Jump 52, Ste Mere Eglise DZ, A/NT

Drop altitude 1250 feet AGL, time of drop approximately 1030.
WX at 1100, 75/24, DP 60/16, winds NE 12, clear. RH about 70%.

Today was supposed to be a jump from a Black Hawk helicopter, but it was being repaired. Thus, it turned into the usual Casa 212 kind of jump. No problem.

Harbinger O' Bad Juju: Two days prior to the jump, I had a dream of watching two jumpers come out of an airplane and have cigarette rolls. For the uninitiated, a cigarette roll occurs when the canopy fails to open combined with a spin, causing the parachute to not inflate and instead, rotate along itself, making it look like a giant joint. Couple that with the usual result of the parachute actually catching on fire (from wind-induced friction on nylon) and you have a very short margin of error to deploy your reserve before you "streamer into the ground," as the expression goes. It's not quite "burning in," which is to impact at terminal velocity because you have nothing but your fat ass to retard your downward flight, but it might as well be.

In Reality: Today was a goddamn windy jump! I stutter-stepped on the ramp going out because I didn't want to catch the preceding jumper's static line, but in doing so, I bumped off the side of the tailgate and spun out the plane, causing me to have twists in my suspension lines. It took me a little longer to get canopy control than some of the others, though.
I knew something was going to be up when I saw guys noticeably drifting in the air at altitude. This is a baaaaaaaaaaad sign, although the true determinant is winds at surface level. Initially, there were almost none, but that was not to be for my particular chalk.

As I descended towards the ground, at a very noticeably faster speed than last time, same drop zone, same type parachute, I passed over the flight landing strip (FLS). This was probably a good thing. If there's something I didn't want to land on, it was hard-packed dirt capable of taking the stresses of a plane. The upshot is that if I was going to drift to my rear in spite of the forward penetration of 9 knots by a MC1-1 series parachute, there was still enough wind to send me backwards at about 2-3 knots). The last thing that came to mind as I was about to hit was "damn, the ground is coming up fast."

I knew it was going to be bad when I had to activate my canopy release assembly to recover from the drag. I landed hard and started getting dragged along the pack tray by my reinflating parachute. I wouldn't have guessed 12 knots from the NE. I'm wondering if there was a gust right before we hit. Either way, one thing is certain - properly executed, parachute landing falls work. Correct execution of one saved my ass at Charleston AFB on jump 32, some four years ago, when I landed on asphalt rigged with a rifle and assault pack. I was trying to get away from the runway and landed on the white stripe. Literally.

The one good thing about today is that I landed in open ground and took very little time getting my parachute stuffed in its aviator's kit bag. I then ran across the FLS as fast as I could get with 68 pounds of parachute over my back, which leads me into the next point:

Dufus Patrol: Apparently some dudes thought it might be easier to get back to the assembly point by walking on the FLS. That's fine, but when an airplane with its two turboprop-driven spinning food processors is attempting to land, the first thing that came to mind was "move your ass, you stupid motherfucker." The airplane did three very visible climbs on final approach to avoid Cuisinarting guys who had just landed and were rolling the dice (by walking on the live FLS) with any potential contributions to the gene pool.

estimate 5.7mi, 53:19

Hans Zimmer, "Gortoz A Ran J'Attends"

WX at 0600: 68/20, DP 66/19, BP 30.16/1021, winds NNE 2 mist, RH 93%

Odometer 1: 70mi

Z1 until the last 1.4 split, which I clocked in 12:21.

For a run where I felt like utter and complete shit, that's a quicker-than-expected final split. I'm almost wondering whether it's because I went out so easy. About 36-38 minutes into the run, I started picking up my second wind, so I was either burning fat (possible, but probably not), or I had finally warmed up. The last part of the 1.4 split was done probably at Z4 starting uphill, leveling back to Z3 on the approach back to my start point. Chances are if I'd caught my relative pace before 8:30 into the split that I probably would've made it under 12:30.

