Ice Cream Blue Tongue

The boys got some treats from the ice cream man yesterday, which resulted in some cute photo ops. I particularly like Dylan's "arched eyebrow" expression - a little guy with an old soul.

Petit Jean

I love this picture!!! Nancy took it as an afterthought, but I love the image it conveys. Gavin and I are right on the very edge of the abyss with Cedar Creek canyon spread out before us. We are dwarfed by the surroundings - it captures so well the feeling of standing there looking down into the valley below.


Arkansas pleasantly surprised me and I enjoyed every moment of our visit. The scenery was at times breathtaking and I've never met such friendly people. I don't think I could have asked for more from our trip.

The morning after the marathon we had a leisurely breakfast at the hotel in Little Rock and decided to explore the capitol building before leaving town. We wandered around and inside the complex, and a friendly lady took this picture of us on the steps looking back into downtown.

After lunch we drove out of Little Rock and hit the back roads that would take us up to Petit Jean state park - our home for the next few nights. It was a scenic drive, and we stopped at Lake Maumelle for a break before getting to the park mid-afternoon.

Petit Jean mountain is named after the legend of a French girl who disguised herself as a cabin boy to accompany her sweetheart to the new world. She fell ill, died and was buried on the mountain (there's even a gravesite for her). The park itself was Arkansas's first State park and owes much of its early development to the Civilian Conservation Corp, including trail building and the impressive and rustic Mather lodge.

I can't say enough about the staff at the park. They treated us like old friends - I went to check in and pick up the keys to our cabin, and Nancy must have wondered what had happened to me because I was in there for a good 20 minutes chatting away (it seems the Welsh and the Arkansans both love to chat).

We loved our cabin - it had a wooden swing outside (which got a lot of use), and was a very cozy and romantic getaway in the woods. The first night we were there the weather turned a little cold and it rained during the night. It was wonderful to lie there watching the flames from the fireplace dance on the ceiling and listening to the rain falling on the roof.


The next morning we awoke to a beautiful new day. The rain of the previous night had given way to a wonderfully fresh morning, and I enjoyed a leisurely time drinking my coffee on the swing.

We'd earmarked the day for some hiking and headed off down the trail toward the Cedar Falls. It was a good few miles hike across some fairly technical and steep trail, but Gavin was determined to be "the leader" and once again showed he has great potential as a trail runner - I wish I had half of his balance and poise on the trails. He set a good pace which saw us pass and stay well ahead of all the other hikers, which meant we had the falls all to ourselves.


We hiked back to the trailhead, found a cafe and got some sandwiches (along with some delicious homemade butter pecan fudge) for lunch. We ate them on another trail overlooking the same falls we'd hiked to in the morning. I'd figured that Gavin would be out on his feet, but he still had a boundless supply of energy so we spent the rest of the day playing in the woods "hunting bears" around the cabin.


We ate supper at the Mather lodge which had a panoramic picture window overlooking Cedar Creek canyon, providing a spectacular backdrop to an equally impressive sunset - the perfect way to end a perfect day.

The food was pretty good fare too - and huge portions to boot!!!

We drove home yesterday, taking our time and meandering lazily through back highways, byways and twisty mountain roads. We came down through the town of Hot Springs, which had the feel of a quaint old English town and eventually connected back up to the Interstate which we followed back over the border into Texas. We got home late last night with both boys fast asleep - Gavin had managed to stay awake all day before succumbing to sleep about 20 minutes outside of Austin.

And a great homecoming present - had a letter waiting for us saying that Gavin's school transfer request (which I'd waited in line overnight for back in February) had been successful.

That put the final swirl of icing on a hugely enjoyable vacation cake.

In the Zone at the Little Rock marathon

Enjoying a beer after the race

I woke this morning with a determined calm and a feeling that it was going to be a good day. I don't know why - my foot injury and family commitments have prevented me from putting in much mileage, and I haven't run a really good fast marathon for quite some time.

But something told me this was going to be my day. Several friends had sent me encouraging emails over the last week, and I had another secret weapon I could call upon - my lucky shirt!!!

This was the $7 running shirt from Wal Mart that had seen me strongly through my first 100k, my first 100 miler and had taken me to massive PRs at both marathon and 50 mile distances. I have never run badly while wearing this shirt, and hoped it still had some magic in it.

I left the hotel to walk the mile or so to the start line and got talking with a guy called Phil who was a member of the 50 States marathon club. We chatted about this and that, and we both remarked that the temperature was worrying mild - not good for running a marathon as we expected temps to rise rapidly once the sun came up.

I got to the start line and made my way to corral B (I was seeded in a high corral based on some race results from early last year when I was running really well). I got talking to the 3:40 pace leader who was an interesting fellow. The first thing I noticed were his tatty shoes - lots of holes where his toes stuck out. Surprise surprise, he was a trail runner.

