Today was an unusual day in that I got a multiple lift. Very rarely do I get the opportunity, which I passed on yesterday, and took today. That's particularly good, since the jump I was supposed to be doing tomorrow was scratched due to rain on the drop zone. So, with the introduction complete, here goes:
Jump 64, Raeford DZ, A/NT
Cruiserweight, "This Ain't No Beach Party"
Drop altitude 1500 feet AGL, time of drop approximately 1040
KHFF 311730Z 23005KT 7SM -RA BKN040 OVC090 18/13 A3005
Conditions at: KHFF observed 1730 UTC 31 March 2005
Temperature: 18.0°C (64°F)
Dewpoint: 13.0°C (55°F) [RH = 73%]
Pressure (altimeter): 30.05 inches Hg (1017.7 mb)
Winds: from the SW (230 degrees) at 6 MPH (5 knots; 2.6 m/s)
Visibility: 7 miles (11 km)
Ceiling: 4000 feet AGL
Clouds: broken clouds at 4000 feet AGL
overcast cloud deck at 9000 feet AGL
Weather: -RA (light rain)
The one had me pushing the stick (as in I was the last jumper to exit). Winds at altitude were cruising! The first two passes had jumpers land in the trees, the first because of incorrect spotting of the release on the pilot's part, the second because some knucklehead didn't factor in winds at altitude and ran with the wind into the trees on the eastern edge of the DZ. Consequently, upon gaining canopy control, I knew immediately that I didn't want to spent a lot of time in the air, and proceeded to dump air for about 2/3 of my descent. This was the first time I'd jumped Raeford DZ, and I didn't realize there was two patches of trees, a tractor, a pond (surrounded by trees), and a big patch of briars all within the confines of the DZ. It was the briars that I narrowly missed by about 20 feet. In my haste to get to the ground, I didn't see the briar patch that was immediately below and rear to me. I stopped dumping air and steered away from the briars. Upon landing, I immediately got up on my feet and started running away from the briars before the parachute could foul on the briars. This was a good thing, as the jumper immediately before me landed even closer to the briars and was pulling his parachute out with a distinctive tearing sound (as in damn, that would have hurt like hell to land in, not to mention the intense embarrassment factor of getting a thorn bush enema) as the branches were popping off the ripstop nylon. A soft landing, though, and I was less than 150m away from the chute turn-in truck, which was a large white package truck.
Jump 65, Raeford DZ, A/NT
Armor For Sleep, "Car Underwater"
Drop altitude 1500 feet AGL, time of drop approximately 1150
KHFF 311855Z 21010KT 4SM -RA BR SCT022 BKN040 OVC060 16/14 A3008 RMK SLP189
Conditions at: KHFF observed 1855 UTC 31 March 2005
Temperature: 16.0°C (61°F)
Dewpoint: 14.0°C (57°F) [RH = 88%]
Pressure (altimeter): 30.08 inches Hg (1018.7 mb)
[Sea-level pressure: 1018.9 mb]
Winds: from the SSW (210 degrees) at 12 MPH (10 knots; 5.2 m/s)
Visibility: 4 miles (6 km)
Ceiling: 4000 feet AGL
Clouds: scattered clouds at 2200 feet AGL
broken clouds at 4000 feet AGL
overcast cloud deck at 6000 feet AGL
Weather: -RA BR (light rain, mist)
This was the big one. As a sign of appreciation to the folks who were running the jump, I presented the primary jumpmaster a case (that's 24 cans, not 12, you wankers) of beer (as is customary for jump milestones in the community in which I work).
After pushing the stick, I made it a point to be the last one to board so I would be the second one to exit (after the jumping JM). I had a good exit, although once again (like yesterday), the right riser took a divot out of my right cheek. Descent was uneven with significant winds at altitude leveling off at about 500 feet AGL. As I was dumping air initially, I was attempting to steer away from the pond and trees in the middle of the DZ, but had to make some corrections in the last 300 feet of descent so that I wouldn't hit the 20-foot tall chute turn-in truck or the 12-foot tall large field ambulance parked next to it (as in damn, that would have hurt to bounce off the side of a truck going 16 feet per second down and about 5 mph laterally, not to mention the intense embarrassment factor of getting clotheslined by a truck that I could've avoided) . I landed about 15m away from both vehicles in front of about 15 guys who were looking at me like I was absolutely nuts. Admittedly, that was a bit closer than I would've liked for comfort. But I had a soft landing and the chute didn't foul in anything after landing.
I could say it felt almost anticlimactic, but two near-misses during a day (plus a third, since it started raining within 40 minutes of my second landing) was plenty of excitement.
Thursday, March 31, 2005
Wednesday, March 30, 2005
Jump 63, Ste Mêre Eglise DZ, A/NT
mewithoutyou, "January 1979"
Drop altitude 1500 feet AGL, time of drop approximately 0850
KFBG 301355Z 11004KT 7SM BKN250 16/10 A3003 RMK SLP172
Conditions at: KFBG observed 1355 UTC 30 March 2005
Temperature: 16.0°C (61°F)
Dewpoint: 10.0°C (50°F) [RH = 68%]
Pressure (altimeter): 30.03 inches Hg (1017.0 mb)
[Sea-level pressure: 1017.2 mb]
Winds: from the ESE (110 degrees) at 5 MPH (4 knots; 2.1 m/s)
Visibility: 7 miles (11 km)
Ceiling: 25000 feet AGL
Clouds: broken clouds at 25000 feet AGL
Weather: no significant weather observed at this time
Didn't jump yesterday, and passed up an opportunity for a second chute (as opposed to actually going to work).
This was probably one of the best jumps I've had in a while.
Good exit, although I probably didn't tuck my head down hard enough since my helmet and right chin got rubbed by risers. I didn't want to have a long walk, but since I was noticing high winds at altitude (but not at surface) steering for a location away from brush and water would be important.
Thank god I was jumping a steerable parachute. I was able to buttonhook a landing less than 400m away from the assembly point. I even avoided a gust at landing, and the landing was soft.
In some ways I'm kicking myself for not taking the second chute offered (there were four left after manifest call was complete), but I didn't think I could in good faith take one...particularly since I didn't tell my boss I was going on this jump. Oops.
Two to go. Unfortunately, it looks like the jump that's scheduled for Friday might get rained out since the weather is calling for thundershowers. Time to start digging. I would really, really, really like to be done by the end of the first week in April at the very latest.
Drop altitude 1500 feet AGL, time of drop approximately 0850
KFBG 301355Z 11004KT 7SM BKN250 16/10 A3003 RMK SLP172
Conditions at: KFBG observed 1355 UTC 30 March 2005
Temperature: 16.0°C (61°F)
Dewpoint: 10.0°C (50°F) [RH = 68%]
Pressure (altimeter): 30.03 inches Hg (1017.0 mb)
[Sea-level pressure: 1017.2 mb]
Winds: from the ESE (110 degrees) at 5 MPH (4 knots; 2.1 m/s)
Visibility: 7 miles (11 km)
Ceiling: 25000 feet AGL
Clouds: broken clouds at 25000 feet AGL
Weather: no significant weather observed at this time
Didn't jump yesterday, and passed up an opportunity for a second chute (as opposed to actually going to work).
This was probably one of the best jumps I've had in a while.
Good exit, although I probably didn't tuck my head down hard enough since my helmet and right chin got rubbed by risers. I didn't want to have a long walk, but since I was noticing high winds at altitude (but not at surface) steering for a location away from brush and water would be important.
Thank god I was jumping a steerable parachute. I was able to buttonhook a landing less than 400m away from the assembly point. I even avoided a gust at landing, and the landing was soft.
In some ways I'm kicking myself for not taking the second chute offered (there were four left after manifest call was complete), but I didn't think I could in good faith take one...particularly since I didn't tell my boss I was going on this jump. Oops.
Two to go. Unfortunately, it looks like the jump that's scheduled for Friday might get rained out since the weather is calling for thundershowers. Time to start digging. I would really, really, really like to be done by the end of the first week in April at the very latest.
Tuesday, March 29, 2005
5.1mi, 41:47
Saxon Shore, "Amber, Ember, Glow"
Chris Stamey, "The Sound You Hear"
WX at 0600: 48 (9), DP 42 (6), BP 29.63 (1003), winds W 13, RH 81%
Odometer 1: 361mi
Z3
Resting heart rate before start = 53
A little brisk (felt colder than 48F this morning) but not a bad run...particularly since it was preceded by 160 pushups (40x40x30x30x20), 100 situps (100), and one set of ab/hip flexor work.
Consequently, today started slow (which might explain the generally positive split between the first and second legs and the very markedly positive split in the third leg).
It was a tad breezy, though. Work permitting, I was going to try to get onto a jump today, but it looks like work won't cooperate and there won't be enough of an opportunity to get to the DZ in time. The irritant is that I've slid my completion of the jumps I need for Master Parachutist further and further back. I also haven't resorted to slightly more desperate measures such as attempting to find night jumps, jumps on a weekend, or jumping with other units at Fort Bragg who routinely jump combat equipment with mass exits with nonsteerable parachutes.
On that last one - in the three years I spent in the 82d Imperial Airborne Division, I accumulated 39 jumps. 25 of them involved combat equipment. Over 15 of them were at night. Two were on hardstand (i.e., asphalt/concrete) drop zones. Two of them were using steerable parachutes. That was it. I don't feel any compelling need to jump nonsteerable parachutes any more unless I absolutely have to.
Splits
1.5 12:27 12:27 08:18
2.1 29:53 17:26 08:18
1.5 41:47 11:54 07:56 08:07
Chris Stamey, "The Sound You Hear"
WX at 0600: 48 (9), DP 42 (6), BP 29.63 (1003), winds W 13, RH 81%
Odometer 1: 361mi
Z3
Resting heart rate before start = 53
A little brisk (felt colder than 48F this morning) but not a bad run...particularly since it was preceded by 160 pushups (40x40x30x30x20), 100 situps (100), and one set of ab/hip flexor work.
