Blog#M

Raspberry Beret...

So where to begin, if you are not mechanically inclined I will let you know that rope is made for pulling, it is mighty hard to push something with a piece of rope. Remember this, it will help you later. Also if you have never let your dog chew on a golf ball or never fooled around in high school shop class and tried to cut a golf ball in half, you need to know that inside a golf ball is a big mess of elastic bands all twisted up.  You need to understand this.

So I raced again last night. A little 3000 down in London!  I am having a lot of fun doing this track thing this summer.  I was a bit tired from all the racing of the past few weeks with that 10k and followed closely by that 5k-1500 double up at the 401 series.  So we had a couple good weeks of mileage and workouts in again and this 3k seemed to fit.  So here we are, in London on a next to perfect evening, it’s a small field and there is a pack of guys going for sub 8.15 pace up front.  I know I want nothing to do with that pace.  So things go out fast, 64 seconds or so through 400, and so here I am, off the back of this lead pack trying to find my pace not going at their pace but not letting them drop me as there does not seem to be anyone else around me. Well, trying to push solo off the back of a pack, whilst not entirely losing touch with the pack but not going out too fast is about as easy as pushing a truck with a piece of rope. It’s not very easy.  The first lap was fast and then I sort of let the lead group go, then I decided that I needed to try to hang off the back of them a bit more and started to push on, in the middle section it go a bit tough as it always seems to do in these track races and then there was only 1km to go and I felt good and started to move pretty well again.  8.41 was a big 7 year pb. Henderson ran like a bawse up front hitting his world jr. Standard. 

So now on to the next one, actually jumping on a plane and heading to England on Wednesday night.  Going to visit my Grandpa and family over there all while taking in a half marathon.  And this is where you all are going “what the deuce?> I thought you were ripping up the track this summer John”  Well this is true.  But there is a bit of a story behind this half marathon.  It takes place in the Village of Freckleton, and it is the Oldest half marathon in England at 49 years. Also my grandfather who also bears the great name-John Mason was one of the original organizers of this race.  Needless to say he wants me to win the damn thing.  So I went last year and gave it my best but had some stomach issues and ended up second by 24seconds.  When  planning my summer season I told DST that i would really like to get into this again and he said it would fit into the schedule it just would not be any peak race with the main focus of drilling down my track times.  So yeah with all this fast track stuff I am excited to get over the England and roll through a half.  Its a flat course and I am fairly confident in my base so I would like to see a fast time aswell. #believinthebeard.  

Once back from England I will be hitting up the track again for a couple fast races before we wrap up the summer season.

So here this blog is going to take a bit of a hard left from my usual, lowbrow, ball joke humour and get a bit more deep, and believe me this is as deep as I get.  Some might say I am like an onion, with many layers that could make you cry,  but I am more like a golf ball, I have a hard rough exterior, take a good beating and come back for more, and inside I am just a big twisted mess of elastic bands that makes no sense. So....

First watch this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5AzvOLUtOI

Now if you have watched this video and you do not want to go out for a two hour run, or don’t not want to try running for the first time, you better check your pulse.  I have watched this video many many times and it really speaks to me.  I am not of the real religious type, I don’t understand religions.  Religions are the reason for all the war and peace in the world.  Religion brings people peace and makes people want to fight for what they believe. Anyway what I do understand is running.  I love running, running for hours, running in the snow, in the rain. A day running is better than a day not running in my books.  Running is good for the soul, it picks you up when youre feeling down, it clears the mind and helps me think.   The roads and trails are my sanctuary.  A long solid effort, laboured breathing, my sermon.   I would give up all goals of fast times, race wins, national-world level competition if you told me I would be able to float along a rolling tree lined trail everyday from now until I die.    But nothing is certain and nothing can be set in stone, so I’ll live for what I have right now, and right now I want to go fast. 

Oh yeah so about the title Raspberry Beret. The last three times I have raced as I drive to the race that song has come on the radio. I don’t know I guess it’s lucky.  One, Two, One  Two three, Huh

For your viewing pleasure.--à http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xATUw_ZVTzQ

So yeah I will check back in After England.  Behave yourselves

Believe In the Beard!

John

Blog#L.5

Shots shot shot shot shot...