7.2mi, 61:12

Chris Stamey, "Stupid Pop-Rock Song"
Inspiral Carpets, "Gimme Shelter"
Chris Stamey and Peter Holsapple, "I Want To Break Your Heart"

Odometer 2: 28mi

WX at 0700: 73/23, DP 71/22, BP 29.88/1011, winds SSW 6, RH ~94%

Z3-Z4. I hadn't run since Sunday, and it showed - taking the last few days off not running (or for that matter, not doing anything physical) allowed me to run the fastest splits I've run in a while...until the end.

The word that comes to mind is "craptacular," because it damn near was--to the point where I almost turned back to take care of business. The last split is misleading because I had to stop to walk on two instances.

First time in a while I've run positive splits, though:
1.4: 11:58 [8:32/mi]
2.0: 29:00 (17:02) [8:31/mi]
1.4: 41:08 (12:08) [8:40/mi]
2.4: 61:12 (20:03) [8:21/mi]

approximate 9 miles, 71:46

Descendents, "My Dad Sucks"
Descendents, "Coolidge"
G.F. Handel, Alla Hornpipe from Water Music
Corrosion of Conformity, "What(?)"
Corrosion of Conformity, "Negative Outlook"

I have no idea what sparked my outbreak of Descendents songs!

Odometer 1: 64mi

WX at 0700 in Calabash NC: 72/23, DP 70/21, BP 30.05/?, winds N 5, RH 94%.
Overcast at start with clearing by the end.

Z3 throughout. Relatively steady-state run at the limit of oxygen debt with one hell of a kick at the end. I would conservatively estimate I was going about 7:00 or below in my last mile. Today's course was very flat, but I'm currently in the coastal plain, so that might have something to do with it. No hills equates to no drag going uphill, so today's run was going to be fast. Why I was able to kick with as much speed as I did at the end, I'm not sure. I think that energy would've been better spent up front since I only need those kind of finishing kicks at the end of races...and I haven't raced in a while.

4.8mi, 48:26

Goo Goo Dolls, "Just The Same Old Reason"
Goo Goo Dolls, "Hate This Place"
James Horner, "Hymn"
R.E.M., "Driver 8"

Odometer 1: 55mi

WX at 0700: 62/17, DP 62/17, BP 30.16/1021, winds NNE 5, RH 100% but it sure didn't feel like it today. Weather was just about perfect. It doesn't get much better than it did today.

Z1 throughout. I very nearly slept in. There were two factors at work in today's abbreviated run. The first was that most nights this week I was getting around 4-6 hours of sleep. Normally this is not a big deal. I routinely go off 5 hours without a hitch. I routinely don't go 7.2 miles for four days in a row getting that kind of rest, however. The other, of course, is mileage. I think I might've come close to overtraining and probably would have had I attempted to grind out a 7.2mi at what I thought should've been an appropriate pace.

The lesson here is to listen to your body. I have a heart monitor, but I need to get the batteries replaced in it before I can start using it again. That might not be a half-bad idea in the coming weeks.

Splits were slow as to be expected from a Z1 run.
1.4: 14:08
2.0: 34:16 (20:08)
1.4: 48:26 (14:09)

Jump 51, Ste Mere Eglise DZ, A/NT

I realized that there's one other thing I attempt to do frequently, and that's falling out of planes. When I think of the huge folklore that exists in the airborne community of fucked-up jump stories, I realized this afternoon that maybe I should start logging mine as well. I'm pretty sure I'll never jump into combat, so I don't have to worry too much about that one.

With that introduction out of the way, my goal is to get to 65 jumps before I leave my current job so I can get master parachutist rated. I'd really like to get them out of the way before the end of the calendar year but I don't think I'll make it quite that quickly. In the interests of operational security, I'm leaving unit identities out of these narratives.

I am including in my title the type of jump as it gets entered in my jump log.
A/NT = administrative, nontactical
CE = combat equipment
MT = mass tactical
T = tactical
N = night
J = jumpmaster

Drop altitude 1250 feet AGL, time of drop approximately 1430.
WX at 1400, 80/27, DP 60/16, winds NE 10, clear. RH about 70%.