Consequently, today started slow (which might explain the generally positive split between the first and second legs and the very markedly positive split in the third leg).
It was a tad breezy, though. Work permitting, I was going to try to get onto a jump today, but it looks like work won't cooperate and there won't be enough of an opportunity to get to the DZ in time. The irritant is that I've slid my completion of the jumps I need for Master Parachutist further and further back. I also haven't resorted to slightly more desperate measures such as attempting to find night jumps, jumps on a weekend, or jumping with other units at Fort Bragg who routinely jump combat equipment with mass exits with nonsteerable parachutes.
On that last one - in the three years I spent in the 82d Imperial Airborne Division, I accumulated 39 jumps. 25 of them involved combat equipment. Over 15 of them were at night. Two were on hardstand (i.e., asphalt/concrete) drop zones. Two of them were using steerable parachutes. That was it. I don't feel any compelling need to jump nonsteerable parachutes any more unless I absolutely have to.
Splits
1.5 12:27 12:27 08:18
2.1 29:53 17:26 08:18
1.5 41:47 11:54 07:56 08:07
Monday, March 28, 2005
Modern Day Heroes and the Contrast
In the midst of channel surfing to get away from the Disney Channel, I chanced upon a series of interviews on C-SPAN tonight. The interview I was watching was of Corporal Michael Oreskovic, who is a cavalry scout currently attached to Walter Reed Army Medical Center. He was assigned to one of the line troops in the reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition squadron in the 1st Stryker brigade and had lost his left arm about midway at the upper arm. He had already been shot in the left arm once, and a few weeks later was on a mounted patrol before he was about to conduct transfer of authority with the replacement unit when he was hit again by a car bomb, badly enough where half of his arm was blown off in the blast.
What I found utterly awe-inspiring was CPL Oreskovic's, well, equanimity over his life. A 23 year old man, who joined the military out of patriotism, as a volunteer, was visibly at peace over having to wear a prosthetic arm for the rest of his life. He was very matter-of-fact about it, and exuded maturity far beyond his physical appearance.
The cliché that every "generation has its heroes" can sound trite at times. The men and women who are in theater, though, represent some of the best that the Nation has to offer.
In contrast, I see with my own eyes the insularity of some civilians, and think that it's a shame that the values that I see in the soldiers who fight and sometimes die for the things we have asked of them are not reflected in some of the people they defend. Those they defend pick through the food on a table only wanting to get their share, sleep late, and generally not thinking about the rest of the world around them.
"You've never lived until you've almost died. For those who fight for it, freedom has a flavor the protected will never know."
Perhaps I can be forgiven this little piece of catharsis, but I look back to the career choices I've made and realize that I have no regrets. I'm not particularly conservative relative to my peers in the Army, but it's an honorable profession, and I believe in what I do on a more fundamental level than just it being a paycheck.
What I found utterly awe-inspiring was CPL Oreskovic's, well, equanimity over his life. A 23 year old man, who joined the military out of patriotism, as a volunteer, was visibly at peace over having to wear a prosthetic arm for the rest of his life. He was very matter-of-fact about it, and exuded maturity far beyond his physical appearance.
The cliché that every "generation has its heroes" can sound trite at times. The men and women who are in theater, though, represent some of the best that the Nation has to offer.
In contrast, I see with my own eyes the insularity of some civilians, and think that it's a shame that the values that I see in the soldiers who fight and sometimes die for the things we have asked of them are not reflected in some of the people they defend. Those they defend pick through the food on a table only wanting to get their share, sleep late, and generally not thinking about the rest of the world around them.
"You've never lived until you've almost died. For those who fight for it, freedom has a flavor the protected will never know."
Perhaps I can be forgiven this little piece of catharsis, but I look back to the career choices I've made and realize that I have no regrets. I'm not particularly conservative relative to my peers in the Army, but it's an honorable profession, and I believe in what I do on a more fundamental level than just it being a paycheck.
5.1mi, 43:46
Corrosion of Conformity, "What(?)"
Corrosion of Conformity, "Negative Outlook"
Eric Idle, "FCC Song" (lyrics attached, because it's just that kind of day)
Fuck you very much the FCC
Fuck you very much for fining me
Five thousand bucks a fuck
So I'm really out of luck
That's more than Heidi Fleiss was charging me
So fuck you very much the FCC
for proving that free speech just isn't free
Clear Channel's a dear channel
So Howard Stern must go
Attorney General Ashcroft doesn't like strong words and so
He's charging twice as much as all the drugs for Rush Limbaugh
So fuck you all so very much
So fuck you very much, Dear Mr. Bush
For heroically sitting on your tush
For Halliburton, Enron, all the companies who fail
Let's send them a clear signal and stick Martha straight in jail
She's an uppity rich bitch
And at least she isn't male
So fuck you all so very much
So fuck you dickhead Mr. Cheney too
Fuck you and fuck everything you do
Your pacemaker must be a fake
You haven't got a heart
As far as I'm concerned you're just a pasty-faced old fart
And as for Condoleeza she's an intellectual tart
So fuck you all so very much
So fuck you very much, the EPA
For giving all Alaska's oil away
It really is a bummer
When I can't fill my hummer
The ozone's a nogozone now that Arnold's here to say:
"The nuclear winter games are going to take place in LA"
So fuck you all so very much
So what the planet fails
Let's save the great white males
And fuck you all so very much
WX at 0600: 66 (19), DP 64 (18), BP 29.57 (1001), winds SE 10, light rain with thunder, RH 93%
Odometer 2: 322.5mi
Z3 low.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading today.
After a day of nothing but farting around/fucking off at my brother-in-law's house eating and being really unindustrious/sloblike, I thought today would be faster. In a word, no.
Today was fucking slow. I think that, and some Easter-related ire, might have sparked the recurrence of the FCC Song.
It was therapeutic, in a way, to run in warm, light rain, New Model Army nod (Here in the rain/You know you're alive/Running in the rain) aside.
It's also comforting that by leaving at 5:50am and getting back now, I spared myself having to run through what is now a hard torrential downpour. That's not running in the rain, that's just suck.
Splits
1.5 12:37 12:37 08:25
2.1 31:02 18:25 08:46
1.5 43:46 12:44 08:29 08:30
Corrosion of Conformity, "Negative Outlook"
Eric Idle, "FCC Song" (lyrics attached, because it's just that kind of day)
Fuck you very much the FCC
Fuck you very much for fining me
Five thousand bucks a fuck
So I'm really out of luck
That's more than Heidi Fleiss was charging me
So fuck you very much the FCC
for proving that free speech just isn't free
Clear Channel's a dear channel
So Howard Stern must go
Attorney General Ashcroft doesn't like strong words and so
He's charging twice as much as all the drugs for Rush Limbaugh
So fuck you all so very much
So fuck you very much, Dear Mr. Bush
For heroically sitting on your tush
For Halliburton, Enron, all the companies who fail
Let's send them a clear signal and stick Martha straight in jail
She's an uppity rich bitch
And at least she isn't male
So fuck you all so very much
So fuck you dickhead Mr. Cheney too
Fuck you and fuck everything you do
Your pacemaker must be a fake
You haven't got a heart
As far as I'm concerned you're just a pasty-faced old fart
And as for Condoleeza she's an intellectual tart
So fuck you all so very much
So fuck you very much, the EPA
For giving all Alaska's oil away
It really is a bummer
When I can't fill my hummer
The ozone's a nogozone now that Arnold's here to say:
"The nuclear winter games are going to take place in LA"
So fuck you all so very much
So what the planet fails
Let's save the great white males
And fuck you all so very much
WX at 0600: 66 (19), DP 64 (18), BP 29.57 (1001), winds SE 10, light rain with thunder, RH 93%
Odometer 2: 322.5mi
Z3 low.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading today.
After a day of nothing but farting around/fucking off at my brother-in-law's house eating and being really unindustrious/sloblike, I thought today would be faster. In a word, no.
Today was fucking slow. I think that, and some Easter-related ire, might have sparked the recurrence of the FCC Song.
It was therapeutic, in a way, to run in warm, light rain, New Model Army nod (Here in the rain/You know you're alive/Running in the rain) aside.
It's also comforting that by leaving at 5:50am and getting back now, I spared myself having to run through what is now a hard torrential downpour. That's not running in the rain, that's just suck.
Splits
1.5 12:37 12:37 08:25
2.1 31:02 18:25 08:46
1.5 43:46 12:44 08:29 08:30
Saturday, March 26, 2005
9 miles approximate, 76:42
Lise Westzynthius, "1st Movement" (EPO-555 remix)
Housewife, "Channel Noir"
Rachel Loy, "Love Me Too Much"
Saxon Shore, "Amber, Ember, Glow"
The Amazing Pilots, "The Price of Winter"
WX at 0800: 48 (9), DP 46 (8), BP 30.06 (1017), winds Variable 3, mist, RH 93%
Odometer 1: 356mi
Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = 49
Slow and painful at parts. Some of this I attribute to trail running, some I attribute to running without a set route in mind (or at least one that had been vetted).
Some just points to the need to taper.
Sleep is becoming a factor. Three weeks of getting less than 6 hours a night caught up to me two days ago.
Splits
first 1.70: 14:47
last 1.70: 14:29
Housewife, "Channel Noir"
Rachel Loy, "Love Me Too Much"
Saxon Shore, "Amber, Ember, Glow"
The Amazing Pilots, "The Price of Winter"
WX at 0800: 48 (9), DP 46 (8), BP 30.06 (1017), winds Variable 3, mist, RH 93%
Odometer 1: 356mi
Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = 49
Slow and painful at parts. Some of this I attribute to trail running, some I attribute to running without a set route in mind (or at least one that had been vetted).