So a little subsection blog here that I thought up last night.  Last night at practice I was thrown in with the dogs. Usually my group of 5k+ runners hits the trails on a Monday night for longer fartlek-tempo type stuff.  Last night was not the case.  I was fed to the wolves, the wolves being the 800-1500m group.  These bastards like to get into it, they get all spiked up and tear the hell out of the track.  So going into this workout I was hoping to just stay within 100m of these guys in a 400.  The workout went well kind of surprised myself actually.  I would have been really pumped with it if I had not had a lactic acid headache like no tomorrow.  And let me tell you this headache stayed all night.  It felt like I was hungover, my head felt like I had been slamming back shots or something silly.  I hurt.  Thats when I got to thinking that going to the track is like going to the bar, and doing 1500m work is like doing shots.  So first if youre cool you go to the bar/track with your friends,  its never cool to go and hammer at the bar or track alone.  Apparently when youre a 1500m dude just like going out to the bar to impress the ladies you throw on your best clothes/spikes so that you look good/fast.  The intervals are like shots. The first one doesnt really go down to smooth, it burns a bit. But that first shot/interval opens the flood gates.  Now youre throwing them back fast and furious. I feel so cool! And then before you know it you do one more and thats it youre a staggering mess, delusional, puking is a potential.  And then you let it all soak in and you end up feeling like a dirtbag with a headache that feels as if one has an ax in their head.


 Shots or 1500m intervals always seem like a good idea at the time, damn you peer pressure.


Am I a 1500 runner now? Absolutely not.


Whether youre doing shots or intervals. Smash them hard and fast, you know no matter what tomorrow's going to be rough.  Oh and maybe have a water or two before bed


John

Blog#L

Renew the Love and the 401

Sorry folks, I guess it has been a couple weeks since that last blog so here we go. Topics for this blog post; work,  post 10k, 401 recap, for the love of running. Hold on tight.  So the past few weeks have been super busy with work.  I have been doing some really nice work lately.  This past week I built a great deck and pergola.  It has to be one of the most impressive things I have built to date.   Check it out. 

I was super happy with it. Lots of attention to detail in the herringbone corners and the posts beams and trim.   The Homeowners loved it. All is good!

So back to the week after that 10 we talked about in the last blog. Holy hell folks that hurt.  I hurt for a full week.  The legs were just beat up, I was able to keep working out and keep the mileage up it just took longer into warm-ups to get the calves working.  I didn’t get back to feeling normal until the Saturday after, which was basically just in time for the 401 distance series to get started.

So onto the 401 distance series.  5000 on the Wednesday night down there in London.  High quality deep fields on a good night with only a little wind.  So I found myself in the second heat, with a great pack of guys.  One of the first times in my life folks I ran smart, hung out in the pack rolling 71...laps.  And as I felt myself naturally move up on a guy I went around and found myself right behind a guy in second with just over a 1k to go.  I was feeling great, I actually thought to perhaps make a bit bolder move and take the lead with 800 to go but hesitated and then the leader made a bit of a move and I was just trying to hang on.  I rigged up a bit in the last 500m, ok perhaps got a bit ugly.  I ended up running 14.54.07 just under a 6 second PB.  That last 100m hurt, I don’t really recall much thought I held it together better, but apparently I got to the line and just flopped over. Left some of my stomach on the Western Turf and called it night.  Check out the race here, Heat 3...

 http://www.trackie.com/track-and-field/media/2012-London-Distance-Series-meet-2.php?event=5

It still hasn’t sunk in to me that I am a sub 15 guy, that was my biggest fear going into that race that I would not break 15 again and everyone would say I was a one hit wonder like Aqua or Hanson.  Then when I was loading the video I saw it was 15.40 long. I said to myself “damn I wont even see myself finish”  I am excited.  In the words of Ricky Bobby “I wanna go fast”