What makes today's jump stand out was my discussion before boarding the plane about how I always fall like a rock. Today I ended up catching a temperature inversion and watched most of the rest of my stick land as I undertook the slowest descent I've ever had in any parachute, ever.

As an indicator of just how slowly I was descending, I watched the guy who had exited in front of me land as I continued to descend, some six hundred feet above him. I've never had occasion to pull both toggles of my main at once until today. Normally, that's not a very good idea; most of the time the last thing I need to do is to reduce the size of the canopy and its attendant drag. Doing so is called "dumping air" for a reason - it makes you fall faster. While I had a slow descent, I hit harder than I usually do for an MC1-1D parachute.

7.2mi, 65:46

W.A. Mozart, Symphony No. 41 in C major, Molto allegro
W.A. Mozart, Symphony No. 40 in d minor, Andante
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Russian Easter Overture
Ludwig van Beethoven, Symphony No. 3 in E flat major, Scherzo, Allegro molto

Odometer 2: 21 mi

WX at 0700: 66/19, DP 64/18, BP 30.16/1020, winds ENE 3 mist, RH 93%

Z2 throughout. This is a goddamn recovery run! Splits follow:
1.4: 13:20
2.0: 32:08 (18:48)
1.4: 44:50 (12:42)
2.4: 65:46 (20:55)

Based on these times, my body is starting to break down (gradually). This is okay so long as I don't do anything really ambitious or dumb. I think in a week or two there will be a more significant turnaround, so I may continue this experiment into next week...after taking a day off at minimum. If my body were really starting to break down I don't think times would be what I got today on relatively moderate effort.

I think my work over the last month has given me enough foundation where I can now sustain this without worry of really overtraining. The aggregate mileage this week would've been problematic had I not had a solid mileage base to work from.

This still doesn't address my general lack of raw speed. That'll take speedwork, which I don't relish. That'd make me white meat, not dark.

7.2mi, 62:44

Journey, "Only The Young" (jwer, this one's for YOU!)
Goo Goo Dolls, "Hate This Place"
Cub, "Voracious"

Racing shoes today for time trial...which wasn't much of one. Estimated racing shoe odometer is around 20.

WX at 0500: 73/23, DP 71/22, BP 30.10/1019, winds variable 2, drizzle. RH 100%.

Z3-Z4 mostly. I think three days of 7.2 back to back is starting to take its toll, but on the bright side, I dropped below 179 for the first time in over a year. This is significant as the weight at which I don't have to get taped for body fat percentage.

I always like to have a few extra pounds below just as insurance, but the intense pain of trying to get down to that weight (the last time I weighed 170 was after four months in Kuwait of running 35 miles a week, seven years ago) implies industriousness that I sometimes just don't have.

Today reiterates the philosophy that racing shoes are almost as much mental as physical. They are lighter, at the cost of foot protection (although I have pretty normal biomechanics). The mental boost I get just from wearing them is significant in itself. There's some value to feeling faster because of wearing a pair of funky fresh shoes that weigh less than 7 ounces. The most insane shoe I ever wore in that regard was the Nike Duellist, which I wore for a season of indoor and outdoor track in 1989. The Duellist weighed 5.1 ounces. They were also completely trashed and for all intents and purposes, squashed flat by the middle of spring track. I had transitioned back to cross-country spikes by the end of that season, which may have paid off when I got tapped to run the 4x800m relay and ran a 2:23 PR. Yeah, I'm that slow. Bite me.

On the other hand, if I can sustain running 7.2 regularly, versus the 7.2/4.8 on-off cycle I've been doing, I may realize that goal with comparatively easy effort.

Tomorrow needs to be a day of intense sluggitude, much like yesterday.

