0.72+3.8mi, 6:03+49:49, 30 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: None

WX at 15:53 Calm 10.00 Overcast OVC016 63 55 76% NA NA 29.97 1014.6

Odometer 12A: 51.2mi

Z3 high ingress, Z1 remainder. Average/max heart rate = no reading

Running with the Elder. She ran her fastest 5k yet. I probably need to wear older shoes since running this slow in shoes as light as the Neo33s is probably not a good idea.

Splits

SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
0.72 06:03 06:03 08:24 08:24 0.72

SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 10:57 10:57 10:57 10:57 1.00
1.00 23:21 12:24 12:24 11:40 2.00
1.00 35:50 12:29 12:29 11:57 3.00
0.09 36:57 01:07 12:24 11:57 3.09
0.72 49:49 12:52 17:52 13:05 3.81

4.61mi, 40:22, 30 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink:
Bob Mould, "Paralyzed"
Brian Tyler, "Downtown Tokyo Chase"

WX at 06:53 NW 5 0.50 Light Drizzle Fog/Mist OVC002 53 53 54 53 100% NA NA 29.98 1015.0

Odometer 11C: 281.8mi

Z3-Z4. Average/max heart rate = 152/176

Hey, negative splits!

I woke up surprisingly easy for having gone to sleep late last night. I needed to get in a run but it was raining yesterday and I had dissertation work to do, so I didn't run until today.

I can feel it in the knees, though. This is a dilemma of sorts. I don't want to fork out for another pair of shoes right away as I am still unsure about how long the Neo33s will last me, and the one thing I notice right away is how much less stability they provide in the heel. In the long run, that might be a good thing, but switching between two different styles of shoes is certainly jarring. Strangely enough, my knees feel better with the less stable shoes (Neo33s vs. GT-2160s) although a function of that could be the comparative age of the shoes too.

Splits

SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 08:52 08:52 08:52 08:52 1.00
1.00 17:45 08:53 08:53 08:52 2.00
1.00 26:29 08:44 08:44 08:50 3.00
1.00 35:07 08:38 08:38 08:47 4.00
0.61 40:22 05:15 08:36 08:45 4.61

3.72mi, 34:58, 28 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: MxPx, "I Will Follow"

WX at 19:53 NE 10 10.00 Overcast FEW036 OVC050 64 52 65% NA NA 29.96 1013.9

Odometer 12A: 46.7mi

Z3-Z4. Average/max heart rate = 157/167

I should have run earlier in the day, but today was the Fort Leavenworth yard sale and the fuckwit factor was unusually high. We ate an early dinner, so by the time I was out, it had been maybe two hours after I ate and I waddled out with a stomach full of chow. Awesome.

I wasn't intending on going for a zone 4 intensity run, but it hurt more than I expected. I was gauging it on basic speed. Tomorrow needs to be an easier run.

The Elder was supposed to run, but she sandbagged. I did not approve.

Splits

SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 09:07 09:07 09:07 09:07 1.00
1.00 18:26 09:19 09:19 09:13 2.00
1.00 27:28 09:02 09:02 09:09 3.00
0.72 34:58 07:30 10:25 09:24 3.72

3.12mi, 44:13, 27 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: none.

WX at 15:53    SE 24 G 37    10.00    Overcast and Breezy    BKN030 BKN050 OVC120    61    42             50%    NA    NA    29.73    1006.3          

Odometer 11C: 274.2mi

Z1.  Average/max heart rate = no reading.

Running with the Elder.  Or walking, mostly.  She is not breathing very hard but complains about her legs being dead.  That's an indicator of lack of training, or lack of pain threshold.  I was walking after about the 1.25mi point.

Splits
SGMT    AGGRG    SEGMT    PERMI    AVGPC    DIST
3.12    44:13    44:13    14:10    14:10    3.12

4.03mi, 31:33, 27 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: The Chills, "Heavenly Pop Hit"

WX at 08:53 E 24 G 37 10.00 Overcast and Breezy FEW060 OVC110 56 44 65% NA NA 29.92 1012.5

Odometer 12A: 43.0mi

Z4. Average/max heart rate = no reading.