He didn't believe in negative splits, so was going to go out fast for the first half and then pull back. I figured that worked for me, so I decided to run with him for a while.

But strangely, the 8:16 pace seemed a little too easy, so after about a mile of holding myself back I took off and caught the 3:30 pacers. One of them was explaining that the course was actually 26.4 miles since to be a Boston qualified course it has to be 1% longer than the advertised 26.2. I'd never heard that before, but the 26.4 distance was borne out exactly by my Garmin.

Anyone else ever heard this?

Anyway, I ran with these guys for a few miles and was hitting 7:40-7:50 miles. I had decided beforehand not to run with any handhelds or gels, so I kept stopping at the water stops and walking through them as I drank, then chasing the pacers down again. I did this for about 3 miles before I wondered why I was doing it and decided to just run my own race.

This was the best decision of the day because I very quickly dropped into the zone. That hasn't happened for a while and it was a great feeling - that mystical place where your body and mind are completely in sync. I had a great rhythm going, and it seemed I was slightly detached from myself - just watching the pavement speed by as I ran.

I was knocking off regular 8 minute miles and they seemed extremely comfortable. According to the results page I went through 10k in 49:55, and I figured I'd just go for it until the lack of miles in my legs told.

The race passed right by our hotel at mile 8.5 and 9, but I was going much faster than I'd anticipated so Nancy and the boys weren't there yet. But they did pop up at mile 12.5 - I veered off, dispatched 3 quick kisses and was on my way again.

I was in a very chatty mood and was having a great time - I danced to the music that was playing along the course, encouraged all the early starters as I passed them, and bantered with the volunteers and the spectators.

I went through the half marathon distance in 1:46:07.

Then the hills began.

There was one in particular that started just after mile 13 and climbed solidly for 3 miles. Although my pace dropped into the 8:30s, I found that I was also reeling people in and felt very strong. I wondered again how far my legs would last, but when I reached the top there were some fun downhills that I flew down. I did my airplane impressions as I went and was enjoying myself - all smiles.

I remember one aid station in particular that was decked out in an Irish theme. I put on a stage Irish accent and called out something silly like "kiss me quick, I'm Irish".

That was the only aid station I actually stopped at, but it was well worth it!!!

At mile 18 we turned onto a straight road that was a big out-and-back. This was the worst bit of the course - I had enjoyed the challenge of the hills, but this was just boring. It went straight ahead for over 2.5 miles and never seemed to end. I'm sure my pace suffered here, just because it was so mindless. I kept telling myself "don't let it go" over and over - I synced the chant to my cadence and it kept me in the mid-8s.

I eventually hit the turnaround at mile 20.75 and the run back seemed to go by much quicker. I kept repeating "don't let it go" all the way to the finish line, except for one place.

That was at mile 25. We took a left turn and there was a big hill stretching ahead of us. I laughed and changed my chant to "you bastards"!!!

But the fishing rod was out and I was still reeling folks in. And then I realized that my legs had never given out and weren't going to - I still had plenty left in the tank and I was about to run a really good, fairly effortless marathon.

I zoomed through downtown and crossed the finish line in 3:38:28. A year ago when I was running really well, I could run a marathon and feel like I'd just done a 5k. I was pleasantly surprised to recapture that feeling.

And it felt good.

I got my super big medal and complementary beer, then met up with the family. Gavin had been a really good boy all day, and he wanted daddy to carry him back to the hotel. I was feeling great with zero soreness, so up on my back he went and we galloped away, bantering and having a great time.

I got some very strange looks from several other finishers who were doing the Frankenstein walk, but I had run a really smart race, kept my energy at a constant level and never really lit up the afterburners. I wasn't sore at all.

I really enjoyed this race, and it seemed as if the whole city had embraced it. The course could have been ready made for me - plenty of twists and turns to keep it interesting and some nice hills in the second half.

Not quite a PR, but maybe the most enjoyable marathon I've ever run - for the first time in a long while my head was completely in the game. I had fun the whole way (with the possible exception of the boring out-and-back), never bonked and really enjoyed myself. Everything about it was so well done and I'd love to come back and run it again (though as Gavin starts school this year that probably won't happen). Does make me want to sign up for another marathon though.

Kudos to the lucky shirt.

We went out for beer and pizza tonight (well, just pizza for Gavin and Dylan, though Gavin did have a sip of daddy's beer) and little Dylan is just about out on his feet, so it looks like we're in for the night.

I think we'll all sleep well tonight.

Tomorrow we leave Little Rock for our cabin in the woods at Petit Jean State park. In the meantime here are a few photos from today.

with Gavin at the hotel on race morning

Mile 12.5

relaxing with Dylan on the balcony after the race

Nancy and Dylan

Picture Perfect Day in Arkansas

"Who you looking at buddy?"