Splits:
1.4: 12:14
2.0: 29:40 (17:25)
1.4: 42:11 (12:31)
2.4: 62:44 (20:32)

7.2mi, 70:52

Bel Canto, "Unicorn"
The Delphines, "I Want You The Way I Want You (Not How You Are)"
The Reputation, "The Stars of Amateur Hour"
Jay Semko, "Due South Theme '97"

Odometer 1: 50mi

WX at 0600: 71/22, DP 69/21, BP 30.02/1016, winds W 1 fog, RH 94%

Today was easy, easy, easy. Z1 almost throughout. Day two of the 7x5 experiment continues.

Splits:
1.4: 14:06
2.0: 35:46 (21:39)
1.4: missed the split
2.4: 70:52 (22:33)

7.2mi, 63:21

New Model Army, "Running in the Rain"
Throwing Muses, "Mania"
New Order, "Dream Attack"
The Go-Go's, "Vacation"

shoe odometer 2: 14mi

WX at 0700: 73/23, DP 71/22, BP 29.70/1005, winds WSW 21, light rain showers, RH 94%
Actual winds were attenuated by surface cover.

Z3 throughout. I waited too long in the morning to start, but nonetheless caught the tail end of Tropical Depression Gaston. I like running in the rain, but the winds were deceptively low at ground level. Stronger maybe than usual since I took a day off between runs, but I think this coming week will mark an increase in mileage to see if I can sustain a week of 7 milers back-to-back. We'll see. With a physical fitness test coming in a month or so, I need to start doing some more deliberate speed work, which I of course, eschew because, well, it hurts.

My usual trend of progressively negative splits continue:
1.4: 12:46
2.0: 30:53(18:07)
1.4: 43:34 (12:41)
2.4: 63:21 (19:48)

7.2mi, 63:51

Some Girls, "Just Like The First Time"
"Jester" from the computer game Terminal Velocity
Juliana Hatfield, "My Enemy"

New shoes to alternate. Asics Gel-Cumulus V, last of the model year. Odometer 2: 7mi

WX at 0700: 68/20, DP 66/19, BP 30.06(1017), winds calm, RH 93%.

Relatively indistinguished run with one key observation-- which is that I suffer greatly on hills unless I have some momentum from going downhill or from sustained level ground.

Doing some hip-pocket analysis, it would imply that I need to do more strength training since I don't seem to have a lot of issues with endurance beyond that indicator.

Whether I'll get off my fat ass and actually hit the weight room is debatable, of course.

4.8mi, 46:14

The Lemonheads, "Tenderfoot"
Corrosion of Conformity, "Holier"
Velocity Girl, "One Word"
Little Red Rocket, "Back to Where I Started"

WX at 0700: 71/22, DP 69/21, BP 30.15/1020, winds NNE 2, RH 94%

shoe odometer: 43mi

After yesterday's run, I guess I should've expected to feel as utterly shitty as I did this morning. I very nearly slept in, but I need to actively break myself of that habit. I haven't ever felt as slow as I did today, and the splits reflect:

1.4: 14:01 (14:01)
2.0: 32:54 (18:52)
1.4: 46:14(13:20)

Of course, it's one thing to cognitively know you're going slower than 9 min/mi, and yet another to realize it at the gut level.

7.8mi, 68:30

Throwing Muses, "Drive"
Throwing Muses, "Saving Grace"
theme music to Most Extreme Elimination Challenge
The Connells, "Fun and Games"

WX at 1300: 80/27, DP 69/21, BP 30.19/1022, wind NNE 8, haze, RH 69%.

Z2-3 no man's land with some walking. I'm inclined to discount the 7.8mi measurement because I don't think I could go almost 8:30 pace for almost 8 miles and still feel as goddamn slow as I did.

Almost entirely hills and sand, which is why I'm even more leery of saying 8:30 pace.

I've been more or less tapering (not for any good reason) since I jumped yesterday and decided to not work out later.

4.1mi, 35:03

Stabbing Westward, "Bizarre Love Triangle"
Inspiral Carpets, "Gimme Shelter"
The Cure, "Lament"

WX at 1300: 82/28, DP 64/18, BP 30.13/1020, winds ENE 6. RH unavailable at the time, but it was probably in excess of 85%. First afternoon run in a while. While I wasn't tight from just having woken up, the heat more than compensated.