Early this spring when the list of races came out and we were told to fill out when we would like to race I put in the Speed River Inferno column “if shit gets crazy John Mason 1500m”  Suggesting that if pig could fly or if it snowed in june that I John Mason would spike up for a 1500m.  You see folks I have not raced in a 1500 since grade 12 at the county meet.  My PB would be 4.29 with an unofficial PB coming in a 3000 later that summer in 4.25.  But after that 5k I was pumped to see what I could do in the 1500, knowing it would for sure be a PB.  I really had no idea how this 1500 would feel, nor did I have a clue how to run one, but I knew there was less than four laps so it couldn’t be that bad.  So boom the gun goes and I find myself in the mix of a 1500, there were a bunch of French guys, some high school lads.  Hey ever wonder why French people always look so fit? All of them, even if they are not, those Frenchmen looked 10x as fit as me on that line.  Anyway, were off first lap was good 63 and then things settled in a bit and we went through 800 in 2.11-2.12.  You see before my warmup I told Taylor Milne that if I broke 4 min I would do something to the track and that he would have to clean it up.  So through 400 knowing my lack of closing speed Milne yell “gotta go johhny you need some money bank” Through 800 Milne now getting worried by the slowing pace yells “really gotta go you need more money in the bank” Any who from there on I took the lead and started to push, I realized the was less than 2 laps left and I hadn’t started to hurt yet, so that was new.  I don’t know the rest of the splits but so hot shot high schooler had more wheels than me and I ended up second in 4.01.  It was good enough for a post race interview with DST, probably should have put a shirt on. Ladies eat your hearts out 

http://www.runnerspace.com/eprofile.php?event_id=5718&do=videos&video_id=69077

Full race is here

http://www.runnerspace.com/eprofile.php?event_id=5718&do=videos&video_id=69054

This racing a bunch has been fun, I like it, a lot.  I haven’t been taking it too seriously .  I think that has been good.  Last fall I put a lot of pressure on myself to do well, you kind of have to do well when you only work part days so that you can be better.  If I wanted to be average or mediocre I would have a full time job and do this running on the side. But I want better.  So one night this spring having coffee with a friend,  I told said friend how I needed to get my shit together and be better.  Said friend told me to not stress over it so much, enjoy it, do it for the reason you do it because you love it.  This friend explained that I really was doing things right and that I had to get better.  So I have tried to apply that,  all races this spring I have showed up just in time to warm up and do my own thing. I haven’t thought about paces or time, or watched splits, I have just gone out and raced, and so far its going well.  I was thinking about this today on my long run.  I was in the Dundas Valley trail system.  This set of trails is incredible, some serious rolling hills that go on forever.  I could have easily run for hours there today, I was planning to go out for 90 + minutes and ended up getting back to the truck just under 2 hours.  I love it in those trails, just love it.

I got to thinking the other day that there are three type of people in the word.  There are wrench people, vise grip people, and people that don’t know what I’m talking about. You see wrenches are designed for nuts and bolts, they are cut to the correct size for a specific nut/bolt.  They are well crafted, take skill and knowledge to quickly grab the correct size from the tool box.  Vise Grips or Locking pliers are a handy man special, they are adjustable, they also do a half ass job, they can round off the corners of a bolt and make one heck of a mess.  Dont get me wrong vise grips have made many a field fix on the farm and can get the job done.

So in life you have three options you can be a wrench, you can be a set of vise grips, or you can be an average tool.  Either way stay safe out there folks

John

Blog#K

The 10000 on the track is like trying to pick up girls at the bar,  When youre a man like me it frickin’ hard!

So last night I got down in the 10000m Ontario Championships down in London.  As I mentioned in the previous blog it was going to go down like a Nascar race and if all things went well there would be no blow ups or explosions!  Well if you tuned in last night you would have gotten to see a very entertaining exciting blow up of all explosions.  If you were not there you can watch the video here :  http://www.trackie.com/track-and-field/media/2012-London-Distance-Series-meet-1.php?event=5

So here’s what I had in mind going down there..If I run smart I think a 31.20 or perhaps quicker was in the cards.  All I had to do was run smart. Smart would have meant running even paced so I was hoping to hit 73-74s laps.  It looked like there was a big group hoping to run in that 31 minute range. Lets get into it.