Some just points to the need to taper.
Sleep is becoming a factor. Three weeks of getting less than 6 hours a night caught up to me two days ago.
Splits
first 1.70: 14:47
last 1.70: 14:29
Thursday, March 24, 2005
7.6mi, 61:34
The Reputation, "Face It"
Housewife, "Channel Noir"
Saxon Shore, "Amber, Ember, Glow"
WX at 0700: 48 (9), DP 44 (7), BP 29.88 (1011), Calm, RH 87%
Odometer 2: 317.5mi
Z3
Resting heart rate before start = 57
First good 7.6 in a few days. I did 160 pushups(40x4), 100 situps(100x1), and one long iteration of ab work concentrating on hip flexors and adductors...so today was probably slower as a result.
Not bad, though. Not stellar, but not bad. Next week will start tapering in preparation for the physical fitness test on 6 April.
Splits
1.5 12:00 12:00 08:00
2.1 29:24 17:24 08:17
1.5 41:45 12:21 08:14
2.5 61:34 19:49 07:56 08:05
Housewife, "Channel Noir"
Saxon Shore, "Amber, Ember, Glow"
WX at 0700: 48 (9), DP 44 (7), BP 29.88 (1011), Calm, RH 87%
Odometer 2: 317.5mi
Z3
Resting heart rate before start = 57
First good 7.6 in a few days. I did 160 pushups(40x4), 100 situps(100x1), and one long iteration of ab work concentrating on hip flexors and adductors...so today was probably slower as a result.
Not bad, though. Not stellar, but not bad. Next week will start tapering in preparation for the physical fitness test on 6 April.
Splits
1.5 12:00 12:00 08:00
2.1 29:24 17:24 08:17
1.5 41:45 12:21 08:14
2.5 61:34 19:49 07:56 08:05
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
5.0mi, 41:55
Lise Westzynthius, "1st Movement" (EPO-555 remix)
Rachel Loy, "Love Me Too Much"
WX at 0600: 42 (6), DP 41 (5), BP 30.14 (1020), winds NE 6, RH 93%
Odometer 1: 347mi
Z2.
Resting heart rate before start = 57
Nothing hard. Slow recovery run based on yesterday's run and the runs the two days prior. Today was definitely an example where if I had run hard, it would've been counterproductive.
Splits
2.5 20:52 20:52 08:21
2.5 41:55 21:03 08:25 08:17
Rachel Loy, "Love Me Too Much"
WX at 0600: 42 (6), DP 41 (5), BP 30.14 (1020), winds NE 6, RH 93%
Odometer 1: 347mi
Z2.
Resting heart rate before start = 57
Nothing hard. Slow recovery run based on yesterday's run and the runs the two days prior. Today was definitely an example where if I had run hard, it would've been counterproductive.
Splits
2.5 20:52 20:52 08:21
2.5 41:55 21:03 08:25 08:17
Monday, March 21, 2005
The Incredibles Is Not A Fucking Children's Movie
It's been impossible not to notice the heavy advertisements and promotional tie-ins that Disney has been doing for The Incredibles. Nonetheless, while I liked the movie, I totally didn't think it was for children below the age of, say, 12.
Big fat invective and spoilers follow.
Here are some plot elements in The Incredibles that made me think "why don't I just have the kids watch Alien3":
- Attempted suicide [suicide]
- Trips away from the office [lies]
- Marital problems/tension [potential for divorce]
- Sexual innuendo [sex]
- Allusion to adultery (not actual) [sex, infidelity]
- Edna vets the new suits (to include the ones for the children, including Jack-Jack) with missiles and machine gun fire [death, killing children]
- Hiding behind the corpse of one of your former best friends [death]
- Lethal torso shot with the rock [death]
- Launching someone to certain doom from tram car into water far, far away [death]
- Lethal tram car being chucked into two guards at a checkpoint (think of Newton's Second Law and what would happen to a normal person if a 600-800 pound lump of metal hit you head on going about 70mph.) [Yes, you guessed it, death.]
- "There are children aboard this plane" [near-death]
- The rundown of assassinated Supers [murder]
- The refinement of Omnidroids killing the Supers [murder]
- Discussions of how Supers with capes got killed [murder]
- "They won't show the same kind of restraint because you're children." [murder]
- Gambling with Mirage's life [attempted murder, justifiable homicide]
- razor saucer flies into cliff, explosion, dead guy [death, attempted killing of children]
- razor saucer flies into each other, explosion, dead guys [death, attempted killing of children]
- razor saucer flies into ground, explosion, dead guy [death, attempted killing of children]
- "You married Elastigirl...and got busy?" (okay, real appropriate for, well, CHILDREN, huh, what the fuck?") [sex]
- tank crews bruleé à la deus ex machina by laser blasts from Omnidroid. Probably some collateral death to infantry nearby [death]
- Jack-Jack the Satanic Human Torch [yeah, baby]
- Cape. Jet Turbine. FOD. Cuisinart. [puree!]
And Disney is selling this as a children's movie? Did parents all over the United Imperial States of America check their fucking intellects at the pocket book? Oh wait, it's the Imperial States of Orthodoxy. Pass me some shitty American beer.
First time I saw The Incredibles was on a Disney cruise ship. At the end, the parents and children are clapping at the end of the movie. What the fuck??? I would be perfectly happy to keep this movie locked up until the kids are, oh, about 12.
And here's the reason why:
- It's one thing to trivialize the kind of normally lethal falls that occur in the Warner Brothers universe, along with the undisputed excellence of Acme products. Just ask Wile E. Coyote.
- It's another thing to give death (and let's call it what it is, it's death) more than lip service but sell the movie to children? I cringe when I think of toddlers watching The Incredibles.
That's why I'm really inflexible about kids (mine or anyone else's, for that matter) playing with "guns" or "knives" in the yard. That's about as verboten as the kids watching Barney or Jerry Springer. In real life, death hurts. It hurts a lot when you have to witness it, and a lot of the time, it probably fucking hurts like hell for the one who has to prematurely undergo it.
Dead is dead. Children can have their childhood, but as I say sometimes at work, it's under a nonpermissive METT-TC (Mission, Enemy, Troops, Terrain, Time, Civilians = battlefield environment). Dead people don't get up. I'm sure there are some folks in Phnom Penh, Srebrenica, Kigali, or hell, even Fallujah who would probably agree with that statement.
On the bright side, the suborbital sequences of the rocket pushing over max ordinate in space are pretty damn cool.
As I reiterate: it's not a fucking children's movie.
Big fat invective and spoilers follow.
Here are some plot elements in The Incredibles that made me think "why don't I just have the kids watch Alien3":
- Attempted suicide [suicide]
- Trips away from the office [lies]
- Marital problems/tension [potential for divorce]
- Sexual innuendo [sex]
- Allusion to adultery (not actual) [sex, infidelity]
- Edna vets the new suits (to include the ones for the children, including Jack-Jack) with missiles and machine gun fire [death, killing children]
- Hiding behind the corpse of one of your former best friends [death]
- Lethal torso shot with the rock [death]
- Launching someone to certain doom from tram car into water far, far away [death]
- Lethal tram car being chucked into two guards at a checkpoint (think of Newton's Second Law and what would happen to a normal person if a 600-800 pound lump of metal hit you head on going about 70mph.) [Yes, you guessed it, death.]
- "There are children aboard this plane" [near-death]
- The rundown of assassinated Supers [murder]
- The refinement of Omnidroids killing the Supers [murder]
- Discussions of how Supers with capes got killed [murder]
- "They won't show the same kind of restraint because you're children." [murder]
- Gambling with Mirage's life [attempted murder, justifiable homicide]
- razor saucer flies into cliff, explosion, dead guy [death, attempted killing of children]
- razor saucer flies into each other, explosion, dead guys [death, attempted killing of children]
- razor saucer flies into ground, explosion, dead guy [death, attempted killing of children]
- "You married Elastigirl...and got busy?" (okay, real appropriate for, well, CHILDREN, huh, what the fuck?") [sex]
- tank crews bruleé à la deus ex machina by laser blasts from Omnidroid. Probably some collateral death to infantry nearby [death]
- Jack-Jack the Satanic Human Torch [yeah, baby]
- Cape. Jet Turbine. FOD. Cuisinart. [puree!]
And Disney is selling this as a children's movie? Did parents all over the United Imperial States of America check their fucking intellects at the pocket book? Oh wait, it's the Imperial States of Orthodoxy. Pass me some shitty American beer.
First time I saw The Incredibles was on a Disney cruise ship. At the end, the parents and children are clapping at the end of the movie. What the fuck??? I would be perfectly happy to keep this movie locked up until the kids are, oh, about 12.
And here's the reason why:
- It's one thing to trivialize the kind of normally lethal falls that occur in the Warner Brothers universe, along with the undisputed excellence of Acme products. Just ask Wile E. Coyote.
- It's another thing to give death (and let's call it what it is, it's death) more than lip service but sell the movie to children? I cringe when I think of toddlers watching The Incredibles.
That's why I'm really inflexible about kids (mine or anyone else's, for that matter) playing with "guns" or "knives" in the yard. That's about as verboten as the kids watching Barney or Jerry Springer. In real life, death hurts. It hurts a lot when you have to witness it, and a lot of the time, it probably fucking hurts like hell for the one who has to prematurely undergo it.
Dead is dead. Children can have their childhood, but as I say sometimes at work, it's under a nonpermissive METT-TC (Mission, Enemy, Troops, Terrain, Time, Civilians = battlefield environment). Dead people don't get up. I'm sure there are some folks in Phnom Penh, Srebrenica, Kigali, or hell, even Fallujah who would probably agree with that statement.
On the bright side, the suborbital sequences of the rocket pushing over max ordinate in space are pretty damn cool.