Z2+ combined with heat, dirt, and some sizeable hills made for a run that felt faster than it actually was.

No projected run tomorrow since I have yet another parachute jump in the morning.

estimate 10 mi, 1:29.53

Morrissey "Irish Blood, English Heart"
Morrissey, "Suedehead"
Theme music to the (ancient) computer game M.U.L.E
The Bats, "Courage"
Mike Oldfield, "Moonlight Shadow"
Corrosion of Conformity, "What(?)"

WX in Richmond VA at 0600: 61, DP 61, BP 30.10r, winds calm, RH 100%

Shoe odometer: 38mi

Slow start at Z2, Z3 finish. I ended up breaking some brush unintentionally but based on perceived effort and time, my best guess is 10 or so.

Jump 50, Ste Mere Eglise DZ, A/NT

No run today.

I did get a nice view of Raeford, NC before doing my first-ever jumpmaster pass exit from 3,000 feet above ground level with a MC1-1D parachute.

Literally every other jump I've done is from 1500, 1250, or most commonly, 800 feet AGL.

Jumping from any of those altitudes just doesn't prepare you for a descent measured in minutes (rather than a minute or two if you're lucky), in a steerable parachute.

There are times I feel apprehensive about jumping out of planes. That apprehension almost always goes away as soon as I'm out of the plane. There are times I think I might miss this, and maybe doing colossally fucking stupid, yet intensely entertaining activities like static line parachuting shouldn't be part of my job description, but it sure is fun, and by god, I even get paid extra to do it.

4.8mi, 45:48

The Goo Goo Dolls, "Naked"
The Goo Goo Dolls, "Girl Right Next to Me"
The Goo Goo Dolls, "Another Second Time Around"
BT, "Somnambulist"

WX at 0600: 71/22, DP 71/22, BP 30.07(1018), winds SW 6 mist, RH 100%

Shoe odometer: 28mi

There are days for recovery runs, and today was it. I felt like crap, mostly because of sore hip flexors from yesterday's trail run. Most of the lactate was worked off by the end of the run by my legs were still smoked. Z1 continuous. No regrets.

Splits:
1.4: 13:37 (13:37)
2.0: 32:38 (19:01)
1.4: 45:48(13:09)

potential relook of times

According to MrSID and imagery of the area, my 4.8 route is actually more like 5.2. If that's the case, the times aren't nearly so glum as they might entail, for competition.

This is probably worth a GPS trace to see how far off the computer's estimate really was.

estimate 7.2mi, 69:01

William Ackerman, "New England Morning"
Michael Manring, "Hopeful"
Chris Stamey, "14 Shades of Green"

WX at 0600: 68/20, DP 68/20, BP 30.07/1018, winds NNE 3 fog. RH 100%

The big difference between yesterday's and today's 100% relative humidity was the killing fog. Today's start was slower and more sluggish than usual.

This is a deceptive time if only because I spent about 6 minutes thrashing through the woods trying to find a bypass to a pond that's not really bypassable. I wasn't dressed to go cutting through heavy forest, so I decided to cut it back.

The majority of this run (about the middle 4mi of it) was over dirt and sand. While this slows me down a lot, my knees feel better and I still got a lot of work in due to the conditions. My form tends to be efficient to make up for lack of raw power (which might reflect itself in my abject lack of leg speed), so if I'm not running on pavement, I suck.

5.0mi, 44:52

Antonio Vivaldi, Allegro from Violin Concerto in A minor
Body Count, "Bowels of the Devil"
Juliana Hatfield, "Get Off Your Knees"
Background music to start menu of the computer game MechCommander

WX at 0600: 62/17, DP 62/17, BP 30.16/1021, calm, mist. RH 100% supposedly but I didn't feel that way.

Shoe odometer: 23mi

Generally easy run, but getting markedly faster toward the end.

Splits:
1.4: 13:06
2.0: 30:58 (17:51)
1.4: 42:57 (11:59) (note a 1:07 negative split!)
.2: 44:52 (1:55)