I was helping administer a PT test. The guy I was grading has a permanent profile and can't run, so he warned me to find something to do for the 32-some minutes he would take to walk 2.5mi. I figured I'd go get in a hard run on the outer lane of the track, which was remarkably consistent once I got past mile 2. The hardest mile is between 1 and 2 when my saved energy has worn off but I haven't warmed up yet.

I attribute the iThink to watching this last night:

I've been a longtime fan of the Bats, but never quite got into the Chills in quite the same way. Yay YouTube. And yay Flying Nun Records.

Splits

SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST

0.42 03:12 03:12 07:37 07:37 0.42

0.42 06:32 03:20 07:56 07:47 0.84

0.40 09:47 03:15 08:08 07:53 1.24

0.40 13:03 03:16 08:10 07:57 1.64

0.41 16:19 03:16 07:58 07:58 2.05

0.40 19:29 03:10 07:55 07:57 2.45

0.41 22:40 03:11 07:46 07:56 2.86

0.40 25:50 03:10 07:55 07:55 3.26

0.42 29:02 03:12 07:37 07:53 3.68

0.35 31:33 02:31 07:11 07:50 4.03

4.61mi, 42:39, 25 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink:
The Replacements, "Bastards of Young"
Above and Beyond feat. Oceanlab, "On A Good Day"
Hans Zimmer, "Budget Meeting"
Brian Tyler, "Downtown Tokyo Chase"
Immediate Music, "Imperitum"

WX at 08:53 SW 16 G 23 10.00 Partly Cloudy FEW120 SCT250 71 57 61% NA NA 29.57 1000.3

Odometer 11C: 271.1mi

Z3-Z4. Average/max heart rate = 151/173

Man, my knees hurt, and I think it is the shoes. Nothing yesterday, so I had to run today. Okay, but not great.

I am not encouraged that my knees hurt like that after only 270 miles on these shoes. Maybe it's a function of mechanics.

The iThink is very much a function of playing this a lot lately, which another poster on YouTube has called the most epic FS2 mod mission ever. I'd agree with that.

Google seems intent on forcing Blogger users to use their new douchey, space-wasting UI by killing the old UI this coming month. That's going to pretty much lick my ass raw. Oh well. You get what you pay for.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 09:31 09:31 09:31 09:31 1.00
1.00 18:50 09:19 09:19 09:25 2.00
1.00 28:05 09:15 09:15 09:22 3.00
1.00 37:10 09:05 09:05 09:17 4.00
0.61 42:39 05:29 08:59 09:15 4.61

A eulogy for a fellow planner

Captain Dan Utley was killed in a vehicle accident in Mali on April 20, 2012.

I was extraordinarily fortunate to have shared Dan's professionalism, skill, work ethic, sense of humor, and above all, his friendship, if only for the short time that we (and his wife Katie) worked together as members of the Combined/Joint Task Force-101 Joint Plans Group.

I've written about when a certain staff director pulled the plug on his directorate’s participation in writing the second framework order that Combined/Joint Task Force-101 wrote during my Afghanistan tour from 2008-2009. Never mind that the civil affairs directorate was normally responsible for writing the (economic) development concept of operations for the framework order. It didn’t matter, because as I learned, I could trust that senior officer about as far as I could throw him.

Dan was the one military member of the CJ9 directorate who came to the CJ5 directorate to voice his displeasure. He was as pissed off as I was when he was told by someone three paygrades senior to him to stop working on the order. He had no choice - and felt like he was turning his back on the people in the Joint Plans Group. We understood - and knew he would more than make up for it later on. He was a captain, and a junior one at that, when he was in the JPG. It didn’t matter. He punched so far above his weight class as a planner that we were glad to have him on any project we worked. He made every group he worked with better, and I save that praise for extraordinarily few planners.

Dan gave me his copy of Tucker Max’s I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell about midway through the tour. I will, of course, keep my copy of that book in perpetuity. That was a much-needed comic break from what was, as I look back at the pages of this blog from February 2008 to April 2009, a very, very bleak period of my life.

We are all lessened with his passing. Rest in peace, Dan.

For the record, that makes 15. Dan is the second whose death was in the line of duty but not in combat. And the war grinds inexorably on...

0.75mi+3.57mi, 5:29+47:20, 23 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: none

WX at 15:53 W 8 G 16 10.00 Fair CLR 65 34 32% NA NA 30.09 1018.7

Odometer 12A: 39.4mi

Z4 ingress, Z1 remainder. Average/max heart rate = 130/152

Running with elementary school kids requires a degree of patience that I am not sure I have in sufficient quantity lately.

