I have to admit, finding energy to recap this past week is a bit tough. Over the last week I experienced such a hodgepodge of emotion that really writing about my week of training just seems like such, well, so small in the grand scheme of things. Jotting my thoughts out has always helped a bit and adding an Instagram post just doesn’t seem right for the moment or topic so I’ll just use this. Seeing as I paid another year of subscription for this domain, I better keep using it.
This past week began with a bit of an outline for what the remaining block was to be. After setbacks over this past month and issues with what feels like my entire right leg, this block would be much more cautious than previous blocks. 60 miles on the week. I would be traveling to Boston on Thursday after work so this would be a welcomed week to be a little bit down in milage.
The week kicked off on a high note with some early miles with Ian. The morning was a bit chilly but I’d highly welcome a real feel of 19 than -10 like we had the previous week. Chats around shoes, the state of running culture, and of course running influencers. It was an hour or yapping. The adjustment to my social media intake and these weekly checkins have seemed to be a bit of a help for just my general energy surrounding all things running in this day and age.
Wednesday would be my first workout where I’d try to scrape some of the rust off. It was a modified fatigued miles type of workout. 4 miles at marathon pace + ~30 seconds, half mile jog, then 5x 3 minutes at 5:00 mile pace with 1 minute jog recovery. Max joined me without hesitation. I continued to still have issues with my left leg, lingering tightness around the knee following it locking up before Christmas break, but the uptempo miles weren’t too tough. We tried not to get too carried away with ourselves there:
5:49-5:47-5:49-5:47
Knowing the state of my left leg, I decided it was probably best that I took these next reps off the road and hit the track. I ran out of time with the half mile jog and started my first rep on the roads just as parents were dropping their kids off at school. I successfully made it to the track without being run down but my pace took a hit. No worries, we’d get on it. I was almost right on with the next four but man did it feel like I was doing a lot of work to get myself into rhythm. Aerobically, not horrible but this leg was not having it.
Double at Hoof Hearted went fairly well compared to the previous week. Great chats and another great crowd for our gnarly squad program. Closed Wednesday off with 16 miles on the day.
No matter how often I do it, trying to fit a run in on a travel day is always a shitshow. Thursday was no different. Knowing I had a long run on Sunday and was out of GU, I decided to round my loop out to Columbus Running Company, grab a couple to get me through Sunday and then place an order for a case to get me through the block. Knocked it out during the lunch break but jumped right back into work and didn’t have enough time to eat before getting to the airport. A sandwich and a beer thankfully helped. We were off to Boston.
Landed in Boston with no issues thankfully. Made it in time to meet one one of the team members, Ashley, who greeted me with a cool tote bag that included socks, a hat, a nice note, notepad, and a new pair of 880’s. Truthfully, I didn’t know what to expect beyond the Grand Prix on Sunday but I was really excited for what was sure to be a weekend to remember. I made it in time to grab dinner with some of the other members of the group and got to chat a little bit about our respective run clubs, Val representing Good Boys Denver, Hanna and Carolyn representing Hoboken Track Club, Mak & Yves representing Society Track Club, and Zach an artist/designer based out of SF. The night ended fairly early for me as I was tired and was going to be working a half day prior to the first event that afternoon.
The next morning a group of us met up for some coffee and then a run. There I was formally introduced to Matt, Tim, and Tom before we got to running. We got a chance to tell our stories of how we ended up in the cities we were and I got to tell how I ended up in Ohio by accident. Tom, Matt, and Aidan were working out this morning and Tom was all good with joining me for some easy miles. We talked a bunch about our respective running journeys, clubs, and scenes. It was a refreshing conversation.
I got back to the hotel just in time to clock into work for a couple hours. Knocked everything out and got out there just in time for lunch. And what a lunch it was. Tasty apps and a lobster roll for me. Man, I love the east coast.
This kicked off what could only be described as a running nerd’s dream weekend. We kicked off the afternoon with a tour through the New Balance Sports Research lab. As someone who was a massive shoe nerd starting from his college days, I was locked in here. All the details and tools used in shoe and apparel technology were showcased to our group. It was the first tour of the weekend and I was already so blown away. We spoke with a team from merchandizing/apparel and had a feedback session with some of the more east coast members of our group. Hearing the feedback from the other members of our group and current needs and wants from their respective communities was incredibly insightful, especially as I look to see what the future of Ope Athletic Club is to be in 2025.
The night ended with some duckpin bowling/dinner and a nightcap of live music with a smaller group of us. I was surprised (well I shouldn’t have been at this point), that a lot of us had one degree of separation with each other without even knowing it. Whether it was racing against mutual friends or even unknowingly racing each other in college, it was pretty cool to see how small this community could be.
The next morning I awoke to a missed call from my mom at 2:30AM EST. My mom is not known to call me very late and a chill went through my body knowing there could be some bad news coming. With it still being early morning I went off to our morning run with a larger group that were here with run specialty businesses. I got back to a couple missed calls and text messages. A quick glance to a message preview told me everything.
My condolences for your Grandmother’s passing.
I immediately called my mother. My grandmother had lived at our home for about the last 20 or so years. She saw me through my formative years and much of the years I’m not proud of. From an angry, insecure, high schooler looking for his way to the man I am today. I was a very angry kid for many of those years, and then distant as I left to find myself in college and then ultimately in Ohio. I can’t say I was ever really that close to my family in those years. Language barriers made it tough for me to have full conversations or express myself to her. But there was a love and patience that transcended language barriers that was unwavering, even when I didn’t want it for all of those years. I came to appreciate it all as our family came together to celebrate her 90th birthday almost 3 years ago. I caught up with the cousins I grew up with that were now adults with families and careers of their own. It was a reminder of the importance of family and almost a homecoming of the self if that makes any sense at all. The happiness that came with that weekend is something that will stick with me for a lifetime. Many of us who had not seen each other for almost a decade, gathered around and celebrated a kind, selfless human being that gave so much love for all around her. It had a lasting impact on me, even years later.
The rest of the weekend could’ve been a tailspin of emotions. I worked on trying to adjust my flight on Monday to surprise my mother while also trying to be present in such a once in a lifetime opportunity. Things eventually worked out where I would fly home to California instead of Ohio, so in a weird sort of way I was lucky. As I try to unpack it all over a week later, the thing that sticks with me is how life can have a way of providing experiences that are hard to fully categorize in column A or column B. The entire weekend provided me with an experience that I can confidently say was one of the best of my life. The incredible individuals that were involved with this program made me incredibly thankful to still be involved with this sport almost 2 decades later.
I completely blew up in my long run workout that Sunday but part of me wanted to run with others moreso than getting after it in chilly/icy conditions. I spent most of it running with friends new and old and while the workout portion itself went poorly, I had to be realistic as to how much energy I had in me. I was emotionally drained from the weekend.
I capped the weekend off watching some of the best athletes in the world compete while I enjoyed some wine and chowder with fellow track nerds. Then we all sang our hearts out in karaoke. A much needed escape from what was sure to be a tough week ahead.
As you can probably tell, this was written in two parts. I put it off for a bit after writing most of it early last week. Sitting here, in my childhood living room, it’s still hard to really express out this week. But that’s life I guess. I’m thankful for one of the best experiences a track nerd like me could have ever had and found myself refreshed about community again. I’m grateful for the life I’ve had the opportunity to have and the kindness of others around me. We were in for a tough time, but I didn’t feel alone in that. I often find myself so caught up in small annoyances or issues and this was one of those reminders of just how inconsequential most of it can be.
Til next time.
Beers and Miles 