As I reiterate: it's not a fucking children's movie.
7.6mi, 62:05
Cruiserweight, "This Ain't No Beach Party"
Boys Night Out, "I Got Punched in the Nose for Sticking My Face in Other People's Business"
EPO-555, "Le Beat's On Fire" (URL is for all those non-Danish speaking folks out there; if you feel native, go here)
Mary Lou Lord, "The Wind Blew All Around Me"
WX at 0600: 42 (6), DP 30 (-1), BP 30.05 (1017), winds NNE 2, RH 60%
Odometer 1: 342mi
Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading today.
I wasn't sure how today was going to feel, and the start wasn't particularly auspicious for what wasn't supposed to be a recovery run. Today wasn't a hard run, but it was at tempo. After yesterday's trip to the zoo, my legs were probably tired from dragging 90 pounds of gear and children around in a Radio Flyer wagon, but not so tired that today's pace was embarrassingly slow.
On another note: some people have iPods. I'm too cheap (or haven't convinced my wife that I need one) so I have an iThink (i.e., the one in my skull). The iThink is free but suffers from inconsistent memory. Today's iThink was also on the Preview Shuffle Mode from Hell since I was continuously bouncing between 4 songs or so over the first six miles. It was, to quote Anthrax out of contest, "caught in a mosh."
It wasn't until the last mile and a half that I settled into the Mary Lou Lord song, finally.
Splits
1.5 12:10 12:10 08:07
2.1 29:52 17:42 08:26
1.5 42:07 12:15 08:10
2.5 62:05 19:58 07:59 08:09
Boys Night Out, "I Got Punched in the Nose for Sticking My Face in Other People's Business"
EPO-555, "Le Beat's On Fire" (URL is for all those non-Danish speaking folks out there; if you feel native, go here)
Mary Lou Lord, "The Wind Blew All Around Me"
WX at 0600: 42 (6), DP 30 (-1), BP 30.05 (1017), winds NNE 2, RH 60%
Odometer 1: 342mi
Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading today.
I wasn't sure how today was going to feel, and the start wasn't particularly auspicious for what wasn't supposed to be a recovery run. Today wasn't a hard run, but it was at tempo. After yesterday's trip to the zoo, my legs were probably tired from dragging 90 pounds of gear and children around in a Radio Flyer wagon, but not so tired that today's pace was embarrassingly slow.
On another note: some people have iPods. I'm too cheap (or haven't convinced my wife that I need one) so I have an iThink (i.e., the one in my skull). The iThink is free but suffers from inconsistent memory. Today's iThink was also on the Preview Shuffle Mode from Hell since I was continuously bouncing between 4 songs or so over the first six miles. It was, to quote Anthrax out of contest, "caught in a mosh."
It wasn't until the last mile and a half that I settled into the Mary Lou Lord song, finally.
Splits
1.5 12:10 12:10 08:07
2.1 29:52 17:42 08:26
1.5 42:07 12:15 08:10
2.5 62:05 19:58 07:59 08:09
Sunday, March 20, 2005
The Incredibles Is Not a Fucking Children's Movie
Placeholder until I can really get my invective on later tonight.
5.1mi, 42:06
Lise Westzynthius, "1st Movement" (EPO-555 remix)
EPO-555, "Le Beat's On Fire"
WX at 0800: 42 (6), DP 41 (5), BP 30.03 (1016), Calm, mist, RH 93%
Odometer 2: 310mi
Z2-3.
Resting heart rate before start = 63
Recovery run that turned out to be faster than usual. Not much to say. I'm going to the North Carolina Zoo today, so I'm holding off on any significant work, since I'll be pulling both the kids through the zoo today in a Radio Flyer wagon. That actually should end up being about 5 miles worth of hard walking.
Splits
1.5 12:22 12:22 08:15
2.1 30:01 17:39 08:24
1.5 42:06 12:05 08:03 08:10
EPO-555, "Le Beat's On Fire"
WX at 0800: 42 (6), DP 41 (5), BP 30.03 (1016), Calm, mist, RH 93%
Odometer 2: 310mi
Z2-3.
Resting heart rate before start = 63
Recovery run that turned out to be faster than usual. Not much to say. I'm going to the North Carolina Zoo today, so I'm holding off on any significant work, since I'll be pulling both the kids through the zoo today in a Radio Flyer wagon. That actually should end up being about 5 miles worth of hard walking.
Splits
1.5 12:22 12:22 08:15
2.1 30:01 17:39 08:24
1.5 42:06 12:05 08:03 08:10
Saturday, March 19, 2005
8.5mi, 73:21
The dB's, "Lonely Is As Lonely Does"
Game Theory, "Penny, Things Won't"
The Ventures, "Walk, Don't Run"
Jane Siberry, "The Walking (And Constantly)"
Jane Siberry, "Mimi On The Beach"
WX at 0800: 45.0 (7.2), DP 30.9 (-0.6), BP 30.12 (1019), winds NNE 10, RH 57%
Odometer 1: 334.5mi
Z3 steady state.
Resting heart rate before start = 52
I wasn't looking for anything ambitious today. First run in three days = nothing extremely hard. Today was just a day to go for a relatively moderate steady state run, so I decided to stay off pavement and go just for distance/time.
The last two splits are approximate since I missed cutting the split at the actual time.
It did feel good to get out and run again, but it's been getting progressively harder to wake up early and go running. This points to discussions of burnout, but I don't think I'm running enough to really get into what I would call burnout. Maybe I'm just getting lazy.
Splits
1.70 14:40 14:40 08:38
2.32 34:46 20:06 08:40
2.72 59:00 24:14 08:55 approximate
1.70 73:21 14:21 08:26 approximate 08:41
Game Theory, "Penny, Things Won't"
The Ventures, "Walk, Don't Run"
Jane Siberry, "The Walking (And Constantly)"
Jane Siberry, "Mimi On The Beach"
WX at 0800: 45.0 (7.2), DP 30.9 (-0.6), BP 30.12 (1019), winds NNE 10, RH 57%
Odometer 1: 334.5mi
Z3 steady state.
Resting heart rate before start = 52
I wasn't looking for anything ambitious today. First run in three days = nothing extremely hard. Today was just a day to go for a relatively moderate steady state run, so I decided to stay off pavement and go just for distance/time.
The last two splits are approximate since I missed cutting the split at the actual time.
It did feel good to get out and run again, but it's been getting progressively harder to wake up early and go running. This points to discussions of burnout, but I don't think I'm running enough to really get into what I would call burnout. Maybe I'm just getting lazy.
Splits
1.70 14:40 14:40 08:38
2.32 34:46 20:06 08:40
2.72 59:00 24:14 08:55 approximate
1.70 73:21 14:21 08:26 approximate 08:41
Wednesday, March 16, 2005
5.1mi, 41:18
The dB's, "Lonely Is As Lonely Does"
Letters to Cleo, "Pizza Cutter"
WX at 0600: 42 (6), DP 39 (4), BP 30.08 (1018), Calm, light rain, RH 86%
Odometer 1: 326mi
Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = 57
Faster, but unexpectedly so. It's looking like my good runs for this course and distance are all sitting in the 41 minute range; it's the exceptional runs that are hitting below that. Notably, my PR is around 39 minutes. I have grown old and slow.
Another indicator of impending weenieness is that I deliberated through three different permutations of snivel gear for today's light rain. In retrospect, I could've just gone t-shirt and shorts and I would've been just fine. I can't believe I was actually thinking about wearing a rain suit. This is pretty pathetic for a guy who used to revel in running in the rain when he was younger.
While yesterday's recovery run was crucially useful, my legs were still tired. This will necessitate a significant taper before the beginning of April when I'm supposed to take a physical fitness test.
I bust my ass to get back and I still run a 2 second positive split from the way out. Likewise the center section. Unfortunately, a remapping using USAPhotoMaps tells me it's 2.1 miles. Bummer.
Splits
1.5 11:57 11:57 07:58
2.1 29:19 17:22 08:16
1.5 41:18 11:59 07:59 08:01
Letters to Cleo, "Pizza Cutter"
WX at 0600: 42 (6), DP 39 (4), BP 30.08 (1018), Calm, light rain, RH 86%
Odometer 1: 326mi
Z3.
Resting heart rate before start = 57
Faster, but unexpectedly so. It's looking like my good runs for this course and distance are all sitting in the 41 minute range; it's the exceptional runs that are hitting below that. Notably, my PR is around 39 minutes. I have grown old and slow.
Another indicator of impending weenieness is that I deliberated through three different permutations of snivel gear for today's light rain. In retrospect, I could've just gone t-shirt and shorts and I would've been just fine. I can't believe I was actually thinking about wearing a rain suit. This is pretty pathetic for a guy who used to revel in running in the rain when he was younger.
While yesterday's recovery run was crucially useful, my legs were still tired. This will necessitate a significant taper before the beginning of April when I'm supposed to take a physical fitness test.
I bust my ass to get back and I still run a 2 second positive split from the way out. Likewise the center section. Unfortunately, a remapping using USAPhotoMaps tells me it's 2.1 miles. Bummer.
Splits
1.5 11:57 11:57 07:58
2.1 29:19 17:22 08:16
1.5 41:18 11:59 07:59 08:01
Tuesday, March 15, 2005
5.1mi, 46:10 = unrepentant wogging
Shirley Walker, theme to Space: Above and Beyond
snippets of John Williams, "The Battle of Endor I" from Return of the Jedi
snippets of John Williams, "Rescue from Cloud City/Hyperspace" from The Empire Strikes Back
The entire prejump script with embellishments from 82d Airborne Division, Airborne Standing Operating Procedures, Edition VI
WX at 0600: 32 (0), DP 32 (0), BP 30.13 (1020), winds NW 5, mist, RH 100%, wind chill 26 (-3)
Odometer 2: 305mi
Z1.