So heres how the evening goes from how I see it in my mind.  Warmup went well, I was feeling fresh and excited to go. The ponies were ready to rip it up and I had to reign them in on the warmup.  So were on the line gun goes off and I tuck into the group.  We it was a good little pack and we were moving but about a second per lap slower than I had in mind.  So I hang in the pack for about 6 laps and then I felt I needed to start to move a bit faster if I wanted to run 31 low.  I start clipping along and was feeling really good and smooth and then my boy Rob Watson is there screaming at me and he says that Sami Jabril and Kyle Dekker are coming back to me . So the first time I hear d this I said to myself “that Rob he’s so crazy I am not going to catch those guys theyre 150m ahead of me, silly Rob”.  So I keep moving along and then 400m later I notice that Dekker is only 125m ahead and as I work my way through the laps I am starting to close in on him.   At this point I was telling myself holy hell Dekker is a champ, am I legit?  You see back in high school Cory Currie and Kyle  Dekker used to hand me my ass on a paper plate on the track so I was freakin pumped to be closing on this guy.  As quickly as my glory came it faded.  If we had been racing 7600m last night I might have won the damn thing. But we weren’t we were racing 10k and with 6 laps to go all hell broke loose.  My arms got heavy as ever, I was throwing them trying to keep it rolling then one guy goes by me then another and then another, the last 800 I don’t really recall alot. Rob said my eyes were closed and I was just swimming.  Damn that hurt.  Finished up in 31.41. Ouch. 

I am just Ok with last nights race.  I wanted to go quicker but I also have little experience racing on the track and the 10000 is a long one.  That was my 4^th track race in 7 years so I am trying to gain experience and learn every time out.   Heres what I learned last night,  the 10000m is like trying to pick up girls at the bar.  First you need to be patient, even if it seems a bit slow at the start you need to stick it out, it has to pick up.  The next thing you need to know is if an opportunity comes along early you need to stay calm.  Dont go getting yourself all excited.  If you get too fired up too early you, go and get yourself all aroused, something is going to blow, and when it does its game over, you cant come back from that tonight. So be calm be cool and then when the nights getting late and you can see the finish in sight, let it all hangout  go for it with all you have.   Yeah folks I realize I raced that 10k like a 16 year old at prom.  Lessons learned.   On the bright side Kyle Dekker used to beat me by that much in a 1500m in high school.   Beard Power!

Thanks to my cheering crew that all came out last night Clint, Lumani, Ashley, Loney, Coleshill, Deboer, a whole bunch of good old Fanshawe College folks, The London running community in general that was cheering for me, and Rob Watson,  man I love that guy, he was all over yelling at me and getting me all fired up.   Everybody that came out y’all are great.  Also I sincerely apologize to the man doing to lap counter, with about 4 laps to go I spit and it hit him in the leg, the next time I came around I noticed my big foamy spit on his pants, Sorry man.

Heres a few pictures that a Local Distance Running Legend Jimmy Burrows took last night, Thanks Jim

I was feeling so good here, farmers tan is coming in nicely too I see.

	On the pain train, eyes closed starting to swim!

The legs felt pretty good this morning but as today has progressed they have slowly gotten heavier.  A mile into my long run this afternoon I was going to turn around and go home, Mail it in, screw it, but I rolled on.  Calling 13 miles a long run today.  Get back  into the groove of training and get fired up for the 401 series to start up and take another crack at the 5k. I figure a 5k should feel pretty short now, and if I can mature a little bit and keep my arousal level controlled we just might be able to pick up and run another good one.

Taker easy folks, Summers coming, life is good

John

Blog#J

Boogity Boogity its time to shake ‘n bake

Ladies and gents its time again.  Going to get down on the track on Saturday night and race a 10k.  The 10000 is the Daytona 500 of track running.  The 100 is like drag racing all supped up cars and by the time it’s started it’s over.  The 10000 is the long haul, steam from the natural “stock cars” of distance running. The 10k is made for rednecks lots of time to take in a few pops and corndogs and soak in all the action.  Much like nascar theres a lot of laps 25 of them to be exact.  Lots of laps of not a lot going on, there will be some drafting, bumping, passing on the inside, swinging high through the turn to make a break. Awesome action. If youre really lucky you might get to see some blow ups and crashes. A few blown tires if you will.  Hopefully for me I will avoid pitstops on my trek to a good one.   So yeah folks if you are not up to anything get your coolers and snacks and get on out to TD Waterhouse Stadium on Saturday night.  It will for sure e some exciting action, and if you are lucky Paul Roberts will even be on the horn giving colour commentary. 

Ok who am I kidding I don’t really enjoy Nascar, but come on out to TD on Saturday and check out the races it should be pretty exciting stuff.  And once its all done were going to head out to a fine establishment in London to enjoy a few cold ones, it will be grand.  I am pumped!  Since that 5k a couple weeks ago the confidence has come back and workouts have been going really well.  Grip it and rip it is the plan. Cant wait

So  this is what I did the last 3 days...

