7.8mi, 67:57, 31 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 109 of the campaign.

iThink: Morrissey, "Seasick, Yet Still Docked"

WX at 2130: 77 (25) DP 26 (-3) BP 29.94 (1014) N 20 RH 15

Odometer 2: 158.8mi

Z3 mid.
Average heart rate = 160

This is perimeter run 20.

I wasn't planning on anything ambitious, but I did mean to run the perimeter of the base today. Today was a pretty relaxed run with one of my coworkers, but the 20 mph wind was a hindrance at times - and at other times a hell of an aid. It was no accident that I was holding 8:30 pace for a few miles with a 20mph tailwind.

The heart monitor was another check of proof to see whether I was making headway or not. I was able to do a much better job of gauging relative effort based on heartrate and that was a valuable tool.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 09:09 09:09 09:09 09:09 1.00
1.00 18:16 09:07 09:07 09:08 2.00
1.00 27:02 08:46 08:46 09:01 3.00
1.00 35:43 08:41 08:41 08:56 4.00
1.00 44:12 08:29 08:29 08:50 5.00
1.00 52:46 08:34 08:34 08:48 6.00
1.00 61:24 08:38 08:38 08:46 7.00
0.78 67:57 06:33 08:24 08:44 7.78

3.0mi, 24:40, 29 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 107 of the campaign.

iThink: The JudyBats, "Always"

WX at 0830: 71 (22) DP 33 (1) BP 29.94 (1014) SSE 5 RH 24

Odometer 3: 44.7mi

Z3 high.

Short run, little time, but I probably needed it. I slept in more than I thought I would, so I was planning on running more, but I don't really have the time.

So, short run is better than no run. Much of the positive split on mile 2 versus the massive negative split on mile 3 was due to a before-and-after pit stop I had to take along the way.

And so it goes...

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 08:22 08:22 08:22 08:22 1.00
1.00 16:54 08:32 08:32 08:27 2.00
1.00 24:40 07:46 07:46 08:13 3.00

7.8mi, 62:32, 26 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 104 of the campaign.

iThink:
"The All-American Soldier"
Anberlin, "Cold War Transmissions"
Dan Latarski and Kim Nagel, title music to the 1990 computer game Stellar 7

WX at 1830: 60 (16) DP 48 (9) BP 30.03 (1017) NNW 15 light rain showers RH 63

Odometer 3: 41.6mi

Z4.
Average heart rate before start = 163

Today's the first run I decided to strap on the heart rate monitor, and it was pretty good. I don't trust the reading I got from it - there is no way I was running in zone 5 for almost 28 minutes, so I guess it's worth recalibrating so long as I find a max heart rate test somewhere out there.

This is the coolest day in a while - and I was running in driving rain, which I always like. I ran an unintentional PR today - not thinking that I was going to do one, but I did. There are reasons why I like running in the rain, but it's always therapeutic when I do.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 08:07 08:07 08:07 08:07 1.00
1.00 16:26 08:19 08:19 08:13 2.00
1.00 24:24 07:58 07:58 08:08 3.00
1.00 32:37 08:13 08:13 08:09 4.00
1.00 40:31 07:54 07:54 08:06 5.00
1.00 48:37 08:06 08:06 08:06 6.00
1.00 56:45 08:08 08:08 08:06 7.00
0.78 02:28 05:43 07:20 08:02 7.78

Even from Afghanistan, we want more

Awesome. Truly, truly, awesome.

Johns Hopkins pulls off quite possibly the biggest upset in NCAA lacrosse history by beating Duke 10-9.

After the most disastrous losing streak in Hopkins lacrosse history, the Blue Jays are advancing to the final game against Syracuse who upset Virginia in two overtimes after not even making the tournament last year.

And the best part...is that I got to watch it live on satellite TV, even though I'm sitting in Afghanistan.

We want more!

4.0mi, 33:57, 24 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 102 of the campaign.

iThink: "Cart Surfer" from Club Penguin (A Disney MMORPG. Really.)

WX at 0730: 68 (20) DP 55 (13) BP 29.94 (1014) SSE 2 RH 64

Odometer 2: 151.0mi

Z3 high-Z4.

Quick run to get done before something I gotta attend at 8:00am!

A little jerky start - but I think it will pay dividends. I was starting to stretch it out at the finish - although I was starting to tighten up around the midpoint...and after a brief pit stop, it was a lot better.

My hamstrings are still pretty tight. It might also help if I actually stretched, too.