I started the morning off with a nice cup of coffee on the balcony overlooking that antebellum courtyard. Then we went to explore downtown and pick up my race packet. We walked from the hotel down to Markham, and it was amazingly quiet - it seemed like we were the only people in Little Rock.

But that changed as we walked a few more blocks East to find an energetic and bustling part of downtown. We got into the convention center for packet pickup and it was packed. I got my stuff, wandered around and ran into Steve Boone who had a booth there for the "50 States marathon" club - tomorrow is his 440th marathon (or something close to that). It was good to see a familiar face and he was delighted I was wearing my "Texas Marathon" shirt.

We had an excellent lunch in the River market and then meandered over to the marathon start/finish area. There was lots of activity going on - they had a 5k running this morning and they were also doing the finale of the Marathon kids program, so there was one big carnival atmosphere.

We found a path that led along the river and followed it to the Clinton presidential library. I wanted to go in, but Gavin was behaving like a horse's butt (which is a particularly frustrating phase he's going through), so Nancy took him on the river shuttle instead while I took Dylan into the museum.

Just as well as there wasn't much there for Gavin. But Dylan and I had a good few hours perusing the Clinton presidential exhibits and artifacts, which he seemed to enjoy exploring as much as I did. He got lots of "coos" from various old ladies which he milked to the full with a gaggle of grins, giggles and puppy dog eyes.

We met back up with Gavin and Nancy and got back to the hotel in late afternoon after a long day of walking.

I'm currently sipping Gatorade and water and I'll get my race stuff together a little later. We're going to a local Pei Wei restaurant for supper so I can have some noodles, and then it's going to be a relatively early night.

We enjoyed ourselves today - it was a picture perfect day for walking without a cloud in the sky (though it was probably a bit on the warm side for running), but I had a great time.

Here are another few photos from today.

Me and Dylan at the marathon expo

The boys in the river district

Postcard from Little Rock

Arkansas State capitol building, as seen from our hotel

I got my early morning run in this morning, and we left Austin just after 8 for the long drive to Little Rock, Arkansas. We had some drama along the way when a rogue plank of wood on Interstate 30 hit one of our front tires, resulting in a large gash in the side that started leaking air like a farting elephant (and probably sounded about the same). Fortunately I managed to get to a Firestone and they replaced the tire for us.

Very lucky indeed.

Other than that, the trip went very well and it didn't seem as if I'd driven over 500 miles. We kept the radio off most of the way and the time flew by as we played games and chatted. It was a fun road trip.

And I've been very impressed with what I've seen of Arkansas so far. It was wonderful to drive down the highway through canopies of trees (reminded me a little of home), and the countryside is very charming. We stopped at the "Arkansas welcome center" a few miles inside the State line on IH-30 - it is set in a rustic old house with a huge fireplace. It was enchanting and very well done.

They also gave us free coffee which helped!!!

The hotel we're staying at in Little Rock is right in the center of downtown, about 4 blocks from the State capitol (and not far from the marathon start line). It's a lovely old hotel that's been designated a historic building, and has welcomed such famous faces as Muhammad Ali, Richard Dreyfuss, Al Gore, Woody Harrelson, and of course former President Clinton and the missus.

The decor reminds me very much of New Orleans - there's a grand piano in the lobby and we have a balcony that I'm looking forward to drinking my morning coffee on. It overlooks a wonderful antebellum courtyard that Gavin and I found our way into this evening.

Tonight we drove around and explored the city a little. We circled the capitol building which is beautifully lit - the dome looks almost ethereal by night. It seems wider than it's Texas equivalent, though nowhere near as tall. They are both breathtaking in different ways.

Tomorrow is packet pickup and hopefully we'll get to explore the city a bit more. The weather forecast for Sunday's race is a high of 67 and a low of 47, so it's looking good.

I'm feeling excited about running - I just wish I had enough miles in my legs to pull a fast race.

Who knows, maybe I'll surprise myself.

Ten for Tuesday

Started a new Tuesday tradition today with an early morning 10 mile run. Started at 4:30am, and it took me 1 hour and 25 minutes - a nice relaxed 8:30 pace. I took the "accidental" route I found a few weeks ago, and got back home in good time. It was cold but nice - there was a beautiful full moon and it felt like the morning belonged to me. I think "Ten for Tuesday" will become a regular feature of my spring/summer training.

After Saturday's 14 miles of hills, I hammered 10 miles of the Austin half marathon course on Sunday (another hilly route). A year ago that would have been a medium effort workout, but my legs were quite sore yesterday. So it was a nice surprise that I felt so good this morning. Heading up to Walnut Creek with a buddy after work for another 6 miles.

I guess I'm just not that good at this taper lark (though God knows I need the miles). Still, I have a plan to give myself a speed boost for the marathon on Sunday - I'm going to get my hair cut!!!