10K Results for Randy

I was the only one of our family to participate today. Reed had a grandson birthday to attend (flu got him earlier also) and Sarah had a migraine headache and soreness from a softball game. I did something the night before but went with the program anyway. I was sore from dancing at a party.

The good news for me was a record breaking race. I surpassed the best speed of all my races, short and long. This 10K run had a very slow start and I did not think it was possible to improve my speed over other races, but I did. My best 5 mile speed to date was 8.1 minutes per mile. Today I finished with a 8.07 minutes per mile over a distance of 6.2 miles (10K). That put me in the top 20% of my class. I was the oldest in my age bracket but finished 9th in a peer field of 56 runners, Best time in my class was 42 minutes, 28 seconds by a runner from Angleton, Texas. I finished in 50 minutes, 31 seconds. If I had been one year older, this speed would have gained me sixth place in a field of 27. Overall, I finished 757th of the 2518 men running in the 10K.

Sarah posts excellent time in Houston Park to Park 5-miler

Yesterday, Sarah ran in the Houston 5-Mile Park to Park race. This is the annual race which several of us ran last year from downtown Houston to Herman Park. She is now running competitive, having achieved 12th place in a peer field of 43 runners. Her time was 8.7 minutes/mile. Next is the 10K Rodeo run next weekend.

Thought I was doing better. Got to work harder!

Today, I pushed for speed in a 7.7 mile run. Of course that is more stressful than a 10K, but still, I expected a better time. I did it in 8.7 minutes/mile using long strides. This is in preparation for the Houston Rodeo 10K coming on February 28th. This tells me that I need to work on speed. I am shifting towards the morning to prepare my body for the race as well. I expect that will have something to do with the outcome, so I am now officially in training for a specific event. Reed and Sarah should be in this with me. I got my race packet this past week. I am really looking forward to this.

Houston Livestock and Rodeo 10K

Randy just signed up for the 10K on Feb 28th. This will be my first 10K. Starts downtown Houston. Can catch a bus from the Astrodome area to downtown and leave the truck parked at the Livestock show.

Programs - we all should be in one

Well, Sarah is signed up for several more races and I need to sign up for some. Kelly and Russ supposedly are now into boxing training. Reed is working towards a race. Jeff started his running program, but I have not heard if he has continued with it. I started running 2-3 times a week, 8 or more miles. This week in two runs, I totaled 21 miles. Yesterday I did fairly well, running 11+ miles at a 9.4 pace. I hope everyone is doing something aerobic for their health this year.

Sarah's First Half Marathon - Houston Marathon 2009

I was a lucky dad yesterday to be able to see my daughter run her first half marathon race. She did it in about 2 hours 10 minutes, finishing in the top 10% of her peer age group. Her time was about a 10 minute mile average, maybe even less. Congratulations to Sarah for such a high accomplishment! This photo is four miles into the 13.1 mile race.

Sarah getting ready to run half-marathon

Sarah is gearing up to run in the Houston Half Marathon on Sunday. I have registered to be notified when she crosses 6.2 miles(10K), 9 miles(21K) and finishes at 13.1 miles. This service is provided free and is an automatic text message sent as as an athlete passes over the detection pad at those locations.