Resting heart rate before start = 51
I'm going to have to check the validity of the 2.1 split distance. Somehow it doesn't make sense that I'm going the same speed, same effort, and running that much slower.
Identical start/end splits. That doesn't happen often.
Today involved some massive wogging. After yesterday's run and 120 Hindu Squats last night (70x50), I think I can safely say today was going to be slow. The magnitude of slow was amazing, but in all honesty, probably required. Any harder run than Z2 today would've been totally counterproductive. So there.
I'm gratified that wogging still equals 9 minutes/mile pace, though. Yes!
Splits
1.5 13:21 13:21 08:54
2.1 32:49 19:28 09:16
1.5 46:10 13:21 08:54 08:58
snippets of John Williams, "The Battle of Endor I" from Return of the Jedi
snippets of John Williams, "Rescue from Cloud City/Hyperspace" from The Empire Strikes Back
The entire prejump script with embellishments from 82d Airborne Division, Airborne Standing Operating Procedures, Edition VI
WX at 0600: 32 (0), DP 32 (0), BP 30.13 (1020), winds NW 5, mist, RH 100%, wind chill 26 (-3)
Odometer 2: 305mi
Z1.
Resting heart rate before start = 51
I'm going to have to check the validity of the 2.1 split distance. Somehow it doesn't make sense that I'm going the same speed, same effort, and running that much slower.
Identical start/end splits. That doesn't happen often.
Today involved some massive wogging. After yesterday's run and 120 Hindu Squats last night (70x50), I think I can safely say today was going to be slow. The magnitude of slow was amazing, but in all honesty, probably required. Any harder run than Z2 today would've been totally counterproductive. So there.
I'm gratified that wogging still equals 9 minutes/mile pace, though. Yes!
Splits
1.5 13:21 13:21 08:54
2.1 32:49 19:28 09:16
1.5 46:10 13:21 08:54 08:58
Monday, March 14, 2005
7.8mi, 64:28
(placeholder until I can update this.)
Chris Stamey, "The Sound You Hear"
Kansas, "The Spider"
The Reputation, "The Stars of Amateur Hour"
WX at 1400: 44(7), DP 37 (3), BP 29.96 (1014), winds NE 7, RH 75%
Odometer 1: 321mi
Z3 but not labored Z3 except uphill.
No HRM reading.
Positive splits but not by much. Much more efficient on the return leg.
Powerlines splits:
17:40 to second hardball (17:40) 3.1km leg
33:00 to turnaround (15:19) 3.2km leg
48:25 to second hardball (15:25) 3.2km leg
56:41 back to first hardball (8:16) 1.5km leg
64:28 back to start (7:47) 1.6km leg
Chris Stamey, "The Sound You Hear"
Kansas, "The Spider"
The Reputation, "The Stars of Amateur Hour"
WX at 1400: 44(7), DP 37 (3), BP 29.96 (1014), winds NE 7, RH 75%
Odometer 1: 321mi
Z3 but not labored Z3 except uphill.
No HRM reading.
Positive splits but not by much. Much more efficient on the return leg.
Powerlines splits:
17:40 to second hardball (17:40) 3.1km leg
33:00 to turnaround (15:19) 3.2km leg
48:25 to second hardball (15:25) 3.2km leg
56:41 back to first hardball (8:16) 1.5km leg
64:28 back to start (7:47) 1.6km leg
Sunday, March 13, 2005
A feeling of dread
I normally eschew television. I read the news out of newspapers or online, the weather is usually not specific enough for me, and I fucking loathe reality shows and sitcoms.
In spite of this, I've been watching two shows lately with some regularity. The first is MI-5, which is better known originally on BBC as Spooks. (Nice to see the A&E folks just cliffed the BBC's website.) I suspect the original moniker probably doesn't carry the racial epithet baggage in Britain.
The other show I religiously watch, more so than MI-5, is Battlestar Galactica. This is the remake, mind you. I binged out on the original BSG when I was a kid.
One of the things that I really have to recommend the new BSG is its treatment of human problems on the show. All too often, Americans look to TV for escapist fantasy (e.g., Dallas, Friends). But this is a show that's not intended for the average viewer, I think.
One of most illustrative things I've seen on the new BSG was an explanation of the importance of posse comitatus, which is a thorny topic in my line of work these days. As I recall, the rationalization of why we don't make our military into the police is that "when that happens, the enemies of the state tend to become the people."
More pointedly, BSG doesn't present the clean, optimistic future (yes, I'm quoting a nonauthoritative source) that Star Trek does, for example. It reminds me in some ways of Space: Above and Beyond, which I adored (and also didn't shamelessly cater to the American viewership).
Anyway, I digress. What particularly stuck out in this week's BSG was its depiction of what it's like to be a commander and a planner when you send people out to do your plan. Having been a planner on more than a few occasions (and being one by military occupational specialty now), there is one scene in this week's episode that gave me a tightening of the gut that I don't normally associate with TV. (Listen here.)
It's hard to disassociate that scene from the feeling I used to get when I heard men over the radio in training getting hacked up in (simulated) combat. While it was usually the other way (my guys on the winning side), there were times when things would proverbially go south.
When I was a troop commander, there was a sign I used to hang in my office. It said, simply this:
In spite of this, I've been watching two shows lately with some regularity. The first is MI-5, which is better known originally on BBC as Spooks. (Nice to see the A&E folks just cliffed the BBC's website.) I suspect the original moniker probably doesn't carry the racial epithet baggage in Britain.
The other show I religiously watch, more so than MI-5, is Battlestar Galactica. This is the remake, mind you. I binged out on the original BSG when I was a kid.
One of the things that I really have to recommend the new BSG is its treatment of human problems on the show. All too often, Americans look to TV for escapist fantasy (e.g., Dallas, Friends). But this is a show that's not intended for the average viewer, I think.
One of most illustrative things I've seen on the new BSG was an explanation of the importance of posse comitatus, which is a thorny topic in my line of work these days. As I recall, the rationalization of why we don't make our military into the police is that "when that happens, the enemies of the state tend to become the people."
More pointedly, BSG doesn't present the clean, optimistic future (yes, I'm quoting a nonauthoritative source) that Star Trek does, for example. It reminds me in some ways of Space: Above and Beyond, which I adored (and also didn't shamelessly cater to the American viewership).
Anyway, I digress. What particularly stuck out in this week's BSG was its depiction of what it's like to be a commander and a planner when you send people out to do your plan. Having been a planner on more than a few occasions (and being one by military occupational specialty now), there is one scene in this week's episode that gave me a tightening of the gut that I don't normally associate with TV. (Listen here.)
It's hard to disassociate that scene from the feeling I used to get when I heard men over the radio in training getting hacked up in (simulated) combat. While it was usually the other way (my guys on the winning side), there were times when things would proverbially go south.
When I was a troop commander, there was a sign I used to hang in my office. It said, simply this:
LIEUTENANT
REMEMBER: EVERYTHING YOU PLAN AND WRITE MUST BE EXECUTED BY THESE MEN (with a photo of paratroopers in a live-fire exercise)
THEY AND THEIR BUDDIES WILL BE THE FIRST TO PAY FOR YOUR MISTAKES
DO YOUR JOB WELL - FUTURES DEPEND ON IT
I periodically think of the simple gravity of that statement. Sometimes I see things that remind me of that reality. This week's episode of BSG is one of them.
If you're in the military, and have planning responsibilities for subordinates, and this excerpt doesn't bother you at any level, you need to get the hell out and go somewhere where the price of substandard work isn't so fucking extreme.
If you're in the military, and have planning responsibilities for subordinates, and this excerpt doesn't bother you at any level, you need to get the hell out and go somewhere where the price of substandard work isn't so fucking extreme.
No wogging Saturday
Title mostly says it all. I did no wogging on Saturday.
Instead:
160 pushups (40x40x40x40)
100 situps (100)
one set ab work (15x4 count supine bicycle, 10x4c leg lift, 40x4c flutter kick, 20x4c raised leg crunch)
20x4c Dirty Little Bitch (the quaint name coined for an exercise I learned at Fort Benning once)
190 Hindu Squat (70x50x40x30)
My back is sore and my legs are sore, so today will involve some wogging. Long, but slow wogging.
Instead:
160 pushups (40x40x40x40)
100 situps (100)
one set ab work (15x4 count supine bicycle, 10x4c leg lift, 40x4c flutter kick, 20x4c raised leg crunch)
20x4c Dirty Little Bitch (the quaint name coined for an exercise I learned at Fort Benning once)
190 Hindu Squat (70x50x40x30)
My back is sore and my legs are sore, so today will involve some wogging. Long, but slow wogging.
Friday, March 11, 2005
7.6mi, 60:00
Liz Phair, "Supernova" (I have no idea where this came from.)
New Order, "Dream Attack"
R.E.M. with Kate Pierson, "Furry Happy Monsters" (from Sesame Street)
WX at 0700: 39 (4), DP 30 (-1), BP 29.72 (1006), winds SW 7, RH 69%
Odometer 2: 300.5mi
Z3-4.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading.
Today was going to be a jump. I thought I was going to be already on the manifest, but that ended up becoming a wolf ticket. There were two parachutes left for straphangers when the names were finished being called. I could not in good conscience ask for a parachute when there were folks who were pay losses (i.e., had not jumped in over six months and needed to jump to restart their jump pay). So, I ended up going home at 6:00 after a 5:15am manifest call.
I was disappointed, but there will be other opportunities.
Today's run, on the other hand, started out promising, and then I just started to fade. My legs were just tired, which would explain the positive splits, especially in the last split, which is by far the flattest of the course and should be nominally the fastest if I've paced correctly.
Tomorrow will necessitate some wogging, methinks.