I have to remember that my approach to training kids can't be "keep up or you're on your own." A lot of it is that some of these kids have never had to work very hard. Welcome to the world.

This validates why I don't teach kids. I do not think they would react well to the immortal reminder I heard while running through Area J when I was still in the 82d SS Fallschirmjaeger Division: "MOVE, FATASS, GET YOUR FUCKING ASS UP THE HILL." And god bless the airborne infantry.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
0.75 05:29 05:29 07:19 07:19 0.75

SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
3.57 47:20 47:20 13:16 13:16 3.57

4.58mi, 39:20, 23 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: Men at Work, "Overkill"

WX at 06:53 NW 8 10.00 Partly Cloudy SCT250 38 36 44 37 93% 32 NA 30.22 1023.4

Odometer 12A: 35.1mi

Z3 start, Z4 hard finish. Average/max heart rate = 155/172

The weather doesn't get much better than it does today. I went out and progressively sped up. Works for me. I'll see how bad my knees feel tonight.

I realized I have significantly increased mileage over the last two weeks. Time to see what happens.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 08:41 08:41 08:41 08:41 1.00
1.00 17:37 08:56 08:56 08:48 2.00
1.00 26:19 08:42 08:42 08:46 3.00
1.00 34:36 08:17 08:17 08:39 4.00
0.58 39:20 04:44 08:10 08:35 4.58

2.0mi, 28:41, 22 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: All-American Rejects, "Move Along"

WX at 14:53 N 13 G 25 10.00 Overcast FEW040 OVC050 56 38 51% NA NA 30.16 1021.2

Odometer 11C: 266.5mi

Z1. Average/max heart rate = no reading

Easy run with the Elder. My knees hurt. At least I got in 13 (7 and 6) pullups.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
2.00 28:41 28:41 14:20 14:20 2.00

4.31mi, 40:12, 22 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: MxPx, "I Will Follow"

WX at 08:53 NW 13 G 23 10.00 Partly Cloudy SCT031 SCT048 50 38 63% 45 NA 30.11 1019.3

Odometer 11C: 264.5mi

Z2-Z3. Average/max heart rate = 147/163

Easy run after yesterday. After yesterday afternoon's 3.1 slow run, I needed something to get the pain out of the knees since I spent most of yesterday afternoon range walking, not running.

The easy 4.3 helped.

I have managed to reactivate my old UI in Blogger...I'll see how long that lasts.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 09:22 09:22 09:22 09:22 1.00
1.00 18:58 09:36 09:36 09:29 2.00
1.00 28:23 09:25 09:25 09:28 3.00
1.00 37:30 09:07 09:07 09:22 4.00
0.31 40:12 02:42 08:43 09:20 4.31

3.12mi, 41:15, 21 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: nothing.

WX at 15:53 W 12 10.00 A Few Clouds FEW100 66 39 29.96 1014.3

Odometer 11C: 260.2mi

Z1. Average/max heart rate = no reading

I was walking most of this one, as I was running with the Elder. The Elder was running at her speed, and I guess my walking speed has increased, since I was holding mostly a 13:00/mi walking speed. Or something like that.

The Blogger new editor interprets text differently. I do not like it. I guess you get what you pay for. It still fucking blows.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 12:40 12:40 12:40 12:40 1.00
1.00 25:58 13:18 13:18 12:59 2.00
1.00 39:36 13:38 13:38 13:12 3.00
0.12 41:15 01:39 13:45 13:13 3.12

5.0mi, 42:08, 21 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: Iron Maiden, "Aces High"

WX at 07:53    S 7    10.00    Partly Cloudy    SCT120 SCT250    43    38             30.05    1017.6           

Odometer 12A: 30.7mi

Z4.  Average/max heart rate = 160/179

Today was just past oxygen debt for relative effort.  I am running off some schadenfreude.  I probably won't get through all of it, as much I have of it, but today sort of helped.  Somewhat.

I ran generally negative splits (mile 3 is mostly uphill) so today was well spent, especially after not running yesterday.

I guess it was inevitable.  Blogger's somewhat douchey new UI has forced me to convert.  I get some keyboard shortcuts back, but I am old-fashioned and I don't like UI changes.  It's also why I don't like Windows Aero, among other things.

