it has been a long couple weeks in the running game. some great workouts. some not so great races.
track workout tomorrow, but for today check out the press release for Speed River’s great new partnership: http://www.runnerspace.com/news.php?news_id=22941-Speed-River-Track-Club-And-Sprint-Management-Announce-Partnership
and by the way. CIS we coming for you: http://gryphons.ca/news/2012/1/17/SWIM_0117121314.aspx
Gryph What.
jan 12th. no snow. no complaints. last night we were out on our big 400m oval up at a local high school. 400 repeats. feel good. have fun. check. be fast. be strong. check. be ready for the weekend. be fearless. check.
we were out last night for a session on cook’s mill road. it was a dark and damp day and it was almost surreal to see all the runners in their bright winter clothes against the backdrop of dull brown winter forest and pale yellow dead grass. there were different groups doing different workouts, all of which were mixed zone type of work.
it was a hard workout for me out there. one of those days when the harder you go the slower you go and the more relaxed you try and be the more you flail. how was your workout? some one asked back in the cold tub - long day at the office i replied. it’s a pretty common saying for us.
…day at the office.
Milne is the man. Dedicated to the group. Dedicated to excellence. He solo’d a 2.20 1k on a flat track and then came back to pace his Speed River/Guelph Gryphon teammates in the 1500m. No complaining. Not afraid of work.
If only all elite Canadian Mid Distance guys had his integrity of character.
good to have the guys back together. race tomorrow at UofT. the 1k is loaded. just got to hop on the train and not fall off. we’re gonna kill it.
the third lap of a 15 is the hardest. i think i’m staying on pace, even pushing it and then i hear the split. shit. too slow. making it to 800 is easy but making it home…that’s the hard part.
on new years day I ran a mile repeat workout. i was supposed to be in North Carolina (where it was frickin beautiful!) with my team mates, but some family stuff came up and I returned early to Guelph. It was just above 0, very windy and icy up at St. James (indoor tracks were all closed) but I had to go to work.
the workout started out a little slow. to be honest i was feeling a little sorry for myself out there. 400m slow. 600, slow. 800, fucking slow. Come on you bastard. You’re out here already. You going to waste your fucking time? 1k, faster, 1200, faster, 1600m acceptable.
for the next intervals get out faster. right off the line was the only thing i was thinking to myself. and then in my third lap who are you waiting for? nobody’s going to give this to you. nobody cares about how fast you run. you’ve got to take it. you’ve got to fucking take it.
fantastic article written about our group. see some shots of cooks mill, the varsity squad, and CP hills!
clicking on the link above will take you to the page for my spoken word/hip hop project Run Monster Run.
For me, one of the most important things in life is creativity. Whether it is the simple and physical creativity of running through forests and leaving footsteps or the more intricate creativity of songwriting and poetry.
Enjoy and pass it along if you like it.
one thing i’ve learned this year is that the universe don’t care much for my plans. the universe don’t care about my workouts. the universe don’t carea bout my grades. the universe don’t care about my health. the universe don’t care if i win CIS.
the only thing i can do is control the controllable - don’t be too crazy on new years eve, shovel the St. James track, put on an extra pair of tights for the wind and the rain, and run on.
…always run on.