Splits
1.5 11:31 11:31 07:41
2.1 28:22 16:51 08:01
1.5 40:03 11:41 07:47
2.5 60:00 19:57 07:59 07:52
New Order, "Dream Attack"
R.E.M. with Kate Pierson, "Furry Happy Monsters" (from Sesame Street)
WX at 0700: 39 (4), DP 30 (-1), BP 29.72 (1006), winds SW 7, RH 69%
Odometer 2: 300.5mi
Z3-4.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading.
Today was going to be a jump. I thought I was going to be already on the manifest, but that ended up becoming a wolf ticket. There were two parachutes left for straphangers when the names were finished being called. I could not in good conscience ask for a parachute when there were folks who were pay losses (i.e., had not jumped in over six months and needed to jump to restart their jump pay). So, I ended up going home at 6:00 after a 5:15am manifest call.
I was disappointed, but there will be other opportunities.
Today's run, on the other hand, started out promising, and then I just started to fade. My legs were just tired, which would explain the positive splits, especially in the last split, which is by far the flattest of the course and should be nominally the fastest if I've paced correctly.
Tomorrow will necessitate some wogging, methinks.
Splits
1.5 11:31 11:31 07:41
2.1 28:22 16:51 08:01
1.5 40:03 11:41 07:47
2.5 60:00 19:57 07:59 07:52
Thursday, March 10, 2005
Jump 62, Ste Mêre Eglise DZ, A/NT
Chris Stamey, "Insomnia"
Drop altitude 1500 feet AGL, time of drop approximately 1610
KFBG 102155Z 26007KT 7SM SKC 12/M08 A2974 RMK SLP074
Conditions at: KFBG observed 2155 UTC 10 March 2005
Temperature: 12.0°C (54°F)
Dewpoint: -8.0°C (18°F) [RH = 24%]
Pressure (altimeter): 29.74 inches Hg (1007.2 mb)
[Sea-level pressure: 1007.4 mb]
Winds: from the W (260 degrees) at 8 MPH (7 knots; 3.6 m/s)
Visibility: 7 miles (11 km)
Ceiling: at least 12,000 feet AGL
Clouds: clear skies
Weather: no significant weather observed at this time
Two for two in jump attempts so far. Three to go before hitting master parachutist.
Today marked the first time I'd jumped the Soft Loop Center Pull Reserve Parachute. The SLCP is a little different from the Modified Improved Reserve Parachute System reserves I'd jumped in the last few years...in fact, now that I think about it, I can count on two hands the number of non-MIRPS jumps I've done. My first jump on a Casa 212 aircraft three years ago involved jumping a T-10 reserve, as did a jump I did with an Army Reserve rigger company five years ago. Before that, the last time I'd jumped a T-10 reserve was in Airborne School. back in 1993. (I took about a six year break in jump status between my fifth and sixth jumps.)
No JM duty today. That's a rarity. Some of the other guys in the unit asked me where my jumpmaster sweatshirt was; literally every time I've jumped with my current unit, it's been as a member of the jumpmaster team. Not today. I was stuck in a briefing that I thought would run all day, so I didn't attempt to get on.
As it was, I was able to negotiate sloppy seconds...erm, as a straphanger for today's jump. I guess I'm glad I jumped today since the outlook for another jump I'm supposed to do tomorrow isn't so good (predicted WX 15-25mph with intermittent rain).
Today's exit was clean, very clean. No twists, although I had some severe oscillation upon gaining canopy control, which is actually normal under windy conditions. I even verbalized a six thousand count before gaining canopy control. What I did not count on was exceptionally fast winds at altitude. The jumper immediately in front of me started dumping air when it became apparent to him that winds at altitude were a little, shall we say, brisk.
One of my coworkers, who can be flippant at times, but is one of the most proficient jumpmasters I know, was on the JM at the ramp today. I asked him a leading question about whether he was going to release jumpers early. He didn't, and he gave a fairly generous margin between jumpers since today was a JM-initiated exit. I had a nice long walk back to the assembly point; it didn't occur to me that dumping air might be a prudent idea.
Today also marked something which I consciously had to do, which is stand up, still in the harness, after landing. I did this primarily to get my canopy and suspension lines up and away from a tree which they were going to drape on. Now ordinarily, this is unbelievably stupid in combat conditions. Chances are that if you're jumping into combat, it's a safe bet that you're not jumping in unopposed. Consequently, the 82d Airborne Division tells its jumpers to remain on the ground and remove themselves from the parachute harness after activating one of the canopy release assemblies. Standing up in the harness is an invitation to get shot.
One last note. Today marked the further occurrence of picking up a gust just shy of landing. My landing wasn't particularly hard, but it wasn't particularly soft, either. It was a textbook side parachute landing fall, but it was a hard one.
Drop altitude 1500 feet AGL, time of drop approximately 1610
KFBG 102155Z 26007KT 7SM SKC 12/M08 A2974 RMK SLP074
Conditions at: KFBG observed 2155 UTC 10 March 2005
Temperature: 12.0°C (54°F)
Dewpoint: -8.0°C (18°F) [RH = 24%]
Pressure (altimeter): 29.74 inches Hg (1007.2 mb)
[Sea-level pressure: 1007.4 mb]
Winds: from the W (260 degrees) at 8 MPH (7 knots; 3.6 m/s)
Visibility: 7 miles (11 km)
Ceiling: at least 12,000 feet AGL
Clouds: clear skies
Weather: no significant weather observed at this time
Two for two in jump attempts so far. Three to go before hitting master parachutist.
Today marked the first time I'd jumped the Soft Loop Center Pull Reserve Parachute. The SLCP is a little different from the Modified Improved Reserve Parachute System reserves I'd jumped in the last few years...in fact, now that I think about it, I can count on two hands the number of non-MIRPS jumps I've done. My first jump on a Casa 212 aircraft three years ago involved jumping a T-10 reserve, as did a jump I did with an Army Reserve rigger company five years ago. Before that, the last time I'd jumped a T-10 reserve was in Airborne School. back in 1993. (I took about a six year break in jump status between my fifth and sixth jumps.)
No JM duty today. That's a rarity. Some of the other guys in the unit asked me where my jumpmaster sweatshirt was; literally every time I've jumped with my current unit, it's been as a member of the jumpmaster team. Not today. I was stuck in a briefing that I thought would run all day, so I didn't attempt to get on.
As it was, I was able to negotiate sloppy seconds...erm, as a straphanger for today's jump. I guess I'm glad I jumped today since the outlook for another jump I'm supposed to do tomorrow isn't so good (predicted WX 15-25mph with intermittent rain).
Today's exit was clean, very clean. No twists, although I had some severe oscillation upon gaining canopy control, which is actually normal under windy conditions. I even verbalized a six thousand count before gaining canopy control. What I did not count on was exceptionally fast winds at altitude. The jumper immediately in front of me started dumping air when it became apparent to him that winds at altitude were a little, shall we say, brisk.
One of my coworkers, who can be flippant at times, but is one of the most proficient jumpmasters I know, was on the JM at the ramp today. I asked him a leading question about whether he was going to release jumpers early. He didn't, and he gave a fairly generous margin between jumpers since today was a JM-initiated exit. I had a nice long walk back to the assembly point; it didn't occur to me that dumping air might be a prudent idea.
Today also marked something which I consciously had to do, which is stand up, still in the harness, after landing. I did this primarily to get my canopy and suspension lines up and away from a tree which they were going to drape on. Now ordinarily, this is unbelievably stupid in combat conditions. Chances are that if you're jumping into combat, it's a safe bet that you're not jumping in unopposed. Consequently, the 82d Airborne Division tells its jumpers to remain on the ground and remove themselves from the parachute harness after activating one of the canopy release assemblies. Standing up in the harness is an invitation to get shot.
One last note. Today marked the further occurrence of picking up a gust just shy of landing. My landing wasn't particularly hard, but it wasn't particularly soft, either. It was a textbook side parachute landing fall, but it was a hard one.
Wednesday, March 09, 2005
7.6mi, 61:22
The dB's, "Rains Around Here"
WX at 0700: 28 (-2), DP 23 (-5), BP 29.99 (1015), winds Calm, RH 79%
Odometer 1: 313mi
Z4 hard.
Resting heart rate before start = 59
Two day break, lots of stretching, full hydration, and what do I have to show for it? Positive splits. It started promisingly enough-- unfortunately, it would seem I didn't have enough raw strength to sustain a hard run of that speed. Or something like that. Normally I speed up in the last 1.5 and 2.5 splits, but not today.
If busting my ass gets me an overall 8:03 pace, I 've got another think coming.
On the other hand, I run markedly faster when I'm not packing snivel gear. That wasn't an option today, as the weather line will indicate.
Splits
1.5 11:47 11:47 07:51
2.1 29:06 17:19 08:15
1.5 41:13 12:07 08:05
2.5 61:22 20:09 08:04 08:03
WX at 0700: 28 (-2), DP 23 (-5), BP 29.99 (1015), winds Calm, RH 79%
Odometer 1: 313mi
Z4 hard.
Resting heart rate before start = 59
Two day break, lots of stretching, full hydration, and what do I have to show for it? Positive splits. It started promisingly enough-- unfortunately, it would seem I didn't have enough raw strength to sustain a hard run of that speed. Or something like that. Normally I speed up in the last 1.5 and 2.5 splits, but not today.
If busting my ass gets me an overall 8:03 pace, I 've got another think coming.
On the other hand, I run markedly faster when I'm not packing snivel gear. That wasn't an option today, as the weather line will indicate.