Splits

SGMT    AGGRG    SEGMT    PERMI    AVGPC    DIST

1.00    08:41    08:41    08:41    08:41    1.00

1.00    16:57    08:16    08:16    08:28    2.00

1.00    25:29    08:32    08:32    08:30    3.00

1.00    34:00    08:31    08:31    08:30    4.00

1.00    42:08    08:08    08:08    08:26    5.00

4.6mi, 38:59, 19 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: background music from this. Yes, really. It's in the back of my head anyway, nobody else is hearing it.

WX at 05:53 S 15 10.00 Mostly Cloudy FEW085 SCT150 BKN250 60 51 29.86 1010.5

Odometer 12A: 25.7mi

Z4. Average/max heart rate = 156/184

Today went surprisingly fast, although I felt like complete dogshit when I started. The second mile usually goes down hard, but from there on out, it was nothing but negative splits, especially near the end. I'll admit my last mile I was trying to burn guys I was passing.

Better than I expected. I have low expectations.

Splits

SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST

1.00 08:38 08:38 08:38 08:38 1.00

1.00 17:22 08:44 08:44 08:41 2.00

1.00 25:57 08:35 08:35 08:39 3.00

1.00 34:03 08:06 08:06 08:31 4.00

0.60 38:59 04:56 08:13 08:28 4.60

3.1mi, 29:49, 17 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: Origa - "Aney, Unborn Child"

WX at 06:53 SE 9 10.00 A Few Clouds FEW150 48 42 52 47 30.29 1025.6

Odometer 11C: 257.1mi

Z3. Average/max heart rate = 146/190 I don't buy the 190 MHR reading.

Nothing fast today. My legs were too beat after the hard run in and policing up runners yesterday.

The iThink is from the FreeSpace SCP add-on campaign Blue Planet: War in Heaven. Count me in the camp of people who say it is the best FS:SCP campaign, ever.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 09:31 09:31 09:31 09:31 1.00
1.00 19:28 09:57 09:57 09:44 2.00
1.10 29:49 10:21 09:25 09:37 3.10

0.73mi + 4:42mi, 5:11 + 44:27, 16 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: Dead Kennedys, "This Could Be Anywhere"

WX at 15:53 W 12 10.00 Partly Cloudy SCT060 63 38 30.15 1020.7

Odometer 12A: 23.2mi

Z5 start. Z3 midway. Z1 remainder. Average/max heart rate = no reading.

Playing volunteer cross-country coach for the kids at MacArthur Elementary School again today. I ran with the leaders and then went back to get all the kids as they straggled in. They are getting better.

I felt okay, surprisingly enough.

I have to wonder how long my Gel-Neo33s will last as I can already see they are a bit more flexible than I'm normally used to having. I like it - they ride very well - but the proof'll be in a few weeks after these are broken in for real.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
0.73 05:11 05:11 07:06 07:06 0.73

SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
4.42 44:27 44:27 10:03 10:03 4.42

Disconnected

Maybe I should be concerned if I have this song on one-song infinite repeat?

Note to self: Figure out some other father-daughter bonding event than something that is organized by the Fort Leavenworth parishes, especially when I've been a diehard atheist for the last 25 years. It's great to be a heretic when the guy up front says "let us pray."



Fuck it all.

3.9mi, 37:55, 15 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink:
Metallica, "St. Anger"
Metallica, "Damage, Inc."

WX at 08:53 S 24 G 35 10.00 Overcast and Breezy FEW095 SCT120 OVC180 66 57 29.50 998.0

Odometer 12A: 18.0mi

Z3. Average/max heart rate = 141/157

My legs hurt like a motherfucker, but I needed to get a run in. Running with the Elder is good for her, but it tears my knees up. There is nothing that says "today's run is going to lick my ass raw" like a throbbing pain in both knees at the start.

"St. Anger" is not the best iThink out there, but it sure as hell fit today. Maybe I should go to the gym and lift to get some of this rage out.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 09:52 09:52 09:52 09:52 1.00
1.00 19:20 09:28 09:28 09:40 2.00
1.00 29:36 10:16 10:16 09:52 3.00
0.91 37:55 08:19 09:08 09:42 3.91

The extent of my rage

Odometer 11C: 256.5mi. Z1-Z2 low run with older daughter.