Still, if I can keep this up, I can finally get back to something approximating a regular running habit. This day on-day off running schedule is probably not doing me any favors.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
2.00 17:12 17:12 08:36 08:36 2.00
0.79 24:16 07:04 08:57 08:42 2.79
1.22 33:57 09:41 07:56 08:28 4.01

7.8mi, 69:40, 23 May 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 101 of the campaign.

iThink:
Kutless, "Somewhere In the Sky"
Chris Stamey, "16 Shades of Green"

WX at 0130: 68 (20) DP 53 (12) BP 29.88 (1012) Variable 2 RH 59

Odometer 3: 33.8mi

Z2-3.

Today was very deliberate wogging. I did not try to go fast, I deliberately started slow, like marathon pace.

Not surprisingly, I ran smoother, and ran continuously negative splits, and actually had a relatively fast, for the most part effortless finish.

Now I have the munchies. Yes, the time on the weather is correct, I really was running at 1:30am here.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.17 10:58 10:58 09:22 09:22 1.17
1.83 28:02 17:04 09:20 09:21 3.00
1.46 41:06 13:04 08:57 09:13 4.46
2.09 59:35 18:29 08:51 09:06 6.55
0.76 66:05 06:30 08:33 09:02 7.31
0.45 69:40 03:35 07:58 08:59 7.76

6.0mi, 51;24, 21 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 99 of the campaign.

iThink: Kutless, "Somewhere in the Sky"

WX at 0730: 73 (23) DP 23 (-5) BP 29.88 (1012) NW 5 RH 15

Odometer 2: 147.0mi

Z3-4.

Crunched against a deadline = fast run. Or, more likely, as fast as I can go, which is not all that fast lately.

My hamstrings are sore and rather tired, so I'm tapering from here on out...since I have a physical fitness test in a few days.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.18 09:55 09:55 08:24 08:24 1.18
1.82 25:31 15:36 08:34 08:30 3.00
1.82 41:19 15:48 08:41 08:34 4.82
1.17 51:24 10:05 08:37 08:35 5.99

4.0mi, 34:19, 20 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 98 of the campaign.

iThink:
Sonny Rhodes, "Ballad of Serenity" (yes, the Firefly theme song)
Bear McCreary, "Storming New Caprica"

WX at 0830: 69 (21) DP 26 (-3) BP 29.97 (1015) WNW 6 RH 19

Odometer 3: 26.0mi

Z4.

Slow start, quicker finish, all negative splits, a good sign overall. I am going off CrossFit if I'm killing myself just to hold an 8:30 pace at the start, though. My legs are still dead tired.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.01 08:53 08:53 08:48 08:48 1.01
1.00 17:19 08:26 08:26 08:37 2.01
2.02 34:19 17:00 08:25 08:31 4.03

7.8mi, 68:55, 18 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 96 of the campaign.

iThink:
The Bats, "Courage"
Kim-Lian, "Kids In America"

WX at 0830: 80 (27) DP 25 (-3) BP 29.91 (1013) 16G25 RH 13

Odometer 2: 141.0mi

Z3.

Yep, you read that right, 16 mph gusting to 25 mph. This is something different - running straight headlong into a 25 mph headwind. That is suck, although probably not as much suck as killing yourself just to run a 9 minute mile.

I suspect I'm going to taper off CrossFit for a few days as my legs are totally dead. Dead, dead, dead.

On the other hand, it was useful to have the Forerunner 305 to give me an idea of just how slow I'd gotten.

Still, this was worth the run.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
7.76 68:55 08:55 08:53 08:53 7.76

2.0mi hash, 39:52, 15 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 93 of the campaign.

iThink: none.

WX at 2230: 71 (22) DP 28 (-2) BP 30.03 (1017) N 20 RH 20

Odometer 1: 252.0mi

Z2.

The wogging I did this morning was easy money, and for a good reason, actually.

Today marks the first time I decided to try using technology on trail for real - and it was actually fairly rewarding. I received a Garmin Forerunner 305 in the mail, and I must admit the thing works like a champ compared to my old Timex Speed+Distance Ironman watch.

This is the first time I've been able to divine distance quickly, just for curiosity's sake.

On hashing - this was a good trail. It did a great job of keeping the pack together, and more importantly, it didn't sacrifice the trail for punishment. This is the shortest trail I've run in a long while, but it did most of what it was intended to do - and frankly, that's the best thing about a hash. It's certainly not about the competitive aspects that aren't supposed to exist!

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
2.04 39:52 39:52 19:33 19:33 2.04

4.1mi, 38:00, 15 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 93 of the campaign.

iThink:
Juliana Hatfield, "When You Loved Me"
James Horner, "Genesis Countdown"


WX at 0830: 75 (24) DP 33 (1) BP 30.00 (1016) SSE 3 RH 22

Odometer 3: 22.0mi

Z2-3.