Built that nice little deck for a friend of my good buddy Josh Lumani.  It turned out great! I was really happy with it, I am sure those boys will have some great summer nights out there.  I like building decks, they really seem to add to a home, and lucky for me I have another couple lined up for the summer! There was however a bit of a casualty, a stray finish nail from my nail gun managed to find my finger, right on the side of the first fingers knuckle. It hurts a bit, ok it hurts a lot.  Tonight it’s kind of swollen and bruised looking.  Ohwell, could be worse, could have been like that time I almost lost all my manly business to a drill!

So yeah, last summer I was putting a railing on a deck.  One of those fancy black metal spindled railings.  I was drilling all the holes for the spindles to sit in, and since there were so many holes I was using my Mixing drill.  You see a mixing drill is designed for high torque drilling and mixing , it does not have as high of rpm as some other drills but has more power.  It was ideal for the task of drill many holes as it would not suffer from the wear and tear.  Anyway back to drilling all of these holes,  So here I am drilling holes(the next bit happens in a matter of 2 seconds) and as I lift the drill out of a hole to clean it out some how the 2x4 rail wobbles and as I reach to grab it the drill bit somehow grabs my shorts. I mean grabs my shorts about an inch to the left of my manly parts.  And so this high speed high power drill with a new razor sharp forsner bit grabs my shorts and spins and spins up a big mess.  It hurts folks. Hurts really bad. It feels like it has been buried into my leg. Oh heck, so I try to pull and it hurts more, I think that the drill is so tangled up in my shorts and flesh that I can not pull it out.  So I do what any man would do , I switched the drill into reverse and spun it out of my leg.  I immediately fire my hand onto the spot thinking I will have a ¾ inch hole in my leg and that this is going to get messy.  To my suprise there is no blood.  I look again, no blood.  Turns out the shorts and boxer shorts I was wear filled up the cutter head of the drill bit.  The spinning cloth filled bit just gave me basically the worlds worst purple nurple!   It was sore and gross as heck.  One of the fancy multi colour bruises! I took a pic but you really don’t want to see it!  Any way so yeah be careful out there folks it is a wild world we live in.

In other news, my beard is still in full force! BEARD POWER!  I am growing quite attached to it.  I don’t know if or when it will ever go.  It seems to be a love-hate for the beard.  People are either huge fans or are completely disgusted.  Like the child the other night when I was doing my workout on the track in Guelph by myself.  This girl was playing in the park adjacent to the track, the saw me pointed and yelled “ewww disgusting, mom look at this”   Ohwell, what did you do today little girl, go to school? Whats that going to get you? I have a beard, I build stuff, and now Im busting my balls on the track, deal with it.

So yeah I learned a wise lesson when I was very young and realized I was not going to make it in life on my looks.  A quality Canadian TV star always said, “if the women don’t find you handsome, they should at least find you handy” so I took a good long look in the mirror and decided I better get damn handy and fast.  And here we are.

Taker easy folks, get out to the track on Saturday night and cause a ruckus during the 10k. It should be a beauty weekend here, get out there and enjoy it, drink it in, it always goes down smooth!

Peace and blessings

John

Blog #I

Sometimes you need to be in a bad relationship to know what a good one is when it comes along!

So I heard the title of this blog on the radio yesterday morning and it got me to thinking about a long 3 year relationship that I was in.  And “Sometimes you need to be in a bad relationship to know what a good one is when it comes along” really makes sense.  We all know how it is for a young boy you see that dream off over there and for some reason deep down inside your heart flutters and you’re in love. You can’t explain this stuff folks just the feeling of young love and dreams.  So you scope it out from a distance you try to make yourself look good to build your confidence then you start flirting and you can feel it now, its coming. You yurn for it deep down inside and then you go for it. Then boom it’s on and I mean on like donkey kong kind of on.  Then you’re doing it and that leads to more doing it, before you know it you are doing it all the time. It’s so wild, so exciting, you don’t know how but you’re there.  It’s great this relationship is meant to be. You love it. Youre so happy, people are happy for you, they tell you that it’s great, life is good.  Then it becomes comfortable, almost easy.  You start to think this is meant to be that this is the one for you, that you cannot do any better than this, that this, this right here folks , is forever.  And why would you want anything else?.....Then on a cold windy night out of the blue you look at it and tell it straight out “I don’t have any feelings for you anymore” What? Why? Why would you do this? You were so happy it was so good!