My rage continues unabated. I have a notion why, but nothing I'm ready to write publicly yet. It's an indicator when this video is on single-song infinite repeat as I work on the dissertation:



I could cite something as facile as the Johns Hopkins lacrosse team imploding at Homewood in front of a sold-out crowd today, but that's not the real reason.

I have not had this kind and duration of sustained boiling rage since I returned to my house from combat three years ago.

and I want my anger to be healthy
and I want my anger just for me
and I need my anger not to control
yeah, and I want my anger to be me
and I need to set my anger free..

I had returned to my residence, but whether I returned home is debatable.

3.1mi, 30:17, 13 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: Immediate Music, "Lacrimosa Dominae" but really should've been Metallica, "St. Anger"

WX at 08:53 S 18 G 26 9.00 Overcast OVC015 56 53 29.83 1010.0

Odometer 12A: 14.1mi

Z3 low. Average/max heart rate = 145/172

Easy run after yesterday's redline session.

I am 40 years old today. That the only song that comes to mind today is Metallica's "St. Anger" speaks volumes. Yes, I am aware of its low status among the Metallica faithful. That's not the point, of course.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 09:44 09:44 09:44 09:44 1.00
1.00 19:48 10:04 10:04 09:54 2.00
1.10 30:17 10:29 09:32 09:46 3.10

2.38mi + 5,000m on Concept2 Model E, 21:03 + 22:04.4, 12 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink:
50Foot Wave, "Hot, Pink, Distorted"
Iron Maiden, "Aces High"

WX at 07:53 SE 13 10.00 Overcast BKN050 OVC065 46 31 30.15 1021.1

Odometer 11C: 254.0mi equivalency.

Z4 run in, Z3 initial row to Z5 finish, Z4 run back. Average/max heart rate = 151/179 overall.

I ran much faster than I expected to today going in, although I was trying to run down someone who, as it turns out was going the same speed I was moving.

I hoped for a more controlled erg, and did so for about the first 4000m, holding the heart rate around 145-150. Then I was thinking about two things I'd seen recently:





Then I was reminded of the troops I had sent to their death four years ago and decided that sometimes it's good to erg the Concept2 at full bore because the alternatives are unacceptable. The last 1000m was one of those days where I took the entire last 1000m at Z5 intensity, which I could tell when my working heart rate, rarely much over 171, was holding steady at 177-179. It is the first zone 5 workout I've done in years.

I ran back to the house faster than I intended, but I had a fucking white-hot case of the ass. Three years after coming back from a combat zone, I am still angry.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST AHR MHR
1.19 09:58 09:58 08:23 08:14 1.21 159 171

Distance: 5000
Time: 22:04.4
Avg/500m: 02:12.4
Drag Factor: 106
Per Mile: 00:07:06
AHR/MHR: 149/179

SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST AHR MHR
1.19 21:03 11:05 09:19 08:42 2.42 155 179

4.99mi, 42:05, 11 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: Above and Beyond feat. Oceanlab, "On A Good Day"

WX at 05:53 NE 10 10.00 Fair CLR 39 22 30.28 1025.5

Odometer 12A: 11.0mi

Z4. Average/max heart rate = 157/175

For going the speed I did today, I didn't feel like I was working as hard as I should. That means I'm either getting faster, or there's something about the Gel-Neo33s (aside from flexibility and a lower heel drop) that is making me go faster for relative effort.

I was particularly gratified to see generally even pace, relative to terrain. Mile 5 was particularly fast, but I was closing on finish, and went hard.

I felt surprisingly good today, which is good since I slept thru most of my alarm snoozes.

The weather was also a contributing factor - another great day for a hard run.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 08:38 08:38 08:38 08:38 1.00
1.00 16:59 08:21 08:21 08:30 2.00
1.00 25:30 08:31 08:31 08:30 3.00
1.00 34:04 08:34 08:34 08:31 4.00
0.99 42:05 08:01 08:06 08:26 4.99

And now it all makes sense...

(Milan) "Kundera defined kitsch as “the absolute denial of shit,” meaning it offers an airbrushed, sterilized, sentimentalized view of the world. From that, it doesn’t necessarily follow that art wallows in shit, but art doesn’t exist for the primary purpose of denying it, either. Kitsch is, first and foremost, a lie; its very existence is founded on bad faith."

