doing a marathon. I belong to an e-mail group of runners in the Doylestown area training for the Mohawk Valley marathon. I received an e-mail from the group last week that training for this event should start June 4th (Yikes!). I haven't counted but I didn't think it was 16 weeks away for that event. I did look at other websites and they suggest June 25 as the start of training. (Yes, I know I should REALLY just count the weeks out myself but now rely on the internet to do everything for me.)

In any event, I did have a chance to go out 4 times last week. I ran 6 miles around Lake Galena on Tuesday night. I did my usual stupid thing and sprinted the first 2 miles even though it was in the 80s (F). Note to self--it's summertime and you can't do that anymore. I wound up run/walk the last 4 miles.

Thursday night, I ran 2.5 miles with my wife in New Britain Park. She is training for a 5k and hopes to do a 10k by summer's end. I find these runs beneficial as it is (a) quality time with my wife and (b) short, slower runs keep me loose.

Saturday was 5 miles around my neighborhood and it was hot again. Nice, sunny, beautiful, hot day. And I ran around noontime. I don't do well on these kind of days but I did finish the course I set out to do.

Sunday was around Lake Galena again in Peace Valley Park. It was a nice slow run and did 7 miles. So, not bad, 20.5 miles for the week.

I bought a SUV with a bike rack on the roof and finally had the chance to figure out the bike rack part of it. My wife bought a bike for me a few years ago but, since I started running, really didn't have a chance to use it. But now, I'll be taking it in this week for a tuneup and start using it for cross-training.

All of this is a radical departure in my marathon training from the past. I've seen websites and articles of how many times and what I SHOULD do to train. But, reality always strikes and had to settle to run when I can and pretty much rely on the scheduled long runs to get me through a marathon. Hence, my half marathon PR time is not a clear indication of what I have done with a marathon PR.

Because I know I don't train well for marathons, I don't get too competitive about it and do it for fun (sort of like taking a sledgehammer to your legs for the fun of it.) Don't get me wrong. I DO want to break 5 hours and even 4:30. But, I don't get too upset if I don't. I hope I can keep up the training schedule I did last week, for the whole summer.

(Note: On the Falmouth Road Race website, it states that if you haven't heard by June 4 from them, then you can safely assume you are in the race as the lottery was May 30. I haven't heard and neither has Steve so it looks like the race is on! All of the above is for marathon training but I also want to make sure I'm in the best shape I can be to beat Steve this year at Falmouth! Right now, I know I have the people from the Doylestown area and Nigel from the 'Running from the Reaper' podcast in support of me to beat Steve. He will be buying the beers after the race!)