Splits
1.5 11:47 11:47 07:51
2.1 29:06 17:19 08:15
1.5 41:13 12:07 08:05
2.5 61:22 20:09 08:04 08:03
Tuesday, March 08, 2005
The War and Distant Memory
Yesterday, I found out that SFC Donald Eacho, of the 1st Battalion (Mechanized), 9th Infantry, was killed in Iraq by an IED attack. His name particularly stuck out because he was the training room NCO in my first real Army assignment. When I inprocessed an armored cavalry troop at Fort Hood ten years ago as a very young, very inexperienced, and IIRC, very immature lieutenant, then-SGT Eacho had been the guy to receive my files and inprocess me into the troop.
This is the first time that I've really known someone who showed up on casualty lists. If there are any reminders that the Army is at war, this is it. I think it was just a matter of time before it happened, but you never really expect it to happen.
About a year ago, two people who I'd only met in passing were killed by hostile fire in Iraq. I didn't know either too well, although I recognized their names from the casualty reports. This was different, as I had worked closely with then-SGT Don Eacho for about a year and a half, and saw him every once in a while after that when I moved off to the squadron staff.
The things I remember about SFC Eacho relate mostly to my immaturity as a junior lieutenant, but also to his patience and maturity as a junior sergeant.
He was a military modeler in his spare time. He had brought in a small diorama pedestal of a German Panther tank, and it was exquisite. I had massively (unintentionally) stepped on my crank by saying "I used to model when I was a kid." But not to that detail and certainly not to that level of skill.
A few months prior, tactical communications had come up in conversation in our weekly troop training meetings, and as the training room NCO, he was present at all the weekly training meetings within the troop. Somewhere along the line, I was telling him about a squad radio that I had seen before ad nauseaum and he told me, "hey sir, I know what a PRC-126 is." Turns out he had used them in his last assignment while he was at the 10th Mountain Division. My mistake. I learned from that, though.
But I remember him being an exceptionally capable noncommissioned officer, and while the other sergeants used to jokingly call him "Ea-cho-la" (in the style of the Ricola cough drop commercials), as the training room NCO, he was the track commander of the troop command post track. In addition to his garrison responsibilities running the troop training room, he kept the troop TOC straight (a function which many discount, until you need to send reports higher, which I personally learned as the executive officer for another troop some three years later), and was a good guy to work with.
Googling his name (since the last time I'd spoken to him face-to-face was in 1997) brought up an event that did not particularly surprise me. Turns out Don had saved a family from a car wreck a year or so before he went to Iraq and was recognized with the Soldier's Medal, the highest non-combat heroism award in the U.S. Army, for it.
I lose count of the number of noncommissioned officers whose formative influence shaped my development as an Army officer. I consider myself privileged to have served with Don Eacho. He was a good man, and the Army is worse for his passing.
This is the first time that I've really known someone who showed up on casualty lists. If there are any reminders that the Army is at war, this is it. I think it was just a matter of time before it happened, but you never really expect it to happen.
About a year ago, two people who I'd only met in passing were killed by hostile fire in Iraq. I didn't know either too well, although I recognized their names from the casualty reports. This was different, as I had worked closely with then-SGT Don Eacho for about a year and a half, and saw him every once in a while after that when I moved off to the squadron staff.
The things I remember about SFC Eacho relate mostly to my immaturity as a junior lieutenant, but also to his patience and maturity as a junior sergeant.
He was a military modeler in his spare time. He had brought in a small diorama pedestal of a German Panther tank, and it was exquisite. I had massively (unintentionally) stepped on my crank by saying "I used to model when I was a kid." But not to that detail and certainly not to that level of skill.
A few months prior, tactical communications had come up in conversation in our weekly troop training meetings, and as the training room NCO, he was present at all the weekly training meetings within the troop. Somewhere along the line, I was telling him about a squad radio that I had seen before ad nauseaum and he told me, "hey sir, I know what a PRC-126 is." Turns out he had used them in his last assignment while he was at the 10th Mountain Division. My mistake. I learned from that, though.
But I remember him being an exceptionally capable noncommissioned officer, and while the other sergeants used to jokingly call him "Ea-cho-la" (in the style of the Ricola cough drop commercials), as the training room NCO, he was the track commander of the troop command post track. In addition to his garrison responsibilities running the troop training room, he kept the troop TOC straight (a function which many discount, until you need to send reports higher, which I personally learned as the executive officer for another troop some three years later), and was a good guy to work with.
Googling his name (since the last time I'd spoken to him face-to-face was in 1997) brought up an event that did not particularly surprise me. Turns out Don had saved a family from a car wreck a year or so before he went to Iraq and was recognized with the Soldier's Medal, the highest non-combat heroism award in the U.S. Army, for it.
I lose count of the number of noncommissioned officers whose formative influence shaped my development as an Army officer. I consider myself privileged to have served with Don Eacho. He was a good man, and the Army is worse for his passing.
Sunday, March 06, 2005
7.6mi, 63:09
The Church, "Reptile"
Let's Active, "Every Dog Has His Day" (which has been re-released on Collectors Choice!)
For Against, "Stranded In Greenland"
For Against, "Svengali"
WX at 1800: 62 (17), DP 30 (-1), BP 29.95 (1014), wind SW 14, RH 29%
Odometer 1: 305.5mi
Z2, Z3 finish on last leg
Resting heart rate before start = 62
When I ran indoor track at St Christopher's School, one of my teammates, Gray Williams, had a not infelicitous moniker for what he related was insincere cross between walking and running. Although I don't admit to doing much wogging, that was an accurate indicator of what I did today. 7.6 miles of sluggitude recovery run is good for the soul, although after a run of this legth I'll have to go for a short easy recovery run. Today was a fat burner, but in reality, didn't really fit the training schedule. But it felt good in a guilty (if you'll believe that idiom) way.
Splits
1.5 12:25 12:25 08:17
2.1 30:13 17:48 08:29
1.5 42:42 12:29 08:19
2.5 63:09 20:27 08:11 08:17
Let's Active, "Every Dog Has His Day" (which has been re-released on Collectors Choice!)
For Against, "Stranded In Greenland"
For Against, "Svengali"
WX at 1800: 62 (17), DP 30 (-1), BP 29.95 (1014), wind SW 14, RH 29%
Odometer 1: 305.5mi
Z2, Z3 finish on last leg
Resting heart rate before start = 62
When I ran indoor track at St Christopher's School, one of my teammates, Gray Williams, had a not infelicitous moniker for what he related was insincere cross between walking and running. Although I don't admit to doing much wogging, that was an accurate indicator of what I did today. 7.6 miles of sluggitude recovery run is good for the soul, although after a run of this legth I'll have to go for a short easy recovery run. Today was a fat burner, but in reality, didn't really fit the training schedule. But it felt good in a guilty (if you'll believe that idiom) way.
Splits
1.5 12:25 12:25 08:17
2.1 30:13 17:48 08:29
1.5 42:42 12:29 08:19
2.5 63:09 20:27 08:11 08:17
Saturday, March 05, 2005
8.5mi, 73:05
George Sanger, defend mission background music from the games Wing Commander and Wing Commander 2
Jane Wiedlin, "One Hundred Years of Solitude"
WX at 1300: 66 (19), DP 39 (4), BP 29.79 (1008), winds WNW 15, RH 39%
Odometer 2: 301.5mi
Z3 steady state, almost at oxygen debt. It felt like fairly easy race pace.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading. 30 minutes after the finish = 79.
I wasn't really planning on a long run today, but given the forecast of thunderstorms and winds in excess of 25mph, I thought it might be good sense to run before the weather went south.
Not as fast as last week's, although I got home and promptly bonked out. I think sleep deprivation over the last few weeks finally caught up to me (and being outside doing airborne operations probably acted as a catalyst as well).
Splits
1.70 14:25 14:25 08:29
2.32 34:27 20:02 08:38
2.72 58:56 24:29 09:00
1.70 73:05 14:09 08:19 08:40
Jane Wiedlin, "One Hundred Years of Solitude"
WX at 1300: 66 (19), DP 39 (4), BP 29.79 (1008), winds WNW 15, RH 39%
Odometer 2: 301.5mi
Z3 steady state, almost at oxygen debt. It felt like fairly easy race pace.
Resting heart rate before start = no reading. 30 minutes after the finish = 79.
I wasn't really planning on a long run today, but given the forecast of thunderstorms and winds in excess of 25mph, I thought it might be good sense to run before the weather went south.
Not as fast as last week's, although I got home and promptly bonked out. I think sleep deprivation over the last few weeks finally caught up to me (and being outside doing airborne operations probably acted as a catalyst as well).
Splits
1.70 14:25 14:25 08:29
2.32 34:27 20:02 08:38
2.72 58:56 24:29 09:00
1.70 73:05 14:09 08:19 08:40
Friday, March 04, 2005
Jump 61, Ste Mêre Eglise DZ, A/NT and static J
Christina Milian, "Call Me, Beep Me" (Yes, it's the theme to the Disney cartoon Kim Possible. Really.)
Drop altitude 1500 feet AGL, time of drop approximately 1420
KFBG 041655Z 26007KT 7SM FEW080 11/M08 A3009 RMK SLP192
Conditions at: KFBG observed 1655 UTC 04 March 2005
Temperature: 11.0°C (52°F)
Dewpoint: -8.0°C (18°F) [RH = 25%]
Pressure (altimeter): 30.09 inches Hg (1019.0 mb)
[Sea-level pressure: 1019.2 mb]
Winds: from the W (260 degrees) at 8 MPH (7 knots; 3.6 m/s)
Visibility: 7 miles (11 km)
Ceiling: at least 12,000 feet AGL
Clouds: few clouds at 8000 feet AGL
Weather: no significant weather observed at this time
Something new for this one...aviation weather readings, which are a lot more relevant for airborne ops than the rollups in the past.
First jump in eight attempts. It's about damn time.
Today involved jumping a few lifts before I pulled my JM duty. Good exit, good verbal count, no twists, quickly gained canopy control and immediately turned into the wind. Jumping a size 4 parachute, no riser burns, no testicular squash. I missed the field landing strip by all of about 150 meters. That's a little closer than I wanted to be, but I'm glad I didn't have to turn with the wind and run with the wind. I wasn't taking any chances today since it'd been a while since I last jumped.