And in this piece on Thomas Kinkade, in Salon, I realize this is why most of the shows on the Disney Channel that target my daughters make me want to kill infants and the elderly with my bare hands.

3.11mi, 30:13, 9 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: Sounds of SWC, "What Ya Gonna Do, PL?"

WX at 06:53 NE 6 10.00 Fair CLR 44 38 51 43 30.18 1022.0

Odometer 11C: 251.1mi

Z2. Average/max heart rate = 139/161

My legs felt like crap today, as I expected. I am paying off my burner of a run yesterday.

It was coming. On the bright side, I saw a formation run today, a memory of my professional salad days when I used to enjoy doing those things.

Hey, negative splits!

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 09:55 09:55 09:55 09:55 1.00
1.00 19:38 09:43 09:43 09:49 2.00
1.11 30:13 10:35 09:32 09:43 3.11

6.01mi, 51:08, 8 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink:
Michael Hedges, "All Along the Watchtower"
Immediate Music, "Lacrimosa Dominae"


WX at 07:53 Calm 10.00 Fair CLR 40 35 30.40 1029.7

Odometer 12A: 6.0mi

Z4. Average/max heart rate = 153/178

I am disinclined to trust the average HR reading as I caught my heart rate monitor reading 100 while I was holding down 8:30/mi. I am pretty confident the battery is starting to go out - it is 4 years old.

New shoes today, a pair of ASICS Gel-Neo33s. The shoes look a bit fruity but they feel pretty good and because of their lowered heel drop, they feel more responsive. I'll reserve judgment until I have about 100 miles on them, but today, they feel pretty good.

Based on pacing, I felt surprisingly good for as fast as I was going. There were stretches that I felt pretty capable of holding 7:45/mi in gentle downhill, and the last two miles speak to one hell of a negative split. Today's weather was also a contributing factor as it was near-perfect running weather today. I should've jettisoned snivel gear, but no matter. Today wasn't intended as a time trial, but turned into one of sorts.

I might have found a new set of shoes to pull me away from the ASICS GT-series shoes I've been running in most of my running life (starting from the GT-II in 1988 going all the way through the GT-2170s that are the 11C shoes) I'll see whether my knees feel the same way tomorrow.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 08:45 08:45 08:45 08:45 1.00
1.00 17:12 08:27 08:27 08:36 2.00
1.00 25:51 08:39 08:39 08:37 3.00
1.00 34:33 08:42 08:42 08:38 4.00
1.00 42:47 08:14 08:14 08:33 5.00
1.01 51:08 08:21 08:16 08:30 6.01

3.04mi, 43:57, 7 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: none.

WX at 10:53 SE 12 9.00 Light Rain OVC028 53 46 30.13 1020.1

Odometer 11C: 248.0mi

Z1. Average/max heart rate = no reading.

A lot of walking today. Ran/walked with the elder's rampup for a 5k. She is discovering that she will need more work to get up long uphills.

So be it. Z1 only as I did not even break a sweat. I wanted to go, but for a variety of reasons, not the least of which was domestic inertia, I didn't get in a real run. If I don't get it in early in the day, it won't fucking happen. So be it.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 12:07 12:07 12:07 12:07 1.00
1.00 26:50 14:43 14:43 13:25 2.00
1.04 43:57 17:07 16:28 14:27 3.04

4.6mi, 40:46, 6 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: Bob Mould, "If I Can't Change Your Mind" (cover of his own Sugar song)

WX at 08:53 E 16 10.00 A Few Clouds FEW250 47 33 30.18 1022.1

Odometer 11C: 245.9mi

Z4. Average/max heart rate = 163/178

Harder than it felt, but that's partly because of today's magnificent weather. I can't think of more glorious running weather than what I had today.

My knees still hurt, but not as much after mile 3.

Mostly negative splits, but I didn't feel very great today.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 09:04 09:04 09:04 09:04 1.00
1.00 18:04 09:00 09:00 09:02 2.00
1.00 26:50 08:46 08:46 08:57 3.00
1.00 35:27 08:37 08:37 08:52 4.00
0.60 40:46 05:19 08:52 08:52 4.60

Record APFT, 286 points, 4 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: MxPx, "I Will Follow"

WX at 05:53 NE 12 10.00 Mostly Cloudy SCT060 BKN110 56 52 29.80 1008.7

Odometer 11B: 340.0mi equivalency
Odometer 11C: 241.3mi

Z4 high. Average/max heart rate = no reading

It occurred to me that part of the reason my knees hurt the last few days is that my shoes (11B) might possibly be worn out.