And now youre all thinking what-the, did John just call for all intensive purposes this 9.9 out of 10 babe he has been in a relationship with for years he didn’t have any feeling for her out of the blue?  Did he just call her an “it” in that last sentence? You must be thinking what an ass, this guy is a jerk!   Now hold the phone, I am not talking about a female folks I’m talking about my three year relationship with the 15 minute 5k.  You bet folks I’m done with that! Last night I got down on the track and rolled a 14.59 5000.  An 18 second PB. I’m Pumped.  Not that there is anything wrong with a 15 minute 5k, thats a great time if you are in your late teens, or a impressive weekend warrior, or are on the Ethiopian Woman’s C squad, but I have moved on.  So to the 14 min 5k I say,  as that top forty song goes “Hey I just met you, and this is crazy, but heres my number, call me maybe” So yeah stick around 14 min 5k’s I think we can make something beautiful together.

Let’s take this back a bit to three years ago when I fell in love with this old girl running again. After 3 years at college battling injury I was about ready to hang up the old shoes and quit but John Loney kept me going and BOOM we broke 16 minutes and then I started chipping away and got down to the 15.20 range and then last year was sub 15.20 and I didn’t think I could do any better.  Then fast forward to this spring three weeks ago I head down to a 5k road race thinking 15.0... was in the cards. I love the roads! It was a flat course, perfect day, time to get after it.  So on the Wednesday before this Saturday race we had done a Vo2max workout of 5x1mile and well we got out hard kids. I mean hard I wanted 15.0... so bad. At 3k the wheels came off, and I mean right off, this car was sitting on its frame!  I finished 15.33 and was pissed. Seemed the hard Vo2max session had left a little junk in the body.  The other thing is the were 7, turns on this 5km course! Seven 90 degree turns!  And well you see folks I am not built like most fly weight distance runners. I’m built more like a freight train, I’m tall, big shouldered, heavy. I really shouldn’t be a distance runner I should be a cage fighter, but my lack of ever punching another man in the face makes it highly unlikely that I would succeed in the octagon, alas we find ourselves here running.  Any who, back to the freight train idea, so you know how trains are really slow to get going, but once they do, look the heck out, theyre damn near unstoppable.  You see when my big broad manly build has to hang 7 tight 90degree turns I have to get this big brute up to speed again, unlike the typical little runner who has a much greater deal less weight to throw around. 

So how do we solve this situation? And now is not the time to switch to cage fighting! Boom we hit the track! Freight trains....tracks hahaha I didn’t even plan that but what a segue.  So yeah the track nice gradual curves, this is brilliant! Why didn’t I think of this years ago!

So we hash out a spring/summer track season. This is brilliant.  First race on the schedule or “opener” as all the trackies call it, is last night Hillsdale Michigan for the Gina Relays!  So Monday nights workout  is layed out for me (with all thoughts in the back of my head saying stay in control remember what happened last time you worked out 2 days before a race) and it’s 3x Vo2max miles with 12 mile cruise tempo after.  Oh great here we go again, let’s get the legs full of junk to blow another race.  But I then tell my old self that were still training through these first couple races so this will be better in the long run for the season and I get after it. Rolled up the workout with the boys! Done.  Boom. I am on my way to Hillsdale, the whole way down I tell myself, stay relaxed in the pack and start to move in the last mile if you’re feeling it. We don’t need a Fade from the Front type effort here tonight.  Just get this first one under the belt and we will go from there.  So I am on the line, a cold windy line at that, I go out smart tucked in feeling easy, rolling. This is good. I can’t tell you any splits, I didn’t see them, didn’t hear any of them, but who really cares about any of that junk any way.  I’m in the middle of the pack staying out of the wind as best I can, then the old John comes out! (Oh dear the Old John you see can’t count and run at the same time. I can do one or the other but never both, and when I start to try to do that one of these things doesn’t work)  So I am feeling good tucked in on the inside in 2^nd or third as we head up on what I know realize is 6 laps  remaining.  Not my preplanned race strategy of moving with a mile to go. Oh dear. So I feel the pace slow and I take the lead.  As we head into the wind my big shoulders catch that wind like a $5 Wal-mart Kite in a Hurricane. I Say to self “I immediately regret this decision.”  But it’s too late now so I push on,  Let’s just say the last 800 got ugly.  All I can recall is coming into the last 100m seeing 14.42 and thinking sweet jumping this is going to be tight. Nailed it 14.59.72.   