Had I been thinking a little differently, I would have considered steering for the turn-in point and button-hooked my approach at about 400 feet. It would've been doable today, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to take my chances with hitting the FLS. Or, for that matter, any other significantly packed pavement (like the roadway next to it).
My JM duty today, on the other hand, was nothing but money. I was paired with another JM who was a graduate of the Fort Benning JM course, but was, from what I could tell, an inexperienced JM on the Casa 212 and was a little apprehensive in the saddle. It underscores why it's good to have an active unit jumpmaster refresher/knowledge sharing program. I discussed this with the company executive officer, who agreed with the idea of having what amounts to a community of practice among the JMs in the unit (of which there are quite a few).
In any event, the spot was dead on, I had clear view of the panels, and none of my jumpers landed in the trees. All my time warnings were dead on, and one of the jumpers on the next pass mentioned "good spot" as I passed him, which was affirmation enough.
Why I was thinking of Christina Milian, I have no earthly idea...although I did read a review of the film Be Cool this morning which did mention her prominently.
All in all, a pretty good airborne day. Four more to 65.
Drop altitude 1500 feet AGL, time of drop approximately 1420
KFBG 041655Z 26007KT 7SM FEW080 11/M08 A3009 RMK SLP192
Conditions at: KFBG observed 1655 UTC 04 March 2005
Temperature: 11.0°C (52°F)
Dewpoint: -8.0°C (18°F) [RH = 25%]
Pressure (altimeter): 30.09 inches Hg (1019.0 mb)
[Sea-level pressure: 1019.2 mb]
Winds: from the W (260 degrees) at 8 MPH (7 knots; 3.6 m/s)
Visibility: 7 miles (11 km)
Ceiling: at least 12,000 feet AGL
Clouds: few clouds at 8000 feet AGL
Weather: no significant weather observed at this time
Something new for this one...aviation weather readings, which are a lot more relevant for airborne ops than the rollups in the past.
First jump in eight attempts. It's about damn time.
Today involved jumping a few lifts before I pulled my JM duty. Good exit, good verbal count, no twists, quickly gained canopy control and immediately turned into the wind. Jumping a size 4 parachute, no riser burns, no testicular squash. I missed the field landing strip by all of about 150 meters. That's a little closer than I wanted to be, but I'm glad I didn't have to turn with the wind and run with the wind. I wasn't taking any chances today since it'd been a while since I last jumped.
Had I been thinking a little differently, I would have considered steering for the turn-in point and button-hooked my approach at about 400 feet. It would've been doable today, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to take my chances with hitting the FLS. Or, for that matter, any other significantly packed pavement (like the roadway next to it).
My JM duty today, on the other hand, was nothing but money. I was paired with another JM who was a graduate of the Fort Benning JM course, but was, from what I could tell, an inexperienced JM on the Casa 212 and was a little apprehensive in the saddle. It underscores why it's good to have an active unit jumpmaster refresher/knowledge sharing program. I discussed this with the company executive officer, who agreed with the idea of having what amounts to a community of practice among the JMs in the unit (of which there are quite a few).
In any event, the spot was dead on, I had clear view of the panels, and none of my jumpers landed in the trees. All my time warnings were dead on, and one of the jumpers on the next pass mentioned "good spot" as I passed him, which was affirmation enough.
Why I was thinking of Christina Milian, I have no earthly idea...although I did read a review of the film Be Cool this morning which did mention her prominently.
All in all, a pretty good airborne day. Four more to 65.
5.0mi, 41:35
The Church, "Reptile"
The 5,6,7,8's, "Woo Hoo"
Petula Clark, "Downtown" (I have no idea why.)
WX at 0700: 23 (-5), DP 21 (-6), BP 30.09 (1018), winds WSW 2, RH 92%
Odometer 1: 298mi
Z3
Resting heart rate before start = no reading.
Today didn't seem too cold until I started running on the side of the road facing traffic going about 45 mph. Oops.
Today's run was Slow, slow, slow. Preceded by 160 pushups (in blocks of 40, 40, 30, 30, 20, 20) and 100 situps (one block). I even stretched. I'll see where the improvement is in a week and decide if I need to change up somewhere along the line.
Today should break the streak of not jumping. Winds are supposed to be under 10mph, visibility unlimited, clear and sunny. If I don't jump today, I'm gonna have a raging case of the ass!
Splits
2.5 20:59 20:59 08:24
2.5 41:35 20:36 08:14 08:13
The 5,6,7,8's, "Woo Hoo"
Petula Clark, "Downtown" (I have no idea why.)
WX at 0700: 23 (-5), DP 21 (-6), BP 30.09 (1018), winds WSW 2, RH 92%
Odometer 1: 298mi
Z3
Resting heart rate before start = no reading.
Today didn't seem too cold until I started running on the side of the road facing traffic going about 45 mph. Oops.
Today's run was Slow, slow, slow. Preceded by 160 pushups (in blocks of 40, 40, 30, 30, 20, 20) and 100 situps (one block). I even stretched. I'll see where the improvement is in a week and decide if I need to change up somewhere along the line.
Today should break the streak of not jumping. Winds are supposed to be under 10mph, visibility unlimited, clear and sunny. If I don't jump today, I'm gonna have a raging case of the ass!
Splits
2.5 20:59 20:59 08:24
2.5 41:35 20:36 08:14 08:13
Thursday, March 03, 2005
5.0mi, 41:02
Chris Stamey, "Stupid Pop-Rock Song"
The dB's, "We Gold"
WX at 0700: 23 (-5), DP 21 (-6), BP 30.06 (1017), Calm, RH 92%
Odometer 2: 293mi
Z2 first leg, Z3 last leg.
Resting heart rate before start = 60
The astute reader will see a monster negative split. I attribute this principally to doing 120 pushups, 100 situps, and a variety of ab work before starting. The hip flexors took some time to loosen up, so I'll have to take special care to stretch those since there's a physical fitness test about a month away.
This means I'll have to force myself to do this in the mornings, although it did seem to shorten some of the latent prep time before the run waiting for all the water I drank to settle.
The negative split is a pretty good indicator of overall fitness, but cutting 31 seconds per mile between the first and last splits over the exact same terrain in the exact same conditions means I'll need to work on strength some more. This means restarting the Hindu Squat regimen...
Splits
2.5 21:07 21:07 08:27
2.5 41:02 19:55 07:58 08:07
The dB's, "We Gold"
WX at 0700: 23 (-5), DP 21 (-6), BP 30.06 (1017), Calm, RH 92%
Odometer 2: 293mi
Z2 first leg, Z3 last leg.
Resting heart rate before start = 60
The astute reader will see a monster negative split. I attribute this principally to doing 120 pushups, 100 situps, and a variety of ab work before starting. The hip flexors took some time to loosen up, so I'll have to take special care to stretch those since there's a physical fitness test about a month away.
This means I'll have to force myself to do this in the mornings, although it did seem to shorten some of the latent prep time before the run waiting for all the water I drank to settle.
The negative split is a pretty good indicator of overall fitness, but cutting 31 seconds per mile between the first and last splits over the exact same terrain in the exact same conditions means I'll need to work on strength some more. This means restarting the Hindu Squat regimen...
Splits
2.5 21:07 21:07 08:27
2.5 41:02 19:55 07:58 08:07
Tuesday, March 01, 2005
5.1mi, 43:57
40 Foot Echo, "Brand New Day" (which I never would've heard had I not seen Freaky Friday with Lindsay Lohan...)
Beatallica, "And I'm Evil"
Boulder Dash. (Again.)
WX at 0700: 37 (3), DP 26 (-3), BP 29.67 (1004), winds WNW 7, RH 64%
Odometer 1: 293mi
Z2.
Resting heart rate before start = 63
I had been meaning to find a jump and found one for this morning, but chickened out based on a forecast for winds in excess of 15mph. Such weather was most certainly not present this morning, and I'm sure the manifest call for that jump was ongoing as I ran. I hope for that unit that they jump, but it's another missed opportunity.
I might have to back up my estimate another month to April because I just don't think I'll get 5 jumps this month. 3 or 4, if I'm lucky, but the rest will have to happen in April.
I had been planning on running 7, but the body was not willing. It would've been able, but it would've been ugly, and I just don't feel that mentally tough right now.
The fringe benefit is that I guess I should feel happy for running an 8:32 pace in spite of exceptional sluggitude. Still, today's the slowest run in a while.
Splits
1.5 12:48 12:48 08:32
2.1 31:17 18:29 08:48
1.5 43:57 12:40 08:27 08:32
Beatallica, "And I'm Evil"
Boulder Dash. (Again.)
WX at 0700: 37 (3), DP 26 (-3), BP 29.67 (1004), winds WNW 7, RH 64%
Odometer 1: 293mi
Z2.
Resting heart rate before start = 63
I had been meaning to find a jump and found one for this morning, but chickened out based on a forecast for winds in excess of 15mph. Such weather was most certainly not present this morning, and I'm sure the manifest call for that jump was ongoing as I ran. I hope for that unit that they jump, but it's another missed opportunity.
I might have to back up my estimate another month to April because I just don't think I'll get 5 jumps this month. 3 or 4, if I'm lucky, but the rest will have to happen in April.
I had been planning on running 7, but the body was not willing. It would've been able, but it would've been ugly, and I just don't feel that mentally tough right now.
The fringe benefit is that I guess I should feel happy for running an 8:32 pace in spite of exceptional sluggitude. Still, today's the slowest run in a while.
Splits
1.5 12:48 12:48 08:32
2.1 31:17 18:29 08:48
1.5 43:57 12:40 08:27 08:32
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