The barometer of this will be later today if my knees hurt after running in today's shoes (11C) which don't have as much mileage on them.

The selection of the same iThink as my last PT test was unintentional.

I did, however, run markedly faster this time than last, and to run 15:13 was pretty gratifying given the utter absence of any speedwork from my life. I did more pushups and situps too.

It is instructive to note that the last time I scored above 290 on a PT test was at Fort Campbell, 4 1/2 years ago. I was doing more regular PT, still harbored ambitions of attending Air Assault School, and would like to think I had better living habits then. It is perhaps sad to think that I would be happy running 15:13, because I always expected to run faster than that.

It is also possible that I am getting older, but that doesn't explain the general malaise of the last few years, at least not physically.

Splits
80 pushups, 80 situps, 15:13 2-mile run, 7 pullups

SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 07:34 07:34 07:34 07:34 1.00
1.00 15:13 07:39 07:39 07:36 2.00

3.74mi, 5:43 + 35:04, 2 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: Cub, "Go Fish"

WX at 15:53 S 14 G 23 10.00 Fair CLR 86 56 29.65 1002.8

Odometer 11B: 337.8mi

Z4 ingress, Z2 remainder. Average/max heart rate = no reading

I wanted to get a little grindwork in, so I went in full bore as a starter. Probably not very bright, but right now, I don't give a fuck.

Next 2.27mi were running with some elementary school kids as a parent volunteer, and the last .74 was with E coming home. I hadn't thought about the Cub song in going on 13 years - I listened to it a lot when I was a young captain on temporary duty here at Fort Leavenworth back in 1999.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
0.73 05:43 05:43 07:50 07:50 0.73
1.00 16:28 10:45 10:45 09:31 1.73
1.00 28:04 11:36 11:36 10:17 2.73
0.27 31:51 03:47 14:01 10:37 3.00
0.74 40:47 08:56 12:04 10:54 3.74

What I brought back from combat

When I came back from Afghanistan, I didn't want to talk about it much because I wasn't in a close combat specialty, and I had nothing that smacked of a near-death experience.

I found, though, that I took the casualty reports a lot more personally than I probably should've. Part of that was because of my role as primary author of the campaign plan and framework orders that sent those troopers to their deaths.

When your people die, and you don't, you feel guilty. I have a hard time listening to people going into combat, and as a onetime joint planner, I felt guilty. That's not something that makes much sense since nobody shot at my fat ass. It probably won't, but I have a very, very hard time controlling it.



In spite of the fact that this isn't from my war and not from my organization, I had a really hard time listening to this. If I didn't feel some pangs of guilty conscience though, I would wonder if I'd lost something far more important.

Happy April Fools' Day, bitches

This is so goddamn evocative for how I feel about a great many things in my life these days.

4.6mi, 43:02, 1 APR 12, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas

iThink: The XX, "Intro"

WX at 09:53 S 10 8.00 Partly Cloudy FEW012 SCT250 71 65 29.66 1003.6

Odometer 11C: 239.1mi

Z3. Average/max heart rate = 152/169

Recovery run today. I was at the Kansas State Odyssey of the Mind competition yesterday in Manhattan, Kansas. I spent most of the day packmuling stuff for the girls, so I was effectively walking around almost all day with a light fighting load. My knees felt it yesterday, but my legs really felt it today.

Nothing excessively easy, but nothing particularly hard, especially as I will take my PT test on Wednesday. I am confident I will blow out the first two events, the run is the only question mark. I predict about the same as last time, so about a 285 if I do well.

And for those who think today is a good day for practical jokes...this picture says it all.

Splits
SGMT AGGRG SEGMT PERMI AVGPC DIST
1.00 09:26 09:26 09:26 09:26 1.00
1.00 18:41 09:15 09:15 09:20 2.00
1.00 27:53 09:12 09:12 09:18 3.00
1.00 37:19 09:26 09:26 09:20 4.00
0.60 43:02 05:43 09:32 09:21 4.60