Thats about it. I am very excited with that.  What else is going on? Works busy, spring fever  with everyone wanting to do reno’s and deck and such. Lifes good

Have a good weekend folks live it up a bit, you’ve earned it. Rumour has it you only live once, so you better get it right the first time!

-John

Blog#H

Believe in the Beard!

So in the last blog we basically skipped over the whole running deal.  Running has been going well for a while now, mileage is back up, workouts have been feeling good, I am fired up to race on the track this spring.  Huge day for Canadian Marathoners today Duchene and Marchant ran some smoking  womens  times.  My homeboy Watson jacks a huge PB and Wykes the Granddaddy of Canadian marathoning  rips the A standard.   You may say granddaddy of marathon in Canada, why do you say that John? Well it’s because Dylan basically started the marathon movement in Canada way back in 2008. Just the other week I found the Canadian Runner Mag with Wykes on the cover, he looked like a kid.  Well Done Man!

Oh yeah I have been growing my beard again.  Beards are a manly thing women don’t grow beards, therefore beards are for men.  Growing a beard is like wearing a Tshirt that says “100%man”.  Except anyone could buy a T-shirt, Im sure there are thousands of china made knockoff 100%man tshirts.  But a beard, you cant fake a beard.   Beards have a language all their own! Beards rock! Beards command respect!  That reminds me of one fall at the Royal Winter Fair I had a pretty decent beard growth on, so theres a guy that fits cattle, A big intimidating as hell looking man who is a incredible fitter, he also has been known to be goateed or bearded.  Lets call him Frenchy, based on his last name French not on where hes from.  So Frenchy is scary as hell and I have never had the balls to chat with the man. Frenchy and I are passing each other and he looks over to me and says “great beard”. It was a pretty awesome moment.  We parted ways and have never spoke again.  I also got to thinking that everytime Im running well I have been bearded.  All through college for the cross country season-bearded, the winter I had a break through with my mileage and training?-Bearded actually the biggest beard of my life (6 full months of untamed growth) .  Last summer when I thought up the idea of Acura-beards for the Acura 10 miler I was killing it! So yeah the beard is back and it might never leave, who knows.  Beards Rule!

So lets go back to the first weekend in March.  Its Oysterfest Time! Whats Oysterfest you ask? And how does one know of such an event?  Well Oysterfest takes shape in the lovely shoreline town of Fulton Texas!  Way back in college one of my best friends Josh and I were looking for something to do on spring break.  It went like this as we passed each other in the corridor at school

Me: Hey what are you doing next week

Josh: Lets do something, get some drinks

Me: Lets go for a drive

Josh: Where to?

Me: Texas

Josh: I have to go write a test.

Josh wrote his test and then texted me and as they say the rest is history.  We got in the truck of dreams and headed towards Texas.   We stumbled upon Oysterfest and the Boiling Pot Restaurant  by shear luck and have been In love.  I have now been back every year for 4 years.  The second year Josh couldn’t go so my other great friend Kyle went with me.  This year with the new bigger truck all three of us went.  We stayed longer and had one heck of a time.  The beer is cheap, the seafood is fresh,  suns hot. What more could one want?  They love us in Fulton.  Oysterfest is just a big street party and festival with live music and beer tents and such.  The Boiling Pot Restaurant is my all time favorite eatery ever.  We asked the lady at a gift shop at the hotel the first year where we should eat. She told us “across the street is the Charolette Plummer its pretty fancy, or you can go down to the Boiling Pot, it looks a bit scary  but just go on in youll be ok.”  So obviously we went to the Boiling Pot.  The place is a tin shack, homemade door closers and ceiling fans. Beer in a couple steel bath tubs.  Any way we get the Cajun special.  They boil up some shrimp, crab, sausage, sweet corn, and potatoes.  Bring it out to your table with some bowls of butter and dump it out for you to eat. Its glorious.  Texas is great! We will be back.

So yeah, great day for Canadian Marathoners, Beards rule, Texas is grand!  Oh yeah  over 3000 views on this blog here, good job internet!