After last night's grind, I decided four miles of easy wogging was in order, so I did. Today's run was to do one thing - burn lard, and do nothing else.

It also provided some time for reflection, which I don't usually get at the workplace because the pace is a mite nutty lately.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
2.05 19:11 19:11 09:21 09:21 2.05
2.05 38:00 18:49 09:11 09:16 4.10

4.0mi on elliptical, 30:05, 14 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 92 of the campaign.

iThink: Tommy Keene, "Alta Loma"

WX at 2330: 71 (22) DP 30 (-1) BP 29.97 (1015) W 6 RH 22

Odometer 2: 133.1mi

Z4 by heart rate.
Average heart rate ~ 160.

I decided to weenie out and not run tonight at night...so I decided on doing four relatively fast elliptimiles. I was pleasantly surprised at the speed - although I know it's not necessarily correlative with run speed. I started going at about 7mph, and once I was warmed up, I realized that going 9.5-10mph was not as hard on the elliptical as I thought...so I cranked on.

4.1mi, 34:52, 13 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 91 of the campaign.

iThink: Tommy Keene, "Alta Loma"

WX at 0930: 77 (25) DP 32 (0) BP 30.03 (1017) NNW 5 RH 19

Odometer 2: 129.1mi

Z3 high.

Today was pleasantly nice for a run - so I decided to go for a run...after sleeping through three alarms.

Still, I needed a break from doing CrossFit, especially after 120 pull-ups (of varying levels of poor quality) and 120 dips (of equally shoddy extension).

One of my gripes about CrossFit is the relative lack of aerobic work - and I don't have the latitude to do two PT sessions a day most of the time.

So I ran today - because I have to. The fact that I thought I was moving out and only going 8:30 pace is pretty sad.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
2.05 17:27 17:27 08:31 08:31 2.05
2.05 34:52 17:25 08:30 08:30 4.10

7.8mi, 69:01, 11 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 89 of the campaign.

iThink:
background music to the game Puppy Luv (my kids have this game)
Anberlin, "Cold War Transmissions"
The Bats, "Courage"
Michael Kamen, Band of Brothers Suite 2
Armor for Sleep, "Frost and Front Steps"

WX at 1830: 78 (26) DP 14 (-10) BP 29.91 (1013) NNE 15G32 RH 8

Odometer 3: 16.9mi

Z3.

The slowing trend continues - although I knew I had accumulated enough sleep to sleep through three separate alarms last night - which is, in my opinion, a dangerous level of tiredness.

Today's CrossFit also involved a fair number of squats, so it's no accident my legs were tired.

I still needed to burn lard, so I ran. The Asics GT-2130 trail shoes did not feel as smooth as I'd once thought. Some of it might be socks, but some of it may be that it's the second time I've worn these shoes and the conditions, based on prevailing winds, were borderline hostile. It is very little accident I was running progressive positive splits as I spent a good chunk of the last three miles running into the wind. When it's 15mph gusting to 32, it's a little more than I normally like.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 08:59 08:59 08:59 08:59 1.00
2.00 26:30 17:31 08:46 08:50 3.00
2.73 50:40 24:10 08:51 08:51 5.73
2.05 69:01 18:21 08:57 08:52 7.78

7.8mi, 68:53, 9 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 88 of the campaign.

iThink: Kutless, "Somewhere in the Sky"

WX at 2359: 55 (13) DP 32 (0) BP 29.97 (1015) WNW 7 RH 40

Odometer 2: 125.0mi

Z3.

I was unable to get much beyond steady state. My legs are too tired from lack of sleep, combined with heavy lifting, with inconsistent running.

The few times I get to run, it's slow and painful, although I think my really irregular sleep hours have something to do with it. I need to run, but eating dinner at 8:30pm means that I have to wait a few hours before it settles - and there is no time otherwise in the day to do it. The alternative is that I wake up early - and I can only burn the candle at both ends before things start to go very, very wrong.

When there are people in combat who will have to execute the orders I write, I owe it to them to do the best work I can. Period.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 09:01 09:01 09:01 09:01 1.00
2.00 26:31 17:30 08:45 08:50 3.00
4.78 08:53 42:22 08:52 08:51 7.78

1.0+7.8mi, 66:05, 7 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 85 of the campaign.

iThink:
The All-American Rejects, "11:11pm"
The Bats, "Courage"

WX at 2230: 64 (18) 33 (1) 30.00 (1016) SSW 6 RH 31

Odometer 3: 9.0mi

Z5, then Z3.

Today's CrossFit was supposed to be 4x880yd. I got through two with the most colossal side stitch I've ever had. That might follow for doing speedwork only a mere 45 minutes after dinner, but I don't like skipping meals and I need to work out. I got through two at a pathetically slow 4:00 and 4:30, and then gave up and ran almost 8.

I almost woofed and I have bad hiccups. I gotta eat earlier.

For all the pain involved in CrossFit, I am getting stronger. I ran faster off less effort because my legs and other musculature was stronger. Can't argue with that.

On the bright side, I really like my new Asics GT-2130 Trail shoes!

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
3.00 25:35 25:35 08:32 08:32 3.00
4.78 66:05 40:30 08:28 08:30 7.78

6.0mi, 52:45, 4 May 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 82 of the campaign.

iThink:
Tears for Fear, "Snatches of Pain" (curiously appropriate)
Journey, "Only the Young"
Stan Getz, Joao Gilberto, Antonio Carlos Jobim, "The Girl from Ipanema"

WX at 0830: 69 (21) DP 39 (4) BP 29.97 (1015) NNW 5 RH 32

Odometer 2: 117.1mi

Z3/4.

All the CrossFit I've been doing has one side effect - my legs are completely dead. I was killing myself just to hold this pace today because I have no power in my quadriceps or calves.

Yesterday involved similar amounts of heavy lifting, mostly involve barbell jerks and presses. My legs, however, were also involved, but I think most of it is because of the 300 squats I did two days ago.

This is transitory, I suspect, but it didn't make for a very enjoyable run in some ways.

The other thing I don't like about waking up early and running right away is that it takes me a little while to hydrate, and there are few things less enjoyable than running with a completely dry mouth.

I know it's going to be a rough one when the only mantra in the last two miles of this run is "The Girl from Ipanema," which roughly equates to my "get through it" background tune.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
3.00 26:11 26:11 08:44 08:44 3.00
3.00 52:45 26:34 08:51 08:48 6.00

heavy lifting + ~1mi, time indeterminate, 2 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 80 of the campaign.

iThink: Armor for Sleep, "Frost and Front Steps"

WX at 2030: 71 (22) DP 26 (-3) BP 29.85 (1011) S 6 RH 18

Odometer 2: 110.1mi

Z4.

How can only one indeterminate mile be a zone 4 workout?

Try 100 pullups, 200 pushups, and 300 squats first. I am frankly surprised that I didn't woof. Thus goes another CrossFit workout - although it seems to work and I'll hopefully reap the benefits in a few weeks. Or something like that.

In the meantime, it's time to get more than 3 hours of sleep. I have noticed that the jet fighters near my hooch don't wake me up in the middle of the night when I'm already asleep. Whee.

Distance indeterminate, time indeterminate, 1 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 79 of the campaign.

iThink: "The All-American Soldier" (Yes. I have no idea why.)

WX at 2130: 71 (22) DP 19 (-7) BP 29.97 (1015) N 17 RH 14

Odometer 1: 250.0mi eqivalent

Z3.

Nothing like haring a hash run that turns into a rout - I had to go to ground to avoid getting bagged. I did successfully recover and finish the run. It was messy, but most importantly, people had fun, so that was by far the most important part.

I was haring with El Gato and the unnamed coworker tonight. Good times! It was good fun, seriously.

Lesson learned: route selection, route selection, route selection. Actually, once I was warmed up, running was easier than I thought!

I don't think I've ever been in a place where the relative humidity was so low. Egad.

In the meantime, I call home and listen to my house getting hit by coin-sized pieces of hail. Nice.

4.1mi, 36:41, 1 MAY 08, Bagram, Afghanistan

Day 79 of the campaign.

iThink: Kutless, "Somewhere in the Sky"

WX at 0800: 66 (19) DP 33 (1) BP 30.06 (1018) WNW 6 haze RH 29

Odometer 2: 109.0mi

Z3.

Today is one of those singularly bizarre days that I woke up after only about four hours of sleep and for whatever reason or another felt completely rested - to the point where I felt froggy to go for what is now a fairly rare morning run.

It doesn't change that there's a big difference between running at night and running during the day - and I like running at night because there's less traffic, less dust, and perhaps more significantly, I'm not running under the sun.

The alternate explanation is that CrossFit is actually working for me, sort of.

This will be one of two runs today - another rarity, which I probably need to start doing again. I suspect I'll be haring tonight since it's been two weeks since the last hash here and I think they need an experienced hare.

This has to be at least marginally safer than the last run I did, though...

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
2.05 18:20 18:20 08:57 08:57 2.05
2.05 36:41 18:21 08:57 08:57 4.10